A wave break structure for small vessels incorporating a bulwark and a deck rail

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of small ship combined bulwark and deck rail wave baffle structure, it is suitable for the small fishing vessels of ship length less than 30 meters, transport vessels and near-shore operation platform.The structure includes L-type wave baffle, hinge base and locking mechanism, wave baffle vertically can be used as bulwark and rail, block wave and protect people and goods safety;When turned outwards, it forms a deck extension slope, facilitating loading and unloading of goods, while generating reverse water pressure by immersion, suppressing ship roll, simulating bilge keel function.The application solves the problem of traditional small ship bulwark fixation, single function and insufficient anti-overturning capacity, and has the comprehensive advantages of wave blocking, protection, loading and unloading convenience and stability enhancement.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention is primarily applied to the shipbuilding industry, particularly to small vessels, fishing vessels, and transport vessels in rural areas. It can be widely used on vessels in inland waterways, lakes, coastal bays, and near-shore areas to improve vessel safety and ease of use, with significant practical value, especially in the design of deck railings and bulwarks. Background Technology

[0002] 1. Overview of Existing Technologies Currently, for large steel-hulled vessels (such as fishing boats and cargo ships 50-200 meters long), the bulwarks are designed to be high, effectively blocking waves and also serving as railings. However, for small and medium-sized vessels, especially fishing and transport vessels in rural areas (20-40 meters long), safety facilities are usually quite rudimentary due to lower costs. When used in inland rivers, lakes, coastal bays, and near-shore areas, these vessels need both open decks for easy access for personnel and cargo, and bulwarks to prevent cargo and personnel from slipping into the water. However, existing designs typically do not effectively combine the functions of bulwarks and deck railings, nor do they have structures that allow for easy disassembly and folding, leading to safety hazards and operational inconveniences in actual use. There is no existing technology that combines the functions of bulwarks and deck railings, and can be disassembled and folded down as needed, making vessels more flexible and safer in different usage scenarios.

[0003] 2. Disadvantages of existing technologies Disadvantage 1: Traditional medium and large-sized ships, especially iron-hulled and steel-hulled vessels, are typically designed with high freeboards. These freeboards effectively block waves, but due to their large size, they usually require large lifting equipment for loading and unloading cargo. In ocean voyages, large ships have high freeboards, making it difficult for swells to penetrate the deck, and deck railings are usually used instead of bulwarks. However, for small vessels under 30 meters and rural vessels, which are typically used in inland rivers, lakes, coastal and near-shore areas, wave heights are usually lower (generally not exceeding 2 meters). Therefore, they do not require the tall wave shields of ocean-going vessels. Instead, a combined freeboard design that both blocks waves and prevents personnel and cargo from slipping can be used.

[0004] Disadvantage 2: Currently, the bulwarks of fiberglass, wooden, and small-to-medium-sized aluminum alloy vessels are typically fixed to the hull and used as wave deflectors. Due to limitations in materials and design, these bulwarks cannot be disassembled or lowered, forcing crew and cargo to enter and exit only through fixed openings, resulting in limited operational flexibility. Especially during berthing, vessels need to open their decks for loading and unloading personnel and cargo, but the fixed bulwarks prevent this from being met. Furthermore, in marine ranching operations, vessels require a multi-angle open platform, a requirement that current fixed bulwarks cannot support.

[0005] Disadvantage 3: In fishing facilities and offshore aquaculture platforms used in bays and inland lakes, small vessels, especially those from rural areas, typically do not install bulwarks to provide an open deck for loading, unloading, and personnel access. However, this design makes it easy for personnel and cargo to slip into the water during typhoons or waves. While some vessels do install deck railings, these are still insufficient to effectively prevent waves from intruding into the deck. Designing a combination of deck railings and wave deflectors that can be erected as bulwarks as needed would effectively solve these problems.

[0006] The analysis of the background technology above shows that the existing technology has significant shortcomings in meeting the safety and flexibility requirements of small vessels and rural vessels under different operating conditions. The present invention aims to improve the safety, flexibility and functionality of small vessels through an innovative design that combines bulwarks and railings, and solve the problem that the existing technology cannot simultaneously meet the multiple requirements of wave protection, protection and openness. Summary of the Invention

[0007] To address the problems of insufficient wave-blocking capacity, low loading and unloading efficiency, and poor anti-capsulation caused by the separation of functions between bulwarks and deck railings and the fixed structure of existing small vessels, this invention proposes a wave-blocking plate structure that combines bulwarks and deck railings for small vessels. The hinged wave-blocking plate design achieves the following objectives:

[0008] 1. Functional integration: Combining the bulwark wave protection and deck railing protection into a single structure;

[0009] 2. Flexible operation: Supports rapid outward opening, freeing up deck space and creating loading and unloading ramps;

[0010] 3. Enhanced safety: The outward-facing wave deflector generates a stabilizing torque when submerged in water, suppressing ship rolling.

[0011] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0012] 1. Integrated wave shield structure: L-shaped cross-section design: The wave shield consists of a vertical wave shield section and a horizontal extension section. The vertical section is ≥80cm high to meet the requirements for wave shielding and protection; the horizontal section is 10-30cm wide and has a built-in rubber buffer layer for anti-collision buffering and limiting the wave shield from tipping inward.

[0013] Segmented layout: The wave shield is divided into multiple independent units along the edge of the deck, supporting local area mode switching (such as partial wave shielding and partial openness).

[0014] 2. Hinge and locking mechanism: One-way hinge base: Installed at the edge of the deck, limiting the wave deflector to only being able to flip outwards to the outside of the hull, avoiding occupying internal deck space; dual-mode locking:

[0015] Wave-blocking mode: The wave-blocking plate is fixed in a vertical position by a latch lock;

[0016] Open mode: The outward turning angle (30°-60°) is locked by adjusting the angle bolts to form a stable loading and unloading ramp.

[0017] 3. Anti-capsizing mechanism: Enhanced stability under immersion: The outward-facing wave deflector is partially immersed in water (immersion depth 20%-50%), and the water flow applies reverse pressure (F1, F2) to it, generating a stabilizing torque (M=F×L) through the long lever arm (L), which suppresses the ship's rolling.

[0018] Symmetrical effect: When the ship tilts, the wave deflectors on both sides are simultaneously submerged in water, forming a symmetrical restoring torque and accelerating the ship's return to right.

[0019] 4. Auxiliary function design: Drainage hole array: installed in the vertical wave-blocking section to accelerate the discharge of waves rushing into the deck;

[0020] Collision protection optimization: The surface of the rubber buffer layer is equipped with anti-slip texture to increase loading and unloading friction and disperse impact energy;

[0021] Sealing protection: A sealing strip is installed at the connection between the hinge base and the deck to prevent seawater from seeping in.

[0022] The present invention achieves the following significant advantages through the above-described solution:

[0023] 1. Multifunctional integration: In wave-blocking mode, the integrated structure simultaneously meets the needs of wave blocking (bulwark) and protection (railing); in open mode, the outward-folding wave-blocking plate forms a loading and unloading ramp, improving operational efficiency.

[0024] 2. Improved anti-overturning performance: The stabilizing moment generated by the outward-turning wave deflector when submerged in water is 30%-50% greater than that of traditional bilge keels, significantly reducing the risk of overturning of small vessels.

[0025] 3. Space and cost optimization: The outward-folding design avoids occupying the internal deck space and is suitable for the compact layout of small vessels; a single structure replaces traditional bulwarks, railings and bilge keels, reducing manufacturing costs by more than 20%.

[0026] 4. Safety and durability: The rubber buffer layer (13) reduces the damage caused by collisions between the hull and the dock, and extends the structural life; the corrosion-resistant materials (such as aluminum alloy and fiberglass) and the sealing design are suitable for long-term use in the marine environment. Attached Figure Description

[0027] Figure 1 : Partial structural diagrams of the wave barrier in vertical and horizontal positions;

[0028] Figure 2 Side view of a ship;

[0029] Figure 3 Three-quarters view of a ship;

[0030] Figure 4 (Ship's front view);

[0031] Figure 5 Ship top view;

[0032] Figure 6 : Schematic diagram of the anti-overturning principle of the wave baffle plate when it is turned outward and immersed in water. Detailed Implementation

[0033] The present invention will now be further described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0034] The hinge base is fixed to the edge of the deck by welding or bolting, and its rotation axis is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the ship; the vertical wave-blocking section of the L-shaped wave-blocking plate is 80cm high and the horizontal extension section is 20cm wide, with a built-in 10mm thick seawater-resistant rubber buffer layer; the locking mechanism includes a pin lock and an angle adjustment bolt, the pin lock passes through the top of the wave-blocking plate and the deck fixing hole, and the angle adjustment bolt is located on the side of the hinge base.

[0035] Wave-blocking mode: The pin lock is inserted into the fixing hole, the wave-blocking plate remains vertical, and continuous protection is formed around the deck;

[0036] Loading and unloading mode: Pull out the latch lock, the wave deflector flips outward to form a 45° angle (α) with the hull shell, and locks the position by adjusting the angle bolt to form a slope from the water surface to the deck (the slope is adjustable from 30° to 60°); the outer surface of the rubber buffer layer is flush with the edge of the deck, covering the area where the hull contacts the dock.

[0037] When the ship's unilateral tilt angle θ ≥ 15°, the outward-facing wave deflector is submerged in water to a depth h = 30 cm. The water flow generates a reverse pressure F1 on the wave deflector, which is perpendicular to the surface of the wave deflector. The stabilizing moment L is the horizontal distance from the center of the wave deflector to the ship's center of gravity, and the stabilizing moment M = F1 × L, which suppresses the ship's rolling. The wave deflector on the other side is simultaneously submerged in water, generating a reverse pressure F2, forming a symmetrical stabilizing moment, which accelerates the ship's recovery.

[0038] The wave-blocking plate is divided into independent units along the edge of the deck, each unit being 2m long and connected by independent hinge bases; during operation, some units can be selected to remain vertical to block the waves, while the remaining units can be turned outwards to form loading and unloading ramps.

[0039] The surface of the rubber buffer layer is equipped with horizontal anti-slip grooves with a depth of 2mm and a spacing of 50mm; the width of the horizontal extension section is increased to 30cm to increase the contact area with the dock and disperse the impact force.

[0040] Although the invention has been specifically shown and described in conjunction with preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes in form and detail may be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims, all of which shall be within the scope of protection of the invention.

Claims

1. A wave-breaking structure combining bulwarks and deck railings for small vessels, characterized in that, include: The L-shaped wave deflector consists of a vertical wave deflector section and a horizontal extension section. The vertical wave deflector section is ≥80cm high, and the horizontal extension section has a built-in rubber buffer layer. The hinge base is fixed to the edge of the ship's deck and connected to the bottom of the L-shaped wave deflector, allowing the wave deflector to be rotated outward around the hinge axis to the outside of the hull. The locking mechanism, including a pin lock and an angle adjusting bolt, is used to lock the wave deflector in a vertical wave-blocking state or an outward-folding open state. When the wave-blocking plate is in a vertical position, it surrounds the deck and serves as both a bulwark wave-blocking device and a deck railing protection device. In the outward-open state, the wave deflector forms an angle of 30°-60° with the hull shell, the rubber buffer layer of the horizontal extension section is flush with the edge of the deck, and the wave deflector is partially immersed in water, suppressing the ship's rolling through the reaction force of water pressure.

2. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The hinge base is a one-way rotating hinge, which restricts the wave deflector to only being able to flip outward to the outside of the hull, with a maximum flip angle of 90°.

3. The wave-blocking structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The vertical wave-blocking section is equipped with an array of drainage holes with a diameter of 5-10 mm and a spacing of 50-100 mm.

4. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The rubber buffer layer is 5-15mm thick and made of seawater-resistant rubber, with anti-slip grooves on its outer surface.

5. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The wave-breaking plate has a segmented structure, with each segment being 1-3m in length. Each segment is installed via an independent hinged base, supporting segmented switching between vertical and outward-folding states.

6. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the outward-open state, the depth to which the wave deflector is immersed in water is 20%-50% of the total height of the wave deflector.

7. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The width of the horizontal extension section is 10-30cm, and the gap between it and the edge of the deck is ≤5mm.

8. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, A sealing strip is provided at the connection between the hinge base and the deck.

9. The wave-breaking plate structure according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The wave deflector is made of lightweight aluminum alloy or fiberglass composite material.

10. The wave-breaking plate structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The angle adjustment bolt controls the outward angle of the wave deflector by the depth of its thread insertion.

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