Systems and methods for righting a capsized watercraft are described. The system may include a selectively inflatable bladder inside a canvas gunwale float that can be releasably attached to one side of a boat. When the other side of the boat is lifted, the float keeps at least a portion of the lowermost gunwale above the surface of the water, thereby impeding the unwanted entry of water into the boat during righting. The inflatable bladder is sized in volume according to the size and shape of the boat. The system may include one or more floats spaced apart along the side. In another aspect, one of the floats may be attached to a paddle to create a temporary outrigger for use in climbing out of the water and into the boat.

A tugboat for assisting a marine vessel to maneuver. The tugboat boat comprises an engine driving one or more propulsors with a controllable direction of thrust, a towing line for establishing a pulling connection between an assisted vessel and the tugboat, a first sensor arrangement configured for sensing the size and direction of the pulling force that the towing line exerts on the tugboat, a second sensor arrangement configured for sensing the orientation of the tugboat, a controller in receipt of a signal from the first sensor arrangement and in receipt of a signal from the second sensor arrangement. The controller is informed of the size and direction of thrust generated by the one or more propulsors, and the controller is configured to determine if a safety threshold is exceeded on the basis of: sensed size and direction of thrust, sensed size and direction of the pulling force, and sensed orientation of the tugboat.

A tugboat for assisting a marine vessel to maneuver. The tugboat boat comprises an engine driving one or more propulsors with a controllable direction of thrust, a towing line for establishing a pulling connection between an assisted vessel and the tugboat, a first sensor arrangement configured for sensing the size and direction of the pulling force that the towing line exerts on the tugboat, a second sensor arrangement configured for sensing the orientation of the tugboat, a controller in receipt of a signal from the first sensor arrangement and in receipt of a signal from the second sensor arrangement. The controller is informed of the size and direction of thrust generated by the one or more propulsors, and the controller is configured to determine if a safety threshold is exceeded on the basis of: sensed size and direction of thrust, sensed size and direction of the pulling force, and sensed orientation of the tugboat.

Systems and methods for generating a phase-resolved ocean wave forecast with ensemble based data assimilation are disclosed. An example method includes receiving radar data corresponding to an ocean surface, and determining a surface elevation, a surface potential, and an ocean current field of a portion of the ocean surface. The example method also includes generating an ensemble of perturbed ocean surface data, and applying a phase-resolved nonlinear wave model to the ensemble of perturbed ocean surface data to generate forecast ocean surface data. The example method also includes receiving a subsequent set of radar data corresponding to the ocean surface, and applying an ensemble Kalman filter to determine, a subsequent surface elevation, a subsequent surface potential, and a subsequent ocean current field. The example method also includes generating a phase-resolved ocean wave forecast based on iteratively analyzing the subsequent ocean field until a tolerance factor satisfies a tolerance threshold.

Systems and methods for generating a phase-resolved ocean wave forecast with ensemble based data assimilation are disclosed. An example method includes receiving radar data corresponding to an ocean surface, and determining a surface elevation, a surface potential, and an ocean current field of a portion of the ocean surface. The example method also includes generating an ensemble of perturbed ocean surface data, and applying a phase-resolved nonlinear wave model to the ensemble of perturbed ocean surface data to generate forecast ocean surface data. The example method also includes receiving a subsequent set of radar data corresponding to the ocean surface, and applying an ensemble Kalman filter to determine, a subsequent surface elevation, a subsequent surface potential, and a subsequent ocean current field. The example method also includes generating a phase-resolved ocean wave forecast based on iteratively analyzing the subsequent ocean field until a tolerance factor satisfies a tolerance threshold.

A boat hull protection system to prevent structural and cosmetic damage to vessels and prevent them from sinking. The system includes inflatable members inflated using pneumatics such as compressed air that can be selectively inflated by a user along the stern, starboard or port sides, or bow of a given vessel. The inflatable members are inflated using a plurality of inflatable compartments housed within the inflatable members thereby allowing the system to continue being effective in light of a failure to a portion of the inflatable member.

A boat hull protection system to prevent structural and cosmetic damage to vessels and prevent them from sinking. The system includes inflatable members inflated using pneumatics such as compressed air that can be selectively inflated by a user along the stern, starboard or port sides, or bow of a given vessel. The inflatable members are inflated using a plurality of inflatable compartments housed within the inflatable members thereby allowing the system to continue being effective in light of a failure to a portion of the inflatable member.

A nonlimiting example of a yacht preserver includes a handle, a container at an end of the handle, and an inflator device connected to an inflatable bladder. In this nonlimiting example, the inflator device includes a gas canister that is configured to deliver gas to inflate the bladder upon activation. The yacht preserver may be used to seal an opening of a yacht by placing the uninflated bladder near the opening in the yacht and activating the inflator device allowing the bladder to expand to seal the opening.

A nonlimiting example of a yacht preserver includes a handle, a container at an end of the handle, and an inflator device connected to an inflatable bladder. In this nonlimiting example, the inflator device includes a gas canister that is configured to deliver gas to inflate the bladder upon activation. The yacht preserver may be used to seal an opening of a yacht by placing the uninflated bladder near the opening in the yacht and activating the inflator device allowing the bladder to expand to seal the opening.

A system for autonomous ocean data collection includes at least one sensor capable of collecting sensor data, at least one transmission device, and at least one computing device comprising one or more hardware processors and memory coupled to the one or more hardware processors, the memory storing one or more instructions which, when executed by the one or more hardware processors, cause the at least one computing device to generate data for transmission based on the sensor data collected by the at least one sensor, and cause the at least one transmission device to transmit the data.