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Ship motions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ship motions
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ship motions are defined by the six degrees of freedom that a ship, boat or any other craft can experience.

Contents
1 Translation
2 Rotation axes
3 Rotation motions
4 Stabilization
5 See also
6 References

Translation
Heave
is the linear vertical (up/down) motion
Sway
is the linear lateral (side-to-side) motion
Surge
is the linear longitudinal (front/back) motion

Rotation axes

"Translations"

The vertical axis, or yaw axis, is an imaginary line running vertically through the ship and through its centre of
gravity. A yaw motion is a side-to side movement of the bow of the ship.
The lateral axis, transverse axis, or pitch axis is an imaginary line running horizontally across the ship and
through the centre of gravity. A pitch motion is an up-or-down movement of the bow of the ship.
The longitudinal axis, or roll axis, is an imaginary line running horizontally through the length of the ship,
through its centre of gravity, and parallel to the waterline. A roll motion is a side-to-side motion of the
superstructure around this axis.

Rotation motions
There are three special axes in any ship, called vertical, lateral and longitudinal axes. The movements around
them are known as roll, pitch and yaw.
Pitch
is the rotation of a vessel about its transverse (side-to-side) axis. An offset or deviation from normal on
this axis is referred to as 'trim' or 'out of trim'.
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5/31/2014

Ship motions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Roll
is the rotation of a vessel about its longitudinal (front/back) axis. An offest or deviation from normal on
this axis is referred to as list or heel. Heel refers to an offset that is intentional or expected, as caused by
wind pressure on sails, turning, or other crew actions. List normally refers to an unintentional or
unexpected offset, as caused by flooding, battle damage,
shifting cargo, etc.
Yaw
is the rotation of a vessel about its vertical axis. An offset or
deviation from normal on this axis is referret to as deviation or
set

Stabilization

Axes of a ship and rotations around

them

There are methods for both passive and active motion stabilization
used in some designs. They can include static hull features such as skegs and bilge keels, or active mechanical
devices like counterweights, Antiroll Tanks, and stabilizers.

See also
translation (physics)
rotation
Naval architecture
Seakeeping
Stern suction
Ship stability
Ship motion test
Flight dynamics

References
Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME), "Principles of Naval Architecture", 1989,
Vol. III, Pg.41, Section 3 - Ship Responses to Regular Waves
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Categories: Nautical terms
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