Design parameter sensitivity analysis for SWATH with minimum resistance at design and service speeds

Abstract Parametric hull form is efficient in geometric modification, and can help to obtain new hull forms with excellent hydrodynamic performance. Achieving parametric hull modeling depends on the reasonable definition of design parameters. Currently, in parametric hull modeling and optimization, the lack of an effective parameter selection method usually results in blindness and inefficiency in the hull design. This paper provides an automatic calculation framework for SWATH (Small Water-plane Area Twin Hull) resistance at different speeds. A fully parametric SWATH model is established to realize automatic geometric transformation. SOBOL (Sobol’ quasi-random sequence) algorithm is used for space sampling. The sensitivity analysis of all the parameters of SWATH for resistance is carried out. The correlation study between design variables and resistance is performed and the correlation coefficients of all design parameters are given and discussed. Among the parameters of SWATH, 4 design parameters, those control the longitudinal deformation of the bow of the underwater hull, the transverse deformation of the stern, the position of the parallel middle body of the strut, and the inclination of the strut, respectively, are more sensitive to the resistance. The suggestions for the parametric design of SWATH are given based on the sensitivity analysis and optimization results.