EP0034857A1

EP0034857A1 - Movable dredging device

Info

Publication number: EP0034857A1
Application number: EP81200168A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jacobus Maria Josef Hofland
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-02-26
Filing date: 1981-02-11
Publication date: 1981-09-02
Also published as: ES8200737A1; IE810387L; NL8001152A; IE50778B1; EP0034857B1; ES499787A0; DE3163442D1

Abstract

The Device comprising a chassis (1) movable upon caterpillar tracks (2), a water tight engine room (5) with input chimney (17,19) and exhaust gas pipes (6,7) control levers and panel extendable or movable upwardly through a cylinder (18), a dredge pump (8) with suction pipe (9), a delivery pipe (10) with swayable extension (13), means (20,22) to adjust the position of the said extension, said device preferably further having a water supply line (25) debouching adjacent the inlet of the suction pipe (9) as well as adjustable bull dozer blades (3).

Description

The invention relates to a movable dredging device comprising a dredge pump, a suction pipe, a delivery pipe and an own drive unit. Transportable dredging devices are known embodied as small amphibian vehicles or embodied as extensive constructions, locatable and transportable under water, of which the drive and dredge apparatus are remotely controlled. Furthermore digging devices with a pressure cabin are known destined for working under water at great depths, but said devices do not comprise dredging means as a dredge pump and suction and delivery pipes.
Furthermore of course the usual dredging ships are known as well as pontoons, supported by means of spud poles onto the bottom and comprising a ladder with cutter and suction pipe.
There are many dredging operations for which the consisting devices are not optimally suited.For dredging lakes or pools, for instance for sand winning, bottom cleaning or deepening a fairway one uses floating dredging devices. Under certain circumstances one uses amphibian dredging devices, whereby the dredging operation however is carried out in the floating condition. For coastal activities such as raising the beach level, making channels etc, one uses also floating dredging devices. The operations of such a device however are in- terferred by tide dependent varying water levels and by waterwaves. Dredging ships respectively pontoons are hardly suited for such activities, because they are not able to approach the coast near enough. Therefore one has to use long delivery pipes which is however troublesome because of the waterwaves.
Non of the exsisting dredging devices is suited for removing a ship which is run aroundand stuck high on the beach, because these devices are not capable to operate right on the beach. That applies also to amphibian dredging devices, because these dredging devices are owing to their floating power not capable to operate in surf.
An object of the invention is to provide a dredging device with many possible applications especially there, where it is very troublesome or even impossible to work with the existing dredging devices.
Said object is reached according to the invention in that a caterpillar driven chassis is carrying a watertight engine room with an input chimney comprising a ventilator and an output chimney, a suction pipe swayable around at least an horizontal axis and attached to a moving mechanism and connected to a dredge pump positioned onto said chassis, a delivery pipe of said dredge pump running backwards, a rear hoisting device for carrying and controlling a swayable extension of said delivery pipe, which transportable dredging device has no floating power and comprises a control unit with operating means and control means, the height of which is adjustable. In fact the dredging device according to the invention consists of a device which is movable by means of endless tracks, which device may operate on land and also in water, as long as the input and output chimney of the engine room are ending above water level. Said engine room contains the apparatus necessary for driving the device The suction pipe is controlled from the operating room by relocating the chassis and by adjusting the height. It is possible to expel the dredged mixture by means of the delivery pipe directly onto the terain behind the dredging device, whereby if necessary the delivery pipe may be extended such that the output thereof is at a greater distance from the dredging device. The device according to the application is able to drive from the bank or shore into the water and depending on the type of operations the device is able to work its way back from a certain water depth to the shore or work in the opposite direction.
Because the operating room carrying -the operator is adjustable in height the dredging device is able to work in the border zone between land and water and to submerse thereby rather deep, whereby the operator is still able to see how he controls the dredging device.
If necessary the dredging device may have a water delivery pipe, the delivery end of which is positioned near the suction inlet of said suction pipe and to which water is supplied through a separate sucking and forcing pump, which pump sucks water through a flexible pipe or hose from the neighbouring area. It is therefore possible to start workingon dry ground whereby first of all a lot of water is pumped onto said dry ground to create a mixture which may be pumped and handled by the dredge pump.
In this way it is for instance possible to release ships, which are run ashore and stuck high on the beach, because the dredging device according to the invention is not only able to create a water filled hole around the stranded ship, but is also able to create a channel to return the ship back to the sea without having any difficulties whatsoever with surf waves respectively tide dependent water level differences.
Eventually the dredging device according to the application may have a bulldozer blade, preferably at the side where the suction pipe is positioned. A similar bulldozer blade at the other side, that means at the rear side, might also be useful. Said last mentioned blade may be used for throwing up a dam behind which the dredged mixture may be expelled, whereas it is also possible to shift unwanted sand piles to a place where they could be removed thereafter through the suction inlet.
The dredging device according to the invention could have such dimensions that it is possible to transport the device over land using a deep loader.Therefore the dredging device may be used for raising a site and simultaneously creating an artificial lake. It is known to use floating dredging devices for this purpose which have to be transported through a consisting water way and are operating at the desired spot to create the artificial lake whereby the dredged mixture is conveyed through long delivery pipes to the area to be raised. The transportable dredging device according to the application is able to start on a dry land and is able to carry on as long the water depths are not too extreme. Furthermore it is possible to use this device for digging a water way for a heavier floating dredging device which is thereafter completing the operations.
The device according to the invention may comprise a cable winch which could be used to rescue the device out of difficult situations, but also for pulling a grounded ship loose using an anchor coupled to the dredging device.
The dredge pump contains preferably an on and off switcheable vacuum pump, necessary to initiate the dredging process. A dried out dredge pump is not able to do so. Such a measure is known for dredge pumps which are positioned above the water level.
Preferably the dredging device comprises a separate diesel electric installation used for powering the dredge pump, auxiliary pumps, hydraulic apparatus and such like apparatus, which diesel electric installation is independent of the main drive motor for the device.
Preferably an emergency set is installed apart from the main drive motor which emergency set is able to rescue the dredging device out of difficult situations in case of disturbances in the main drive motor.
The dredging device according to the application may even be positioned onto a ship or pontoon, for instance a maintenance ship, so that such a ship may be temporarily used as dredging ship without the necessity to change the ship itself.
The invention will hereafter be explained referring to the drawing in which a dredging device according to the application is schematically illustrated.
The drawing shows the chassis 1, having two endless traction belts 2, which are used for transporting and controlling the device.
The front side of the chassis carries a dozer blade 3 which is by means of the piston and cylinder combination 4 adjustable in height. Onto the chassis 1 a voluminous closed engine room 5 is installed containing the drive motor and the diesel electric power units. Said closed room 5 has two pipes 6 and 7 for the exhaust gases. The roof of the engine room has two flange carrying openings 16 and 17, onto which flanges the cylinders 18, 19 could be mounted. Into the opening 17 a cooling fan is positioned.
Underneath the opening 16 control levers are positioned which are extendable to a higher level. The control panel has long connecting cables respectively connecting tubes. When operating in the water in which case the engine room could be submersed, the cylinders 18, 19 are mounted onto the flanges and the control means are extended and the control panel is brought to a higher level so that the operator, standing in the cylinder 18, is able to do his job.
The pipes 6 and 7 could also be extendable. Therefore the device is able to drive under water with submersed engine room until a certain depth.
A dredge pump 8 with suction pipe 9¹and delivery pipe 10 is installed on the front part of the chassis 1. Said pump is hingedly connected at 11, but it is also possible to mount the pump immovable and to fix a swayable part to the suction pipe 9. Such a swayable part could be connected by means of a device similar to the known tube section 12, surrounded by the universal joint connecting the delivery pipe extension 13 to the delivery pipe 10.
A hoisting means 14 is attached to the front part of the chassis 1 and is carrying the suction pipe 9.
A further hoisting means, denoted with 20, is attached to the rear side of the chassis 1 and is carrying the delivery pipe.
A sucking and forcing pump 23 is through a flexible tube 24 connected to a pipe 25 running along side the suction pipe 9 to the inlet opening thereof. The suction pipe of this pump 23 may have any suitable form and could be embodied for instance as a long tube leading to a water mass from which water is sucked and pumped to the area near the inlet opening of the suction pipe 9.
The device according to the invention may work in the border zone between land and water and is not disturbed by the presence of swell or surf waves or waterlevel changes and in case of bad weather it is possible to transport the device to a safer higher area. Furthermore the device may start working on completely dry land.
It is of course possible to connect the delivery pipe to a longer pipe line provided that sufficient flexible connections are used. However, the most flexible use is made of the device according to the invention when the delivery pipe is relatively short, for instance 25 meters, so that the dredging device is expelling the sucked mixture directly behind on a suitable terrain. If necessary the terrain onto which the mixture is delivered may be limited by dams, which could be thrown up using the bulldozer blade 3. If necesary a similar blade could be installed at the rear side.

Claims

1. Movable dredging device comprising a dredge pump, a suction pipe, a delivery pipe and an own drive unit, characterized in that a caterpillar driven chassis is carrying a watertight engine room with an input chimney comprising a ventilator and an output chimney, a suction pipe swayable around at least an horizontal axis and attached to a moving mechanism and connected to a dredge pump positioned onto said chassis, a delivery pipe of said dredge pump running backwards, a rear hoisting device for carrying and controlling a swayable extension of said delivery pipe, which transportable dredging device has no floating power and comprises a control unit with operating means and control means, the height of which is adjustable.

2. Dredging device according to claim-1, characterized in that a water delivery pipdis positioned near the suction inlet of said I suction pipe and the corresponding sucking and forcing pump is mounted onto the chassis.

3. Dredging device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the chassis carries, at least at the suction pipe side an adjustable bulldozer blade.

4. Dredging device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said device comprises a cable winch.

5. Dredging device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characeterized in that said dredge pump contains an on and off switcheable vacuum pump.

6. Dredging device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that apart from the chassis drive unit a separate diesel electric installation is used for powering the dredge pump, the operating means of said moving mechanism respectively said hoisting device, pumps and auxiliary apparatus, such as hydraulic apparatus.

7. Dredging device according to one or more of trhe preceding claims, characterized in that, an emergency set is installed apart from the main drive motor.