GB1594519A

GB1594519A - Location systems for positioning deadweights

Info

Publication number: GB1594519A
Application number: GB2559878A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: HEEREMA ENG SERVICE UK Ltd
Current assignee: HEEREMA ENG SERVICE UK Ltd
Priority date: 1978-05-31
Filing date: 1978-05-31
Publication date: 1981-07-30

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO LOCATION SYSTEMS FOR POSITIONING DEADWEIGHTS (71) We, HEEREMA ENGINEER ING SERVICE (U.K.) LIMITED, a British Company, of Henrietta House, 9 Henrietta Place, London,- WiM 9AG, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us and the method by which it is to be performed to be particularly described in and by the following statement: This invention relates to location systems for positioning dealweights on beams and is particularly, although not exclusively ap plicable to 'lootion systems for positioning modules on the deck beans of offshore platforms.

Heretofore it has been the practice to weld guide bumpers to the skid beams of an offshore p3Jatform to guide a module as it is lowered by a derrick barge onto the beams.

The bumpers are then od. off the beams.

If the module is then in its final required position, the operation ~ is called "direct in stailation". If the module is. not in the required position, the module is manoeuvred along the beans after the bumpers have been cut off to the required position. This method is called "indirect instaSllation". In both cases ,installation and the removal - of the guide bumpers is a cumbersome procedure and time consuming operation.

This invention provides a location system for pRioning a deadweight or other heavy load lowered on to a pair of beams (usually by a crane) comprising two pairs of guide devices, each guide device having means for mounting the device for movement along a beam, an upstanding guide to engage and locate a face of the load being lowered on to the beams in relation to the guide and gripper means bo lock the guide devices to the beans during the lowering of the load on to the beams, one pair of the guide devices each having jack means for maooeuvring the load along the beams whit the guide devices are locked to the beams by the gripper means after the lead has been lowered on to the beams.

Preferably each of the guide devices of said one pair has a pair of jacks mounted on the guide device for aoting on the load.

More specifically the jacks may have piston rods on which tie plates are pivotally mounted to swivel about axes normal to the axes of extension of the jacks for attachment to the load.

In any of the above arrangements each guide device of said one pair may have further means for traversing the guide along a beam.

The further means for traversing a guide along a beam may comprise a winch mounted on the guide device and a able for attach ment to a beam to enable the guide device to be manoeuvred along a beam into position to receive a module.

In any of the preceding arrangements each guide device may comprise a frame and a spaced pair of gripper devices slidably mounted in the frame for engaging opposed sides of a guide rail and ram means to draw the gripper devices together to lock with the rail.

The upstanding guides on the gripper devices may be releasable mounted on the devices to permit a guide to be replaced if damaged.

Preferably the guide devices of said one pair are connected together by a bridge extending between the guide devices.

For each of the other pair of guide devices, there may be a supplemental adjustment device having means to grip a beam to lock the supplemental device to a beam and jack means to adjust the position of the guide device with respect to the adjustment device.

The adjustment device may comprise a frame having a pair of movable gripper means slid ably mounted therein and a ram for drawing the gripper means into engagement with a beam.

The jack means between the guide device and the adjustment device may coriprise a pair of rams.

In any of the above arrangements the other pair of guide devices may be connected togather by a bridge.

Means may be provided for raising the gripper means of the other guide devices to permit the guide devices to be moved laterally over the guide tracks and means are provided for displacing the guide devices laterally from one pair of rails to an adjacent pair of rails.

More specifically the gripper means od the guide devices may be mounted for vertical movement in the frames of the guide devices and lift rams are provided on the frames for raising and lowering the gripper means into and out of register with the beams.

In the case where each guide device has a separate adjustment device associated there with, the adjustment device may be pivotally connected about a horizontal axis to the guide device and a ram is provided connected to the adjustment device for tilting the adjustment device upwardly out of engagement with the beam when it is required to move the guide device laterally with respect to the beam.

The bridge connecting the guide devices together may have end extensions pivotally connected about horizontal axes to the bridge and carrying cable shaves, winches being mounted on the bridge and cables being passed from the winches around the sheaves and connected to the beams for displacing the bridge from one pair of beams to a parallel pair of beams, and rams being provided between the bridge extensions and the main part of the bridge for titting the extensions upwardly to enable a load on an adjacent pair of beams to be slid past the bridge.

The following is a description of a specific embodiment of the invention, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an elevation view of a front guide system for locating a module on beams of an offkore platforms; Figure 2 is a plan view of the front guide system as shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a plan view of one guide device of the system shown in Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is an elevation view of the guide device shown in Figure 3; Figure 5 is an elevation view of a back guide system for the module; Figure 6 is a plan view of the back guide system; Figure 7 is an elevation view of one guide device of the back guide system; Figure 8 is a plan view of the guide device shown in Figure 7;; Figures 9 to 11 illustrate transfer of the back guide system from one pair d parallel beams to a laterally adjacent pair od parallel beams; Figures 12 to 14 illustrate the receiving and adjustment of a module by the front and back guide system.

The drawings illustrate a system for use on off-shore platforms for the location of a module on skid beams of the platform as the module is bowed by a crane on to the beams and for movement of the module along the beams to the final required position.

The system comprises front and back guide systems which are mounted on the beams and the front guide system will now be des cribed with reference to Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.

The front guide system comprises two front guide devices 10 mounted on two adjacent parallel beams 11 od the platform and connected together by a bridge 12 which permits easy access to either of the guide devices.

Each guide device 10 comprises a generally rectangular frame 13 supported by rollers 14 on the upper surface of the beam 11.

The frame also has laterally acting rollers 15 which engage the sides of the beam 11 to constrain the guide frame laterally with respect to the beam.

The frame 13 has a large upstanding spigot 16 located on the centre line of the frame adjacent a forward end of the frame and two smaller diameter spigots 17 and 18 are mounted adjacent the forward end cf the frame to one side of the main spigot 16 and adjacent the rearward end af the frame on the centre line of the frame respectively.

A hollow tubular bumper 19 is fitted over the spigot 16 having an obliquely angled upper part 20 as best seen in Figure 4 of the drawings. The upper end of the bumper is braced laterally by a tube 21 which terminates in a sleeve 22 fitted over the spigot 17 and is braced longitudinally by a tube 23 which ends in a sleeve 24 which is fitted over the spigot 18. The part of a module to be located on the beam 11 of the offshore platform is indicated in Figure 12 at 25 and is formed with a projecting lug 26 to engage, together with the adjacent front face 27 of the module, the bumper tube 19, 20 as the module is lowered on to the beams 11.A similar lug 26 is spaced along the mcdule and is engaged by the bumper of the other guide device, the two bumpers being located beteen the lugs so that the module is located both laterally with respect to the guide devices and forwardly by the guide devices. The inclined upper portions 20 of the bumper tubes serve to guide the module into place as it is lowered. The bumpers are capable of withstanding the landing forces of the module and it will be understood that the bumper tubes 19, 20 can easily be damaged in lowering a module on to the platform.

However the tube assembly 19, 20, 21, 23 can readily be removed from its supporting spigots and replaced by a new assembly when damage has occurred to it.

The central aperture in the frame 13 has slideways 28 extending along its forward and rearward sides on which gripper boxes 29 extendog along either side of the aperture are guided for movement towards and away from each other. The gripper boxes are connected by hydraulic rams 30 and the gripper boxes contain grippers 31 projecting below the frame 13 for gripping the beam 11 passing between them when the rams are energised to draw the gripper boxes towards one another. The frame 13 can thus be locked against movement along the beam 11.

On either side of the frame 13 there are heavy lugs 32 to which the rearward ends of jacks 33 are connected. The jacks are further supported by intermediate lugs 34 on the frame which permit a limited lateral movement of the forward ends of the jacks with respect to the frame. The jacks have piston rods 35 on which tie plates 36 are pivotally mounted to rotate about vertical axes. The tie plates 36 have pin holes 37 for attachment of the plates to the hori zontal face of the module 25. With the module adjacent the guide device the plates 36 are simply pivoted into positions to be attached to the module and no stroke of the imams 33 has to be expended.With the two guide frames 13 of the front guide system locked in position on the rails 11 by the grippers 31, the jacks 33 can be extended to displace the module 25 away from the frames 13.

When the jacks 33 are fully extended, the grippers 31 are released from the skid beams and the jacks 33 are retracted to draw the guide devices 10 back up to the module whereupon the grippes 31 are relocked to the beams and the jacks 33 re-extended to displace the module by a further amount.

The process is repeated until the module reaches its required location and it is then fixed in position on the beams.

The frame 13 has, adjacent its rearward end, a winch 38 carrying a cable 39 which can be attached to a lug on the skid beam 11 for winching the guide device back along the skid beam into position to receive a module.

Figure 2 of the drawings shows the guide devices 10 and bridge 12 in plan. The control systems for the various jacks referred to above and the power supply is mounted in a unit indicated at 40 at the centre of the bridge 12.

The back guide system will now be described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 of the drawings. As in the aase of the front guide system, there is a bridge 41 on which two guide devices 42 are mounted at spaced locations to engage the two spaced beams 11. The guide devices 42 are generally similar to the guide devices 10 of the front guide system described above and the detailed differences will now be described with reference to Figures 7 and 8.Like parts of the guide devices have been allotted the same reference numerals as those used for the guide devices 10. Firstly the bumper tube 19, 20 is requlred to restrain the module only in a fore and aft direction with respect to the guide device 13 and not in the lateral direction and so the lateral brace and its support spigot are omitted. The guzidevways 28 supporting the gripper boxes 29 are mounted for vertici movement in the frame 13 by means of pairs of nams 43 mounted on the frame adjacent the ends of the gripper boxes 29 to raise and lower the gripper boxes. The arrangement permits the grippers 31 of the gripper boxes to be lifted clear of the beam 11 so that the guide device can be slid laterally across the beam as described later.

The back guide system is not required to displace the module as is the front guide system but is required to be accurately positioned for guiding the module downwly on to the beams 11. To enable the position of the guide device 42 to be adjusted ac curately, a separate adjustment device 44 is provided comprising a small frame 45 containing short gripper boxes 46 mounted on slides 47 and moved towards and away from each other by a single ram 48 to engage and grip the beam 11. The adjustment device 44 is connected to the frame 13 of the guide device 42 by means of a pair of hydraulic rams 49. This arrangement permits the guide device 42 to be adjusted by the adjustment device 44 when the latter is locked to the beam by the rams 46.

The piston rods of the rams 49 are pivctally connected at 50 about a horizontal axis to the frame 13 of the guide device 42 and a ram 51 is connected between the frame 45 6f the adjustment device and a part of the bridge 41 to enable the adjusment device 45 to be swung upwardly out of engagement with the beam 11 by contraction of the ram when the guide device 42 is to be slid laterally across the beam 11 as described later.

Referring again to Figures 5 and 6 of the drawings, the bridge 41 has end extensions 52 which carry sheave blocks 53 at their outer ends. The end extensions have hinge connections 54 to the bridge 41 to enable the extensions to be hinged upwardly as indicated in the left-hand part d Figure 5 and rams 55 are connected tween the extensions and the main part of the bridge to raise and lower the extensions. The extensions 52 are raised when it is required to slide a module past the back guide assembly on an 'adjacent pair of skid beams 11.Hydraulic motor driven winches 56 are mounted adjacent the centre of the bridge 41 and cables are taken from the winches around the sheave blocks 53 for anchoring to the beams 11 for moving the back guide assembly transversely across the beams when required. The sliding of the back guide assembly from a left-hand pair of beams to a right-hand pair of beams is illustrated in Figures 9 to 11 to which reference should be made. It will be seen that pad eyes 57 are provided on the inside faces af the inner pair of beams 11 to receive the ends of cables 58 front the winches 56. The cables are taken around the sheave block 53 to the pad-eyes.Winching in of cable on to the left-hand winch 56 and simul taneouis release of cable from the right-hand winch 56 draws the back guide assembly from left to right as viewed in the figures. This permits the back guide assembly to be used on one pair of beans 11 for receiving a module on the beams and then displaced to the adjacent pair of beams 11. The left- hand bridge extension 52 is then raised and a module can be displaced past the back guide system using the front guide system to move the module into its required position on the beams 11.

Figures 12 to 14 illustrate a sequence of receiving and positioning a module on a pair of the beams 11 of the platform. The module is first lowered into place on the beams II and, as it is lowered, the bumpers 19, 20 of both the front and rear guide devices locate the module fore and aft along the beams 11 and the angled bumpffls 19, 20 of the front guide system guide devices also act to position the module laterally of the beams 11. The grippers of the back guide system are then raised to dear the beams 11 and the fine adjustment devices are also raised dear of the beam 11.The back guide system is then traversed laterally across the beams 11 and the rearward lateral extension 52 of the back guide system is raised so thet the back guide system is clear of the path of the module along the beams 11. The adjacent laaeral exitensiion 52 of the back guide system is also raised out of the forward path of the module. The tie plates 36 of the guide devices of the front guide system are then attached to the module and the guide deuces are operated to displace the module seep-by- step along the beam 11 until the module reaches its required position.The module is then secured in place in conventional manner.

The arrangement avoids the need to weld bumpers on to the beams ill to receive the module as it is lowered on to the beams and then to cut off the bumpers from the beams. Also no derrick barge is required to assist in positioning the module and re setting the module, all the guidance and positioning of the module being effected by the front and back guide systems. The power supplies are provided on the system theen- selves and external power sources are not required.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: - 1. A location system for positioning a deadweight or other heavy load lowered on to a pair of beams (usually by a crane) compassing two pairs of guide devices, each guide device having means for mounting the device for movement along a beam, an upstanding guide to engage and locate a face of the load being lowered on to the beams in relation to the guide and gripper means to lock the guide devices to the beams during the lowering of the load on to the beams, one pair d the guide devices each having jack means for manoeuvriag the load along the beams whilst the guide devices are locked to the beams by the gripper means after the load has been lowered on to the beams.

2. A location system as claimed in claim 1 wherein each of the guide devices of said one pair has a pair of jacks mounted on the guide device for acting on the load.

3. A location system as claimed in claim 2 wherein the jacks have piston rods on which tie plates are pivotally mounted to swivel about axes normal to the axes of extension of the jacks for attachment to the load.

4. A location system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein each guide device of the said one pair has further means for manoeiuvring the guide along a beam.

5. A location system as claimed in claim 4 wherein the further means for traversing a guide along a beam ao rises a winch mounted on the guide device and a for attachment to a beam to enable the guide device to be drawn along the beam by the winch.

6. A location system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein each guide device comprises a frame and a spaced pair of gripper devices slidably mounted in the frame for engaging opposed sides of a guide rail and ram means to draw the gripper devices together to lock with the rail.

7. A location system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the upstanding guides on the gripper devices are releasably mounted on the devices to permit a guide to be replaced if damaged.

8. A lotion system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the guide devices of said one pair are connected rigidly together by a bridge extending between the guide devices.

9. A location system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein for each of the other pair of guide devices, there is a supplemental adjustment device having means to grip a beam to lock the supplemental device to a beam and jack means to adjust the position of the guide device with respect to the adjustment device.

10. A location system as claimed in claim 9 wherein the adjustment device comprises a frame having a pair of movable gripper means slideably mounted therein and a ram for drawing the gripper means into engagement with a beam.

11. A location system as claimed in claim

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. is illustrated in Figures 9 to 11 to which reference should be made. It will be seen that pad eyes 57 are provided on the inside faces af the inner pair of beams 11 to receive the ends of cables 58 front the winches 56. The cables are taken around the sheave block 53 to the pad-eyes. Winching in of cable on to the left-hand winch 56 and simul taneouis release of cable from the right-hand winch 56 draws the back guide assembly from left to right as viewed in the figures.This permits the back guide assembly to be used on one pair of beans 11 for receiving a module on the beams and then displaced to the adjacent pair of beams 11. The left- hand bridge extension 52 is then raised and a module can be displaced past the back guide system using the front guide system to move the module into its required position on the beams 11. Figures 12 to 14 illustrate a sequence of receiving and positioning a module on a pair of the beams 11 of the platform. The module is first lowered into place on the beams II and, as it is lowered, the bumpers 19, 20 of both the front and rear guide devices locate the module fore and aft along the beams 11 and the angled bumpffls 19, 20 of the front guide system guide devices also act to position the module laterally of the beams 11. The grippers of the back guide system are then raised to dear the beams 11 and the fine adjustment devices are also raised dear of the beam 11.The back guide system is then traversed laterally across the beams 11 and the rearward lateral extension 52 of the back guide system is raised so thet the back guide system is clear of the path of the module along the beams 11. The adjacent laaeral exitensiion 52 of the back guide system is also raised out of the forward path of the module. The tie plates 36 of the guide devices of the front guide system are then attached to the module and the guide deuces are operated to displace the module seep-by- step along the beam 11 until the module reaches its required position.The module is then secured in place in conventional manner. The arrangement avoids the need to weld bumpers on to the beams ill to receive the module as it is lowered on to the beams and then to cut off the bumpers from the beams. Also no derrick barge is required to assist in positioning the module and re setting the module, all the guidance and positioning of the module being effected by the front and back guide systems. The power supplies are provided on the system theen- selves and external power sources are not required. WHAT WE CLAIM IS: -

1. A location system for positioning a deadweight or other heavy load lowered on to a pair of beams (usually by a crane) compassing two pairs of guide devices, each guide device having means for mounting the device for movement along a beam, an upstanding guide to engage and locate a face of the load being lowered on to the beams in relation to the guide and gripper means to lock the guide devices to the beams during the lowering of the load on to the beams, one pair d the guide devices each having jack means for manoeuvriag the load along the beams whilst the guide devices are locked to the beams by the gripper means after the load has been lowered on to the beams.

11. A location system as claimed in claim

9 or claim 10 wherein the jack means be tween the guide device and the adjustment device comprise a pair od rams.

12. A location system as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the other pair of guide devices are connected together by a bridge.

13. A location system as claimed in any of alarms 9 to 12 wherein means are provided for naising the gripper means of the other guide devices to permit the guide devices to be moved laterally over the guide tracks and means are provided for displacing the guide devices laterally from one pair od rails to an adjacent pair of rails.

14. A location system as claimed in claim 13 wherein the gripper means d the guide devices are mounted for vertical movement in the frame of the guide devices and lift rams are provided on the frames for raising and lowering the gripper means into and out of register with the beams.

15. A location system as claimed in claim 14 and in the case where each guide device has a separate adjustment device associated therewith, wherein the adjustment device is pivotally connected about a horizontal to the guide device and a ram is provided connected to the adjustment device for tilting the adjustment device upwardly out of engagement with the beam when it is required move the guide device laterally with respect to the beam.

16. A location system as claimed in any of claims 13 to 15 wherein the bridge connecting the guide devices together has end extensions pivotally connected about hori- zontal axes to the bridge and carrying cable sheaves, winches being mounted on the bridge and cables being passed from the winches around the sheaves and connected to the beams for displacing the bridge from one pair of beams to a parallel pair of beams, and rams being provided between the bridge extensions and the main part of the bridge for hinging the extensions upwardly to enable a load on an adjacent pair of beams to be slid past the bridge.

17. A location system for receiving and positioning modules on parallel beams substantially as described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.