EP3495562B1 - Carrier system and method for fixing the carrier system - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a carrier system for fastening at least one test device and / or at least one cleaning device and / or at least one repair device to a support structure below and / or above a water surface of a body of water. The invention further relates to a method for fastening such a support system to a support structure.

Wind turbines (also: wind turbines) are built up in particular in the area of coastal waters (so-called offshore wind turbines) on pillar-like supporting structures (also: pile, monopile or piling structure), some of which are below the water surface and thus corrosion, especially by sea water, and maritime Growth are exposed. For this reason, such support structures, which are at least partially under water, must be regularly examined and, if necessary, freed from maritime growth.

From the EP 0 358 682 B1 a carrier system according to the preamble of claim 1 is known for this purpose. In particular, this document discloses a device in which a brush-bearing ring is provided, which is arranged under the water surface on the support structure.

The also shows US 5 791 818 A a device with rollers, which are tied around a supporting structure and remove maritime vegetation on the supporting structure by a fluctuating movement caused by waves.

Furthermore, from the WO 2010/018039 A2 a device for cleaning an underwater system is known. The device has a frame element on which several cleaning units are attached. In order to move the device along a tubular structure, drive units are provided on the device. The drive units can include propellers or jet components. Ballast tanks can be provided instead of the drive units.

Based on this prior art, it is the object of the present invention to provide an improved carrier system for fastening at least one test device and / or at least one cleaning device and / or at least one repair device to a support structure below and / or above a water surface of a body of water characterized in particular by a simplified assembly.

This object is achieved by a support system with the features of claim 1 or by a method for fastening such a support system to a support structure with the features of claim 13.

Advantageous embodiments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

• eine Schlittenträgerkette, die umfänglich um die Tragstruktur angeordnet werden kann und mehrere miteinander verbindbare Kettenelemente aufweiset, und
• mehrere um die Tragstruktur umfänglich angeordnete und zumindest an einem Teil der Kettenelemente befestigte Seilwinden.

A carrier system for attaching at least one test device and / or cleaning device and / or repair device to support structures below and / or above a water surface of a body of water comprises:

• a carriage chain which can be arranged circumferentially around the support structure and has a plurality of chain elements which can be connected to one another, and
• a plurality of cable winches arranged circumferentially around the support structure and fastened to at least some of the chain elements.

The sled carrier chain can be positioned by means of the cable winches on the support structure with respect to the water surface at a predeterminable vertical height. According to the invention, at least some of the chain elements have cavities which can be flooded and drained in such a way that the sled carrier chain has positive buoyancy in the case of drained cavities in water, in particular seawater, and negative buoyancy in the case of flooded cavities.

The design of the sled carrier chain is such that it has positive buoyancy in water, in particular sea water, in the case of drained cavities, that is to say in particular cavities emptied of liquid, and consequently floats. In the case of flooded cavities, the sled carrier chain has a negative buoyancy in water, in particular sea water, and sinks. This advantageously facilitates the mounting of the carrier system on the support structure, since it can be easily guided around the support structure in the floating state and attached to it.

To carry out testing and / or repair and / or cleaning work under water, the sled carrier chain, which is designed for positioning a cleaning, repair and / or testing device under water, can be flooded in a controlled manner, so that in particular the vertical position of the sled carrier chain can be assisted the winches with respect to the water surface or of the water level and the sled carrier chain in the water can be lowered in a controlled manner.

The cable winches are preferably equipped with displacement sensors in such a way that the travel distance of the sled carrier chain can be reliably detected, particularly in the vertical direction. In this way, the position of the sled carrier chain arranged circumferentially around the support structure can be precisely specified, in particular with respect to the water surface.

In one embodiment it is provided that each of the cable winches can be non-positively attached to the support structure at least indirectly by means of electromagnets, in particular by means of two electromagnets which are arranged vertically offset from one another. In this way, a particularly quick and easy fixation of the carriage chain on the outside of the support structure can be ensured.

Each winch can be connected to the electromagnets that secure the winches via a vertically height-adjustable bracket. When mounting the carrier system on the support structure, the height-adjustable holder primarily serves to position the electromagnets at a vertical height with respect to the water surface in such a way that they are in an area which is not or only slightly influenced by waves.

In a preferred embodiment, a tension chain is provided which can be arranged circumferentially around the support structure and has a plurality of further chain elements which can be connected to one another. Cable winches for positioning the sled carrier chain are attached to at least some of the other chain elements. Two chain structures are thus provided, each of which surrounds the supporting structure on the circumference. The tension chain is fixed to the support structure at least for the duration of the repair, testing and / or cleaning process, for example by means of hydraulically or pneumatically operated tensioning devices, in particular tensioning cylinders, and carries the cable winches, which serve to position the sled carrier chain at variable vertical heights.

Pneumatic and / or hydraulic operated clamping devices, in particular clamping cylinders, are preferred for fastening to the Support structure is formed or arranged on at least part of the chain elements of the sled carrier chain and / or on at least part of the further chain elements of the tension chain. The tensioning devices serve in particular to fix the slide carrier chain or the tension chain to the outer wall of the support structure and are preferably arranged circumferentially around the support structure at several positions for this purpose.

In one embodiment, the working medium of the hydraulically operated tensioning devices is sea water.

The cable winches and / or tensioning devices can preferably be arranged circumferentially around the support structure at regular intervals.

In a possible embodiment, each cable winch is detachably attached to a chain element of the sled carrier chain by means of a locking element. When mounting the carrier system on the support structure, the chain elements of the sled carrier chain thus serve as a floating carrier for the cable winches. After the cable winches have been attached to the support structure, the locking device can be released, the cavities flooded and the sled carrier chain can be lowered with the aid of the cable winches in order to bring them into a vertical position suitable for repairing, testing and / or cleaning the outer surface of the support structure .

According to one embodiment, the sled carrier chain is designed to carry at least one sled which is movable in the circumferential direction. The carriage can be equipped with the test device already described for non-destructive material testing and / or the cleaning device, in particular high-pressure cleaning device, and / or the repair device. In this way, almost any areas of the support structure, in particular under water, can be examined or cleaned. For this purpose, the slide carrier chain is preferably first placed at a suitable vertical height on the support structure, in order to then move the slide with the testing and / or repair and / or cleaning device along the slide carrier chain until the patient to be examined and / or repaired and / or or the area to be cleaned is reached.

In one embodiment, the carriage has at least one motor-driven or pneumatically driven gearwheel which engages in a toothed rack arranged circumferentially around the carriage carrier chain. This type of drive ensures reliable movement of the carriage under water, even in the event of currents that may occur, since the force for movement is at least not exclusively caused by adhesion.

A cleaning device, in particular high-pressure cleaning device, and / or a testing device for non-destructive material testing, in particular ultrasound testing device or eddy current testing, and / or a repair device, such as a cutting or welding device, is preferably provided or designed on the carriage. The high-pressure cleaning device preferably has one or more nozzles for applying an air and / or water jet to the outer surface of the support structure. Testing devices for non-destructive material testing are designed, for example, in a manner known per se for ultrasonic testing of components. Other possible embodiments relate in particular to the design of the test device as an eddy current sensor in such a way that structural damage can be detected at least in a region of the support structure near the surface. According to one embodiment, the cutting device is designed for water jet cutting.

In an advantageous further development, the chain elements of the sled carrier chain and / or the further chain elements of the tension chain are designed in the form of an annular segment. This shape of the chain elements or of the further chain elements is particularly advantageous for the essentially columnar or cylindrical support structure, since these are adapted to the external shape of the support structure. As a result, the play between the chain elements and the support structure can be minimized and / or the number of chain elements or the further chain elements can be reduced.

The invention further relates to a method for fastening the carrier system already described to a support structure which is at least partially under water. Advantages arise directly from the previous description with reference to the carrier system.

For this purpose, a sled carrier chain with a plurality of chain elements connected to one another is provided. Cable winches are attached to at least some of the chain elements, so that the sled carrier chain can be positioned at a predeterminable vertical height with respect to the water surface. In addition, on at least some of the chain elements, cavities that can be flooded and drained are formed such that the sled carrier chain has positive buoyancy in the case of drained cavities in water, in particular seawater, and negative buoyancy in the case of flooded cavities. The sled carrier chain is guided circumferentially around the support structure in the case of drained cavities on the water surface. End-side chain elements of the sled carrier chain are then connected to one another in such a way that the sled carrier chain surrounds the support structure at the vertical level of the water surface. The property of the slide carrier chain that it floats when the cavities are drained, that is to say emptied of liquid, can thus be used advantageously to facilitate the temporary assembly of the carrier system on the support structure, in particular for the purpose of testing or cleaning.

According to one embodiment, it is provided that the sled carrier chain arranged circumferentially around the support structure at a vertical height of the water surface is at least temporarily fastened by means of pneumatically and / or hydraulically operated tensioning devices or cylinders. At least some of the chain elements carry winches, which are non-positively fastened to an outer surface or wall of the supporting structure by means of electromagnets when the sled carrier chain is floating, that is to say when the cavities are drained. The vertical height of the electromagnets with respect to the water surface is preferably adjusted by means of a height-adjustable holder before the electromagnets are activated. This ensures that the electromagnets provided for the non-positive fastening of the cable winches are brought into an area which is so far above the water level or the water surface that little or no influence by waves can be expected.

In one embodiment it is provided to position the sled carrier chain in flooded cavities by means of the cable winches below the water surface at a predeterminable vertical height, in particular around a wall section there Check the supporting structure with the help of a non-destructive testing technique and / or free it from maritime growth.

• Figur 1 ein erfindungsgemäßes Trägersystem gemäß einer ersten Ausführungsform in einer perspektivischen Ansicht,
• Figur 2 das Trägersystem auf Figur 1 mit einer geöffneten Schlittenträgerkette in einer perspektivischen Ansicht,
• Figur 3 die Montage des Trägersystems aus Figur 1 an einer säulenartigen Tragstruktur, insbesondere einer Windenergieanlage,
• Figur 4 Detaildarstellung einzelner Komponenten des Trägersystems aus Figur 1 in einer perspektivischen Detailansicht,
• Figur 5 weitere Komponenten des Trägersystems aus Figur 1 in einer perspektivischen Detailansicht,
• Figur 6 eine Perspektivansicht auf ein erfindungsgemäßes Trägersystems in einer zweiten Ausführungsform mit einer Spann- und einer Schlittenträgerkette,
• Figur 7 eine perspektivische Detailansicht von Komponenten des Trägersystems aus Figur 6, und
• Figur 8 weitere Komponenten des Trägersystems aus Figur 6 in einer perspektivischen Detailansicht.

The invention is also explained in more detail below with regard to further features and advantages based on the description of two embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Show:

• Figure 1 a carrier system according to the invention according to a first embodiment in a perspective view,
• Figure 2 the carrier system Figure 1 with an open sled carrier chain in a perspective view,
• Figure 3 assembly of the carrier system Figure 1 on a columnar support structure, in particular a wind power plant,
• Figure 4 Detailed representation of individual components of the carrier system Figure 1 in a perspective detailed view,
• Figure 5 other components of the carrier system Figure 1 in a perspective detailed view,
• Figure 6 2 shows a perspective view of a carrier system according to the invention in a second embodiment with a tensioning and a slide carrier chain,
• Figure 7 a detailed perspective view of components of the carrier system Figure 6 , and
• Figure 8 other components of the carrier system Figure 6 in a perspective detailed view.

The same or corresponding parts are provided with the same reference numerals in all figures.

Figure 1 shows a carrier system 1 for attaching testing, repair and / or cleaning devices to a support structure T, in particular under water. The carrier system 1 of the first embodiment comprises a plurality of chain elements 3 or chain links which have the shape of circular ring segments and are connected to one another in an articulated manner.

At least the connection between two chain elements 3a, 3b arranged at the end is, as in Figure 2 shown, releasable, so that the structure formed by the entirety of the chain elements 3 extends circumferentially around the support structure, as in FIG Figure 3 illustrated, can be arranged.

The support structure T is, for example, a foundation of a wind power plant that is located in a body of water and is, for example, part of an offshore wind farm.

In the assembled state, the chain elements 3 form a closed carriage carrier chain 5 for a carriage 7 that can be moved circumferentially around the essentially cylindrical support structure T.

The carriage 7 of the first embodiment is shown in detail in FIG Figure 4 shown and carries in a manner not shown, test devices in particular for non-destructive material testing, such as ultrasonic test devices or eddy current sensors, and / or cleaning devices for cleaning the outer surface of the support structure T, and / or repair devices for repairing the support structure T.

Because the carriage carrier chain 5 can be arranged in different positions, in particular at different vertical heights H with respect to a water surface W, all wall sections of the support structure can be reached above or under water by the carriage 7 and thus checked and / or cleaned and / or repaired .

The chain elements 3 of the sled carrier chain 5 have floodable and drainable cavities 9, which are dimensioned such that the sled carrier chain 5 together with the components attached to it floats in the case of drained cavities 9, i.e. has positive buoyancy in water, in particular seawater, and in the case of flooded cavities 9 sinks, i.e. has negative buoyancy.

In addition to the carriage 7 already mentioned, the carriage carrier chain 5 carries, in particular on its upper side, a plurality of cable winches 11, which are provided with brackets 13 for fastening to the outer surface of the support structure T, and hydraulically or pneumatically operated tensioning devices 15, which are also used for at least temporarily fastening the carriage carrier chain 5 serve on the support structure T.

The tensioning devices 15 are designed to exert a substantially radially directed force for fixing the carriage chain 5 to the support structure T. The tensioning devices 15 are therefore, as in particular in FIG Figure 1 to recognize, arranged at regular intervals circumferentially around the support structure T.

The side winches 11, which serve primarily for positioning the sled carrier chain 5 at a predeterminable vertical height H, are also arranged circumferentially around the support structure T at regular intervals for reasons of better force distribution. At least four cable winches 11 are preferably provided for this purpose, the number of cable winches 11 being dependent, for example, on the diameter of the support structure T.

Figure 4 shows details of the carrier system 1. The carriage carrier chain 5 can be lowered in particular in the case of flooded cavities 9 with the aid of the cable winches 11, so that it can be positioned at a variable vertical height H on the support structure. The cable winches 11 are releasably fastened to the top of the sled carrier chain 5 by means of locking brackets 17 having locking elements 18. The holder 13, which is adjustable in vertical height H, carries two electromagnets 19, which are offset with respect to one another and serve for the non-positive fastening of the cable winches 11 on the outside of the support structure T.

The carriage 7 can be moved circumferentially around the support structure T along the carriage carrier chain 5 and for this purpose has a gearwheel 21 driven by a motor 20, which meshes with a circumferential rack 22 arranged radially on the outside of the carriage carrier chain 5.

Figure 5 shows the clamping device 15 in detail. The hydraulic clamping device 15 shown comprises a clamping jaw 16, which is designed to exert a force radially inwards and on the outer wall of the support structure T. Since a plurality of tensioning devices 15 are arranged circumferentially around the slide carrier chain 5, this can be non-positively fixed to the support structure T, so that the tensioning jaws 16 are each placed radially on the support structure T at different circumferential positions. Water, in particular seawater, serves as the working medium of the hydraulic tensioning device 15.

The carrier system 1 is preferably attached to a support structure T set up in a body of water, in particular coastal water, as follows: The carrier system 1 is preassembled and tested, for example on a ship.

The cable winches 11 and the brackets 13 carrying the electromagnets 19 are temporarily fastened to the upper side of the chain elements 3 via the locking brackets 17 or locking elements 18.

The carrier system 1 is let into the water, for example with the aid of a crane. The open sled carrier chain 5 is with drained cavities 9 on the water surface W, as in Figure 3 schematically illustrated, led around the support structure T and the end chain elements 3a, 3b connected to each other, so that a circumferential chain structure is formed.

The tensioning devices 15 are slightly pre-tensioned in order to fix the carrier system 1 to the support structure T. The rotary lock formed by the locking elements 18 is unlocked and the divided electromagnets 19 are moved upwards along the holder 13 in the vertical direction in order to lead them out of the area affected by the waves. After activation of the electromagnets 19, the cable winches 11 are non-positively attached to the outside of the support structure T.

According to the measure to be carried out, the carriage 7 is equipped, for example, with a cleaning device, in particular a high-pressure cleaning device, a testing device, in particular an ultrasound testing device and / or a repair device, in particular a water jet cutting device. The cavities 9 are flooded with water, in particular seawater, and the sled carrier chain 5 with the sled 7 is moved downwards in the vertical direction by means of the cable winches 11.

The sled carrier chain 5 is then fastened to the support structure T at the vertical height H by means of the tensioning devices 15. The carriage 7 is moved circumferentially around the support structure T for cleaning, checking and / or repairing the support structure T along the slide support chain 5. If necessary, the slide 7 is moved several times, in particular at different vertical heights H.

The track offset for cleaning, testing and / or repairing between the individual journeys taking place at different vertical heights H results, among other things, from the physical design of the cleaning, testing and / or repairing device used. The offset in the vertical direction depends, for example, on the number and arrangement of the high-pressure nozzles of a high-pressure cleaning device.

After each movement of the slide carrier chain 5 in the vertical direction, it is re-tensioned by means of the tensioning devices 15. The cable winches 11 are equipped with displacement sensors for precise positioning of the sled carrier chain 5 at a vertical height H.

Alternatively or additionally, the slides 7 can be equipped with displacement sensors.

The Figures 6 to 8 show a second embodiment of the carrier system 1, which differs from the first embodiment in the manner of fastening the cable winches 11 to the support structure T. For the rest, reference is made to the previous description, in particular to the description of relevant elements or assemblies which are provided with the same reference symbols.

The carrier system 1 of the second embodiment comprises a tension chain 23 which is formed by a plurality of further chain elements 24 which are connected to one another in an articulated manner. The tension chain 23 can be non-positively attached to the outside of the support structure T via electromagnets 19 and tensioning devices 15 in a manner similar to the already described slide carrier chain 5. In one embodiment, the further chain elements 24 of the tension chain 23 are likewise provided with floodable and drainable cavities 9.

The tension chain 23 is, as in the Figures 6 to 8 shown, attached radially inside to the support structure T. The slide carrier chain 5, which can be moved in the vertical direction with respect to the tension chain 23, forms a radially outer ring structure around the support structure T.

Cable winches 11 are attached to the top of some of the further chain elements 24. By means of the cable winches 11, the sled carrier chain 5 can be below the water surface W, in particular in the case of flooded cavities 9 lowered and positioned with respect to the support structure T at a predeterminable vertical height H.

Reference list

1

Carrier system

3rd

Chain element

3a

Chain element

3b

Chain element

5

Carrier chain

7

carriage

9

cavity

11

Winch

13

bracket

15

Clamping device

16

Jaw

17th

Locking bracket

18th

Locking element

19th

Electromagnet

20th

engine

21

gear

22

Rack

23

Tension chain

24th

Chain element

H

height

T

Support structure

Claims (15)

1. A carrier system (1) for fixing at least one testing device and/or cleaning device and/or repairing device on a support structure (T) underneath and/or above a water surface (W) of a body of water, comprising

   - a carriage carrier chain (5), which can be arranged circumferentially around the support structure (T) and has a plurality of chain elements (3) which can be connected to one another, characterized by

   - a plurality of cable winches (11) to be arranged circumferentially around the support structure (T) and fixed to at least some of the chain elements (3), wherein the carriage carrier chain (5) can be positioned by means of the cable winches (11) on the support structure (T) at a predeterminable vertical height (H) with respect to the water surface (W), wherein at least some of the chain elements (3) have cavities (9), which can be flooded and pumped out, such that the carriage carrier chain (5) has positive buoyance in water when the cavities (9) are pumped out and negative buoyance when the cavities are flooded (9).
2. The carrier system (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that each cable winch (11) can be fixed non-positively to the support structure (T) at least indirectly by means of electromagnets (19), in particular by means of two electromagnets (19), which are arranged vertically offset with respect to each other.
3. The carrier system (1) according to Claim 2, characterized in that each cable winch (11) is connected via a vertically height-adjustable holder (13) to the electromagnets (19) fixing the respective cable winch (11).
4. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a tension chain (23) is provided, which can be arranged circumferentially around the support structure (T) and has a plurality of further chain elements (24) which can be connected with one another, wherein cable winches (11) are fixed at least to at least some of the further chain elements (24) for the positioning of the carriage carrier chain (5) at a predeterminable vertical height (H) on the support structure (T).
5. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that pneumatically and/or hydraulically operated clamping devices (15) for fixing to the support structure (T) are designed or arranged on at least some of the chain elements (3) of the carriage carrier chain (5) and/or on at least some of the further chain elements (24) of the tension chain (23).
6. The carrier system (1) according to Claim 5, characterized in that the working medium of the hydraulic clamping device (15) is seawater.
7. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cable winches (11) and/or clamping devices (15) are arranged at regular intervals circumferentially around the support structure (T).
8. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each cable winch (11) is detachably fixed to a chain element (3) of the carriage carrier chain (5) by means of a locking element (18).
9. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the carriage carrier chain (5) carries at least one carriage (7) which is movable in the circumferential direction.
10. The carrier system (1) according to Claim 9, characterized in that the carriage (7) has at least one motor-driven or pneumatically driven gear wheel (21), which engages in a gear rod (22) arranged circumferentially around the carriage carrier chain (5).
11. The carrier system (1) according to Claim 9 or 10, characterized in that a cleaning device, in particular, a high-pressure cleaning device, and/or a testing device for nondestructive material testing, in particular, an ultrasonic testing device and/or a repairing device is provided or formed on the carriage (7).
12. The carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the chain elements (3) of the carriage carrier chain (5) and/or the further chain elements (24) of the tension chain (23) are designed in the form of circular ring segments.
13. A method for fixing a carrier system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims to a support structure (T) that is at least partially under water, by means of the following steps:

    a) Provide a carriage carrier chain (5) with a plurality of chain elements (3) connected to one another, wherein cable winches are fixed at least to some of the chain elements (3), so that the carriage carrier chain (5) can be positioned at a predeterminable vertical height (H) with respect to the water surface (W), and wherein cavities (9), which can be flooded and pumped out, are formed at least on some of the chain elements (3), such that the carriage carrier chain (5) has positive buoyance in water when the cavities (9) are pumped out and negative buoyance when the cavities are flooded (9).

    b) Guide the carriage carrier chain (5) with pumped out cavities (9) circumferentially around the support structure (T) on the water surface (W), and

    c) Connect the end-side chain elements (31, 3b) of the carriage carrier chain (5) with one another, so that the carriage carrier chain (5) circumferentially surrounds the support structure (T) at the vertical height (H) of the water surface (W).
14. The method according to Claim 13, characterized in that the carriage carrier chain (5) arranged at the vertical height (H) of the water surface (W) circumferentially around the support structure (T) is at least temporarily fixed by means of pneumatic and/or hydraulic clamping devices (15), wherein at least some of the chain elements (3) carry cable winches (11), which are non-positively fixed to an outer surface of the support structure (T) by means of electromagnets (19) when the carriage carrier chain (5) is floating, wherein the vertical height (H) of the electromagnets (19) with respect to the water surface (W) is adjusted by means of a height-adjustable holder (13) before activating the electromagnets (19).
15. The method according to Claim 13 or 14, characterized in that when the cavities (9) are flooded the carriage carrier chain (5) is positioned by means of cable winches (11), in particular, below the water surface (W), at a predeterminable vertical height (H).

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