Technology for Ship to Shore Connector Concepts with Combined High Speed and Payload Fraction

UHAC has demonstrated the capability to operate in water, mud, sand, and over rough terrain. Its propulsion is based on buoyant cells acting as paddle wheels. This system of propulsion is not efficient. It is suggested that more efficient propulsion can be incorporated without compromising the all-terrain capabilities of the vehicle. Further, segregating the functions of buoyancy, propulsion, and land traction can yield a vehicle that is more efficient overall, in contrast to UHAC where all of these functions are performed by the CACs. More conventional propulsion can increase the propulsive coefficient by a factor of 3 or more, which could increase vehicle speed to approximately 30 knots for the same installed power, or greatly increase range for the same fuel load. This proposal describes the effort to develop a viable concept where the functions of the CACs are distributed to yield a vehicle that is significantly more power efficient.