Icebreaking additional propulsion system and icebreaking ship having the same

Abstract

An icebreaking additional propulsion system includes at least one retractable thruster capable of vertically moving into and out of a hull of a ship. The retractable thruster includes a pair of guide rods vertically installed within the hull, a column vertically movable along the guide rods, a drive unit mounted to an upper end of the column for vertically moving and swiveling the column, and a propeller attached to a lower end of the column for generating propelling power.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention relates to an additional propulsion system for icebreaking ship and, more particularly, an icebreaking additional propulsion system that allows a ship to be moved by means of a primary propeller in case of requiring a reduced propelling power as in a usual voyage but can be operated together with the primary propeller to reduce the load of the primary propeller in case of requiring an increased propelling power as in a voyage across an icy sea of the polar regions.BACKGROUND ART[0002]As is well-known in the art, a ship specially designed for voyage in the polar regions is called an icebreaking ship or icebreaker. Such an icebreaking ship serves to transport commodities produced in the polar regions to a general living area and services along a voyage route extending over an icy polar sea area and a general non-icy sea area. This means that the icebreaking ship needs to be superior not only in icebreaking speed performance but also in open w...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010]In accordance with the present invention, the retractable thruster is capable of vertically moving into and out of a hull of a ship and swiveling in a horizontal plane. Depending on the voyage conditions, the retractable thruster can serve as an auxiliary propeller. When the ship is isolated in an icy sea area, the retractable thruster performs a retro-propelling function so that the ship can escape from the icy sea area with ease. This helps reduce the load borne by a primary propeller in the icy sea area, thereby making it possible to use a primary propeller having a reduced capacity. During voyage in a general non-icy sea area, the retractable thruster is retracted into the hull of the ship, which helps increase the moving speed of the ship and save the fuel cost. In a port, the retractable thruster allows the ship to come alongside or go away from a pier in a stable manner by astern-going or transverse-going water through a side tunnel.

Problems solved by technology

This increases the number of devices and makes it necessary to use an electric power with an increased capacity, consequently making the ship costly to build.

However, the pod-type propulsion system is bulky and is mounted to the outside of the ship.

For this reason, the excessively great weight and size of a pod unit imposes restrictions on designing the ship.

The ship shows reduced performance and suffers from reduction in speed during general voyage.

There is also posed a problem in that the initial investment (the price of a ship) grows high and the cost involved in operating a ship becomes high.

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