Skip to content

A short history of Sailing Instruments

Part 2: The search for accuracy gets serious

The WTP’s use of rate gyros meant that the wind data and everything calculated downstream of it was much less noisy than it had been, and with the consequent ability to reduce damping, there also came a much-improved update rate. “It was possible to lift the system sampling rate to 10hz and to output the important sailing variables like heading, boatspeed, wind direction, true wind angle and speed to the displays at the same rate; this makes for a very responsive system with more dynamic numbers,” explained Graeme Winn. The WTP became the system of choice for America’s Cup teams in the late 90s, and its specification was the ground zero from which new systems were developed as the new millennium commenced.