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US 3,934,531 AGranted
Ocean going cargo transport system
OwnerRudolph A. Alleninventor
Life of this patent
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OwnerRudolph A. Alleninventor
Estimating the term…
An elongated flat bottom, vertical side cargo unit vessel with a specially configured high-speed bow featuring a forwardly cantilevered horizontal bottom panel of full hull width, predetermined projecting length and vertical thickness controlling bow wave of the hull, with a multi-skeged upsloped stern bottom. A plurality of detachably connected power module vessels and a single control module vessel arranged abreast are detachably connected to each other and to the stern. Submerged to adjustable depths, torpedo-shaped drive units of the power module vessels support upright housings thereon projecting above water level and pass through flotation collars which provide flotation and stability for the power module vessels as independent craft when detached from the cargo unit vessel. An elevatable helm house with monitor and control apparatus on the control module vessel provides control for the power module vessels and cargo unit vessel from a suitable vantage point. The control module vessel and power module vessels when detached from the cargo unit vessel hull become independent sea-going vessels capable in a group or separately of serving as life saving vessels, work boats or otherwise.
An ocean going cargo transport comprising a cargo vessel hull having an elongated generally flat-bottomed midship section, and stern and bow sections joined to the respective aft and forward ends of said midship section, and propulsion means operable to propel said hull at cruising speed, said midship section having substantially vertical sides extending downwardly substantially to the plane of its bottom, said bow section having upright sides merging with the respective sides of said midship section, converging together forwardly therefrom, and sloping laterally outward and upward to form a tapered bow with outward flare, said bow section having a bottom comprising a submerged forwardly projecting substantially horizontal bottom panel which in planform has side edges that extend generally forwardly in substantial alignment with the sides of the midship section, said submerged bottom panel being cantilevered from the hull and having a substantially flat horizontal bottom surface generally coplanar with the midship section bottom, said panel having a substantially flat horizontal top surface, the forwardly projecting length and vertical thickness of the bow bottom panel being predetermined to create a wave ahead of the bow during forward cruising speed of the vessel, the trough of which wave is presented to the converging sides of the bow.
An ocean going cargo carrier comprising an elongated cargo vessel hull having a bottom which is substantially flat across substantially the full width of the hull and extends forwardly substantially to the forward bottom extremity of the hull, the sides of the hull extending upwardly substantially from the level of the hull bottom to form a generally rectangular hull cross section over the major portion of its length in the waist to a location displaced aft of said forward bottom extremity by a small fraction of the hull length, at which location said sides converge forwardly and undergo outward and upward slope to form an outwardly and forwardly flared bow, said flared bow having a central forward end at its top which substantially directly overlies said forward bottom extremity, and said flared bow further having a central forward end at its bottom which lies aft of said forward bottom extremity, and substantially horizontal panel means having a generally flat bottom surface substantially coplanar with the hull bottom, extending across substantially the full width of the hull and projecting forwardly from the bottom of the flared bow in substantially congruent relationship with the forward end of the hull, said panel means having an upper surface spaced above its bottom surface a small fraction of the height of the hull at the bow thereof, said panel means and hull bottom forward end being interconnected at least partially around their commonly congruent perimeter so as to form a forwardly projecting cantilevered bottom panel at the bow end of the vessel submerged at all loadings of the vessel and operable by producing a separate bow wave ahead of the flared bow to reduce hull drag and protect the hull bow during cruising in heavy seas.
A vessel hull comprising, in combination with a bow portion thereof including forwardly convergent sides joined to a generally horizontal bottom, a generally horizontally disposed wave-making plate, of a thickness a small fraction the height of the bow portion positioned generally coplanar with and forwardly of the hull bottom, said plate having a forward edge portion forwardly convexly curved in plan, said plate extending aft therefrom and laterally outward symmetrically from the longitudinal centerline of said hull, and faired stiffener means joined to the bow portion structurally supporting said plate in said position, said strut means being formed and located for permitting water flowing relatively aft over the plate to diverge outwardly into parallel laminar flow relative to water flowing past the hull portion, whereby water flowing relatively aft over the top of said plate forms a separate bow wave effectively reducing the drag of the bow portion and wave impact on the bow portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.