RU2616489C2 - Method and unit for masking, and marine ship provided with at least one such facility - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: military equipment.

SUBSTANCE: in accordance with the invention, the unit comprises a masking device for a gas turbine (1) connected to the conduit (11') for injecting smoke flow (F3), consisting of a combustible gas with suspended droplets suspended therein. In accordance with the form of the embodiment, the pipe (11') comprises two branches (11'a, 11'b), which go beyond each side of half-bodies (103a, 103b), the housing (103) of the ship (102). Branches (11'a, 11'b) are symmetrical relative to the vertical symmetry plane of Pv ship (102) and, due to their curvature, are of the general direction oriented to the rear (AR) of the ship (102). Thus, the smoke stream (F3) is also oriented to the rear part (AR) of the ship (102). Suitable, in particular, in any marine vehicle.

EFFECT: increased efficiency of masking all or part of the sea the ship, its environment for a long time.

10 cl, 6 dwg

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for camouflaging a marine ship, such as a tanker, a pleasure craft or a sea vessel, as well as to a marine ship equipped with at least such an installation.

The essence of the invention is the protection of a marine ship when stationary or in motion and the surrounding area masking the ship with a cloud, at least in the region of visible radiation. This camouflage aims to exclude any act of aggression or boarding of this ship.

The invention relates to an opaque environment formed mainly by particles, for example, liquids, in suspension in air to form a cloud, or, for example, by solids in suspension in air to form smoke.

In the case when the protected marine ship is in motion on the water, the implementation of an opaque environment should coincide with the movement of the ship. The installation of the means of production of such an environment on or in the ship should be provided. Moreover, in case of camouflage intended to cover the entire or at least the main part of the ship, it should be ensured that the environment provides such coverage in space and time.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

To create smoke screens, the use of smoke bombs is known. However, these curtains are small and effective only for a short time and give only a weak result. Moreover, the masking efficiency is insufficient, since the opaque coating is not uniform.

In general, pyrotechnics produces fumes that cannot sufficiently mask a marine ship (size, duration, efficiency) and have an increased cost, as well as a significant degree of danger during handling.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is aimed at eliminating these shortcomings by proposing the implementation of effective camouflage, covering for a long time all or the bulk of the ships and their surrounding territory, as well as the crew. The goal is also to disorient and mislead potential aggressors to deter the enemy from any attempted boarding. To this end, the invention provides for combining the air flow with the injection of a fluid that can cause the formation of a cloud, and the orientation of this cloud to optimize the coverage of the protected ship in time and space.

More specifically, an object of the present invention is a method for masking, preferably in motion, a marine ship comprising at least one deck and a hull. The method consists in incorporating at least one smoke generator into the ship, and this embedding can be carried out on the deck and / or in the ship, in particular, essentially at or above the waterline, injecting fluid at the generator outlet smoke and induce a gas stream thus filled with suspended fluid, called a smoke stream, at least in the direction of exit formed in the ship’s hull, so as to direct said stream, for example, to the stern or bow of the ship preferably from a position substantially at or above the ship's waterline. The smoke generator or generators can be installed anywhere in the ship, such as, for example, at the bow, in the middle or at the stern of the ship.

In accordance with preferred embodiments:

- at the gas outlet or downstream of the gas outlet, colored, powdery, odorous or smoke-forming additives are also injected;

- at the output of the smoke generator, graphite powder is also injected to mask in the infrared region;

- the guidance of the stream expands at the exit of the smoke generator in order to substantially reduce the speed of the smoke;

- the guidance of the smoke stream is performed in such a way that the guidance is outward from the hull between the middle and front of the marine ship and at or above the waterline;

- guidance is an adaptable orientation at the exit of the hull of the sea ship by orientation in the reference plane parallel to the base surface parallel to the deck (s) of the ship and / or in the plane perpendicular to the base plane to orient the smoke stream at the exit at the waterline depending on the movement ship and navigation conditions in such a way that the smoke stream at the exit is directed between the deck (s) and the waterline;

- guidance is a variable value so that it is adapted to the dimensions of the ship's hull;

- the smoke stream is cooled and sealed by humidification before leaving the ship's hull in order to cause evaporation at the exit and to keep the smoke spreading over the surface of the water that surrounds the ship;

- the smoke flow is regulated so that its exit speed is almost zero.

The invention also relates to an apparatus for camouflaging a marine ship, designed to implement the method. This installation comprises a gas turbine consisting of a gas generator and a gas exhaust pipe connected to a fuel tank. The exhaust pipe is provided with at least a fluid injector connected to at least one tank for injecting this medium, in particular oil, into the exhaust gas of the gas turbine to form a gas flow with the suspension fluid (F3), called a flue stream, and connected to at least one pipe for inducing a flue stream.

In accordance with preferred embodiments:

- the pipeline or each pipeline contains at least one divergent part in the form of a truncated cone connected to the pipe to reduce essentially the speed of the smoke stream;

- the pipeline or each pipeline or branch is provided at the end with a grate oriented in the area of the end of the pipeline, the grate being made with the possibility of directing and / or mixing the smoke stream that passes through the pipeline or branch;

- the external flow injector in the gas stream is located in the boundary zone of the pipeline or each pipe or branch for cooling and sealing the smoke stream, the external fluid being, in particular, sea water, with a temperature substantially lower than the temperature of the gas stream at the level of the aforementioned zones;

- the pipeline or each pipeline or branch is equipped at the end with a nozzle oriented in at least one plane, for example, in any direction, to direct the smoke flow at the outlet of the pipeline or branch so that the masking is most effective depending on the conditions ( meteorological, movement, attack, etc.) around the ship;

- the pipeline or each pipeline contains a part pushed into the pipeline or branch, with telescopic control means in order to be able to change or adapt along the length of the pipeline or each pipeline or branch;

- the pipeline or each pipeline is designed and designed to adjust the pressure loss of the flow at a given limit to exclude increased pressure at the turbine level;

- the pipeline or each pipeline may contain means for regulating the gas flow (diverging in the form of a truncated cone, taps, valves, etc.) to reduce the gas flow rate and reduce it to almost zero at the outlet of the pipeline;

- at the end of the pipeline there is a flap controlled to open when starting a gas turbine, this flap allows you to prevent the penetration of sea water into the pipeline to the gas turbine and to eliminate the problems of corrosion, sealing, etc .;

- the gas generator, nozzle and tanks are integrated in the protective chamber, while the tanks are preferably separated from the gas generator and the nozzle by at least a protective partition;

- the installation contains at least one injector of additives, made for the injection of colored, powdery, odorous and / or smoke-generating additives at the gas outlet or downstream of the gas outlet.

The invention also relates to a marine ship equipped with at least one deck, a hull and at least one such installation. The installation or installations may be placed on deck or in a hold anywhere on the ship. The lengths of pipelines and branches are determined in such a way as to go outside the ship's hull through pre-made holes.

Preferably, the installation is located in the front of the ship in the center and contains a pipeline with two branches having a common end for connection to a gas turbine nozzle and ends opening on each half of the hull. The pipeline may be located at the outlet or inlet of the gas turbine, preferably with branches oriented generally to the rear of the ship in both cases.

When the ship contains at least two installations, each installation can be located laterally near the ship’s half-hull and contain only one pipeline, the end of which opens outward of the half-hull.

The installation or each installation can be built into the chamber when this installation is located on the deck of the ship, to protect the installation from large waves and splashes and to facilitate circulation on the deck.

In addition, the piping or pipelines of the installations are arranged in such a way that a stream of smoke exits to the front of the ship, for example, near the waterline. Preferably, the pipeline or pipelines of the plants comprise at least a horizontal part and / or a vertical part.

The orientation means of the end nozzle of the pipeline or each pipeline allow you to adjust the angle of the exit of the smoke stream, for example, depending on the movement of the ship and the navigation conditions so that the exhaust smoke is directed in a given direction, for example, between the deck (s) and the waterline.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The invention is further explained in the following description, which is not restrictive, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

- FIG. 1 shows an additional engine as an example of a gas turbine of a masking apparatus according to the invention;

- FIG. 2 is a partial side view of a ship equipped with a camouflage installation in a chamber mounted on the deck of that ship;

- FIG. 3 is a side view of a short ship equipped with a camouflage installation in the front hold of a ship;

- FIG. 4a and 4b are partial top views of the ship of FIG. 3 with a double piping of a camouflage installation integrated in the front hold of a ship, respectively downstream and upstream of a gas turbine;

- FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view of the apparatus of FIG. 4a detailing structural members at the end of a branch of a double conduit, and

- FIG. 6a and 6b are side and top views of a long tanker equipped with four camouflage installations according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Further in the text, the terms “upstream” and “downstream” refer to the relative arrangement of elements of sea ships in the direction of the usual movement of these ships. The front of such a vessel is upstream and corresponds to the bow, while the rear is downstream and corresponds to the stern of the ship. In addition, “horizontal” means parallel to the deck (s) of the ship, and “vertical” means perpendicular to this or these decks.

In the diagram of FIG. 1 a gas turbine engine, such as, for example, a GPU engine (abbreviation for “Ground Power Unit” in English terminology), is modified to serve as a “smoke turbine” in the masking apparatus 10 according to the invention . The GPU unit is a fixed or movable gas turbine that provides the start of the main engines and the generation of non-propulsive power (pneumatic, electric and hydraulic power) of a vehicle or aircraft.

The GPU1 unit consists mainly of a gas generator 2 and a gas discharge nozzle 3, and is connected to the fuel tank 41 and at least to the fluid tank 42, in this case, H1 oil, which can remain in the discharged gas in the form of a droplet suspension . The gas generator 2 contains: air compressor 21 - the air enters (arrow F1) axially or radially through the pipe 5; the combustion chamber 22 of the air-fuel mixture, the fuel being introduced from the tank 41 into the chamber 22 by the fuel injectors 23; as well as a turbine 24 for expanding the gaseous products of combustion and driving the compressor 21 by means of the shaft 25. The gaseous products of combustion (arrow F2) are discharged through the nozzle 3. These components are usually closed by a casing 6, open from the inlet side 5a of the nozzle 5 and at the outlet 3s of the nozzle 3, which is also the output of the GPU 1 unit.

To form a smoke turbine, the GPU 1 is modified by the addition, at the outlet of the exhaust nozzle 3, a circular ring 7 connected to the casing 6 and equipped with injectors of a fluid 71, for example, oil coming from a tank 42. Injection of a fluid is carried out by a pump 72, sprayed by injectors 71 into hot and high-speed gases discharged from the nozzle 3.

Such spraying allows the formation of a gas stream filled with droplets of fluid in suspension (arrow F3), called a “filled gas stream” or “smoke stream”. The circular ring 7 is connected to the flue gas discharge pipe 11 to the outside to mask the ship. The pipe 11 is made, for example, of stainless steel. The length of this pipeline 11 and its configuration are adapted in such a way as to open in the hull of the sea ship for which the installation is designed 10. This adaptation, in particular, depends on the size of the ship and the intended location - on deck or in the hull - of this installation. FIG. 2 and 3 further depict the placement on the deck and at the bottom of the ship’s hold of such installations that comprise pipelines, smoke turbines 1 and tanks 41, 42.

Preferably, in addition to oil, colored, powdery, odorous and / or smoke-generating additives can be injected by injectors 71 or any other injection dispenser to create or enhance an unexpected and frightening effect of the smoke stream. It is also preferable to inject graphite powder, which allows masking in the infrared region. Alternatively, you should refrain from spraying graphite powder if you need to direct the ship using infrared binoculars through the smoke stream after it is formed around the ship.

FIG. 2 is a partial side view of a ship 100 provided with a camouflage apparatus 10 according to the invention comprising a smoke turbine 1, for example a GPU assembly described with reference to FIG. 1, tanks 41 and 42, as well as pipe 11. Smoke turbine 1 and tanks 41 and 42 are placed in a protective chamber 8 mounted on deck 10P of this ship 100.

The pipe 11 contains a diverging conical part 12 - called a "diffuser" - connected to the nozzle 3 at the outlet of the smoke turbine 1. This diffuser 12 can significantly reduce the speed of the gas stream F3 so that at the output end 14 of the pipe 11 through the hole 13, executed in the hull 101 of the ship 100, this speed will be practically zero. The pipeline 11 includes elbows C1 - C3, the horizontal part P1 and the vertical part P2.

The horizontal part P1 allows you to move the exit 14 of the pipeline 11 to the front of the AV ship 100, and the vertical part allows you to exit the output 14 near the water line LF of the ship 100. Indeed, you should place the exit 14 upstream - in order to ensure full smoke coverage of the entire ship 100 due to the relative speed of the ship - and near the water line LF, since the smoke remains “linked” to the water area, and then rises over time. Exit 14 remains above this LF waterline in order to prevent high sea waves or splashes.

The pipe 11 is designed and constructed so that the number of elbows, in this case, three elbows C1 - C3, is minimized to minimize the pressure loss of the smoke stream F3 below the upper limit, which is determined in advance in order to exclude increased pressures at the level of the smoke turbine 1.

Preferably, a shutter 16 for opening / closing the outlet 14 from the pipe 11 on the housing 103 is located at the end of the pipe. This damper 16 is controlled from the control center (not shown in the drawing) of the ship 100 so that the opening of the outlet 14 is carried out at the start of the smoke turbine 1. It would be really harmful to allow the penetration of high waves and splashes into the pipe 11 through this open outlet 14 with the plant not working for disguise. This eliminates the problems of corrosion, tightness or the like caused by the presence of sea water.

FIG. 3 and 4a (partially) depict side and top views of the short ship 102, another example of the installation in the front hold 31 of the already described gas turbine 1. The ship is called “short” when it does not exceed 50 m in length.

The masking device 10 'contains, in this case, the already described smoke turbine 1 and the pipe 11' with two branches 11'a and 11'b containing a common part 11'c connected to the output of the smoke turbine 1. In this example, the pipe 11 'is integrated at the exit of the smoke turbine 1. The fact that the ship 102 is short makes it possible to reduce the number of installations to one located in the front of the AV ship 102 so that the smoke stream F3 exits the pipe 11' also in front of the ship 102.

As shown in the top view 4a, two branches of the conduit 11'a and 11'b extend to each side semicase housing 103a and 103b of the hull 103. The branches 11'a and 11'b are symmetrical about the vertical plane of symmetry Pv of the ship 102 and, due to their curvature are mainly oriented (arrow F4) to the rear of the AR of the ship 102. Thus, the smoke stream F3 is also mainly oriented to the rear of the AR of the ship 102.

As an embodiment of FIG. 4a, a partial side view of FIG. 4b shows a pipe 11 ″ of the type of FIG. 4a, but connected upstream of the smoke turbine 1. In this case, the symmetrical branches 11''a and 11''b are also oriented towards the rear of the ship 102 so that the smoke flow F3 flows along the ship from the upstream position in downstream direction.

FIG. 5 depicts in detail the structural elements of the end zone 15 of the branch 11'a of the pipe 11 ', allowing to improve the direction and quality of masking the smoke stream at the outlet of the branches 11'a and 11'b. A partial view of FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the apparatus of FIG. 4a. As in FIG. 1, the GPU 1 is connected to a ring 7 equipped with fluid injectors 71, which itself is connected to a pipe 11 '.

The end zone 15 of each branch 11a and 11b (only the end of the branch 11a is shown in FIG. 5) is provided with an orientable grid 17g with valves 17c. The valves 17c of the grill 17g with the set of axes of rotation 17a are controlled remotely from a control center (not shown in the drawing). The lattice 17g, more precisely, is presented in this example at the output end 14 of the branch 11'a. The smoke stream F3 is thus precisely oriented in the horizontal plane of FIG. 5.

In addition, water injectors 18 are installed in said zone 15 upstream of said grating 17g. Water, in this case, seawater with a low temperature (10-20 ° C), essentially lower than the temperature of the smoke stream (exceeding 40 ° C), is supplied, in this case, through the injectors 18. This injection allows you to cool and compact the smoke stream F3 to make it heavier and “anchor” to the surface of the water that surrounds the ship 102. The smoke stream F3 then breaks off from the surface of the water and disguises the entire ship. In addition, each branch 11a is preferably provided at the output end 14 with a nozzle 19 oriented in the horizontal plane of the drawing and a vertical plane perpendicular to the horizontal plane. For this, articulated means of the two axes 19A are provided, integrated in the nozzle 19 near its end 19e. The smoke stream is thus oriented so as to spread along the surface of the water that surrounds the ship 102. In addition, the nozzle 19 is telescopically inserted into the branch pipe 11a. The connection is controlled by gear adjusting means 19c, also controlled from a control center. You can also change and adapt the length of the branch 11'a (similarly 11b).

In FIG. 6a and 6b are schematic side and upper views of a long tanker 104 (for example, a length exceeding 300 m) equipped with four camouflage installations located at the bottom of the front hold 32 and the hold of the middle portion 33 of tanker 104. Two installations 10 ″ a are located near the side half-housing 105a of the hull 105 of the ship 104 and two installations 10''b are integrated near the half-housing 105b of the hull 105. Near each side half-housing 105a and 105b, the installations 10'a and 10''b are located essentially in the middle of the MI and towards the front parts of the AV ship 105.

Plants 10''a and 10''b consist of the smoke turbines 1 described above connected to pipelines 11'a and 11''b corresponding to branch 11'a and branch 11'b described above with reference to FIG. 4a or in FIG. 5. The lengths of the pipelines 11'a and 11'b are determined in advance so that they can exit the ship’s hull 105 through the previously made holes 13.

The invention is not limited to the described and presented examples of embodiment. So, you can add smoke flow control means: taps, valves, etc. The fluid added to the exhaust gas to create a suspension and smoke can be any liquid of organic or aqueous nature intended for the manufacture of a suspension.

In addition, in the case of a ship of medium length, for example greater than or equal to about 100 m, it is possible to limit the number of installations for camouflage to two located in front of the ship.

In addition, other means than gas turbine compressors can be used as a smoke generator, for example, fans of an adapted size and flow rate.

It is also preferable to use existing pipelines in marine ships to exhaust smoke according to the invention, at least in part.

Claims (10)

1. The method of masking a marine ship (100, 102, 104), containing at least one deck (10P) and a hull (101, 103, 105), characterized in that it is built into the ship (100, 102 104) at least one gas turbine (1), and this embedding can be carried out on the deck (10P) of the ship (100) and / or in the ship (102, 104), in particular, essentially at or above the waterline (LF), fluid (H1) is injected at the outlet (3s) of the gas turbine (1) and a (11, 11 ′, 11 ″ a, 11 ″ b) gas flow is thus induced, thus filling the fluid (F3) into suspended state , called the smoke stream, in the direction of at least one outlet (14) formed in the hull (101, 103, 105) of the ship (100, 102, 104), so as to direct said smoke stream (F3). 2. The masking method according to claim 1, wherein the injection of additives selected from colored, powdery, odorous, smoke-forming additives and / or graphite powder is carried out at the exit (3s) of the smoke generator (1). 3. The masking method according to claim 1, in which the guidance (11, 11 ′, 11 ″ a, 11 ″ b) of the smoke stream (F3) is carried out in such a way that the guiding exit (14) from the housing (101, 103, 105) is made at or above the waterline (FL) of the marine ship (100, 102, 104). 4. The masking method according to claim 1, in which the guidance (11, 11 ', 11``a, 11''b) is an adaptable orientation at the output (14) of the hull (101, 103, 105) of the sea ship (100, 102 , 104) by orientation in the reference plane parallel to the deck (s) (10P) of the ship (100, 102, 104), and / or in a plane perpendicular to the reference plane, to orient the smoke stream (F3) at the waterline (LF) in depending on the movement of the ship (100, 102, 104) and navigation conditions so that the smoke stream (F3) at the exit is directed between the deck (s) (10P) and the waterline (LF). 5. The masking method according to claim 1, in which the smoke stream (F3) is cooled and sealed by moistening (18) before leaving the ship’s hull (101, 103, 105) in order to cause evaporation and smoke to exit (14) creeping along the water that surrounds the sea ship (100, 102, 104). 6. Installation for masking (10, 10 '; 10``a, 10''b) of a sea ship (100, 102, 104), designed to implement the method according to one of the preceding paragraphs and containing a gas turbine (1), consisting of a gas generator (2) and a gas discharge pipe (3) connected to the fuel tank (41), characterized in that the exhaust pipe (3) is provided with at least one fluid injector (71) connected to at least one tank (42) ) for injecting this fluid, in particular oil, into the exhaust gas (F2) of the gas turbine (1) and forming a gas stream with fluid food (F3) in suspension, called flue gas, and connected to at least one pipe (11, 11 ', 11''a, 11''b) or to a branch (11'a, 11'b) of the pipe for flue gas guidance (F3). 7. Installation for masking according to the preceding paragraph, in which the pipeline or each pipeline or branch (11, 11 ', 11''a, 11''b, 11'a, 11'b) contains at least one diverging part (12 ) in the form of a truncated cone connected to the pipe (3) to reduce essentially the speed of the smoke stream (F3). 8. A masking apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the external fluid injector (18) into the gas stream (F3) is located in the boundary zone (15) of the pipeline or each pipeline or branch (11, 11 ', 11''a, 11 '' b, 11'a, 11'b) for cooling and densifying the smoke stream (F3), wherein the external fluid is, in particular, sea water with a temperature substantially lower than the temperature of the gas stream (F3) at the level mentioned zones (15). 9. The camouflage apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the pipeline or each pipeline or branch (11, 11 ′, 11 ″ a, 11 ″ b, 11′a, 11′b) is provided with a nozzle at the end (14) ( 19), oriented in at least one plane for the direction of the smoke stream (F3) at the outlet (14) of the pipeline or branch (11, 11 ', 11''a, 11''b, 11'a, 11'b), or a grate (17g), oriented in the end zone of the pipeline (15), while the grate (17g) is configured to direct the smoke stream (F3) passing through the pipeline or branch (11, 11 ', 11``a, 11' ' b, 11'a, 11'b). 10. A marine ship containing at least one deck, a hull, at least one installation according to claim 6, characterized in that the installation (11) is located on the deck (10P) or in the hold (31, 32, 33) of the ship ( 100), while the lengths of pipelines and branches (11, 11 ', 11''a, 11''b, 11'a, 11'b) are determined in such a way as to go outside the ship's hull (101, 103, 105) through pre-made holes (13).

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