A Mooring Device and method thereof

Abstract

This Invention provides a practical solution to a major issue in ship mooring which endangers in certain circumstances the property and the lives as well. The invention is a method and device giving a solution to release the Mooring rope instantly and quickly if the deck winch accidentally rewinds as a result of poor communication or other similar human activity. The device attached to the fork lift truck and pulls the heaving rope towards the bollard and by any mischance the deck winch rewinds, the Mooring rope is quickly released with the automatic activation of the device relating to the increase of the tension of the rope itself. The Mooring Hook is held and controlled by the locking / releasing mechanism in the device and when the rope tension increases the primary link goes up pushing the secondary link up and thereby the cams attached to the secondary link pushes the locking / releasing mechanism backward and the mooring hook fallen down releasing the mooring rope instantly without giving any chance for an accidental death or damage to property.

Description

Description Field of InventionAll in all the prevention of accidents and damage to property and persons deployed in mooring vessels has been of great concern among all stakeholders in the field.Therefore Mooring operation plays a vital role in berthing a ship at both ends: the pier and the deck for the purpose of loading and unloading of the vessel. It may sometimes become a formidable experience for some terminal operators (members of the mooring gang) who are basically on the pier-side during the mooring process provided adequate protective mechanisms / devices are not properly arranged in advance. There have been reports to the effect that several of such workers had critically injured whereas in certain cases caused death to workers and certain valuable equipment have been damaged due to lack of adherence to proper protective means and mechanisms.Although several sophisticated pneumatic, electrical and hydraulic devices have been developed in the process of mooring a vessel, the core issue is still not properly addressed to resolve the problem in most of the harbors in the world.The invention relates to a Mooring Device with a mechanism and method for the quick release of the heaving rope provided the tension of the mooring rope increases into a dangerous point by accidental reversing / rewinding of the winch on the deck side whereby the possibility of an accident is zero as regard to the invention. The reversing / rewinding of the ship winch may often happen due to possible communication errors such as language barriers or other between the deck controller and the mooring gang controller / operator in the pier-side.BackgroundAlthough several sophisticated mooring mechanisms such as hydraulic, pneumatic or electrically operated systems are being used in some harbors, the very common methodology in practice in most of the harbors world-wide in berthing ships is, by pulling the mooring ropes unto the bollard with the help of a fork-lift truck and a lashing gang. It is important to mention that sea water level is below 15-20 meters from the ship deck and 2-4 meters from the pier .However it depends on the behavior of the tidal waves present at that particular time.Apart from that most of the mooring winches are operated with hydraulic or electric power and brake liners attached to them are therefore become vital component since a slight delay or failure to apply brakes at the time of re-winding of the deck winch would bring very unpleasant and severe consequences however. The possible reasons for that, brakes would not function properly due to moisture or having contaminants in the brake liners.Berthing a ship with manual mooring is not an easy task if the sea is rough or under bad weather conditions. If we use hydraulic, pneumatic or electrically operated mooring devices it might bring troubles under these conditions. As these devices operate with pre-set release loads with manufacturers’ specifications the rope might get slack or might get over tightened under bad weather conditions.Diagram 01, Diagram 02, Diagram 03The Diagrams 01 to 03 attached hereto show how the very common situation as to how a ship is berthed and how the mooring rope is pulled up to the bollard to be tied upon by way of putting the loop of the mooring rope around bollard.There are two common methods currently being used is described below:Method 1.Mooring devices with mooring hooks currently being operated by hydraulic or pneumatic systems are permanently mounted on the pier (Photograph 01). The deck controller puts the mooring ropes down through the roller fear lead enabling the lashing gang members to pull it onto the pier and attach to the mooring hook by the rope eye(internal diameter of the rope eye is constant under any load but the shape can be varied under the load). Then the winch on the ship deck rewinds until the rope reaches adequate level of tension to keep the vessel stable at sea. If by any mishap the deck winch rewinds further and the tension of the mooring rope increases the load cell on the hook in the hydraulic or pneumatic system receives a release command which prompts the release of the mooring rope instantly. However this type of mooring equipment are not so much reliable since electrical load measuring systems can go wrong at any time. Moreover the equipment is much expensive, costly and need uninterrupted power supply and maintenance. On the other hand, the mooring rope which is 40-100mm in diameter is too heavy for a man to handle specially above the sea level. The seawater level at the pier side is 2-4 meters in height so that the gang member’s life may be in danger if the rope tension is heightened by any mishap resulting him to be fallen into the sea or cause any other corporeal damage.Photograph 01 attached hereto illustrates as to how a ship is berthed using this method.The disadvantages of this method are the high capital cost and the high maintenance cost and not being 100% reliable. The gang member who initially pulls the rope is at a high risk of causing bodily harm or sometimes causing death if deck winch malfunctions accidentally. Moreover the any sophisticated and synchronized load measuring apparatus and hydraulic units can go wrong and may not be reliable in certain instances.Method 2The main mooring rope is attached to a small rope called the heaving rope with a fairly heavy object and the deck controller throws it towards the gang men on the pier and they pull it on and attach to the hook or the pin located under the counter weight of the fork lift truck. The forklift truck pulls the rope until such time the main rope adequately reaches the bollard to be tied upon. It is worthwhile to mention that the gang men themselves cannot pull the rope unto the bollard since the main rope is too heavy basically when it comes out of water. Therefore the heaving rope is connected to the forklift truck to be pulled on. This method too is not practicable since there is no safety mechanism attached thereto in the case of the deck winch suddenly rewinds by any mischance or by any human error. In such a case the forklift truck operator has to disengage the rope from the forklift truck by himself or by a gang man which task is not so easy as the tension of the rope is at its peak. The final result may be the forklift truck might be fallen into the sea or any other bodily damage to the gang men if the deck winch could not be operated properly.Photograph 02 attached hereto illustrates as to how a ship is berthed using this method. Disadvantage of this method is basically the poor connection and disconnection facility of the heaving rope to the fork-lift truck i.e. the difficulty in releasing the rope quickly to avoid any possible accident.In the current system too fork-lift trucks are being used to pull the mooring rope unto the bollard. However it is basically without the quick and safe releasing method of the rope which system endangers the lives of gang-men and the equipment around. In other words the method of connecting the heaving rope unto the hook or the pin is not being attached to the fork-lift truck in the safest way to release the rope quickly and instantly if confronted with any dangerous situation such as pulling back of the rope by sudden and unexpected rewinding of the deck winch. The only way left, is to set back the fork-lift truck to loosen the tension of the rope and a gang-man has to remove the pin instantly or remove the rope manually within seconds. This is not practicable enough to avoid any dangerous situation because it should be done simultaneously otherwise it would not be successful, instead brings about horrible and harmful circumstance on the lives and equipment.The invention successfully addresses and solves this core issue by releasing the rope quickly and instantly without any human involvement. Therefore the use of the invention is much safer , much practical and the possibility of causing any accident is zero and the lives of men and equipment are 100% safe.SummaryThe invention is basically divided into three(3) major components for easy reference and better understanding of its functions namely: Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly(BS / SKA), Box Assembly or the Mooring Hook Assembly(BA / MHA) and Specific Unit with Locking Releasing Mechanism(SULRM).The invention relates to a Mooring Device and the Method thereof comprising a Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly ((BS) / SKA) and a Box Assembly more specifically the Mooring Hook Assembly(MHA)wherein the Mooring Hook

[03] is attached which Mooring Hook is controlled or manipulated by a Specific Unit functioning as a Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) for the purpose of holding Mooring Hook and releasing the heaving rope entangled with the main mooring line automatically and instantly as and when required. The Mooring Device is mounted on the counter-weight of the fork-lift truck using the base structure with the swivel knuckle attached thereto helps the Mooring Hook Assembly (MHA) to be turned about in lateral directions approximately 160o as required when the fork-lift truck moves parallel or in perpendicular directions to the ship.The fork-lift truck attached with the Mooring Device pulls the heaving rope (entangled with the main mooring line) until the main rope (main mooring line) reaches the bollard on the pier to be tied upon by way of putting the main Mooring rope eye around the bollard.Functioning of the Mooring Device and the Method thereof basically depend upon the behavior of the Mooring rope more particularly the change of its angle when the rope is accidently rewound by any error on the part of the deck controller due to any poor communicative practice or other. The ship deck is usually 15-20 meters (maximum) higher than the sea level. Therefore the angle of the rope become acute following the sudden winding back of the deck winch owing to heightening the tension of the mooring rope.The Base Structure [1] or the Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA) is the component by which the device is mounted on the counter- weight of the fork-lift truck. It consists of the Swivel Knuckle(SK)[6] attached to it with a view to facilitate the Mooring Rope being kept stable in the device while the fork-lift truck moves in lateral and perpendicular directions in its course of pulling the Mooring rope and a swivel pin[2],Bush(bronze)[3], Bush 1 (bronze)[4], keeper plate[7] . The Swivel Knuckle may turn approximately 160o in lateral direction to fulfill the above requirement.Box Assembly or the Mooring Hook Assembly (BA / MHA) is the main component where the Mooring Hook

[11] is positioned at the front end where onto the heaving rope is attached for the purpose of pulling the main Mooring Rope unto the bollard. Box Assembly or the Mooring Hook Assembly (BA / MHA) is directly attached to the Swivel Knuckle with the load shaft

[10] (at the rear end). It also accompanies with a guiding wheel

[20] at the bottom, close to the rear end of the Box Assembly for the smooth movement in lateral directions. On the top of the Box assembly the Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism is positioned. The Mooring Hook

[11] is mounted (at the front end of the Box assembly) with a ball bearing

[12] on the load shaft

[10] which passes through the Mooring Hook below its center of gravity at its rear end for instant and quick falling down, releasing the rope when the rope tension increases with an acute angle consequent to the sudden and unexpected re-winding of the deck winch. Mooring Hook

[11] has a special shape where rope touches, this straight shape hook advantages to release the rope instantly when needed without stuck or jam the rope. Rope does not come out from the Mooring Hook

[11] , because it is always directing down by the primary link

[22] shows in figure 03. Both the Load shafts (threaded ends) of the Box Assembly are made of cold rolled steel to maintain maximum strength in the device.The Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) comprising a Base Plate or Mechanism Base

[21] which is made of mild steel with fillet welding. All the other components are assembled in the Mechanism Base comprising Primary Link

[22] with High Tension Torsion Springs

[28] attached thereto at one end and at the other end connected with the Box Assembly(Figure 2)holding the Primary Link

[22] downwards, Secondary Link

[23] with solidly connected cams[4]thereto. Secondary link and cams are freely rotating more particularly going up and down with the movement of primary link at the pivot point (Hexogen Bolt (33)). Horizontal pin(cold rolled steel)

[30] one third of which is smaller by 2mm than that of the balance portion and threaded where the smaller portion ends to fix the Lock guiding plate

[25] and attached with the Spiral Spring

[27] at the right back of the lock guiding plate and at the extreme front end attached the Square Guide block(threaded)

[26] through which passes the vertical locking pin(threaded) (cold rolled steel)

[31] with a roller

[29] attached at the bottom holding / locking the Mooring Hook. The Lock guiding plate contains (vertically) square groves wherein the cams

[24] move downwards in relation to the secondary link moving up resulting the simultaneous backward movement of the Square Guide Block component, unlocking the Mooring Hook falling(turning)90O downward releasing the heaving rope instantly. Square Guide Block too is guided by the square grooves in the mechanism Base.Lifting force of both the High Tension Torsion Springs

[28] should necessarily be less than the total weight of the fork-lift truck for the smooth functioning of the mechanism. High Tension Torsion Springs

[28] attached to the SULRM at one end and at the other end connected with the Box Assembly (Figure 2) holding the Primary Link

[22] downwards, until such time the angle of the mooring rope becomes acute due to the increasing of the rope tension consequent to the rewinding of the deck winch. The spiral spring tension may be in average force just to push back (Hold in position) the square guide block(26), as and when necessary especially at the time of the Mooring Hook is locked in the device or once the Mooring Hook fallen down. Alternately the spiral spring can be replaced with a leaf spring as indicated in Figure 4.The Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) [Figure 03] is the most significant component of the invention due to the fact that it locks and holds the Mooring Hook

[11] stable in its right position in the course of pulling the mooring rope on to the pier (up to the Bollard) and apart from its ability of unlocking the Mooring Hook to be fallen down enabling the quick release of the mooring rope instantly. In this process the square guide block

[26] moves backward unlocking the Mooring Hook when the secondary link

[23] goes up and the cams

[24] connected thereto push the locking device backward as a result of the primary link

[22] hits or pushes the secondary link up following the mooring rope increases the tension by the pulling (Increasing the angle) back force against the rewinding of the deck winch and whereby changing the rope angle into upward acute position.In other words it can be described as follows: when the mooring rope is rewinding its tension increases and the angle of the rope becomes acute due to the fact that the ship deck is much higher than that of the pier level. As a result the rope touches the primary link with roller but with the help of two high tension torsion springs it tries to keep hold of the rope to a certain extent. However if the deck winch further rewinds the primary link goes up hitting the secondary link. Then the secondary link

[23] too goes up and the two cams (24) attached thereto push the lock guiding plate

[25] backward resulting the total mechanism moving back unlocking the Mooring Hook. The Mooring Hook instantly falls down and the mooring rope is quickly released avoiding accidental and harmful situation being occurred to the equipment and / or the gang-men.Advantages of the invention include one or more of the following:Minimizes the dangerous circumstances that might emerge in Vessel Mooring Systems and Methods (VMSM); lowers the operating costs of Vessel Mooring Systems and Methods; lowers the capital cost on Vessel Mooring Systems and Methods; Zero risk at disconnecting the rope in Vessel Mooring Systems and Methods; Faster connection and disconnection in Vessel Mooring Systems and Methods; No language barriers in the operation process, Completely user friendly with extra simple mechanism.Other aspects and / or advantages of the invention may be further identified from the following description of drawings:Brief Description of DrawingsFigure A - General View of assembly Figure A.a - All viewsFigure 1: Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA).Figure 2: Box Assembly or the Mooring Hook Assembly is the component where the Mooring Hook and the Specific Unit for Locking / Releasing Mechanism are positioned.Figure 3: Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM)(Front, Top, Right) ViewsDetailed description of DrawingsFigure 1: Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA).Quick Release Mooring Device is fixed on the counter-weight of the fork-lift truck and the Swivel Knuckle serves as the component enabling the moving of the MHA in lateral directions against the behavior of the fork-lift truck and the Mooring rope. Base Structure [1] is a mild steel structure where all other components of the invention are incorporated with fillet welding. The Base Structure consists of Swivel Knuckle[6] Swivel Knuckle Pin(vertical)[2], bush(bronze)[3], Bush(bronze)[4], Washer[5], keeper plate[7] which keeps the knuckle pin stable whilst the swivel knuckle turns either side and Hexagon screws[8]. The structure is mounted on the counter weight of the fork-lift truck with heavy duty nuts and bolts in two slotted holes.Figure 2: Box AssemblyThis component as a whole can turn about approximately 160o in lateral directions with the help of the Swivel Knuckle when required as mentioned above. Box Assembly or the Mooring Hook Assembly consists of Box Plates[1], Load Shafts[2], Mooring Hook[3], Roller Bearing[4] which facilitates the quick falling down of the Mooring Hook , Spacers[5], Hexagon nuts[6], Slotted PHMS(Screw)[7], Guiding Wheel Bracket[8], Indented HHMS Bolts[9], Indented HHMS Bolts

[10] , Hexagon nuts

[11] , guiding wheel

[12] , guiding wheel attachment[13 ] for the smooth and simultaneous turning of the box assembly on counter weight with the Mooring rope behavior.Figure 3: Specific Unit Locking / Releasing Mechanism / (Front, Top, and Side) ViewsThe Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) is the most significant component of the invention due to the fact that it locks and holds the Mooring Hook stable in its right position in the process of pulling the mooring rope to the pier and apart from its ability of unlocking the Mooring Hook to be fallen down enabling the release of the mooring rope quickly and instantly. If suddenly or by mistake the deck winch rewinds the definite result of which is the pulling back the mooring rope with the equipment attached thereto until it is fallen into the sea.When the mooring rope is rewinding the tension increases and the angle of the rope become acute from the ship deck downwards to the pier due to the fact the ship deck is much higher than that of the pier level. As a result the rope touches the primary link with roller but with the help of the high tension torsion springs it keeps holding the rope to a certain extent and if the deck winch further rewinds the primary link goes up hitting the secondary link. Then the secondary link too goes up and the two cams attached thereto push the Lock Guiding Plate

[25] resulting Square Guide Block

[26] moves backward unlocking of the Mooring Hook. Once the Mooring Hook instantly falls down and the release of the mooring rope definitely avoids any accidental and harmful circumstances to the equipment and the gang men.

Claims

Claims (08)What is claimed by the invention is:

01. Mooring Device and the method thereof comprising a Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA) by which the device is mounted on the counterweight of the fork lift truck; the Box Assembly / Mooring Hook Assembly (BA / MHA) where the Mooring Hook[11] is positioned to attach the heaving rope entangled with the main mooring line and the Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM)consisting with primary link [22] Secondary Link[23] with cams [24] permanently fixed thereto, Lock guiding Plate[25], Spiral Spring[27], Square guide Block[26], High Tension Torsion Springs[28], Horizontal Pin[30] and a Vertical Locking Pin[31] with roller[29] fixed at the bottom for easy glide back of the vertical pin[31] for the purpose of releasing the Mooring Hook[11] instantly and quickly if the deck winch rewinds accidentally and unexpectedly avoiding any accidental situation or damage being caused to the property and the workers.

02. Mooring Device and the method thereof: is a method for automatic release of the main mooring line when its angle become acute with increased tension as a result of the rewinding of the deck winch due to any human error or other and the line (with heightened tension and acute angle) touches the Primary Link[22] making it going up lifting the Secondary Link[23] and the cams[24] moving downwards pushing the Lock Guiding Plate[25] back with the Horizontal Pin[30] and rest of its components namely the Square Guide Block[26] wherein the vertical Locking Pin[31] attached and thereby releasing the Mooring Hook[11] instantly and quickly avoiding accidental damage to property and injury to mooring gang members.

03. Mooring Device and the Method thereof according to claim 1, the Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA) is attached with the Box Assembly / Mooring Hook assembly and the Specific Unit with Locking / Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) attached to the Base Structure / Swivel Knuckle Assembly (BS / SKA) having the ability to turn about 160o in lateral directions as a single unit to keep the mooring rope stable in the device while the fork lift truck moves in lateral or perpendicular directions.

04. Mooring Device and the Method thereof according to claim 1, the Box Assembly / Mooring Hook Assembly (BA / MHA) comprising the Mooring Hook [11] is mounted with a ball bearing [12] on the load shaft [10] which passes through the Mooring Hook just below its center of gravity at the rear end to facilitate its instant and quick falling down, releasing the rope quickly when the rope tension increases with an acute angle consequent to the sudden and unexpected re-winding of the deck winch.

05. Mooring Device and the method thereof according to claim 1 above the Specific Unit with Locking Releasing Mechanism comprising with the Lock guiding Plate [25], Spiral Spring [27], Square Guide Block [26], Horizontal Pin [30] and a Vertical Locking Pin [31] with Roller [29] fixed at the bottom for easy glide back of the vertical pin [31] are components which move as a single unit when the cams attached to the Secondary Link pushes the Lock guiding Plate back.

06. Mooring Device and the Method thereof according to claim 1 the Box Assembly / Mooring Hook Assembly (BA / MHA) comprising High Tension Torsion Springs [28], the lifting force of which is less than the weight of the fork lift truck holding the primary link downwards until such time the angle of the rope becomes acute due to increasing the tension consequent to rewinding of the deck winch.

07. Mooring Device and the Method thereof according to claim 1, the Specific Unit with Locking Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) comprising with a leaf spring instead of the Spiral Spring [27]. (Sketch Diagram is Attached Below at last)08. Mooring Device and the Method thereof according to claim 1, the Specific Unit with Locking Releasing Mechanism (SULRM) comprising with a Spiral Spring[27] the tension of which may be in average force just to push back (Hold in position) the square guide block(26), as and when necessary.AbstractThis Invention provides a practical solution to a major issue in ship mooring which endangers in certain circumstances the property and the lives as well. The invention is a method and device giving a solution to release the Mooring rope instantly and quickly if the deck winch accidentally rewinds as a result of poor communication or other similar human activity.The device attached to the fork lift truck and pulls the heaving rope towards the bollard and by any mischance the deck winch rewinds, the Mooring rope is quickly released with the automatic activation of the device relating to the increase of the tension of the rope itself.The Mooring Hook is held and controlled by the locking / releasing mechanism in the device and when the rope tension increases the primary link goes up pushing the secondary link up and thereby the cams attached to the secondary link pushes the locking / releasing mechanism backward and the mooring hook fallen down releasing the mooring rope instantly without giving any chance for an accidental death or damage to property.Diagram 01 (Explanation of Moring Operation / Procedure)Diagram 02 (Explanation of Moring Operation / Procedure)Diagram 03(Explanation of Moring Operation / Procedure)Photograph 01Photograph 02Figure AFigure A.a

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