Offboard connection system

• US 8,146,527 B2
• Filed: 09/22/2009
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Pellen, Alain T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Olson, Lars A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Polay, Andrew
• Application Number:
  US12/564,352
• Publication Number:
  US 20110067619A1
• Time in Patent Office: 924 Days
• Field of Search: 114/244, 114/230.2, 114/243, 114/249, 114/251, 114/253, 114/322, 114/51, 439/312, 439/247, 439/248, 439/374, 439/378, 137/615, 141/369, 141/370, 141/382, 141/384
• US Class Current: 114/322
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 21/00 Tying-up; Shifting, towing, or pushing equipment; Anchoring of buoys B63B22/04; dynamic anchoring B63H25/00 ; equipment for shipping on coasts, in harbours or on other fixed marine structures, e.g. for landing purposes, E02B
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 27/36 Arrangement of ship-based loading or unloading equipment for floating cargo deployment or recovery of underwater vehicles using lifts of hoists B63B27/16
• CPC Class Codes: B63C 11/42 with independent propulsion or direction control

Abstract

A system for connecting an auxiliary craft and a mother ship includes a cable suspended from the mother ship, a cable tensioner, a mother-ship coupler that is slideably engaged to the cable, a fixture that depends from the auxiliary craft, and an auxiliary-craft coupler. The auxiliary craft is maneuvered to engage the cable. Once engaged, the cable tensioner tensions the cable, thereby maintaining the auxiliary craft in position next to the mother ship. As the cable is tensioned, the auxiliary-craft coupler axially aligns to the mother-ship coupler. After axial alignment, the mother-ship coupler is released to slide into mating engagement with the auxiliary-craft coupler. Mated couplers enable bi-directional electrical or optical communications as well as the transfer of power, fuel or other fluids from the mother ship to the auxiliary craft.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a cable that depends from a mother ship;

a cable tensioner that is operable to apply tension to the cable;

a first coupler associated with the mother ship, wherein the first coupler is slideably mounted to and freely rotates about the cable;

a fixture that depends from an auxiliary craft, wherein the fixture is suitably configured to engage the cable, thereby tethering the auxiliary craft to the mother ship;

a second coupler, wherein the second coupler is rotatably coupled to the fixture, wherein the second coupler has an aperture, and wherein, when the cable tensioner applies tension, the aperture enables the cable to move radially inward through the second coupler to be coincident with the longitudinal central axis thereof, thereby axially aligning the first coupler and the second coupler.

2. The system of claim 1 further comprising rotational alignment features that rotationally align the first coupler and the second coupler with respect to connectors that are disposed in each of the first coupler and the second coupler.

3. A method comprising:

deploying a cable from a mother ship;

coupling the cable to a fixture that depends from an auxiliary craft by positioning the auxiliary craft with respect to the deployed cable so that the fixture snags the cable;

axially aligning, by tensioning the cable, a first coupler associated with the mother ship and that freely rotates about the cable to a second coupler associated with the auxiliary craft, wherein the tensioning causes the cable to be received in an aperture that is defined in a body of a second coupler; and

mating the first coupler and the second coupler by sliding the first coupler along the cable.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein, during the operation of axially aligning the first coupler to the second coupler, the cable moves radially inward through the aperture ultimately aligning with a central longitudinal axis of the second coupler.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler further comprises rotating the first coupler with respect to the second coupler by engaging a rotational alignment feature of the first coupler with a complementary rotational alignment feature of the second coupler.

6. The method of claim 3 wherein the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler further comprises rotationally aligning the first coupler and the second coupler to a definable maximum allowed rotational misalignment via coarse alignment features.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein in the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler, the coarse-alignment features comprise:

a projecting guide, wherein the projecting guide depends from a first major surface of the second coupler; and

a receiver, wherein the receiver is disposed in the first coupler and is structrually configured to receive the projecting guide of the second coupler.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the projecting guide includes an aperture that aligns with the aperture defined in the second coupler, wherein the two apertures enable the cable to advance radially inward to a central axis of the second coupler.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein in the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler:

the receiver further comprises a key; and

the projecting guide further comprises a guideway, wherein the key is configured to engage the guideway and wherein engagement thereof results in rotation of the first coupler.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein in the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler, the definable maximum allowed rotational misalignment is a function of the width of the aperture of the projecting guide.

11. The method of claim 6 wherein the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler further comprises fine-alignment features for rotationally aligning the first coupler and the second coupler, wherein the fine-alignment features decrease rotational misalignment allowed by the coarse alignment features sufficiently to ensure that the first coupler and the second coupler mate to one another.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler further comprises mating a connector that is disposed in the first coupler and a connector that is disposed in the second coupler.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein in the operation of mating the first coupler and the second coupler, the fine-alignment features include:

an tapered boss that is disposed on a first major surface of the second coupler, wherein the tapered boss is axially aligned with the connector in the second coupler; and

an tapered counterbore that is disposed in a first major surface of the first coupler, wherein the tapered counterbore is axially aligned with the connector in the first coupler, and wherein the tapered counterbore is structurally configured to receive the tapered boss.

14. The method of claim 3 further comprising receiving utilities and signals at the first coupler.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising conducting the utilities and signals received at the first coupler to the auxiliary craft via the second coupler.

16. A method comprising:

deploying a cable from a mother ship;

tensioning the cable, thereby causing;

(a) the cable to be received in an aperture that is defined a body of a second coupler, which is associated with the auxiliary craft; and

(b) a first coupler associated with the mother ship and slideably mounted to the cable to axially align with the second coupler; and

(c) the cable to move radially inward through the aperture in the second coupler to be coincident with a longitudinal central axis of the second coupler, thereby axially aligning the first coupler and the second coupler; and

mating the first coupler and the second coupler by sliding the first coupler along the cable to engage the second coupler.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the operation of mating further comprises rotating the first coupler with respect to the second coupler by engaging a rotational alignment feature of the first coupler with a complementary rotational alignment feature of the second coupler.