Boat design software

[supercoolfishdude01]

i hope this isnt a dumb question, but is there any kind of software to design boats. i was hoping to find some kinda program that would be able to tell me how the boat would float in water and what kind of weights limits it would have, and where high impact areas may be so i would know where to reinforce, and possible how much the boat would weight and stuff. I know this may seem really far fetched but if anyone knows i would appreciate it!

 

[dbkerley]

Re: Boat design software

i played around with freeship and some that were similar quite awhile back. I never found anything that really worked for smaller boats.

 

[redfury]

Re: Boat design software

I'd love to have a 3D model of my boat that I could paint, like you can paint cars on the Xbox...that would be sweet!

 

[jonesg]

Re: Boat design software

i hope this isnt a dumb question, but is there any kind of software to design boats. i was hoping to find some kinda program that would be able to tell me how the boat would float in water and what kind of weights limits it would have, and where high impact areas may be so i would know where to reinforce, and possible how much the boat would weight and stuff. I know this may seem really far fetched but if anyone knows i would appreciate it!

Software is good for generating scale models, they still use test tanks.

 

[dbkerley]

Re: Boat design software

I use spray foam to create a block and then scuplt the model from there. You can use certain types of body filler and fiberglass over the foam to stiffen the models. I also have added wire and toothpicks, etc. to get what I'm after.

However, translating the model to CAD without spending for AutoCAD would be great.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: Boat design software

The best ship design software I've used so far is Delftship free... this used to be freeship, but there's a new version with more features.

It's much easier than designing in Autocad, it does nice things like flag non developable surfaces (boat surfaces you can't create without molding) and since it assumes you're designing a hull it can make some calculations of volume, balance, surface area, and some other useful stuff.

It lets you work on a line plan view and then displays 3d pics. It can export to several file types for load into CAD or CAM software.

There's a companion stability calculation program for larger boats you can buy, too.

Erik

PS: No affiliation or anything, I just liked the program

 

[Peteco]

Re: Boat design software

There are tons of threads over at boatdesign.net on software, too.

 

[dbkerley]

Re: Boat design software

Maybe the new version will be in english and I will understand it better. My first version was click this button and let's see what happens.

 

[supercoolfishdude01]

Re: Boat design software

WOW, i didnt expect so many responses! Thanks everyone!

 

[erikgreen]

Re: Boat design software

Maybe the new version will be in english and I will understand it better. My first version was click this button and let's see what happens.

The version I tried about a year ago was in english....

 

[supercoolfishdude01]

Re: Boat design software

i tried to download the free shipoftware, but was only able to download the manual, not the actual program. Does anybody have a link to where it can be downloaded?

 

[the man]

Re: Boat design software

i tried to download the free shipoftware, but was only able to download the manual, not the actual program. Does anybody have a link to where it can be downloaded?

http://www.delftship.net/

I have tried to use it. It is great for basic stuff- you can design a hull for example fairly easily. The manul is hard to follow but there is a decent tutorial to get you started at:

http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=19208.0

The thing is, the features you asked about originally; loading, stability, weak points etc don't seem to be included in this free program. At least I haven't figured out how to do it. I would like to put an engine, some fuel, and a few people in my design and see where it floats and if it would be safe or not. don't know how to do that. I would love to find something that will let me do that... anyone? It doesnt have to be free.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: Boat design software

I'm pretty sure you can get a trial version of that exact software that isn't feature limited, that includes stability calculations.

There's a number of reasons that software made specifically for marine design isn't cheap...

 

[CN Spots]

Re: Boat design software

They have another program on that site called DELFTload. It seems to deal more w/cargo and it's effect on your 3D vessel.

http://www.delftship.net/delftship/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=5