Modular pile leg and aquaculture net cage comprising same

Abstract

The utility model discloses a modularization pile leg and a culture net cage with the modularization pile leg, the modularization pile leg comprises at least two pile leg units, each pile leg unit is a hollow pipe body, the two sides of the hollow pipe body extend outwards along the pipe diameter direction to form racks; every two adjacent pile leg units are detachably connected, a mounting plate is arranged at the connecting position of each pile leg unit, each mounting plate is provided with a plurality of limiting through holes, the positions of the limiting through holes of the mounting plates at the connecting position of every two adjacent pile leg units are in one-to-one correspondence, and every two mounting plates are stacked. Every two adjacent pile leg units are fixedly connected through fastening matching of the fastening connecting pieces and the limiting through holes, and the racks between every two adjacent pile leg units extend in the axial direction of the pipe body. The pile leg is formed by splicing the multiple pile legs which are detachably assembled, modular installation is achieved, the transportation and installation process of the pile leg is greatly simplified, and the transportation and installation cost is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the field of marine engineering equipment, in particular to a modular pile leg applied to cage aquaculture equipment and a cage containing the modular pile leg. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, the decline of offshore fishery resources due to overfishing and environmental pollution has become a global problem. Expanding aquaculture into deepwater and deep-sea waters has become an inevitable trend, with aquaculture gradually shifting from nearshore to deep-sea areas. As an effective marine aquaculture method, aquaculture cages have been widely used and developed around the world.

[0003] At present, aquaculture cages are mainly composed of a frame system and an anchoring system. The frame system is assembled from floating bodies such as buoys, and then fixed to a certain water layer height by the anchoring system. The above-mentioned structure aquaculture cages have poor wind and wave resistance and are generally set in areas with small winds and waves. They are easily affected by natural disasters such as typhoons. The self-elevating lifting cage is an advanced aquaculture cage. It can be freely lifted and lowered on the water surface and underwater according to aquaculture needs and environmental conditions. The self-elevating cage includes pile legs, a frame system, and a lifting transmission system. The frame system is movably installed on the pile legs. The frame system is controlled by the lifting transmission system, so that the frame system can be freely lifted and lowered along the pile legs on the water surface and underwater, realizing functions such as aquaculture in specific water layers and typhoon protection. The pile legs are an important component of the aquaculture cage. They are directly related to the safety and stability of the cage. The design and construction methods of the pile legs are constantly improving to adapt to different marine environments and improve aquaculture efficiency.

[0004] However, existing pile legs are used to support the frame system, enabling it to float and operate stably in the ocean. Most pile legs are made of multiple leg units welded together or bolted together and then welded together. After being assembled with the frame system onshore, they are towed to the desired sea area and launched. The existing pile leg structure or assembly method still has the following drawbacks:

[0005] 1. Due to the large size, weight, and length of the pile legs, their transportation and installation become significant challenges. The large size and weight of the pile legs increase the cost of both onshore and offshore transport. Furthermore, the large size and length of the pile legs require sophisticated lifting equipment and a demanding lifting environment, resulting in high installation costs. Furthermore, the pile leg height cannot be adjusted to suit actual working conditions, significantly reducing the leg's applicability.

[0006] 2. Although this connection method can ensure the stability of the pile legs, when the pile legs need to be replaced or repaired, a lot of welding and cutting work is required, which is not only time-consuming and labor-intensive, but also increases maintenance costs. Utility Model Content

[0007] In order to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, one of the purposes of the present invention is to provide a modular pile leg. The pile leg of the present application is composed of multiple detachable pile legs, which realizes modular installation, greatly simplifies the transportation and installation process of the pile leg, and reduces transportation and installation costs.

[0008] The second purpose of the utility model is to provide a gear rack lifting aquaculture cage.

[0009] One of the purposes of the present utility model is achieved by adopting the following technical solution: a modular pile leg for supporting a gear rack to lift aquaculture cages, the modular pile leg comprising at least two pile leg units, each of the pile leg units being a hollow tube body, with racks extending outward on both sides of the hollow tube body along the tube diameter direction; two adjacent pile leg units are detachably connected, and the rack between the two adjacent pile leg units extends along the axial direction of the tube body.

[0010] Furthermore, a mounting plate is provided at the connection of each of the pile leg units, and each mounting plate is provided with a plurality of limiting through holes. The positions of the limiting through holes of the mounting plates at the connection of two adjacent pile leg units correspond one to one. The two mounting plates are stacked on each other, and the two adjacent pile leg units are fixedly connected by fastening the fastening connectors and the limiting through holes.

[0011] Furthermore, the mounting plate is an annular mounting plate, which is located at the end of each leg unit and is formed by the inner wall of the tube body extending inwardly in the radial direction. A central opening is provided in the middle of each annular mounting plate.

[0012] Furthermore, each of the pile leg units is provided with a marker near the connection portion for positioning the direction of the rack so as to facilitate the connection between two adjacent sections of the rack.

[0013] Furthermore, the marker is one or a combination of two or more of an opening, a through hole, a docking line, a groove, and a protrusion.

[0014] Furthermore, the lower portion of the pile leg unit located at the lowest layer is the mud-entering portion, and a plurality of annular reinforcement plates for increasing the strength of the pipe body are provided on the pipe body located at the mud-entering portion.

[0015] Furthermore, the inner wall of the central tube of the pile leg unit located at the bottom layer is provided with a reinforcing plate, and the reinforcing plate is provided with a plurality of reinforcing ribs distributed in a radial pattern.

[0016] Furthermore, the rack on the leg unit located at the bottom layer has two different rack thicknesses, the rack thickness on the upper part of the leg unit is greater than the rack thickness on the lower part of the leg unit; the rack thickness of the rack on the upper leg unit is the same as the rack thickness of the upper rack on the bottom leg unit.

[0017] Furthermore, each of the pile leg units is provided with a hoisting hole for hoisting the hollow tube body.

[0018] The second purpose of the present invention is achieved by the following technical solution: a gear rack lifting aquaculture cage, comprising the modular pile legs, a cage body, and a gear transmission device as described above, wherein the gear transmission device drives the cage body to move up and down along the rack of the modular pile legs.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0020] 1. Modular design: The pile legs of the present application are composed of multiple detachable pile legs, which realizes modular installation, greatly simplifies the transportation and installation process of the pile legs, and reduces transportation and installation costs.

[0021] 2. Detachable connection method: By setting mounting rings, limit through holes and fastening connectors at the pile leg connection position, the detachable connection is realized and the pile legs can be recycled, which reduces costs, facilitates the replacement and maintenance of the pile legs, reduces welding and cutting work, and saves time and energy.

[0022] 3. The problem of the connection between the teeth of the two leg units: The application proposes to design multiple positions and numbers of limit holes on the mounting plate. During the on-site assembly process, by adjusting the alignment of the limit holes, the teeth of the two leg units can be initially connected to ensure the up and down lifting function of the cage body. In order to improve the connection accuracy, this application also designs markers on the connection of the leg units to facilitate the alignment of the limit holes and the position of the markers during assembly, which are used together to locate the direction and connection of the rack, providing double connection guarantee.

[0023] 4. Strengthened structure design: Multiple strengthening structures are set inside the bottom pile legs to improve the strength of the mud-entering part of the pile legs and ensure the stability and durability of the entire pile legs.

[0024] 5. Reduce the impact of ocean currents: Openings are opened on the outer wall of the pile legs to improve the water tightness of the pile legs, effectively reduce the impact of ocean currents on the pile legs, and improve the stability and durability of the pile legs.

[0025] 6. Optimized tooth design: By setting racks of different thicknesses on different pile legs, the load-bearing capacity and stability of the pile legs are enhanced. At the same time, this design can also be flexibly adjusted according to actual needs, reducing design and manufacturing costs. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of a two-stage modular pile leg in a preferred embodiment 1 of the present utility model;

[0027] Figure 2This is a disassembly diagram of a two-section modular pile leg of a preferred embodiment 1 of the present utility model;

[0028] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a longitudinal section disassembly of a two-section modular pile leg of a preferred embodiment 1 of the present utility model;

[0029] Figure 4 for Figure 3 A magnified schematic diagram of point A in the middle;

[0030] Figure 5 for Figure 4 A schematic cross-sectional view of the assembled first leg unit and the second leg unit;

[0031] Figure 6 for Figure 3 A magnified schematic diagram of point B in the middle;

[0032] Figure 7 for Figure 3 The enlarged schematic diagram of point C in the middle;

[0033] Figure 8 for Figure 3 The enlarged schematic diagram of point D in the middle;

[0034] Figure 9 This is a disassembly diagram of a three-section modular pile leg of a preferred embodiment 2 of the present utility model;

[0035] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of a longitudinal section disassembly of a three-section modular pile leg of a preferred embodiment 2 of the present utility model;

[0036] Figure 11 for Figure 10 Enlarged schematic diagram of E / F in the middle;

[0037] Figure 12 This is a schematic longitudinal section of a three-section modular pile leg of a preferred embodiment 2 of the present utility model;

[0038] Figure 13 for Figure 10 Enlarged schematic diagram of G / H in the middle;

[0039] Figure 14 This is a structural diagram of a gear rack lifting aquaculture cage in a preferred embodiment 3 of the present invention;

[0040] In the figure: 100, two-section modular pile leg; 200, three-section modular pile leg; 1, first pile leg unit; 11, mud entry part; 12, annular reinforcement plate; 13, reinforcement plate; 14, reinforcement rib; 2, second pile leg unit; 3, third pile leg unit; 4, rack; 41, thick rack; 42, thin rack; 5, mounting plate; 6, limit through hole; 7, middle opening; 8, marker opening; 9, sling hole; 300, cage body; 400, gear transmission device; 500, gear rack and pinion for lifting the aquaculture cage. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] Below, the present invention is further described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods. It should be noted that, under the premise of no conflict, the various embodiments or technical features described below can be arbitrarily combined to form new embodiments.

[0042] Example 1 Two-stage modular pile legs

[0043] like Figure 1-8 As shown, the modular pile leg of this embodiment 1 is a two-stage modular pile leg 100, which is used to support the gear rack to lift the aquaculture cage. The two-stage modular pile leg 100 includes a first pile leg unit 1 and a second pile leg unit 2 located at the upper end of the first pile leg unit 1. The two pile leg units are hollow tubes, and racks 4 extend outward on both sides of each hollow tube along the tube diameter direction; the first pile leg unit 1 and the second pile leg unit 2 are detachably connected, and a mounting plate 5 is provided at the connection between the first pile leg unit 1 and the second pile leg unit 2. Each mounting plate 5 is provided with a plurality of limiting through holes 6. The positions of the limiting through holes 6 of the mounting plates 5 at the connection between the two adjacent pile leg units correspond one to one. The two mounting plates 5 are stacked on each other and are fastened with the limiting through holes 6 by a fastening connector (not shown in the figure) to fix the two adjacent pile leg units in connection, and the rack 4 between the first pile leg unit 1 and the second pile leg unit 2 extends along the axial direction of the tube body.

[0044] The design and manufacture of pile legs require consideration of multiple factors, including strength, stability, corrosion resistance, and maintainability. To this end, the present application designs the pile legs to be detachably connected. Specifically, two stacked mounting plates 5 are provided on the pile leg units, and limiting through-holes 6 and fastening connectors are provided on the mounting plates 5. These plates are locked together to achieve a fixed connection between the two pile leg units. This eliminates the need for extensive welding and cutting when replacing or repairing the pile legs, improving disassembly and assembly efficiency and reducing maintenance costs.

[0045] However, since the modular pile legs are used in a gear-type lifting transmission device, in addition to achieving a fixed connection between the two pile legs, it is also necessary to consider the connection of the teeth on the adjacent pile leg units to achieve the up and down lifting function of the entire net box body. In order to solve the above problem, the present application also designs multiple positions and numbers of limiting through holes 6 on the mounting plate 5. During the on-site assembly process, by adjusting the alignment of the limiting through holes 6, the teeth of the two pile leg units can be connected to ensure the up and down lifting function of the net box body.

[0046] As can be seen, the present application designs the pile legs into modular pile leg units, which are easy to disassemble and assemble, reducing the transportation volume and lowering the transportation cost. When the pile legs need to be replaced or repaired, there is no need for a large amount of welding and cutting work, which improves the efficiency of disassembly and assembly and reduces maintenance costs. The required height of the pile legs can be flexibly adjusted according to the actual working conditions. The advantage of this technical solution is that it improves the flexibility and convenience of the self-elevating cage. In addition, it also solves the problem of the mutual connection of the teeth of the two pile leg units, ensuring the up and down lifting function of the cage body.

[0047] As a further preferred solution, the mounting plate 5 is an annular mounting plate, which is located at the end of each of the pile leg units and is formed by the inner wall of the tube body extending inward in the radial direction. A central opening 7 is provided in the middle of each annular mounting plate.

[0048] The present application designs a central opening 7 on the mounting plate 5, so that during the assembly process of the pile leg unit, the connection problem of the teeth on the surface of the pile legs can be observed promptly and quickly, and the alignment between the multiple limiting through holes 6 between the two pile legs can be adjusted conveniently, thereby realizing rapid assembly and disassembly of the pile legs.

[0049] As a further preferred solution, a marker is provided near the connection between the first leg unit 1 and the second leg unit 2 for positioning the direction of the rack 4 so that two adjacent racks 4 can be connected to each other. In this solution, the marker is one or a combination of two or more of an opening, a through hole, a butt joint, a groove, and a protrusion. In this embodiment 1, the marker is designed to be an opening shape, such as Figure 4-5 As shown, two adjacent leg units are provided with two marker openings 8 near the connection, and the two marker openings 8 are located on the same side wall of the pipe body and on the same axis. When the two leg units are installed or assembled, the two marker openings 8 are adjusted to be located on the same side of the pipe body and on the same axis. Then, the mounting plates 5 at the connection of the two leg units are stacked on each other. At this time, the limiting through holes 6 on the two annular mounting plates 5 are aligned with each other. Finally, the two leg units are locked together by fastening connectors such as locking bolts to achieve a fixed connection. In addition, designing the marker into an open shape has another advantage, that is, when the leg is installed in the mud, the design of the marker opening 8 helps to improve watertightness and reduce the impact of water on the leg.

[0050] The leg unit at the bottom is the main supporting and load-bearing part of the entire cage. Therefore, this solution has designed multiple designs to improve the strength of the leg, specifically increasing the axial and radial support force at multiple locations such as the bottom and middle of the leg. The details are as follows:

[0051] As a further preferred embodiment, the lower portion of the pile leg unit located at the lowest layer is a mud entry portion 11. The pipe body of the mud entry portion 11 is provided with a number of annular reinforcement plates 12 for increasing the strength of the pipe body. The multiple annular reinforcement plates 12 designed within the pipe body of the mud entry portion 11 at the lowest end, on the one hand, are evenly distributed on the inner wall of the pipe body, which can eliminate or reduce the radial squeezing force of the mud on the pile leg during the installation of the pile leg into the mud. On the other hand, the middle portion of the annular reinforcement plate 12 is provided with an opening. When the pile leg is pressed down, the seabed mud and sand will rush into the pile leg to a certain depth and generate negative pressure fixation. During this process, the opening at the lower portion of the pile leg is designed to allow mud to enter the pile leg through the opening during the downward pressure of the pile leg, thereby increasing the grip of the pile leg with the ground.

[0052] As a further preferred solution, the inner wall of the central tube of the leg unit located at the bottom layer is provided with a reinforcing plate 13 , and the reinforcing plate 13 is provided with a plurality of reinforcing ribs 14 distributed radially.

[0053] The present application designs a reinforcing plate in the middle of the lowest pile leg unit and designs radial reinforcing ribs 14, which can help improve the strength of the middle part of the pile leg unit, so that the pile leg can effectively cope with the challenges of the marine environment, such as the impact of ocean currents on the pile legs.

[0054] As a further preferred embodiment, in this embodiment, the racks 4 on the bottom-most leg units have two different thicknesses: a thick rack 41 and a thin rack 42. The thickness of the racks on the upper leg units is greater than that on the lower leg units; the thickness of the racks on the upper leg units is the same as that of the upper racks on the bottom-most leg units. This effectively improves the upward bearing capacity of the legs above the mud, meeting the climbing force requirements of the entire cage body on the legs. Furthermore, since the legs entering the mud do not need to bear the upward bearing capacity of the cage body, designing the racks 4 of different thicknesses in different locations helps reduce the material cost of the legs.

[0055] As a further preferred solution, each of the pile leg units is further provided with a hoist hole 9 for hoisting the hollow tube. The design of the hoist hole 9 facilitates offshore operations by construction workers.

[0056] Example 2 Three-section modular pile legs

[0057] like Figure 9-13As shown, compared with Example 1, the difference of the three-section modular pile leg 200 of this embodiment is that a third pile leg unit 3 is installed on the upper end of the second pile leg unit 2, with a total of three pile leg units. Two adjacent pile leg units are provided with two stacked mounting plates for realizing detachable installation between the pile leg units. The specific structure is the same as that of Example 1, as shown in FIG. Figure 1-8 It should be emphasized that in this technical solution, the number of pile leg units is related to the actual installation bottom sea depth. The modular pile legs here do not limit the specific number of pile leg units, including but not limited to three-section pile legs and multi-section pile legs.

[0058] Example 3: Gear rack lifting aquaculture cage

[0059] like Figure 14 As shown, a gear rack lifting aquaculture cage 500 includes modular pile legs 100 / 200 as described in Example 1 or Example 2, a cage body 300, and a gear transmission device 400. The gear transmission device drives the cage body to move up and down along the rack of the modular pile legs.

[0060] Due to the advanced nature of this technical solution, it can be widely used in application fields such as the field of marine engineering equipment, the field of structural engineering, and the field of cage aquaculture equipment. First, the modular pile legs of this application are made of multiple pile leg units that can be detachably assembled, which realizes modular installation, greatly reduces transportation and installation costs, and meets the demand for high-efficiency and low-cost equipment in the field of marine engineering equipment. Secondly, the pile leg design of this application realizes a detachable connection between pile legs by setting an annular mounting ring, which facilitates the replacement and maintenance of the pile legs, and meets the demand for easy-to-maintain and low-cost equipment in the field of cage aquaculture equipment. Finally, the pile leg design of this application takes into account the strength and watertightness of the mud-entering part, improves the stability and durability of the pile legs, and meets the demand for high-strength and high-stability structures in the field of structural engineering. Therefore, this technology has broad market demand and good application prospects.

[0061] The above-mentioned embodiments are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and cannot be used to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Any non-substantial changes and replacements made by technicians in this field on the basis of the present invention fall within the scope of protection required by the present invention.

Claims

1. A modular pile leg for supporting a gear rack to lift aquaculture cages, characterized in that: The modular pile leg includes at least two pile leg units, each of which is a hollow tube body, and racks extend outward on both sides of the hollow tube body along the tube diameter direction; the two adjacent pile leg units are detachably connected, and a mounting plate is provided at the connection of each pile leg unit, and each mounting plate is provided with a plurality of limiting through holes. The positions of the limiting through holes of the mounting plates at the connection of the two adjacent pile leg units correspond one to one, and the two mounting plates are stacked on each other and fastened with the limiting through holes by fastening connectors to fix the two adjacent pile leg units in connection, and the rack between the two adjacent pile leg units extends along the axial direction of the tube body.

2. The modular pile leg according to claim 1, characterized in that: The mounting plate is an annular mounting plate, which is located at the end of each leg unit and is formed by the inner wall of the tube body extending inwardly in the radial direction. A central opening is provided in the middle of each annular mounting plate.

3. The modular pile leg according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the pile leg units is provided with a marker near the connection portion for locating the direction of the rack so that two adjacent sections of the rack can be connected to each other.

4. The modular leg according to claim 3, wherein: The marker is one or a combination of two or more of an opening, a through hole, a butt joint, a groove, and a protrusion.

5. The modular pile leg according to claim 3, wherein: The pile leg unit is provided with an opening near the connection to reduce the impact force of water on the pile leg, and the opening also serves as a marker.

6. The modular leg according to claim 1, wherein: The lower part of the pile leg unit located at the lowest layer is the mud-entering part, and a plurality of annular reinforcement plates for increasing the strength of the pipe body are provided on the pipe body located at the mud-entering part.

7. The modular leg according to claim 6, wherein: The inner wall of the central tube of the pile leg unit located at the bottom layer is provided with a reinforcing plate, and the reinforcing plate is provided with a plurality of reinforcing ribs distributed in a radial pattern.

8. The modular leg according to claim 1, wherein: The racks on the leg units located at the bottom layer have two different rack thicknesses. The thickness of the racks located at the upper part of the leg units is greater than the thickness of the racks located at the lower part of the leg units. The rack thickness of the racks located at the upper leg units is the same as the rack thickness of the upper racks located at the bottom leg units.

9. The modular pile leg according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: Each of the pile leg units is also provided with a hoisting hole for hoisting the hollow tube body.

10. A gear rack lifting aquaculture cage, characterized in that: It comprises the modular pile legs, a cage body and a gear transmission device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the gear transmission device drives the cage body to move up and down along the racks of the modular pile legs.

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