AU2003248008A1 - Anchor - Google Patents

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name of Applicant: Address of Applicant: CADENG PTY LTD 26 McDaniels Road Broome, Western Australia, 6725 Australia Terry BRAY Griffith Hack, Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys, 6th Floor, 256 Adelaide Terrace, Perth, Western Australia, 6000.

Actual Inventor: Address for Service: Standard Complete Specification for the invention entitled:

ANCHOR

The following is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me:- 2 Anchor Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an anchor for the mooring of marine vessels.

Background of the Invention There is a myriad of anchors presently available for the mooring of marine vessels such as the traditional plough anchor, the Danforth anchor and the mushroom anchor. There is no single anchor which is best for all conditions and all types of vessels.

The holding power of an anchor is largely determined by the degree and manner in which it penetrates the ground and rode length or angle, rather than the weight of the anchor itself.

The present invention was developed to provide an anchor of alternate configuration to those presently available and with substantive holding power.

Summary of the Invention According to the present invention there is provided an anchor comprising: a ground penetrating member having a fore end adapted to penetrate the ground and an opposite aft end; and a shank coupled to said ground penetrating member said shank comprising two plate portions each of which is coupled to said ground penetrating member at spaced apart locations, said plate portions converging toward each other and meeting above said ground penetrating member to define a space h:\rozg\kep\speci\Long Line Anchor Complete 3 between respective facing surfaces of each plate portion and a portion of the surface of said ground penetrating member located between said plate portions.

Preferably said plate portions meet in a plane containing a central axis of said ground penetrating member, said axis extending between said aft end and said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

Preferably each of said plate portions is coupled to said ground penetrating member at respective locations spaced equally about said central axis.

Preferably said plate portions converge toward each other at an included angle of between 450 to 550* Preferably said ground penetrating member includes a plough portion comprising two sides which converge toward each other in a direction toward said plate portions, said sides meeting at a common ridge.

Preferably said two sides converge toward each other at an included angle of between 1250 to 1350.

Preferably said ridge is coincident with said central axis.

Preferably said plough portion narrows to a point in a direction from said aft end to said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

Preferably said ground penetrating member further comprises a fluke extending laterally from each of said sides of said plough portion.

Preferably each fluke comprises a planar sheet of material converging to a point at said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

h:\rozg\keep\spei\Lon9 Line. Anchor Complete 4 Preferably each of said flukes extends laterally at an included angle of between 1500 to 1600 relative to an adjacent side of said plough portion.

Preferably said shank comprises an elongated structure extending from said plate portions in a direction from said aft end to said fore end and terminates in front of said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

Preferably said elongated structure is inclined at an angle of between 140 to 240.

Preferably said elongated structure comprises two side-byside shank portions.

Preferably each of said plate portions is formed integrally with a respective shank portion.

According to the present invention there is further provided an anchor comprising: a ground penetrating member having a fore end and an opposite aft end; and, a shank coupled to said ground penetrating member, said shank having two outside surfaces which converge toward each other in a direction away from said ground penetrating member; said ground penetrating member having two lateral surfaces extending laterally in opposite directions from respective outside surfaces, each of said lateral surfaces shaped to define, with an adjacent outside surface, a generally concave region.

Preferably said ground penetrating member comprises a central plough portion to which said shank is coupled and h:\roag\keep\zpeci\Lonq Line Anchor Complete 5 respective flukes extending laterally from each side of said plough portion, where each lateral surface comprises a portion of a surface of said plough portion adjacent one of said outside surfaces and a surface of an adjacent fluke.

Preferably each of said two outside surfaces is an outside surface of a respective plate portion of shank, said plate portions being coupled to said ground penetrating member at spaced apart locations and converging toward each other and meeting above said ground penetrating member.

In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the invention.

Brief Description of the Drawings Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of an anchor in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 is front view of the anchor depicted in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a side view of the anchor depicted in Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is an isometric view of the anchor depicted in Figures 1-3; h:\rosg\keep\.peci\Lonq Line Anchor Complete 6 Figure 5 is an isometric view of an alternate embodiment of the anchor; and Figure 6 is a side view of the anchor shown in Figure Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments Referring to the accompanying drawings an anchor comprises a ground penetrating member 12 (hereinafter referred to in general as "member 12") and a shank 14 coupled to the member 12. The shank 14 comprises two plate portions 16a and 16b (hereinafter referred to in general as "plate portions 16") each of which is coupled to the member 12 at spaced apart locations. The plate portions 16 converge toward each other and meet above the member 12 (as shown most clearly in Figures 2 and 4) to define a space 18 between respective facing surfaces 20a and 20b of the plate portions 16a and 16b and a portion 22 of the surface of the member 12 located between the plate portions 16.

Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that this configuration provides compaction of sand within the space 18 as the member 12 digs into the seabed at the time of setting the anchor It is considered preferable if the included angle 0 of inclination between the plates 16 is in a range of 450 to 550 with 500 being the most preferred angle.

With particular reference to Figure 4 it can be seen that the member 12 has a central axis 24 which extends between a fore end 26 and aft end 28 of the member 12. The plate portions 16 meet in a plane which also contains the axis 24.

More particularly, the plates 26 meet along the line which is parallel to the axis 24.

In addition to the plates 16, the shank 14 further comprises h:\xosq\keep\peci\Log Line Anchor Complete 7 an elongated structure 32 which extends from the plates 16 in a direction from the aft end 28 to the fore end 26 and terminates at a free end 34 that is located in front of the fore end 26 of the member 12. The elongated structure 32 in this embodiment is formed of two separate shank portions 36a and 36b (hereinafter referred to in general as "shank portions 36") which are disposed side-by-side and are coupled together with a nut and bolt 38 which is located at an end of the shank portions 36 distant the free end 34 and above the line 30. More particularly, the plate portions 16a and 16b are formed integrally with the shank portions 36a and 36b respectively.

The elongated structure 32, and thus the shank portion 36, are inclined at an angle a in the range of 140 to 240, though approximately 19' is believed to be particularly advantageous. A shackle 40 is attached to the elongated structure 32 near the end 34 for coupling to a rode (not shown). A second smaller shackle 42 is coupled near an opposite end of the elongated structure 32 for attachment to a market buoy (not shown).

The ground penetrating member 12 comprises a central plough portion 44 and two flukes 46a and 46b (hereinafter referred in general as "flukes 46").

The plough portion 44 comprises two sides 48a and 48b (hereinafter referred to in general as "sides 48") which converge toward each other in a direction toward the plate portions 16 meeting at a common ridge 50. The ridge 50 is coincident with the central axis 24 and thus also lies in a plane containing the line 30. The sides 48 converge at an included angle P in the range of 1250 to 1350. It is believed that the most preferred convergent angle P is approximately 1300.

The plough portion 44 narrows to a point 52 in the h:\rozq\kep\pec\Long Line Anchor Complete 8 direction from the aft end 28 to the fore end 26. Each of the sides 48 is also provided with a longitudinal slot 54 for receiving a tongue 56 formed integrally with the plate portions 16 to facilitate coupling of the plate portions 16, and thus the shank 14, to the member 12. As shown most clearly in Figure 2, the tongues 56 extend through the slots 54 and are bent outwardly beneath the sides 48.

While the tongues 56 could be welded to the sides 48 this is not necessary and the bend in the tongues and use of bolt 38 are sufficient to couple the shank 14 to the member 12.

The flukes 46 extend laterally from the respective sides 48 and are each in the form of planar sheets of material converging to points 58a and 58b respectively (hereinafter referred to in general as "fluke points The flukes 46 lie in a common plane and form an included angle y with respective side portion 48 in the range of 1550 to 1650.

Two generally concave regions 59a and 59b (hereinafter referred to in general as "concave regions 59") are formed on each side of the anchor 10. Each concave region 59 is defined between a surface of a plate 16 outside of the space 18, a surface of an adjacent side 48 outside of the space 18 and the surface of an adjacent fluke 46. The surface of a side 48 outside of the space 18 and the surface of an adjacent fluke together may be considered to constitute a lateral surface of the member 12. Thus the anchor 10 can be seen as having two generally concave regions 59, each of which is defined by an outside surface of a portion of the shank 14 forming the plate portions 16 and an adjacent lateral surface of member 12.

The fluke points 58 and point 52 of the plough portion 44 lie along the same plane which is transverse to the axis 24. Further, as shown most clearly in Figure 3, the point 52 is disposed above the fluke points 58. The fluke h:\roag\kep\.peci\Lon. Line Anchor Conplete 9 points 58 converge at an included angle of about 600 When the anchor 10 is in use, a rode is attached to the shackle 40 and a marker buoy to the shackle 42. The anchor 10 is then cast and sinks to the seabed. After striking the seabed and the application of a load via the rode, the anchor 10 is orientated so that the free end 34 of the shank 14 is on or adjacent the seabed with the point 52 of the plough portion 44 and the points 58 of the flukes 46 in contact with the seabed. The application of a load onto the anchor 10 via the rode results in the member 12 digging itself into the seabed. The plough portion 44 produces a plough effect on the sand as it penetrates into the seabed lifting it into the space 18 where it is effectively compacted by reason of being laterally constrained by the plate portions 16. Sand is also moved laterally by the areas of the sides 48 of the plough portion 44 which are outside of the plates 16 to overlie the flukes 46. This increases the volume, and hence mass, of sand on the flukes 46 thereby supplementing the holding power of the anchor 10. The greater the load applied via the rode the greater the penetration of the member 12 into the seabed. Further compaction of sand is believed to occur in the concave regions 59 adding to the holding power of the anchor In one particular embodiment, the anchor 10 is made from 8mm thick plate with the ground penetrating member 12 having a width of approximately 950mm and a length, in the fore and aft direction of approximately 600mm, with the angle 0 between the plates 16 being 500, the angle 0 between the sides 48 of the plough 44 being 130', the angle Y between a fluke 46 and adjacent side 48 being 1550 and the angle a being 19'.

The anchor 10 is made from three main pieces, namely one piece forming the plough portion 44 and flukes 46 and two h:\rosg\keep\peci\Long Line Anchor Conglete 10 shank portions 36 each with integrated plate portions 16.

This enables a large number of anchors 10 to be transported in a disassembled state on two pallets, with the members 12 stacked on one pallet and the shank portions on another. The anchors 10 can then be assembled in situ as required by simply applying the nut/bolt 38 and attaching the shackles 40 and 42.

Now that an embodiment of the present invention have been described in detail it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant arts that numerous modifications and variations may be made without departing from the basic inventive concepts. For example, the shank 14 is illustrated and described as being composed of two shank portions 36 each having an integral plate portion 16.

However in an alternate embodiment, the entirety of the shank 14 may be made from a single component which is machined cast or otherwise formed to provide the plate portions 16 and an elongated structure 32. Also, a portion of the flukes 46 and plough portion 44 containing the points 58 and 52 respectively may be inclined downwardly as illustrated in Figure 5. The angle 6 may be up to between 100 to 200.

The dimensions and material from which the anchor 10 may be made can be varied to suit the size of the vessel and anticipated conditions in which it is to be used.

All such modifications and variations together with others that would be obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art are deemed to be within the scope of the present invention the nature of which is to be determined from the above description and the appended claims.

h:\rog\eep\Speci\Long Line Anchor Cmpl.te

Claims (15)

1. An anchor comprising: a ground penetrating member having a fore end and an opposite aft end; and, a shank coupled to said ground penetrating member said shank comprising two plate portions each of which is coupled to said ground penetrating member at spaced locations, said plate portions converging toward each other and meeting above said ground penetrating member to define a space between respective facing surfaces of each plate portion and a portion of the surface of said ground penetrating member located between said plate portions.

2. The anchor according to claim 1 wherein said ground penetrating member includes a plough portion comprising two sides which converge toward each other in a direction toward said plate portions, said sides meeting at a common ridge.

3. The anchor according to claim 2 wherein said two sides converge toward each other at an included angle of between 1250 to 1350.

4. The anchor according to claim 2 or 3 wherein said plough portion narrows to a point in a direction from said aft end to said fore end of said ground penetrating member. The anchor according to any one of claims 2-4 wherein said ground penetrating member further comprises a fluke extending laterally from each of said sides of said plough portion.

6. The anchor according to any claim 5 wherein each fluke h\rosq\kep\pei\Lon.q Line Anchor Corplete 12 comprises a planar sheet of material converging to a point at said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

7. The anchor according to claim 5 or 6 wherein each of said flukes extends laterally at an inclined angle of between 1500 to 160' relative to an adjacent side of said plough portion.

8. The anchor according to any one of claims 1-7 wherein said shank comprises an elongated structure extending from said plate portions in a direction from said aft end to said fore end and terminates in front of said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

9. The anchor according to claim 8 wherein said elongated structure is inclined at an angle of between 140 to 190. The anchor according to claim 9 wherein said elongated structure comprises two side-by-side shank portions.

11. The anchor according to claim 10 wherein each of said plate portions is formed integrally with a respective shank portion.

12. The anchor according to any one of claims 1-12 wherein said plate portions meet in a plane containing a central axis of said ground penetrating member, said axis extending between said aft end and said fore end of said ground penetrating member.

13. The anchor according to claim 12 wherein each of said plate portions is coupled to said ground penetrating member at respective locations spaced equally about said central axis.

14. The anchor according to claim 13 wherein said plate portions converge toward each other at an included angle h;\ros9\keep\Bpeci\Lonq Li.e Anchor Coqete 13 of between 450 to 550 A ground penetrating member having a fore end and an opposite aft end; and, a shank coupled to said ground penetrating member, said shank having two outside surfaces which converge toward each other in a direction away from said ground penetrating member; said ground penetrating member having two lateral surfaces extending laterally in opposite directions from respective outside surfaces, each of said lateral surfaces shaped to define, with an adjacent outside surface, a generally concave region.

16. An anchor according to claim 15 wherein said ground penetrating member comprises a central plough portion to which said shank is coupled and respective flukes extending laterally from each side of said plough portion, where each lateral surface comprises a portion of a surface of said plough portion adjacent one of said outside surfaces and a surface of an adjacent fluke.

17. An anchor according to claim 16 wherein each of said two outside surfaces is an outside surface of a respective plate portion of shank, said plate portions being coupled to said ground penetrating member at spaced apart locations and converging toward each other and meeting above said ground penetrating member.

18. An anchor substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. h:\roq\keep\zped.\Lonq Line Anchor CXV1.te 14 Dated this 18th day of September 2003. CADENG PTY LTD By Its Patent Attorneys HACK Fellows Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia h:\ro.g\kep\pei\Longq Line Anchor Complete