METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR OFFSHORE OPERATIONS

• US 3,575,005 A
• Filed: 06/29/1967
• Issued: 04/13/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/1967
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Maurice N. Sumner
• Original Assignee: Maurice N. Sumner
• Inventors: Sumner, Maurice N.
• Application Number:
  US04/649,889
• Time in Patent Office: 1,384 Days
• US Class Current: 405/196
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 17/021 with relative movement between supporting construction and platform
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 2017/0056 Platforms with supporting legs

Abstract

In the erection of offshore structures, preferred method steps including releasably securing a vessel adapted for water navigation to a structure, said structure being adapted to be stabilized at selected locations of various depths wherein stabilization enables mineral-related, military, and transportation apparatus to function from said structure, altering the elevation of the vessel with respect to the structure whereby the vessel is made more free of wave action at the altered elevation and thereafter restoring the vessel to a navigable relationship to the body of water; said invention including apparatus for supporting a separable structure wherein the support immediately below the structure is designed principally with support of the structure in view and extends downwardly to a footing member, wherein support members below said footing member are founded in the soil beneath the body of water and are designed principally as foundation members.

Claims

1. An improved offshore system for multiple and sequential marine operations in which a vessel is navigated to a selected operating site on the water, founded and moved to another operating site on the water, leaving behind at the previous operating site an operational platform, the operational platform at each site serving as the means for founding the vessel comprising:

a vessel for carrying operating equipment for offshore operations for operating on the deck thereof;

an operational platform means releasably attached to said vessel, said platform means being adapted to be founded on the land beneath the water;

oil well drilling drawworks means operatively associated with said vessel and platform means for altering the vessel elevation while the platform is founded so as to thereby remove the vessel from the action of the waves in order to stabilize the vessel and facilitate operation of the equipment thereon; and

selectively releasable coupling means securing the vessel to the platform means so that the vessel may, at some specified time, become buoyant again in order to navigate to another operating site whereat the sequence may be repeated.

2. An improved offshore system for marine operations adapted to be positioned at an operating site over water covered land and further adapted to be moved from one such opErating site to another such operating site while leaving behind at the prior operating site a support tower means, said system comprising:

a vessel for transporting a substantially prefabricated support tower means to an operating site, said support tower means being carried and adapted to be positioned by the vessel so as to subsequently be utilized to elevate the vessel; and

lift means operatively associated with said support tower means and said vessel for bringing said vessel to an altered elevation free of the wave action of the water, said vessel means including a framework extending from the deck of the vessel and which serves as a draw means for moving the vessel upwardly or downwardly with respect to the support tower means.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein there is further included means for releasably securing said vessel to said support tower means so that the vessel may move away from the support tower means to another operating site upon completion of its work at the first site whereupon another support tower means may be founded on the land beneath the water.

4. The system of claim 2 including, footing means incorporated within said tower support means, said footing means including pile receiving means adapted to receive pile members for extending from said footing means to the land beneath the water so as to found the tower support means on the land and pile members fixedly connected to said pile receiving means of said footing means, said pile members extending downwardly to the land beneath the water and firmly supported thereon so as to found the support means.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein said pile members include a plurality of piles, said piles being divergently disposed with respect to one another so as to enhance stability of the founded footing.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein said pile receiving means provides for passage of piles into the footing member from water above into water below.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein said pile receiving means further includes sealing means for providing a working environment suitable for human endeavor therewithin.

8. An improved offshore system for multiple and sequential marine operations in which a vessel is navigated to a selected operating site on the water, founded and moved to another operating site on the water, leaving behind at the previous operating site an operational support platform, the operational support platform at each site serving as means for founding the vessel comprising:

a vessel for transporting support platform means to an operating site;

support platform means operatively connected to said vessel;

footing means incorporated in said support platform means so that the footing means may reside optionally at or near the water surface or at a discrete depth;

pile receiving means characterizing said footing means for receiving pile members which are to be in contact with the land beneath the water;

pile members affixed to said pile receiving means and extending therefrom to the land beneath the water so as to found the footing means on the land;

lifting and lowering apparatus means physically connecting the vessel to the support platform means for selectively altering the elevation of the vessel by means of the support platform means while the latter is founded, so as to thereby provide a working platform free of wave action, and which vessel may be returned to a prior elevation upon completion of work activities; and

said vessel including release means for releasing the vessel from said support platform means after the latter has returned the vessel to a predetermined elevation to thereby enable the vessel to navigate independently of the support platform means to another worksite whereupon another support platform means is founded and the sequence repeated.

9. The system of claim 8 in which there is provided multiple support platform means and their respective footing means but in which at least onLy one platform and footing means may, if necessary, be left behind when the vessel departs to a subsequent operating site.

10. An improved offshore system for multiple and sequential marine operations in which a vessel is navigated to a selected operating site on the water, founded and moved to another operating site on the water, leaving behind at the previous operating site an operational platform means, the operational platform means at each site serving as the primary means for founding the vessel comprising:

a platform means for carrying on offshore drilling operations and for supporting a vessel means;

a vessel means for transporting said platform means to an operating site whereupon the vessel deposits the platform means at such site;

footing means incorporated into the platform means, said footing means being adapted to receive pile members so as to found the footing means securely;

pile members provided for receipt by the footing means and for contacting the land beneath the water so as to found the platform means and the vessel when the vessel is supported by the platform means;

means releasably connecting said vessel to said platform means for founding said vessel on the land beneath the water after the platform is founded so that at some later predetermined time the vessel may release from the platform means and navigate to another worksite while leaving the founded platform means behind to serve as an automated work station or to receive service vessels; and

said vessel means constituting a submersible rig and said operational platform means constituting a supporting leg for said rig when founded on the land beneath the water. 11 The system of claim 10 in which said submersible rig may be supported by two or more separable legs which constitute platform means that remain in place after the vessel is made buoyant and navigated to another worksite.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein said operational platform means constitutes a separable leg, said leg being rotatably connected to said vessel so as to permit its movement about an axis in the horizontal plane, thereby allowing the leg to be carried in a variety of positions by the vessel.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein the founded operational platform means left by the vessel is provided with elevating changing means for receiving and changing the elevation of a subsequent vessel so as to move said vessel to an elevation free of the wave action and thereby provide a relatively calm operating station.

14. The system of claim 8 wherein said support platform means includes removable means for increasing the height thereof after the tower is founded to thereby enable higher elevation of the vessel if necessary.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the vessel is adapted to reside interiorly of the support platform means when the former is being navigated to a worksite, with the support platform means uniformly distributed about the vessel so as to enhance stability during movement and so as to enable direct descent of the support platform means upon reaching the worksite.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein the vessel is characterized by a circular deck which is rotatable with respect to the vessel hull so that said deck may operate as a moving platform when the vessel is elevated on the structure thereby significantly enhancing operations such as well reworking by a derrick on the platform.

17. An improved offshore system for multiple and sequential marine operations in which a vessel is navigated to a selected work operating site at an afloat elevation, brought to a different working elevation whereat it is stably supported free of wave action by a stabilized marine structure, brought back to its afloat elevation while the stabilized marine structure remains stabilized at the selected operating site and wherein the vessel is brought again to its different elevation whereat it is stably supported as before, but repositioned, comprising:

a vessel, for carrying equipment and operational platform means, at an elevation substantially free of surface wave action;

an operational platform means stabilized at an operating site supporting the said vessel, said operational platform means being adapted to carry on offshore operations and to be moved from one site to another by said vessel;

releasable elevating and lowering means operatively extending from said vessel and connected to said platform means for altering the vessel elevation while the platform is stabilized; and

selectively releasable coupling means for releasing the said vessel to float while the said platform means is stabilized at an operating site, so as to allow the vessel to move to a new location while the said platform means remains stabilized at the operating site.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a drilling barge, and the said platform means is a semisubmersible wave transparent frame stabilized by thrusters. structure, brought back to its afloat elevation while the stabilized marine structure

19. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a drilling barge and the said platform means is a pile jacket.

20. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a jackup rig and the said platform means is a pile jacket.

21. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a round barge and the said platform means is a ringlike frame surrounding the vessel.

22. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a catamaran and the said platform means is a pile-supported space frame.

23. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a trimmed center hull and the said platform means is an outrigger pontoon.

24. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a submersible and the said platform means is a pile jacket.

25. The system of claim 17 wherein the said vessel is a jackup rig and the said platform means is a submerged pile-supported vessel having a sealed space for human endeavor therein.