US3898852A - Ditching machines for submarine cable - Google Patents

Ditching machines for submarine cable Download PDF

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Publication number
US3898852A
US3898852A US367889A US36788973A US3898852A US 3898852 A US3898852 A US 3898852A US 367889 A US367889 A US 367889A US 36788973 A US36788973 A US 36788973A US 3898852 A US3898852 A US 3898852A
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
ditching machine
main body
ditching
stabilizing means
stabilizing
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US367889A
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English (en)
Inventor
Takuji Ezoe
Kikuo Shirai
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Kokusai Cable Ship KK
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Kokusai Cable Ship KK
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Kokusai Cable Ship KK filed Critical Kokusai Cable Ship KK
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3898852A publication Critical patent/US3898852A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E02—HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING; FOUNDATIONS; SOIL SHIFTING
    • E02F—DREDGING; SOIL-SHIFTING
    • E02F5/00—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes
    • E02F5/02—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches
    • E02F5/10—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches with arrangements for reinforcing trenches or ditches; with arrangements for making or assembling conduits or for laying conduits or cables
    • E02F5/104—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches with arrangements for reinforcing trenches or ditches; with arrangements for making or assembling conduits or for laying conduits or cables for burying conduits or cables in trenches under water
    • E02F5/106—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches with arrangements for reinforcing trenches or ditches; with arrangements for making or assembling conduits or for laying conduits or cables for burying conduits or cables in trenches under water using ploughs, coulters, rippers
    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E02—HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING; FOUNDATIONS; SOIL SHIFTING
    • E02F—DREDGING; SOIL-SHIFTING
    • E02F5/00—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes
    • E02F5/02—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches
    • E02F5/10—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches with arrangements for reinforcing trenches or ditches; with arrangements for making or assembling conduits or for laying conduits or cables
    • E02F5/104—Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes for digging trenches or ditches with arrangements for reinforcing trenches or ditches; with arrangements for making or assembling conduits or for laying conduits or cables for burying conduits or cables in trenches under water

Definitions

  • ABSTRACT A ditching machine for digging a ditch for submarine cable comprising a main body having stabilizing means which is divided into front and rear parts and jointed so as to be bendable only up and down, and a cutting bit mounted rigidly under said rear part of the main body, to prevent the entering of the head of said stabilizing means into earth and sand on the sea-bottom and to provide stable cable burying without regard to whether the layer at sea-bottom is hard or soft.
  • the present invention relates to a ditching machine for digging a ditch for a submarine cable on the seabottom.
  • a prior ditching machine for a submarine cable comprises a cutting bit underneath the main body thereof to dig a ditch of desired width in the sea-bottom, and a stabilizing wing, which is a ski-shaped sledge or a stabilizing plate to stabilize the bit and the main body.
  • Said bit and stabilizing means are two important elements of a ditching machine.
  • said stabilizing means is mounted on a frame together with said bit and integrated with it. And when the cutting edge of a bit reaches the desired depth in the sea-bottom, said stabilizing means comes into contact with the seabottom.
  • the nature of the strata at sea-bottom is, generally, not uniform along the entire length of a submarine cable route. Consequently, if a ditching machine meets a hard stratum, the cutting edge of the bit of the ditching machine may not be able to reach the desired depth because of the difficulty in sufficiently penetrating the sea-bottom at that point.
  • the bit of a ditching machine is mounted on acentral or rear part of a ditching machine for mechanical reasons. In this case if the ditching machine meets a hard stratum, the rear part of the ditching machine is pushed up, and the lower surface of the stabilizing plate, which is rigidly mounted on the ditching machine, is not able to contact the surface of the sea-bottom. Further the front part of the stabilizing means is sometimes thrusts into earth and sand of the top layer or stratum of the seabottom.
  • one prior stabilizing means has its front portion bent upward at an angle while another prior stabilizing means has its front portion curved upward similar to a ski.
  • the bent portion is able to plane-contact, the surface of the sea-bottom at only one angle of the stabilizing means, while in the latter only a very small area of the curved portion may come into linear-contact with the surface of the sea-bottom at any angle of the ditching machine.
  • said curved portion of the stabilizing means provides insufficient stabilizing effect to a ditching machine while exerting an immensely large pulling force against the ditching machine.
  • One prior technique to avoid said disadvantage is to use a short cable between the ditching machine and a cable ship, to lift up the front part of the stabilizing means.
  • the prior stabilizing means for ditching machines are capable of preventing the excessive sinking of the ditching machine due to its own weight when the surface of the sea bottom is soft, such effect is not essential and can be easily obtained only by providing some area for plane-contact at the rear part of a bit.
  • prior ditching machines are well stabilized against rolling under the burying operation in the soft stratum such ditching machines are not stabilized against rolling at the time a cutting bit is digging out the trench in the hard stratum of the sea-bottom where stabilization is most required.
  • a further disadvantage of prior ditching machines is that stabilization of ditching machines against thrusting the front part of the ditching machines into earth and sand has not been solved yet.
  • the object of the present invention is to provide a ditching machine which overcomes the abovementioned disadvantages.
  • a further object of the present invention is to provide a ditching machine which is always stable under the conditions whether the depth of a trench being dug is deep or shallow due to the nature of surface of the sea bottom.
  • a ditching machine comprises a main body composed of a main frame and having stabilizing means on both sides of the same, a cutting bit mounted rigidly under said main body, wherein said stabilizing means is divided into front and rear parts, which are jointed so as to be bendable only up and down.
  • FIG. 1(A) is a plane view of a ditching machine having stabilizing means according to the present invention
  • FIG. 1(B) is a side view of a ditching machine having stabilizing means according to the present invention
  • FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side view of a ditching machine having stabilizing means according to the present invention.
  • a main body of a ditching machine of the present invention is divided into two parts.
  • a ditching machine comprises a pair of main bodies 1 (1a, lb) positioned one behind the other at the center of the ditching machine, a pair of cutting bits 2 (2a, 2b) at the rear part of the ditching machine below the main body 1, and a pair of identical sliding stabilizing sledges 3 (3a, 3b) positioned symmetrical to the main body 1.
  • Said main body 1 and said stabilizing sledge 3 are divided into two parts in order to stabilize the ditching machine.
  • the main body 1 comprising a cable path 7 is divided into a front body 1a and a rear body lb in front of the upper portion of the cutting bit 2 as shown in FIG. 1(A) and FIG. 1(B).
  • a working boat (not shown) tows a ditching machine with pull wire 4, and submarine cable 6 is supplied to the ditching machine through a cable guiding means 5 from the cable ship.
  • Said submarine cable 6 is laid in a ditch dug on sea bottom 8 by said cutting bit 2.
  • Each divided bodies 1a and lb is supported by a pair of stabilizing sledges 3 for stabilizing the attitude of the ditching machine.
  • Said stabilizing sledges 3 are positioned symmetrical to the main body I. Said sledges 3 are also divided into two parts 3a and 3b at the same point that the main body is divided. Each pair of divided sledges are rigidly connected to the related divided main body by supporting beams 10a and 10b extending laterally from the main divided bodies Ia and lb, respectively. Further the front and rear parts of the pair of divided sledges are bendably connected to each other by a pair of joints 1 l.
  • the jointed main bodies 1 (la, lb) can bend only up and down and cannot bend right and left.
  • the front and rear parts of the divided main bodies 1 may be jointed so as to be bendable up and down instead of jointing the front and rear parts of the divided sledges 3 (3a, 3b).
  • a single sledge is possible instead of a pair of sledges.
  • a cutting bit 2 comprises two parts and 2b, the width of front cutting bit 2a is larger than that of rear cutting bit 2b.
  • a cable press means comprising a press block 12 pivotably connected to said cable path 7 of said main body 1 by a pin 13 is provided.
  • Said cable press means makes it possible to lay both thick repeaters and thin submarine cables at the bottom of a dug out ditch.
  • any construction at the rear part of the present ditching machine including a cutting bit is possible within the spirit of the present invention.
  • a ditching machine divided into more than three parts which are jointed bendably is possible according to the same principle as the present invention.
  • a ditching machine comprising a main body having front and rear portions, a cutting bit mounted on said rear portion, stabilizing means mounted on the sides of the front and rear portions of said main body, and pivotal joint means having a horizontal axis for joining the rear of the front portion and the front of the rear portion of said main body, such that said rear portion moves with respect to said front portion only about the horizontal axis of the pivotal joint means.
  • a ditching machine further comprising a press block pivotably connected to the outlet of a cable path of said rear part of said main body.
  • a ditching machine according to claim 1, wherein said stabilizing means are a pair of sledges.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Civil Engineering (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Structural Engineering (AREA)
  • Electric Cable Installation (AREA)
US367889A 1972-06-07 1973-06-07 Ditching machines for submarine cable Expired - Lifetime US3898852A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP5610372A JPS5247559B2 (is) 1972-06-07 1972-06-07

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3898852A true US3898852A (en) 1975-08-12

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Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US367889A Expired - Lifetime US3898852A (en) 1972-06-07 1973-06-07 Ditching machines for submarine cable

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US (1) US3898852A (is)
JP (1) JPS5247559B2 (is)
GB (1) GB1400095A (is)

Cited By (22)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3990377A (en) * 1974-07-19 1976-11-09 Sa Compagnie Maritime D'expertises Comex Self-propelled machine for sea-bed work
US4011727A (en) * 1974-07-26 1977-03-15 Nippon Telegraph And Telephone Public Corporation Movable cable plow for constructing underwater cable
US4053998A (en) * 1974-12-27 1977-10-18 Kokusai Cable Ship Co., Ltd. Multi-blade ditching machine
FR2350432A1 (fr) * 1976-05-03 1977-12-02 Ericsson Telefon Ab L M Outil de pose de cables sous-marins
US4069679A (en) * 1976-10-27 1978-01-24 Standard Oil Company Undersea plow
EP0004378A1 (en) * 1978-03-22 1979-10-03 EPI PNEUMA SYSTEM S.p.A. Apparatus for the subaqueous entrenching of pipes
US4245927A (en) * 1978-11-07 1981-01-20 Wharton Engineers (Elstree) Limited Laying of pipes or cables in a bed of material
US4538937A (en) * 1981-01-19 1985-09-03 Lyntech Corporation Marine continuous pipe laying system
US5234242A (en) * 1990-04-19 1993-08-10 Kokusai Denshin Denwa Kabushiki Kaisha Submarine cable grapnel
EP0828031A1 (en) * 1996-09-06 1998-03-11 CABLE & WIRELESS PLC Improvements in underwater ploughing
US5988948A (en) * 1997-09-04 1999-11-23 Cable And Wireless Plc Underwater plough and method for varying ploughing depth
US6116818A (en) * 1997-04-29 2000-09-12 General Dynamics Advanced Technology Systems Underwater plow apparatus and method
US6435772B1 (en) * 1997-09-05 2002-08-20 Soil Machine Dynamics Limited Submarine plough
WO2004016366A2 (en) * 2002-08-19 2004-02-26 Horizon Offshore, Inc. Method and system for laying pipe through the use of a plow
US20070253780A1 (en) * 2006-04-28 2007-11-01 Seatools B.V. Vehicle for installing a cable in a ground formation
US8328466B1 (en) 2010-09-13 2012-12-11 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Buoyancy stabilized underwater plow and methods for use
US8333535B1 (en) * 2010-09-07 2012-12-18 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Underwater plow having an improved plow assembly
US8360685B1 (en) 2010-09-07 2013-01-29 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Autonomous underwater plow and method of use
US8864415B1 (en) 2012-07-09 2014-10-21 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Buoyancy shifting apparatus for underwater plow
CN105220726A (zh) * 2015-10-16 2016-01-06 上海交通大学 流量可控的喷冲破土装置
CN110410578A (zh) * 2019-06-25 2019-11-05 中建三局第一建设工程有限责任公司 一种雪橇装置及使用该雪橇装置的超高桁架风管安装工艺
US20230160175A1 (en) * 2020-04-28 2023-05-25 Michael S. Yilit Pipe laying plow

Families Citing this family (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPS5650485B2 (is) * 1974-04-26 1981-11-30
US4655639A (en) * 1982-12-14 1987-04-07 The British Petroleum Company P.L.C. Plough
GB2134567B (en) * 1983-02-05 1986-11-05 British Petroleum Co Plc Trenching plough
GB8524410D0 (en) * 1985-10-03 1985-11-06 Soil Machine Dynamics Ltd Pipeline/cable plough
JPS6343508A (ja) * 1986-08-07 1988-02-24 日本電信電話株式会社 鋤式海底埋設機の被埋設物離脱装置

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2722181A (en) * 1953-02-26 1955-11-01 Kent J Hash Conduit placing machine
US3333432A (en) * 1964-12-29 1967-08-01 Bell Telephone Labor Inc Adjustable depth submarine cable burier
US3434297A (en) * 1967-01-25 1969-03-25 Bell Telephone Labor Inc Submarine cable burying machine
US3641780A (en) * 1967-05-03 1972-02-15 Ainsley Neville Ede Trenchless laying of pipe underground
US3722224A (en) * 1971-02-08 1973-03-27 L Roy Submarine pipeline trencher
US3824798A (en) * 1971-11-15 1974-07-23 Furukawa Co Ltd Submarine cable-burying devices

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2722181A (en) * 1953-02-26 1955-11-01 Kent J Hash Conduit placing machine
US3333432A (en) * 1964-12-29 1967-08-01 Bell Telephone Labor Inc Adjustable depth submarine cable burier
US3434297A (en) * 1967-01-25 1969-03-25 Bell Telephone Labor Inc Submarine cable burying machine
US3641780A (en) * 1967-05-03 1972-02-15 Ainsley Neville Ede Trenchless laying of pipe underground
US3722224A (en) * 1971-02-08 1973-03-27 L Roy Submarine pipeline trencher
US3824798A (en) * 1971-11-15 1974-07-23 Furukawa Co Ltd Submarine cable-burying devices

Cited By (28)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3990377A (en) * 1974-07-19 1976-11-09 Sa Compagnie Maritime D'expertises Comex Self-propelled machine for sea-bed work
US4011727A (en) * 1974-07-26 1977-03-15 Nippon Telegraph And Telephone Public Corporation Movable cable plow for constructing underwater cable
US4053998A (en) * 1974-12-27 1977-10-18 Kokusai Cable Ship Co., Ltd. Multi-blade ditching machine
FR2350432A1 (fr) * 1976-05-03 1977-12-02 Ericsson Telefon Ab L M Outil de pose de cables sous-marins
US4129992A (en) * 1976-05-03 1978-12-19 Telefonaktiebolaget L M Ericsson Laying tool for laying of submarine cables into a sea-bottom
US4069679A (en) * 1976-10-27 1978-01-24 Standard Oil Company Undersea plow
EP0004378A1 (en) * 1978-03-22 1979-10-03 EPI PNEUMA SYSTEM S.p.A. Apparatus for the subaqueous entrenching of pipes
US4338042A (en) * 1978-03-22 1982-07-06 Epi Pneuma Systems S.P.A. Apparatus for the subaqueous entrenching of pipes
US4245927A (en) * 1978-11-07 1981-01-20 Wharton Engineers (Elstree) Limited Laying of pipes or cables in a bed of material
US4538937A (en) * 1981-01-19 1985-09-03 Lyntech Corporation Marine continuous pipe laying system
US5234242A (en) * 1990-04-19 1993-08-10 Kokusai Denshin Denwa Kabushiki Kaisha Submarine cable grapnel
EP0828031A1 (en) * 1996-09-06 1998-03-11 CABLE & WIRELESS PLC Improvements in underwater ploughing
US6116818A (en) * 1997-04-29 2000-09-12 General Dynamics Advanced Technology Systems Underwater plow apparatus and method
US5988948A (en) * 1997-09-04 1999-11-23 Cable And Wireless Plc Underwater plough and method for varying ploughing depth
US6435772B1 (en) * 1997-09-05 2002-08-20 Soil Machine Dynamics Limited Submarine plough
WO2004016366A2 (en) * 2002-08-19 2004-02-26 Horizon Offshore, Inc. Method and system for laying pipe through the use of a plow
WO2004016366A3 (en) * 2002-08-19 2004-06-10 Horizon Offshore Inc Method and system for laying pipe through the use of a plow
US6821054B2 (en) * 2002-08-19 2004-11-23 Horizon Vessels, Inc. Method and system for laying pipe through the use of a plow
US20070253780A1 (en) * 2006-04-28 2007-11-01 Seatools B.V. Vehicle for installing a cable in a ground formation
US7520696B2 (en) * 2006-04-28 2009-04-21 Seatools B.V. Vehicle for installing a cable in a ground formation
US8333535B1 (en) * 2010-09-07 2012-12-18 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Underwater plow having an improved plow assembly
US8360685B1 (en) 2010-09-07 2013-01-29 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Autonomous underwater plow and method of use
US8328466B1 (en) 2010-09-13 2012-12-11 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Buoyancy stabilized underwater plow and methods for use
US8864415B1 (en) 2012-07-09 2014-10-21 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy Buoyancy shifting apparatus for underwater plow
CN105220726A (zh) * 2015-10-16 2016-01-06 上海交通大学 流量可控的喷冲破土装置
CN110410578A (zh) * 2019-06-25 2019-11-05 中建三局第一建设工程有限责任公司 一种雪橇装置及使用该雪橇装置的超高桁架风管安装工艺
US20230160175A1 (en) * 2020-04-28 2023-05-25 Michael S. Yilit Pipe laying plow
US12006657B2 (en) * 2020-04-28 2024-06-11 Michael S. Yilit Pipe laying plow

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPS5247559B2 (is) 1977-12-03
GB1400095A (en) 1975-07-16
JPS4919388A (is) 1974-02-20

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