WO2020100177A1

WO2020100177A1 - Floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock

Info

Publication number: WO2020100177A1
Application number: PCT/IT2019/050243
Authority: WO
Inventors: Guido BARDELLI
Original assignee: Bardelli Guido
Priority date: 2018-11-13
Filing date: 2019-11-13
Publication date: 2020-05-22
Also published as: IT201800010300A1

Abstract

A floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock, includes cleaning and washing means (3) positioned submerged below the water level (L) and operating against the hull (4); control and modification members of the displacement of the plant with control of the immersion level; the structure of the plant also includes a floating basin with short side walls (6) within which the cleaning and washing means are positioned; cleaning and washing means arranged in said basin and brought into contact with the hull during cleaning with the control of the plant floating and of the position of the cleaning and washing means support member (10) with respect to the same basin; guiding members (7, 8) for the ship engagement and positioning during treatment; the cleaning and washing means are displaced along the hull being treated with the displacement of the basin; movable bulkheads (13) present in the basin between the short side walls determine the hull section (T) being treated separating the water between the bulkheads from the rest of the channel; the cleaning and washing means operate simultaneously on the length of the hull covered by the length of the washing means between the bulkheads, forming the washing unit (12); the basin has a wider (11) base (9) at the bow and stern of the length of the short side walls to house the displacement control members of the floating plant itself; and it has the floating basin (2) constrained to float in a precise area facing a channel, wet dock or waterway section of a port; mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with hull (4, 34, 35) being treated with respect to the washing plant (1) with a floating and constrained basin; relative displacement means between the hull and the floating and constrained basin (2); non-floating equipment and service plants (26) located on the edge of the shore (16) or channel dock, wet dock, waterway of the port; water connection (39), connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, service (44) power (41) and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area; said connections constitute a constraint to the possible movement of the constrained floating basin (2) in the water facing the non-floating services (26); moreover, the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1) with a floating and constrained basin include ropes (20) and winches (21, 23, 56) for constraining the ship to mooring poles (22, 55); the floating and constrained basin (2) has autonomous propulsion (38) or towing (47) displacement means to manoeuvre the floating and constrained basin (2) during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull (4) being treated.

Description

FLOATING WASHING AND CLEANING PLANT FOR SHIP HULLS CONSTRAINED TO THE SHORE OR DOCK

Field of application

The present invention relates to a floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock, that is to say a plant, located near the mooring ports of the ships, comprising means for intervention on the submerged hull of the ships to be treated, which are positioned for manoeuvring the plant to surround the ship hull to be treated and act in a quick, semi-automatic or automatic and economic way in performing the cleaning treatment to remove dirt, vegetation or "fouling" that spontaneously grows on the submerged part of the hull of a ship.

Background Art

The state of the art comprises various types of hull cleaning plants for ships in which there are various forms of semi-floating or floating basin plant which drives the means for washing and cleaning the hull of the ship being treated, while the ship stays in the plant area.

In the art there are known constructive forms of hull washing and cleaning plants for ships wherein the washing water is collected immediately after operating on the hull for the removal of vegetation; water is collected in a filtration device and returned to the port purified from dirt, vegetation or "fouling".

In fact, from the prior document EP 1981755 B1 a system is known for cleaning hulls of boats in which the boat is inserted in a washing structure fixed to the seabed of the port or channel where it is fixed. Washing means are brought close to the hull for the necessary washing and the boat is pulled for passing inside the washing means to carry out the treatment. One version includes the stationary boat and the washing structure that runs on immersed guides on the seabed.

In this plant, the washing water is dispersed in the port even if the constitution of the washing means is realized on the movable structure on guides. Moreover, the reference of the structure to the seabed penalises the realization and convenience of such a washing plant. However, the disclosed structures are not convenient if instead of small boats, such as pleasure boats, medium and large ships should be treated such as cargo, passenger or cruise ships which are notoriously very long and need, in the same way as for smaller vessels, careful cleaning of the hull to improve and maintain efficient sailing performance.

From document WO 2018/146654 A1 a hull washing device for ships is known comprising: a U-shaped semi-floating basin adapted to be transversely engaged under the framework; the basin being designed to be moved along the longitudinal axis of the ship and provided with a laterally adjustable washing unit, and being guided by it, during its movement with respect to said framework; there are control means for moving said basin along the hull and there are cleaning means mounted on the basin and suitable for exerting a mechanical sliding action on the framework. There are movable bulkheads to define a hull section on which the washing means act; the basin with the washing unit and the movable bulkheads is moved by steps or continuously against the hull of the ship being treated. The basin is used with the ship, generally large, anchored in a port, and the cleaning treatment of the hull can also take place during the unloading and loading phases of the same.

This plant, although providing for the collection of the washing water and its purification, presents an expensive realization or modification of the equipment on the berthing dock, which the port authorities generally do not accept; the movable versions of the plant from one dock to another dock require navigability and therefore high construction and management costs being equivalent to small watercrafts.

Moreover, from the WO 2018/185797 A1 document a cleaning and washing plant for ship hulls is known realized as a small watercraft with ability to move also in the roadstead of the berthing ports, in sea areas with shallow water and with calm sea or even in navigable entry/exit channels from the ports or obligatory passage line of the ships. This plant has washing means arranged in the floating and manoeuvrable basin and, in use, it is coupled to the ship hull which must be treated engaging and the adjusting the floating embracing it. The washing takes place by steps or continuously with movable bulkheads that delimit the hull section interested in the treatment. In addition to the washing, floating and navigation means, the technical equipment for treating and filtering cloudy water captured by the suction plant for the filtration of the dirt are also housed on the basin, which is discharged upon the return of the manoeuvrable basin to the berthing and maintenance dock.

This plant, although already providing for the treatment and filtering of the washing water, as well as the conformation of the washing unit moved under the hull of the ship and with the capture of the turbid water generated, must be provided with the necessary navigation equipment, although limited to short haul from ports or berthing points, and therefore high construction and management costs being equivalent to a watercraft.

Moreover, the aforementioned plants of the prior art, although floating, do not allow the construction of a plant that has a practical use for cleaning the hulls of both small and medium-sized vessels or large vessels from fouling and marine vegetation in a quick, cheap and effective way, retaining and purifying the discharge of effluents, where and when required, with the washing water and dirt in the port where the washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls is located and operates.

In the art there are also known cleaning systems for the ship hulls wherein one or more devices adhering to the immersed part of the hull are used and which cover a fairly small surface thereof; they are automatically displaced in the various areas of the hull in succession so as to perform cleaning on a large part of the ship hulls. The device comprises adhesion means to the hull, generally magnetic, and mechanical cleaning means of the part of the hull included in the compartment covered by the device. The device is connected to the necessary pipes for washing and removing water mixed with the dirt thus detached that is conveyed and collected for subsequent filtration and controlled disposal.

Moreover, the operation of such devices is slow, in relation to the needs of the stopping times of the ship in the port, and it cannot be realized away from the berthing dock, since it takes several hours to properly clean a hull of a large cargo ship. Moreover, due to the fact that they have to move by steps on the submerged hull, in some cases, they do not ensure the complete capture of the turbid water generated during the treatment of the hull.

Therefore, the aforementioned cleaning and washing systems of ship hulls are insufficient and do not allow to provide for the necessary and planned cleaning from dirt, marine vegetation or "fouling" that is continuously forming on the hull of a ship as the costs of construction, management and operation of the most functional plants are high in relation to the need for their widespread distribution in the berthing ports for ships.

In fact, the ships that mostly require the cleaning and washing of the hulls are also subject to an intense use for the transport of goods, for example container-carriers, ships for liquid product transport, such as oil tankers, or even passenger ships, so they do not have adequately long stopping times, precisely needed for the careful cleaning of the hull, but they could present for various reasons upon arrival at destination ports. Finally, these plants having to comply with local anti-pollution regulations, which can admit the discharge of effluents only if detached from hulls not covered by specific and poisonous anti-vegetative paints; or even be placed in areas or channels of the ports concerned useful to the movement of the ships provided by the port authorities.

This state of the art is susceptible of considerable improvements with regard to the possibility of realizing a floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock which overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks and makes it possible to use it in the washing and cleaning of ship hulls, realizing a reduction in the construction costs, use and maintenance and allows the collection and controlled disposal of dirt detached from the hull of small, medium or large vessels.

The technical problem underlying the present invention is therefore to provide a floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock which, while achieving a washing capacity and versatility in use on various size hulls, it is convenient in the construction and operation costs also for large ships carrying goods or passengers and does not result in excessive commitment to the port authorities to occupy spaces for other purposes. A further but not last object of the present invention is to allow the realization of a cleaning and washing plant for ship hulls that operates near stopping points of the ship before entering the port or crossing an entry/exit channel to/from the port.

As an addition to the previous purpose it is necessary to answer to the need of being able to perform the washing operation without permanently having to engage a port quay or, in any case, port spaces directly interested to the ship berthing.

Furthermore, an addition to the previous purposes is the realization of cleaning and washing plants for the hull of ships with floating and versatile conformation for the possible use with various hull sizes of small, medium or large ships.

Finally, to complete the faced problems, the floating and versatile plants can be shaped to be easily transported or towed to other port points or service areas so as to extend also the coverage area in terms of washing service offer according to changed conditions of merchant and/or passenger traffic.

Summary of the Invention

This problem is solved, according to the present invention, by a floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock, including cleaning and washing means submerged below the water level and operating against the hull; control and modification members for the displacement of the plant with control of the immersion level; the plant structure also includes a floating basin with short side walls within which the cleaning and washing means are positioned; cleaning and washing means arranged in said basin and brought into contact with the hull during the cleaning with the control of the plant floating and of the position of the support members of the cleaning and washing means with respect to the basin itself; guiding members for engaging and positioning the ship during the treatment; the cleaning and washing means are displaced along the hull being treated with the displacement of the basin; movable bulkheads in the basin between the short side walls determine the hull section being treated by separating the water between the bulkheads from the rest of the channel; the cleaning and washing means operate simultaneously on the hull section covered by the length of the washing means between the bulkheads, forming the washing unit; the basin has a wider base at the bow and stern than the length of the short side walls to house the control members of the displacement of the floating plant itself; characterized in that it has the floating basin constrained to float in a precise area facing a channel, wet dock or waterway section of a port; means for mooring and controlling the position of the ship with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant with floating and constrained basin; relative displacement means between the hull and the floating and constrained basin; non-floating equipment and service equipment located on the shore of the channel or dock of the channel, wet dock, waterway of the port; water connection, connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, service, power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area; said connections constitute a constraint to the possible movement of the floating basin constrained in the water facing the non-floating services; moreover, the means for mooring and controlling the position of the ship with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant with a floating and constrained basin include ropes and winches for constraining the ship to mooring poles; the floating and constrained basin has autonomous propulsion or towing displacement means, to manoeuvre the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull being treated.

Furthermore, in a specific variant: the means for mooring and controlling the position of the ship with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant with a floating and constrained basin include ropes and winches for constraining the ship to mooring poles; the floating and constrained basin has towing cables to manoeuvre the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull being treated; the towing cables are connected to towing winches placed on the respective towing pole or on the shore.

Moreover, in a further enhancement: the water connection, the connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, the service connection, the power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area, are made with at least one reel to make the connection extensible or the connections gathered thereon.

Furthermore, in a further construction variant: the water connection, the connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, the service connection, the power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area, are made with a reel, for each connection, to make the connection with it extensible and allow the floating basin to be manoeuvred and constrained in the water surface facing the shore with non floating services.

Moreover, in an improved form: the mooring ropes are provided with floats in their end section to avoid contact with the underlying floating basin in the coupling or detaching operations of these ropes from the bow and/or stern of the ship.

Moreover, in a first constructive form the floating and constrained basin has propulsion members for manoeuvring the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull being treated in the water facing the plant; the propulsion members allow the floating basin to be manoeuvred while constrained with said connections to the shore or dock.

Furthermore, in a second constructive form, the floating and constrained basin has towing cables for manoeuvring the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull being treated; the towing cables are connected to towing winches placed on the respective towing pole or on the shore; said cables operate on a towing line parallel to the mooring axis.

Furthermore, in a third constructive form the floating and constrained basin comprises towing cables and winches, for towing the floating basin and constrained between towing poles of towing cables, an internal one, between the floating basin and the shore or dock, and one external to the floating and constrained basin.

Finally, in a specific and preferred form: non-floating services include at least one silo for the sludge concentration with a plant for reducing the quantity of water present in the sludge itself and means for evacuating the solid sludge and the wet sludge which is no longer suitably treatable; the water extracted from the sludge is filtered and returned to the sea.

Features and advantages of the present invention, in the realization of a hull washing and cleaning plant for ships and provided with an improved washing unit and way of use thereof, are mentioned in the following description of some schematic application examples, given by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the nine attached drawing sheets.

Brief description of the drawings

Figure 1 represents a schematic plan view of a first constructive form of a washing plant for ships hulls with a floating basin constrained to the shore or dock of the channel or waterway in the port and manoeuvrable, according to the invention; the constraint of the floating, constrained and manoeuvrable basin takes place through the cables and pipes for water connection, effluents discharge, electric power and driving from the edge of the shore or dock; the basin is manoeuvred in the engagement movement, in the washing phases and in the ship exit phase from the engagement with the washing unit present in the floating, constrained and manoeuvrable basin; the ship is moored and aligned with ropes to poles at bow and stern to maintain a fixed alignment parallel to a preferred direction with respect to the shore or dock of the channel or waterway; the washing unit placed on the floating basin in the engagement self-registers on the specific ship hull, be it small or large; the mooring ropes here are represented with winches placed on the mooring poles;

- Figure 2 shows a limited schematic plan view of the first constructive form of Figure 1 with a different positioning of the manoeuvring winches of the mooring ropes, that is with winches placed on the edge of the shore or channel dock or waterway;

- Figure 3 shows a schematic plan view of a ship in which the washing unit, during the treatment, covers the various successive hull sections of the ship from bow to stern;

- Figure 4 represents a schematic cross-sectional view of a plant of previous Figures 1 and 2 wherein the poles supporting the constraining means to the edge of the shore or dock are visible; the connections of pipes and cables with the equipment present on the edge of the shore or dock and the assisting means to the equipment on the shore or dock;

- Figure 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a plant of previous Figures 1 -4 wherein a mooring pole of the ship to the seabed of the channel is visible; the figure schematises the smallest and largest hull that can be treated in the depicted plant;

- Figure 6 shows a schematic plan view of a floating, constrained and manoeuvrable basin of Figures 1 -5 with the washing, positioning and guiding means of the basin on the hull of the ship being treated, as well as the position of the movable limiting bulkheads of the hull section being treated;

- Figure 7 shows a schematic plan view of the water, electric power and drive connections on the shore or channel dock or waterway;

- Figures 8, 9, 10, 11 , 12 and 13, represent schematic plan views of the treatment steps of a ship hull with approach, engagement, displacement of the washing basin with the washing unit against the hull during the treatment and end of the treatment with the ship still connected to the mooring ropes to the poles in the first constructive form of Figure 1 ; the basin with the washing unit is engaged before the mooring to the pole and released from the ship after the detachment from its mooring; in all the aforementioned steps the floating and manoeuvrable basin is kept constrained to the shore or dock of the channel with the cables and pipes for water connection, electric power and drive from the edge of the shore or channel dock or waterway;

- Figures 14 and 15 show a schematic plan view of a variant of the first constructive form of a washing plant for ship hulls with a floating and constrained basin to the shore or dock of the channel; the floating and constrained basin operates with the moored ship to at least one pair of aft pillars, in the case of small tonnage ships, Figure 15, where the ship's own anchors are used forward; also being able to be moored forward on a further pair of pillars, Figure 14, in the case of ships of greater tonnage during the treatment;

- Figure 16 represents a schematic plan view of a second constructive form of a washing plant for ship hulls with a floating basin and constrained to the shore or to the channel dock; the constraint of the floating and manoeuvrable basin occurs, in addition to by cables and the water connection, electric power and drive pipes from the edge of the shore or channel dock, also by the towing cables of the basin itself on a parallel line with the moored ship; unlike Figure 1 , the basin is towed in the engagement movement, with cable towing, in the washing phases and in the exit phase of the ship from the engagement with the washing unit present in the floating basin, constrained and manoeuvrable with towing;

- Figure 17 shows a limited schematic plan view of the variant of the second constructive form of Figure 16 with a different positioning of the manoeuvring winches of the mooring ropes of the ship and towing of the floating basin, constrained and manoeuvrable with towing;

- Figures 18 and 19 show a schematic plan view of a further variant of the second constructive form of a washing plant for ship hulls with floating basin and constrained to the shore or dock of the channel; similarly to Figures 14 and 15, the ship is moored to at least one pair of aft pillars, in the case of small tonnage ships, Figure 19, where the ship's own anchors are used forward; similarly, the ship being able to be moored also forward on a further pair of pillars, Figure 18, for larger ships during the treatment;

- Figure 20 represents a schematic plan view of a third constructive form of a washing plant for ship hulls with a floating basin and constrained to the shore or dock of the channel; similarly to Figures 16 to 19, the ship is moored to at least one pair of aft pillars, in the case of small tonnage ships, where the ship’s, not shown, own anchors are used forward; similarly, the ship being able to be moored also forward on a further pair of pillars, of Figure, for the larger ships during the treatment; in this constructive form the towing is carried out on both sides of the floating and constrained basin.

Detailed description of preferred embodiments

In the Figures the floating plant 1 is visible in the various constructive forms, which are disclosed herein, in which a floating basin 2 is provided with: cleaning 3 and washing means positioned under water level L and operating against the hull 4 of ship 5; control members and for the modification of the displacement of the plant with control of the level of immersion; the structure of the plant also includes short side walls 6 on the sides of the basin within which the cleaning and washing means and the control, adjustability and guidance in the engagement of the ship means are located; they comprise adjustable lateral abutments 7, based on the size of the hull 4, on the side walls and contact means 8 of the hull on the base 9 of the hull for guiding the hull and are arranged aligned convergently with the longitudinal axis A of the plant. The cleaning and washing means 3 are arranged in the said basin 2 and brought into contact with the hull during cleaning with the control of the plant floating and of the position of the support members 10 of the cleaning and washing means with respect to the same basin; the cleaning and washing means 3 operate simultaneously on the hull section T covered by the length of the short side walls 6; the basin has extensions of the base 11 at the ends of the short side walls to house the control members of the displacement of the floating basin 2. In the floating basin a washing unit 12 is constituted by the cleaning and washing means 3 and provided with suction mouths and slots of the turbid water generated during the treatment and, to delimit the washing unit itself, at least one pair of movable bulkheads 13 and inflatable to the end of the washing unit, to delimit the water in contact with the hull 4 and the cleaning and washing means 3 and to prevent the mixing of the turbid water outside the washing unit acting on the hull section T being treated. The sucked turbid water is filtered on board the floating basin 1 with the re-introduction of the filtered water into the washing unit 12 or outside it; the remaining mush is evacuated in a controlled manner.

The aforesaid means of the floating plant 1 are common to all the constructive forms described herein; the numerical references are highlighted in accordance with the constructive forms described below for means with the same functionality; for the specific functioning of the said common means, see the descriptions of the documents WO 2018/146654 A1 and WO 2018/185797 A1 in the name of the same owner the present invention.

As shown in Figures 1 to 13, the first constructive form provides for mooring the floating basin 2 manoeuvrable on the seabed 15 of a channel or waterway of the port where the floating plant 1 is located, which can be dislocated on the water level L. The shore 16 or channel dock is aligned parallel to the axis A of the plant during treatment, but if the plant is located in a wide bay of the port it can be isolated from the docks or shores with a quay to house the non-floating services in the plant.

The floating plant 1 is positioned, before treatment, in an offset position with respect to the mooring axis R of the ship, to prevent incorrect manoeuvring of the ship from damaging the plant. Furthermore, the ship is anchored for mooring with ropes 20 which are controlled by winches 21 placed on mooring poles 22. In Figure 2, moreover, a variant of mooring of the ship 5 is shown with the ropes 20 driven by the winches 23 located on the shore 16 or dock; on the mooring poles there are rollers 24 of the ropes 20. A tugboat 25 or pilot boat stands near the plant to carry out the operations of attaching and detaching the ropes 20 from the ship both at the time of mooring, before the cleaning treatment, and at the end of it and recovering the ropes and making them available for the next ship.

The floating basin 2 of the plant 1 is connected to non-floating services 26 for evacuation and compacting of the residual filtered mush in the basin itself. The connection with the floating basin takes place by means of at least one mush evacuation pipe 27 and at least one electric power connection 28. Services 26 comprise silos 29 for separating water from sludge and containers and/or trucks 30 for transporting the obtained concentrated sludge in a controlled dump. The separated wet part, if it does not comply with the anti-pollution requirements of the port, is collected in tanks 31 and evacuated by tankers 32. In the case of a plant in a bay of the port and non-floating services placed on an isolated quay, not shown here, the evacuation of the wet and concentrated sludge can be done by barges instead of using ground means. The floating plant 1 has in the floating basin 2, in this and in the other following constructive forms, an assistance and emergency thermal power unit in case of interruption of the electric power connection from the ground; the control and drive functions of the floating and constrained basin are carried out by non-floating services but can also be performed directly on board the basin itself.

During the treatment, the cleaning and washing means 3 are moved along the hull 4 being treated with the displacement of the floating basin 2 along the hull itself, i.e. with the propulsion or towing of the floating basin 2 and constrained along the hull, Figure 3, for successive hull sections T, with the washing unit 12 positioned with the cleaning and washing means 3 in contact with the hull 4 which must be cleaned. The differences in the width of the hull are compensated on the axis line A of the plant on the juxtaposed side walls guided in the slow, sometimes by section T or continuous displacement, from the lateral abutments 7 which guide the washing unit 12 and the floating basin itself on the hull, while in the passage in the washing unit the side walls are adjusted on the hull 4, both small and large Figure 5, with the adjustable lateral abutments 7. The tugboat or pilot boat carries aft or forward the end of the rope 20 of the ship 5 to carry out the first mooring and the final detachment, as shown in Figures 1 and 8- 13, illustrating the subsequent treatment steps and the floats G arranged for a section of the rope 20 to be connected to the ship 5. The floats are needed to prevent the rope from falling or abut against the cleaning and washing means 3 of the washing unit 12 during mooring with the tugboat or pilot boat which collects and drags the rope 20 over the floating basin 2, on said cleaning and washing means 3, to avoid contact with water. For this purpose, the tugboat 25 or pilot boat is equipped with an arm manipulator B for handling the rope 20.

In this constructive form the floating and manoeuvrable basin 2 has propulsion means 38 positioned below the same basin. The floating basin is always constrained to the non-floating services 26 by means of an extensible pipe 39, with a reel 40 of this evacuation pipe for the washing sludge of the hull; thus the extensible cable 41 for electrical power conduction has a specific reel 42 for the electrical connection cable and possibly other control and drive cables. The guide in the elongation and collection of these extensible constraining means takes place by means of support and sliding poles 43 placed in the seabed 15 in proximity and facing the non-floating services. In Figure 4 there is also a further cable 44 with a further reel 45 for connecting various ducts and for controlling and driving the floating basin itself and its manoeuvrability, in the displacements in the water surface facing the non-floating services 26 places on the shore 16 or dock, and connected to the plant operating centre 46.

Figures 14-15 show a variant of the first constructive form in which the ship 5 is moored by mooring ropes 20 which are fixed to pairs of mooring poles 56 in which these poles are provided with mooring winches 56 for tensioning the same rope 20 when connected at the stern or bow of the ship. The Figures also show the positions reached by the floating basin at the beginning and end of the cleaning treatment with the external position at the stern EP and a similar external position at the bow ER: these allow to perform the operations of engagement and disengagement from the ship 5 during the mooring and detachment from mooring. In the case of small tonnage ships, Figure 15, the ship can use its own anchors 57 at the bow, in the Figure, or possibly at the stern. As can be seen from the Figures upon the floating basin 2 approaching the end of the anchored ship, it must lift the anchors to avoid contact with the floating basin, remaining the guided basin, as mentioned, on the same hull of the ship until exiting the engagement at the end of the treatment.

The second constructive form, shown in Figures 16-19, with respect to the first one presents a second constructive form wherein the floating basin 2 has towing means, but it is always constrained to the non-floating services 26 by means of, at least, the extensible pipe 39 and the extensible cable 41. Moreover, the manoeuvring of the floating basin 2 takes place by means of towing cables 47 of the same basin on a line P parallel to the mooring axis R of the mooring poles 22, or also of the pair of mooring poles 55, of the ship 5 being treated. The towing cables are connected to the floating basin 2, possibly with arms 48, and are placed in traction by towing winches 49 placed on towing poles 50, Figure 16. As already shown previously in first constructive form variant, towing rollers 51 , Figure 17, can be placed on the towing poles 50 with the cable 47. manoeuvred by winches 52 on the shore for manoeuvring the position of the floating and constrained basin 2 guided in the engagement, hull cleaning and washing treatment and in the consequent exit from the engagement, with the manoeuvre on the towing cables 47 while the ship remains moored and stops with the ropes 20 at the mooring poles 22 or pairs of poles 55. Finally, in this second constructive form the towing winches 58 can be placed directly on a pole of the pair of poles 55 for mooring, minimizing the connections with the shore 16 or dock of the floating basin 2 in the plant 1. The operations of this second constructive form take place as illustrated in the Figure, with the limitation of the position of the floating basin 2 which is moved in the water surface facing the non-floating services 26; the manoeuvre on the towing cables 47 constrains the floating and manoeuvrable basin of the second constructive form variant, which therefore has autonomous displacement means manoeuvred from the outside and in a linear manner to the parallel line P to the mooring axis R, to the only pathway of a linear zone of action which is defined by the action on said towing cables 47.

Figure 20 shows the third constructive form, similarly to Figures 16-19, which with respect to this second constructive form presents the floating basin 2 with towing means on both sides of the basin. The towing is carried out by towing cables 47, on the inner side of the plant 1 , while the same basin is also towed on a parallel line S, to the mooring axis R and to the internal towing line P, of the pair of mooring poles 55, of ship 5 being treated; the towing cables 47 are internal and the towing cables 60 are external to the plant 1. Both the internal 47 and the external 60 cables are connected to the floating basin 2, possibly with arms 48, and are placed in traction by double towing winches 61 placed on at least one side of the pair of poles 55, or even simple winches, i.e. for a single towing cable. As already illustrated previously, if the towing winches 61 are joined on a single side of the pair on the poles 55, towing rollers 62 can be located, visible in the Figure, in order to manoeuvre both the internal cables 47 and the external cables 60. The hull treatment and washing operations with the plant 1 and the floating and constrained basin 2 remain identical to the previous constructive forms. Furthermore, the double winches 61 can be positioned in line with the internal towing line P, as shown in Figure 20, or positioned aligned with the external towing line S.

Moreover, in this third constructive form the engaging and disengaging operation of the ship 5 must take place with at least the external towing cables 60 lowered until they touch the seabed 15. The operation of laying the towing cables to the seabed being able to be applied to the towing cables on a single pair of poles 55, i.e. the floating and constrained basin 2 remains connected to the other pair of poles 55; in fact, by laying both the internal towing cable 47 and the external towing cable 60, but on one side only, the ship 5 can move from the plant 1 treatment area; the rewinding of the towing cables towards the chosen pair of poles 55 allows the floating and constrained basin 2 to be safely constrained, leaving the widest water surface available for manoeuvring the ship 5. From Figure 20 the depicted ship 5 disengagement being advantageously possible to be carried out at the bow because the floating basin 2 is stationary at the stern, which remains constrained with the towing cables 47 and 60 to the pair of poles 55 facing the stern of the ship 5, while the internal 47 and external 60 towing cables are laid on the seabed and free the ship for the exit manoeuvre from the engagement.

The operation of the floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock described above takes place as illustrated below.

The floating and constrained plant 1 works alongside the shore of a channel, dock or even bay or waterway of the port where it is installed. Moreover, being floating in the main means, the floating basin 2 can be easily displaced into the port itself if the port authority decides on a different use of the areas where the plant works. The non-floating services 26 can thus be positioned in a different place, ground, or even moved to a quay, platform or an even artificial islet in the middle of a wet dock or waterway so as to reach the point of the port where to operate in the best conditions also in relation to the dead times of access and distancing from the same plant carried out by the ship.

In the use the described plant operates with the ship 5 engagement in the plant 1 area. The tugboat or pilot boat 25 uses the arm B to collect drag and lift the rope or ropes 20 towards the bow of the ship, passing through the floating basin 2 so as to reach the bow of the ship 5, as also visible in the Figures; after attaching the ropes to the bow, it performs the same operation at the stern of the ship. The ropes 20 ends are provided with floating means G for maintaining the ends raised by the internal members of the washing unit 12 inside the floating basin 2; in any case, the tugboat 25 or pilot boat and the winches involved in manoeuvring of these ropes provide for the connection or detachment of the ropes 20 from/to the ship, the rope tending to be tense between the winch and the tugboat.

Once the mooring has been carried out, the floating and constrained basin 2 is equipped with propulsion means 38 which allow its manoeuvrability in the water surface facing the non-floating services 26. The floating and constrained basin allows a rapid ship 5 engagement and distancing manoeuvre and with a greater ease of floating basin axis A alignment to the hull 4 axis which must be treated, moreover the floating and constrained basin 2 is not a watercraft, even if it has propulsion means 38, i.e. it does not need specific controls and driving as it is not free to move in the channel, wet dock or water surface of the port. The ship 5 remains simply anchored to the aft and forward moorings, i.e. it must not be displaced, the advancement movements of the hull washing are all carried out by the floating and constrained basin 2 which operates discontinuously by sections T or continuously along the hull engaged by the floating and constrained basin 2. Thus the second constructive form, even if it has the floating and constrained basin 2 without autonomous displacement means in the proper sense, it presents instead the towing carried out by further constraint of the floating and constrained basin itself to remain movable, but limited to a linear water area, towing line P, approximately parallel to the union line of the mooring poles 22 of the ship 5 to be treated, i.e. movable on the line joining the towing poles 50 or 55. The towing cable 47 of the floating basin 2 allows to move the basin without moving the moored ship 5, obtaining the same washing and cleaning functionality of the first constructive form with a further constructive simplification.

In the aforesaid forms of construction and variants, with regard to the washing sludge treatment, for storage and dehydration and start of disposal, it takes place in non-floating services 26 which are placed on a space outside the water facing the channel, wet dock or waterway in which the plant is placed 1 . Among said services, in addition to the electric power cabin for the electrical supply of the whole plant and to the drive and control cabin there are also transport means for solid or semi-liquid residues coming from the plant.

The advantages in the application of the constructive forms of floating cleaning and washing plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock described above can be summarized with the maximum practicality and versatility in performing the cleaning and washing service of ship hulls with extremely reduced realization and management costs. In fact, plants with floating and constrained basins 2 are made with the least washing and cleaning service equipment, that is to say, only the filters performing a first concentration of the turbid water effluents sucked near the cleaning and washing means 3 and inside the movable and inflatable bulkheads 13 with the various suction mouths of the turbid water are present on board in addition to the specific washing means being part of the washing unit 12. The non-floating services 26 can therefore assume the necessary dimensions also to comprise the cleaning and washing treatment of various hulls of small and large ships, before having to transport to the controlled dump of separated waste materials, also including the liquid part which may not be convenient to further concentrate. This turns with respect to previous plants in a more continuous plant activity without limitations of the unloading of the containers or tanks from the edge of the floating basin of the separated waste material in compliance with the anti-pollution rules provided for the port of installation.

Although the constructive forms realize the aforementioned advantages in the indicated variants, they have a lower impact in the port area having fixed in the water only the mooring poles 22, 55 and the support and sliding poles 43 of the constraint pipes and cables of the floating, constrained and manoeuvrable basin, or possibly the towing poles 50, with a specific cable 47, for the floating and constrained basin. The required ship manoeuvre while approaching the plant and distancing are similar to a mooring in a wet dock or channel without approaching fixed structures towards the shore.

Furthermore, with the cleaning and washing plant of the ship hulls with floating and constrained basin described here, they can be easily displaced from one area of the port to another if the port authority asks for it.

Obviously, a person skilled in the art, in order to satisfy specific and contingent requirements, may apply numerous modifications to a floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock as previously described, all however contained within the scope of protection of the present invention as defined by the following claims. Thus, the ship 5 mooring ropes 20 can cross the washing unit 12 on the floating and constrained basin 2 also by means other than the use of a tugboat or pilot boat. Moreover, the connections of the pipe 39 and of the cables 41 and 44 can be provided with floats, similar to the mooring ropes 20 floats G, to avoid the same pipes 39 and cables 41 and 44 can from sinking into the water between the floating and constrained basin 2 and the shore 16 or dock upon the floating and constrained basin movement. Furthermore, although the towing of the floating and constrained basin 2 is described in Figure 20 with a pair of poles 55, the same arrangement of a double towing cable 47 and 60 can be made with single towing poles 50, single towing winches 49 or towing winches on the shore 52 and related rollers 51. Moreover, the winches 49, 58 or 61 and/or the rollers 51 , 62 of the towing cables 47 or 60 can be provided with a balustrade or quay (not shown) connected to the towing poles 50, 55 to facilitate the maintenance of the winches and rollers. Finally, the water connection, the connection for discharge of effluents and washing sludge to the ground, the service connection, the power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area, although less advantageously, they can be realized on a single connection means with at least one reel to make extensible the assembled connections thereon.

Claims

1. A floating washing and cleaning plant for ship hulls constrained to the shore or dock, including cleaning and washing means (3) positioned submerged below the water level (L) and operating against the hull (4); control and modification members of the displacement of the plant with control of the immersion level; the structure of the plant also includes a floating basin with short side walls (6) within which the cleaning and washing means are positioned; cleaning and washing means arranged in said basin and brought into contact with the hull during cleaning with the control of the plant floating and of the position of the cleaning and washing means support member (10) with respect to the same basin; guiding members (7, 8) for the ship engagement and positioning during treatment; the cleaning and washing means are displaced along the hull being treated with the displacement of the basin; movable bulkheads (13) present in the basin between the short side walls determine the hull section (T) being treated separating the water between the bulkheads from the rest of the channel; the cleaning and washing means operate simultaneously on the length of the hull covered by the length of the washing means between the bulkheads, forming the washing unit (12); the basin has a wider (11 ) base (9) at the bow and stern of the length of the short side walls to house the displacement control members of the floating plant itself; characterized in that it has the floating basin (2) constrained to float in a precise area facing a channel, wet dock or waterway section of a port; mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with hull (4, 34, 35) being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with a floating and constrained basin; relative displacement means between the hull and the floating and constrained basin (2); non-floating equipment and service plants (26) located on the edge of the shore (16) or channel dock, wet dock, waterway of the port; water connection (39), connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, service (44) power (41 ) and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area; said connections constitute a constraint to the possible movement of the constrained floating basin (2) in the water facing the non-floating services (26); moreover, the mooring and control means of the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with floating and constrained basin include ropes (20) and winches (21 , 23, 56) for constraining the ship to mooring poles (22, 55); the floating and constrained basin (2) has autonomous propulsion (38) or towing (47) displacement means to manoeuvre the floating and constrained basin (2) during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull (4) being treated.

2. A floating plant, according to claim 1 , wherein the water connection, the connection for discharging effluents and washing sludge to the ground, the service connection, the power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore (16) or dock or equipped area (26), are made with at least one reel (40, 42, 45) to make the connection or the connections joined thereto extensible.

3. A floating plant, according to one of the claims 1 or 2, wherein the water connection, the connection for discharging the effluents and washing sludge to the ground, the service connection, the power and drive connection between the basin and the plants on the edge of the shore or dock or equipped area, are made with a reel to make the connection (40, 42, 45) with it extensible and allow manoeuvring of the floating and constrained basin (2) in the water surface facing the shore (16) with non-floating services (26).

4. A floating plant, according to one of the previous claims, wherein the mooring ropes (20) are provided with floats (G) in their end section to avoid contact with the underlying floating basin in the coupling or detaching operations of these ropes from the bow and/or stern of the ship (5).

5. A floating plant, according to claim 1 -4, wherein the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with a floating and constrained basin comprise ropes (20) and winches (23) for constraining the ship to mooring poles (22) with the mooring cable rollers (24) on the shore (16) or dock.

6. A floating plant, according to claim 1 -4, wherein the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with a floating and constrained basin include ropes (20) and winches (56) for constraining the ship with mooring poles (55) in pairs.

7. A floating plant, according to claim 1 -6, wherein the floating and constrained basin (2) has propulsion members (38) for manoeuvring the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull (4, 34, 35) being treated in the water facing the plant (1 ); the propulsion members allow the floating basin to be manoeuvred while constrained with said connections (39, 41 , 44) to the shore (16) or dock.

8. A floating plant, according to claim 1 -6, wherein the floating and constrained basin (2) has towing cables (47, 60) for manoeuvring the floating and constrained basin during engagement, treatment and disengagement on the ship hull (4, 34, 35) being treated; the towing cables are connected to towing winches (49, 52, 58, 61 ) placed on the respective towing pole or on the shore (16); said cables operate on a towing line (P) parallel to the mooring axis (R).

9. A floating plant, according to claim 8, wherein the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with a floating and constrained basin include the towing cables (47) and winches (52), for towing the floating and constrained basin between towing poles (50) with the towing cable rollers (51 ) on the shore (16) or dock where said winches (52) are located.

10. A floating plant, according to claim 8, wherein the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with floating and constrained basin include ropes (20) and winches (56) for constraining the ship to mooring poles (55) in pairs; moreover, the towing cable (47) is tow connected to the towing winches (58) placed on a pole of the pair of mooring poles (55).

11. A floating plant, according to claim 8, wherein the mooring and control means for the position of the ship (5) with the hull being treated with respect to the washing plant (1 ) with a floating and constrained basin include the towing cables (47, 60) and winches (49, 52, 58, 61 ), for towing the floating and constrained basin between towing poles (50, 55) of towing cables, an internal one (47), between the floating basin (2) and the shore (16) or dock, and an external one (60) to the floating and constrained basin (2).

12. A floating plant, according to claim 11 , wherein the towing cables (47, 60) are connected to double winches (61 ), for towing the floating and constrained basin between towing poles (50, 55) of these internal (47), and external (60) towing cables; the double winches are operated separately with the respective internal or external towing cable to which are connected; at least two the towing cable rollers (62) are present on the parallel internal or external (S) towing line (P) on which said double winches are not aligned.

13. A floating plant, according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the non-floating services (26) comprise at least one silo (29) for the sludge concentration with a plant for reducing the amount of water in the sludge and evacuation means for no longer conveniently treatable solid sludge and wet sludge; the water extracted from the sludge is filtered and returned to the sea.