WO2001064289A1

WO2001064289A1 - A sprinkler mounting assembly

Info

Publication number: WO2001064289A1
Application number: PCT/DK2001/000135
Authority: WO
Inventors: Carsten Palle
Original assignee: Gw Sprinkler A/S
Priority date: 2000-02-29
Filing date: 2001-02-28
Publication date: 2001-09-07
Also published as: DK200000319A; AU2001237250A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a ship's sprinkler unit for a fire-extinguishing installation in a pre-manufactured ship's cabin, wherein the ship's cabin comprises a ceiling (10) with a through-going hole (16) that is surrounded by a peripheral edge (15). The invention is characterised in that the sprinkler unit comprises a flexible hose (5) that is configured for being, at its first end, connectable to a piping for advancing a fire-extinguishing medium; a sprinkler (1) that is connected to the flexible hose (5) at another end thereof; and means (30) connected to the sprinkler (1) and configured for being connectable to said peripheral edge (15).

Description

A sprinkler mounting assembly

The present invention relates to a sprinkler unit of the kind described in the preamble to claim 1. Thus, the invention is directed towards the mounting of fire-extinguishing sprinklers during the building of ships, including specifically during the mounting of pre-manufactured cabins. The invention also relates to an assembly for mounting of fire-extinguishing sprinklers as featured in claims 2-5 and a method of using the mounting assembly.

When building in particular passenger ships pre-manufactured cabin units are often used that are, for instance, freighted to the shipyard from an external supplier and that are mounted serially one after the other on a ship's deck in order to form a cabin deck. Prior to the mounting of the individual cabin units, installation is carried out of the requisite piping intended for conveying fire-extinguishing medium onwards to fire-extinguishing sprinklers that are subsequently to be installed in the individual cabins.

Said piping is mounted immediately below the horizontal deck ceiling that is defined by the steel construction that structurally delimits the ship's deck from the superjacent ship's deck. Following positioning of the piping vertically downwards-extending pipe branches are mounted in the places where sprinklers are subsequently to be installed. When the cabin units are installed on the ship's deck, a relatively small space of eg about 30 cm remains between the deck's ceiling and the top face of the cabin units, and thus the pipe branchings form pipe strings, at the end of which sprinklers are subsequently mounted via through-going holes made in the ceiling of the cabin unit.

It will be understood that, following positioning of the cabin units, it is no longer possible to carry out adjustments to the piping and that the vertically downwards-extending pipe branchings must be positioned very accurately in accordance with a predetermined location plan for the cabin units. At times, this has necessitated that several through-going holes of the cabin unit's ceiling had to be made in order to locate the actual position of the pipe branching in order to subsequently enable mounting of the sprinkler. The subsequent mounting of the sprinklers has also necessitated a supplementary pressure testing of the fire-extinguishing installation in addition to the pressure testing of the piping that is performed prior to the installation of the cabin units.

By the invention, it is possible for the first time to carry out a complete pressure testing of the fire-extinguishing installation prior to the mounting of the cabin units. More specifically, this is obtained as featured in claim 1 , the sprinkler being able to be moved slightly to the desired position, depending on the length of the ingoing flexible hose, following which the sprinkler unit is secured to the cabin unit's ceiling by use of connecting means arranged on the sprinkler. Thus, by the invention is firstly provided a sprinkler unit that exhibits a high degree of flexibility and can thereby be introduced through a prior-established through-going hole in the cabin ceiling.

Attachment of a sprinkler with a flexible hose to the cabin unit's ceiling can particularly advantageously be accomplished by a mounting assembly as featured in claim 2. The mounting set can conveniently be configured as featured in claims 2-5, whereby attachment of the sprinkler is obtained by use of particularly simple means.

In the following the invention will be described in further detail with reference to the exemplary embodiment shown in the drawing.

Figure 1 shows a first step during the mounting of a sprinkler while using a mounting set according to the invention;

Figure 2 shows a second step during the mounting of a sprinkler; and

Figure 3 shows the ready-mounted sprinkler in an increased scale.

In Figure 1 , the reference numeral 10 generally designates a ceiling in a pre- manufactured cabin unit installed on a ship's deck. It will be understood that, as mentioned above, the deck's ceiling extends at a relatively modest distance above the ceiling 10. In the space between the deck's ceiling and the ceiling 10, the piping necessary for a fire-extinguishing installation is arranged that advances fire-extinguishing liquid to a large number of cabin units on the ship's deck.

In a conventional manner the ceiling 10 is constructed of a metallic board portion 14 that forms the face of the ceiling that is visible from below, and a board 12 of an insulating material that abuts directly on the top face of the board portion 14. Preferably, the ceiling 10 has a round through-going hole 16 that is preferably provided onboard the ship, but may also be formed during manufacture of the cabin unit. The through-going hole 16 extends through the board portion 14 and the insulating material 12 and serves to allow introduction into the cabin unit of a sprinkler 1 that has been connected to the superjacent piping prior to the installation of the cabin unit and that is situated on the insulating material 12 prior to the introduction. The board portion 14 features a peripheral edge 15 following the provision of the through-going hole 16.

Figure 1 shows the sprinkler 1 that is more specifically connected to a flexible hose 5 that is, in turn, connected to the superjacent piping. More specifically, the sprinkler 1 and the flexible hose 5 form a ship's sprinkler unit, in the sense that this designation is used in this context. Preferably the hose 5 has a length of between about 20 cm and about 50 cm.

As mentioned, the sprinkler 1 and the hose 5 are introduced into the cabin unit through the through-going hole 16, optionally by use of a suitable, manually operated gripper tool that is conveyed through the through-going hole 16 up towards the deck's ceiling in order to pull the hose 5 and the sprinkler 1 down through the through-going hole 16. The sprinkler 1 is provided with a preferably round mounting disc 30 that has a central opening 35 whereby the mounting disc 30 can be screwed home on the sprinkler 1 or the hose 5 immediately at the mouthing of the sprinkler 1. Thus, the mounting disc 30 constitutes a separate component whereby it is possible to use a conventional sprinkler for this purpose. The mounting disc 30 is preferably arranged on the sprinkler 1 prior to the installation of the cabin unit and prior to the pressure testing of the fire-extinguishing installation.

The described mounting disc 30 serves to secure the sprinkler 1 to the ceiling 10 in the installed cabin unit, and preferably constitutes a first component of a mounting set. The mounting disc 30 has a dimension that allows conveyance of the mounting disc 30 through the through-going hole 16. Besides the mounting disc 30 has a number of peripherally arranged openings 34 and peripherally arranged, resilient legs 33, the purpose of which will be explained in further detail below.

Figure 1 also shows two S-shaped carrier arms 20 that each constitutes a second component of the mounting assembly according to the invention. The S-shaped carrier arms 20 are configured for being able to be positioned on the peripheral edge 15 of the board portion 14 following conveyance of the sprinkler 1 with the mounting disc 30 and the hose 5 through the through- going hole 16. The carrier arms 20 have a lower, horizontal flange, a vertical body part and an upper horizontal flange. One leg 22 (cf Figure 3) is flexed outwards from the vertical body part whereby a small slot is formed between the leg 22 and the lower vertical flange, which slot is dimensioned for receiving the edge 15 of the board portion 14. Following conveyance of the sprinkler 1 a suitable number of carrier arms 20, preferably two, are mounted on the edge 15, the legs 22 being pressed in below the insulating material 12. The carrier arms 20 are, in the upper flange, provided with an opening 24 that is configured for being able to align with an opening 34 in the mounting disc 30.

Figure 2 shows the next step during attachment of the sprinkler 1. It will appear that the carrier arms 20 have now been connected to the mounting disc 30, said to components being connected to each other by means of screws 36 that have been conveyed through the openings 24,34. It will be understood that in this position the carrier arms 20 keep the sprinkler 1 up in the correct position, the resilience of the flexible hose 5 allowing the requisite movement of the sprinkler 1.

As shown in Figure 2, the mounting set also comprises a third component being 40 in the form of a rosette consisting of a tubular member 44 that has, at its one end, an annular peripheral flange 42. At its opposite end the tubular member 44 is provided with a number of slotted sections 46. During mounting the component 40 is, as shown by the arrow in Figure 3, pressed upwards to a position in which the carrier arms 20 are received in the slotted sections 46. As shown, the slotted sections 26 have such length that the rosette 40 can be received completely in the through-going hole 16, the flange 42 abutting on the underside of the lower vertical flange of the carrier arms 20 and thus to a wide extent forming a visible finishing of the installation. The rosette 40 is secured in the shown position by frictional engagement with the resilient legs 33 on the mounting disc 30, the diameter of the rosette 40 being adapted so as to provide the requisite frictional engagement. The frictional engagement is preferably selected such that the rosette can be dismounted again to allow for a later dismounting of the sprinkler 1 , if any.

It will be understood that the dimension of the tubular member 44 is also adapted such that the outer face forms a backstop for the vertical body portion of the carrier arm 20, and thereby prevents the carrier arms 20 from moving out of its engagement with the board portion 14.

Claims

C l a i m s

1. A ship's sprinkler unit for a fire-extinguishing installation in a pre- manufactured ship's cabin, wherein the ship's cabin comprises a ceiling (10) that is formed of a horizontal board element (14) having a top face and a bottom face and a through-going hole made therein (16) that is delimited by a peripheral edge (15) of the board element (14), which sprinkler unit comprises a flexible hose (5) that is configured, at a first end, for being connectable to a piping for advancement of a fire-extinguishing medium; a sprinkler (1) that is connected to the flexible hose (5) at another end thereof; and attachment means for securing the sprinkler to the board element (14) at said peripheral edge (15), characterised in that the attachment means comprise:

- a disc-shaped component (30) that is configured for being enclosingly connectable to the sprinkler (1 );

- at least two carrier arms (20) that each has an upper flange (22) and a lower flange that form, between them, a space for receiving a part of said peripheral edge (15) for securing the carrier arms (20) to the board element (14); and - means (36) for connecting each carrier arm (20) to the disc-shaped component (30).

2. A ship's sprinkler unit according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the attachment means also comprise a component (40) that has a tubular portion (44) configured for being receivable in the through-going hole (16), and that has a peripheral flange (42) configured for being able to abut on the bottom face of the ceiling (10), wherein said tubular section (44) is also configured for being connectable to either the disc-shaped component (30) or to the carrier arms (20) and for preventing that the carrier arms (20) are caused to be released from their engagement with the board element

(14).

3. A ship's sprinkler unit according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the tubular section (44) is configured for being connected to the disc-shaped component (30) by friction.

4. A ship's sprinkler unit according to claim 1 , 2 or 3, characterised in that the disc-shaped component (30) is dimensioned to be able to be conveyed through the through-going hole (16).

5. A method of mounting a sprinkler (1 ) according to claim 1 , 2, 3 or 4 in a pre-manufactured ship's cabin, wherein the ship's cabin comprises a ceiling

(10) that is formed of a horizontal board element (14) having a top face and a bottom face and a through-going hole (16) that is surrounded by a peripheral edge (15), and wherein the sprinkler (1) is connected to a flexible hose (5) for advancing a fire-extinguishing means, characterised in that - the sprinkler (1) with the hose (5) is first conveyed through the through-going hole (16);

- said disc-shaped component (20) is connected to the sprinkler;

- the carrier arms (20) are connected to the peripheral edge (15); and

- the carrier arms (20) are connected to the disc-shaped component (20).