WO2013186599A1

WO2013186599A1 - Anchor for vessels

Info

Publication number: WO2013186599A1
Application number: PCT/IB2012/053851
Authority: WO
Inventors: Francesc Martinell Jou
Original assignee: Francesc Martinell Jou
Priority date: 2012-06-13
Filing date: 2012-07-27
Publication date: 2013-12-19
Also published as: ES1077544Y; ES1077544U

Abstract

Anchor for vessels; comprising a shank provided with an anchor ring at its upper end, and at least four arms arranged around the shank. Said arms are mounted on lugs that project laterally from the shank body, by means of rotation axis; said arms having the possibility of pivoting between: an operative position wherein said arms form an acute angle with the shank; and a bed releasing or inoperative position, wherein at least one of the arms forms an obtuse angle with the shank; the anchor comprising elastic means acting on the arms of the anchor and tending to keep them in operative position.

Description

DESCRIPTION

ANCHOR FOR VESSELS

Object of the invention.

The present invention relates to an anchor for vessels, of the type comprising a shank provided at its upper end with an anchor ring to attach a rope or chain to the vessel, and at least four arms distributed around the shank and provided with respective peas or bills for its embedding or hooking into the seabed.

Application field of the invention. This invention is applicable in the manufacture of anchors for vessels.

Background of the invention.

Currently various types of anchors are known that, attached to a chain or a rope tied at one end to a vessel, are thrown into the water to hook into the seabed and provide the necessary resistance to prevent the vessel from drifting due to winds and currents.

These anchors generally have main parts such as: shank, arms and bills, some anchors, and especially those having two coplanar arms, further presenting a stock or top crosspiece aimed at resting with one of its ends on the seabed by forcing one of the bills to dig into the bed when the chain or rope is stretched by pulling the attachment anchor chain or rope. This stock is arranged perpendicularly to the arms in order to prevent the anchor assembly from being dragged flatly along the seabed without offering any resistance to the advance.

Often the shank and the arms form a single piece converging in an area called the anchor throat.

Martin anchors that have two coplanar arms are also known, which may limitedly pivot to two opposite sides of the shank so that when pulling the shank through a rope or chain the bills on the arms are turned downward tending to dig into the seabed.

One advantage of Martin anchors is that, when in the operative position, the two arms pivot to one side of the shank; reaching a plane forming an acute angle with the shank, while in an inoperative or removal position, the two arms lie in a coplanar plane with the shank occupying minimal space in the vessel.

Both fixed arms anchors and Martin anchors have the disadvantage that, when anchoring in rocky bed areas, the arms can be caught on rocks, avoiding their subsequent release. In these cases, the breakage of the anchor securing rope may occur when trying to release it, with consequent loss of the anchor and the securing rope or chain thereof.

Description of the invention.

The anchor for vessels object of this invention has structural features designed to allow its use mainly, but not exclusively, as a supplemental anchoring device for all kind of vessels and especially for sporadic anchorage with active surveillance, i.e., in those anchorages where there is the possibility that the vessel is exposed to sudden currents, unexpected wind gusts, swings due to the change of wind direction, etc., and in which at least one surveillance crew member remains in the vessel.

For the reasons explained below the anchor for vessels of the invention is particularly suitable for those activities carried out on board of vessels (such as fishing, diving, summer anchorages and to kayak paddlers in fishing, downstream and reservoir sailing activities, etc.), due to its ease of grip on any kind of bed and most of all because it has some features that greatly facilitate the release of the anchor from the bed regardless of whether the latter is sandy or rocky.

The anchor for vessels of the invention is of the type comprising a shank provided at its upper end with an anchor ring to attach a rope or chain to the vessel, and at least four arms distributed around the shank and provided with the respective peas or bills for its embedding or hooking into the seabed.

According to the invention the anchor arms are mounted by respective rotation axes and on lugs that project laterally from the shank body, with the possibility of pivoting between an operative position wherein said arms form an acute angle with the shank, and a bed releasing or inoperative position, wherein at least one of the arms forms an obtuse angle with the shank, the anchor comprising elastic means acting on the arms of the anchor and tending to keep them in their operative position.

The above features provide a clear advantage of use regarding anchors currently used, as they allow releasing the anchor from the seabed by simply applying traction on the rope or chain securing it to the boat. Should the anchor become hooked, it is sufficient to tie the securing rope to a solid part in the vessel and move forwards or backwards. Applying tension on the rope securing the anchor, by overcoming the tension of the elastic means acting on the arms, said arms are opened towards a release or inoperative position in which they form an obtuse angle with the shank, which can reach almost 1 80 degrees, the arm or arms becoming aligned in an almost straight line with the shank, thus ensuring that the anchor is released from the bed.

At the time that the arm or arms are released from the bed rock or hooking point, the elastic means cause their return towards the operative position in which they form approximately a 45 degree angle with the shank, and another anchorage may be performed without requiring raising the anchor on board. These features and others listed in the dependent claims, and relating to possible embodiments of the invention will become better understood in view of the examples shown in the accompanying drawings and described below. Description of figures.

In order to complement the description that is being carried out and with the purpose of facilitating the understanding of the characteristics of the invention, the present description is accompanied by a set of drawings wherein, by way of a non-limiting example, the following has been represented:

- Figure 1 shows an elevation view of an embodiment of the anchor for vessels according to the invention in an operative position and in which the elastic means are constituted by an elastic ring which inwardly embraces the anchor arms.

- Figure 2 shows an elevation view of the anchor in Figure 1 with one of the arms folded towards a releasing position.

- Figure 3 shows a partially sectioned elevation view of an alternative embodiment of the anchor for vessels according to the invention in which the elastic means, which tend to keep the arms in operative position, are arranged axially inside the shank and act against the rear end of the folding arms.

- Figure 4 shows a view of the anchor in Figure 3 with one of the arms folded towards a releasing position.

Preferred embodiment of the invention

In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2 the anchor for vessels comprises a shank (1 ) with an anchor ring (2) for attachment to a rope or chain - not shown-, and arms (3) distributed around the shank (1 ), provided with the respective peas or bills (4) and articulated by a pivot (5) on lugs (6) integral with the shank (1 ), said rotation axes (5) allowing for the lateral folding or pivoting of the arms (3) between an operative position, shown in Figure 1 , which form an acute angle with the shank (1 ), and a release or inoperative position forming an obtuse angle with said shank (1 ), one of the arms (3) in Figure 2 being shown in the releasing position.

On the arms (3) elastic means actuate by tending to keep them in the operative position, said elastic means being represented in Figure 1 and 2 by an elastic ring (7) arranged around the anchor shank (1 ) and acting on an intermediate area of the arms (3). In said Figures 1 and 2 each arm has on its intermediate region at least one fixed lug (8) for the coupling of the elastic ring (7).

In this embodiment the shank (1 ) is constituted by a tubular body filled with a heavy material which can be lead, concrete or any other. In the embodiment shown in Figures 3 and 4 the arms (3) are mounted by their intermediate area on the lugs (6) of the shank (1 ) by means of the corresponding rotation axes (5). In this case the shank (1 ) has lateral slots that are accessible from the rear end (9) of the arms (3) into the shank (1 ). The elastic means are disposed axially inside the shank and act against the rear end (9) of the arms (3) by tending to keep them in an operative position, shown in Figure 3, and wherein said arms (3) form an acute angle with the shank. In this embodiment the elastic means comprise a helical spring (10) disposed between a device (1 1 ) regulating the tension of the spring and a stop (12) which acts against the rear end (9) of the arms (3) by tending to keep them in the operative position.

This rear end (9) presents a rounded configuration on which the elastic means act.

As can be seen in Figure 4, in the event that one of the arms (3) remains hooked to the seabed, by pulling the anchor through corresponding cable or chain, said arm will pivot towards the rear area by overcoming the thrust force of the helical spring (10) until reaching a release position in which it forms an obtuse angle with the shank (1 ).

It should be mentioned that the device (1 1 ) regulating the tension of the helical spring may have different configurations, showing in Figure 4 a housing (13) for the provision of a locking pin (14) at different positions in which they determine a greater or lesser stretching of the helical spring (10).

Once the nature of the invention as well as an example of preferred embodiment have been sufficiently described, it is stated for all pertinent purposes that the materials, form, size and arrangement of the elements described are susceptible to changes, provided these do not involve an alteration of the essential characteristics of the invention that are claimed subsequently.

Claims

1 . - Anchor for vessels, of the type comprising a shank provided at its upper end with an anchor ring to attach a rope or chain to the vessel; and at least four arms distributed around the shank and provided with respective peas or bills for its embedding or hooking into the seabed and; characterized in that the arms are mounted on lugs that project laterally from the shank body, by means of respective rotation axes, with the possibility of pivoting between an operative position wherein said arms form an acute angle with the shank, and a bed releasing or inoperative position, wherein at least one of the arms forms an obtuse angle with the shank; the anchor comprising elastic means acting on the arms of the anchor and tending to keep them in operative position.

2. - Anchor according to claim 1 , characterized in that the elastic means are constituted by at least one elastic ring arranged around the anchor shank and acting on an intermediate zone of the anchor arms.

3. - Anchor according to claim 2, characterized in that each arm has at its intermediate zone at least one fixed lug for attaching the elastic ring.

4. Anchor according to any of the preceding claims; characterized in that the shank is constituted by a tubular body filled with a heavy material.

5. - Anchor according to claim 1 , characterized in that: the arms are mounted by their intermediate area on the corresponding lugs; the shank is constituted by a hollow tubular body, and presenting lateral slots accessible from a rear end of the arms into the shank, and the elastic means are arranged axially inside the shank and act against the rear end of the arms by tending to keep them in the operative position.

6. - Anchor according to claim 5 characterized in that the elastic means comprise a helical spring arranged between a device regulating the tension of the spring and a stop acting against the rear end of the arms.

7. - Anchor according to any of claims 5 and 6, characterized in that the arms have, at their rear end, a rounded configuration on which the elastic means act.