Double-winch feed-forward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovering system based on midship moon pool

Abstract

The invention relates to a double-winch feed-forward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovering system based on a midship moon pool, which remarkably improves the dynamic response speed of the system, reduces the synchronization error and ensures the stability of equipment in the hoisting process through a feed-forward compensation mechanism. Superposing the compensation signal to a control instruction of the slave winch, and dynamically correcting a following error of the slave winch; by combining the load sudden change detection function and the emergency braking function, the system can quickly respond under the abnormal condition, and the safety of equipment and operators is ensured; according to the holding device, through combination of hard connection matched with a plug pin structure and embedded pulley blocks, it is guaranteed that the equipment is not affected by gravity center unbalance loading in the hoisting process, and the safety and efficiency of laying and recovery operation are improved; and a quick-change bolt structure is adopted, so that the mounting and fixing process of equipment is simplified, and the working efficiency is remarkably improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of deep-sea operation unmanned equipment design, and in particular to a double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on a midship moon pool. Background Art

[0002] As the variety of unmanned equipment used in deep-sea operations increases, many have their own unique deployment and recovery scenarios. These include not only traditional deck-based deployment and recovery systems, but also deployment and recovery scenarios located amidships and within the cabins of test vessels. Existing deep-sea deployment devices often use parallel control or master-slave control, but synchronization errors can occur during sudden load changes or turbulent sea conditions, leading to the risk of uneven loading during lifting. Traditional master-slave control suffers from long signal transmission delays and insufficient dynamic response. Furthermore, the dual-winch deployment and recovery process can lead to uneven center of gravity loading. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the above problems, a double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moonpool is proposed. This system can solve the problems of equipment center of gravity deviation and insufficient dynamic response during the hoisting and recovery process, and realize the eccentric deployment and recovery operations of underwater equipment in the midship moonpool. The rigid connection between the equipment and the clamping device and the double-winch feedforward master-slave control can ensure smooth operation of the equipment during deployment and retraction. At the same time, the frequency converter monitors the torque difference between the master and slave winches in real time and is equipped with an emergency braking function to ensure work safety.

[0004] The technical solution of the present invention is: a double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm deployment and recovery system based on the midship moonpool, including a deployment and recovery cabin on the main deck of the moonpool, a master-slave deployment and recovery winch group for deep-sea unmanned equipment, a guide pulley group, a deployment and recovery frame, a clamping device, and a moonpool guide rail;

[0005] The deployment and recovery cabin is the working area of this system, and the equipment is deployed and retracted through the moon pool located in the middle of the cabin;

[0006] The master and slave retractable winch assembly is located behind the moonpool, and the guide pulley assembly is installed directly above the moonpool. The cable at one end away from the master and slave retractable winch assembly is fixedly connected to the top center of the deployment and recovery frame.

[0007] The tripod socket inside the holding outer frame of the holding device is fixed with the latch combination lock pin on the supporting tripod bracket inside the deployment and recovery frame, forming a rigid structure for lifting the equipment; the pulley groups on both sides of the upper end of the holding outer frame of the holding device are embedded in the moon pool guide rail;

[0008] The master-slave synchronous control system controls the master-slave retracting and recovering winch group as the power source, and the deploying and recovering frame moves along the moon pool guide rail in the vertical direction of the deck.

[0009] Preferably, the clamping device includes two parts: a clamping frame and a pulley group. The clamping frame includes an outer clamping frame and a tripod socket inside the outer clamping frame. A pulley group is provided on both sides of the outer upper end of the outer clamping frame. In addition to the frame for placing the equipment, the deployment and recovery frame also includes a triangular bracket, a bracket pin and a locking pin. The triangular bracket is supported inside the deployment and recovery frame to form a rigid support structure. There are bracket pins at the three corners of the triangular bracket. The bracket pin is combined with the tripod socket inside the clamping frame and fixed by a locking pin to form a triangular stable fixed structure. The pulley group is embedded with an I-shaped moon pool guide rail.

[0010] Preferably, the master-slave transceiver winch group consists of two variable frequency electric drive winches, the deployment and recovery process adopts a constant tension mode, and the bottom of the moon pool and the top of the moon pool guide rail use limit feedback signals to control the winch brakes.

[0011] Preferably, the master-slave synchronization control system reduces the synchronization error of the master and slave winches through feedforward compensation, ensures speed synchronization and torque balance, and suppresses eccentric load caused by sudden load changes.

[0012] Preferably, in the master-slave synchronous control system, the master winch uses the speed set value as input and the master winch speed signal as feedback to form a speed closed-loop control; the slave winch uses the master winch speed feedback signal as feedforward input and the slave winch's own speed feedback to form a closed-loop control.

[0013] Preferably, the control equation of the slave winch is:

[0014]

[0015] where u slave is the control voltage from the winch, k ff is the feedforward gain, v master Main winch speed, v slave is the winch speed, v ref is the reference speed, k p 、k d is the PID control parameter.

[0016] Preferably, the master-slave synchronous control system monitors the master-slave winch torque difference in real time, and when the master-slave winch torque difference is greater than the set difference threshold ΔT thres When the load is exceeded, the emergency brake is triggered to prevent the load from exceeding the limit.

[0017] The beneficial effects of the present invention are: the present invention is based on the double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system of the midship moon pool, and through the feedforward compensation mechanism, it significantly improves the dynamic response speed of the system, reduces the synchronization error, and ensures the stability of the equipment during the hoisting process; combined with the load mutation detection and emergency braking functions, the system can respond quickly under abnormal conditions to ensure the safety of the equipment and operators; the clamping device is hard-connected through the pin structure and embedded in the pulley group to ensure that the equipment is not affected by the center of gravity eccentricity during the hoisting process, thereby improving the safety and efficiency of the deployment and recovery operation; the use of a quick-change pin structure simplifies the installation and fixing process of the equipment, and significantly improves the operating efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the present invention's double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moonpool;

[0019] Figure 2 A top view of the double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moonpool of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a diagram of the retractable winch assembly in the system of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 This is a schematic structural diagram of the system holding device of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the present invention's deployment and recovery frame being fixed to a holding device;

[0023] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the support structure of the holding device of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the fixing method of the clamping device and the moon pool guide rail of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the holding frame pulley and moon pool guide rail;

[0026] Figure 9A The workflow diagram for the system of the present invention is laid out;

[0027] Figure 9B This is a flowchart of the system recovery process of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 10 This is the master-slave control block diagram of the moon pool double winch feedforward of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. This embodiment is implemented based on the technical solution of the present invention, and provides a detailed implementation method and specific operation process, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0030] like Figure 1 、 2 As shown, the dual-winch feedforward master-slave control arm deployment and recovery system based on the midship moonpool is used to attach and detach ROVs (remotely operated unmanned vehicles) to the moonpool main deck and the bottom of the ship, and to raise and lower them within the moonpool. The system includes a deployment and recovery cabin 1 on the moonpool main deck, a deep-sea unmanned equipment deployment and recovery winch assembly 2, a guide pulley assembly 3, a deployment and recovery frame 4, a clamping device 5, and moonpool guide rails 6. The deployment and recovery cabin 1 is the system's main workspace, where equipment is deployed and retracted from the moonpool located midship. The master-slave deployment and recovery winch assembly 2 is located behind the moonpool, and the guide pulley assembly 3 is installed directly above the moonpool. The cable at one end, away from the master-slave deployment and recovery winch assembly 2, is fixedly connected to the top center of the deployment and recovery frame 4. The support triangle in the deployment and recovery frame 4 is removably fixed to the clamping device 5 via a latch mechanism. The deployment and recovery frame 4 then moves perpendicular to the deck along the moonpool guide rails 6, powered by the deployment and recovery winch assembly 2. The clamping device 5 is attached to the inner wall of the moonpool via pulleys and connected to the moonpool guide rails 6. The deep-sea unmanned equipment retracting and retrieving winch group 2 is arranged behind the midship moon pool and serves as the power source for deploying and recovering the unmanned equipment. The retrieving and retrieving winch group 2 consists of two variable frequency electric drive winches, such as Figure 3 As shown, the system primarily consists of a drum 2.1, a reducer 2.2, a wall frame 2.3, a drive motor 2.4, a drive and control system 2.5, a hoisting cable wound around the drum, and accessories. Feedforward master-slave control reduces signal latency and improves dynamic response. A guide pulley assembly 3, located above the moonpool, allows the cable connecting the deployment and recovery frame 4 to be perpendicular to the moonpool, guiding the deployment and recovery of the equipment and the frame. The deployment and recovery frame 4 is secured to the clamping device 5 via a latch mechanism to protect the equipment. The rope guide serves as the load-bearing structure for the wire rope retraction and deployment.

[0031] The clamping device 5 is a key component of this system, mainly composed of two parts: a clamping frame and a pulley group. The clamping frame is rigidly connected to the support structure of the deployment and recovery frame 4 by bolts, and the clamping frame is connected to the moon pool guide rail 6 via a pulley. The three plug structures of the support structure of the deployment and recovery frame 4 are fixed in combination with the clamping frame socket to achieve a stable center of gravity during the hoisting and lifting process. The clamping device is combined with the moon pool guide rail 6 through the pulley group to ensure that the equipment is not affected by the center of gravity eccentricity during the hoisting process, thereby ensuring the stability of the process. The moon pool guide rail 6 is installed on the inner wall of the midship moon pool, located behind the clamping device, and the overall length of the guide rail is higher than the depth of the moon pool. The clamping device moves with the hoisting equipment during the deployment and recovery process and guides the hoisting equipment.

[0032] 1. Detailed description of the technical solution

[0033] 1) Before deployment, the deep-sea unmanned equipment is installed in the deployment and recovery frame 4 using a guide device. The two steel wire ropes of the two variable-frequency electric-driven winches in the winch group 3 are connected to the deployment and recovery frame 4. The clamping device 5 is bolted to the bracket portion of the deployment and recovery frame 4. The bracket latches of the deployment and recovery frame 4's triangular bracket are engaged, and a locking pin is used to form a hard connection, securing the deployment and recovery frame 4 as a whole to the clamping device 5. The deployment and recovery frame 4 is raised above the moonpool using the winch group 3. When it reaches the height of the clamping frame socket, the brake of the winch group 3 is maintained, and the latch structure is tightened front and back to ensure that the equipment is safely and securely fixed above the moonpool before being hoisted.

[0034] 2) If Figure 4 As shown, the holding device consists of a holding frame and a pulley assembly. In addition to the frame for placing the equipment, the deployment and recovery frame 4 also includes a tripod 4.1, a bracket latch 4.2, and a locking pin 4.3. The holding frame includes a holding outer frame 5.2 and a tripod socket 5.1 inside the holding outer frame. There are pulley assemblies 5.3 on both sides of the upper end of the holding outer frame 5.2. The tripod 4.1 is supported inside the deployment and recovery frame 4, forming a rigid support structure ( Figure 5 ), there are bracket latches 4.2 on the three corners of the triangular bracket 4.1, which are combined with the tripod socket 5.1 in the holding frame and fixed by the locking pin 4.3 to form a triangular stable structure ( Figure 6 , for clear vision Figure 6 The deployment and recovery frame 4 is not shown in the figure) to ensure that the equipment will not shake due to the shift of the center of gravity during the hoisting process. The outer holding frame 5.2 is combined with the moon pool guide rail 6 through the pulley group 5.3 to realize the guiding function of the equipment during the hoisting process. The design of the pulley group 5.3 enables the holding frame to move up and down smoothly along the moon pool guide rail 6, while preventing the equipment from tilting due to overloading during the hoisting process. The tripod socket 5.1 in the holding frame cooperates with the pin structure of the bracket part in the deployment and recovery frame 4 to form a rigid guarantee for the hoisting of the equipment. During the hoisting process, the socket and the pin are rigidly connected through the locking pin to ensure that the center of gravity of the equipment is always in a stable state, avoiding safety hazards caused by the shift of the center of gravity. The pulley group 5.3 is embedded in the moon pool guide rail slide 6.2 of the I-shaped structure ( Figure 7 、 8 ) restricts the movement of the clamping device and frame structure to the vertical direction of the moonpool, ensuring smooth movement along the guide rails during the equipment's hoisting. The pulley design not only improves hoisting efficiency but also significantly reduces the risk of overloading during the process.

[0035] The clamping device is a combination of a hard connection with a pin structure and an embedded pulley block, ensuring that the equipment is not affected by eccentric loading of the center of gravity during the hoisting process, thus ensuring the stability of the process. Before the deployment operation, the winch is lifted and braked, and fixed above the moonpool to ensure the safety of the equipment before it is hoisted. During the deployment and recovery process, the clamping device is connected to the moonpool guide rail through the pulley block to ensure that the equipment moves smoothly along the guide rail. The triangular structure of the pin-type equipment ensures the stability of the equipment's center of gravity during the deployment process. Avoid the risk of eccentric loading. When the equipment reaches the bottom or top of the moonpool, it reaches the moonpool guide rail limit, and the winch group brakes to ensure that the equipment is stably fixed in the designated position.

[0036] 3) If Figure 9A During deployment operations, the unmanned equipment hoisting winch assembly activates constant tension mode and the clamping device opens. The control system then directs the winch assembly to apply the normally closed brake. A handle controls the retraction and deployment direction, and a speed knob sets the deployment speed. The drive motor rotates the drum through a speed reducer. The winch can be stopped under any conditions, and the normally closed brake ensures that the drum is braked and the equipment remains in the stopped position.

[0037] 4) After being deployed to the bottom of the moonpool, the recovery frame reaches the bottom of the moonpool guide rails. The control system, based on limit feedback signals, activates the winch brakes. The clamping mechanism maintains a stable center of gravity throughout the process, ensuring the frame is securely fixed to the bottom of the moonpool. During underwater operations, the frame remains at the bottom of the moonpool, awaiting completion and return to the frame.

[0038] 5) If Figure 9B After the underwater unmanned equipment completes its operation, it returns to the deployment and recovery frame. A signal is sent back to the operator via the equipment, allowing recovery operations to proceed. The control system activates the winch's constant tension mode, applies the winch brake, adjusts the handle to the recovery direction, and controls the recovery speed using the speed knob. The drive motor, through the reducer, rotates the cylinder, while the guide pulley assembly and moonpool guide rails ensure stability in the recovery direction. The winch can be stopped under any conditions, and the normally closed brake ensures that the cylinder is braked, keeping the equipment in the stopped position.

[0039] 6) After hoisting above the moonpool, the recovery frame is deployed to the top of the moonpool rails. The control system, based on limit feedback signals, activates the winch brake to ensure the frame is stably fixed above the moonpool. The latch mechanism of the clamping device can be disengaged, allowing operators to inspect, adjust, and recover the underwater unmanned vehicle.

[0040] 7) If Figure 10During the deployment and recovery process, the deployment and recovery winch group adopts a master-slave synchronous control system combined with feedforward technology. Feedforward compensation is used to reduce the synchronization error of the master and slave winches, ensure speed synchronization and torque balance, and suppress the eccentric load caused by sudden load changes. The master winch uses the inverter command signal (speed set value) as input and the master winch speed signal (real-time acquisition through the encoder) as feedback to form a speed closed-loop control. The slave winch uses the master winch speed feedback signal as feedforward input and the slave winch's own speed feedback to form a closed-loop control. The control equation is:

[0041]

[0042] where u slave is the control voltage from the winch, k ff is the feedforward gain, v master Main winch speed, v slave is the winch speed, v ref is the reference speed, k p 、k d is the PID control parameter. At the same time, the master-slave synchronous control system monitors the master-slave winch torque difference in real time. When the master-slave winch torque difference is greater than the set difference threshold ΔT thres When the load exceeds the rated torque (adjustable, generally set to 10% of the rated torque), the brake triggers emergency braking to prevent overloading. This ensures speed synchronization of the dual winch system during the hoisting and recovery process, ensures torque synchronization of the two winches in constant tension mode, maintains the center of gravity stability during the equipment deployment and recovery process, reduces the deviation between the two motors, and ensures the stability of the equipment during lifting.

[0043] 8) The moon pool guide rail consists of 6.1 guide rail body and 6.2 support bracket ( Figure 8 ), the guide rail is combined with the clamping device to ensure that the center of gravity of the lifting equipment is not deviated, thus achieving the guiding function during the deployment and recovery process.

[0044] The present invention is based on the double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system of the midship moon pool:

[0045] 1. Since the parallel synchronous control of the double winches and the general master-slave control have synchronization errors and load imbalance risks, the double winch deployment and recovery system adopts feedforward master-slave synchronous control technology to reduce synchronization errors and improve the stability of the deployment and recovery process.

[0046] 2. The compensation signal is added to the control command of the slave winch to dynamically correct the following error of the slave winch. The frequency converter monitors the torque difference between the master and slave winches in real time. If the difference exceeds the threshold, emergency braking is triggered.

[0047] The use of a clamping device to achieve a hard connection for hoisting unmanned equipment ensures that the equipment is not affected by the center of gravity and load during the hoisting process, ensuring process stability. The use of a quick-change latch structure speeds up the operation process.

[0048] The above-described embodiments merely represent specific implementations of the present invention. While the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent. It should be noted that a person skilled in the art would be able to make various modifications and improvements without departing from the spirit of the present invention, all of which fall within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the patent for this invention shall be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool, characterized in that: It includes the deployment and recovery cabin on the main deck of the moon pool, the master-slave winch group for deep-sea unmanned equipment, the guide pulley group, the deployment and recovery frame, the holding device, and the moon pool guide rails; The deployment and recovery cabin is the working area of this system, and the equipment is deployed and retracted through the moon pool located in the middle of the cabin; The master and slave retracting winch group is located behind the moonpool, and the guide pulley group is installed just above the moonpool. The cable at one end away from the master and slave retracting winch group is fixedly connected to the top center of the deployment and recovery frame. The tripod socket inside the holding outer frame of the holding device is fixed with the latch combination lock pin on the supporting tripod bracket inside the deployment and recovery frame, forming a rigid structure for lifting the equipment; the pulley groups on both sides of the upper end of the holding outer frame of the holding device are embedded in the moon pool guide rail; The master-slave synchronous control system controls the master-slave retracting and deploying winch group as the power source, and the deploying and recovering frame moves along the moon pool guide rail in the vertical direction of the deck.

2. The double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The clamping device includes two parts: a clamping frame and a pulley group. The clamping frame includes an outer clamping frame and a tripod socket inside the outer clamping frame. Pulley groups are provided on both sides of the outer upper end of the outer clamping frame. In addition to the frame for placing the equipment, the deployment and recovery frame also includes a tripod bracket, a bracket pin and a locking pin. The tripod bracket is supported inside the deployment and recovery frame to form a rigid support structure. There are bracket pins at the three corners of the tripod bracket. The bracket pin is combined with the tripod socket inside the clamping frame and fixed by a locking pin to form a triangular stable fixed structure. The pulley group is embedded with an I-shaped moon pool guide rail.

3. The double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The master-slave transceiver winch group consists of two variable frequency electric drive winches. The deployment and recovery process adopts a constant tension mode, and the limit feedback signal is used to control the winch brakes at the bottom of the moon pool and the top of the moon pool guide rail.

4. The double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The master-slave synchronization control system reduces the synchronization error of the master and slave winches through feedforward compensation, ensures speed synchronization and torque balance, and suppresses eccentric load caused by sudden load changes.

5. The double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to claim 4 is characterized in that: In the master-slave synchronous control system, the master winch takes the speed set value as input and the master winch speed signal as feedback to form a speed closed-loop control; the slave winch takes the master winch speed feedback signal as feedforward input and the slave winch's own speed feedback to form a closed-loop control.

6. The double winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to claim 5 is characterized in that: The control equation of the slave winch is: where u slave is the control voltage from the winch, k ff is the feedforward gain, v master Main winch speed, v slave is the winch speed, v ref is the reference speed, k p 、k d is the PID control parameter.

7. The double-winch feedforward master-slave control arm hoisting and recovery system based on the midship moon pool according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that: The master-slave synchronous control system monitors the master-slave winch torque difference in real time. When the master-slave winch torque difference is greater than the set difference threshold ΔT thres When the load is exceeded, the emergency brake is triggered to prevent the load from exceeding the limit.

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