[0001] The present invention relates to an auger head according to the preamble of claim
1. The invention also relates to a floating body, for example a ship comprising the
auger head according to the invention.
[0002] It is known in the art to remove material from a water bottom by means of an auger
head. An auger head is a cylindrical body with a longitudinal axis, being the rotation
axis of the cylindrical body. At the body's outer surface a helical screw part is
provided, such that upon rotation of the body along a water bottom material is transported
from ends of said body towards an intermediate portion. Material is then removed from
said intermediate portion by means of a suction tube positioned at some distance from
the auger head.
[0003] Such known auger head provides the disadvantage that only a small part of the material
is actually removed from the water bottom. A large part of said material is swirled
up by the rotary action of the auger head missing the entrance of the suction tube.
[0004] Another disadvantage of this known auger head is that it is a complex apparatus with
a limited effectiveness.
[0005] The invention aims at providing an improved auger head of the kind mentioned in the
preamble.
[0006] The invention further aims at providing an auger head that provides a better removal
of material from the water bottom.
[0007] The invention also aims at providing an improved and easier to use auger head than
an auger head according to the state of the art.
[0008] So as to obtain at least one of the above mentioned aims, the invention provides
an auger head as mentioned in claim 1. This auger head has the advantage that removal
of material from the water bottom is done securely, removing substantially all material
that has been transported to the intermediate portion of the auger head.
[0009] It has also shown that the auger head according to the present invention can be rotated
at a higher rotational speed than known auger heads. Even at higher rotational speeds,
no swirling up of material is obtained and thus no material is left at the water bottom.
Such synergistic effect is a surprising and advantageous effect, since less effort
is required to remove said material. Also, due to the higher rotational speed, the
force impact of the auger head against the water bottom is much higher providing an
even more improved effectiveness.
[0010] The invention therefore relates to an auger head for removing material from a water
bottom, comprising a cylindrically shaped body for performing a rotary movement along
the water bottom, said cylindrical body comprising a helically wound screw on its
outer surface, said helically wound screw is embodied in two part form, a first screw
part for transporting said material from a first end of said cylinder to an intermediate
portion of said cylinder and a second screw part for transporting said material from
a second end of said cylinder to said intermediate portion of said cylinder upon performing
the rotary movement along the water bottom in one direction, characterized in that
the cylindrical body comprises an intermediate opening near said intermediate portion
for removing said material through said cylindrical body and a discharge opening for
removing said material from the cylindrical body. The present auger head ensures an
excellent removal of material from the water bottom, since the material is in a first
step transported by means of the helical screw at the outside of the cylindrical body
to an intermediate position thereof, usually but not necessarily to the center portion,
and in a second but substantially continuous step the material enters the inside of
the cylindrical body through said opening, such that the material can be removed through
said cylindrical body and out of the cylindrical body through the discharge opening.
[0011] So as to obtain a targeted removal of said material, it is preferred that the auger
head comprises a discharge tube connected to the discharge opening of said cylindrical
body for transporting said material to a remote location. The advantage of the present
embodiment is that the discharge tube is directly connected to the hollow inside of
the cylindrical body collecting said material. Thus, no foreign material from around
the end of the discharge tube will enter the discharge tube.
[0012] It is especially preferred that the auger head comprises a pump for actively removing
and transporting said material. Since the pump is actively coupled to the intermediate
opening in the cylinder, it will apply a vacuum action at said intermediate opening
ensuring a continuous and effective removal of said material through said intermediate
opening after said material has been transported towards the intermediate opening
by means of the screw parts at the cylinder's outer surface.
[0013] So as to ensure a complete removal of material from the inside of the cylinder towards
and into the discharge tube, said cylindrical body may optionally have an internal
screw for internally transporting material from said intermediate opening near said
intermediate portion towards a discharge opening at an end of said cylindrical body,
i.e. towards the discharge tube.
[0014] As a result, preference is given to an auger head wherein a pump is connected to
said discharge opening for removing said material from said cylindrical body, optionally
with intermediate placement of a transport line such as a pipeline, a tube or a hose.
Such embodiment is able to efficiently and completely transporting the material towards
a remote location.
[0015] When the water bottom comprises solid material, it is preferred to grind or cut said
material into smaller pieces. It then is preferred for the cylindrical body to be
provided with teeth at its outer surface for cutting said water bottom.
[0016] Said cutting or grinding action is performed optimally, when the said teeth are connected
to said helically wound screws, since in such embodiment the teeth with interact most
efficiently with the water bottom.
[0017] An even most efficient action is obtained when said teeth are connected to the top
part of said helically wound screws.
[0018] An easily applicable embodiment is obtained when said cylindrical body is rotatably
coupled to a frame part at its two longitudinal ends. Such embodiment provides a strong
and stable apparatus, easily withstanding forces that are encountered at water bottoms,
especially water bottoms comprising large pieces of material like rocks and stones,
but pieces of organic material as well.
[0019] When using an auger head according to the invention, a rotation device, also referred
to as rotator, must be used for providing a rotary motion to the auger head. As a
skilled person knows, the auger head has a cylindrical body with a longitudinal axis,
said body rotating along said longitudinal axis. The rotation device preferably is
a motor, for example an electric or hydraulic motor. Said rotation device directly
interacts with said cylindrical body. Preferably, providing a compact embodiment,
the invention relates to an auger head wherein at a first longitudinal end a rotator
is provided for inducing a rotatable motion to said cylinder with respect to the frame
part and at a second longitudinal end the discharge tube is connected for transporting
said material from said cylindrical body to a remote location.
[0020] It is especially preferred that at least one of said rotator and said discharge tube
is rigidly connected to said frame. For, such adds to the rigidity and strength of
the complete construction of auger head and frame, including the rotator and tube
connection.
[0021] According to a further embodiment, the invention relates to an auger head as mentioned
above, operable from a ship.
[0022] Finally, the invention also relates to a ship, comprising an auger head according
to the present invention, comprising a frame to which said auger head is rotatably
connected.
[0023] Hereafter, the invention will be further described by means of a drawing. The drawing
shows in:
Fig. 1 a perspective view of an auger head according to the invention,
Fig. 2 a front view of an auger head according to the invention,
Fig. 3 a sectional view of the auger head according to Fig. 2.
[0024] The same and similar parts and features have been denoted by the same reference numerals
in the figures. However, for ease of understanding the figures, not all parts that
are required for a practical embodiment have been shown in the figures.
[0025] Fig. 1 shows an auger head 1, comprising a substantially cylindrical body 2 with
screw parts 3, 4 on its outer surface 5. The screw part 3 is wound oppositely with
respect to screw part 4, such that upon rotation of the auger head along its longitudinal
axis 6 (as shown in Fig. 2) in a suitable direction, material caught in between two
neighboring screw wall parts 7, 8 (see especially Fig. 2) is transferred to an intermediate
portion 9 of the auger head 1. Substantially all material caught in between two neighboring
screw part walls from between a first end 10 and a second end 11 of the auger head
will be transferred towards said intermediate portion 9.
[0026] In the embodiment shown in the figures, the auger head 1 comprises a single intermediate
portion, since two oppositely threaded screw parts are provided at the auger head's
surface. Optionally, four, six, eight or any other even number of screw parts may
be applied, yielding two, three, four et cetera intermediate portions, respectively.
The advantage of an even number of screw parts is that there are always two screw
parts working together, moving material towards an opening at a common intermediate
portion in between said two screw parts.
[0027] In addition, a single pitch, a double pitch or even a triple or quadruple pitch may
be applied. It is preferred that an opening is provided in the intermediate portion
at the end of each pitch so as to obtain an optimum removal of material through said
opening at the end of each of said pitches. The drawings show an embodiment with a
double pitch and two screw parts.
[0028] Near the intermediate portion 9 an intermediate opening 12 is made in the body's
surface, yielding entrance to the body's hollow inside. As a result, material that
is transferred towards said intermediate opening 12 will be transferred into the body's
hollow inside. At the first end 10 a discharge opening 13 is provided for removing
said material from the body's hollow inside.
[0029] A discharge tube 14 may be connected to the said discharge opening 13 for transporting
the material to a remote location.
[0030] Fig. 2 shows a front view of the auger head 1. The longitudinal axis 6 is shown in
this figure.
[0031] Fig. 3 finally shows a sectional view of the auger head 1 according to the present
invention. An optional screw 15 is provided in the body's hollow inside, assisting
in transporting material towards end 10, after it has entered the auger head 1 through
said intermediate opening 12. This screw 15 prevents lagging of material inside the
auger head 1. As a matter of fact, since the cylindrical body undergoes a rotational
movement with respect to a water bottom (or a like surface from which material has
to be removed), the screw 15 may be static, in that no rotational movement is induced
on said screw with respect to said water bottom.
[0032] At second end 11 a rotator 16 is provided for rotating the auger head 1 along its
longitudinal axis 6. So as to be able to induce said movement, the rotator is coupled
to a frame (not shown) that has a static position with respect to a water bottom or
the like, as indicated above. The frame is preferably connected to a floating device
when removing material from a water bottom. Most preferably, the frame is rotatably
connected at both ends 10, 11 of the auger head 1.
[0033] The screw parts 3, 4 have a top part 17 at a position away from the body's surface
5. At said top part 17, cutting teeth 18 are provided for cutting and destroying material
at the water bottom.
[0034] The invention is not limited to the embodiments as mentioned above and as shown in
the drawings. The invention is limited by the claims only.
[0035] The invention also relates to all combinations of features described here independently
of each other.
1. An auger head for removing material from a water bottom, comprising a cylindrically
shaped body for performing a rotary movement along the water bottom, said cylindrical
body comprising a helically wound screw on its outer surface, said helically wound
screw is embodied in two part form, a first screw part for transporting said material
from a first end of said cylinder to an intermediate portion of said cylinder and
a second screw part for transporting said material from a second end of said cylinder
to said intermediate portion of said cylinder upon performing the rotary movement
along the water bottom in one direction, characterized in that the cylindrical body comprises an intermediate opening near said intermediate portion
for removing said material through said cylindrical body and a discharge opening for
removing said material from the cylindrical body.
2. An auger head according to claim 1, comprising a discharge tube connected to the discharge
opening of said cylindrical body for transporting said material to a remote location.
3. An auger head according to claim 1, comprising a pump for actively removing and transporting
said material.
4. An auger head according to claim 1, wherein said cylindrical body has an internal
screw for internally transporting material from said intermediate opening near said
intermediate portion towards a discharge opening at an end of said cylindrical body.
5. An auger head according to claim 1, wherein a pump is connected to said discharge
opening for removing said material from said cylindrical body, optionally with intermediate
placement of a transport line such as a pipeline, a tube or a hose.
6. An auger head according to claim 1, wherein said cylindrical body is provided with
teeth at its outer surface for cutting said
7. An auger head according to claim 6, wherein said teeth are connected to said helically
wound screws.
8. An auger head according to claim 7, wherein said teeth are connected to the top part
of said helically wound screws.
9. An auger head according to claim 1, wherein said cylindrical body is rotatably coupled
to a frame part at its two longitudinal ends.
10. An auger head according to claim 1, wherein at a first longitudinal end a rotator
is provided for inducing a rotatable motion to said cylinder with respect to the frame
part and at a second longitudinal end a discharge tube is connected for transporting
said material from said cylindrical body to a remote location.
11. An auger head according to claim 10, wherein at least one of said rotator and said
discharge tube is rigidly connected to said frame.
12. An auger head according to claim 1, operable from a ship.
13. A floating body, comprising an auger head according to any of claims 1 to 12, comprising
a frame to which said auger head is rotatably connected.