Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
windsurfer longboard
By Malcolm Jones
1 Board design 5
1.1 Maximum dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.2 Rocker profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.3 Deck centre-line profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.4 Vee, concaves, tail kick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.5 Planshape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.6 Deck cross section and rails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.7 Data files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.8 Design weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.9 Material costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.10 Time required to build . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2 Centreboard 15
2.1 Design of centreboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.1.1 Aerofoil section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.1.2 Planshape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.2 Construction of centreboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3 Centreboard Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4 Board Construction 22
4.1 Shaping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4.1.1 Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4.1.2 Core . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.1.3 Rocker and deck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.1.4 Vee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.1.5 Planshape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.1.6 Rails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.2 Laminating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2.1 Carbon/HDF to bottom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
4.2.2 Carbon/HDF to deck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.2.3 Fitting the fittings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3
4.2.4 HDF to rails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4.2.5 Outer lamination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4.3 Finishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4.3.1 Filler coat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4.3.2 Gaskets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4.3.3 Painting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.3.4 Deck grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
A Tooling 44
A.1 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
A.2 Vacuum controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
A.3 Hotwire cutter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
A.4 Hotwire voltage control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4
Chapter 1
Board design
5
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
1.5 Planshape
Figure 1.3 shows the planshape of the bottom of the board. The rails are parallel for
approximately the range x = 1700 to x = 2100 mm, where the width is the maximum
value wm = 640 mm. The planshape was generated by a spline sketch and hence
cannot be represented in equation form, although its not far off an ellipse.
where Ai is the area of the ith cross section and ∆xi is the “thickness” of the cross
section slice. For the data given above the volume turns out to be
V = 252 litres.
6
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
The surface area of the board can be found by calculating the length of individual
lines show in figures 1.5 and 1.6. For the deck and rails this length is given by integrat-
ing the upper curves using the formula
s 2
Z w/2
dz
S= 1+ dy.
−w/2 dy
If this is done for many x locations on the board then the surface area is given by the
summation
n
A= ∑ Si ∆xi = 2.56 m2 deck and rails.
i
A similar calculation can by done for the bottom of the board but it is much simpler
since the lines are straight and at a given x location
w
S=
cos θ
where θ is the vee angle, which is small, and hence S ≈ w so
Z 3800
A= w dx = 1.95 m2 bottom,
0
• rocker
• planshape
• and deck
7
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
z
ρ = 270
8
tm = 180
t( x )
x
l = 3800
1000 2000 3000
ρ( x )
Figure 1.2: The board used as a rough guide for the design. The actual board I designed
is quite different, the only dimension I matched was the maximum rocker (nose kick?).
It’s good to have something to reference your design against just to ensure you don’t
design something “off the scale”.
9
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
500
y (mm)
w
Stern
0
l = 3800 mm
10
-500
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500
170 320 1375 2180
535 x (mm)
1580
1
z
t
0.5
0
-1 -0.5 0 0.5 1
y
w/2
Figure 1.4: Spline defining the deck and rail, normalised curve.
200
x=100
x=250
150 x=500
x=750
x=1000
z 100 x=1500
x=1900
x=750
50 x=1000
x=1500
x=1900
0
-350 -250 -150 -50 y 50 150 250 350
Figure 1.5: Individual cross sectional profiles for the back half of the board. Note
constant vee of 1o . Note in these figures I’m really plotting z − ρ, i.e. I’m not including
the effect of the rocker which would shift each successive curve upwards as you move
forward along the board.
200
x=2000
x=2500
150 x=3000
x=3250
x=3500
z 100 x=3600
x=3700
x=3750
50 x=3250
0
-350 -250 -150 -50 y 50 150 250 350
Figure 1.6: Individual cross sectional profiles for the front half of the board. Note
constant vee of 1o .
11
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
The construction will be carbon sandwich with the following layup: 200 gm−2 car-
bon fibre then high density foam (HDF) 80 gm−3 with a thickness of 5 mm then another
carbon layer (200gm−2 ). Epoxy resin will be used and assuming a fibre to resin ratio of
40 : 60 (see FGI data) then each layer of carbon will require 300 gm−2 of resin. Hence
an individual carbon lamination will weigh 500 gm−2 (note FGI quotes 480). The HDF
will add 80 × 5 × 10−3 = 400 gm−2 . So HDF sandwiched between two layers of carbon
the skin weight is 4.5 × (2 × 500 + 400) gm−2 which gives a total of
The core is low density polystyrene with a density of 14 kgm−3 which gives a
and hence the subtotal of board without fittings and paint is 9.8 kg.
The other components are estimated to weigh:
So total weight of fittings is 3.8 kg.1 For filling and painting the estimates are:
Filler =0.2 kg
Paint =0.5 kg maximum estimate assuming 1 litres of paint
Hence,
total weight = 14.3 kg
excluding centreboard (which weighs 0.85 kg) footstraps & fin.
Note an additional full lamination adds 10Y g where Y is the fibre weight is gm−2 ,
i.e. 130 gm−2 glass fibre adds a further 1.3 kg. For comparison the claimed weights
of currently available production boards are: Starboard Phantom 13.9 kg, Exocet Warp
13.5 kg and Mistral One Design 15.5 kg.
12
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Total 14.3
• sandpaper
• masking tape
• gloves, masks
• measuring beakers
I didn’t keep track of the cost of the consumables but it’s of the order $100. The other
costs include: footstraps which for a the full 8 straps at $25 each would be $200 (luckily
I had some old ones I could use) and a fin $150. One thing I hadn’t factored in was the
uni/extension. I tried to adapt an existing uni by replacing the pin to suit the rsx track
but it seems the pin is unique to the rsx track so I could not source a suitable pin. In
the end I had to buy a new rsx mastfoot, which was incompatible with my extensions,
therefore a new extension too, all up another $120.
I have not included the cost of any tools I had to buy e.g. sur-form, set-square and
any of the electronics associated with the vacuum pump and hotwire.
13
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Material AUD
Fin Box 29.00
Mast Track 80.00
Glass 130g/m2 × 4m 25.70
Carbon fibre 200g/m2 12m ×1.27m 496.32
HDF sheets 5mm ×2 218.89
HDF sheets 3mm ×1 92.43
polystyrene core 244.50
Resin epoxy 5kg 92.16
Hardner epoxy 1kg 28.14
foot strap inserts 20.00
paint 200.00
filler 40.00
vac bag, peel ply, breather 116.00
1,683.14
Table 1.2: Actual material costs in Australian dollars, August 2008. For comparison:
Exocet Warp 380 raceboard $3500, Starboard formula $3150, Starboard Futura (freeride
board) $2500 or Neil Pryde X9 - 490cm mast $1600. For the complete board also factor
in footstraps and fin and possibly the uni/mast extension. These items take the cost
to around $2000 which is more than a Exocet Kona. My point is you have to have a
compelling reason to build it yourself other than cost.
14
Chapter 2
Centreboard
1. the aerofoil section which includes the maximum thickness of the aerofoil and
point of maximum thickness;
Since the centreboard is a symmetric aerofoil, camber and twist are zero, and the para-
metric design space is somewhat reduced. A considerable effort can be devoted to the
design process. However it is worth keeping in mind that hand shaping techniques
will ultimately limit your ability to accurate produce it.
15
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 2.1: The NACA0010 aerofoil section, plotted for a chord length of 170 mm. This
figure is to scale and can be used as a template if you print the page at 100% scale.
Figure 2.2: Contour plot of what we want to achieve, with hand tools and limited skill
this is a challenge!
As will be seen in the next section we will choose an elliptic planform so that the
chord length progressively reduces towards the tip of the centreboard. This means
we must continuously scale down the profile in figure 2.1. Figure 2.2 shows the sur-
face contour of the centreboard required to achieve a NACA0010 section at all cross
sections.
2.1.2 Planshape
Mathematical analysis of wings is difficult. However a classic result obtained in the
1930’s is that for unswept wings an elliptical planform gives the minimum possible
drag for a given value of lift (i.e. it achieves the best Lift/Drag ratio). So why not
use the elliptical planform, if nothing else it looks better than a rectangular shaped
centreboard.
16
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 2.3: Cedar strips (approx. 35 mm wide) and rounded balsa lead leading edge.
gular planform with a constant sectional profile. Next I cut the elliptic planform with
a jigsaw. The aerofoil section needs to be progressively thinned down towards the tip
(i.e. trying to keep the ratio l/c constant to achieve the contour of figure 2.2). To do
this accurately you’d need several sectional profiles for several different locations. In
the end I couldn’t be bothered with trying to accurately produce figure 2.2 and just
thinned it out by eye. Figure 2.3 shows the centreboard at this point, low spots and
imperfects have been filled (pink coloured epoxy filler).
After cutting the required shape of the area that goes through the board it’s ready
to be laminated. I used 200 gm−2 carbon fibre, double thickness from the handle to
around 50 mm below the root. I ended up adding an extra layer of glass (130 gm−2 ) as
I thought I’d used too much resin and wanted to soak it up. I did it all in one go and
wrapped it in a vacuum bag and held it under vacuum overnight while it dried. The
vacuum isn’t essential but does improve the result. A photo of the centreboard after
removing from the vacuum bag is shown in figure 2.4, the excess fibre on the trailing
edge is easily trimmed off with a knife and sanded smooth, don’t make it razor shape.
17
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
walls of the box are made of 25 mm thick polyurethane foam with 2 sheets of HDF
laminate onto the surface (between each layer of foam is 130 gm−2 glass). To provide
a pivot point a 5 mm thick piece of marine ply is used, with a channel cut into it. This
piece is plywood is recessed into the top HDF layer, which also has a channel cut into
it. Figure 2.5 shows the foam and plywood layup and figure 2.6 shows details of the
pivot point prior to the final lamination. The final lamination is made up of a layer of
200gm−2 carbon and a layer of 130 gm−2 glass.
25 mm urethane foam
1000 mm
180 mm
5 mm PVC
5 mm plywood
Layers of
polyurethane
HDF foam 25 mm foam
Ideally the centreboard should be a firm fit in the box otherwise, when in the re-
tracted position, it has a tendency to flop back down particularly when bouncing over
18
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
1
0
111
000
0
1
Deck
0
1
0
1
0
1
sidewall panel
0
1
friction strip
Figure 2.9: Friction strip which fits in the channel in the centreboard box.
choppy waters. Unless you are able to achieve high tolerances when manufacturing
centreboard box, it is difficult to achieve a tight fit without having the centreboard jam
when it is rotating. It is better to leave some clearance in the centreboard box then pack
the centreboard tight with, what I call, “friction strips”. These are simply strips about
5 mm thick which are placed in the rebatted channel (shown in figure 2.6) after the cen-
treboard is in place. Initially I used plywood but found it wore out quickly so I ended
up using sections from a sail batten built up to the required thickness with layers of
carbon fibre and shown in figure 2.9. The strips are screwed down to the deck of the
board. Make sure you place an adequate screw plug in the board. Make the strips long
enough so that they are in contact with the centreboard pivot pin figure 2.9.
19
Chapter 3
Mast track, fin-box and footstrap plugs
When placing fittings into the board it is important to reinforce the board around the
fitting using a higher density foam than the polystyrene core. My approach was to
build up a block of foam around each fitting. I used 25 mm polyurethane, 5 mm HDF
and fibreglass to make sandwich panels that go around each part. These panels help
spread the load and increase the top surface area of each part so there is more area
for the deck or hull lamination to adhere to. I prepared all these parts before I started
building the actual board. This gave me practise in vacuum bagging on a small scale.
20
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
21
Chapter 4
Board Construction
4.1 Shaping
The board is shaped as much as possible using a hotwire cutter. Since the hotwire is a
straight wire you cannot shaped doubly curved surfaces with it e.g. rails and deck, for
these areas I shaped with sandpaper. The sequence of shaping is as follows:
1. hotwire cut rocker
2. hotwire cut vee
3. hotwire cut planshape
4. hotwire cut linear approximation of rail profile
5. hand sand deck and rail to required curve.
The idea is to do as much shaping with a hotwire using templates to guide the cut.
Even when it came to fairing in the deck and rails I used cardboard templates of the
curve.
4.1.1 Templates
I used A3 paper to print out templates of the centre-line profile (i.e. rocker) and plan-
shape. When creating these templates I subtracted the thickness of the HDF foam off
the template outline so that the specifications given earlier are for the built board not
the core. To plot the profiles in full scale I used the vector graphics language Asymptote.
Since an A3 piece of paper is 594 × 420 mm I printed a section of the profile on each
page then joined them all together. These are the pdf files containing the templates
• core-centre-line.pdf
• planshape-port.pdf
• planshape-star.pdf 1
1 Note the maximum half-width of the board is wider than an A3 sheet of paper so the planshape in
these files is referenced to a line offset 25 mm from the centre-line.
22
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
4.1.2 Core
The core is made of polystyrene, I used two blocks measuring 2.0 × 0.6 × 0.3 m, fig-
ure 4.1. Polystyrene is available in two forms expanded or extruded. The lightest but
weakest is expanded which comes in different densities, from around 12 − 14 kgm−3
upwards. First I glued them together using liquid nails, make sure the glue stays
within the cutting path of the hotwire. Note I could have bought the block as one
piece but did not have a vehicle to transport such a long block in, I wouldn’t risk it
on a roof rack. Check the squareness of the block and take this into account when
attaching the templates.
4.1.4 Vee
The design has 1o of vee along the full length of the board. For a block 700 mm wide
this equates to a drop off of 350 × tan(1o ) = 6 mm at the edge of the block. Therefore
one rocker template is lowered by 6 mm. To provide a guide on the other side the
opposite template is raised by 6 mm. Note when you do the 2nd vee cut you need to
raise the opposite side 2 × 6 = 12 mm relative to its edge. To make sure the wire does
not cross the centre line I placed a strip of masking tape along the board’s centre-line
(see figure 4.2).
4.1.5 Planshape
I used cardboard for the planshape templates. These are taped and pinned to the top
and bottom of the board again alignment is important. The hotwire cutter is then used
to cut the planshape. Actually I did this cut by myself but even though the width of
the cut is smaller than for the rocker and vee it’s still difficult to keep an eye on both
templates and there is a tendency to lift off every so often. You end up with a hump
which is easily sanded back but for a perfect cut 2 people are best. Figure 4.3 shows
the core so far.
4.1.6 Rails
The curve of the deck and rails can be rough cut by making a series of hotwire cuts.
Figure 4.4 shows how a series of 4 hotwire cuts achieves a profile close to the required
curve. Actually in retrospect I would not attempt the fourth cut since it is too shallow.
Use masking tape to provide the guide for the hotwire. Obviously the cross section
profile varies along the length of the board so this technique is applied to a section at a
time. Starting at the widest point of the board and working towards the tips. Always
make sure the hotwire cuts are on or outside of the final profile, since you want to sand
23
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
down to the desired shape rather than filling back up. Actually in retrospect it would
be better to have stuck the tape guides along the entire length of the board rather than
doing a section at a time and do one long continuous hotwire cut rather than sections.
In figure 4.5 I have made the first cut at the mid section of the board.
Once the rough cutting is done it is all faired in by sanding. For the mid-sections
of the board there is very little variation in the cross sectional profile, so one template
covers most of the length here. Toward the nose and tail a greater number of templates
are required. These templates are used to guide the fairing of the rail and deck which
is done by hand with sandpaper. The exact cross section profiles that are required are
shown in figures 1.4 and 1.5. Figure 4.7 shows the final shaped core, I still have a bit
of fine shaping. Unfortunately there are a few low spots on the deck/rail area that still
need attention, these occurred due to the section-by-section approach I took. If I was
to do it again I’d do continuous rail cuts. Fortunately the hull, which is the critical
geometry, is the easiest to shape. So small deck imperfections are more cosmetic (note:
larger imperfections will cause bridging of the HDF and sites for delimitation).
4.2 Laminating
The lamination schedule is as follows
24
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.2: Foam core after cutting the rocker, blue tape marks centre-line and assist in
guiding the hotwire for the vee cut to follow.
25
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Last cut
use masking tape to guide
the cuts
linear approx.
required profile
hotwire cuts
polystyrene block
First cut
Figure 4.4: The rail and deck is rough shaped by making a series of straight cuts. The
foam is then faired to the required profile using sandpaper and templates. The circles
in the figure show where the tape edge is placed for each cut. To determine the position
I printed full scale cross sections, drew on the cuts and then measured the location of
these points.
Figure 4.5: After make the first hotwire cut for the mid-section rail.
Figure 4.6: Shaped mid-rails, instead work the entire rail in one go, not section by
section.
26
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.7: The bulk of the shaping done, just have to remove imperfections.
27
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
00000000000000
11111111111111
Figure 4.8: Layup used on both deck and hull, on the rails 3 mm HDF is used.
Figure 4.8 shows the general layup used although extra reinforcement patches are used
around all fittings. These are the make it or break it steps. Whereas in the shaping stage
things may not quite turn out as planned it is hard to totally stuff it up, no so with the
laminating. Epoxy has a working time of around 1 hr so while the laminating is not
particularly hard you don’t have time to muck around and if things do go horribly
wrong it may not be possible to recover. Hence preparation is the key, have everything
ready to go and at hand before you start. I actually did a dry run putting the blank in
the vacuum bag and sucking it down just to check I could actually get the board in the
bag and to test the vacuum system at full scale. For all these steps I worked alone but
I would recommend having a helper.
There are several different brands of epoxy available, in the shops near me: FGI,
West System, Epiglass. For the majority of the project I used FGI brand. However
towards the end I started having problems with it fully curing especially when mixed
with fillers so I switched to West System which seemed more reliable and is less viscous
making it easier to wet out the fibre.
28
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.9: After laminating on the 5 mm HDF to the bottom. Actually this photo was
taken after laminating the deck so carbon strands can be seen wrapping around the
rail.
29
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.11: No magic trick, the saw really does go through the board.
30
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.12: All the pieces of HDF cut and ready to be vacuum bagged onto the rail.
Figure 4.13: All HDF foam on, fittings in, gaps filled and sanded ready for outer lami-
nation.
31
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
111111111111
000000000000
A = 0.69 m2
000000000000
111111111111
000000000000
111111111111 Deck
000000000000
111111111111
000000000000
111111111111
2300 × 300 mm
111111111
000000000
A = 0.48 m2
000000000
111111111
000000000
111111111 Hull
000000000
111111111
1600 × 300 mm
resin is required. Working solo I only just go it all wetted out and bagged before the
resin gelled (the temperature was 30 o C). I mixed the resin in two 500 ml batches only
mixing the second batch when it was required.
4.3 Finishing
4.3.1 Filler coat
I used West System - microlight filler (407) mixed with epoxy to peanut butter consistency
(similar colour to peanut butter as well). A very thin layer was then scrapped onto the
carbon-fibre. The amount of resin used for the hull was 90 g and for the deck 120 g.
4.3.2 Gaskets
Before painting I fitted the centre board gaskets. I’d rebated about 2mm to allow for
the gaskets. I used sailcloth folded in half and glued with epoxy glue. The thickness
of the gasket is well less than the 2mm so I faired it in slightly to the hull with strips of
filler.
32
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
4.3.3 Painting
The painting layup was
33
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure 4.18: Deck grip was mixed into the paint and one coat applied. I find mixing it
in gives a more even distribution than sprinkling on wet paint.
34
Chapter 5
The finished product
The weight of the bare board without footstraps, fin or centreboard is 14.7 kg. So this is
400 g above my design target. This makes sense since I tended to use more resin than
the 40 : 60 fibre to resin ratio, which is really the minimum resin require to wet out the
fibre. The weight of the footstraps is 850 g.
35
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
36
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
37
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
38
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
39
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
40
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
41
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
42
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
43
Appendix A
Tooling
A.1 Compressor
Probably the cheapest way to generate a vacuum is to use an old fridge compressor.
Using the suction side of the compressor a vacuum of around 80 % of an atmosphere is
possible. I bought a 2nd hand one from a whitegoods recycler. I’ve since picked up one
from the hard rubbish collection. Be extremely careful with wiring and ensure no live
wires or live connectors are exposed, if in doubt place the whole thing in an insulated
box. Figure A.1 shows two old fridge compressors, one of which is connected to a
pressure sensor and relay switch.
44
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure A.1: Fridge compressors, the one on the left is connected to a pressure sensor
and relay switch.
Figure A.2: Pressure vacuum gauge used for tuning a car engine. The gauge reading is
indicating 80 kPa below atmosphere, atmosphere pressure being around 100 kPa.
to the PC. A program then samples this voltage and sends an output voltage back to
the external trigger (e.g. 5V to switch the relay on).
Figure A.3 shows the system is use. Note I have two compressors running one is
quite powerful (must be out of a big fridge) the other one is out of a bar fridge and can
just hold the vacuum (at about 30 kPa) against leaks. The reason for two is redundancy
in case one fails at a critical moment.
Note, reading analog voltage signals into a PC requires rather expensive hardware,
reading a voltage using a sound card may be possible? Sending trigger signals out is
no drama as this can be done via the parallel port. If you have no easy, cheap way to
sample a pressure sensor then an alternative is to forget about the pressure sensor and
just switch the compressor on and off at programmed times via the parallel port. The
signal from the parallel port is used to send the on/off relay signal to the compres-
sor’s relay switch. Determining the on-time off-time (duty cycle) for a given bagging
operation would require some trial and error. Once the bag is sealed you would run
the compressor until the desired vacuum is achieved then turn the compressor off and
time how long it takes for the vacuum to drop back to the desired “switch-back-on”
level, then turn the compressor on and time how long it takes to pull the vacuum back
45
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure A.3: Vacuum system in action. In this photo I’m bagging on the rail pieces.
down. This establishes the duty cycle and these numbers are then fed to the PC to au-
tomate the process. Obviously this method relies on the leakage rate remaining stable
during bagging.
46
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Figure A.4: Hotwire bows of lengths: 800 mm, 400 mm and 150 mm.
47
Pressure sensor and switch circuit
−
+
12V
R
R R Compressor
R 2K 5V
−
K (V1 − V2 )
+ −
−V1 + −
LM324 LM324 LM311 Relay
R − +
+ BC546
−(−V1 + V2 ) 10K
2K 220K
48
Note: V1 > V2 20K
and V1 ≈ Vs /2 2K
V1 V2
Analog out
Vs = 9 V
External trigger
Design and construction of a windsurfer longboard
Pressure sensor
2355835
i.e. Subtraction
• Building Custom Sailboards and Surfboards, Sail & Surf Tech Guide-4-698, SP Sys-
tems Composite engineering Systems (the only brief reference to building a race-
board that I’ve found)
49