Calibration of the Wavemaker System in the Offshore Engineering Basin at the Institute for Marine Dynamics

The wavemaker system at the Institute for Marine Dynamics (IMD) in St. John’s, Newfoundland was designed to simulate oblique regular and irregular waves as well as short crested waves, sometimes referred to as multi-directional waves. At present, the wavemaker system consists of 192 segments arranged in a J configuration. Mesh-type wave absorbers are installed on the remaining sides of the basin. Each segmented wavemaker can be operated in five modes of articulation to optimize its motion with respect to the type of waves being generated. The concept of this J design is to surround a model on three sides with controllable boundaries, thus providing a wider range of spreading angles in short crested waves. Consequently, these wavemakers must be capable of simultaneous wave generation and absorption. Initial calibrations of the wave generation system are now completed for regular waves and irregular uni-directional and multidirectional waves. Typical wave calibration results are presented in this paper. Results of preliminary investigations into wave absorption are also presented and discussed.