StMichel-Virbac vu du ciel © Y.Zedda / StMichel-Virbac
In November 2010, the first Route du Rhum race for VIRBAC PAPREC 3 was marred by a string of technical problems, most of which involved the power system. With the boat due to cross the start line in BARCELONA on 31 December having arrived less than a month earlier by cargo ship, the time available to uprate the system was tight.
The team trusted in our abilities, and gave us total freedom to completely rebuild the onboard power system. The battery location was changed for safety reasons, all the wiring was completely replaced, and every aspect of the system inspected and tested. Jean-Pierre Dick and Loïck Peyron went on to win the race on 4 April 2011. So we are very proud to have made our contribution to that victory.
We would also like to take this opportunity of sincerely thanking Jean-Pierre Dick and every member of his team, but especially Jean-Yves and François, for the trust they placed in us.
The initial problem with VIRBAC PAPREC 3
→ The need to improve system reliability
→ The need to protect the batteries against any ingress of water
The solutions delivered by JPS Concept
→ Repositioning of the batteries
→ Rewiring of the entire onboard power system
→ System safety and validation of failsoft modes
In 2015, the team called us in again to design and supervise the power system for its new boat SAINT-MICHEL VIRBAC.
→ Installation of a high-performance (Generator) battery charging system. A charging efficiency increase from 50% to 88%
→ Installation of Supercapacitors and a high performance charge converter to power the canting keel system and start the diesel engine. The current drawn from the Li-Ion batteries is limited to 80A, while the current supplied to the hydraulic generator may be up to 250A. This hardware is fully compliant with the IMOCA one-design standard
→ Detailed monitoring of batteries via an ADC Bus (monitoring of voltage, current, temperature etc.), with colour touchscreen display to show the current generated by the hydraulic generator and optional wind generator, and instant boat consumption. Programmable alarms have also been added (low battery, end charging, water ingress in certain compartments, etc.)
→ A CAPAS STARTER 32V 50F Supercapacitor module dedicated solely to diesel engine starting has been added to comply with IMOCA 60 technical specifications.