BOATYARD
pers add toe-in to optimize steering, but Viking’s practice is to set toe
for straight-ahead speed, to get the best performance. Users can easily
set toe from the display at the helm, and it can be changed underway.
The helm display shows effective rudder angle on an upper screen, but
dig deeper and you’ll find the angle of each rudder too.
Since VIPER, similar steering systems have been introduced,
including SeaStar’s Optimus, with similar capabilities. But Metz said
the main difference with VIPER is its power source: While other
systems rely on standalone 12-volt or 24-volt hydraulic pumps, Viking
installs a hydraulic pump on each engine in a twin-engine powerplant.
On some boats, the pumps also power thrusters, windlasses and other
gear, or they can be dedicated to VIPER. Either pump can operate the
system, so there’s redundancy if one dies; if both pumps go, and there’s
still an engine running to take you somewhere, the VIPER helm can
act as conventional hydraulic steering and activate the rudders directly.
But, added Metz, modern steering still relies on the basic princi-
ples. And he recommended Dave Gerr’s articles and books as excel-
lent sources of information for those who want to understand how
things work under the water. “You still need to get the rudder size
right, and put it in the right place,” he said.
Maybe that includes adding a little toe-in, too, unless you want
your boat to take you somewhere you don’t want to go. Next time
you see him, ask Capt. Pike what that feels like. UMost high-tech, “smart” steering systems rely on hydraulics, but
Volvo Penta has come up with something different: Fully electric
steering, part of the company’s inboard joystick system. It arises
from the same technology that animates IPS drives. According to
a Volvo Penta engineer, the system uses electric-motor-driven ac-
tuators to turn the rudders, rather than hydraulic cylinders. Electric
steering lets the user adjust both steering-wheel friction and the
number of turns lock-to-lock. Or the wheel can be dispensed with
completely, and all steering done by joystick. In docking mode, the
system controls the rudders and the bow thruster simultaneously to
provide precise helm response.
In some installations, depending on vessel size and rudder loads,
one steering actuator can be linked to two rudders via a conventional
tie bar arrangement. Larger vessels with higher steering loads use
one actuator per rudder; there’s no tie bar, but the actuators are
synced electronically to ensure the rudder turn rate is consistent
from actuator to actuator. The twin actuators turn at the same rate
and at the same angle as if a mechanical tie bar linked them together.
They do not replicate an “Ackermann” steering system and cannot
be toed-in or adjusted on the fly.
All-electric systems have advantages: There’s no hydraulic oil to
top-up, and no high-pressure oil lines to leak. And what’s cooler than
to sit at the helm with one hand on the joystick, the other on the
engine controls, and drive the boat with minimal movements of each
paw? It’s totally 21st century and is perhaps the direction steering
will be moving in the future.Steering Without a Wheel
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