Back to results
US 2025/0354634 A1Published application
Buoyant Stretchable Hose Assembly and Mooring System
AssigneeWoods Hole Oceanographic Institution
InventorDonald M. PETERS
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A buoyant stretchable hose assembly, and mooring systems utilizing same, adapted to be filled with a gas to change its buoyancy in water to create an upward curvature under calm conditions while providing sufficient scope during dynamic conditions to effectively moor a surface buoy or ship while minimizing damage to benthic communities.
Claims20
A buoyant stretchable hose assembly configured to be deployed in water, comprising:
- a stretchable hose body defining a hollow interior extending between a first end and a second end;
- a first termination assembly including a first male body insertable into the first end of the hose body and including a first termination cap;
- a second termination assembly including a second male body insertable into the second end of the hose body and including a second termination cap;
- wherein at least one of the first termination assembly and the second termination assembly includes at least one fill valve configured to accept a gas at greater than one atmosphere of pressure to pressurize the hose body;
- and
- wherein the pressurized hose body is positively buoyant at a selected water depth of at least twenty feet and is configured to withstand cyclic stretching as a component of a mooring line.
3 more elements
A buoyant stretchable hose system, comprising:
- a stretchable hose body having a first end and a second end, and including a plurality of layers formed around an inner liner layer defining a hollow center core and at least one strength member layer comprising helically-wrapped reinforcing fiber cords;
- wherein at least some of the plurality of layers comprises an elastomeric material adapted to provide stretching of the hose to a stretched length of at least 150 percent of an unstretched length of the hose;
- and
- wherein the hollow center core is adapted to receive and hold a gas at greater than atmospheric pressure to augment the buoyancy of the hose in water.
1 more element
A mooring system comprising:
- a buoyant stretchable hose assembly including a stretchable hose body defining a hollow interior extending between a first end and a second end, a first termination assembly including a first male body insertable into the first end of the hose body and including a first termination cap, and a second termination assembly including a second male body insertable into the second end of the hose body and including a second termination cap;
- wherein at least one of the first termination assembly and the second termination assembly includes at least one fill valve configured to accept a gas at greater than one atmosphere of pressure to pressurize the hose body, and the pressurized hose body is positively buoyant at a selected water depth of at least twenty feet;
- and
- a first jointed connector attached to the first termination assembly and a second jointed connector attached to the second termination assembly, wherein each jointed connector enables at least thirty degrees of deflection.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.