Navies experimented with the positioning of guns, in turrets (like the USS Monitor), central-batteries or barbettes, or with the ram as the principal weapon.

From the early 1820s, the British Navy began building a number of steam-powered small warships, and by the 1830s many navies were experimenting with steam-powered warships.

Earlier in the war, the German Navy had experimented with converting steamers into seaplane tenders.

The Navy was experimenting with computer systems that would have enabled a ship to collate data from many sensors, including satellites, airplanes and other ships.

The German Navy also experimented with engines that used hydrogen peroxide to help run diesel engines while submerged, but technical difficulties were great.

The Navy experimented with a device to transfer coal from colliers to warships in 1907, though the practice was not put into general use.

The French Navy noted the effectiveness of mines during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 and experimented with them by converting two elderly torpedo-gunboats in 1911-12.

The badge was first appeared in Navy Uniform Regulations in 1922, during which time the Navy was experimenting with lighter-than-air craft, as opposed to conventional, fixed-wing aircraft.

The Navy in 1963 briefly experimented with the C-130 Hercules for COD.

The Navy experimented with one prototype hovercraft, but announced in 2003 that the Tuuli class would not enter active operations and that no more of them would be built.