Buffers, buffer members, support ropes, floating structures

Abstract

The present invention aims to provide a novel buffer for elastically cushioning tensile loads, a novel buffer member constructed from the buffer, a novel support rope equipped with the buffer member, and a novel floating structure moored by the support rope. [Solution] A buffer member 11 is constructed by connecting a buffer body 1, in which a resin wire 3 is spirally wound around the circumferential direction of an annular core material 2 made of an endless wire rope, with a link member 4, and the floating body 100 is moored using a support rope 12 equipped with this buffer member 11.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an elastically deformable buffer, a buffer member constructed by the buffer, a support cable body provided with the buffer member, and a floating structure moored by the support cable body.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, wind power generation that utilizes natural wind for power generation has attracted attention from the perspectives of environmental protection and effective utilization of natural energy. As wind power generation equipment for this wind power generation, there are onshore installation types (onshore wind power generation equipment) and offshore installation types (offshore wind power generation equipment). In Japan, which is surrounded by the sea on all sides, offshore wind power generation equipment, which has advantages such as fewer installation restrictions, is particularly suitable, especially floating-type offshore wind power generation equipment that constructs power generation equipment on a floating body floating on the ocean. Therefore, conventionally, many proposals have been made regarding the floating structure that serves as the base of offshore wind power generation equipment (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] As this floating structure, there are various structures such as a pontoon-type floating body that floats the floating body on the water surface, a semi-submersible type that floats the floating body in a submerged state below the water surface, or a spar type that floats in a standing state like a fishing float. However, in any structure, it is necessary to take mooring means to resist waves, wind, tidal currents, etc.

[0005] Here, as a means of mooring, as shown in Figure 11, a common method is to attach one end of a mooring rope 10, which consists of a wire rope (W) or a chain (C), to the floating body 100, and to attach the other end of the mooring rope 10 to an anchor 101 fixed to the seabed.

[0006] However, sudden waves or winds can instantaneously place a load greater than expected on the mooring rope 10, sometimes causing cracks or other damage to the part of the floating body 100 where one end of the mooring rope 10 is attached, or to the anchor 101.

[0007] The present invention has been developed in view of the above-mentioned technical problems, and aims to provide a novel buffer for elastically buffering tensile loads, a novel buffer member constructed by the buffer, a novel support rope equipped with the buffer member, and a novel floating structure moored by the support rope. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention, which solves the aforementioned technical problems, is a buffer for elastically buffering tensile loads, and is characterized by comprising an annular core made of an endless wire rope and a resin wire spirally wound along the circumferential direction of the core (hereinafter referred to as "the present invention buffer").

[0009] In the buffer body of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is one in which the surface of the core material is covered with the wire material.

[0010] In the buffer body of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is one in which the core material is a grommet-processed product.

[0011] In the buffer body of the present invention, it is preferable that the helical pitch of the wire is greater than the helical pitch of the strands constituting the core material.

[0012] In the buffer body of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is one in which opposing arcs with the center in between are fixed in a state where they are pressed toward the center.

[0013] The cushioning member of the present invention, which solves the aforementioned technical problems, is characterized by comprising a plurality of cushioning bodies of the present invention and link members that connect adjacent cushioning bodies of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as the "cushioning member of the present invention").

[0014] In the buffer member of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is one in which a buffer body of the present invention covered with S-twisted wire and a buffer body of the present invention covered with Z-twisted wire are alternately connected.

[0015] The support cable of the present invention, which solves the aforementioned technical problems, is characterized by comprising the cushioning member of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as "support cable of the present invention").

[0016] The floating structure of the present invention, which solves the aforementioned technical problems, is characterized in that the floating body is moored by the support rope of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as "the floating structure of the present invention"). [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] According to the present invention, tensile loads can be elastically cushioned. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0018] [Figure 1] Figures 1(a) and 1(b) are front views showing the buffer material (S-twist and Z-twist) according to Embodiment 1, and Figure 1(c) is a cross-sectional view of the buffer material of the present invention taken along line A-A. [Figure 2] Figures 2(a) and 2(b) are a front view and a B-B cross-sectional view showing the core material for constructing the buffer body of the present invention, and Figure 2(c) is a front view showing the process of winding wire around the core material. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a front view showing a buffer member of the present invention constructed using the buffer material of the present invention. [Figure 4]FIG. 4 is a perspective view (a) and a side view (b) showing a link member for constructing the buffer member of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a front view showing how the buffer member of the present invention elastically deforms. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a front view schematically showing a floating body structure of the present invention constructed by the support cable body of the present invention provided with the buffer member of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a front view (a) and a C-C cross-sectional view (b) showing the buffer body of the present invention according to Embodiment 2. [Figure 8] FIGS. 8(a)-(c) are front views showing how the buffer body of the present invention is constructed. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a front view showing a buffer member of the present invention constructed using the buffer body of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a front view schematically showing a floating body structure of the present invention constructed by the support cable body of the present invention provided with the buffer member of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a front view schematically showing a conventional offshore wind power generation facility. <00,00096>

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0019] Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described based on the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

[0020] [Embodiment 1] <The buffer body 1 of the present invention> FIG. 1 shows the buffer body 1 of the present invention according to Embodiment 1. The buffer body 1 of the present invention includes a "core material (2)" and a "wire material (3)".

[0021] - Core material 2 - As shown in Figure 2, the core material 2 consists of an endless wire rope and has an overall annular shape. In this invention, an endless wire rope refers to a wire rope that has been processed into an annular shape. In this embodiment, an endless wire rope manufactured by grommet processing was used as the core material 2. In an endless wire rope manufactured by grommet processing, the rope portion is composed of a single strand (S), and the start and end ends of the strand S are butted together in the core material strand (S0).

[0022] -Wire 3- The wire 3 is made of resin and is wound spirally around the core material 2 in the circumferential direction to cover the surface of the core material 2. In this embodiment, an aramid fiber rope (manufactured by Tokyo Seikou Fiber Rope Co., Ltd., product name: Ace Line T008B-BC) was used as the wire 3, and the surface of the core material 2 was covered by winding the wire 3 spirally around the core material 2 in the circumferential direction (see Figure 2(c)). The end of the wire 3 at the end of the winding was fixed with adhesive.

[0023] Since the buffer body 1 of the present invention having the above configuration is constructed by winding the wire 3 around the core material 2, the rope diameter (Φ) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention is larger than the rope diameter (φ) of the core material 2. In this embodiment, the wire 3 was wound around the core material 2 until the rope diameter (Φ) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention was approximately 1.4 times the rope diameter (φ) of the core material 2 (see Figure 1(c)).

[0024] While general wire ropes are classified into "S-twist" and "Z-twist" depending on the twisting direction of the strands (S), in this embodiment, multiple buffer bodies 1(1S) of the present invention (see Figure 1(a)) are prepared, in which the wire material 3 is wound around the core material 2 in the S-twist direction, and multiple buffer bodies 1(1Z) of the present invention (see Figure 1(b)) are prepared, in which the wire material 3 is wound around the core material 2 in the Z-twist direction.

[0025] <Inventive buffer member 11> Figure 3 shows the cushioning member 11 of the present invention according to Embodiment 1. The cushioning member 11 of the present invention comprises a plurality of cushioning bodies 1 of the present invention and a "link member (4)".

[0026] - Link member 4 - The link member 4 plays the role of connecting adjacent buffer bodies 1 of the present invention. As shown in Figure 4, in this embodiment, an iron link member 4 is used, which comprises a bottom plate 41, a pair of support columns 42 fixed on the bottom plate 41 at intervals, and a top plate 43 that is detachably attached to the upper end of each support column 42. The link member 4 is designed so that adjacent buffer bodies 1 of the present invention are connected by removing the top plate 43 of one link member 4 to expose the upper end of each of the pair of support columns 42, wrapping the buffer body 1 of the present invention around each of them, and then attaching the top plate 43. The middle of the support column 42 is constricted by a rounded bottom groove 44, and when a tensile load is applied to the buffer body 1 of the present invention wrapped around the support column 42, the buffer body 1 enters the groove 44 and comes into contact with the bottom of the groove 44.

[0027] By sequentially connecting adjacent buffer bodies 1 of the present invention via link members 4, a buffer member 11 of the present invention is constructed. In this embodiment, the buffer member 11 of the present invention is constructed by alternately connecting S-twisted buffer bodies 1 (1S) and Z-twisted buffer bodies 1 (1Z).

[0028] The buffer member 11 of the present invention, having the above configuration, has the property of elastically deforming, so as shown in Figure 5, when a tensile load is applied in the longitudinal direction, it stretches in the tensile direction and can elastically buffer the applied load. It has been confirmed that the elastic deformation of the buffer body 1 constituting the buffer member 11 of the present invention occurs at a load of less than 10% of the standard breaking load of the endless wire rope used as the core material 2. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that when the buffer member 11 of the present invention was subjected to a load of 40% of the standard breaking load and then released from the load, the buffer body 1 of the present invention recovered to almost the same annular shape with almost no deformation.

[0029] <Support rope 12 of the present invention, floating structure 13 of the present invention> Figure 6 shows a floating structure 13 of the present invention, in which a floating body 100 is moored by a support rope 12 equipped with a buffer member 11 of the present invention. In this embodiment, the support rope 12 of the present invention has a structure in which a wire rope (lifting rope (W)) is connected to one end via a link member 4, and a chain (C) is connected to the other end via a link member 4. Furthermore, the floating structure 13 of the present invention is designed in which a spar-type wind power generation facility, which serves as a floating body 100, is anchored to an anchor 101 fixed to the seabed by multiple support ropes 12 of the present invention.

[0030] In the floating structure 13 of the present invention having the above configuration, since the support rope 12 of the present invention is used as a mooring rope, even if a load exceeding expectations is instantaneously applied to the support rope 12 of the present invention due to the influence of sudden waves or wind, the load applied can be elastically buffered by the elastic deformation of the buffer body 1 of the present invention. This effectively prevents damage such as cracks from occurring in the floating body 100 or anchor 101.

[0031] In this embodiment, the core material 2 for constructing the buffer body 1 of the present invention is an endless wire rope manufactured by grommet processing, but the endless wire rope is not particularly limited as long as it is processed into an annular shape. Means for processing the endless wire rope include not only grommet processing, but also short splice processing, long splice processing, or lock processing.

[0032] However, when constructing the support rope 12 of the present invention for mooring a large-scale structure such as the floating structure 13 of the present invention, it is preferable to use a grommet-processed endless wire rope that has inconspicuous joints and a relatively high breaking load.

[0033] Furthermore, in this embodiment, aramid fiber rope is used for the wire material 3 used to construct the buffer body 1 of the present invention. However, the material and structure of the wire material 3 are not particularly limited, as long as it can be wound spirally along the circumferential direction of the core material 2.

[0034] Examples of resins used as the material for wire 3 include, in the case of thermoplastic resins, general-purpose plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene, ABS resin, polyvinyl chloride, and methacrylic resin, as well as general-purpose engineering resins such as nylon / polyamide, polyacetal, polycarbonate, polybutylene terephthalate, and modified polyphenylene ether, or super engineering resins such as polysulfone, polyether sulfone, polyphenylene sulfide, and polyalate. In the case of thermosetting resins, examples include phenolic resin, epoxy resin, polyurethane resin, melamine resin, and unsaturated polyester resin. In the present invention, one or more resins selected from these resins can be used as the material.

[0035] Furthermore, the structure of the wire 3 may be a single strand of resin, a twisted yarn made by twisting multiple resin fibers together, or an untwisted yarn. Also, the wire 3 may be hollow or have a coating or protective film applied to its surface.

[0036] It has been confirmed that by appropriately selecting the resin and structure that make up the wire material 3, properties such as strength, water resistance, weather resistance, or low friction, which are due to the properties of the resin, can be appropriately imparted to the buffer body 1 of the present invention.

[0037] Furthermore, regarding the diameter (outer diameter) of the wire 3, it has been confirmed that increasing the diameter increases the strength, while decreasing the diameter allows for denser covering of the core material 2. However, since spiral winding of the wire 3 becomes difficult as the diameter of the wire 3 increases, in this invention, it is preferable to select a wire 3 with an outer diameter of 30 mm or less (more preferably 1 to 20 mm).

[0038] Furthermore, the helical pitch when winding the wire 3 around the core material 2 may be the same as the helical pitch of the strands (S) constituting the core material 2, or it may be a different helical pitch from that of the strands (S). However, it has been confirmed that increasing the helical pitch of the wire 3 tends to improve the tensile strength of the buffer body 1 of the present invention. For this reason, in the present invention, it is preferable that the helical pitch of the wire 3 be at least twice (more preferably 3 to 10 times) the helical pitch of the strands (S) constituting the core material 2. When winding the wire 3 around the core material 2, in order to fill the gaps between the strands (S) constituting the core material 2, the wire 3 may first be wound along the helical pitch of the strands (S). Therefore, in the present invention, "helical pitch of the wire 3" means the helical pitch of the outermost layer of the wire 3 wound around the core material 2.

[0039] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the wire 3 is wound around the core material 2 until the rope diameter (Φ) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention is approximately 1.4 times the rope diameter (φ) of the core material 2. However, the rope diameter (Φ) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention is not particularly limited in relation to the rope diameter (φ) of the core material 2.

[0040] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the surface of the core material 2 is covered with wire 3 wound around the core material 2, but it has been confirmed that even if a portion of the surface of the core material 2 is exposed, the breaking load of the buffer body 1 of the present invention is improved by winding the wire 3.

[0041] In addition, in this embodiment, the end of the wire 3 wound around the core material 2 is fixed with adhesive, but the means of treating the end of the wire 3 are not particularly limited. The end of the wire 3 can also be fixed by, for example, embedding it in the wound wire 3, or by heat sealing or tying. Depending on the elasticity of the wire 3, the end may also be left untreated and cut.

[0042] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when constructing the buffer member 11 of the present invention, buffer body 1 (1S) covered with S-twisted wire 3 and buffer body 1 (1Z) covered with Z-twisted wire 3 are alternately connected. However, the buffer body 1 for constructing the buffer member 11 of the present invention may be S-twisted or Z-twisted.

[0043] However, if the S-twisted buffer body 1(1S) and the Z-twisted buffer body 1(1Z) of the present invention are connected alternately, there is an advantage in that twisting caused by the twist direction is less likely to occur. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that even without connecting the S-twisted buffer body 1(1S) and the Z-twisted buffer body 1(1Z) of the present invention alternately, if approximately equal numbers of the S-twisted buffer body 1(1S) and the Z-twisted buffer body 1(1Z) of the present invention are used and connected randomly to construct the buffer member 11 of the present invention, twisting caused by the twist direction will hardly occur.

[0044] Furthermore, although the link member 4 in this embodiment has the shape shown in Figure 4, the shape of the link member 4 is not limited as long as it can connect adjacent buffer bodies 1 of the present invention. For example, a shackle or the like can be used as the link member 4.

[0045] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when a mechanism is adopted in which the buffer body 1 of the present invention is connected by looping it around the support column 42 of the link member 4, the load on the buffer body 1 of the present invention increases as the diameter of the support column 42 (or, if a groove 44 is provided in the support column 42, the diameter around the bottom of the groove 44 (r)) decreases. On the other hand, when the diameter of the support column 42 (or, if a groove 44 is provided in the support column 42, the diameter around the bottom of the groove 44 (r)) increases, the deformation (flattening) rate of the buffer body 1 of the present invention when a tensile load is applied decreases.

[0046] Therefore, it is preferable that the diameter (r) of the portion of the support column 42 in contact with the buffer body 1 of the present invention be at least twice the rope diameter (Φ) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention, and at least one-quarter the diameter (Y) of the buffer body 1 of the present invention.

[0047] Furthermore, the support column 42 of the link member 4 may be structured to rotate around its axis, or a nonlinear elastic material such as rubber may be interposed in the portion where the support column 42 of the link member and the buffer body 1 of the present invention come into contact.

[0048] In addition, in this embodiment, as an example of the floating structure 13 of the present invention, a spar-type wind power generation facility, which serves as a floating body 100, is shown as being anchored to an anchor 101 fixed to the seabed via a plurality of support ropes 12 of the present invention. However, the floating body 100 is not limited to wind power generation facilities. Other examples of the floating body 100 include offshore solar power generation facilities and work vessels that require long-term mooring.

[0049] [Embodiment 2] <Inventive buffer 1> Figure 7 shows the buffer body 1 of the present invention according to Embodiment 2. The buffer body 1 of the present invention according to this embodiment is constructed by spirally winding a resin wire 3 along the circumferential direction of an annular core material 2 made of an endless wire rope, and has an overall shape in which opposing arcs on either side of the center are fixed in a state where they are pushed toward the center.

[0050] In other words, the buffer body 1 of the present invention according to this embodiment is constructed by first building an annular buffer body 1 as shown in Figure 8(a), then deforming this annular buffer body 1 by pushing opposite arcs on either side of its center toward the center, as shown in Figure 8(b), and then fixing this state using a fixing device 5, as shown in Figure 8(c).

[0051] Accordingly, the buffer body 1 of the present invention according to this embodiment has annular eyes (1A, 1B) formed at each end, sandwiching the fixing device 5.

[0052] <Inventive buffer member 11> Figure 9 shows the buffer member 11 of the present invention according to Embodiment 2. The buffer member 11 of the present invention according to this embodiment has a structure in which the eyes (1A, 1B) of adjacent buffer bodies 1 of the present invention are connected via a link member 4.

[0053] <Support rope 12 of the present invention, floating structure 13 of the present invention> Figure 10 shows a floating structure 13 of the present invention, in which a floating body 100 is moored by a support rope 12 equipped with a buffer member 11 of the present invention. In this embodiment, the support rope 12 of the present invention has a structure in which a wire rope (lifting rope (W)) is connected to one end via a link member 4, and a chain (C) is connected to the other end via a link member 4. Furthermore, the floating structure 13 of the present invention is designed in which a spar-type wind power generation facility, which serves as a floating body 100, is anchored to an anchor 101 fixed to the seabed by multiple support ropes 12 of the present invention.

[0054] In the floating structure 13 of the present invention having the above configuration, since the support rope 12 of the present invention is used as a mooring rope, even if a load exceeding expectations is instantaneously applied to the support rope 12 of the present invention due to the influence of sudden waves or wind, the load applied can be elastically buffered by the elastic deformation of the buffer body 1 of the present invention. This effectively prevents damage such as cracks from occurring in the floating body 100 or anchor 101.

[0055] The buffer member 11, support rope 12, and floating structure 13 of the present invention according to this embodiment have the advantage of lower manufacturing costs because they use fewer link members 4 compared to Embodiment 1.

[0056] The rest is the same as in Embodiment 1, and to avoid repetition, the explanation is omitted here.

[0057] Furthermore, the present invention can be implemented in various other forms without departing from its spirit or main features. Therefore, the embodiments described above are merely illustrative in all respects and should not be interpreted restrictively. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, and the text of the specification is not restrictive. Moreover, any modifications or changes within the equivalent scope of the claims are all within the scope of the present invention. [Industrial applicability]

[0058] The present invention is suitably used as a means for mooring floating objects. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0059] 1. Buffer (buffer) of the present invention 2 Core material 3 wire rod 4 Link members 5 Fixtures 11. Cushioning member of the present invention (cushioning member) 12. Support cord of the present invention (support cord) 13. Floating structure of the present invention (floating structure)

Claims

1. A buffer for elastically cushioning tensile loads, A circular core made of endless wire rope, A resin wire is wound spirally along the circumferential direction of the core material, A buffer characterized by comprising the following:

2. In the buffer described in claim 1, A buffer body in which the surface of the core material is covered with the wire.

3. In the buffer according to claim 1, A cushioning body in which the core material is grommet-processed.

4. In the buffer according to claim 1, A buffer in which the helical pitch of the wire is greater than the helical pitch of the strands constituting the core material.

5. In the buffer according to claim 1, A buffer formed by two opposing arcs, separated by a central point, being fixed in a state where they are pushed toward the center.

6. A plurality of buffers according to any one of claims 1 to 5, A link member that connects adjacent buffer bodies, A cushioning member characterized by comprising the following:

7. In the cushioning member according to claim 6, A buffer member comprising buffers covered with S-twisted wire and buffers covered with Z-twisted wire, which are alternately connected.

8. A support cable characterized by comprising the cushioning member described in claim 6 or 7.

9. A floating structure characterized in that a floating body is moored by a support rope as described in claim 8.

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