Floating vessel

Description

[0001] This invention relates to a floating vessel.

Background to the Invention

[0002] Typically, ships have a tapered or pointed bow which cuts through the water to reduce hydrodynamic drag. Passenger ships are designed for maximum stability and the comfort of the passengers but they also need to be hydrodynamically efficient by moving smoothly through the water (see, for example, any among prior art documents US 2006/254486 A1, US 2 915 031 A or US 2005/098077 A1).

[0003] Typically, a passenger boat for use on a river will have a cutter bow or spoon bow with tapered sides that push water around the sides of the hull as the boat is propelled forwards. However, the tapered sides of the bow mean that the deck space at the front of the ship is significantly reduced compared to the deck space in sections of the boat where the hull is full width.

[0004] It is common to mount mooring equipment, such as anchors, ropes, chains, windlasses and winches on the top deck of a ship, located on each side of the bow. The equipment is located here so that the ground tackle or anchors can be easily deployed overboard for mooring, docking or anchoring. However, this equipment occupies a lot of the limited deck space available in the bow area and operation of the mooring equipment may require this area to be clear of any people or obstructions for safety purposes.

[0005] For many applications, the limited deck space at the bow is detrimental, as it is common for passengers to congregate at the front of the ship to look forward in its direction of travel. However, the number of passengers that may be accommodated towards the front of the vessel is limited to the tapering nature of the bow.

Summary of the Invention

[0006] Therefore, this invention seeks to provide a floating vessel that overcomes or substantially alleviates the problems referred to in more detail above.

[0007] According to the invention, which is defined by the technical features set forth in claim 1, there is provided a river boat for carrying passengers comprising, inter alia, a hull having a tapered bow and a deck having a portion that overhangs the hull on either side of the tapered bow to support passengers thereon, said portion having a forward facing edge that extends across the top of the tapered bow.

[0008] The portion of the deck that overhangs the hull has a curved lower surface that blends into the tapered bow.

[0009] The forward facing edge may extend transversely across the top of the tapered bow. This gives the vessel a substantially 'squared-off appearance to the front, in a region above the tapered bow.

[0010] The forward facing edge can be curved in shape across the front of the vessel.

[0011] The sides of the deck remain substantially parallel to each other as they extend up to and meet said forward facing edge. The forward facing edge may meet each side at a substantially 90 degree angle.

[0012] The hull may be provided with compartments below said deck to receive mooring equipment in said compartments.

[0013] Hatches may be provided in the hull to enable access to said mooring equipment through said hatches.

[0014] The floating vessel is a river boat for carrying passengers.

[0015] Additional features of the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims which define the scope thereof together with the above-mentioned independent claim 1.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to Figures 2 to 6 of the drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows a side view and a plan view of a typical passenger ship;

Figure 2 shows a side view and a plan view of a first embodiment of a passenger ship;

Figure 3 shows an enlarged front view of the passenger ship of Figure 2;

Figure 4 shows an enlarged side view of the passenger ship of Figure 2;

Figure 5 shows a plan view of the top deck at the bow of a second embodiment of a passenger ship; and

Figure 6 shows a plan view of a lower deck at the bow of the ship of Figure 5.

Detailed Description of the Drawings

[0017] Figure 1 shows a side view and a plan view of a typical passenger ship 1. The hull 2 of the ship has generally parallel side walls 3 and a cutter or spoon bow 4 is formed of two curved side walls 5 that taper towards the stem 6 which is also tapered, or raked, relative to the water line to further help the bow 4 push through the water. The side walls 5 of the bow 4 are curved for better stress distribution and hydrodynamic performance; as the bow 4 moves through the water, and especially through waves, the bow pushes water around the hull 2 to reduce the hydrodynamic resistance to movement. It is clear from the plan view that the curved and tapered sides 5 of the bow 4 reduce available deck space. This problem may also be made worse by the typical installation of mooring equipment on both sides of the top deck of the bow, as previously described.

[0018] Figure 2 shows a side view and a plan view of a ship 7 with a deck 9 and a bow 8. The bow 8 sits in the water and comprises curved sides 10 that taper from the parallel sides 11 of the hull 12 to the stem 13, as shown in the plan view. The deck 9, which is above the water line overhangs the bow and comprises two generally parallel side walls 14 that extend from the side walls 11 of the hull 12, and a front wall 15 that may be substantially straight and generally perpendicular to the parallel sides 11, 14 of the upper bow 9 and hull 12. The front wall 15 is intersected by the stem 13 of the lower bow 8 which is tapered to form a cutter or raked bow type. The lower and upper bows 8, 9 are joined such that the outer surfaces of the bows 8, 9 are smoothly connected, as shown in Figure 3 and 4.

[0019] The 'squared-off bow design described with reference to Figure 2 gives increased top deck space in the bow area without reducing the hydrodynamic performance of the hull 12. The bow 8 maintains the tapered walls 10 that reduce the hydrodynamic drag on the hull 12 and the deck 9 extends over the walls 10 of the bow 8 to increase the deck space.

[0020] Figures 3 and 4 show an enlarged front and side views of the front of the ship 7 of Figure 2. The bow 8 is formed of side walls 10 that taper into the stem 13 and define a flat bottom 16 and a raked stem 13. The deck 9 has side walls 14 that extend from the side walls of the hull 12 and a front wall 15 that is generally straight and perpendicular to the side walls 14. As shown, the side walls 10 of the bow 8 are curved to smoothly merge into the side walls of the deck 14 so that a smooth surface is defined between the bow 8 and the deck 14.

[0021] Figures 2 to 4 show that the deck space has been greatly increased over the typical hull and bow design described with reference to Figure 1. The full width of the hull of the ship has been extended to the front of the ship rather than tapering off, as is typical in a conventional boat.

[0022] The ship described with reference to Figures 2 to 4 may be constructed from glass fibre reinforced plastic (GFRP), carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP), aluminium, steel, wood or any other ship hull manufacturing material or technique.

[0023] Figure 5 shows a plan view of the bow 8 and overhanging deck 9 of the ship 7 showing the upper surface 17 of the deck 9. As previously described, the mooring equipment would typically be mounted to the deck 9 on either side of the bow 9. However, this reduces deck space available and may also present an obstruction or safety risk.

[0024] Therefore, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the mooring equipment 19 is mounted in a compartment or on an equipment deck 18 below the deck 9, so that no space is lost on the deck 9.

[0025] Figure 6 shows a plan view of the equipment deck 18 of the ship 7, which is below the top deck 9 shown in Figure 5. The mooring equipment 19 is positioned adjacent to the side walls 14 of the deck 9 and hatches 20 are provided that can be opened to allow the ropes 21, chains or anchors to be deployed out of the side of the ship 7 for mooring or anchoring purposes. Bollards 22 are positioned adjacent to the hatches 20 to control the angle at which the ropes 21 leave the ship 7 to avoid damaging the hatches 20 with the ropes 21. The hatches 20 can be closed to hide the mooring equipment from view when it is not in use, maintaining the aesthetic qualities of the ship 7.

[0026] Mounting the mooring equipment 19 on the lower equipment deck 18 creates extra top deck space which can be used for other purposes, such as extra passenger space or for mounting other equipment. Furthermore, mounting the mooring equipment 19 on a lower deck 18 allows deployment, maintenance and cleaning to occur out of sight and without disturbances to the operations of the top deck 9.

[0027] The bow design and equipment deck described with reference to the drawings may be applied individually to a ship design or may be used in combination.

[0028] The bow designs described with reference to Figures 2 to 6 are especially relevant to river bound passenger ships, such as described, because the increased deck area can be used as extra social or living space for the passengers without reducing the stability of the boat or the comfort of the ride.

Claims

1. A river boat for carrying passengers comprising a hull (12) having parallel side walls (14), a deck to support passengers thereon having a maximum width extending between the parallel side walls (14), and a bow including a lower bow portion (8) with curved sides each of which taper inwardly from one of said parallel side walls (14) and meet at a stem (13) which has an upper end, and an upper bow portion (9) that overhangs the lower bow portion (8) and which surrounds the deck, the upper and lower bow portions (8,9) each having a curved surface that blend into each other, the upper bow portion (9) being formed from the parallel side walls (14) of the hull (12) that continue parallel to each other over the tapering, curved sides of the lower bow portion (8), the parallel side walls (14) being joined by a forward facing wall (15) that extends between the parallel side walls (14) across the upper end of the stem (13) so that the width of the deck remains at its maximum over the lower bow portion (8) to increase deck space.

2. A river boat for carrying passengers according to claim 1, wherein said forward facing wall (15) extends transversely across the top of the tapered bow.

3. A river boat for carrying passengers according to claim 2, wherein said forward facing wall (15) is curved in shape.

4. A river boat for carrying passengers according to any preceding claim, wherein the hull (12) is provided with compartments below said deck to receive mooring equipment (19) in said compartments.

5. A river boat for carrying passengers according to claim 4, comprising hatches (20) in the hull (12) to enable access to said mooring equipment through said hatches (20).

Ansprüche

1. Binnenschiff zum Befördern von Passagieren, das einen Rumpf (12) mit parallelen Seitenwänden (14), ein Deck zum Tragen von Passagieren darauf mit einer Höchstbreite, die sich zwischen den parallelen Seitenwänden (14) erstreckt, und einen Bug umfasst, der einen unteren Bugabschnitt (8) mit gekrümmten Seiten, von denen jede von einer der parallelen Seitenwände (14) aus nach innen hin konisch zuläuft und die an einem Steven (13) zusammentreffen, der ein oberes Ende aufweist, und einen oberen Bugabschnitt (9) aufweist, der über den unteren Bugabschnitt (8) vorsteht und das Deck umgibt, wobei der obere und der untere Bugabschnitt (8, 9) jeweils eine gekrümmte Fläche aufweisen, die ineinander übergehen, wobei der obere Bugabschnitt (9) aus den parallelen Seitenwänden (14) des Rumpfes (12) gebildet ist, die über den konisch zulaufenden, gekrümmten Seiten des unteren Bugabschnitts (8) weiter parallel zueinander verlaufen, wobei die parallelen Seitenwände (14) durch eine nach vorn weisende Wand (15) miteinander verbunden sind, die sich über das obere Ende des Stevens (13) hinweg so zwischen den parallelen Seitenwänden (14) erstreckt, dass die Breite des Decks zwecks Vergrößerns des Deckbereichs über dem unteren Bugabschnitt (8) maximal bleibt.

2. Binnenschiff zum Befördern von Passagieren nach Anspruch 1, wobei sich die nach vorn weisende Wand (15) oben quer über den konisch zulaufenden Bug hinweg erstreckt.

3. Binnenschiff zum Befördern von Passagieren nach Anspruch 2, wobei die nach vorn weisende Wand (15) eine gekrümmte Form aufweist.

4. Binnenschiff zum Befördern von Passagieren nach einem vorhergehenden Anspruch, wobei der Rumpf (12) unter dem Deck mit Kammern versehen ist, in denen die Festmachvorrichtungen (19) untergebracht werden.

5. Binnenschiff zum Befördern von Passagieren nach Anspruch 4, das Luken (20) in dem Rumpf (12) umfasst, durch die Zugang zu den Festmachvorrichtungen möglich ist.

Revendications

1. Bateau fluvial pour transporter des passagers, comprenant une coque (12) ayant des parois latérales parallèles (14), un pont pour y supporter des passagers, ayant une largeur maximum s'étendant entre les parois latérales parallèles (14), et une proue comprenant une partie proue inférieure (8) avec des flancs incurvés s'amincissant chacun vers l'intérieur depuis une desdites parois latérales parallèles (14) et rejoignant une étrave (13) qui a une extrémité supérieure, et une partie proue supérieure (9) qui surplombe la partie proue inférieure (8) et qui entoure le pont, les parties proue supérieure et inférieure (8, 9) ayant chacune une surface incurvée qui se fondent l'une dans l'autre, la partie proue supérieure (9) étant formée depuis les parois latérales parallèles (14) de la coque (12) qui continuent parallèlement l'une à l'autre au-dessus des flancs incurvés s'amincissant de la partie proue inférieure (8), les parois latérales parallèles (14) étant jointes par une paroi tournée vers l'avant (15) qui s'étend entre les parois latérales parallèles (14) en travers de l'extrémité supérieure de l'étrave (13) de manière à ce que la largeur du pont reste à son maximum au-dessus de la partie proue inférieure (8) pour augmenter l'espace sur le pont.

2. Bateau fluvial pour transporter des passagers selon la revendication 1, dans lequel ladite paroi tournée vers l'avant (15) s'étend transversalement en travers du sommet de la proue de forme amincie.

3. Bateau fluvial pour transporter des passagers selon la revendication 2, dans lequel ladite paroi tournée vers l'avant (15) a une forme incurvée.

4. Bateau fluvial pour transporter des passagers selon l'une quelconque des revendications précédentes, dans lequel la coque (12) est pourvue de compartiments en dessous dudit pont pour recevoir les apparaux d'amarrage (19) dans lesdits compartiments.

5. Bateau fluvial pour transporter des passagers selon la revendication 4, comprenant des écoutilles (20) dans la coque (12) pour permettre l'accès auxdits apparaux d'amarrage à travers lesdites écoutilles (20).

Drawing