Patent ID: 6945737
Filing Date: 2005-09-20
Classification: B63B

Abstract:
1. An extendable draft offshore platform (EDP), comprising: a buoyant deck having a central opening; a pontoon having an adjustable buoyancy; a buoyant column having a lower end and an upper end, the lower end being attached to the pontoon and extending upwardly there from, the column being vertically movable through the central opening of the deck between a raised position and a lowered position as the pontoon is respectively raised and lowered by the adjustment of its buoyancy; a plurality of radial arms fixed to the upper end of the column, each of the arms having an outer end extending radially beyond the periphery of the column; a plurality of receptacles on the deck, arranged and configured to receive the outer ends of the radial arms in a vertical, slide-in engagement when the column is in its lowered position; and a locking element that is engageable with each of the arms and its corresponding receptacle when the arms are received in the receptacles so as to lock the upper end of the column to the deck.