Vessel With Extendible Ramp For Emergency Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Boats with flat bottom hulls are not capable of handling heavy water and can be difficult to control, limiting their use in emergency operations that require access to land or other boats in challenging water conditions.
Innovation Solution
A vessel with a V-shaped hull and a reconfigurable bow, equipped with an extendible ramp mechanism, allowing for easy access to land and improved control in various water conditions, including heavy water.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a flat bottom shaped hull is used, then the boat can provide speedy access to land and easy exit for emergency personnel, but the boat cannot handle heavy water and is difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The bow is made reconfigurable with movable sections that can pivot between closed and open positions. This dynamic structure allows the vessel to adapt its bow configuration based on operational needs - closed for heavy water handling and open for beaching operations, resolving the contradiction between ease of land access and heavy water capability
Solution Approach 2:
The bow is divided into multiple movable sections rather than being a single fixed structure. This segmentation allows independent movement of bow sections to achieve different configurations - forming a V-shape for heavy water or opening for beaching, thus enabling the vessel to excel at both previously conflicting functions
2Reliability
If a V-bottom shaped hull is used, then the boat can handle heavy water better, but the boat is less fuel efficient and slower
Solution Approach 1:
The reconfigurable bow allows the vessel to dynamically change its hull form at the front. When a V-bottom configuration is needed for heavy water, only the bow sections are adjusted while the rest of the hull maintains a more efficient shape, reducing the overall energy penalty compared to a full V-bottom hull
Solution Approach 2:
The V-shape is applied locally only to the bow sections when needed, rather than the entire hull. This localized application of the V-bottom characteristic provides heavy water capability where most needed at the front, while the rest of the hull can maintain a flatter, more fuel-efficient shape
3Productivity
If a flat front is used for quick exit to land, then emergency operations are facilitated, but the boat is not sea worthy and difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The bow configuration is made dynamic and reversible. The movable bow sections can be opened to create a flat front for rapid beaching operations, then closed to form a V-shape for improved sea worthiness and controllability, allowing the vessel to excel at both beaching speed and handling characteristics
Data Source
AI summary
A water vessel is provided. The water vessel includes a hull, a deck, and a ramp. The hull has a front end, an aft end, a starboard side, a port side, a bottom, a bow at the front end, and a stem at the aft end. The bow is movable between a closed configuration and an open configuration. The deck is in the region of the bow. The ramp is located between the bottom of the hull and the deck in a retracted position. When the bow is in the open configuration, the ramp is movable to an extended position in which the ramp extends from the front end of the hull.