Ships – Life craft handling device – apparatus – or implement – Davit
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-04
2001-01-30
Swinehart, Ed (Department: 3612)
Ships
Life craft handling device, apparatus, or implement
Davit
C114S253000, C114S242000, C114S248000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06178914
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and to an arrangement in accordance with the introductory portion of the appended claims. Especially, the invention relates to a method for launching and, respectively, taking aboard an independent floating object at the bow, side or stern of a ship or other transporting means in motion, or at any other arrangement which has a relative movement with respect to a surrounding medium. The present invention also relates to a device for use as a working platform at sea and especially for launching and, respectively, taking aboard a floating device at a ship or other transporting device, as well as to a steering device for a towed device and to a locking device for locking a floating device to a cradle arranged for said floating device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Since a long time prior art knows different davit arrangements for launching, in an emergency situation and otherwise, smaller boats and other floating devices. Known davit arrangements comprise beam means which usually can be turned or folded out over a ship's bulwark, and hoisting means for lowering and, in certain situations, also hoisting up floating devices like life boats, life saving rafts and the like. Arrangements are also known for launching such floating devices using special ramps without the use of davits, in which case one uses slides instead. In the latter arrangement very grave difficulties usually are included with any rehoisting of the floating device, and said devices are mostly intended for rescuing the ship's own crew.
Known davit arrangements have the drawback that launching and taking aboard a floating device in bad weather and at high waves is combined with very high risks. On the other hand, such circumstances often are at hand especially in those situations when a rescue vessel or the like floating device must be launched to perform a life saving operation. In known davit and the like arrangements a smaller floating device will be suspended directly in its hoisting means and in rough sea two mutually independent pairs of power will act upon the floating device. When said floating device is suspended in its hoisting means said means are fully stressed, while, on the other hand, when a wave hits the floating device said device often will be fully floating in slack hoisting means. In this position said hoisting means should be disconnected from the floating device, and, respectively, be connected to the floating device when it shall be hoisted on board again. It is clear that such an arrangement is especially unsuitable for hoisting and taking aboard a floating device in rough sea. In practice one will aim at turning the ship so that the work can be done in some kind of lee, but this is in no case possible in all situations, and thus one cannot in all conditions guarantee more than the launching. In rescue operations, on the other hand, the taking aboard of the rescued and the own personnel is of a decisive importance.
The international convention “Solas” (Safety of Life at Sea) will propose additional demands stating that a fast rescue boat must be on board all roll-on-roll-off passenger ships. Said fast rescue boat (FRB) must be quickly launchable from the mother ship on the move also during hard weather conditions and it must also be quickly hoistable back on board. This sets quite special demands on the equipment for launching and recovering on-board. One cannot see the possibility, using known hoisting means having a hoisting hook, to take aboard a rescue boat in the size of about 6 to 8 meters in a situation where the wave height is several meters. A boat of that size will vertically follow the wave, and an unhooking and hooking to e.g. a crane is under such circumstances difficult, dangerous and perhaps impossible.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The purpose of the present invention is to solve those practical problems which the new convention will bring about, and simultaneously to give, also for other situations, a versatile and useful solution to the problem of launching and taking aboard a floating device. The invention further indicates a method for drastically improving the capacity of a free operating rescue boat where rescued persons in an easy and secure manner can be quickly taken care of on a device which during towing can act as an intermediate and working platform and as a hoisting arrangement, where the rescue boat may continue its functions. The invention also shows a practical solution on problems related to taking aboard a pilot, diving and surveying operations; unloading during run as well as other civilian and military operations.
The invention is characterized as indicated in the appended claims. Thus, the method is characterized by arranging and detachably connecting a floating device to be launched or, respectively, taken aboard in a generally open cradle, said cradle being, as such, floating as well as open in a direction away from the ship. The entity comprising said cradle and the floating device connected thereto is launched and, respectively, taken aboard suspended from a flexible carrying means using a preferably extendable hoisting device arranged at said ship while the guiding of the cradle's bow portion which is directed towards said ship is performed using a flexible separately-arranged towing means in such a manner that said cradle, when it floats on the water surface preferably behind said ship, will be generally directed in the ship's direction of movement. When the floating device is not connected to said cradle, i.e. when said cradle is not in the air, said floating device is able to essentially freely move into the floating cradle as well as out thereof through said cradle's open stern portion which is directed away from said ship.
The apparatus according to the invention is characterized in that said apparatus comprises an essentially U-shaped cradle, which as such is floating, said cradle having a space for receiving said floating device, said space being essentially open in a direction away from said ship, hoisting means for hoisting up and, respectively, lowering said cradle in relation to a water surface, as well as guiding means for guiding, through a towing pulling action, said cradle into a desired position in relation to said ship's direction of travel. Preferably said cradle comprises a special steering means in accordance with the invention, said means being characterized in that said steering means comprise an attachment point for a towing means, said attachment point being arranged at a first steering yoke which is pivotably attached to the towed device, at least one end of said steering yoke being arranged for moving, upon a turning of said yoke, a piston in a first cylinder, said device further comprising tubes arranged between said first cylinder and a second cylinder for transporting a fluid between said first and said second cylinders, said second cylinder being connected to a second steering yoke adapted for turning actual steering means which are arranged at said towed device at a distance from said attachment point for said towing means.
The connecting of said floating device to said cradle will suitably be effected using the special locking device according to the invention, said device being characterized in that it comprises an open annular housing covering an arc of about 270° as well as two arched locking pins, which are movable in said housing away from each other in the direction of said arc against a spring force, at which locking pins operating means are arranged for arcuate moving said locking pins in said housing under force impact, where opposite front portions of said locking pins are inclined so that said inclinations form a V which is directed away from the center of said annular housing.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2113338 (1938-04-01), Wohldorf
patent: 2398274 (1946-04-01), Albert
patent: 3448712 (1969-06-01), Lehmann et al.
patent: 4275677 (1981-06-01), Nelson
patent: 2 092 101A (1982-08-01), None
pa
Arent Fox Kintner & Plotkin & Kahn, PLLC
Axelsson Sune Georg
Swinehart Ed
LandOfFree
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