A lateen rig carries a triangular sail on a long inclined yard hoisted beside the mast. A halyard supports the yard, a forward tack or fore line restrains its lower end, and a sheet controls the sail's clew.
Lateen Rig Interactive Calculator
Explore an assumed-coefficient force resolution while the animation identifies the connected yard, sail and primary running rigging.
Equation Used
- Uniform apparent wind and fixed density 1.225 kg/m³.
- Entered lift and drag coefficients apply under the user's angle convention.
- Yard, halyard, tack and sheet geometry is illustrative.
- No sail polar, three-dimensional shape, line loads, mast loads, heel, leeway, stability or vessel response.
Coefficients and resolution angle are inputs; the visual is rig topology, not a predicted sail shape or vessel response.
Connected lateen rig
The triangular sail is bent to an inclined yard. The halyard raises the yard beside the mast, the tack or fore line controls its lower end near the bow, and the sheet controls the aft sail corner or clew.
Rig identification, not performance prediction
The visual labels the principal connected parts. The calculator cannot predict boat speed, heel, leeway or rig loads.
Assumed vector relation
Fx=qA(CL sin beta−CD cos beta), using user-entered coefficients and angle.
Reading the animation
The gold spar is the yard, green is the halyard, and brown lines are the fore line, sheet and upper-yard vang. The lower plan shows lift in gold, drag in red and their signed track-axis result in green. All force arrows share one scale; the moving air arrow indicates direction only.
Rigging reference and model limits
The rigging topology follows the Mallorca Maritime Museum description of the lateen-rigged llaüt, which identifies the inclined yard, triangular sail and control lines. Sail polars, cloth shape, mast/yard/line loads, hull hydrodynamics and stability remain outside this model.
Questions
Are coefficients predicted?
No.
Does the arrow give boat thrust?
No. It is a signed component from entered assumptions.
References & Further Reading
- Wikipedia contributors. Lateen. Wikipedia
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