Seakeeper 5 GYRO User manual

Rev 4 FEBRUARY 2015
OPERATION MANUAL
SEAKEEPER 5 GYRO

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OPERATION
MANUAL
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SEAKEEPER 5 GYRO
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SEAKEEPER 5 GYRO
OPERATION MANUAL
FEBRUARY 2015
Contents:
Section 1 – System Overview
Section 2 – System Operation
Section 3 – Power Failures, Alarms, and Troubleshooting
Section 4 – Maintenance
Section 5 – Warranty, Limit of Liability, Property Rights
Section 6 – Gyro Specs and Summary
44425 PECAN COURT, SUITE 151
CALIFORNIA, MARYLAND, 20619, U.S.A
PHONE: [phone]
FAX: [phone]
E-MAIL: [e-mail]

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
1.0 System Overview
The Seakeeper 5 Gyro uses gyroscopic principles to reduce boat roll motions in waves and wakes
independent of boat speed. In multiple gyro installations, the gyros operate independently of each other
and therefore this manual only discusses operation of a single unit.
A Seakeeper 5 Gyro consists of a Gyro assembly, a CAN communications cable, and a Display. Figure 1
illustrates the interconnection of these components and their interface with the boat.
FIGURE 1 – SEAKEEPER 5 GYRO STABILIZATION SYSTEM COMPONENTS
Technical specifications provided in Section 6 list the power consumption, total weight, and dimensions
of the major components. Gyroscopic principals that apply to boat roll control are discussed on
Seakeeper’s web site at www.seakeeper.com. The Seakeeper web site also contains videos of gyro
operation and videos of several different boats operating in waves with the Gyro on and off. It is
recommended that the reader play these videos prior to reading the remainder of this manual.

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The gyro’s gimbal angle and the gyro’s rate of rotation about the gimbal axis (termed precession rate)
play an important role in its operation. These parameters are illustrated in Figure 2. At zero degree
gimbal angle, the gyro is vertical; it can precess a maximum of +/- 70 degrees about this position. The
amount of torque that the gyro exerts on a boat’s hull to counter the wave induced roll is directly
proportional to the precession rate. The further the gyro is from vertical (zero degrees) the lower the
anti-roll torque. The vertical arrows in Figure 2 illustrate the direction of the forces that the gyro exerts
on the boat’s hull to damp roll motion.
FIGURE 2 – GYRO PRECESSION
Seakeeper gyro precession is actively controlled by an electronic controller and a hydraulic brake
throughout each roll cycle so the gyro supplies the maximum anti-roll torque and does not make
mechanical contact with hard stops that limit the maximum gimbal angle travel to +/- 70o.

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
There is a large torque about the gimbal axis when the gyro is precessing. Gyro
cover panels are provided to prevent personnel or equipment from contacting the
gyro while it is in operation.These covers should not be stood on, or have anything
placed on top. The covers should always be in place during operation. If it is ever
necessary to touch the gyro while the flywheel is spinning, the gyro must be locked
at the display to stop the gyro from precessing. Gyro maintenance should not be
attempted unless the gyro is locked and the flywheel has stopped spinning.

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
1.1 Gyro Assembly
The gyro assembly consists of a flywheel housed in a cast aluminum vacuum-tight enclosure. The
flywheel spins about a vertical axis and is supported by upper and lower pairs of bearings. A DC
brushless motor mounted inside the enclosure spins the flywheel at high speed.
The enclosure is fastened to two gimbal shafts that are supported by gimbal bearings on either side.
These shafts establish an athwartship gimbal axis about which the flywheel and enclosure precess or
rotate up to +/- 70 degrees during operation. The gimbal bearings are supported by a foundation which
is attached to the hull structure. This foundation transfers the loads that the gyro produces to the hull
structure.
An active hydraulic brake mechanism is located on the gyro assembly to regulate the gyro’s precession
motions about the gimbal shaft. It includes two hydraulic cylinders and a hydraulic manifold.
A coolant pump, heat exchanger with reservoir, and thermostat are located near the manifold. A
glycol/water mix is circulated thru a closed loop to the drive box, hydraulic manifold, and the end caps
of the enclosure to remove heat.
FIGURE 3 – GYRO ASSEMBLY

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1.2 Display
The display shown below is the user interface to the Seakeeper 5 Gyro and should be mounted at the
primary helm station. It is used to start, operate, monitor and shutdown the gyro. Sensors, alarms and
shutdowns are provided to allow unattended operation. However the gyro is a high-speed machine and
special attention should be paid to vibration and noise as this could be the first hint of a mechanical
problem.
The display provides information in the event of an alarm. Alarms cause precession to stop (LOCK) and
the gyro to start coasting down (STOP).
FIGURE 4 – OPERATOR DISPLAY

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
1.3 Drive Box
The Drive Box contains the electronic components that take 110-230 VAC at 50/60 Hz from the boat’s
generator or shore power and supply current to the flywheel motor according to commands from the
Electronic Control Module (ECM). The glycol/water mix that cools the gyro is also circulated through a
cold plate inside the Drive Box to remove heat from high-power electronic components.
The Drive Box contains high voltage electronics and the cover should
not be removed while the flywheel is spinning except by an authorized
technician. This high voltage exists even if the flywheel is coasting
down and the supply voltage has been shut off.
FIGURE 5 – DRIVE BOX
1.4 Electronic Control Module
The Electronic Control Module (ECM) monitors all the system sensors and automatically regulates
operation of the gyro.
The controller commands the motor speed and regulates the gyro’s precession rate and gimbal angle.
This is accomplished by commands to a high response flow control valve in the hydraulic brake circuit
that increases or decreases the brake pressure.
DRIVE BOX

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
1.5 Inertia Measurement Unit (IMU)
The motion sensor suite in the IMU contains rate sensors that measure the angular movements of the
vessel and accelerometers that measure the vertical and lateral boat movement. These signals are
communicated to the ECM on a CANbus connection inside the gyro’s wiring harness.
1.6 Brake
The brake mechanism consists of two hydraulic cylinders that attach to a crank arm on the gyro gimbal
shaft. The hydraulic cylinders are plumbed to a manifold / valve assembly so when the gyro rotates
about the gimbal axis, oil from one side of each cylinder is pushed through the high response flow
control valve into the same side of the other cylinder. The gyro controller modulates how fast the oil
can flow through the control valve thus controlling the precession rate of the gyro.
The brake hydraulic circuit is a pre-charged closed loop – that is, there is no pump, motor or reservoir in
the circuit. Accumulators are installed in the circuit so the precharge pressure does not increase as the
fluid temperature rises due to the braking action. Locking solenoids are installed in the circuit to lock
the gyro so it cannot precess if there is a leak in the circuit or a mechanical problem with the gyro.
FIGURE 6 – BRAKE SYSTEM COMPONENTS
Gyro hydraulic Hand Pump Kit, P/N 10384, is required for servicing the brake system. Pressure should
never be relieved unless this tool is available.

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Section 1: SYSTEM OVERVIEW
1.7 Cooling
The cooling circuit is a closed loop that supplies a glycol/water (50% distilled water and 50% glycol) mix
to:
•The motor drive box to remove heat from the drive electronics
•The brake manifold to remove heat from the brake hydraulic circuit
•The gyro enclosure water jackets to remove heat from the flywheel bearings
The heated fluid then passes through a thermostat before bypassing or flowing through a heat
exchanger that has sea water on the cold side. The circuit also contains a coolant reservoir for coolant
expansion and to make filling easy. The reservoir contains a 7 psi (0.5 bar) pressure cap.
FIGURE 7 – COOLING SYSTEM COMPONENTS

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Section 2: SYSTEM OPERATION
2.0 Introduction
This section describes operation of the Seakeeper 5 Gyro system.
2.1 Display Screens: Overview
1) When 12 Vdc is applied to the Gyro the DISPLAY will power up and initialize. The SPLASH screen
will be displayed
2) After the DISPLAY has initialized the HOME screen will be displayed
3) The DISPLAY has a set of five buttons that are under the BUTTON ICONS that appear on the
display screen. The BUTTONS are the means for selecting the functions of the DISPLAY.

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a. HOME Screen BUTTON ICON function
i. GYRO ON/OFF and FAULT RESET
1. The ICON will change from red (GYRO OFF) to green (GYRO ON)
2. The ICON will turn red indicating the GYRO is off when a fault
appears
3. When a FAULT occurs the BUTTON is used to reset the active fault
ii. GYRO LOCK/UNLOCK
1. When the GYRO control is initializing, or the GYRO off, the lock
symbols will both be blue
2. When the GYRO is in LOCK mode, stabilization is off, the LOCK
symbol will be red
3. When the GYRO is UNLOCK, stabilization is on, the UNLOCK symbol
will be green
iii. DISPLAY DAY/NIGHT
1. Toggles the DISPLAY brightness between the Day and Night settings

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iv. HOME SCREEN VIEW
1. Switches the HOME screen views from an animation screen, to a
screen displaying arrows with no animation, to a screen that shows
GYRO rate on a graph
Home Screen with Animation:
Flywheel will be spinning and
gyro stabilizing
Home Screen with Arrows for
flywheel spinning and stabilizing
Home Screen indicating Gyro
Rate
v. SETTINGS SCREEN
1. Changes from the HOME screen to the SETTINGS screen

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4) When the button is depressed for the SETTINGS screen the DISPLAY changes to the
SETTINGS screen
a. SETTINGS screen BUTTON ICON functions
i. Allows the brightness of the DISPLAY to be increased or decreased.
The brightness settings for the DAY or NIGHT modes can be independently
adjusted by selecting the DAY or NIGHT on the main page before entering
the SETTINGS screen.
1. When the button is depressed the BRIGHTNESS settings appears
2. The BRIGHTNESS is decreased or increased by depressing the
MINUS button or the PLUS button
3. To navigate back to the SETTINGS screen the BACK button is
depressed

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ii. Adjusts the sleep function of the DISPLAY from one minute to 30
minutes or the DISPLAY screen on all of the time
1. When the button is depressed the DISPLAY SLEEP TIMER setting
appears
2. The SLEEP TIME is decreased or increased by depressing the MINUS
button or the PLUS button
3. To return back to the SETTINGS screen the BACK button is
depressed
iii. Changes to the speed mode screen. See section 2.5 Boat Transit and
Speed setpoint selection screen for more information.
iv. Changes the DISPLAY to the SERVICE screen
v. Returns the DISPLAY to the HOME screen

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5) When the button is depressed for the SERVICE screen the DISPLAY changes to the
SERVICE screen. The SERVICE screen displays the FAULT history of the GYRO
a. SERVICE screen BUTTON ICON functions
i. To scroll through the ALARM history the UP button and DOWN
button are depressed
ii. To change to the GYRO information screen the NEXT button is depressed
iii. To change back to the SETTINGS screen the BACK button is depressed
6) The GYRO information screen displays the GYRO model, GYRO serial number, GYRO software
version, DISPLAY software version, RUN hours, and SEA hours, the IMU software version as well
as the PFC Inverter software version. The PFC inverter calibration Major, Minor and model
information is also displayed in the following format: Major.Minor / model on the second Drive:
software line. This screen also allows Seakeeper Service personnel access to additional service
functions.

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Section 2: SYSTEM OPERATION
a. The RETURN button will return the DISPLAY to the SERVICE screen
2.2 Start-up
1) Make sure AC and DC power are available.
2) Turn on the boat’s DC circuit breaker that supplies power to the Gyro.
3) Turn on the boat’s AC circuit breaker that supplies power to the Motor Drive Box.
4) In most cases, the seawater pump will be wired to turn on when the Gyro or Motor Drive Box is
turned on. However, in some cases the seawater pump is on a separate AC or DC circuit breaker
and it is necessary to turn it on.
5) When the DC power is turned on the DISPLAY will initialize and the HOME screen will appear. If
a FAULT is present an ALARM screen will appear.
To turn the GYRO ON depress the POWER ON/OFF FAULT RESET button, the button will turn
GREEN, the flywheel will spin (or arrow appear), and a RED PROGRESS BAR will appear. The
PROGRESS BAR indicates how soon the gyro will be available for stabilization. When the Gyro is
initialized and when the GYRO is up to minimum operating speed the PROGRESS BAR will turn
from RED to GREEN. At this point, the GYRO is available for stabilization.

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6) When the GYRO reaches its maximum operating speed where maximum stabilization is
available, the PROGRESS BAR will disappear and the GYRO is available for maximum
stabilization.
2.3 Stabilization
For stabilization at sea or at anchor after GYRO is ON and at speed:
1) Press the LOCK/UNLOCK button. The button will turn GREEN indicating that the Gyro is
precessing and stabilizing the roll motion. The stabilizatoin mode starts gradually; it takes 5-10
seconds to reach full effectiveness.