Modelling Buoy Motion at Sea

This project creates a model to assess the motion induced on a buoy at sea, under wave conditions. We use the Moving Frame Method (MFM) to conduct the analysis. The MFM draws upon concepts and mathematics from Lie group theory — SO(3) and SE(3) — and Cartan’s notion of Moving Frames. This, together with a compact notation from geometrical physics, makes it possible to extract the equations of motion, expeditiously. This work accounts for the masses and geometry of all components and for buoyancy forces and added mass. The resulting movement will be displayed on 3D web pages using WebGL. Finally, the theoretical results will be compared with experimental data obtained from a previous project done in the wave tank at HVL.