Genoa 55
Triple dart, origami construction.
- Simple, fast, strong. Minimum welds, maximum strength.
- Fair, “round-bilge” metal boats from flat plate — without rollers, presses, or filler.
Why 3 darts?
As can be seen, there is very little difference between the 3 dart hull and the fully round hull. This allows the 3 dart construction to deliver fully round performance without the cost of fully round metal construction.
The problem is that metal bends naturally into conic shapes, not round shapes. The darts used in Origami result in conic shapes to allow the metal to bend naturally. Round metal boats in contrast need to be forced into shape, which adds cost and complexity.
The G55 was our first boat using full 3D graphical design. This allowed us to fold and unfold the design repeatedly and examine it from all angles. This design was a major departure from other origami designs, in that it replaced the typical “V” shaped origami entry section with a more modern “U” shape.
The Genoa 55 model prior to construction.
The Genoa 55 under construction in our yard.
Our Technology:
Our unique triple dart origami construction yields a hull virtually identical to a round bilge hull, with only a fraction of the work required for conventional construction.
Our computer-generated patterns ensure fair, smooth, predictable shapes, at any size, without the need for filler or fairing.
How does it work?
Think of the difference between men’s and women’s clothing. Men’s clothing is built with seams, like a chine boat, to yield a squared-off shape. Women’s clothing is built with darts, to yield a rounded shape.
Our patterns use darts, not chines. The result is a rounded shape, not a squared-off shape as found in chine construction. We find that 3 darts provide the best trade-off between hull shape, performance, strength, appearance, and ease of construction.
The upper dart is hidden behind the rub-strake and serves to strengthen the hull at that point against impact. The middle dart is underwater and serves to improve tracking and dampen roll. The lower dart flattens the underbody to improve performance and provides an attachment point for optional bilge keels.
None of the darts are normally visible. All hulls appear fully round.
Here are the steps:
1. Line drawings – you provide or we will create to suit your requirements
2. Patterns – we computer generate the origami patterns from the line drawings
Copyright (c) 2003 Easy Software Inc and Cyber-CAD Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
1/12 scale model. Everything looks fair.
3. Construction
Our yard will build your yacht, in alloy or steel, or we can assist you with building at your own site.
4. Results
Two 50-foot alloy sailboats have been built and launched using this technology. The first has now logged tens of thousands of miles of offshore blue water sailing, including significant portions of high latitude sailing in gale force conditions. These boats were completed, rigged, and outfitted for less than $150,000 US each. An unbeatable price for a world-class offshore yacht.