Patent ID: 7900570

Claim:
A floating vessel comprising a roll motion damping device, the roll motion damping device comprising: a sponson located alongside a floating vessel and rigidly attached to the hull of the floating vessel, the sponson comprising an exterior surface positioned away from the floating vessel, thereby defining a cavity within the sponson substantially open along its bottom, wherein the sponson extends from below a waterline of the floating vessel to above the waterline; at least one baffle extending substantially horizontally with and below the waterline, and within and across the cavity defined by the sponson and spaced above the bottom opening of the sponson, the baffle being a substantially planar sheet capable of inducing a viscous drag force and trapping water mass within the cavity defined by the sponson; and a wing keel on the sponson, the wing keel being capable of directing water through the at least one baffle and into the cavity defined by the sponson; wherein the water directed by the wing keel and trapped within the sponson is operable to temporarily increase the inertial resistance and viscous drag resistance of the floating vessel in response to a wave roll motion.