The present disclosure relates generally to hatches or manhole and hatch mechanisms, and more particularly to a hydraulically actuated hatch and hatch mechanism.
Many vessels such as, but not limited to, barges, cargo ships, oil tankers, passenger ships, ferries, and other marine vessels, may include one or more bulkheads, compartments, or the like which may be accessed through one or more hatches. While the hatches may be located in a variety of locations on the vessel, hatches may be located on the deck of the vessel. It may be desirable to releasably secure the hatches to the deck in order to prevent hatch from accidentally being displaced.
Features and advantages of the present disclosure are set forth by the description of embodiments consistent therewith, which description should be considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
In some applications, it may be desirable to have a hatch substantially flush with or recessed from a deck in order to minimize obstructions on the deck, maximize the amount of available deck space, reduce and/or prevent damage to the hatch, minimize tripping hazards, or the like. Depending upon the application, the hatch may be exposed to the environment. As a result, it may also be desirable for the hatch to form a substantially waterproof seal with the deck in order to reduce and/or prevent water from entering and filling the bulkhead or compartment. Water in the bulkhead or compartment may reduce the cargo capacity of the vessel, damage equipment or cargo contained within the bulkhead or compartment, or damage the vessel (for example, due to corrosion and the like). Thus, it may be desirable to have a low cost, low maintenance waterproof hatch and latching mechanism that may be flush mounted.
Referring now to the drawings,
The hatch 10 may be configured to at least partially fit within an opening 14 in the deck 12. For example, the hatch 10 may have a generally circular shape as generally depicted in
The perimeter of the hatch 10 may include a protrusion or lip 16, for example as best seen in
The hatch 10,
The latching mechanism 24 may also include one or more actuator mechanisms 25, such as a wedge ram, for releasably urging and/or moving the strong back 26 generally in the direction of line A between a locked position (in which at least a portion of the strong back 26 engages with a portion of the deck 12 to secure the hatch 10 to the deck 12) and an unlocked position (in which the strong back 26 is substantially disengaged from the deck 12 and the hatch 10 may be removed from the deck 12) as will be explained in greater detail hereinbelow. For example, the actuator mechanism 25 may include a housing 34 extending substantially perpendicularly outwardly from the bottom surface 18 of the hatch 10. The housing 34 may include at least one opening 36 configured to at least partially receive a portion of the strong bar 26 and at least a portion of a wedge 30.
An actuator 32 may be coupled to the housing 34, for example, using one or more brackets, braces or the like and/or coupled directly to the bottom surface 18 of the hatch 10. The actuator 32 may be configured to urge the wedge 30 back and forth substantially along the direction of arrow B such that at least a portion of the wedge 30 moves within the opening 36 of the housing 34. As will be explained in greater detail hereinbelow, the actuator 32 may include a cylinder and a piston coupled to the wedge 30 which may be extended by way of a pressurized fluid such as, but not limited to, oil and/or grease. Additionally, the actuator 32 may also include a return spring or the like configured to retract the piston into the cylinder for moving/urging the wedge 30 to the unlocked position.
As mentioned above, a portion of the strong bar 26 and a portion of the wedge 30 may be disposed within the opening 36 of the housing 34. For example, a portion of the strong bar 26 may be disposed within the housing 34 proximate the bottom surface 18 of the hatch 10 and a portion of the wedge 30 may be configured to be disposed within the opening 36 between the strong bar 26 and a distal end 38 of the housing 34. The wedge 30 (as best seen in
The latching mechanism 24 may also include a control mechanism 50,
The couplers 52 of the control mechanism 50 may include a first zerk grease fitting 56 configured to supply hydraulic (e.g., grease) pressure to the actuator mechanism 25 (e.g., the actuator 32) and a second zerk grease fitting 58 configured to release the hydraulic (e.g., grease) pressure from the actuator mechanism 25 (e.g., the actuator 32). Alternatively, a single coupler 52 may be provided with a switch (not shown) allowing the user to selectively supply or release the hydraulic pressure to the actuator mechanism 25. The hatch 10 may also be provided with one or more handles 69, for example a recessed handhold, on the top surface 54 for facilitating handling the hatch 10.
Referring back to
To secure the hatch 10 to the deck 12, a source of pressurized fluid (for example, a grease gun or the like) may be coupled to the first grease fitting 56 to provide hydraulic pressure to the actuator 32. The hydraulic pressure provided by the grease may cause the actuator 32 to urge the wedge 30 into the opening 36 in the housing 34, which in turn may urge the strong bar 26 towards the bottom surface 18 of the hatch 10 and against a portion of the deck 12 to secure the hatch 10 to the deck 12. As the strong bar 26 engages the deck 12, the hatch 10 may be secured in place.
The second grease fitting 58 may be coupled to a pilot release valve 70 to release the hydraulic pressure provided to the actuator 32, for example by way of a hydraulic line 72. The pilot release valve 70 may be fluidly coupled to the actuator 32, for example by way of the “T” connection 66 and hydraulic line 66.
To release the hatch 10, a source of pressurized fluid (for example, a grease gun) may be coupled to the second grease fitting 48 to provide hydraulic pressure to the pilot release valve 70. Once the hydraulic pressure supplied by second grease fitting 58 exceeds a predetermined threshold, the pilot release valve 70 opens allowing the pressurized grease to be released from the actuator 32. Optionally, a catch container (not shown) may be coupled to the release port of the pilot release valve 70 to contain the grease released during the venting process. A return spring (not shown) coupled to the actuator 32 may cause the actuator 32 to at least partially retract thereby causing the wedge 30 to be at least partially retracted from the opening 36 in the housing 34, thereby allowing the strong back 26 to disengage from the deck 12. As mentioned above, that actuator 32 may also include a two-way actuator and hydraulic pressure may also be provided to the two-way actuator 32 to retract the actuator and wedge 30.
According to another embodiment, the hatch 10 may comprise an actuator 32 including a two-way cylinder and piston in which pressure may both extend and retract the actuator 32, thus moving the strong bar 26 into the secured (i.e., locked) and unsecured (unlocked) positions. One embodiment of a hatch 10 comprising a two-way actuator 32 consistent with the present disclosure is generally illustrated in
In light of the above, the latching mechanism 24 as described herein may be easily secured to and released from the deck 12 using only a grease gun or the like and may provide a substantially water tight seal with the deck 12 that may be flush mounted. For example, the latching mechanism 24 may be capable of providing approximately 1000 lbs of sealing pressure using a common grease gun. Additionally, since the only openings in the hatch 10 are provided for the coupler 52, the risk of water leakage is substantially reduced compared to the other quick opening latching mechanisms, for example, which utilize a “T” style bolt.
According to at least one embodiment, the present disclosure may feature an apparatus comprising a hatch including a top and a bottom surface and at least one latching mechanism. The latching mechanism may comprise at least one housing, at least one strong back and at least one actuator. The housing may extend generally outwardly from the bottom surface of the hatch and may include at least one opening. The strong back may extend generally parallel to the bottom surface of the hatch. At least a portion of the strong back may be configured to be at least partially received within the opening in the housing. The actuator may be configured to bias the strong back towards the bottom surface of the hatch upon application of a source of hydraulic pressure to the actuator.
According to another embodiment, the present disclosure may feature an latching mechanism for a hatch comprising a top and a bottom surface. The latching mechanism may comprise at least one housing, at least one strong back and at least one actuator. The housing may be configured to extend generally outwardly from the bottom surface of the hatch and may include at least one opening. The strong back may be configured to extend generally along the bottom surface of the hatch and may include a portion configured to be at least partially received within the opening in the housing. The actuator may be configured to bias the wedge against the opening in the housing and the strong back such that the wedge urges the strong back towards the bottom surface of the hatch.
According to yet another embodiment, the present disclosure may feature a method of releasably securing a hatch to deck. The method may comprise providing a source of a pressurized fluid (for example, from a portable grease gun) and applying the pressurized fluid to a latching mechanism to releasably secure the hatch to the deck.
As mentioned above, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to a system or method which must satisfy one or more of any stated or implied objects or features and should not be limited to the preferred, exemplary, or primary embodiment(s) described herein. The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments were chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the present disclosure and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the present disclosure in various embodiments and with various modifications as is suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the present disclosure.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/122,894, filed Dec. 16, 2008 and entitled HATCH MECHANISM, which is fully incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61122894 | Dec 2008 | US |