Mooring cable cutting system
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
InventorsRichard K. Shumaker, William G. Harris, Jr.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved cable or chain cutting implement comprises a two piece body pion with sharpened cutting edges on one end thereof. The two pieces of the body portion are configured so as to encompass a towing or sweep cable in gripping relation thereto. A spring retaining member holds the pieces of the body portion in operative relationship to one another and the towing or sweep cable. A plurality of these cutting implements may be attached to a single towed sweep line to comprise an improved, high speed mine sweeping system.
Claims10
A mine sweeping system for severing mooring cables or lines of moored marine mines located within a predetermined aqueous medium comprising in combination:
- tractor vehicle means;
- tow line means attached at one end to said tractor vehicle means for transmission of towing force therefrom;
- sweep line means effectively attached to said tow line means to be towed thereby;
- hydrodynamic means effectively attached to said sweep line means for deploying said sweep line means at a predetermined relative position with respect to said aqueous medium and the course of said tractor vehicle means, so as to perform a sweep over a predetermined path width;
- cutter means connected to said sweep line means effective to impact said mooring cables or lines for the severing thereof wherein said cutter means comprises:
- body means comprised of two structural parts mutually cooperating to form a unitary structure which is a figure of revolution about a centeral axis thereof;
- sharpened edge means carried by said body means to face in a foreward direction along said axis of revolution;
- a longitudinal bore extending along said axis of revolution and passing through the length of said body means and having a portion thereof extending into each of said structural parts for the passage of said sweep line means therethrough;
- groove means extending circumferentially about said body means and extending a predetermined distance therein;
- and
- spring retainer means positioned within said groove means and effective to hold said two structural parts of said body means together about said sweep line means for retention thereof therein, so as to structurally connect said cutter means to said sweep line means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.