This paper presents an investigation of the Flettner rotor, a wind propulsion system utilized in ships to decrease fuel consumption and reduce carbon emissions by leveraging the Magnus effect. Proper balancing and stability of the rotor are crucial to ensure high operational efficiency and low energy consumption. In the present work, a 3D printed rotor, which is a scaled-down version of the "Water Taxi", is developed to predict the unbalanced forces and vibrations of the rotor. Two methods are presented in this paper for the determination of the magnitude and direction of unbalanced forces by utilizing strain gauge readings. The force prediction model is implemented using machine learning algorithms. Furthermore, the paper discusses potential solutions for balancing the rotor once vibrations and unbalanced forces are detected. The results of this research could potentially contribute to the development of improved Flettner rotor designs, leading to more efficient and eco-friendly shipping.

An ECO Flettner rotor has been installed on board the vessel MV Fehn Pollux to reduce the vessel’s carbon emissions and save fuel. The extent of fuel-saving is assessed using recorded data of apparent wind speed, apparent wind angle, and rotor speed by the vessel’s data acquisition and storage system. However, the data contains anomalies caused by noise, vibration, or errors. Detecting anomalies could help to understand the reason for their occurrence, improve the calculation of energy savings, and increase the accuracy of the trained models. To detect anomalies in apparent wind speed, apparent wind angle, and rotor speed, three anomaly detection approaches are proposed. The paper describes the proposed anomaly detection concepts, and it gives an insight into their implementation process. Additionally, it evaluates proposed anomaly detection capabilities.

Ship propulsion concepts which use energy harvested from wind as an additional source of propulsive power are of great interest for the shipping industry, addressing both environmental and business considerations. Usage of such hybrid propulsion concepts is dependent on seamless integration with current systems and processes on board. An intelligent system, monitoring the wind-assisted propulsion system, assisting the vessel's crew in its use and enabling automated, energetically optimized operation makes more widespread use of such technologies feasible. This article describes the design of such an intelligent assistance system, using an ECO Flettner rotor (which uses the Magnus effect to generate an aerodynamic thrust force) installed on the MV Fehn Pollux as an example of a wind-assisted propulsion system. Special focus is given to the approach used in the system architecture's design for data acquisition, processing and storage as well as visualization using the system's human machine interface (HMI). Ultimately, the presented system helps further increase the fuel-saving potential of wind-assisted propulsion systems.

The industrial world is currently undergoing changes due to increasing digitalization and computerization in companies (Industry 4.0). Existing control and management components and systems located within the upper layers of an enterprise's structure are connected to the shop floor. With the current paradigm shift in manufacturing, the need for more collaboration between personnel with different fields of expertise arises. This means that members of a multitude of professions need to work and communicate with each other. These developments in the industry also have an influence on current education curricula at schools and universities. Interdisciplinary knowledge across different curricula is required to work in an Industry 4.0 environment. This paper presents a general methodology for the evaluation of academic curricula of a university with regard to Industry 4.0 related topics. Based on this methodology, a case study was carried out, examining study programs of the Faculty of Technology at the University of Applied Sciences Emden/Leer. As a result of the case study, we present recommendations to increase the coverage of Industry 4.0 relevant topics in the current academic curriculum of the university.

Cyber-physical systems (CPS) are key enabling technologies for the fourth industrial revolution, referred to as Industrie 4.0 or Industry 4.0. The Reference Architecture Model Industrie 4.0 (RAMI4.0) has recently been standardized and OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA) is listed as the sole recommendation for implementation of a communication layer. Many automation and control systems offer already implementations of OPC UA but no satisfying implementation of OPC UA was found for Arduino, a popular platform for engineering physical computing systems. This paper presents open source integration and application of a customizable OPC UA server on an Arduino Yun board using open62541, an open source and free implementation of OPC UA. The Arduino board discussed in this paper offers hot-end closed-loop temperature control for a 3D printer but the temperature set value and control parameters can be manipulated and requested via OPC UA using OPC UA clients. The application is verified using Prosys OPC UA Client and UaExpert. The results of our research can be used for developing open source cyber-physical systems without specialized knowledge in microcontroller programming, bringing Industry 4.0 applications into classrooms without effort.