Sailing Instruments Hardware
Sailing instruments hardware converts sensor data (wind, boatspeed, heading etc.) into useful functions.
Sailing instruments hardware dos not replace your senses, it enhances and validates them. They provide information about things you can’t sense directly, like true wind and current. They are vital for comparing performance with target speed, calculating time to laylines and many other items crucial to increasing your probability of winning.
See the details of the Ockam system hardware.
If you don’t measure it well, you can’t improve it
True wind
Boatspeed is certainly an important item to keep tabs on, but for racing, nothing beats true wind speed and direction. (Why is True Wind so Important?)
The economics of true wind
Cost
To get true wind information, at a minimum you will need sensors, a processor and at least one display. Each year you must also allocate resources for calibration and maintenance. There is also the need for crew organization and training in order to get the maximum benefit from the information.
Over and above normal maintenance, keeping a boat in racing trim includes extra sail maintenance and replacement, transportation, crew cost, food and lodging, keeping the hull clean and many, many other things.
Benefit
Only you can put a price on finishing in the money over just being there. However, assuming you want to get the most return on your sailing investment, reliable true wind is a good place to place your bet.