NL1039735C2

NL1039735C2 - Marine winch assembly.

Info

Publication number: NL1039735C2
Application number: NL1039735A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Joop Roodenburg; Hendrikus Jacobus Weterings
Original assignee: Itrec Bv
Priority date: 2012-07-16
Filing date: 2012-07-16
Publication date: 2014-01-20
Also published as: EP2872439A1; NO2872439T3; WO2014014344A1; EP2872439B1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a marine winch assembly, comprising a supporting rail, a carriage movably supported on said supporting rail, a cable drum having a longitudinal axis, parallel to the supporting rail, which is rotatably supported on said carriage, a a first drive unit supported by the carriage for rotating the cable drum and a second drive unit for moving the carriage relative to the supporting rail to displace the cable drum along the supporting rail. According to the present invention, the supporting rail extends through the carriage and through the cable drum.

Description

Title: Marine winch assembly

The invention relates to a winch assembly according to the preamble of claim 1, comprising: - a supporting rail; - a carriage movably supported on said supporting rail; - a cable drum having a longitudinal axis, parallel to the supporting rail, which is 5 rotatably supported on said carriage; - a first drive unit supported by the carriage for rotating the cable drum; - a second drive unit for moving the carriage relative to the supporting rail to displace the cable drum along the supporting rail.

10 Winch assemblies are used extensively in hauling, pulling and hoisting machines for raising and lowering loads, particularly heavy loads. For example, they are commonly used in well drilling rigs to raise and lower drilling tools and/or sensing instruments. Winch assemblies include a cable drum that supports a spool of cable that runs to the load, usually through one or more sheaves. The cable is taken in and payed out by rotating the drum.

15

The winch typically includes a high torque first drive unit for rotating the cable drum. This first drive unit can for example comprise an electric motor with high torque gear reduction or a hydraulic motor. A brake or clutch can be provided to prevent unwanted slippage of the cable drum and to avoid damaging the first drive unit. When the cable drum turns, the cable winds 20 onto the drum and creates tension in the cable. As long as the cable is fed perpendicular, or with an angle preferably not exceeding 1°, to the rotational axis of the drum, the cable will generally wind evenly on the drum. This can generally be achieved by increasing the distance between cable and the first guide element (e.g. sheave) to which the cable extends.

25 However, it is more common that it is not possible for the cable to be fed perpendicular to the rotational axis of the drum. During spooling, as a result the subsequent turns will not lie next to each other, and as a result no even distribution of wire in layers is achieved, and a new turn may then be pulled between the cables of a previous layer. Possibly, the cable winds over itself, it jams (and possibly becomes damaged), whereby the cable must be unjammed 30 and manually guided onto the drum evenly. The process may be repeated several times before the cable is completely wound on the drum. This method is not only time consuming 1039735 -2- and annoying, but also may significantly reduce the life of the cable. In addition, there is always the danger that the cable will break or become significantly weakened unknowingly.

Upon using a winch assembly, it is thus required to ensure that the cable is wound (e.g., 5 spooled) evenly about the circumference of the winch drum in multilayers, and unwound smoothly therefrom. This is particularly true when it is critical that the load to which the cable is connected be moved smoothly and without any sudden jerks. Therefor, winch assemblies are designed which allow an even distribution of its cable along the length of the winch drum, and allow unwinding of the cable perpendicular to the drum axis.

10 US 3,456,899 for example discloses an apparatus for aligning a winch drum with respect to a guide pulley so that a cable is wound uniformly onto and off of the drum. The drum is mounted on a carriage driven along a pair of rails to keep the cable being wound onto or off the drum aligned with the guide pulley over which said cable passes. A cam having a cable-15 sensor thereon is swingably mounted on a frame between the drum and the pulley so that as the angle between pulley and the point of contact between the drum and the cable leaving or approaching the drum starts to increase, said cam will actuate the carriage drive to keep said point and pulley aligned.

20 It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved design of a winch assembly.

This object is achieved according to the characterizing portion of claim 1, in that the supporting rail extends through the carriage and through the cable drum.

25 An advantage of this configuration is that the ends of the supporting rail can easily be connected, e.g. via a pin construction. This allows an improved interplay of forces, allowing the forces on the supporting rail to be transferred to the construction. In particular, the present design allows the winch assembly to support hoist cables for a crane capable of supporting loads up to a few hundred tons.

30

Another advantage of such a movable carriage is that winding and unwinding essentially perpendicular to the rotational axis of the drum can be achieved without increasing the distance between the winch and the first guide element to which the cable extends, and that the entire configuration can be more compact, resulting in improved and more flexible design 35 options.

-3-

The marine winch assembly is in particular suitable for appliances situated on board of vessels intended for handling submerged loads which are hooked onto the end of the cable. Conventional cable lengths may vary between a few hundred metres up to a few kilometres, e.g. 500 meter - 5 km.

5

The cable used in the marine winch assembly according to the invention can be a massive steel cable or a rope, which can be made from natural or synthetic fibers, in particular polymer fibers. Possibly, aromatic polyamids (aramids) are applied, such as Twaron, Kevlar and Nomex, which thermally degrade at high temperatures and do not melt. These fibers 10 have strong bonding between polymer chains, resulting in a high-performance man-made fiber. The material of the cable may be dependent from environmental conditions. It is conceivable that in some instances, electrical signal conductors, optical conductors etc. may form part of the cable, such as for example in umbilical cables.

15 The dimensions of the marine winch assembly according to the invention when a rope is being wound and unwound from the cable drum are large, having a stroke of the cable drum in the longitudinal direction of 2 - 5 meter, in particular 3 - 4 meter, and a diameter of 3 - 5 meter without rope, and up to 6 - 7 meter including the rope.

20 In an embodiment, it is envisaged that the winch is used for spooling pipelines to be laid on the seabed. In this embodiment, the cable is thus embodied as a pipeline, which can be a rigid or a flexible pipeline, with a diameter up to 50 cm. The cable drum is then the same as what is frequently called a ‘reel’, in the context of ‘reel-lay pipelaying’. The dimensions of the marine winch assembly will then be much larger than indicated above: the reel (cable drum) 25 having a stroke in the longitudinal direction of 7-15 meter, in particular 10 meter, and a diameter of 15-20 meter without pipeline, and up to 30 - 40 meter including the pipeline.

The winch assembly according to the present invention can be used in combination with any type of sensor system to accurately drive the second drive unit. A tangle-free winding of a 30 cable about the cable drum is preferably relied on an electromechanical sensing device used to control the traverse movements of the carriage in accordance with a desired lag angle and a desired manner and rate of coiling of the cable about the cable drum.

35 The invention is further elucidated in relation to the attached drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a side view of a winch assembly according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 shows a top view of the winch assembly of fig. 1; -4-

Fig. 3 shows a detail of the winch assembly of fig. 1;

Fig. 4 shows part of the winch assembly of fig. 1 in cross section;

Fig. 5 shows a detail of the winch assembly of fig. 1;

Figs. 6a and 6b show a winch assembly according to the invention mounted in the hull of a 5 vessel in perpendicular side views.

In figs. 1-3 a marine winch assembly 1 according to the present is shown in various views.

The marine winch assembly 1 comprises a supporting rail 2, a carriage 3 which is movably supported on said supporting rail 2 and a cable drum 4. The cable drum has a longitudinal 10 axis 5, parallel to the supporting rail 2.

According to the present invention, the supporting rail 2 extends through the carriage 3 and through the cable drum 4, while the cable drum 4 is rotatably supported on said carriage 3.

15 The supporting rail 2 is here embodied as an essentially square, elongated beam. In the shown embodiment, the rail is composed of welded plates, alternatively it is conceivable that the rail is of a massive construction. Corners 2a-2d of the beam act as a bearing surface for the carriage 3, which is movably supported by this supporting rail 2. In a possible embodiment, the bearing surfaces are machined planar surfaces.

20

Other configurations of the supporting rail are also conceivable. The functions of the rail are carrying the weight of the carriage and the cable drum, providing a bearing surface for the carriage and withstanding torsion forces exerted by the first drive unit. As the carriage supports the first drive unit it should at all times be prevented that the carriage can rotate, 25 which is inherently achieved by a cross-section of the supporting rail not allowing rotation, i.e. a non-circular cross-section. Any configuration, either hollow or massive of the rail is possible. Polygonal cross sections are preferred, e.g. pentagonal or octagonal cross-sections.

30 In fig. 2 one end of the supporting rail 2 is visible, which in this embodiment is provided with an end plate 8. This end plate 8 is suitable for mounting the marine winch assembly. In the embodiment of fig. 2, pins 9 are used to mount the supporting rail 2 to a support 10, which can e.g. be a structure mounted on a deck of a vessel, or a pedestal of a crane, or the hull of a vessel, etc. etc.

The cable drum 4 may also be referred to as a reel, having a cylindrical core 4a and drum walls 4b on the sides, to retain the material wound around the core 4a. Reinforcement plates 35 -5- 4c are additionally provided in this embodiment, visible in detail in fig. 5. According to the invention the core 4a is hollow, to allow the supporting rail 2 to extend through it.

The carriage 3 in the shown embodiment is configured such that it comprises two carriage 5 parts 3a and 3b, provided adjacent both drum walls 4b of the cable drum 4. It is conceivable, but not necessary, that the carriage parts 3a and 3b are connected to each other inside the hollow core 4a of the cable drum. It is also conceivable that the carriage is only provided at one drum wall 4b of the cable drum 4.

10 A second drive unit 30 is provided for moving the carriage 3 relative to the supporting rail 2, to displace the cable drum 4 along the supporting rail 2. The second drive unit 30 in this embodiment is based on a rack and pinion principle. A rack 31 is provided, here extending on top of and parallel to the supporting rail 2, over which a set of pinions 33 is movable, provided opposite of each other on either side of the rack 31. In fig. 2 three different positions of the 15 sets of pinions 33 are visible. It is noted that alternative drive systems, e.g. based on a gears in transmission or a hydraulically or pneumatically controlled cylinders or winches and wires, or spindles are also conceivable.

As visible in fig. 1, in the shown embodiment the second drive unit 30 comprises two sets of 20 pinions 33, for each carriage part 3a, 3b. Each set of pinions 33 is driven by its own motor 32.

The carriage 3 is thus moveable relative to the supporting rail 2 by the second drive unit 30, which in the shown embodiment is supported by the carriage. Alternatively, it is also 25 conceivable that the motor of the second drive unit is provided adjacent the marine winch assembly, and not supported by the carriage.

As visible in fig. 4, the carriage 3 is movably supported by the supporting rail 2 at the corners 2a-2d, acting as a bearing surface for the carriage 3. Any type of bearing between the 30 supporting rail 2 and the carriage 3 is conceivable, e.g. wheels, rollers, skid pads, etc.

In the shown embodiment a carriage part 3a is shown, of which only the upper left part is shown in detail in fig. 4. The carriage part 3a comprises a support plate 27, supporting wheels 25a, 25b which roll over these bearing surfaces of the supporting rail 2. In particular, 35 in the shown embodiment each corner 2a-2d of the supporting rail 2 is provided with two perpendicular bearing surfaces, over each one at least one wheel 25a, 25b is moveable. Although in fig. 3 only 2 wheels are visible, four corners each having two bearing surfaces -6- result in at least 8 wheels per carriage part 3a, 3b. The wheels 25a, 25b are mounted via the support plate 27 to the frames of the carriage parts.

In the shown embodiment, not just one wheel is provided to roll over the corners, but pairs of 5 wheels known as ‘bogies’, having parallel rotation axes and suspended behind each other from a single suspension point. In the upper view of fig. 2 corners 2c and 2d are visible, and here the ‘bogies’ (sets of wheels) 25a’and 25a” are visible rolling over one of the bearing surfaces of corner 2d. An advantage of using bogies is that the position of the wheels is adjustable to arrive at an optimized load distribution with the supporting rail 2, thus 10 contributing to an improved suspension of the carriage 3 with the cable drum 4. Using bogies the load of the drum is spread over a larger surface of the rail, which is advantageous to prevent stress concentrations in the rail.

In fig. 3 a detail of such a bogie 25 is visible having wheels 25a’ and 25a”. Here another 15 improvement is visible: the rotation axles 26’ and 26” of the wheels 25a’and 25a” are mounted on an excenter 28’, 28”, for adjusting the distance of the wheel to the rail bearing surface. This also contributes to an optimized load distribution of the carriage 3 on the supporting rail 2, as the load is spread more equally over the wheels.

20 Not visible, but yet another advantageous option to further optimize the fit of the carriage on the supporting rail is to adjust the position of the support plate 27 of the bogies, to minimize the bending moment introduced in the carriage by the forces on the drum..

In this embodiment, the support plate 27 is embodied as an end plate of the carriage 25 essentially adjacent to the drum, as is visible in fig. 1.

Preferably, the support plate 27 is provided with a knife edge bearing on which the bogie is mounted.

30 A first drive unit 20 for rotating the drum is according to the invention supported by the carriage 3. In the shown embodiment, the first drive unit 20 comprises 12 motors 21, each carriage part 3a, 3b supporting 6 motors, all extending to the drum walls 4b of the cable drum 4.

35 In the shown embodiment, the first drive unit is based on a meshing gear principle. Other transmission principles are also conceivable, which may be in particular dependent on the type of motor being applied. The transmission of the rotational forces is in this embodiment -7- achieved by providing the motors 21 with pinions 22 , meshing with an outer ring gear 29 provided on the drum .

The cable drum 4 is rotatably supported by the carriage 3 via a bearing. In the shown 5 embodiment a roller bearing is being applied, in particular visible in fig. 5, comprising a horizontal carriage bearing surface 35 is provided, opposite a horizontal cable drum bearing surface 36, between which rollers 37 are positioned. In this embodiment, as is preferred, but not required, the cable drum bearing surface 36 is formed integral with the outer ring gear 29.

10 Preferably, the marine winch assembly is provided with a sensor for measuring a cable angle of a cable being spooled onto or off the cable drum is provided, which sensor is coupled with actuating means for driving the second drive unit to control the position of the carriage based on the input of the sensor.

15 Figs. 6a and 6b show a winch assembly 100 according to the invention, suitable for hoisting loads with a crane 101. The crane 101 is mounted on a pedestal 102, mounted on deck 103 of a vessel 105. in the hull of a vessel 106 the winch assembly 100 is mounted, wherein the ends of the rail 110 are connected to portions of the hull 106.

1039735

Claims

A winch assembly for at sea, comprising: 5. a supporting rail; - a carriage that is movably supported by said supporting rail; a cable reel with a longitudinal axis, parallel to the supporting rail, rotatably supported on the carriage; - a first drive that is supported by the slide for rotating the cable reel; a second drive for moving the carriage relative to the supporting rail to move the cable reel along the supporting rail; characterized in that the supporting rail extends through the carriage and through the cable reel. 15

A marine winch assembly according to claim 1, wherein the supporting rail has a polygonal, preferably square or pentagonal cross-section, and wherein the corners of the supporting rail are configured as bearing surfaces for the carriage.

3. Winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the supporting rail is provided with at least one end plate for mounting the supporting rail and the winch assembly for at sea to a carrier.

4. Winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the carriage 3 comprises two carriage parts, which are arranged next to the two reel walls of the cable reel.

A winch assembly for at sea as claimed in one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the second drive comprises one or more pinions which co-act with a rack 30 mounted on the supporting rail.

6. Winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the carriage is movably supported on the supporting rail via wheel sets, which wheel sets are supported by the carriage and rollers are mounted on a bearing surface on the supporting rail.

The offshore winch assembly according to claim 6, wherein the rotary axes of the wheel sets are mounted on an eccentric.

8. Winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the winch assembly for at sea is provided with a sensor for measuring a cable angle of a cable wound on or from the cable drum, which sensor is coupled to operating means for driving the second drive, to control the position of the carriage based on the input from the sensor.

9. Winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the second drive is supported by the carriage.

10. A winch assembly for at sea according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the cable drum is rotatably supported by the carriage via a bearing, comprising a bearing surface of the cable reel, and wherein the drum is provided with an outer sprocket 15 for receiving the transmission of the first drive, wherein the bearing surface of the cable reel is integrally formed with the outer sprocket.