From Ben Ainslie Racing
Without cutting edge design and engineering, no one wins the America’s Cup. In pursuit of their goal, the British team has developed their own sophisticated 3D sailing simulator, modelled on those used by the world of motorsport. The virtual flying machine will support the vital link between sailors and designers, creating an important feedback mechanism between the two core parts of the performance team. It also provides an equally important feedback loop within the design team’s optimisation process. The man leading the team behind BAR’s (virtual) flying machine is Dr. James Roche, formerly of McLaren Applied Technologies, where he had worked on the design of the skeleton sled that Lizzy Yarnold used to slide to gold at the Sochi Winter Olympics.
Dr. James Roche – The man behind the Virtual Flying Machine
By Mark Chisnell
The ground floor of Ben Ainslie Racing’s temporary headquarters has been through several lives in the short time that the team has been there. It started as a boatshed, but the boat-building quickly outgrew the available space and was moved to another facility. Once the dust had been cleared, a sealed, air-conditioned room was built to house the computer servers that power the design team’s thinking and research. Two areas were partitioned off for meeting rooms, as the growing team swallowed the desk space on the first floor. A gym was built, so the sailing team could fit training sessions into busy days, and in one corner…
The simulator links the Sailing Team – who use it for training – and the Design Team
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