Submersible vehicle ballast device

Abstract

The application provides a submersible ballast device, which comprises a submersible main body and a ballast assembly. An opening of a tail frame of the submersible main body is arranged at the bottom of the submersible main body. The submersible main body is connected with a winding and unwinding winch and a chain. The chain is wound around the rotating disc end of the winding and unwinding winch. The ballast assembly comprises a shell, lead sand and an air bag. The top of the shell is connected to one end of the chain and is pulled back towards the tail frame as the chain is retracted. The lead sand is contained in the shell and is underwater with the shell or is pulled back to the tail frame. The lead sand does not need to be separated from the shell when the ballast assembly is in an underwater environment and does not need to be loaded when the ballast assembly is pulled back to the tail frame. The air bag is arranged at the bottom of the shell and is inflated to increase the buoyancy of the ballast assembly. When the ballast assembly needs to be pulled back to the tail frame, the air bag is in an inflated state and has a large floating area to provide a large buoyancy to the ballast assembly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application belongs to the technical field of submersible ballast devices, and particularly relates to a submersible ballast device. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, the mother ship is sailing to the survey operation area. The submersible ballast device needs to be equipped with 1 ton of lead sand at its bottom. The submersible ballast device loaded with lead sand is lowered into the sea along the stern frame of the mother ship. After being unhooked, the submersible ballast device dives into the deep sea to carry out the survey operation.

[0003] After the survey operation is completed, the submersible ballast system needs to open the ballast tank opening and drop 1 ton of lead sand onto the seabed. This dropping of 1 ton of lead sand reduces the load on the submersible ballast system, allowing it to surface and be recovered to the ship via the stern rack. If the submersible ballast system needs to dive again, it needs to load another 1 ton of lead sand. In this case, the lead sand that was dropped while the submersible ballast system is underwater is stored again when it needs to dive again. This results in the existing submersible ballast system needing to repeatedly load and unload lead sand, and the lead sand that is dropped while the submersible ballast system is underwater cannot be reused. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a submersible ballast device to solve the problem that existing submersible ballast devices require reciprocating loading of lead sand.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a submersible ballast device, comprising:

[0006] The submersible body is equipped with a tail frame; the opening of the tail frame is located at the bottom of the submersible body; the submersible body is connected to a take-up and release winch and a chain, and the chain is wound around the turntable end of the take-up and release winch;

[0007] The ballast assembly includes a housing, lead sand, and an airbag; the top of the housing is connected to one end of the chain and is pulled back toward the tail frame as the chain retracts; the lead sand is contained within the housing; the airbag is disposed at the bottom of the housing and expands in the inflated state, increasing the buoyancy of the ballast assembly in the inflated state.

[0008] Optionally, an air tube is connected between the airbag and the submersible body. One end of the air tube is connected to the air source of the submersible body, and the other end is connected to the airbag, and gas is input into the airbag.

[0009] Optionally, the submersible body is provided with a cutting component, which is installed on the submersible body and close to the air pipe, hydraulic pipe and chain, and cuts the air pipe, hydraulic pipe and chain under a trigger state, so that the ballast assembly is thrown to the seabed.

[0010] Optionally, the airbag can change its inflation volume in the inflated state to provide different buoyancy for the submersible body according to different buoyancy requirements.

[0011] Optionally, the housing is connected to a telescopic fan assembly, which includes a telescopic arm and a fan. The telescopic arm is telescopically mounted on the housing and extends or retracts in the horizontal direction. The fan is mounted on the telescopic arm and increases the buoyancy of the ballast assembly when rotating.

[0012] Optionally, there are multiple telescopic arms, which are arranged horizontally and in opposite directions.

[0013] Optionally, the telescopic arm includes multiple sub-telescopic arms, which are connected and nested together. The multiple sub-telescopic arms extend and retract in the horizontal direction or retract in the horizontal direction.

[0014] Optionally, the fan is mounted on the outermost sub-telescopic arm, the fan including a through hole and a plurality of fan blades, the plurality of fan blades being accommodated in the through hole and rotatably mounted in the through hole.

[0015] Optionally, when the ballast assembly is housed in the tail section, the bottom of the housing is flush with the bottom of the submersible body, and the housing moves as the submersible body moves.

[0016] This application provides a submersible ballast device. The ballast assembly includes a shell, lead sand, and an airbag. The top of the shell is connected to one end of a chain and is pulled back towards the tail frame as the chain retracts. The lead sand is contained within the shell and remains there. The lead sand is continuously contained within the shell and is submerged underwater or pulled back to the tail frame with the shell. The lead sand does not need to detach from the shell when the ballast assembly is underwater and does not need to be loaded when the ballast assembly is pulled back to the tail frame. The airbag is located at the bottom of the shell and expands when inflated, increasing the buoyancy of the ballast assembly. When the ballast assembly needs to be pulled back to the tail frame, the airbag is inflated, and the inflated airbag has a larger floating area, providing greater buoyancy to the ballast assembly. The buoyancy provided by the inflated airbag can overcome the weight of the lead sand, preventing the lead sand from detaching from the shell when the ballast assembly is pulled back to the tail frame, thus facilitating the reuse of the lead sand within the shell. Attached Figure Description

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0018] To gain a more complete understanding of this application and its beneficial effects, the following description will be provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals denote the same parts.

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the submersible ballast device provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0020] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A magnified view of a section in direction A.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the inflation of the airbag of the submersible ballast device provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the extension of the telescopic arm of the submersible ballast device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0023] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0024] This application provides a submersible ballast device to solve the problem that existing submersible ballast devices require reciprocating loading of lead sand 22.

[0025] refer to Figures 1 to 4 This application provides a submersible ballast device, which includes a submersible body 10 and a ballast assembly 20. The ballast assembly 20 is installed on the submersible body 10 and can be released.

[0026] The submersible body 10 serves as the main part of the submersible ballast device. The submersible body 10 carries the ballast assembly 20 during navigation and releases the ballast assembly 20 when it reaches the preset survey operation sea area.

[0027] The submersible body 10 is provided with a receiving slot 11, which is used to receive the ballast assembly 20. The receiving slot 11 serves as a storage space for the ballast assembly 20, and the ballast assembly 20 is received in the receiving slot 11 when the submersible body 10 is in a sailing state.

[0028] When the ballast assembly 20 is accommodated in the receiving groove 11, the bottom of the shell 21 of the ballast assembly 20 is flush with the bottom of the submersible body 10, so as to avoid the ballast assembly 20 increasing the sailing volume of the submersible body 10 and reduce the resistance of the submersible body 10 during sailing. At this time, the shell 21 of the ballast assembly 20 moves with the movement of the submersible body 10.

[0029] The opening 111 of the receiving tank 11 is located at the bottom of the submersible body 10. The opening 111 is used for the ballast assembly 20 to pass through. When the ballast assembly 20 needs to be submerged underwater, the ballast assembly 20 in the receiving tank 11 moves downward through the opening 111. When the ballast assembly 20 needs to be retrieved into the receiving tank 11, the ballast assembly 20 moves into the receiving tank 11 through the opening 111.

[0030] The submersible body 10 is connected to a take-up winch 12 and a chain 13. The chain 13 is wound around the turntable end of the take-up winch 12. At this time, the fixed end of the take-up winch 12 is connected to the submersible body 10. The turntable end of the take-up winch 12 rotates under electric force and pulls the chain 13 so that the chain 13 can be retrieved to the turntable end or released downward from the turntable end.

[0031] Ballast assembly 20 is installed on submersible body 10 and can be released. Ballast assembly 20 includes shell 21, lead sand 22, and airbag 23. Lead sand 22 is contained in shell 21 and airbag 23 is located at the bottom of shell 21.

[0032] The top of the housing 21 is connected to one end of the chain 13 and is pulled back toward the receiving groove 11 as the chain 13 is retracted. The top of the housing 21 is connected to a lifting lug, which is connected to the chain 13 and moves toward the receiving groove 11 under the pull of the chain 13.

[0033] The lead sand 22 is contained within the housing 21 and is sealed to the housing 21. It moves with the housing 21 and, under normal circumstances, will not detach from the housing 21. Optionally, the lead sand 22 is lead sand.

[0034] At this time, lead sand 22 continues to be contained in the shell 21 and is submerged underwater or pulled back to the receiving tank 11 with the shell 21. Lead sand 22 does not need to be removed from the shell 21 when the ballast assembly 20 is in an underwater environment, and does not need to be loaded when the ballast assembly 20 is pulled back to the receiving tank 11.

[0035] Airbag 23 is located at the bottom of housing 21 and expands in the inflated state, increasing the buoyancy of ballast assembly 20. When ballast assembly 20 needs to be pulled back to receiving groove 11, airbag 23 is in the inflated state, and the floating area of ​​airbag 23 in the inflated state is large, providing greater buoyancy to ballast assembly 20. The buoyancy provided by airbag 23 in the inflated state can overcome the gravity of lead sand 22, preventing lead sand 22 from detaching from housing 21 when ballast assembly 20 is pulled back to receiving groove 11, so that lead sand 22 in housing 21 can be reused.

[0036] The airbag 23 has a switch on its outer wall. When the switch is open, the gas inside the airbag 23 is released outward, and the airbag 23 is adjusted from an inflated state to a natural state.

[0037] An air tube connects the airbag 23 and the submersible body 10. One end of the air tube is connected to the air source of the submersible body 10, and the other end is connected to the airbag 23, supplying gas to the airbag 23. At this time, the submersible body 10 is connected to the air source, which outputs high-pressure gas. The high-pressure gas enters the airbag 23 along the air tube, and the airbag 23 is inflated and expands outward during inflation.

[0038] The airbag 23 is in an inflated state, and the floating area of ​​the inflated airbag 23 is large, providing a large buoyancy to the ballast assembly 20. The buoyancy provided by the inflated airbag 23 can overcome the gravity of the lead sand 22, preventing the lead sand 22 from being removed from the shell 21 when the ballast assembly 20 pulls back into the receiving groove 11, so that the lead sand 22 in the shell 21 can be reused.

[0039] In an emergency, the airbag 23 needs to be deflated quickly. At this time, the submersible body 10 is equipped with a cut-off component. The cut-off component is installed on the submersible body 10 and close to the air pipe, hydraulic pipe and chain. Under the trigger state, the air pipe, hydraulic pipe and chain are cut off, so that the ballast assembly is thrown to the seabed.

[0040] In addition, the airbag 23 is rapidly deflated, putting it in an emergency deflation state. In the deflation state or emergency deflation state, the airbag 23 retracts toward the bottom of the shell 21. Furthermore, in the inflated state, the airbag 23 can change its inflation volume according to different buoyancy requirements, providing different buoyancy for the submersible body 10.

[0041] At the same time, the ballast assembly 20 can also detach from the submersible body 10. When the ballast assembly 20 detaches from the submersible body 10, it is in a jettisoned state, and the load on the submersible body 10 is rapidly reduced so that the submersible body 10 can quickly float to the surface.

[0042] Optionally, one end of the chain 13 is connected to the submersible body 10, and the lifting lug is located in the middle of the chain 13. In an emergency, one end of the chain 13 is detached from the submersible body 10 and is in a disconnected state. The ballast assembly 20 falls downward under its own weight, and the lifting lug is detached from the chain 13.

[0043] In addition, the housing 21 is connected to a telescopic fan assembly 24, which includes a telescopic arm 241 and a fan 242. The telescopic arm 241 is telescopically mounted on the housing 21 and extends or retracts in the horizontal direction. The fan 242 is mounted on the telescopic arm 241 and increases the buoyancy of the ballast assembly 20 in the rotating state.

[0044] At this time, the buoyancy of the ballast assembly 20 is increased by the fan 242. The fan 242 provides an upward moving force in the rotating state, which serves as the buoyancy of the ballast assembly 20 so that the submersible body 10 floats upward, and works together with the inflated airbag 23 to act on the submersible body 10.

[0045] Optionally, there are multiple telescopic arms 241, which are arranged horizontally and in opposite directions. In this case, the multiple telescopic arms 241 are connected to the submersible body 10 and increase the buoyancy of the ballast assembly 20 at different positions.

[0046] The telescopic arm 241 includes multiple sub-telescopic arms 2411, which are connected and nested together. These sub-telescopic arms 2411 extend or retract horizontally. The multiple sub-telescopic arms 2411 can be retracted or extended according to actual conditions. By changing the buoyancy of the multiple sub-telescopic arms 2411 and the airbag 23, the submersible ballast device can remain at different water layers, saving energy consumption and increasing the deep-sea operation time, versatility, efficiency, and safety of the submersible ballast device.

[0047] Optionally, the fan 242 is mounted on the outermost sub-telescopic arm 2411. The fan 242 includes a through hole and a plurality of fan blades, which are accommodated in the through hole and rotatably mounted thereon.

[0048] In practice, the ballast assembly 20 remains in its pre-dive state, and the submersible's ballast device conducts survey operations in the deep sea. When the submersible's ballast device needs to surface, it must do so after completing its survey operations. The process is as follows:

[0049] 1) When the turntable end of the winch 12 is rotating, the ballast device is lowered to the outside of the submersible ballast device. At this time, the chain 13 bears the weight of the ballast device.

[0050] 2) The telescopic arm 241 extends outward by driving the hydraulic power source through the control box, and the multi-section telescopic arm 2411 is fully opened; optionally, the multi-section telescopic arm 2411 is a three-section telescopic arm 2411.

[0051] 3) Drive the compressed air power source through the control box to pump compressed air into the airbag 23, and the airbag 23 inflates to its maximum size;

[0052] 4) Turn on fan 242, the buoyancy of the submersible ballast device increases, and the submersible ballast device rises to the surface of the sea;

[0053] 5) Use the tail frame to lift the submersible ballast device, open the hydraulic cylinder connected to the telescopic boom 241 and the vent on the airbag 23 to release the pressure, the telescopic boom 241 is retracted into the ballast device, the airbag 23 is reduced to its minimum volume, the winch 12 rotates to lift the ballast device into the receiving tank 11, and the submersible ballast device is transported to the warehouse to await the next deep-sea operation.

[0054] Submersible ballast equipment for survey operations in different water layers

[0055] 1) The winch 12 rotates to lower the ballast device outside the submersible ballast device, and the weight of the ballast device is borne by the chain 13.

[0056] 2) Drive the hydraulic power source through the control box to pressurize the hydraulic cylinder connected to the telescopic boom 241 and slowly extend one section;

[0057] 3) Drive the compressed air power source through the control box to pump compressed air into the airbag 23, and the airbag 23 inflates to 10% of its maximum volume;

[0058] 4) By changing the extension length of the hydraulic cylinder connected to the telescopic arm 241 and the expansion volume of the airbag 23, the buoyancy of the submersible ballast device can be gradually increased, so that the submersible ballast device can remain in various water layers with a depth of 300-6000 meters without power.

[0059] 5) By activating the submersible's ballast thrusters, it can move horizontally across various water layers to conduct survey operations;

[0060] Therefore, the ballast device can be reused. Even if the global voyage does not need to carry 90-100 tons of ballast iron or iron sand, it increases the number and types of shipboard survey equipment, lowers the ship's center of gravity, and increases the ship's continuous cruising time. By changing the buoyancy of the hydraulic cylinder and airbag 23 connected to the telescopic arm 241, the submersible ballast device can stay in different water layers, saving energy consumption and increasing the deep-sea operation time, versatility, efficiency, and safety of the submersible ballast device.

[0061] In addition, the telescopic arm 241 can adjust the stability of the ballast device when it is extended, thereby ensuring the stability and safety of the submersible ballast device.

[0062] This application provides a submersible ballast device. The ballast assembly 20 includes a shell 21, lead sand 22, and an airbag 23. The top of the shell 21 is connected to one end of a chain 13 and is pulled back toward the receiving groove 11 as the chain 13 retracts. The lead sand 22 is contained within the shell 21. The lead sand 22 remains contained within the shell 21 and is either submerged underwater or pulled back to the receiving groove 11 with the shell 21. The lead sand 22 does not need to detach from the shell 21 when the ballast assembly 20 is in an underwater environment, and it does not need to be loaded when the ballast assembly 20 is pulled back to the receiving groove 11. Airbag 23 is located at the bottom of housing 21 and expands in the inflated state, increasing the buoyancy of ballast assembly 20. When ballast assembly 20 needs to be pulled back to receiving groove 11, airbag 23 is in the inflated state, and the floating area of ​​airbag 23 in the inflated state is large, providing greater buoyancy to ballast assembly 20. The buoyancy provided by airbag 23 in the inflated state can overcome the gravity of lead sand 22, preventing lead sand 22 from detaching from housing 21 when ballast assembly 20 is pulled back to receiving groove 11, so that lead sand 22 in housing 21 can be reused.

[0063] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0064] In the description of this application, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, features defined with "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features.

[0065] This document uses specific examples to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this application. The descriptions of the above embodiments are only for the purpose of helping to understand the methods and core ideas of this application. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope based on the ideas of this application. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

Claims

1. A submersible vehicle ballast device, characterized by, The utility model relates to a submersible body, which comprises a tail frame, an opening of the tail frame is arranged at the bottom of the submersible body, the submersible body is connected with a winch and a chain, the chain is wound around the rotating disc end of the winch, a ballast assembly, which comprises a shell, lead sand and an air bag, the top of the shell is connected to one end of the chain and is pulled back towards the tail frame when the chain is retracted, the lead sand is contained in the shell, the air bag is arranged at the bottom of the shell and expands in the inflated state, the floating area of the air bag in the inflated state is large, which can increase the buoyancy of the ballast assembly, the air bag can change the inflation volume according to different buoyancy requirements in the inflated state to provide different buoyancy for the submersible body, a gas pipe is connected between the air bag and the submersible body, one end of the gas pipe is connected to the gas source of the submersible body, the other end of the gas pipe is connected to the air bag and inputs gas into the air bag, the submersible body is provided with a cutting member, the cutting member is installed on the submersible body and is close to the gas pipe, the hydraulic pipe and the chain, the cutting member cuts the gas pipe, the hydraulic pipe and the chain under the trigger state, so that the ballast assembly is thrown on the seabed, the air bag comprises a deflation state, the air bag is retracted towards the bottom of the shell in the deflation state. The shell is connected with a telescopic fan assembly, the telescopic fan assembly comprises a telescopic arm and a fan, the telescopic arm is telescopically installed on the shell and can be extended or retracted in the horizontal direction, the fan is installed on the telescopic arm and increases the buoyancy of the ballast assembly in the rotating state. The telescopic arm has a plurality of telescopic arms, the plurality of telescopic arms are arranged in the horizontal direction and are arranged in the reverse direction. The telescopic arm comprises a plurality of telescopic sub-arms, the plurality of telescopic sub-arms are connected and are sleeved with each other, the plurality of telescopic sub-arms are telescopically extended or retracted in the horizontal direction. The fan is installed on the telescopic sub-arm at the outermost side, the fan comprises a through hole and a plurality of fan blades, the plurality of fan blades are contained in the through hole and are rotatably installed in the through hole. When the ballast assembly is contained in the tail frame, the bottom of the shell is flush with the bottom of the submersible body, the shell moves with the movement of the submersible body.

2. A submersible ballast device according to claim 1, wherein, ​ 3. A submersible ballast device according to claim 2, wherein, ​ 4. A submersible ballast as claimed in claim 2 wherein, ​ 5. A submersible ballast device according to claim 4, wherein, ​ 6. A submersible ballast as claimed in claim 1, wherein, ​

Images