A spudcan

Abstract

The present invention provides a spud can comprising: a spud body provided at the bottom of a leg of a hull and having an open bottom; a plurality of skirt members foldably provided at the lower edge of the spud body, which fold inward toward the spud body to close the open bottom of the spud body or unfold toward the seabed to penetrate the seabed; and a driving member that operates the plurality of skirt members to fold or unfold toward each other.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a spud can, and more specifically, to a spud can configured to secure a ship or marine structure to the seabed. Background Technology

[0002] Generally, specialized vessels such as wind turbine installation vessels (WTIVs) that perform operations while fixed to the seabed, or mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs) that mine resources buried on the seabed, utilize structures designed to be stably anchored to the seabed when operating for extended periods at sea.

[0003] A spudcan can be used as such a structure, and the spudcan can be formed as a single unit by combining with the legs of a jack-up rig installed on the hull.

[0004] FIG. 1 illustrates a spud can (10) provided in a hull (1) according to the prior art.

[0005] Referring to FIG. 1, in fixing the hull (1) of a ship or marine structure to the seabed, a plurality of legs (2) installed on the hull (1) can be lowered to insert a spud can (10) provided at the bottom of the legs (2) into the seabed, thereby fixing the position of the hull (1).

[0006] However, in the case of a ship or marine structure that performs work with the hull (1) fixed to the seabed, when installed in a designated sea area, the spud can (10) remains in the seabed for a long period of time for work, and thus, scouring occurs in the seabed area where the spud can (10) is inserted due to the influence of currents.

[0007] In this case, the fixing force of the spud can (10) embedded in the seabed may be weakened due to scour, and consequently, a problem may occur in which the stability of the leg (2) supporting the hull (1) decreases rapidly.

[0008] In addition, conventionally, when a ship or mobile marine structure is operating at sea, the legs (2) installed on the hull (1) are raised to reduce resistance from seawater, but the spud can (10) provided at the bottom of the legs (2) is positioned in a protruding state from the bottom of the hull (1), so there was a problem that it acted as a factor reducing the ship's speed. Prior art literature

[0009] Registered Patent No. 10-1411521 (Registration Date: June 18, 2014) "Spud Can of Floating Structure" The problem to be solved

[0010] The present invention aims to provide a spud can, specifically one that can be penetrated deeper and more firmly into the seabed, thereby maintaining the fixing force of the spud can penetrated into the seabed even if scour occurs, and suppressing a reduction in ship speed by folding the skirt member at the bottom of the spud can to the same level as the bottom surface of the ship during the ship's operation mode.

[0011] The technical problems to be solved by the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs from the description below. means of solving the problem

[0012] To solve the problem described above, the present invention provides a spud can comprising: a spud body provided at the bottom of a leg of a hull and having an open bottom; a plurality of skirt members foldably provided at the lower edge of the spud body, which fold inward toward the spud body to close the open bottom of the spud body or unfold toward the seabed to penetrate the seabed; and a driving member that operates the plurality of skirt members to fold or unfold toward each other.

[0013] Additionally, the present invention provides a spud can further comprising a suction member connected to the spud body and generating a pressure difference by sucking in fluid within the spud body to increase penetration force when the spud body penetrates the seabed through a plurality of skirt members.

[0014] In addition, a spud can is provided that further includes a stopper provided on the spud body and which limits the rotation angle of the skirt member so that the skirt member is folded or unfolded to a preset position.

[0015] Additionally, the plurality of skirt members provide a spud can that is folded inward into the spud body and positioned horizontally at the same level as the bottom surface of the hull when the leg installed on the hull is raised by the hull's operation mode.

[0016] In addition, the spud body is formed as a cylindrical or polygonal shape with an open bottom, and a plurality of skirt members are each formed as triangular plates. When folded inward into the spud body, they interlock with each other to close the open bottom of the spud body, and when unfolded toward the seabed, they stand upright in an inverted triangular shape and penetrate the seabed through the pointed bottom. This provides a spud can.

[0017] In addition, the driving member is formed as a combined structure of a gear and a motor or a hydraulic link structure, thereby providing a spud can that operates to fold or unfold a plurality of skirt members relative to each other. Effects of the invention

[0018] A spud can according to one embodiment of the present invention can be made lightweight by having a simple structure, and a plurality of skirt members provided in the spud can are configured to be foldable so that when the ship is in a sailing mode, the skirt members are folded to be aligned with the same level as the bottom surface of the ship, thereby suppressing the reduction in ship speed caused by the spud can.

[0019] In addition, when lowering the legs from the hull to fix the spud can to the seabed, the multiple skirt members provided on the spud can are vertically spread downward to penetrate the seabed, and at the same time, seawater inside the spud can is sucked in through the suction member to create a pressure difference, thereby allowing the spud can to penetrate the seabed more deeply and firmly, and thereby the hull supported by the legs and spud can be stably fixed to the seabed.

[0020] The effects obtainable from the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned effects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0021] Figure 1 illustrates a spud can equipped in a hull according to the prior art. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the configuration of a spud can according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the configuration and operation of a spud can according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the configuration of a driving member according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 6 and FIGS. 7 illustrate the usage state of a spud can according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0022] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0023] The detailed description disclosed below, together with the attached drawings, is intended to describe exemplary embodiments of the present invention and is not intended to represent the only embodiment in which the present invention can be practiced.

[0024] In order to clearly explain the invention in the drawings, parts unrelated to the explanation may be omitted, and the same reference numerals may be used for identical or similar components throughout the specification.

[0025] In embodiments of the present invention, expressions such as “or”, “at least one”, etc. may represent one of the words listed together or a combination of two or more.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the configuration of a spud can (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 illustrate the configuration and operation of a spud can (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the configuration of a driving member (130) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] The spud can (100) according to the present embodiment can be provided on a leg (2) installed on a jack-up platform of an offshore structure for crude oil drilling or a wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) and used to fix the hull (1) to the seabed.

[0028] Referring to FIGS. 2 to 5, a spud can (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a spud body (110), a plurality of skirt members (120), and a driving member (130).

[0029] The spud body (110) forms the body of the spud can (100) according to the present embodiment and may be provided at the bottom of the leg (2) which is positioned to be vertically movable on the hull (1).

[0030] Such a spud body (110) can be formed in the shape of a tube with an open bottom, for example, it can be formed in the shape of a cylindrical or polygonal tube with an open bottom.

[0031] Additionally, a plurality of skirt members (120) may be provided on the lower edge of the spud body (110).

[0032] A plurality of skirt members (120) are provided to be foldable at the lower edge of the spud body (110), so that they can be folded together inwardly into the spud body (110) to close the open lower portion, or unfolded together toward the seabed to penetrate the seabed.

[0033] Specifically, a plurality of skirt members (120) are arranged radially on the lower edge of the spud body (110) and can be hinge-connected so as to be foldable.

[0034] For example, a plurality of skirt members (120) are each formed in the shape of a triangular plate, and when they are spread out toward the seabed below from the spud body (110), they are set up in an inverted triangular shape so that they can be easily penetrated into the seabed through the pointed bottom.

[0035] Additionally, when multiple skirt members (120) are folded toward the inside of the spud body (110), the triangular plate-shaped skirt members (120) interlock with each other to close the open lower part of the spud body (110).

[0036] That is, when the hull (1) is in operation mode, the leg (2) installed on the hull (1) is raised so that the spud can (100) provided at the bottom of the leg (2) is positioned on the bottom side of the hull (1). Since the skirt member (120) of the spud can (100) protrudes from the bottom side of the hull (1), the resistance acting on the hull (1) increases, which can be a factor in reducing the speed of the vessel. Therefore, in this embodiment, the skirt member (120) is folded inward into the spud body (110) and positioned horizontally at the same level as the bottom side of the hull (1), thereby effectively preventing the reduction in speed caused by the skirt member (120).

[0037] In addition, when the skirt member (120) is folded into the inside of the spud body (110), the open lower part of the spud body (110) is closed, thereby eliminating factors that could act as resistance to the hull (1).

[0038] In this way, a plurality of skirt members (120) can be rotated around a hinge axis (121) to be positioned vertically downward so as to be inserted into the seabed, or rotated 90° inward toward the spud body (110) to be arranged horizontally relative to each other so as to close the open lower part of the spud body (110), and the rotational movement of the skirt members (120) can be achieved by a driving member (130) described later.

[0039] Additionally, the spud body (110) may be further provided with a stopper (140, see FIG. 5) that limits the rotation angle of the skirt member (120).

[0040] For example, the stopper (140) may be provided at the part where the skirt member (120) is connected to the spud body (110), and the rotation angle of the skirt member (120) may be limited to a range of 90° so that the skirt member (120) rotates downward to unfold into a vertically standing form, or rotates inward toward the spud body (110) to fold into a form that closes the open lower part of the spud body (110).

[0041] The driving member (130) can operate the plurality of skirt members (120) to be folded or unfolded relative to each other.

[0042] For example, the driving member (130) may be composed of a motor and gear structure or a hydraulic link structure, and thereby can rotate the skirt member (120).

[0043] Referring to FIG. 5(a), when the driving member (130) is formed as a motor and gear structure, the driving member (130) may include a rotary gear (131) integrally provided on the hinge shaft (121) of the skirt member (120), a motor part (not shown) provided on the spud body (110), and a driving gear (132) provided on the driving shaft of the motor part (not shown) to rotate the rotary gear (131) according to the driving of the motor part (not shown).

[0044] Here, the motor unit (not shown) may be composed of a stepper motor or the like that is controllable to rotate the skirt member (120) forward or backward by a preset angle through a drive gear (132).

[0045] Additionally, as an example, a motor part (not shown) may be provided on the upper or inner side of the spud body (110), and the driving gear (132) of the motor part (not shown) and the rotating gear (131) of the skirt member (120) may be directly connected by meshing, or indirectly connected by a power transmission means (not shown), such as a gear belt or an idler gear.

[0046] Accordingly, when the skirt member (120) that is vertically positioned downward from the spud body (110) is folded into the inside of the spud body (110), the motor unit (not shown) is driven to rotate the pivot gear (131) provided on the hinge shaft (121) of the skirt member (120) through the drive gear (132), thereby allowing the skirt member (120) to be rotated and folded into the inside of the spud body (110).

[0047] At this time, for example, according to the pre-set rotation control of the motor part (not shown), the skirt member (120), which is in a vertically upright position downward, can be rotated 90° toward the inside of the spud body (110) and positioned horizontally.

[0048] Additionally, when unfolding the skirt member (120) that is folded inward into the spud body (110), the skirt member (120) can be rotated 90° outward and positioned vertically downward by reversing the rotation gear (131) provided on the hinge shaft (121) of the skirt member (120) through the driving gear (132) according to the pre-set rotation control of the motor unit (not shown).

[0049] Additionally, referring to FIG. 5(b), when the driving member (130) is formed as a hydraulic link structure, the driving member (130) may include a cylinder body (133) provided in the spud body (110) and a cylinder rod (134) provided in the cylinder body (133) and connected to the inner surface of the skirt member (120).

[0050] At this time, the cylinder rod (134) provided in the cylinder body (133) can be extended or retracted by hydraulic pressure to unfold or fold the skirt member (120) connected to the cylinder rod (134) by a link structure.

[0051] In addition, by providing a stopper (140) on the spud body (110) to limit the rotation angle of the skirt member (120) to a range of 90°, the skirt member (120) can be unfolded so that it is vertically erected downward, or folded so that the open lower part of the spud body (110) is closed.

[0052] Meanwhile, the spud can (100) according to the present embodiment may further include a suction member (150) that increases penetration force by sucking in fluid within the spud body (110) when penetrating the seabed through the skirt member (120).

[0053] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the suction member (150) may include a suction pipe (151) connected to a spud body (110) and a suction pump (not shown) provided in the suction pipe (151).

[0054] Accordingly, when the leg (2) descends from the hull (1) and the skirt member (120) of the spud can (100) provided at the bottom of the leg (2) penetrates into the seabed, a suction pump (not shown) is operated to suck seawater inside the spud body (110) through the suction pipe (151), thereby creating a pressure difference inside the spud body (110) that penetrates together with the skirt member (120), allowing the spud can (100) to penetrate deeply and firmly into the seabed.

[0055] Meanwhile, FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate the usage state of a spud can (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0056] Referring to FIG. 6, as an example, a wind turbine installation vessel fixes the hull (1) to the seabed for the wind turbine installation work. At this time, a plurality of legs (2) are lowered below the sea surface by the operation of a jack-up device provided on the hull (1), and a spud can (100) provided at the bottom of each leg (2) can be fixed to the seabed.

[0057] When fixing the spud can (100) to the seabed, a plurality of skirt members (120) provided at the bottom of the spud body (110) are spread downward, and the spud can (100) can be easily inserted into the seabed through the pointed bottom of the skirt members (120).

[0058] In this process, by operating a suction pump (not shown) to suck seawater from inside the spud body (110) through the suction pipe (151, see FIG. 3), the spud can (100) can be driven deeper into the seabed and firmly fixed.

[0059] In addition, referring to FIG. 7, when operating a ship, a plurality of legs (2) installed on the hull (1) can be raised to reduce resistance caused by seawater.

[0060] At this time, the spud can (100) provided at the bottom of each leg (2) is positioned on the bottom side of the hull (1). A plurality of skirt members (120) protruding downward from the spud body (110) are folded into the spud body (110) and positioned horizontally at the same level as the bottom side of the hull (1), and at the same time, the open bottom of the spud body (110) is closed, thereby eliminating factors that could act as resistance to the hull (1).

[0061] That is, when operating a ship, if the skirt member (120) of the spud can (100) protrudes from the bottom surface of the hull (1), the resistance acting on the hull (1) increases, which can be a factor in reducing the ship's speed. Therefore, the skirt member (120) can be folded to be level with the bottom surface of the hull (1).

[0062] As described above, a spud can (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention can be made lightweight by having a simple structure, and a plurality of skirt members (120) provided in the spud can (100) can be configured to be foldable, so that when the hull (1) is in operation mode, the skirt members (120) can be folded to match the same level as the bottom surface of the hull (1), thereby suppressing the reduction of the ship's speed caused by the spud can (100).

[0063] Additionally, when lowering the leg (2) from the hull (1) to fix the spud can (100) to the seabed, the plurality of skirt members (120) provided in the spud can (100) are vertically spread downward and penetrated into the seabed, and at the same time, seawater inside the spud can (100) is sucked in through the suction member (150) to create a pressure difference, thereby allowing the spud can (100) to penetrate deeper and more firmly into the seabed, and thereby the hull (1) supported by the leg (2) and the spud can (100) can be stably fixed to the seabed.

[0064] The embodiments of the invention disclosed in this specification and drawings are provided merely as specific examples to facilitate the explanation of the technical content of the invention and to aid in understanding the invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

[0065] Accordingly, the scope of the present invention should be interpreted as including all modifications or variations derived based on the technical concept of the present invention, in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein. Explanation of the symbols

[0066] 1 : Hull 2 ​​: Leg 100 : Spud Can 110 : Spud Main Body 120 : Skirt member 130 : Driving member 140 : Stopper 150 : Suction component

Claims

Claim 1 A spud can comprising: a spud body formed as a cylindrical or polygonal shape with an open bottom provided at the lower end of a leg of a hull; a plurality of skirt members foldably provided at the lower edge of the spud body, which fold together to close the open bottom of the spud body or unfold together to penetrate the seabed; and a driving member that operates the plurality of skirt members to fold or unfold together, wherein each of the plurality of skirt members is formed in the shape of a triangular plate, and when folded inward toward the spud body, interlocks with each other to close the open bottom of the spud body, and when unfolded toward the seabed, stands upright in an inverted triangular shape and penetrates the seabed through a pointed bottom. Claim 2 A spud can according to claim 1, further comprising a suction member connected to the spud body and generating a pressure difference by sucking in fluid within the spud body to increase penetration force when the spud body is penetrated into the seabed through the plurality of skirt members. Claim 3 A spud can according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper provided on the spud body and limiting the rotation angle of the skirt member so that the skirt member is folded or unfolded to a preset position. Claim 4 In claim 1, the plurality of skirt members are spud cans that are folded inward into the spud body and arranged horizontally at the same level as the bottom surface of the hull when the leg installed on the hull is raised by the hull's operation mode. Claim 5 delete Claim 6 In claim 1, the driving member is formed as a combined structure of a gear and a motor or a hydraulic link structure, and is a spud can that operates the plurality of skirt members to be folded or unfolded relative to each other.

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