Wave propulsion device (WPD) is a device that can directly absorb wave energy and convert it into forward thrust by using an oscillating hydrofoil. The concept of WPD has been proposed for many years and has been proved to be feasible as the dominating or assistant propulsion of ships. The main problem of such device is its low efficiency. A new idea to improve its efficiency is investigated in this paper by using small floaters to adjust the attack angle of the hydrofoil, which is halfactive and named as floater-adjusted wave propulsion device (FAWPD). The experimental tests show that the FAWPD can generate significantly more thrust compared with conventional designs.
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