CN114450220B

CN114450220B - Can hoist vehicle deck panel

Info

Publication number: CN114450220B
Application number: CN202080067047.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: G·古斯塔夫松
Original assignee: Macchia Sweden Ag
Current assignee: Macchia Sweden Ag
Priority date: 2019-10-01
Filing date: 2020-10-01
Publication date: 2023-03-31
Anticipated expiration: 2040-10-01
Also published as: EP4017797A1; SE1951118A1; KR20230163597A; JP7246571B2; JP2022540519A; WO2021066724A1; CN114450220A; SE543411C2; KR20220041949A

Abstract

A deck panel arrangement (100) for a vessel (1), wherein the deck panel arrangement (100) comprises: a deck panel (110) arranged to be displaced between a lower position and an upper position; a trolley (120); a plurality of deck panel attachment points (130) disposed at the deck panel (110); and a plurality of upper attachment points (131) adapted to be arranged at a fixed structure (112) of the vessel (1). The overhead hoist (120) includes: a plurality of handling constraints (123), each handling constraint of the plurality of handling constraints (123) being arranged onto a respective drum (122) and between one assigned deck panel attachment point (130) and one assigned upper attachment point (131) such that the handling constraints (123) can be wound around and unwound from their respective drums (122) and thereby displace the deck panels (110) between their lower and upper positions.

Description

Can hoist vehicle deck panel

Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to a displaceable deck panel arrangement (deck panel arrangement) for a vessel, wherein a deck panel of the deck panel arrangement is displaceable between a lower position and an upper position. The invention further relates to a system of deck panel arrangements.

Background

A displaceable deck panel for cargo on a vessel is used for supporting the cargo at a desired level in a cargo hold on the vessel and is formed by a plurality of vertically displaceable deck panels for the cargo. The displaceable deck panels are displaced to their desired position, in which they can be positioned on and supported by the deck panel stops. There are two main types of displaceable deck panels for cargo on ships, the hoistable (host) deck panel and the liftable (lift) deck panel.

The simplest displaceable deck panel is a liftable deck panel, which is displaced to the desired height by means of a device for lifting the deck panel, typically in the form of a mobile scissor lift. The means for lifting the deck panel are driven on the deck panel below the displaceable deck panel. The liftable deck panel is a simple and cost-effective construction. An exemplary disadvantage of liftable deck panels is that repositioning a larger number of deck panels is very time consuming and deck panel lifts are typically driven by an internal combustion engine and thereby create a noisy and often unhealthy working environment for lift operators and other personnel working in the cargo hold. An exemplary liftable deck panel is disclosed in JP 2005 067277A.

An alternative displaceable type of deck panels, i.e. to hoist the deck panels, is usually provided with one centrally arranged actuator and hoisting cables arranged in a complex structure to the four corners of the deck panels to allow uniform hoisting of the deck panels. An exemplary disadvantage of being able to lift the deck panels is that it is a complicated solution and expensive, and in addition the lifting ropes need to be greased (grease), which requires additional maintenance and risks of grease spillage to sensitive goods such as vehicles (car). An exemplary hoistable deck panel arrangement is disclosed in WO 2002 079025A1.

Flexible solutions for ships are usually based on a combination of multi-layer displaceable deck panels and fixed deck panels. Thus, the ship owner may choose cost-effective deck panels to produce and install, but when the deck panels need to be displaced, these deck panels are not effective, which may cause additional problems if a large number of deck panels need to be relocated, or deck panels that can be relocated faster, but which are expensive, costly to maintain and risk damage to the cargo.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present disclosure to at least partly overcome the above mentioned problems, i.e. to propose a displaceable deck panel that is more cost-effective than existing hoistable deck panels and more efficient than hoistable deck panels. It is another object of the present disclosure to propose a system of displaceable deck panel arrangements which is cost-effective. A third object of the present disclosure is to propose a method for upgrading an existing liftable deck panel arrangement to a liftable deck panel arrangement.

The first object is solved by a deck panel arrangement for a vessel, wherein the deck panel arrangement comprises:

-a deck panel arranged to be displaced between a lower position and an upper position;

-hoisting means (hoisting arrangement);

-a plurality of deck panel attachment points provided at the deck panels;

a plurality of upper attachment points adapted to be arranged at a fixed structure, wherein,

the lifting device comprises a plurality of lifting devices, each lifting device of the lifting devices comprises a driving unit, a winding drum (drum) and a lifting restraining piece (restraint), wherein,

one deck panel attachment point and one upper attachment point are assigned to each trolley device, and the trolley is attached at one of the one deck panel attachment point and the one upper attachment point, wherein,

the drive unit is in a drive arrangement with the drum and the hoist restraint is arranged onto the drum and between the deck panel attachment point and the upper attachment point such that the hoist restraint can be wound around and unwound from the drum and thereby displace the deck panel between its lower and upper positions.

By displaceable between the lower position and the upper position is meant that the deck panel can be displaced by the trolley to any position between the lower position and the upper position. In addition, the deck panel may have a lower support (rest) position and an upper support position, whereby in order to position the deck panel on, for example, a deck panel stop in its upper support position, the deck panel must be displaced to a position higher than its upper support position in order to lower the stop in the support position. Additional support points may be provided between the upper and lower positions of the deck panel. Thus, the displaceability between the lower position and the upper position only defines that the deck panel is displaceable in the vertical direction, without defining the specific upper and lower positions as the only possible positions to which the deck panel is displaceable.

The deck panel attachment point is an attachment point at the deck panel, wherein the handling restraint interacts with the deck panel to apply a lifting force to the deck panel during displacement of the deck panel.

The upper attachment point is an attachment point adapted to be arranged at a fixed structure to serve as a support for the lifting force of the lifting deck panel. The fixed structure is a part of or fixedly connected to the marine structure or hull.

An exemplary effect of the disclosed deck panel arrangement is that it is flexible in the locations where lifting equipment can be arranged, e.g. on a fixed structure, on a deck panel or even within or below a deck panel, and maintains a simple allocation (allocation) of support points for all lifting restraints.

An exemplary simple distribution of handling constraints is: each handling restraint extends in a defined one plane between the drum, the deck attachment point and the upper attachment point. Due to the plurality of attachment points all planes of the handling restraint are arranged parallel to each other, thereby enabling a simple force distribution on the deck panel. The handling equipment may also be arranged so that all planes are parallel to the edges of the deck panels.

An exemplary embodiment provides that one upper attachment point is adapted to be arranged substantially aligned with one respective deck panel attachment point in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the deck panels. An exemplary effect of this is that the handling restraint may be arranged such that during displacement of the deck panel arrangement substantially only vertical forces act on the attachment points, thereby causing less stress in the overall arrangement.

An exemplary embodiment provides that the rotational axes of the drive unit and the drum are coaxial. One exemplary effect thereof is to achieve an easy configuration and a compact radial installation space.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement the handling restraint is a belt. The belt may be named, among others, sling, webbing, belt (belt), belt (band), however in this disclosure a belt will be used and is defined as a handling restraint having a significant extension in one plane, i.e. a flat handling restraint. Exemplary belts are made from polymeric fabrics, natural fiber fabrics, and composite fabrics, i.e., from polymeric, natural fiber, and/or metal fiber. An exemplary effect of using the belt as a handling restraint is that no grease is required and thus the risk of damaging the cargo is reduced, and due to the flexibility of the flat side of the belt, a reduced drum diameter can be used, thereby making the overall installation more compact.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement, the drive unit is an electric motor. In an exemplary embodiment, the drive unit is a synchronous reluctance motor. An exemplary effect of using an electric motor as the drive unit is that the electric motor can be made compact and accurate control can be easily facilitated.

An additional exemplary effect in using a synchronous reluctance motor as the drive unit is that the synchronous reluctance motor may be arranged to be controlled in a master/slave configuration, thereby enabling accurate control to be maintained without any additional sensors. This arrangement allows easy control of all drive units, since only one motor needs to be controlled.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement, the trolley comprises two trolley devices, each trolley device being arranged at opposite deck panel sides, whereby each trolley device is provided with two drums with respective trolley restraints.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement, the trolley comprises four trolley devices, each trolley device being provided in a respective corner of the deck panel, e.g. at a respective deck panel attachment point or in two pairs, anywhere along the opposite deck panel side, e.g. such that the deck panel attachment point, the upper attachment point and the drive unit are arranged in one plane parallel to one side of the deck panel.

An exemplary effect of having four lifting arrangements is that greater flexibility is achieved, since one lifting arrangement can be allocated for each corner and a relatively small drive unit can be used, thereby achieving high flexibility of where to allocate the lifting means.

An exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement provides more than four lifting devices, thereby maintaining flexibility and compactness of the lifting devices while increasing the lifting capacity. Exemplary non-limiting embodiments include six, eight, or ten lifting apparatuses.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement, one of the attachment points is a roller (roll) and the handling restraint extends between and returns to the other attachment point via the roller. One exemplary effect of this is that a higher lifting force is achieved.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the deck panel arrangement, the handling equipment is arranged at a deck panel attachment point or an upper attachment point. An exemplary effect of this is a high flexibility of the deck panel arrangement.

One aspect of the present disclosure relates to a system of deck panel arrangements, wherein the system of deck panel arrangements comprises a plurality of deck panel arrangements according to any exemplary embodiment disclosed herein.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the system of deck panel arrangements, the deck panel arrangements are adjacently arranged such that the deck panels form either the deck or a part of the deck when hoisted to the same level.

An exemplary system of deck panel devices comprises one control cabinet for controlling the displacement of a plurality of deck panel devices, and the control cabinet comprises a deck panel selection control unit capable of selecting which deck panel device or deck panel devices to control.

One aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method of converting a liftable deck panel of a vessel into a liftable deck panel of the vessel, wherein the method comprises the steps of:

providing deck panel attachment points in respective corners of the deck panel;

providing an upper attachment point on the support construction of the vessel;

providing at least two handling devices at two opposite sides of the deck panel, the at least two handling devices being assigned to the deck panel or the support construction of the vessel;

arranging the handling restraint between a respective reel of the handling apparatus, one deck panel attachment point and one upper attachment point such that the deck panel can be displaced between the lower and upper positions by winding and unwinding the handling restraint around and from its respective reel, respectively.

An exemplary effect of the method is that the liftable deck panels of the vessel can be converted quickly and at low cost to more flexible liftable deck panels, and the deck panels are still in their position on the vessel.

An exemplary embodiment of the method further comprises the steps of:

providing a control cabinet on a support structure of the vessel; and

connecting the handling apparatus to the control cabinet so that the control cabinet can electronically control the handling apparatus.

Drawings

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

fig. 1 discloses a schematic view of a marine vessel.

Fig. 2a to 2c disclose schematic views of the displacement of the deck panels.

Fig. 3a and 3b disclose schematic views of an exemplary deck panel arrangement.

Fig. 4 discloses a schematic view of a system of exemplary deck panel arrangements.

Figures 5a and 5b disclose schematic views of an exemplary arrangement of handling equipment of the deck panel unit.

One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various features disclosed in the specification may be modified and that various embodiments disclosed and/or claimed may be combined without departing from the scope of the disclosure.

Detailed Description

In the following, a detailed description of exemplary embodiments of a deck panel arrangement, handling equipment and a system of deck panel arrangements will be disclosed. It should be emphasized that the illustrated embodiments are used as examples only and are in no way intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

Fig. 1 discloses a schematic view of a vessel 1 in which a deck panel arrangement 100 may be provided. The displaceable deck panel arrangement 100 is commonly found in ro-ship.

Fig. 2a to 2c disclose a deck panel arrangement 100, which deck panel arrangement 100 has a displaceable deck panel 110 in its upper position (fig. 2 a), intermediate position (fig. 2 b) and lower position (fig. 2 c). The displaceable deck panel 110 may be displaced between the lower and upper positions by actuating a trolley 120, the trolley 120 being arranged to actuate a lifting force between the deck panel 110 of the vessel 1 and the fixed structure 112. The lifting force supports the deck panel 110 when the deck panel 110 is between its bearing positions (i.e., between the stops 111). In the upper and lower positions of the deck panel 110, the deck panel 110 is arranged on the stops 111, so that the trolley 120 is unloaded when the deck panel 100 is arranged in its upper and lower positions. The trolley 120 is provided with a handling restraint 123, the handling restraint 123 transferring lifting forces between the fixed structure 112 of the vessel 1 and the deck panel 110.

The deck panel arrangement 100 is controlled by a control cabinet 210 (fig. 5), the control cabinet 210 being provided with at least controls for controlling the upward and downward displacement of the deck panel 110. Thus, the control cabinet 210 is provided with an electronic communication device 211, the electronic communication device 211 having a trolley 120 for each deck panel 110. The electronic communication device 211 may be wired or wireless.

The displacement of the deck panels 110 is accomplished by means of a trolley 120, which trolley 120 is disclosed in more detail in connection with fig. 3, 4 and 5.

Fig. 3a and 3b disclose two exemplary embodiments of the deck panel arrangement 100. The deck panel arrangement 100 in fig. 3a is provided with a trolley 120 having two drive units 121 and the deck panel arrangement 100 in fig. 3b is provided with a trolley 120 having four drive units 121. In both exemplary embodiments, the deck panel arrangement 100 is provided with a deck panel 110, a trolley 120, a plurality of deck panel attachment points provided at the deck panel 110 and a plurality of upper attachment points 131. The upper attachment point 131 is arranged at the fixed structure 112 of the vessel 1.

The trolley 120 includes a plurality of trolley devices 129. Each handling apparatus 129 comprises at least one handling restraint and is assigned a reel 122. In the exemplary embodiment disclosed in fig. 3a, each hoisting device 129 is provided with one drive unit 121 which drives two reels 122, wherein each reel is assigned one hoisting restraint 123 each. The drive unit is arranged in the middle of the opposite side of the deck panel 110, whereby the handling restraint 123 extends along the deck panel side towards the deck panel attachment point. Preferably, the extensions of the drive unit 121, the drum 122 and the handling restraint 123 between the drum 122 and the deck panel attachment point 130 are arranged below the deck panel surface.

In the exemplary embodiment disclosed in fig. 3b, each handling device 129 is provided with one drive unit 121 which drives one reel 122, and wherein each reel 122 is assigned one handling restraint 123 each.

In both exemplary embodiments disclosed in fig. 3a and 3b, the drive unit 121 is arranged on the deck panel 120, however in alternative arrangements the drive unit 121 or some of the drive units may be arranged on the fixed structure 112 of the vessel 1.

In both exemplary embodiments of the deck panel arrangement 100 disclosed in fig. 3a and 3b, the handling restraint extends between a deck panel attachment point 130 and an upper attachment point 131. The handling restraint is further attached to a respective drum 122, which drum 122 is arranged in driving connection with a drive unit 121 of a handling device 129. The handling restraint 123 may be arranged to extend between the deck panel attachment point 130 and the upper attachment point 131 one or more times without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In fig. 4, a system 200 of an exemplary deck panel arrangement 100 is disclosed. The system 200 includes four deck panels 110_1, 110_2, 110_3, 110_4, which four deck panels 110_1, 110_2, 110_3, 110 _4can be individually controlled by a control cabinet 210. The control cabinet 210 is in electronically controlled connection with the trolleys 120 of each of the deck panels 110_1-110_4. The control cabinet 210 includes a deck panel selection control unit 220, and the deck panel selection control unit 220 can select which deck panel 110_1-110 _4should be controlled. The control cabinet 210 further includes at least up and down shift buttons 230, 240 that, upon actuation, control the upward and downward movement of the deck panels 110_1-110 _4selected by the deck panel selection control unit 220. The control cabinet is preferably arranged on a fixed structure 112 of the vessel 1.

In different embodiments, the system of deck panel apparatuses 200 may include any number of deck panel apparatuses 100. In one embodiment, the deck panels 110_1, 110_2, 110_3, 110 _4are arranged such that the deck panels 110_1, 110_2, 110_3, 110 _4form a deck when hoisted to the same level. In another embodiment, the deck panels are arranged such that the deck panels 110_1, 110_2, 110_3, 110 _4form a portion of the deck when hoisted to the same level. In yet another embodiment, a first set of deck panels is arranged side by side and any number of subsequent sets are arranged in the extension direction of the vessel 1, thereby forming a deck when hoisted to the same level.

Fig. 5a and 5b disclose partial views of the deck panel 110 with an exemplary arrangement of the handling equipment 129. The lifting device 129 includes a driving unit 121 and a reel 122. The drive unit 121 drives a reel 122, which reel 122 is arranged coaxially with the drive unit 121 in the disclosed embodiment. The drum 122 is attached to the handling restraint 123 of the trolley 120 so that the handling restraint 123 can be wound around the drum 122 and unwound from the drum 122 upon actuation of the drive unit 121. The trolley 120 comprises a plurality of trolley devices 129 and a plurality of trolley restraints 123, whereby only one trolley device 120 and trolley restraint 123 is shown in fig. 5a and 5b, respectively.

In fig. 5a, the drive unit 121 of the handling apparatus 129 is arranged on the fixed structure 112 of the vessel at an upper attachment point 131. The handling restraint 123 extends from the drum 122 down to the deck panel attachment point 130 and back up to the upper attachment point 131. At the deck panel attachment point 130, a roller 134 is arranged, around which roller 134 the handling restraint 123 is redirected upwards back to the upper attachment point 131. At the upper attachment point 131, the handling restraint is fixedly attached such that the deck panel 110 is lifted by the handling restraint 123 when the handling restraint 123 is wound around the drum 122.

In the embodiment in fig. 5b, the handling apparatus 129 is instead arranged at the deck panel attachment point 130 and thereby places the rollers at the upper attachment point about which the handling restraint 123 may be redirected.

The two exemplary embodiments disclosed in fig. 5a and 5b show the flexibility of the disclosed deck panel arrangement 100. When retrofitting an existing liftable deck panel to a deck panel arrangement 100 according to the present disclosure, the position of the handling equipment 129 may thus be selected according to a general vessel layout. In the same vessel 1 or even at the same deck panel, the handling equipment 129 may be arranged at either or both of the deck panel attachment point 130 and the upper attachment point 131, depending on the available space at the respective pair of attachment points.

The handling device 129 may be provided with a gear box 124 between the drum 122 and the drive unit 121.

High flexibility is achieved by the unique combination of features of the disclosed deck panel arrangement:

firstly, the use of a plurality of handling devices 129 allows for a smaller drive unit 121, which drive unit 121 may be arranged at different locations of the deck panel of the vessel 1 and/or the fixed structure 112.

Additional flexibility and even smaller drive units are achieved by having one drive unit in each corner.

Another flexibility and compactness enhancement is the exemplary embodiment where the handling restraint 123 is a belt. The tape allows a small diameter of the reel 122 due to the high flexibility of the tape in a direction perpendicular to the plane of extension of the tape. This in turn allows for a compact handling apparatus which requires even less installation space.

Claims

1. A deck panel arrangement (100) for a vessel (1), wherein the deck panel arrangement (100) comprises:

-a deck panel (110), the deck panel (110) being arranged to be displaced between a lower position and an upper position;

-a trolley (120);

-a plurality of deck panel attachment points (130), the plurality of deck panel attachment points (130) being provided at the deck panel (110);

-a plurality of upper attachment points (131), the plurality of upper attachment points (131) being adapted to be arranged at a fixed structure (112) of the vessel (1), wherein,

the overhead hoist (120) comprises:

a plurality of handling constraints (123), each handling constraint of the plurality of handling constraints (123) being arranged onto a respective drum (122) and between one assigned deck panel attachment point (130) and one assigned upper attachment point (131) such that the handling constraints (123) can be wound around and unwound from their respective drums (122) and thereby displace the deck panel (110) between lower and upper positions of the deck panel (110), wherein the handling device (120) comprises:

the lifting device comprises a plurality of lifting devices (129), each lifting device (129) comprises a driving unit (121), a winding drum (122) and a lifting restraint piece (123), and the driving units (121) are in driving connection with the corresponding winding drums (122).

2. Deck panel unit according to claim 1, wherein the handling restraint (123) is a belt.

3. The deck panel arrangement of claim 1 or 2, wherein said drive unit is an electric motor.

4. Deck panel device according to claim 3, wherein the drive unit is a synchronous reluctance motor.

5. Deck panel device according to claim 3, wherein the electric motor (121) is arranged to be controlled in a master/slave configuration.

6. The deck panel arrangement of claim 1 or 2, wherein the trolley (120) comprises four trolley devices (129), each of the four trolley devices (129) being provided in a respective corner of the deck panel (110).

7. Deck panel arrangement according to claim 1 or 2, wherein one of the attachment points (130, 131) is a roller (133) and the handling restraint extends between and back to the other attachment point (130/131) via the roller (133).

8. The deck panel arrangement of claim 1 or 2, wherein the handling equipment (129) is arranged at the deck panel attachment point (130) or the upper attachment point (131).

9. Deck panel installation according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the handling restraint (123) is a flat handling restraint.

10. A system (200) of deck panel arrangements, the system (200) of deck panel arrangements comprising a plurality of deck panel arrangements (100) according to any of the claims 1 to 9.

11. The system (200) of deck panel arrangements according to claim 10, wherein the deck panel arrangements (100) are arranged adjacently such that the deck panels (110_1-110_4) form either a deck or a part of a deck when the deck panels (110_1-110_4) are hoisted to the same level.

12. The system (200) of deck panel devices according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the system (200) comprises one control cabinet (210) to control the displacement of the plurality of deck panel devices (100), and the control cabinet (210) comprises a deck panel selection control unit (220), the deck panel selection control unit (220) being capable of selecting which deck panel device (100) or deck panel devices (100 _1-100 _4) to control.

13. A method of converting a liftable deck panel of a vessel (1) into a liftable deck panel (100) of the vessel (1), wherein the method comprises the steps of:

-providing deck panel attachment points (130) in respective corners of the deck panel (110);

-providing a fixed upper attachment point (131) on a fixed structure of the vessel (1);

-providing at least two handling devices (129) at two opposite sides of the deck panel (100), the at least two handling devices (129) being assigned to the deck panel (110) or the fixed structure of the vessel (1), wherein each handling device of the at least two handling devices (129) comprises a drive unit (121), a drum (122) and a handling restraint (123), and the drive unit (121) is in driving connection with its respective drum (122);

-arranging a handling restraint (123) between a respective drum (122) of a handling apparatus (129), one deck panel attachment point (130) and one upper attachment point (131) such that the deck panel (110) is displaceable between a lower position and an upper position by winding and unwinding the handling restraint (123) around and from its respective drum (122), respectively.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises the steps of:

-providing a control cabinet (210) on the fixed structure of the vessel (1); and

-connecting the handling apparatus (129) to the control cabinet (210) such that the control cabinet (210) can electronically control the handling apparatus (129).