Pipeline Weighting Device with Self-Closing Filling Sleeve
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pipeline weighting methods face issues with large, heavy bag weights that are difficult to handle and install, prone to spillage and freezing, and require complex manufacturing and strapping processes, leading to increased trench depths and safety hazards.
Innovation Solution
A pipeline weighting device composed of interconnected, tubular-shaped lobes made of flexible, water-permeable fabric with self-closing filling sleeves or flaps that trap fill material when turned, allowing for balanced weighting and reduced spillage, and featuring lifting loops and reinforcing straps for easier handling and installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If bag weights are made large and heavy to provide sufficient weighting force, then the weighting effectiveness is improved, but the ease of handling and installation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The bag weight is divided into multiple compartments (typically four) arranged around the pipeline. Each compartment can be filled and secured independently, reducing the handling difficulty of a single large heavy bag while maintaining the total weighting force required for pipeline stabilization.
2Force
If bag weights are made large and heavy to provide sufficient weighting force, then the weighting effectiveness is improved, but the trench depth required increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of extending the bag weight vertically below the pipeline (which increases trench depth), the invention distributes the weighting force horizontally around the pipeline using multiple compartments. This dimensional shift allows sufficient weighting force to be achieved without increasing the required trench depth.
3Ease of manufacture
If open bags are used for filling, then the filling operation is simplified, but spillage and freezing problems occur
Solution Approach 1:
The bags are equipped with pre-attached closure elements (drawstrings, flaps, or stitches) that are prepared in advance during manufacturing. These closure mechanisms allow the bags to be quickly sealed after filling, preventing spillage and freezing without complicating the filling operation itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The bag design includes self-closing mechanisms such as drawstrings that can be pulled to automatically close the opening, or flaps that fold over and secure themselves. This self-service closure system prevents spillage and freezing without requiring complex manual sealing operations.
4Reliability
If complex strapping and cinching operations are used to secure bag weights, then the security of attachment is improved, but the device complexity and installation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The compartment walls themselves are designed to serve as the securing structure. The compartments are stitched or welded to the main bag body, creating an integrated structure that requires no separate strapping or cinching operations. The compartments are naturally secured to the pipeline through their positioning and interconnection.
5Ease of operation
If workers must work in close confines of the trench to strap and cinch bag weights, then the installation space is constrained, but safety hazards increase
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the bag weight into multiple smaller compartments that are filled and positioned independently, workers can handle each compartment separately with easier access. This segmentation reduces the need for workers to reach into deep, confined spaces to manipulate large heavy bags, thereby reducing safety hazards in the trench environment.
Data Source
AI summary
A pipeline weighting device to straddle the longitudinal axis of a pipeline, a method of filling the device, and a method of weighting a pipeline with the device. The pipeline weighting device is formed of a plurality of interconnected, generally tubular-shaped lobes arranged to straddle the pipeline in a balanced manner along the longitudinal axis of the pipeline. The lobes are formed of a flexible, water permeable fabric to hold weighting fill material. Each lobe has opposed and closed longitudinal side edges and opposed ends, one end being a closed end, and the other end forming an open or partially open filling end. Each lobe is formed with a self-closing filling sleeve or filling flap at the open filling end, the filling sleeve or filling flap extending into the interior of the lobe and providing an opening into the lobe in a manner such that, when each of the lobes is fully charged through the opening with the fill material, and the pipeline weighting device is turned on its longitudinal axis, the filling sleeve or tube becomes trapped to close the filling sleeve or filling flap and to contain the fill material.