RE: A sub question

["Morrisson, Richard D" <Richard.Morrisson@PSS.Boeing.com>]

My comments are mixed in with your text...

> ----------
> From: 	Jon@huv.com[SMTP:Jon@huv.com]
> Sent: 	Wednesday, September 09, 1998 1:24 AM
> To: 	personal_submersibles@psubs.org
> Subject: 	Re: A sub question
> 
> On Tue, 8 Sep 1998 15:54:24 -0700, "Morrisson, Richard D"
> <Richard.Morrisson@PSS.Boeing.com> wrote:
> 
> > The reason I ask is I am exploring a somewhat different design for a
> one
> > person sub which involves vertical (standing upright)
> ascents/descents
> > and a transition to horizontal (prone) once at depth (to a "Deep
> Flight"
> > style craft).  My idea is to minimize the cost of the structure and
> to
> > maximize streamlining at the same time.
> 
> Now you've got me thinking... :-)
Good!  Thats what we are all about (at least in my hopes and opinion).

> I'm curious, have you thought about the problems with respect to
> keeping
> the center of buoyancy high enough so the sub sill stay upright on the
> surface, and then even it out for when submergerd horizontally?
Yes, I have given it much thought and worked out a moveable ballast
system which will provide solid stability in both regimes.  It should
not require much effort to transition either, although I intend (if I
actually get to build it) to have a manual backup to an electric winch.
>  Could you
> use some kind of inflatible external bladder for this that you would
> only
> deploy while surfaced?
Yes here too, although bladders are not very reliable.  I had planned to
use an external hull as both streamlining and an auxiliary bouyancy
chamber to increase the freeboard when surfaced.

> Are you thinking of a having a sub that is positively buoyant, like
> Deep
> Flight is? If you're looking to minimize the cost of the structure, it
> would be hard to be simpler that something like that.
Stll pondering that one, I like the idea and confirmed the numbers that
Graham Hawkes noted in one of his articles but still am drawn to the
advantages of neutral bouyancy when looking at something stationary down
deep!  Please note, even Graham (if I can refer to him by first name,
never met him yet) has a releaseable weight just in case.

> I spent a lot of time thinking about designing something like Deep
> Flight
> (for shallower depth than what it can do, however), but the very
> problem
> you are attemping to solve here is why I stopped... Being able to
> launch/recover by yourself is a necessary part of a "personal
> submersible",
> as far as I'm concerned...
I agree.  A support crew on the surface is great, but what if....?

Also, for a lot of us, the best times underwater are those where
everyone gets to go!  I guess I'll need to have a sub for everyone!
What a concept!