CN113939629A

CN113939629A - Dredging operation ship

Info

Publication number: CN113939629A
Application number: CN202080042914.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 小岛德明; 前田武俊
Original assignee: Kojima Group Co ltd
Current assignee: Kojima Group Co ltd
Priority date: 2019-06-12
Filing date: 2020-06-09
Publication date: 2022-01-14
Anticipated expiration: 2040-06-09
Also published as: CN113939629B; JPWO2020250885A1; JP7186986B2; WO2020250885A1; EP3985177A4; EP3985177A1

Abstract

A dredging operation ship, from the tip of the movable arm that can support the ground shaft in a tilting manner on the hull, make can be by the winch arrangement that sets up in the hull wind and the wire rope that is paid out hang, and suspend the bucket device on the wire rope, utilize this bucket device to rake and excavate the sandy soil of the bottom of the water, and can be through the sandy soil pipeline to the sandy soil storage place on the water under pressure, wherein, the movable arm (B) that can support the ground shaft in a tilting manner on the hull (1) is formed to be able in the upper and lower direction in the water, can hang down from the tip (Ba) of the movable arm (B) in the water by the wire rope (W) that can be wound up and paid out by the winch arrangement (2) that sets up in the hull (1). This can provide an advantage of the bucket device suspended from the wire rope, in which excavation can be efficiently performed by the self weight of the bucket device, and can solve the problem of the conventional device accompanying the use of the wire rope which hangs down from the water to the vicinity of the bottom of the water for a long time.

Description

Dredging operation ship

Technical Field

The invention relates to a dredging operation ship, in particular to a dredging operation ship which comprises the following components: a bucket device is suspended from a boom supported by a hull through a tiltable earth shaft, and the bucket device is raked up and excavated from earth and sand at the bottom of the water by a wire rope which can be wound and unwound by a winch device provided in the hull, and the earth and sand can be pumped to an earth and sand storage place on the water through an earth and sand conveying pipe.

Background

The above-described dredging operation vessel is known in the related art as disclosed in patent document 1, and has an advantage that since a heavy bucket device is suspended by a wire rope and lifted, the underwater sand can be efficiently raked by the self weight of the bucket device to dig.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 7-26580

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In the dredging operation vessel of patent document 1, a wire rope of the bucket device suspended in water needs to extend downward from a distal end portion of a boom rising above the water to a position near the bottom of the water for a long time during the dredging operation. Further, the long wire rope is susceptible to the influence of wind and waves on the water or the influence of a tidal current in the water, which causes a problem that the accuracy of the position control of the bucket device at the lower end of the wire rope is greatly reduced.

Further, in the conventional dredging operation vessel, since the dredging operation is performed by fixing the hull to the water bottom by the fixing means such as the spud, the following operations are required to be repeated each time the dredging operation range (position) is changed: the hull is moved by releasing the fixing means, and the moved position is fixed to the water bottom again by the fixing means, which makes the changing work troublesome.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a first object of the present invention is to solve the above problems associated with the use of a wire rope that hangs down from the water to the vicinity of the water bottom in a long manner while taking advantage of the above advantages of a bucket device suspended from the wire rope, and a second object of the present invention is to enable highly accurate dredging operations over a wide range without further fixing the hull to the water bottom.

Means for solving the problems

In order to achieve the first object, the present invention is a dredging vessel in which a wire rope that can be wound and unwound by a winch device provided in a hull is suspended from a wire rope, a dredging operation vessel rakes earth and sand on the bottom of water to excavate the earth and sand on the bottom of the water by the wire rope, and the earth and sand can be pumped to a sand storage place on the water through an earth and sand transfer pipe, from a distal end portion of a boom that is tiltably supported by the hull, wherein the boom is configured to be tiltable in the up-down direction in the water, and the wire rope is capable of being suspended from the distal end portion of the boom in the water.

In order to achieve the second object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided: a hull propulsion device capable of propelling the hull along the water surface so as to adjust the horizontal position of the bucket device in the water; and a control device that controls the position of the hull by controlling the operation of the hull propulsion device based on GPS position information of at least one of the hull, the boom, and the bucket device so that the bucket device can move along a predetermined excavation route in an excavation target area on the water bottom.

In addition to the first or second feature, the present invention is characterized as a third feature in that the bucket device includes a soil flow assist device that assists the flow of the soil from the bucket device to the soil storage site through the soil transport pipe by injecting pressurized air and/or pressurized water to the excavated soil raked up in the bucket device.

In addition to any one of the first to third features, the present invention is fourth characterized in that the hull is provided with a soil storage tank serving as the soil storage site.

Effects of the invention

According to the first aspect, the boom pivotally supported by the hull is configured to be tiltable in the vertical direction in water, and the wire rope fed from the winch device on the hull hangs down from the boom tip in water to suspend the bucket device, so that the original advantages of the bucket device suspended by the wire rope can be obtained, the length of the wire rope hanging down from the boom tip to the bucket device can be sufficiently shortened, and the wire rope can be eliminated or made less susceptible to the influence of wind and waves on the water surface and the influence of tidal current in water. This can reduce the deviation of the horizontal position of the bucket device from the position of the hull (and therefore the horizontal position of the boom tip), and therefore can contribute to an improvement in the accuracy of the position control of the bucket device based on the position control of the hull (and therefore the boom).

According to the second feature, the present invention includes: a hull propulsion device capable of driving the hull along the water surface so as to adjust the horizontal position of the bucket device in the water; and a control device for controlling the operation of the hull propulsion device, wherein the control device controls the position of the hull by operating the hull propulsion device according to the GPS position information of at least one of the hull, the boom and the bucket device, so that the bucket device can move along a predetermined excavation route in an excavation target area on the water bottom. Accordingly, the bucket device can be moved along the predetermined excavation route in the excavation target area of the water bottom using the GPS position information as a clue without fixing the hull to the water bottom, and hence the dredging work by the bucket device can be performed over a wide area of the water bottom without omission. In addition, the position control of the bucket device in the dredging operation can be performed with high accuracy, in addition to the effect that the wire rope is suspended from the boom tip in the water to eliminate or reduce the influence of waves, currents, and the like.

According to the third aspect, since the flow assisting device is provided for assisting the flow of the excavated earth and sand from the bucket device to the earth and sand storage site through the earth and sand duct by injecting the pressurized air and/or the pressurized water to the excavated earth and sand raked up in the bucket device, the excavated earth and sand raked up in the bucket device can be diffused to improve the fluidity even in a state where the bucket device is left in the water, and the excavated earth and sand can be smoothly and forcibly transported to the earth and sand storage site on the water through the earth and sand duct.

According to the fourth aspect, since the sand storage tank is provided in the hull of the dredging operation vessel, the dredging operation vessel itself can store the dredging sand without stopping the dredging operation vessel for standby, so that the dredging operation can be continued even without the sand transport vessel, and the sand stored in the dredging operation vessel can be transferred to the sand transport vessel even when the dredging operation is interrupted due to a failure of the bucket device or the like, thereby improving the operation efficiency as a whole.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an overall side view of a dredging work vessel showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view (a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 in fig. 1) of a main part of the dredging operation vessel, a partially enlarged plan view, and a partially enlarged perspective view.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the grapple (enlarged view of the portion along arrow 3 of fig. 1).

Fig. 4 is a side view of the grapple (a view in the direction of arrow 4 in fig. 3).

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section of the grab (section taken along line 5-5 in figure 4) looking in the same orientation as figure 3.

Fig. 6 is a top view of the grapple (view in the direction of arrow 6 in fig. 5).

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to fig. 5 showing the relationship between the grapple and the water bed at the position of the two-dot chain line in fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a process diagram showing an example of a closing process of the grapple.

Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to fig. 5, showing a modification of the extension plate portion.

Fig. 10 is a side view of the grapple of the second embodiment (a view corresponding to fig. 4).

Fig. 11 is a sectional view taken along line 11-11 in fig. 10 (a view corresponding to fig. 5).

Fig. 12 is a plan view of the grapple of the second embodiment (a view corresponding to fig. 6).

Description of the reference symbols

A: a sand flow assisting device;

b: a movable arm;

ba: a distal portion;

c: a control device;

d: a hull propulsion device;

e: water bottom;

G. g': a grab bucket as a bucket unit;

s: a dredging operation vessel;

m2: a second winch device as a winch device;

w2: a second wire rope as a wire rope;

p 1: a shaft support;

1: a hull;

3: a sandy soil storage tank as a sandy soil storage place;

4: sand soil;

8: a sand conveying pipe.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In fig. 1 and 2, the dredging operation vessel S includes: a hull 1 floating on the surface of the water, for example, the sea; a hull propulsion device D capable of propelling the hull 1 along the water surface; a boom B for pivotally supporting p1 on the hull 1 so as to be able to swing (tilt) in the vertical direction; a first wire rope W1 having one end connected to a distal end portion Ba of the boom B; a first winch M1 for tilting the boom, which is provided on the hull 1 and is capable of winding and unwinding the other end of the first wire rope W1; a grapple G as a bucket device suspended from a distal end Ba of the boom B via a second wire W2; a second winch M2 for raising and lowering the bucket, which is provided on the hull 1 and is capable of winding and unwinding the second wire rope W2; and a pair of left and right earth and sand storage tanks 3 provided in the hull 1 to form an earth and sand storage place on the water.

The first winch device M1 includes a drum on which the first wire rope W1 can be wound, and a motor that rotationally drives the drum. By winding or unwinding the first wire rope W1 by the first winch M1, the boom B connected to the wire rope W1 can be tilted upward or downward.

The second winch M2 includes a drum on which the second wire rope W2 can be wound, and a motor that rotationally drives the drum. By winding or unwinding the second wire rope W2 by the second winch M2, the grapple G suspended from the wire rope W2 can be raised or lowered. The first and second wire ropes W1 and W2 are provided as a pair on the left and right sides, respectively, but 1 rope may be provided, or 3 or more ropes may be provided.

As described later, the grapple G is configured to rake and dig the soil 4 on the water bottom E, and the excavated soil raked inside the grapple G is pressure-fed to the soil reservoir 3 on the water through the flexible soil feed pipe 8. Therefore, the grab bucket G does not need to be lifted to the water once during dredging operation, and the operation efficiency is improved. The grapple G is an example of the bucket device of the present invention. The specific structure of the grapple G will be described later.

The boom B is pivotally supported at its base end Bb by p1 at the carriage portion 5B of the movable support 5 mounted on the front portion of the hull 1 so as to be movable only forward and backward, and is vertically swingable not only on water around the pivotally supported p1 portion but also on water around the pivotally supported p1 portion. As is apparent from the partially enlarged perspective view of fig. 2, the truck portion 5B has a notched boom escape portion 5bk for avoiding interference between the boom B and the movable support 5 regardless of the tilting posture of the boom B.

The movable support 5 is linked to a drive device provided between the carriage part 5B and the hull 1, and can be driven forward and backward on the hull 1 together with the base end Bb of the boom B. As the driving device, for example, as shown in fig. 2, a structure in which a driving wheel 5w with a brake mechanism, which is supported by a carriage part 5b on a shaft by a motor, not shown, and can travel along a guide rail 9 fixed to the hull 1, is driven to decelerate, or a structure in which a pinion with a brake mechanism, which is engaged with a rack fixed to the hull 1 and is supported by the carriage part 5b on a shaft, not shown, is driven to decelerate by a motor, may be employed.

In the state where the movable support 5 is advanced most, the boom B is in the state of being extended most forward as shown in fig. 1, and can swing up and down between an upper swing limit standing on the water surface and a lower swing limit submerged below the water surface. Further, a relief portion 1a that allows the boom B to swing to a lower swing limit in the water is provided at the tip end portion of the hull 1, and the relief portion 1a is formed in a notch shape that is open upward, downward, and forward.

In a state where the movable support 5 is retracted most rearward with the boom B in the horizontal posture, the boom B is in a retracted most housed state as shown by a chain line in fig. 1. The storage state is selected when the dredging vessel S is moved for a long distance, when the grapple G is inspected and repaired, or the like.

A support frame 6 formed in a gate shape so as to straddle the forward/backward movement locus of the movable support 5 is erected on the front portion of the hull 1. A first guide roller r1 is rotatably supported on the upper portion of the support frame 6, and the first guide roller r1 guides and passes through an intermediate portion of the first wire rope W1 fed out from the first winch M1.

On the other hand, the intermediate portion of the second wire rope W2 fed out from the second winch M2 is guided and passed by the second guide roller r2 rotatably supported by the movable support 5 and a pair of front and rear third guide rollers r3 rotatably supported by the distal end portion Ba of the boom B, and hangs down from the distal end portion Ba of the boom B. The second guide roller r2 is pivotally supported by the upper end of a support base 5a provided upright on the carriage portion 5b of the movable support 5. Further, the second wire rope W2 passes between the pair of front and rear third guide rollers r 3.

Next, a structural example of the grapple G will be described mainly with reference to fig. 3 to 8. The grab G includes: a bottomed cylindrical main frame 11; a lift cylinder 12 as a lift body formed in a cylindrical shape with an open upper end and a lower end, and fitted to the outer periphery of the main frame 11 so as to be slidable vertically by a plurality of annular seal members 18; a pair of raking plates 13 having bases pivotally connected (pivotally supported) to p2 at the lower end of the lift cylinder 12 via hinge brackets b2 and b3, for raking the soil 4 on the bottom E of the water by opening and closing the open lower end of the lift cylinder 12; a first hydraulic cylinder Cy1 as an opening/closing drive device that opens and closes the two raking plates 13; a second hydraulic cylinder Cy2 as an elevation driving device for driving the elevation cylinder 12 to be elevated with respect to the main frame 11; a sand discharge pipe P fixed in the main frame 11 such that one end Pi is open at the bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 and the other end Po is connected to the upstream end of the sand conveying pipe 8; and a check valve 15 for preventing the reverse flow of the soil 4 pushed out from the sand discharge pipe P toward the soil delivery pipe 8.

The annular seal member 18 is fitted in an annular groove provided in one of the opposing circumferential surfaces of the main frame 11 and the vertically movable tube 12, and is in sliding contact with the other of the opposing circumferential surfaces.

The upper end wall 11a of the main frame 11 is connected to and supported by the free end, i.e., the lower end of the second wire rope W2. The second wire rope W2 can drive the main frame 11 (and thus the grapple G) in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction in the water in conjunction with the operations of the hull 1, the second winch M2, and the boom B.

The bottom wall 11b, which is the lower end wall of the main frame 11, is formed in a downwardly convex hemispherical plate shape, and a large-diameter lower end Pi of a lower half pipe portion (i.e., one end of the sand discharge pipe P) of the sand discharge pipe P in a truncated cone shape is opened and fixed to a central portion of the bottom wall 11b, i.e., a central top portion of a hemispherical surface bulging downward. The upper half pipe portion of the sand discharge pipe P is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the lower end of the upper half pipe portion is integrally connected to the small-diameter upper end of the lower half pipe portion, and the upper end of the upper half pipe portion (i.e., the other end of the sand discharge pipe P) is connected to the upstream end of the sand conveying pipe 8 via a joint.

The middle portion of the sand discharge pipe P is fixed to and supported by the inner peripheral wall of the main frame 11 via a plurality of support plates 16, and the upper portion of the sand discharge pipe P is fixed to the upper end wall 11a of the main frame by penetrating the upper portion.

The check valves 15 prevent the reverse flow of the soil downward, and in the illustrated example, only 1 check valve 15 is provided in the upper half pipe portion of the sand discharge pipe P, but the number of the check valves 15, the installation location, and the valve body structure are not limited to those of the embodiment and may be set as appropriate. For example, in addition to or instead of the installation method of the embodiment, the check valve 15 may be installed near or in the middle of the lower end Pi of the lower half pipe portion of the sand discharge pipe P.

Further, the check valve 15 of the present embodiment has a valve structure having a single-leaf valve element of a single-open type, but particularly, when the check valve 15 is provided in a large diameter portion of the sand discharge pipe P (for example, in the vicinity of or in the middle of the lower end Pi of the lower half pipe portion), a valve structure having a pair of leaf valve elements of a double-open (i.e., double-open) type may be employed. In any place where the check valve 15 is provided, it is preferable to provide a valve body relief portion (not shown) recessed in the inner surface of the sand drain pipe P for avoiding interference with the valve body of the check valve 15 and ensuring smooth opening and closing operations of the valve body. Further, a stopper projection (not shown) engageable with the valve body of the check valve 15 is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the sand discharge pipe P so as not to freely open and rotate downward from the fully closed position.

The pair of rake plates 13 are formed in symmetrical shapes, and in a closed state (see fig. 3 and 5), they are formed in a hemispherical plate shape facing the lower surface of the hemispherical plate-shaped bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 (i.e., in a state in which the hemispherical plates are further divided into two halves). Then, the elevation tube 12 is driven to be raised relative to the main frame 11 in a state where the raking plates 13 are closed, whereby the excavated soil 4 raked by the raking plates 13 is forcibly pushed into the sand discharge pipe P.

The end edge portions of the pair of raking plates 13 which are opposed to each other are formed into a shape having a slightly tapered cross section so that sand is not easily caught between the raking plates 13 when the raking plates 13 are closed. Further, a plurality of claws that can efficiently crush underwater sand may be fixed to the end edge portions (particularly, the lower end edge portions) of the rake plates 13 so as to be offset from each other as necessary.

A base portion of a short cylindrical extension plate portion 12a extending downward from the lower end of the lift cylinder 12 is connected to the lower end portion of the lift cylinder 12, and the lower end, which is the end of the extension plate portion 12a, abuts against the upper end edges of the rake plates 13 when the rake plates 13 are closed. Accordingly, the gap between the lower end edge of the lift cylinder 12 and the upper end edges of the raking plates 13 in the fully closed state can be made substantially zero or extremely small, and therefore, the space 40 between the raking plates 13 in the fully closed state and the bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 can be made substantially airtight, in addition to the sealing effect of the annular sealing member 18, and leakage of the pressurized air and the pressurized water of the excavated earth and sand or an earth flow assisting device a described later to the outside through the gap can be effectively suppressed.

In the illustrated example, the tip of the extension plate portion 12a is brought into direct contact with the upper end edges of the two rake plates 13 in the fully closed state, but a sealing member (not illustrated) made of an elastic material (e.g., a rubber material) may be covered on at least one of the tip of the extension plate portion 12a and the upper end edges of the two rake plates 13 in the fully closed state. In the illustrated example, the extension plate portion 12a is formed integrally with the main body portion of the vertically movable tube 12, but the extension plate portion 12a may be formed integrally with the main body portion of the vertically movable tube 12 and may be fixed (e.g., welded) to the vertically movable tube 12 by subsequent attachment.

Fig. 9 shows a modification of the extension plate portion. In this modification, a base portion of an extension plate portion 13a having a circular-arc plate shape extending upward from the upper end of each rake plate 13 is connected to the upper end portion of each rake plate 13, and the end, i.e., the upper end, of the extension plate portion 13a is brought into contact with the lower end edge of the lift cylinder 12 when both rake plates 13 are closed. Further, according to the extension plate portion 13a of this modification, as with the extension plate portion 12a of the above-described embodiment, the gap between the lower end edge of the lift cylinder 12 and the upper end edges of the rake plates 13 in the fully closed state can be made substantially zero or extremely small.

Further, the tip of the extension plate portion 13a and/or the lower end of the vertically movable tube 12 may be covered with a sealing member, and in this case, the sealing effect of the space 40 can be further improved. The extension plate portion 13a may be formed separately from the rake plate 13 and may be fixed (e.g., welded) to the rake plate 13 by subsequent attachment.

A pair of first hydraulic cylinders Cy1 is provided for each rake board 13. For example, the base end of the first hydraulic cylinder Cy1 pivotally connects p3 to the upper portion of the outer peripheral wall of the lift cylinder 12 via the hinge bracket b1, and the tip end of the first hydraulic cylinder Cy1 pivotally connects p6 to the base portion of each rake plate 13 via the bending link mechanism 17 formed by a pair of links that can be bent toward each other. That is, the bending link mechanism 17 has both ends pivotally connected to the lift cylinder 12 and the respective raking plates 13 via the hinge brackets b2 and b3 at p4 and p5, respectively, and has a tip end pivotally connected to the first hydraulic cylinder Cy1 at p6 at an intermediate portion of the bending link mechanism 17 (i.e., a pivotally connected portion at a bending point).

Further, a pair of second hydraulic cylinders Cy2 are provided on the left and right sides at positions shifted in phase from the first hydraulic cylinder Cy 1. For example, the base end of the second hydraulic cylinder Cy2 is pivotally coupled to p7 via the hinge bracket b4 at the upper portion of the outer peripheral wall of the main frame 11, and the tip end of the second hydraulic cylinder Cy2 is pivotally coupled to p8 via the hinge bracket b5 at the lower portion of the outer peripheral wall of the vertically movable cylinder 12.

The first and second hydraulic cylinders Cy1 and Cy2 are supplied with control hydraulic pressures from a hydraulic control circuit including a hydraulic pressure source and a control valve provided in the hull 1 via flexible hydraulic pipes passing through water. The hydraulic control circuit and the hydraulic conduit are not shown.

The grab G is provided with a sand flow assisting device a which sprays pressurized air and pressurized water to the sand 4 pushed into the sand discharge pipe P, thereby diffusing the sand 4 in the sand discharge pipe P and assisting the sand 4 to flow from the sand discharge pipe P toward the sand storage place 3 through the sand transport pipe 8.

The sand flow assisting device a of the present embodiment includes: a plurality of air injection nozzles Na fixed to the peripheral wall of the sand discharge pipe P are arranged inward at intervals in the circumferential direction and the vertical direction; a plurality of water jet nozzles Nw fixed to the peripheral wall of the sand discharge pipe P are arranged inward at intervals in the circumferential direction and the vertical direction, respectively; and an air supply pipe Lai and a water supply pipe Lwi for supplying pressurized air and pressurized water to the air injection nozzle Na and the water injection nozzle Nw, respectively.

The nozzles of the air jet nozzles Na and the water jet nozzles Nw are arranged in the direction inclined slightly toward the downstream side (upward side in the drawing) toward the axis of the pipe in the sand discharge pipe P, and the excavation soil 4 pushed into the sand discharge pipe P can be efficiently diffused and efficiently pressed to the downstream side (i.e., the soil transport pipe 8 side) by the flow pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water injected therefrom.

The air jet nozzles Na 'and the water jet nozzles Nw' are arranged and fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the hemispherical bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 at intervals in the circumferential direction and the vertical direction (more specifically, in a direction inclined slightly downward toward the outer side in the radial direction of the sand discharge pipe P). These air jet nozzle Na 'and water jet nozzle Nw' are also connected to an air supply pipe Lai and a water supply pipe Lwi, respectively.

Further, the pressurized air and the pressurized water injected from the air injection nozzle Na 'and the water injection nozzle Nw' are injected into the narrow space 40 between the fully closed raking plate 13 and the bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11, so that the excavated soil 4 raked inside the raking plate 13 can be efficiently spread inside the raking plate 13 to be in a state of improved fluidity before being pushed into the sand discharge pipe P, and can be efficiently pushed into the sand discharge pipe P.

The air injection nozzle Na and the water injection nozzle Nw constitute first injection means in the device for assisting a flow of sand a nd the air injection nozzle Na 'and the water injection nozzle Nw' constitute second injection means in the device for assisting a flow of sand a nd.

Further, pressurized air and pressurized water are supplied to the air supply pipe Lai and the water supply pipe Lwi from an air supply control device including a pressurized air source and an air control valve and a water supply control device including a pressurized water source and a water control valve, which are provided on the hull 1, via a flexible air conduit Lao and a flexible water conduit Lwo, respectively.

In the present embodiment, the first injection means (Na, Nb) of the soil flow assisting device a is configured to inject both the pressurized air and the pressurized water into the soil 4 pushed into the sand discharge pipe P, but the first injection means (Na, Nb) of the soil flow assisting device a may be configured to inject either the pressurized air or the pressurized water (for example, only the pressurized water) into the soil 4 pushed into the sand discharge pipe P. The second injection means (Na ', Nb') of the soil flow assist device a may be configured to inject one of pressurized air and pressurized water (e.g., only pressurized water) into the space 40, in the same manner as the first injection means.

The downstream portion of the soil transport pipe 8 is wound around the soil reservoir 3 in the vicinity of the hull 1 by a reel device 20 so as to be windable and dischargeable. The drum device 20 has a pair of left and right soil outlet pipes 20a communicating with the downstream end of the soil transport pipe 8, and the soil transported through the soil transport pipe 8 is thrown from both the soil outlet pipes 20a and stored in the pair of left and right soil storage tanks 3.

Further, the middle portion of the soil conveying pipe 8 discharged from the reel device 20 passes through the through hole portion 5ah provided in the front-rear direction of the support base 5a of the movable support 5 and extends substantially linearly in the forward direction on the plurality of fourth guide rollers r4 on the upper portion of the boom B. In this case, the plurality of fourth guide rollers r4 are arranged such that the soil conveying pipe 8 is naturally bent downward at the distal end portion Ba in particular of the boom B.

Further, a high-center curved surface for naturally guiding the soil transport pipe 8 is formed on the bottom surface of the through hole 5ah of the support base 5 a. Further, the bottom surface of the through hole 5ah may be covered with a sheet having a low friction coefficient for smoothly guiding the soil conveying pipe 8 or provided with a guide roller (not shown).

The hydraulic conduits connected to the first and second hydraulic cylinders Cy1 and Cy2, the air conduit Lao, and the water conduit Lwo may be bundled together and extended toward the hull 1, or at least a part of each may be separately extended toward the hull 1.

Further, a main propulsion device 21 that propels in the fore-and-aft direction of the hull 1 is provided at the rear of the hull 1. The main propulsion device 21 includes, for example, a main screw 21a and a power unit 21u that rotationally drives the main screw 21 a.

Further, a side thruster 22 for propelling the front portion of the hull 1 in the right-left direction is provided on the front bottom surface of the hull 1. The side thrust unit 22 includes, for example: thrust water jet units 22a provided in the center of the left and right of the bottom surface of the front portion of the hull 1; and a high-pressure water supply device 22s for supplying high-pressure thrust water to the thrust water injection unit 22 a. The reaction of the high-pressure thrust water injected from the left and right thrust water injection portions 22a of the side thruster 22 to either the left or right enables the front portion of the hull 1 to be propelled in the left-right direction.

The side thrusters 22 are not limited to the structure of the embodiment in which thrust water is ejected in the lateral direction, and may be provided so that the front portion of the hull 1 is propelled in the lateral direction by lateral auxiliary screws provided on the left and right sides of the front portion of the hull 1, for example.

Further, the hull 1 is provided with: a strut frame 24 fixed to the hull 1; 1 long spud 25 which is supported by the column frame 24 in a vertical posture so as to be slidable up and down and which can be driven and fixed into the soil 4 on the water bed E at its tapered lower end; a spud elevation driving device 26 capable of driving the spud 25 to elevate while keeping the spud 25 in an upright posture; and a spud forward-backward driving device 27 that precisely moves the hull 1 forward and backward within a predetermined stroke range with respect to the spud 25 by pressing the spud 25 driven into and fixed to the soil 4 on the water bed E in the forward and backward direction.

The spud elevation driving device 26 is provided in the column frame 24, for example, and is configured as a conventionally known structure capable of elevating and driving the spud 25 relative to the hull 1. As this structure, for example, a structure in which a wire rope having one end connected to the spud 25 is hoisted or lowered by a winch device fixed to the hull 1 or the column frame 24 can be adopted.

The intermediate portion of the spud 25 is inserted slidably in the front-rear direction into a guide hole 1g provided in the hull 1 and long in the front-rear direction, and an actuator 28 that presses the spud 25 in the front-rear direction is provided in the hull 1. The actuator 28 has an output arm portion 28a engaged with the spud 25 so as to be relatively immovable in the front-rear direction, and the hull 1 can be driven forward and backward with respect to the spud 25 by a reaction of the output arm portion 28a pressing the spud 25 in the front-rear direction. The actuator 28 and the guide hole 1g cooperate with each other to constitute a spud front-rear driving device 27.

The spud 25, the spud elevation drive device 26, and the spud forward-backward drive device 27 cooperate with each other to constitute a spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP that advances and retracts the hull 1 accurately at a predetermined amount at a time.

The main propulsion device 21, the side thrusters 22, and the spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP cooperate with each other to form the hull propulsion device D that can propel the hull 1 forward, backward, leftward, and rightward along the water surface to adjust the horizontal position of the grapple G in the water.

Further, the first winch device M1 can tilt the boom B up and down via the first wire rope W1 to raise and lower the grapple G, and the second winch device M2 can raise and lower the grapple G via the second wire rope W2. Therefore, since both the winch devices M1 and M2 can function as a drive unit for driving the grapple G to ascend and descend in water, the winch devices M1 and M2, the boom B and the second wire rope W2 suspending the grapple G, and the hull propulsion device D cooperate with each other to constitute a drive unit K for moving the grapple G in water.

The work command room 30 provided near the rear portion of the hull 1 is provided with a steering system for steering the dredging operation vessel S, various operation systems (not shown) other than the steering system for operating the respective parts of the dredging operation vessel S (for example, the main propulsion device 21, the side thruster 22, the spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP, the first and second winch devices M1, M2, the first and second hydraulic cylinders Cy1, Cy2, and the like), and a control device C having a microcomputer as a main part, which is related to the respective operation systems.

The control device C is capable of controlling the position of the hull 1 by controlling the operation of the hull propulsion device D based on GPS position information of at least one of the hull 1, the boom B, and the grapple G so that the grapple G can move in a predetermined small area (small area) (hereinafter, simply referred to as a predetermined area (predetermined section)) along a predetermined excavation route in an excavation target area (section) of the water bottom E, and is equipped with a control program capable of executing the control in accordance with an operation input to the operation system.

For example, by attaching a GPS antenna to the distal end portion Ba of the boom B, and detecting positional information of the distal end portion Ba of the boom B (and therefore positional information of the grapple G directly below the distal end portion Ba) based on the GPS signal received by the antenna to control the operation of the hull propulsion device D, it is possible to sequentially perform dredging work by the grapple G with high accuracy in a predetermined area formed by dividing the excavation target area into a plurality of areas.

For example, when a GPS antenna is mounted at an appropriate place of the hull 1, and the position information of the hull 1 is detected from the GPS signal received by the antenna, the position of the boom tip Ba (therefore, the position information of the grapple G directly below the tip Ba) is estimated from the position information of the hull 1 and the positional deviation information between the GPS antenna mounting position of the hull 1 and the boom tip Ba, and the operation of the hull propulsion device D is controlled based on the estimated value, whereby the dredging work by the grapple G can be sequentially performed with high accuracy for a predetermined area formed by dividing the excavation target area into a plurality of areas.

In this case, the positional deviation information can be estimated with higher accuracy by taking into account the length of the boom B and the tilt angle (the tilt angle can be directly measured by an angle sensor or estimated from the winding amount of the wire W1 of the first winch M1).

Further, a depth sensor (for example, an ultrasonic sensor), not shown, 31 capable of measuring the depth of the water bottom E and the depth of the grapple G in a non-contact manner is provided on the hull 1, and detection information of the depth sensor 31 is also output to the control device C and used for controlling the grapple G.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be explained.

In the case of the dredging operation, the dredging operation vessel S is first operated to travel by itself to the dredging water area, and at this time, the boom B is held at a standby position (for example, X position or Y position in fig. 1) on the water.

After the dredging operation ship S reaches the dredging water area, the spud 25 is lowered and driven into the water bed E to be fixed thereto. At this time, the hull 1 is held at a predetermined retreat limit in the guide hole 1g with respect to the spud 25 by the spud forward and backward driving device 27. Further, by adjusting the water flow in each of the right and left directions injected from the thrust water injection portion 22a of the side thruster 22, the hull 1 is suppressed from turning around the spud 25.

Next, the boom B is swung downward to assume a tilting posture (for example, a Z-position in fig. 1) under the water surface by discharging the first wire rope W1 from the first winch M1. Then, the second wire rope W2 is paid out from the second winch M2, and the second wire rope W2 is suspended from the distal end Ba of the boom B existing in the water to lower the grapple G to the water bottom E, whereby the excavation work of the underwater soil by the grapple G, which will be described later, that is, the dredging work is started.

First, before the grapple G reaches the water bottom E, the pair of rake plates 13 is fully opened by contracting the first hydraulic cylinder Cy1, and the lift cylinder 12 is lowered to the descent limit with respect to the main frame 11 by extending the second hydraulic cylinder Cy 2. Then, as shown in fig. 7, both the raking plates 13 bite into the earth and sand on the water bottom E, and then, as shown in fig. 8 (a) to (b), both the raking plates 13 are forcibly rotated in the closing direction by the first hydraulic cylinder Cy1, thereby raking the earth and sand on the water bottom into both the raking plates 13 for excavation.

With the start of the dredging operation, pressurized air and pressurized water are injected from the air injection nozzles Na, Na 'and the water injection nozzles Nw, Nw' of the sand flow assisting device a, respectively. The pressurized air and the pressurized water flow from the sand discharge pipe P only toward the soil transport pipe 8 particularly in a state where both raking plates 13 are closed, and are used for transporting the excavated soil upward (i.e., toward the soil storage tank 3) in the soil transport pipe 8.

When the raking plates 13 are closed to the fully closed position as shown in fig. 8 (b), the lift cylinder 12 is raised to the raising limit by the second hydraulic cylinder Cy2 as shown in fig. 8 (c), and as the raking plates 13 are raised, they approach the bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11, and the excavated soil 4 in the raking plates 13 (i.e., in the space 40) is mechanically and forcibly pushed into the sand discharge pipe P from the open lower end Pi of the sand discharge pipe P. In addition, since the soil raked up in the raking plates 13, particularly the pressurized air and the pressurized water from the air injection nozzle Na 'and the water injection nozzle Nw' are sufficiently stirred at the injection pressure in a state where the raking plates 13 are closed to increase the fluidity, the soil is efficiently and smoothly pushed into the sand discharge pipe P by the pushing action of the raking plates 13 along with the rising of the lift cylinder 12.

The sand immediately after being pushed into the sand discharge pipe P is smoothly pressure-fed and flowed to the upstream side, i.e., the sand feed pipe 8 side, through the check valve 15 with the aid of the injection pressures of the pressurized air and the pressurized water from the air injection nozzle Na and the water injection nozzle Nw.

As described above, since one excavation cycle by the grapple G is completed, the spud 25 is pushed rearward by the spud forward-backward driving device 27 to advance the hull 1 by a predetermined amount. Then, the rake plates 13 are opened and swung again to the fully opened position, and then lowered again to bite into the soil on the water bed E as shown in fig. 7. Then, the both raking plates 13 are swung again in the closing direction to perform the excavation cycle described above. During this period, the excavated earth 4 pushed into the sand discharge pipe P is pumped and stored into the earth storage tank 3 of the hull 1 through the earth transport pipe 8 by the injection pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water. Then, by repeating such excavation cycles a plurality of times, the dredging operation for 1 predetermined region of the water bottom E is completed.

Next, the hull 1 is rotated at a predetermined small angle around the spud 25 by adjusting the water flow in the left-right direction injected from the thrust water injection part 22a of the side thruster 22, and then the hull 1 is stopped at the rotated position. Then, the hull 1 is advanced or retreated by a predetermined amount each time the spud 25 is pushed in the fore-and-aft direction by the spud fore-and-aft driving device 27, and the same excavation cycle as described above is repeated during this period, whereby the dredging operation for the next predetermined area adjacent to the previous predetermined area is performed.

By sequentially repeating such dredging operations for adjacent predetermined areas, it is possible to dredge a fan-shaped or annular excavation target area within a desired range of rotation angle (maximum 360 degrees) around the spud 25.

When the dredging operation for the 1 excavation target area is completed, the hull 1 is moved to the next excavation target area. During this movement, the spud 25 is temporarily lifted from the water bottom E, and then the hull 1 is advanced or retreated by a predetermined distance by the main propulsion device 21, and then the spud 25 is driven and fixed again to the water bottom E.

Then, the dredging operation for each predetermined area is sequentially executed in the next excavation target area in the same procedure as the dredging operation for the previous excavation target area. In this case, since all the histories of the position information of the tip Ba of the boom B (and therefore the grapple G immediately below the tip Ba) are stored in the storage unit of the control device C, the dredging operation can be omitted and the predetermined area estimated to overlap the previous predetermined area (i.e., the predetermined area in which the dredging operation has been completed) based on the histories of the position information can be moved to the next predetermined area.

Through the above-described process, the grab G can dredge the underwater bottom E, which is an excavation target, over a wide range.

In the dredging operation vessel S according to the present embodiment described above, the boom B pivotally supported by the hull 1 is configured to be tiltable not only in the vertical direction on water but also in the vertical direction on water. The second wire rope W2 fed out from the second winch M2 on the hull 1 is suspended from the distal end Ba of the boom B in the water during the dredging operation, and can suspend the grapple G.

Accordingly, the grapple G can have the original advantages of the grapple G suspended by the wire rope, such as efficiently excavating earth and sand under the water by its own weight, and can shorten the length of the second wire rope W2 hanging from the arm end Ba as much as possible, so that the second wire rope W2 can eliminate or be less susceptible to the influence of wind and waves on the water surface or the influence of a current in the water (particularly, in the water near the water surface). As a result, the deviation of the horizontal position of the grapple G from the position of the hull 1 (therefore, the horizontal position of the boom tip portion Ba) can be effectively reduced, and therefore, the accuracy of the position control of the grapple G is improved in connection with the position control of the hull 1.

In particular, the dredging operation vessel S of the present embodiment includes: a hull propulsion device D that can propel the hull 1 along the water surface to adjust the horizontal position of the grapple G in the water; and a control device C that controls the operation of the hull propulsion device D, wherein the control device C controls the position of the hull 1 by operating the hull propulsion device D based on GPS position information of at least one of the hull 1, the boom B, and the grapple G, thereby moving the grapple G along a predetermined excavation route in an excavation target area of the underwater bottom E in a predetermined area.

Accordingly, the dredging operation by the grapple G can be performed without omission over a wide range of the water bottom E because the grapple G can be moved in the excavation target area of the water bottom E along the predetermined excavation route by using the GPS position information, which is the position information of the hull 1, as a clue without fixing the hull 1 to the water bottom E. In addition, the position control of the grapple G during the dredging operation can be performed with high accuracy, in addition to the effect of hanging the second wire rope W2 from the boom tip Ba in particular in the water to eliminate or reduce the influence of waves, currents, and the like.

Since the sand storage tank 3 is provided in the hull 1 of the dredging operation vessel S according to the present embodiment, the dredging operation vessel S itself can store the dredging sand 4 without stopping the sand carrier on the dredging operation vessel S and waiting. Thus, for example, even when the sand carrier is not on standby, the dredging operation can be continued, and even when the dredging operation is interrupted due to a failure of the grab G or the like, the sand stored in the sand storage tank 3 in the previous dredging operation can be transferred to the sand carrier, thereby improving the operation efficiency as a whole.

The grapple G of the present embodiment is configured such that a pair of rake plates 13P 2 are pivotally supported on the lower end of the vertically movable tube 12 which is vertically movable relative to the main frame 11 so as to be swingable in the open/close direction, and the excavated soil 4 raked by the pair of rake plates 13 is forcibly pushed into the sand discharge pipe P by driving the vertically movable tube 12 to be raised relative to the main frame 11 in a state where the rake plates 13 are closed. Thus, the raking plate 13 performs a raking (i.e., excavating) function for the underwater sand, and the elevation cylinder 12 mainly performs a pushing function of raking the sand into the sand discharge pipe P, so that the raking plate 13 and the elevation cylinder 12 can be optimally designed according to their respective functions, and the degree of freedom in the overall design can be improved. Further, since the amount of the raked soil pushed into the sand discharge pipe P is determined by the lift stroke of the lift cylinder 12, a sufficient pushing amount can be secured without particularly increasing the size of the raking plate 13 or increasing the stroke in the opening/closing direction.

The bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 is formed as a hemispherical surface protruding downward, and one end Pi of the sand discharge pipe P opens at the center top of the bottom wall 11 b. In the closed state of the pair of rake plates 13, the space 40 between the inner surfaces of the rake plates 13 and the lower surface of the bottom wall 11b is sufficiently filled, that is, the rake plates 13 are close to and face the lower surface of the bottom wall 11b, when the lift cylinder 12 reaches the lift limit. Therefore, the excavated soil raked in the pair of raking plates 13 can be efficiently pushed into the sand discharge pipe P without being biased, and the pushing efficiency can be improved.

Further, according to the grapple G of the present embodiment, the pressurized air and the pressurized water are injected from the air injection nozzles Na, Na 'and the water injection nozzles Nw, Nw' of the sand flow assisting device a to the excavated sand immediately before and immediately after the excavation into the sand discharge pipe P, respectively, so that the sand can be sufficiently diffused to improve the fluidity, and the flow of the sand from the sand discharge pipe P to the sand storage tank 3 through the sand transport pipe 8 can be sufficiently assisted. The injection pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water for spreading (improving the fluidity) the sand can be effectively and flexibly used as the conveying pressure of the sand in the sand conveying pipe 8. This can effectively improve the efficiency of pressure feeding of the sand through the sand discharge pipe P and the sand transport pipe 8.

In addition, a second embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig. 10 to 12, which is different from the first embodiment only in the configuration of the grapple. That is, in the first embodiment, the main frame 11 of the grapple G is formed in a cylindrical shape and the bottom wall 11b thereof is formed in a hemispherical plate shape, and the lift cylinder 12 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the pair of raking

plates

13 and 13 are formed in a hemispherical plate shape in the closed state (i.e., a half-divided shape of the hemispherical plate), while in the second embodiment, the main frame 11 'of the grapple G' is formed in a rectangular (more specifically, square) square cylindrical shape in cross section, and the bottom wall 11b 'thereof is formed in a half-cylindrical shape, and the lift cylinder 12' is formed in a rectangular (more specifically, square) square cylindrical shape in cross section, and the pair of raking plates 13 'and 13' are formed in a half-cylindrical shape in the closed state (i.e., a half-cylindrical plate is divided into two halves in a section plane in the bus line direction).

Since the other structures of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, reference numerals of corresponding components of the first embodiment are assigned to only the components of the second embodiment, and further description thereof is omitted.

In the second embodiment, the same operational effects as those of the first embodiment can be achieved.

The first and second embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various design changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the embodiment, a structure is shown in which: the hull propulsion device D includes a spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP in addition to the main propulsion device 21 and the side thrusters 22, and the bucket device V is movable in a predetermined region in a fan-shaped or annular excavation target region of the underwater bottom E to perform excavation by advancing and retreating the hull 1 by a predetermined amount each time by the spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP and by turning the hull 1 by a predetermined angle each time around the spud 25 by the side thrusters 22. However, in the present invention, it is also possible to: without using such a spud-type hull propulsion mechanism SP, the main propulsion device 21 and the side thruster 22 are controlled to operate based on GPS position information of at least one of the hull 1, the boom B, and the grab bucket G, and the hull 1 is moved forward or backward by a predetermined amount or moved laterally in either left or right direction, whereby the region to be excavated on the underwater bottom E is moved along a predetermined excavation route and dredged along a predetermined region. In this case, the side thrusters 22 are disposed not only at the front of the bottom of the hull 1 as in the above-described embodiment, but also at the rear of the bottom of the hull 1.

In the above embodiment, the case where the hull propulsion device D performs operation control based on GPS position information of at least one of the hull 1, the boom B, and the grab bucket G during the dredging operation to control the position of the hull 1 is shown, but the hull propulsion device D may perform operation control based on position information from another position sensor capable of detecting the position of the hull instead of or in addition to the GPS position information to control the position of the hull 1.

In the above embodiment, the case where the excavated earth and sand is pressed into the earth and sand storage tank 3 of the hull 1 through the earth and sand transfer pipe 8 by the injection pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water from the earth and sand flow assisting device a provided in the grab G (for example, the sand discharge pipe P) is shown, but an injection pump unit (JP) such as shown in fig. 2 of JP 2008-115610 a may be inserted in the middle of the earth and sand transfer pipe 8 in addition to the earth and sand flow assisting device a to assist the earth and sand flow in the earth and sand transfer pipe 8. In this case, in addition to the injection pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water injected from the soil flow assist device a into the sand discharge pipe P, the injection pressure of the pressurized air and the pressurized water from the injection pump unit (JP) is also used as the soil transfer pressure in the soil transfer pipe 8, and therefore, the excavated soil can be more efficiently pressure-fed into the soil storage tank 3 of the hull 1.

In the above embodiment, the case where the dredging operation vessel S is operated to travel to the dredging water area by itself when the dredging operation vessel S is located far from the dredging water area is shown, but in such a case, another vessel may be used to drag the dredging operation vessel S and move the dredging operation vessel S to the dredging water area.

In the above-described embodiment, the sand storage tank 3 provided in the hull 1 of the dredging operation ship S is exemplified as the sand storage site on the water, but a ship (for example, a sand carrier) different from the dredging operation ship S or a sand storage tank provided in a water facility may be used as the sand storage site.

Further, in the first embodiment, the bottom wall 11b of the main frame 11 is formed in a hemispherical plate shape, and in the second embodiment, the bottom wall 11b 'of the main frame 11' is formed in a hemispherical plate shape, but in the present invention, the bottom wall shape of the main frame is not limited to the embodiment, and the pair of raking plates in the closed state may be formed in an appropriate shape according to the shape, and may be, for example, a horizontal flat plate shape.

Claims

1. A dredging operation ship, which hangs down a wire rope (W2) that can be wound and paid out by a winch device (M2) provided in a hull (1) from a tip end portion (Ba) of a boom (B) that can be supported (p1) on the hull (1) so as to be tiltable, and a bucket device (G, G ') that is suspended from the wire rope (W2), rakes up earth and sand on the bottom of a water (E) by the bucket device (G, G') to excavate the water, and can pump the earth and sand to a sand storage place (3) on the water by a sand conveying pipe (8), characterized in that,

the boom (B) is configured to be tiltable in the vertical direction in water, and the wire rope (W2) is suspended from a distal end portion (Ba) of the boom (B) in water.

2. Dredging vessel according to claim 1,

the dredging operation ship comprises: a hull propulsion device (D) capable of propelling the hull (1) along the water surface so as to adjust the horizontal position of the bucket device (G, G') in the water; and a control device (C) which controls the position of the hull (1) by controlling the operation of the hull propulsion device (D) on the basis of GPS position information of at least one of the hull (1), the boom (B) and the bucket device (G, G ') so that the bucket device (G, G') can move along a predetermined excavation route in an excavation target area of the water bottom (E).

3. Dredging vessel according to claim 1 or 2,

the bucket device (G, G ') is provided with a sand flow assisting device (A) which assists the flow of the sand (4) from the bucket device (G, G ') to the sand storage place (3) through the sand transport pipe (8) by injecting pressurized air and/or pressurized water to the excavated sand (4) raked up in the bucket device (G, G ').

4. Dredging vessel according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the ship body (1) is provided with a sand storage tank (3) serving as the sand storage place.