Modelling accumulative cost for sailing in a given direction with in a sailing vessel on open water

Hi all,

As part of my research I am trying to model to accumulative 'cost' of a sailing ship moving on open water from a given starting point on land. The model must incorporate wind and current data (both direction and speed) and the effect of trying to sail at various angles to the prevailing wind (based on measurements for a specific kind of ship).

The mathematics of sailing are quite well studied and I can foster the relevant formulas. However, since I am new at MatLab and the Mapping Toolbox it would be very useful if somebody could offer me advice or help me with the construction of the model. There are opportunities for an academic collaboration for those who are interested.

All best, Paul