The Foil Arm Story

Initial tests of the one-design foil arms for the AC75 revealed a huge challenge for the America’s Cup design community. Watch the full story of how they overcame the issue, to get the foil arm through testing and cleared for sailing in the AC75’s.
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The 36th America's Cup presented by Prada will be contested by the winner of the 2017 America's Cup, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron represented by their team, Emirates Team New Zealand, and the winner of the Prada Cup, the challenger selection series which takes place in January-February in 2021.
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[@Niaaal]

Even though sailing purists might be feeling out of touch with the new sailboat designs that look nothing like boats they could ever sail, this video is a great reminder that the America's cup has always been at the foreground of innovation and technology advancement. It is truly remarkable in that regard.

[@memorykara222]

not only tachnological but still incorporating nature as its engine and thats what makes sailing so interesting.

[@Niaaal]

@@memorykara222 True that

[@sarahlucas4251]

Yes, thank you.

[@funnystuff9998]

Fascinating. Looking forward to seeing the arms attached to an actual boat.

[@fredygump5578]

Since these are a "one team" component....please show us the laminating process!

[@giuseppecavana3426]

Very Well Done! The Italian job, all together now! let's go to the next!

[@lollotro]

from Archimede to Bernoulli

[@kiwigurn6328]

I love the collaboration aspect.

[@tommypetraglia4688]

Ya think they woulda handed out ear protection

[@wanderingbufoon]

Bet that arm just costed $5 mil

[@lucas2002D]

Just 5 mil🤣

[@DonW1953]

and the rest - test facility, staff wages, expenses - probably didn't any change out of M$10 for the two arms after the first one failed - fascinating design

[@stagu9592]

Incredibile!

[@almerindaromeira8352]

Well in Italy most cars weight 1 ton, but not in the rest of the world

[@weatheranddarkness]

even then, a modern Fiat 500 weighs 50% more than that

[@drewthompson7457]

Interesting. Nice to see i'm not the only one that has trouble designing with carbon.

[@Deltarious]

I can assure you that I would also have great difficulty designing with carbon- I in fact have no idea how to design with carbon.

[@the10thleper]

I hope the crew doesn't have to constantly pump hydrolic preasure. I couldn't believe they have to do that, "constantly pump," the formula catamarans. The mono hull will bring back the spinnakers and down wind chases.

[@Gottenhimfella]

They don't use human power for these foil mechanisms, but they are required to use it (and nothing more) for raising and trimming the sails. Which seems like quite a good compromise, I think. It still has elements of the sort of sailing ordinary people do.

[@maxhugen]

Further to Gottenhimfellas explanation re pumping, note that these will NOT use spinnakers, as they gybe downwind far faster than a spinnaker could propel them.

[@HotelPapa100]

@@maxhugen Yep. Spinnaker= max speed = wind speed. Where are they today? About 4 times wind speed, I think.

[@maxhugen]

@@HotelPapa100 Not sure, but 4x sounds about right! Quite incredible!

[@-LightningRod-]

so damn cool

[@michaelrosspearson9756]

Cool video.

[@MRBACKHAND]

just gotta remember once you add loads to the wing.. whatever loads they are the axioms will be- that pressure will release from the path of least resistance

[@FranktheDachshund]

So let me get this straight, you are saying that under load, the wing will break at the weakest point?

[@MRBACKHAND]

@@FranktheDachshund no...its depends on the load, and which way the load goes... at any point during its movement.. weak points arnt good, but energy will always release from the path of least resistance... basic physics 101

[@TheKaffeeKlatsch]

Hexcel

[@HotelPapa100]

Hardly. If you look at the broken arm, there's a bit of PU(?) foam at the core, but looks to be mostly solid carbon fiber laminate. Hexcel is great for light, stiff designs, but when it comes to brute force in small cross sections like this, it's out of place.

[@EnniodBleu]

Hexcel carbon perhaps. The exposed core looks like a SAN foam. They'd be looking at a weight saving core material with maximum shear properties.

[@PhilbyFavourites]

Ask Alex Thompson how strong his carbon fibre Hugo Boss is........ I’ll let the engineers in the readership define “strength”

[@mini696]

100% those arms are going to hit a crew member and do some serious damage.

[@GargamelGoest]

I think you missed the point of the video. They are testing these so they only fail beyond the highest expected load, so they shouldn't ever fail on the water. Considering they are basically outriggers, I don't see how a crew member will get hit by one, aside from falling off the bow and getting run over.

[@mini696]

@@GargamelGoest I talk about when they are sailing around the course with the windward one in the air. During maneuvers someone is going to get hit.

[@cf6282]

If it brakes in a race the entire ship will dive in the water I think. That will be like hitting a wall at full speed. Imagine what happens to boat and crew.

[@mini696]

@@cf6282 nothing worse than the cats.

[@grendelum]

mini696 - it won’t be able to move that far, there will be a bumpstop of sorts. Besides, did you see that thing? It’s almost entirely *_solid_* carbon fiber, they won’t break easily.

[@alpinebe4ch597]

An italian test will never meat the requirements of a material stress test. End quote.

[@valerio_c]

Is yours sarcasm?

[@nem447]

what kind of meat...pepperoni?

[@jeriksson7686]

For the first time in history America's cup move backwards

[@Gottenhimfella]

The 12m class was an intentional step backwards, to lower costs after WW2. The 1988 and 2010 America's cups were also entirely retrogressive. So it's only the "first time" to a VERY rough approximation, to the nearest order of magnitude.... :-) The foiling cats were also thought by many (including by me) to be another retrograde step. With hindsight I no longer think so. You may be right on this occasion but I see no way to be sure about it ahead of time, and if you are sure about it, then you must be very well informed, or .....

[@MakeSomeNoisePlaylists]

you got no clue, only an opinion....

[@garylewis7729]

Technology never goes backwards

[@garylewis7729]

The British team may have gone backwards.let’s hope not

[@marlo2303]

Spoke too soon.

[@vukceklic9270]

The thirsty shrine importantly subtract because sauce industrially battle like a dazzling manx. needless, nondescript almanac

[@NewfieOn2Wheels]

🤔 what did he mean by this?

[@johnharimate8220]

I Reckon I can Disney are way better foils than the ones you have right now. Get back to me thanks thanks

[@pacoballesteravargues2047]

?que aluminio? No hay aluminio ,carbono…

[@SailingVirgins]

Sooo goood! This is the future of sailing, right here.

[@JK-zx3go]

That's why you test.

[@gl9412]

Phew, what a relief - can sleep comfortably now.

[@JohnFrumFromAmerica]

How would these boats go aganst the big hydrofoil cats and trimarans?

[@nem447]

the AC75's are on average 10 knots faster than the foiling cats in previous cups

[@titter3648]

@@nem447 Why is that? Is it because of less water friction because of just a single rear foil, and usually just one of the front foils in the water at the time? Or is the weight of the boats very different?

[@AccurateShooter]

The loads were pretty much in direct 90 degrees to arm. In the water, as the boat dives and rises there will be torsional and twisting loads, plus compression. Likewise they did not test it with additional centrifugal loads which will occur as the boats are jibing (turning) at 30+ knots. I fully expect there will be failures on the water, particularly as the foils age. Fingers crossed, but I think there are risks ahead.

[@fragrasso77]

According with the first hours of sailing, so far so good

[@paulaxford6754]

Once you know the highest stress under all combined loads you could test to that stress level in the test rig plus a margin.

[@GNX157]

I wonder if they are using graphene in the material.

[@maxhugen]

I don't know, but I understand that graphene is *extremely* difficult to work with from a manufacturing point of view, as any minor flaw significantly weakens it. My guess is that carbon fibre would be used, but that's just a guess. :)

[@GNX157]

Oh definitely carbon fiber is being used, but I was wondering f if they were introducing the graphene in a blend with the CF somehow.

[@soylentgreen326]

Opps That wasn't supposed to happen😱😱😢

[@samueledottore5474]

Fantastic but I don't know if the movement system of the foil holds up

[@AngusMcIntyre]

Yeh they definatlely overlooked that one.........

[@Gottenhimfella]

@@AngusMcIntyre Quite the contrary: that was a separate project entirely, designed by Team NZ, passed all its tests months ago, and has been shipped to all contestants.

[@edrcozonoking]

Just cause you don’t know doesn’t mean they don’t know.

[@tinolino58]

How stupid is the comparison with 20 cars to illustrate 20000kg. Do they believe we are all monkeys?

[@carlgeorgtsigakis498]

Or 40 Citroen 2CVs! :) hehehe

[@ScrubsIsee]

Read the scale: At the end, they reach 27.000kg!

[@artjoly6348]

"Do they believe we are all monkeys?" Until we rise to the occasion, yes.

[@nem447]

hoo hoo hoo haa haa haa