Water Surface Guide Device for Offshore Foundation Installation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for constructing foundations in water, such as those for wind turbines, are costly due to the need for expensive jack-up platforms and supply ships to guide and support the installation process.
Innovation Solution
A method and system where a guide device is set on the water surface, a casing is inserted into the guide device, a drilling device creates a cavity, and a foundation element is lowered into the cavity, with the casing being removable separately, allowing for cost-effective division of the process into sections and using cementitious material for fixation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If jack-up platforms and supply ships are used for guiding and supporting monopile installation, then installation guidance and support are improved, but construction cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the guidance function from the expensive jack-up platform by using a separate guide device that can be set down independently on the water surface. The guide device includes a guide tube that guides the drilling device and monopile installation, separating this function from the costly floating platform infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is segmented into independent functional units: a guide device for positioning, a drilling device for cavity creation, and a monopile installation system. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and eliminates the need for continuous presence of expensive supply ships throughout the construction process.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a single integrated platform is used for drilling and foundation installation, then process integration is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The guide device acts as an intermediary structure that enables coordinated operation of drilling and installation activities without requiring a single complex integrated platform. The guide tube provides the intermediary guidance function that allows separate drilling and installation equipment to work together efficiently.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables more economical construction by allowing multiple units to work in sections, reducing the need for continuous supply of expensive vessels and facilitating quick erection of structures in areas with strong currents or sediment.
Implementation Method 1
a drilling device (20) which can be introduced into the casing (18) and by means of which a cavity (23) can be created in the foundation area by removing the ground (12)
Implementation Method 2
the space between the cavity wall and the outside of the foundation element is filled, preferably with cementitious filling material
Data Source
Figure 1~2
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for producing a foundation for a structure (100) in water (11) in which a tubular hollow body (18) is arranged on the bottom of the water body (12), a drilling device (20) is arranged in the hollow body (18), a cavity (23) is created in the bottom of the water body (12) below the hollow body (18), in which the soil (22) is removed by means of the drilling device (20), and the hollow body (18) is lowered into the cavity (23) until a predetermined depth in the soil is reached, the drilling device (20) is then removed from the hollow body (18), a foundation element (27) is inserted into an interior space (19) inside the hollow body (18) and lowered, and the cavity (30) between the cavity wall (29) and the outside of the foundation element (27) is filled.The invention provides that a guide device (13) is placed on the water surface (12) at the foundation site (10), in which the tubular hollow body (18) is arranged in the guide device (13) in the insertion direction, that the hollow body (18) is removed from the cavity (23) after the foundation element (27) has been inserted, and that the guide element (13) is removed.