A boat propelled by the force of the waves

[Targol]

TOKYO (AFP) - A Japanese environmental sailor will try to cross the Pacific Ocean with a boat built partly from recycled material and whose propulsion will be based on the driving force of the waves.

This confirmed sailor of 69 years, Kenichi Horie, plans to leave on March 16 from the Hawaiian archipelago (United States) for a crossing of 7.000 kilometers to Japan where he hopes to reach in May, his agent announced on Thursday a statement.

Her two-hull boat, the Suntory Mermaid II, is equipped with two species of front fins which allow her to move forward, based on the driving force of the waves.

According to Mr. Horie, the upward and downward movement of the swell will allow his boat to sail at the speed of three sea knots (5,5 km / h).

"Mankind has used the force of the wind a lot in its history, but no one has taken the force of the waves seriously," Horie explained in an interview with AFP last year.

His 9,5-meter-long vessel was partially built using recycled aluminum.

The sailor has been known in Japan since 1962, when he had crossed the Pacific Ocean at sail at 23, in three months, thus breaking Japanese law which prohibited sailors from leaving the country under sail.

Among the trips he has made since, Mr. Horie has made crossings using boats that run on solar energy or are made of recycled material.

source: yahoo news

For more details on the propulsion system (and a small explanatory diagram) you can click this link

What seems very interesting to me in this system is that the same mechanism (very simple) serves both as a sensor (for wave energy) and as a propellant.
From there to imagine that this concept could be used (by adapting it) as secondary propellant on all types of boats ....

[Capt_Maloche]

It's pretty cool, but it doesn't seem as effective as a sail + a spinnaker

The freighter hoists the mainsail
December 5, 2006
Before sailing on its own, SkySails carried out tests on slightly smaller boats, including the "Beaufort", 55 meters long and 800 tonnes. According to the company created in 2001, this giant wing system is capable of deploying a force equivalent to 6 horsepower, saves 800 to 10% of fuel and reduces emissions of pollutants up to at 35%, in optimal wind conditions.
The environmental benefits relate to the reduction of fossil fuel combustion. Along with industry and traffic, the activity of the merchant marine is one of the main factors contributing to climate change. Indeed, if the fuel used by large tankers is not very expensive, it remains very polluting.

[Targol]

It's pretty cool, but it doesn't seem as effective as a sail + a spinnaker

That's for sure, and it's not a sailing lover like me who will tell you the opposite.
On the other hand, in the event of a windshield .... uhhh notice, when you think about it, in general, when there is no wind, there are no swell masses either.

Ah yes, I found: in case of headwind !!!

No, to be more serious, it is obvious that this kind of mechanism will not replace a mast and sails.
On the other hand, the system can give ideas ...