Design of catamaran type fish feeder for aquaculture applications

Water vehicles require good stability and performance to ensure efficient and safe operation with minimum risk of capsizing. The stability and performance of the vehicle depends on the hull form, primary dimensions and general arrangement layout. In this research work, a catamaran was designed for supporting and navigating a fish feeding mechanism developed for aquaculture. Considering the requirements of the fish feeding system, a Wigley hull model has been selected for this study. Beam of the demi-hull was selected as the primary dimension to be optimized for the given dimensions of the hull, so as to strike an optimal balance between stability criteria and cost/feasibility of construction. Through optimization, the best possible hull dimensions and optimal stability conditions of the catamaran were achieved. The designed catamaran fulfilled the minimum criterion for good stability condition. The developed catamaran feeder is expected to revolutionize feeding in aquaculture ponds. Moreover, the efficient field performance of the developed catamaran is encouraging and its application for other aquacultural operations like aeration, harvesting etc. is anticipated. A systematic series design approach was conducted and a family of catamaran design for low-draft applications in aquaculture have been proposed.