CSMYC Buoy Project

Imagine being able to set up your club course without having to go out in your kayak or whatever boat you use. Well, now it is possible! You stand on the dock, place your buoys in the water, choose the course you want and off they go. The buoys will stay on station until you tell them to come home (back to the dock). All thanks to a computer control board installed in a special hull. The on-board firmware communicates with your control device (cell phone or tablet), numerous satellites, while evaluating location and sending information to the two thrusters to keep the buoy on location. All very mind boggling.

The Chester Springs Model Yacht Club wanted to acquire buoys that could be positioned without having to go out on the water to place them. The Geo-Positioning Bouy (GPB) is the result of the club’s effort to have a buoy that can be set from shore using a hand-held device to position it. The club’s two goals were to:

1. have buoys that we could place from shore

2. make our project available to other clubs.

This is the result of our efforts to develop these with the assistance of David Baker (Baker Creations, LLC). All of these GPBs are controlled by an App on your phone (or tablet) using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). Pick the buoy you want to control, command its autopilot to move along desired headings, then touch the anchor button. Or use stored waypoints and command the buoy/s to a waypoint/s. Course rotations, translations, elongations and return-to-operator functions are now available. (new version). BLE has greater connectivity range than standard Bluetooth with excellent properties over water. Any Bluetooth equipped phone or tablet can control all buoys. There is also the option to plug in two servo cables from a radio control receiver for control over a much greater range (operational instructions are available). Our buoys are using the new “fleet solution” thus giving them the capabilities described above. These buoys will hold station for up to eight hours in 20 knot winds.

A buoy is made up of three 3D printed parts, a short electronics kit from Baker Creations., and readily available miscellaneous parts The electronics kit includes the computer control board, two electronic speed controls, and two thrusters. The 3D printed parts include a hull, lid, and flag base.

• The electronics kit is available from Baker Creations

o   (https://www.dronebuoyproducts.com/product-page/byob-build-your-own-buoy)

o  www.dronebuoyproducts.com 

o  info@dronebuoyproducts.com

• The 3D parts can be acquired from AUTOTIV in New Hampshire.

o https://autotiv.myshopify.com/  

• The complete instruction manual is available here: Instruction Manual

• The Miscellaneous Parts List is available here: Parts List

• A Solution to the Buoy Drift is available here: A Solution

Buoy Fleet Colors and Designations - The CSMYC has been using drop marks (buoys) for many years. Our start/finish marks are green, the windward marks yellow, and the leeward marks red. We give each buoy a designation on its flag. The start/finish buoy flags are marked with an “S”, the yellow buoys with a “1” and a “2”, and the red buoys with a “3” and a “4”. Once our boats have crossed the start line, we round the buoys in numerical order. Using the fleet solution from Baker Creations, we further mark the GPBs with the following designations on their lids and hulls:

·        Starboard Start Buoy – SS (this is the hub buoy)

·        Port Start Buoy – PS

·        Windward 1 – W1

·        Windward 2 – W2

·        Leeward 3 – L3

·        Leeward 4 – L4

The buoys always point into the wind, so we place a white stripe on the lid that goes from the flag base to the bow of the buoy.

Cost Estimates - The costs vary based on the number of buoys that are built at one time.

These are priced per buoy in the quantity noted and estimated costs at the time of the posting of this document.  

   Shipping and handling, where applicable, are extra.

Hull Components - Hull, lid, and flag base.

Electronics Components - All the electrical components needed for a GPB, including two thrusters, two ESCs, battery and charger, control board, charging cable and battery extension cable.

Miscellaneous Parts - All other parts as itemized in the parts list (page 17).

NOTE: We priced this out knowing that we would build six GPBs. The cost for the parts for one buoy using this method is excessive. You may be able to source a smaller number of parts locally or by other means. The descriptions provided should enable to you to find other sources. It is more economical to build an entire fleet than just one buoy.