Comment by Jacob Thomas on March 20, 2012 at 10:06am

This is super cool! 

Moderator Comment by Morli on March 20, 2012 at 10:11am

Good project. keep it going and keep us posted too. tnx

Comment by Martin Bellomo on March 20, 2012 at 11:10am

Very Interesting.... Want to see the progress.

Comment by Ellison Chan on March 20, 2012 at 1:24pm

Very neat.  So are you planning to just rig the rudder or the sails as well?  It would be interesting to see how the APM can be made to perform the tacks.

Comment by Christian Ledermann on March 20, 2012 at 11:16pm

http://www.open-sailor.com/

Comment by Sina Kazemi on March 21, 2012 at 3:19am

Thank you for the feedback, tips and encouragements.

@ Ellison: actually there is already a boat which uses the APM. I think it is built by a biologist. However it is driven by a electrical motor. Here is a link if you are interested. And I really like to rig both the sails and the rudder. Rigging the sails is my biggest challenge at this point.

@ Andreas: great tip, It would be actually really convenient if I manage to implement electromagnets. Today I am going to see how I can do that. Ill keep you updated. Btw, also thanks for the water proof servo's. However I still have to find a to make the batteries and the RC receiver waterproof. That is why I think electromagnetism idea is very promising. 

Comment by Troy on March 21, 2012 at 12:11pm

Its nice to see some more people working on automated sailing.  There are a few of us around here that are putting AP on the water.

Harald Molle did a grate series of blogs on his boat, although it is not a sail boat.

Here are some sail boat related posts that have come up.  Pierre Lannoy here. TireSandals post, and James Goppert is also working on some stuff.  

I also am working on a autonomous sailor. I Hope to have an update to post soon now that the ice is off the lake.  Personally I don't worry too much about waterproofing stuff. My gear is inside my hull and would get wet if the boat capsizes or sinks.  So far things have stayed dry.  Water is not always the end of the world for electronics.  If things get wet pull the batteries as soon as you can, and let it dry out before powering up.  You will be surprised what you can get away with.  I have a I-Paq that my son used to watch Thomas the Train with in the bathtub.  After careful drying it still works.

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