CA2760910A1 - Underwater vessel with improved propulsion and handling - Google Patents
Underwater vessel with improved propulsion and handling Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2760910A1 CA2760910A1 CA2760910A CA2760910A CA2760910A1 CA 2760910 A1 CA2760910 A1 CA 2760910A1 CA 2760910 A CA2760910 A CA 2760910A CA 2760910 A CA2760910 A CA 2760910A CA 2760910 A1 CA2760910 A1 CA 2760910A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- vehicle
- further characterised
- main frame
- use underwater
- axis
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
- B63C—LAUNCHING, HAULING-OUT, OR DRY-DOCKING OF VESSELS; LIFE-SAVING IN WATER; EQUIPMENT FOR DWELLING OR WORKING UNDER WATER; MEANS FOR SALVAGING OR SEARCHING FOR UNDERWATER OBJECTS
- B63C11/00—Equipment for dwelling or working underwater; Means for searching for underwater objects
- B63C11/34—Diving chambers with mechanical link, e.g. cable, to a base
- B63C11/36—Diving chambers with mechanical link, e.g. cable, to a base of closed type
- B63C11/42—Diving chambers with mechanical link, e.g. cable, to a base of closed type with independent propulsion or direction control
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
- B63G—OFFENSIVE OR DEFENSIVE ARRANGEMENTS ON VESSELS; MINE-LAYING; MINE-SWEEPING; SUBMARINES; AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
- B63G8/00—Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted therefor
- B63G8/14—Control of attitude or depth
- B63G8/16—Control of attitude or depth by direct use of propellers or jets
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
- B63G—OFFENSIVE OR DEFENSIVE ARRANGEMENTS ON VESSELS; MINE-LAYING; MINE-SWEEPING; SUBMARINES; AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
- B63G8/00—Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted therefor
- B63G8/14—Control of attitude or depth
- B63G8/22—Adjustment of buoyancy by water ballasting; Emptying equipment for ballast tanks
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
- B63G—OFFENSIVE OR DEFENSIVE ARRANGEMENTS ON VESSELS; MINE-LAYING; MINE-SWEEPING; SUBMARINES; AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
- B63G8/00—Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted therefor
- B63G8/001—Underwater vessels adapted for special purposes, e.g. unmanned underwater vessels; Equipment specially adapted therefor, e.g. docking stations
- B63G2008/002—Underwater vessels adapted for special purposes, e.g. unmanned underwater vessels; Equipment specially adapted therefor, e.g. docking stations unmanned
- B63G2008/005—Underwater vessels adapted for special purposes, e.g. unmanned underwater vessels; Equipment specially adapted therefor, e.g. docking stations unmanned remotely controlled
Abstract
A vehicle for use underwater containing a buoyancy unit (1) mounted on top of a main frame (6), and that said buoyancy unit (1) contains at least one thruster (9), at least one camera (7) and at least one source of light (8) and that the main frame (6) contains at least two thrusters (5) and at least one set of tools or manipulators (3) and that the vehicle is further characterised by that said buoyancy unit (1) and said main frame (6) can rotate around its own axis independent of each other, that said at least two thrusters (5) mounted to said main frame (6) can rotate around its own axis and that said thrusters, mounted to said main frame are mounted to a circular joint that is rotatable around its own axis.
Description
Underwater Vessel with Improved Propulsion and Handling Technical field This invention relates to a vehicle, and more particularly to a remotely operated vehicle commonly known as an ROV and a method for effective use of the thrusters in an underwater vehicle.
Background The use of ROVs started in the late 50's early 60's with the US Navy that wanted the capability to perform deep-sea rescue operations and to recover objects from the ocean floor. The technology was quickly adopted by the offshore industry that needed their own range of work class ROVs to help with the development of offshore oilfields.
In the 1980s they became essential since much of the development of the offshore oil fields excided the reach of human divers.
In the later years the ROVs have gone thru a great development from, in the start, only being able to send video to the control ship to, now, being able to perform a large range of operations. Their task range from mere visual inspections, to connecting pipelines and placing underwater manifolds and scientific explorations.
ROVs are now used extensively during both the construction process and the maintenance and repair of subsea structures.
The normal ROV usually consists of a large buoyancy unit, normally consisting of synthetic foam, which is connected to a chassis of steel, composite material or some kind of alloy.
It is normally fitted tools, like e.g. gripping tools or sensors to the chassis that can be operated from the control room to perform the different tasks. This is called the tool skid and is usually fitted at the bottom of the ROV.
The reason for fitting the heavy objects, like the tool skid and the thrusters at the bottom and the lighter objects, like the buoyancy unit at the top is to achieve a large distance between the centre of buoyancy and the centre of gravity which provides stiffness and stability to do work underwater.
Background The use of ROVs started in the late 50's early 60's with the US Navy that wanted the capability to perform deep-sea rescue operations and to recover objects from the ocean floor. The technology was quickly adopted by the offshore industry that needed their own range of work class ROVs to help with the development of offshore oilfields.
In the 1980s they became essential since much of the development of the offshore oil fields excided the reach of human divers.
In the later years the ROVs have gone thru a great development from, in the start, only being able to send video to the control ship to, now, being able to perform a large range of operations. Their task range from mere visual inspections, to connecting pipelines and placing underwater manifolds and scientific explorations.
ROVs are now used extensively during both the construction process and the maintenance and repair of subsea structures.
The normal ROV usually consists of a large buoyancy unit, normally consisting of synthetic foam, which is connected to a chassis of steel, composite material or some kind of alloy.
It is normally fitted tools, like e.g. gripping tools or sensors to the chassis that can be operated from the control room to perform the different tasks. This is called the tool skid and is usually fitted at the bottom of the ROV.
The reason for fitting the heavy objects, like the tool skid and the thrusters at the bottom and the lighter objects, like the buoyancy unit at the top is to achieve a large distance between the centre of buoyancy and the centre of gravity which provides stiffness and stability to do work underwater.
The thrusters which produce the propulsion for the ROV are usually fixed in all three axes to give full control while manoeuvring the ROV into the position of interest.
The state of the art ROV technology are usually electrically operated via an umbilical which provides both power and control signals to the unit while the unit sends data in the form of video and other recorded data back to the control ship.
Further the cameras, lights and manipulators are normally placed on the front of the ROV or back to help with the manoeuvring.
A couple of problems with the normal construction of the ROV are that each of the thrusters are fixed in their position and can only give propulsion parallel to the direction io of the thrusters. This means that e.g. only two of six thrusters can be used to propel the ROV forward or backward. This means that a lot of the potential force and propulsion capability of the ROV is lost since only a part of the thrusters give thrust in the direction of choice.
Further there is a problem with that the ROV only has the opportunity to have one set of tools, this means that the ROV have a very limited range of work areas at one time.
US 2007/0283871 show an existing solution on how to direct the thrusters in the wanted direction for better to make use of the combined force of the ROV.
Here it is shown how the four thrusters in the horizontal plane can be controlled centrally to face in different directions. This is achieved by letting the thrusters be able to pivot in the horizontal plane and connecting them all together via bars and controlling them all from a central steering mechanism.
The problem with this solution is the lack of possibility to change the working tools on the tool skid and limited and complex way of positioning the thrusters.
US 6106763 is an example on a normal way of solving the problem with propulsion, here there is a complex way of calculating the force used on the different thrusters for compensating for non-periodic drift and forces that works on the ROV. Here the obvious problem is that the thrusters are in a fixed position which means that only parts of the potential propulsion of the ROV is used.
The state of the art ROV technology are usually electrically operated via an umbilical which provides both power and control signals to the unit while the unit sends data in the form of video and other recorded data back to the control ship.
Further the cameras, lights and manipulators are normally placed on the front of the ROV or back to help with the manoeuvring.
A couple of problems with the normal construction of the ROV are that each of the thrusters are fixed in their position and can only give propulsion parallel to the direction io of the thrusters. This means that e.g. only two of six thrusters can be used to propel the ROV forward or backward. This means that a lot of the potential force and propulsion capability of the ROV is lost since only a part of the thrusters give thrust in the direction of choice.
Further there is a problem with that the ROV only has the opportunity to have one set of tools, this means that the ROV have a very limited range of work areas at one time.
US 2007/0283871 show an existing solution on how to direct the thrusters in the wanted direction for better to make use of the combined force of the ROV.
Here it is shown how the four thrusters in the horizontal plane can be controlled centrally to face in different directions. This is achieved by letting the thrusters be able to pivot in the horizontal plane and connecting them all together via bars and controlling them all from a central steering mechanism.
The problem with this solution is the lack of possibility to change the working tools on the tool skid and limited and complex way of positioning the thrusters.
US 6106763 is an example on a normal way of solving the problem with propulsion, here there is a complex way of calculating the force used on the different thrusters for compensating for non-periodic drift and forces that works on the ROV. Here the obvious problem is that the thrusters are in a fixed position which means that only parts of the potential propulsion of the ROV is used.
Claims (15)
1. A vehicle for use underwater containing a buoyancy unit(1) mounted on top of a main frame (6) with a tool skid(2) mounted underneath, and that said buoyancy unit(1)contains at least one thruster(9), at least one camera (7) and at least one source of light (8) and that the main frame (6) contains at least two thrusters (5) and at least one set of tools or manipulators (3) and that the vehicle is further characterised by:
- that said buoyancy unit (1) and said main frame (6) can rotate around its own axis independent of each other, - that said at least two thrusters (5) mounted to said main frame (6) can rotate around an axis perpendicular to the axis of the thrust direction, - that said thrusters (5), mounted to said main frame (6) are mounted to a circular joint that is rotatable around its own axis.
- that said buoyancy unit (1) and said main frame (6) can rotate around its own axis independent of each other, - that said at least two thrusters (5) mounted to said main frame (6) can rotate around an axis perpendicular to the axis of the thrust direction, - that said thrusters (5), mounted to said main frame (6) are mounted to a circular joint that is rotatable around its own axis.
2. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said buoyancy unit (1) and said main frame (6) can rotate 360° in either directions around its own axis relative to each other.
3. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said buoyancy unit (1), said main frame (6) and said tool skid (2) can all rotate 360° in either direction around its own axis relative to each other.
4. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that at least two thrusters (5) mounted to said main frame (6) can rotate 90° in either directions, around an axis perpendicular to the axis of the thrust direction.
5. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said circular joint can rotate at least 45° in either direction around its own axis.
6. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said at least one thruster (9) mounted on said buoyancy unit (1) can rotate at least 90° around its own axis.
7. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said at least two thrusters (5) mounted to said main frame (6) can rotate around an axis perpendicular to the axis of the thrust direction, individually of each other.
8. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said main frame (6) can contain more than one set of tools or manipulators (3).
9. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 8 further characterised by that said set of tools or manipulators (3) can be removed, interchanged or replaced.
10. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 1 further characterised by that said vehicle contains sensors (10) that measures and records data such as the position of said vehicle and the drift and currents in the water.
11. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 10 further characterised by that said sensors (10) sends the recorded data to a control system.
12. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 11, further characterised by that said control system can control said thrusters (5) to compensate for said drift and currents in the water.
13. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 11, further characterised by that said vehicle is controlled from a control platform.
14. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 11, further characterised by that said control platform either communicates with the vehicle via a cable or radio signal.
15. A vehicle for use underwater, as described in claim 11, further characterised by that said vehicle can operate autonomously or as a manned submarine.
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| NO20091637 | 2009-04-24 | ||
| NO20091637A NO20091637L (en) | 2009-04-24 | 2009-04-24 | Underwater craft with improved propulsion and handling capabilities |
| PCT/NO2010/000152 WO2010123380A2 (en) | 2009-04-24 | 2010-04-26 | Underwater vessel with improved propulsion and handling |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2760910A1 true CA2760910A1 (en) | 2010-10-28 |
Family
ID=42767943
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA2760910A Abandoned CA2760910A1 (en) | 2009-04-24 | 2010-04-26 | Underwater vessel with improved propulsion and handling |
Country Status (5)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| EP (1) | EP2421746A2 (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2760910A1 (en) |
| NO (1) | NO20091637L (en) |
| RU (1) | RU2011145889A (en) |
| WO (1) | WO2010123380A2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (11)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR2981631B1 (en) * | 2011-10-21 | 2013-12-06 | Arkeocean | BALLISING DEVICE, SYSTEM FOR EXPLORING AN IMMERSE ZONE, AND METHODS OF DEPLOYING AND FOLDING SUCH A BALLISING DEVICE |
| PL412478A1 (en) | 2015-05-26 | 2016-12-05 | Michał Biskup | Unit for monitoring underwater objects |
| EP3168704B1 (en) | 2015-11-12 | 2021-02-24 | Hexagon Technology Center GmbH | 3d surveying of a surface by mobile vehicles |
| IT201600129224A1 (en) * | 2016-12-22 | 2018-06-22 | Fernando Giuseppe Russo | SUBMARINE VEHICLE |
| CN108341038A (en) * | 2018-03-04 | 2018-07-31 | 陕西骏敏科技有限公司 | Underwater foundation facility detects robot |
| CN109278961A (en) * | 2018-09-27 | 2019-01-29 | 中国南方电网有限责任公司超高压输电公司广州局 | A kind of underwater robot base apparatus |
| CN109407447A (en) * | 2018-11-16 | 2019-03-01 | 东华大学 | A kind of underwater rotatable three-dimensional scanner |
| WO2020210918A1 (en) * | 2019-04-18 | 2020-10-22 | Poseidon Ocean Systems Ltd. | Underwater vehicle with an omnidirectional camera, and method of controlling movement of the same |
| DE102020115215A1 (en) * | 2020-06-08 | 2021-12-09 | Scan4Pipes Europe GmbH | Measurement platform and method for locating and monitoring pipelines under water |
| RU2760985C1 (en) * | 2021-02-04 | 2021-12-02 | Федеральное государственное бюджетное образовательное учреждение высшего образования Иркутский государственный университет путей сообщения (ФГБОУ ВО ИрГУПС) | Multifunctional device for deep-sea monitoring of the underwater environment and underwater technical works |
| CN116198702B (en) * | 2023-04-12 | 2023-09-26 | 徐州鲁班智能科技有限公司 | Underwater robot |
Family Cites Families (9)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US3635183A (en) * | 1970-02-09 | 1972-01-18 | Sperry Rand Corp | Remotely controlled unmanned submersible vehicle |
| US6106763A (en) | 1997-11-20 | 2000-08-22 | Institute Of Chemical Fibres | Process for producing cellulosic mouldings |
| US6148759A (en) * | 1999-02-24 | 2000-11-21 | J. Ray Mcdermott, S.A. | Remote ROV launch and recovery apparatus |
| GB9927624D0 (en) * | 1999-11-24 | 2000-01-19 | Slingsby Engineering Ltd | Remotely controlled submersible vehicle for subsea tooling |
| US6260504B1 (en) * | 2000-01-21 | 2001-07-17 | Oceaneering International, Inc. | Multi-ROV delivery system and method |
| AUPQ707600A0 (en) * | 2000-04-26 | 2000-05-18 | Total Marine Technology Pty Ltd | A remotely operated underwater vehicle |
| US6854406B2 (en) * | 2002-04-10 | 2005-02-15 | Board Of Regents, The University Of Texas System | Autonomous surface watercraft |
| GB0425694D0 (en) | 2004-11-23 | 2004-12-22 | Sub Atlantic Ltd | Vehicle |
| JP4965867B2 (en) * | 2006-02-13 | 2012-07-04 | 株式会社東芝 | Underwater mobile repair inspection device and underwater mobile repair inspection method |
-
2009
- 2009-04-24 NO NO20091637A patent/NO20091637L/en not_active Application Discontinuation
-
2010
- 2010-04-26 WO PCT/NO2010/000152 patent/WO2010123380A2/en active Application Filing
- 2010-04-26 EP EP10719658A patent/EP2421746A2/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2010-04-26 CA CA2760910A patent/CA2760910A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2010-04-26 RU RU2011145889/11A patent/RU2011145889A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| RU2011145889A (en) | 2013-05-27 |
| EP2421746A2 (en) | 2012-02-29 |
| WO2010123380A2 (en) | 2010-10-28 |
| WO2010123380A3 (en) | 2011-03-24 |
| NO20091637L (en) | 2010-10-25 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| FZDE | Dead |
Effective date: 20140428 |