Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
  • B63B—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; EQUIPMENT FOR SHIPPING 
  • B63B43/00—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for
  • B63B43/02—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking
  • B63B43/10—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking by improving buoyancy
  • B63B43/14—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking by improving buoyancy using outboard floating members
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
  • B63B—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; EQUIPMENT FOR SHIPPING 
  • B63B43/00—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for
  • B63B43/02—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking
  • B63B43/10—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking by improving buoyancy
  • B63B43/14—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking by improving buoyancy using outboard floating members
  • B63B2043/145—Improving safety of vessels, e.g. damage control, not otherwise provided for reducing risk of capsizing or sinking by improving buoyancy using outboard floating members pneumatic, e.g. inflatable on demand

Definitions

• the object of the present invention is to provide a device designed for the safeguard and rescue of floating crafts for civil and/or mercantile use in situations of emergency, breakdown, accidental collision or any situation in which the hull loses the condition of buoyancy.
• the floating crafts of any type which are designed to transport persons and goods, and of any tonnage and dimension are equipped with safety devices whose main aim is that of safeguarding the life of the passengers and crew.
• Said devices are usually comprised of life belts, life jackets, and lifeboats.
• said lifesaving devices must be present on the floating craft in sufficient quantity to be distributed, in the case of life jackets, to all of the passengers and members of the crew, or have available a sufficient number or seats in the case of lifeboats.
• Said devices though effective for saving the lives of the persons, are not designed to prevent the sinking of the floating craft on which they are located.
• Said known devices consist of a series of flotation elements employed with various systems below the waterline of the floating craft, and supplying a supplementary hydrostatic boost sufficient to guarantee the buoyancy of said craft when needed while they are inflated.
• a further problem of the known devices results from the location of the flotation elements; in fact, when they are not located in suitable compartments situated on the hull of the floating craft, their presence on board ends up being cumbersome and of dubious aesthetics.
• the object of the present invention is to provide a device suitable for ensuring the buoyancy of a floating craft, even in the event of a serious collision that results in the craft taking on water.
• a further object is that of supplying an emergency device in which the flotation elements, when not in use, are stored in protected compartments placed above the waterline in such a way as not to undergo any damage and a resulting leak in the hull and, by contrast, are completely submerged and therefore below the waterline in such a way as to guarantee maximum hydrostatic boost when inflated.
• a further object is that of supplying a supplementary flotation device and preventing the sinking of the floating craft by capsizing from the bow or from the stern.
• Yet another object is, more generally, the supply of a device that makes the lifesaving devices on board of the floating craft useless or at least not important thereby avoiding their handling in emergency situations, the result of which is not always smooth or predictable, and preventing the human factor, which in certain critical situations can give rise to panic, crush, crowd, etc., from compromising the rescue operations.
• a last object is that of supplying a device that can be activated completely automatically by the captain of the floating craft by a pushbutton located on the bridge or inside the control cabin.
• Fig. 1 a side view of a ship equipped with the device, wherein the inflating circuit for the flotation elements and the gas storage and supply tanks are visible;
• FIG. 2 a cutaway view A-A of the ship of figure 1 ;
• FIG. 3 the first view of a sequence of four, of a side of a ship wherein the supply circuit of the flotation elements is shown, the latter still deflated within the containment compartments;
• Fig. 4 the second view of the sequence of four, in which the storage compartments of the flotation elements are open, and the latter are in the first step of inflation;
• Fig. 5 the third view of the sequence of four, in which the flotation elements are in an advanced step of inflation
• Fig. 6 the fourth and final view of the sequence of four, in which the flotation elements are completely inflated
• Fig. 7 a cutaway view of the ship wherein a containment compartment for the flotation elements when deflated is visible;
• FIG. 8 the same view as in figure 7 but with flotation elements out of the containment compartment and completely inflated;
• Fig. 9 the first view of a sequence of nine, showing the behavior of a ship in the case of listing caused by the craft taking on water following a leak on the left side of the hull and its subsequent realignment after the activation of said emergency device, said first figure representing a section of a hull under conditions of normal navigation;
• Fig. 10 the second view of the sequence of nine, wherein the walls of the containment compartments of the flotation elements are opened and withdrawn toward the ship via a rope or chain;
• Fig. 11 the third view of the sequence of nine, wherein the listing of the ship resulting from taking on water is shown;
• Fig. 12 the fourth view of the sequence of nine, wherein the lower flotation elements have been expelled from the containment compartments;
• Fig. 13 the fifth view of the sequence of nine, wherein the flotation elements are in contact with the water because the ship is starting to sink;
• Fig. 14 the sixth view of the sequence of nine, wherein also the upper flotation elements are expelled;
• Fig. 15 the seventh view of the sequence of nine, wherein the flotation elements are partially inflated
• FIG. 16 the eighth view of the sequence of nine, wherein the flotation elements are completely inflated
• Fig. 17 the ninth and final view of the sequence of nine, showing the realignment of the ship after the flotation elements expulsion and inflation
• Fig. 18 the first view of a sequence of four, of one side of a ship where the location of the flotation elements, the inflation circuit and the positioning of the gas tanks are shown;
• Fig. 19 the second view of the sequence of four, in which the collision of the hull of the boat with a rock outcropping or another floating craft is simulated;
• Fig. 20 the third view of the sequence of four, in which the shattering of the hull of the ship following the collision is simulated;
• Fig. 21 the fourth and final view of the sequence of four, in which the inflated flotation elements supplied from separate circuits are visible.
• the device of the present invention comprises a system designed to guarantee the condition of buoyancy of any type of floating craft in which the hull should be irreparably damaged because of a collision or in all those situations in which a buoyancy support is needed.
• the emergency device allows to avoid abandoning the floating craft both for the primary purpose of safeguarding the safety of the passengers and the crew and, in a second stroke, where possible, to save the floating craft from sinking.
• the anti-sinking emergency device of the present invention comprises three main components:
• gas and/or gas-foam plant which is identified as a whole by the number 3, consisting of high pressure storage tanks 31, tubes 32, valves 33 and pressure reducers 34;
• an ignition system 4 that, in the event of a risk of sinking upon a collision, allows for arming the device, thereby permitting the inflation of the flotation elements 1 and 2.
• Said flotation elements 1 are located within compartments 5 obtained on the side of the floating craft above the waterline; also located within said compartments 5 are a second series of flotation elements 2 whose main function is not that of contributing to the buoyancy of the floating craft but rather that of preventing the flotation elements 1 from emerging, increasing their efficiency and, only if the latter are damaged, contributing to the buoyancy of the craft.
• Said flotation elements 1 and 2 are equally distributed around the perimeter of the floating craft and are suitable, when inflated, both for preventing the craft from rolling over, and therefore from listing onto its side, and for preventing the pitching and, thus, the sinking of the craft from the stern or from the bow.
• Flotation elements 1 and 2 are made, preferably, with a rubber or plastic matrix, formed in two or more layers with glass, carbon or aramidic reinforcement fibers or combinations thereof, by geometric type and manner of composition, to create a structure of composite material, as already specified, housed in special compartments 5 of appropriate dimensions enclosed by watertight bulkheads 8 present on the same sides.
• Flotation elements 1 and 2 are linked, as shown in figure 8, to the supporting structure of the floating craft via cables or chains 61 and 62 for the purpose of ensuring its appropriate support when inflated.
• the emergency device comprises one or more plants 3 whose function is that of permitting the inflation of flotation elements 1 and 2 with nitrogen gas or inert gas in general.
• Said plants 3 comprise:
• a series of storage tanks 31 proportional to the dimensions and to the number of flotation elements 1 and 2; a single tank having a capacity of 10 liters will be sufficient for small watercrafts; by contrast, for cruise ships, cargo ships or oil tankers, tank packages having a total capacity of at least 500 m will be necessary.
• plant 3 provides one or more pressure reducers 34 designed to bring the pressure from the storage pressure (200-400 bar) up to the pressure for inflating flotation elements 1 and 2.
• flotation elements 1 and 2 are inflated and pressurized only by means of the assistance of pressurizing gas; by contrast, in the case in which the employment of gas and foam is provided, the gas is added to a quantity of foam that is used to fill flotation elements 1 and 2, guaranteeing their buoyancy even in the case of accidental puncture.
• a control unit 7 constitutes the preferred organ for controlling the device; it communicates with ignition systems for the expulsion of the watertight bulkheads 8 and with gas plant 3.
• Ignition systems 4 when activated from control unit 7 and/or auxiliary pushbuttons, remove bulkheads 8 and permit flotation elements 1 and 2 to come out.
• Plants 3 for the inflation of flotation elements 1 and 2 can be one or more than one, one can be completely independent from the other and can be activated via one or more emergency pushbuttons, connected or not to control unit 7.
• Plants 3 can be separated also as a function of flotation elements 1 and 2 to be inflated in such a way that there is a plant 3 dedicated only to the inflation of flotation elements 1 and an independent plant dedicated to the inflation of flotation elements 2 only.
• the emergency device herein described is always activated by the captain of the floating craft or by one of his delegates following a visual inspection of the real damage suffered by the hull upon the collision.
• the device activation is irreversible because it will no longer be possible to activate the system while in the sea but will require resetting by qualified operators and shipyards.
• Activation of the arming device causes the automatic expulsion of bulkheads 8 by the ignition devices present on the sides of the floating craft and the pressurization of gas plant 3 by tanks 31 is operated via pressure reducers 34 and therefore tubes 32 up to flotation elements 1 and 2.
• the expulsion of flotation elements 1 and 2 is accomplished by gravity, having the bottom 51 of the containment compartments 5 an inclination sufficient to make flotation elements 1 and 2 slide from said compartments 5.
• the tear of the hull could partially damage one or more bulkheads 8, thereby causing the failed intervention of a certain number of flotation elements, but the failed functionality of several bulkheads 8 does not compromise the operation of the device; in fact, the plant will continue to function partially (allowing the flotation elements to inflate) since both plant 3 and flotation elements 1 and 2 are independent from each other.
• the safety device is oversized by a safety factor greater than 2; this means that even just half of the flotation elements present on board would ensure buoyancy.
• the appropriate separation of the plant allows the operation of the device even when the hull is completely shattered. This situation is often observed on oil tankers and/or cargo ships, which, if they lose control can run aground or drift onto rocks.

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• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Ocean & Marine Engineering (AREA)
• Emergency Lowering Means (AREA)
• Finish Polishing, Edge Sharpening, And Grinding By Specific Grinding Devices (AREA)
• Photometry And Measurement Of Optical Pulse Characteristics (AREA)
• Cyclones (AREA)

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Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

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Cited By (7)

Citations (8)

• 2012
  • 2012-02-03 IT IT000008A patent/ITBA20120008A1/it unknown
• 2013
  • 2013-01-31 WO PCT/IB2013/000122 patent/WO2013114184A1/en not_active Ceased

Patent Citations (8)

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