US3428011A - Dredge pipe pontoons - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 18, 1969 G. F. Mor'rER In DREDGE PIPE PONTOONS Sheet of 4 Filed Aug. 25, 1966 Feb. 1s, 1969 G. F. M01-Tm m 3 428,011

DREDGE PIPE PONTOONS Filed Aug. 23, 1966 TOR.

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1 BY v 5 l @L d ATTORNEYS Feb. 18, 1969 Filed Aug. 25, 1966 G. F. M01-TER 3,428,011

DREDGE PIPE PONTOONS sheet 3 @f4 ATTORNEYS Feb. 18, 1969 G. F. MOTTER m DREDGE PIPE PONTOONS Filed Aug. 25, 196e Sheet A off;

\| I I l l I l I lll n m E q\ NMw. m m `v {INNIJ WW www 4H, \F\ a A YM@ 10. M, N 11111111 llmw: 1L. Q llll l.: w mi j w i xmwr 4 1 l l x x l I |...ff @141:1 ,V wk Mkvwf w 5K EN@ NN @v 1w alu wlw l @M E f Uw F1 .Vw N2 NM wk* muv w. i l mn? Uv mur #Qca/ m ,r klv United States Patent O 3,428,011 DREDGE PIPE PONTOONS George F. Motter III, R.D. 1, Center Valley, Pa. 18034 Filed Aug. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 574,343 U.S. Cl. 14-43.5 2 Claims Int. Cl. B631) 35/44, 35/38 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Description of invention' The present invention relates to dredge pipe pontoons, water vehicles made by assembling the same, and methods of transporting dredge pipe pontoons.

In accordance with lthe invention dredge pipe pontoons are provided with a hull having in eect internal longitudinal trusses with lateral extensions for supporting the bottom, sides, ends and deck, with a saddle supported on the deck for receiving the dredge pipe suitably at the middle. At the forward and rear ends extending transversely are positioned pipe (rod) anchorages for associating stacks of pontoons laterally. One pontoon is made to stack on the deck of another, and in the preferred form the deck of the one pontoon forms a socket for the bottom of the hull of another pontoon.

Vertically stacked pontoons are assembled and interlocked laterally and longitudinally to form a barge and the barge is provided suitably with a draft rigging, a keel plate and motive power where required.

The saddle is desirably provided with a collapsible clamp for the dredge pipe so as not to impede stackage of the pontoons.

A purpose of the invention is to provide a superior dredge pipe pontoon which will be free from corrosion, lighter in weight, of long life, stable, and nontippable, and inexpensive in construction.

A further purpose is to improve the transportation of dredge pipe pontoons by assembling them into a stable barge which can be towed or propelled.

A further purpose is to increase the strength of a dredge pipe pontoon in respect to the support for the drive pipe saddle and the clamping of the same.

A further purpose is to make the deck of one pontoon provide a socket for the base -of the next pontoon so that pontoons can be vertically stacked Iand will remain stably interlocked.

A further purpose is to provide pipe anchorages at the front and rear of the pontoons so that they can be cross connected in sets.

Further purposes appear in the specification and in the claims.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate a few only of the numerous embodiments in which the invention may appear, selecting the forms shown from the standpoints of convenience in illustration, satisfactory operation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a pontoon according to the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a central longintudinal section of the ICC pontoon of FIGURE 1, with the drain pipe clamp broken away.

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of a variant form of pontoon according to the invention.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary side elevation showing stacking of two pontoons according to FIGURE 3, one on top of another.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary end elevation showing the stacked pontoons of FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary detail of a modified saddle and clamp according to the invention.

FIGURE 7 is a top plan view of a barge made by assembling pontoons according to the invention.

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary vertical section of a portion of the barge of FIGURE 7, the section being taken on the line 8--8 of FIGURE 7.

Describing in illustration but not in limitation and referring to the drawings:

In coastal areas and along lake shores dredging is Very common and large numbers of dredge pipe pontoons are commonly used. The current practice is to make dredge pipe pontoons which are essentially steel tanks. These structures are costly to make, very heavy and likely to deteriorate by corrosion and otherwise. To tr-ansport them is commonly difficult, and they must either be picked up by a ship, transported by railway car or trailer or otherwise handled as separate components.

The present invention is concerned with producing dredge pipe pontoons that are of much lower cost, much more resistant against deteriorating forces such as corrosion, stronger, more seaworthy and safe against capsizing, and less likely to sink.

Another important aspect of the invention is that the support for the dredge pipe is effectively included as part of the pontoon so that it is iirmly ybottomed on the main trusses of the hull.

In accordance with the invention the pontoons are capable of being formed into a barge for towing or selfpropelling so that they can be transported effectively in the water and as assembled become seaworthy.

Considering lirst the forms shown in .FIGURES l and 2, but also considering FIGURES 3 to 5, I there illustrate a pontoon 20 which has a hull 21 consisting of a substantially flat bottom 22, downwardly converging sides 23, bottom sloping corners 24, and forward and rearward converging ends 25. This makes, therefore, a workable and stable hull skin which can be made suitably of watertight plywood properly painted or plastic coated as desired. At the upper portion the hull has at the front, back and sides a straight collar 26.

Extending longitudinally from end-to-end on each side interiorly is a truss 27, suitably consisting of a bottom. beam 28, a top beam 30. vertical struts 31, front and back diagonal struts 32, and generally diagonal cross braces 33.

At the bottom extending from one truss to another horizontally are bottom hull beams 34 which support the load of the bottom of the hull. Other parts of the hull are correspondingly supported directly by the trusses. All of this structure can be of wood if desired..

The top beam 30 of the trusses supports a series of deck beams 35 extending transversely and supporting thereon a deck 36 which is suitably surmounted by a plastic anti-slip coating 37 which protects against leakage and guards the workman against sliding on the deck.

Extending from truss to truss at the center between deck portions 36 is a metallic saddle plate 38 resting on the upper beam 30 and which supports a metallic saddle 40 adapted to receive the dredge pipe and clamp it as later explained. The plate 38 can be anchored to the truss by U-bolts 41.

At front and back portions extending across the hull and sealed to prevent internal leakage are pipes 42 secured 3 to the hull and for receiving of interconnecting pipes or rods as later explained. The pipes 42 are held in the trusses by blocks 43 having suitable openings to pass the pipes, and the pipes are suitably anchored against longitudinal slippage as =by flanges not Shown.

It will be evident, therefore, that the hull constitutes a watertight compartment and if any leakage is encountered its bilge can be pumped through a suitable opening not shown. One pontoon can rest on the deck of another by simply removing the saddle 40 by loosening screws 44 anchoring it to the saddle plate 38.

The form as shown in FIGURES 3 to 5 is a slight modiiication of the form of the pontoon as shown in FIG- URES 1 and 2. In this modification the trusses and the general hull construction are as previously explained but in the front and back of the pontoon there are upward deck extensions 45 which have a sloping rim 46 which is shaped to engage and form a socket for the front and sides of the hull of a pontoon superimposed on the lower pontoon, as best seen in FIGURES 4 and 5.

Drain pipe saddles 40' in this case are provided at both sides of the pontoon anchored to a socket plate 38' secured to the deck against the trusses, and each of the saddles has at each side a pivot bolt 46 pivoting a clamping segment 47 or 48, the segments being drawn together to grip the dredge pipe 49 by a bolt 51 pivoted at 50 on the segment 47 and extending through an opening in the segment 48 to be drawn up by nuts 52. In this moditication brackets 53 are provided at the forward end and rearward ends on the sides of the hull and they engage and support outside the hull cross pipes 54 which receive the interconnecting pipes or rods to be described.

At the front and back bumpers 56 suitably of polyethylene foam are provided to protect against impact between one pontoon and another.

A modified form of drain pipe saddle and clamp is shown in FIGURE 6. This is mounted on a transverse angle 57 positioned on the deck and includes saddle halves 58 pivoted to the angle at 60 and held in upright position by braces 61 and 62 connecting to the angle by bolts 63 and connecting to the saddle halves by bolts 64.

At the outer ends the saddle halves pivotally connect at 64 to segments 47 and 48 which are clamped as previously described. It will be evident that by removing the bolts 63 the saddle can collapse so that it will not protrude high enough to interfere with stacking of the pontoons.

In FIGURES 7 and 8 I show an assemblage of pontoons into a barge. The bottommost pontoon 66 receives on its deck a succession of pontoons 67, 68 and 70, each of which suitably sockets in the deck of the pontoon below it as shown at 71 so that it is firmly anchored. Furthermore, each of the pipes 54 has extending through it a smaller pipe or rod 72 which interconnects at each end to a link 73 connecting with a similar pipe or rod on the next lower and upper pontoon, the links being held in place by suitable collars on the pipes or rods 72 at the outer ends (not shown).

Each vertical stack of pontoons is placed beside others so that there is a successive side-byside arrangement of stacks as shown at 74, 75, 76 and 77 in FIGURE 7 and the lowermost pontoon in each of the lateral stacks is cross connected by an elongated pipe at the front and back as shown at 78, the elongated pipes thus securing together the stacks of pontoons laterally and also connecting to a series of longitudinally positioned stacks in front or back of the laterally placed units just described by links 80, the outer end of the pipes being held to the links and held in place by collars not shown. In summary, therefore, it will be seen in FIGURE 7 that the total barge 81 there assembled consists of five longitudinally displaced sets, each of four lateral stacks, the stacks each consisting in the particuar case of four Ivertically stacked pontoons, or a total of 80 pontoons in all.

It will be evident that the barge can be towed by a tow line 82 connected to draft rigging 8-3 suitably anchored to the barge as shown and drawn by a tug 84. The towing can be assisted by outboard motors 85 mounted on suitable brackets 86 secured to pipes 78 between the rearmost pontoons, or the barge can be selfpropelled by these outboard motors.

In order to provide steering, the pipes running through the center rearmost pontoons mount rudder brackets 87 on which a rudder 88 is positioned below the water line 90 by a rudder shaft `91 manipulated by a rudder pulley 92 under the action of a rudder chain 93 from a suitable wheel mechanism not shown.

To aid in maneuverability a keel plate 94 extends down below the hulls of the pontoons to form a keel 95, the keel plate being suitably anchored by extending the cross connecting pipes 78 therethrough. The keel plate is suitably interposed near the stern between pontoons at the beam of the barge.

Thus it will be evident that in operation the pontoons can be assembled in stacks by a suitable crane and the stacks can be cross-connected and longitudinally connected by piping and links and collars at the ends. Thus a barge is created and it can be towed to a new location. At the new location the barge is disassembled by removing the cross connecting pipes and the links and then the pontoons can be removed from the decks of other pontoons and positioned in the desired locations to receive the dredge pipe 49.

Dredge pipe can then be mounted on the pontoons in the saddles and the clamps aixed. The load on the pontoons from the dredge pipes is distributed by the deck to the trusses and redistributed around the hull. The pontoons can serve in the new location until they are ready for relocation, in which case they can be again assembled into a barge to be moved to the new place.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A dredge pipe pontoon comprising a hull having longitudinally extended trusses, a deck supported on the trusses, a horizontal saddle plate anchored to the trusses, a saddle extending upwardly anchored to the saddle plate, rst and second opposed clamping arms pivotally connected to the saddle, and screw means interconnecting the rst and second clamping arms and adapted to engage and tightly support a dredge pipe in the saddle and above the surface of the water.

2. A pontoon of claim 1, in combination with a hull engaging seat on the deck for receiving and longitudinally socketing the bottom of the hull of the next pontoon so that pontoons can be stacked on top of one another without danger of dislodging.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,480,144 8/1949 Laycock 1140.5 2,712,293 7/ 1955 OHiggins 114-6'1 3,012,533 12/1961 Tellefsen 114-43.5 X 3,045,263 7/ 1962 Blachly 114-61 X 3,060,463 10/1962 Pentzen 114-43.5 X 3,220,026 11/ 1965 Lichti 9-1 3,221,696 12/11965 Gardner 114-43.5 3,286,286 1=1/ 1966 Nelson 9-1 3,361,274 1/1968 Goldman 114-72 X FOREIGN PATENTS 24,841 11/1896 Great Britain.

TRYGVE M. BLIX, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 9-1

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