Climbing Service Frame for Splash-Zone Structure Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Marine and land-based structures, such as support structures in the splash zone, face challenges with ageing and degradation due to corrosion, physical damage, and marine growth, which require servicing but are difficult and hazardous to access, especially for wind turbine towers that are hard to maintain due to their height or location.
Innovation Solution
A modular apparatus with a frame and pivotally attached arms that can be assembled around structures of different sizes, featuring rotating members and a carriage for circumferential movement, allowing tools to be mounted and accessed easily, and equipped with sensors for precise positioning, enabling effective servicing while navigating obstacles and varying diameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If divers are used for servicing structures in the splash zone, then human flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but safety hazards increase and effectiveness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus enables self-service operation through automated propulsion systems (tracks and wheels) and automated tool operation, eliminating the need for divers to manually service structures in hazardous splash zones while maintaining consistent servicing quality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical human diver system with an automated mechanical apparatus featuring electric or hydraulic actuators, tracked propulsion systems, and automated tool positioning mechanisms to perform servicing operations without human exposure to hazardous environments
2Stability of the object's composition
If a fixed-frame apparatus is used for servicing, then structural stability is improved, but adaptability to different structure sizes decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The frame incorporates dynamically adjustable components including telescopic arms with variable lengths, pivot joints for angular adjustment, and reconfigurable support legs that can adapt their configuration to match different structure diameters and geometries while maintaining operational stability
Solution Approach 2:
The apparatus features universal mounting interfaces and interchangeable tool modules that enable the same frame structure to service multiple types of structures (wind turbine towers, marine piles, chimneys) with varying dimensions through reconfiguration rather than requiring multiple dedicated systems
3Ease of operation
If tools are mounted on the frame, then tool accessibility is improved, but interference from rotating members and arms increases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus positions tool mounting locations in three-dimensional space around the frame structure, utilizing vertical, radial, and tangential dimensions to place tools in locations that are accessible to the carriage while clear of the path of rotating members and articulated arms during their operational cycles
4Area of stationary object
If arms are attached at the upper end of the frame, then structure coverage is improved, but assembly difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus is divided into modular segments including separable frame sections, detachable arm assemblies, and interchangeable tool modules that can be assembled in a logical sequence from ground level, with upper arms attached after frame assembly rather than requiring top-down assembly
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus for servicing a structure comprises a frame for assembly around the structure, the frame having least one pair of first and second arms pivotally attached at proximal ends thereof to the frame and carrying respective rotating members arranged to contact the structure and driveable to move the frame along the structure.