Abstract:
The water vegetation removal system includes a stationary barge and at least one motorboat equipped with a plow blade or vegetation rake for plowing vegetation on the surface of a body of water into the vicinity of the barge. The system includes a barge with a diesel engine mounted at one end and a pump box attached to the barge which provides a watertight chamber for housing a dredge pump powered by the engine. A hopper box with a spillway gate which may be lowered to admit water is attached to the pump box. A water tray is formed by a pair of walls hingedly attached to the hopper box to funnel vegetation into the hopper box. Vegetation is drawn into the water tray and hopper box by suction applied by an intake pipe from the dredge pump which extends into the hopper box. Vegetation is drawn into the pump and macerated, then discharged through a flexible discharge pipe to the shore for transport.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to the removal of problematic aquatic vegetation from a body of water, and in particular, to a stationary barge apparatus and problematic aquatic vegetation removal system for the removal of problematic vegetation, such as water hyacinth, salvinia, water lily and other aquatic vegetation. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     The water hyacinth ( Eichhornia crassipes ), indigenous to South America, and commonly found in tropical and subtropical fresh water bodies of the world, such as California, Florida, Texas, and the Gulf Coast region of the United States, is a typical free-floating or shallow rooted water plant. As one of the fastest growing plants in the world, the hyacinth can completely cover small fresh water lakes, harbors, canals, sloughs, and other essentially occluded fresh water bodies. During the summer months, the climate in much of the Southern United States is ideal for water hyacinth growth, often to the dismay of swimming, boating, and fishing enthusiasts, as well as to the dismay of those in the business of navigating through shallow waterways. Water hyacinths typically deposit in excess of 500 tons of decaying plant material on the bottom per year, and under optimum growing conditions, can cover a surface area that doubles about every ten to fifteen days. 
     The leaves of the water hyacinth are large and broadly lance-like, extending from a generally inflated stalk, and the flowers are generally blue, violet or white. The leaf blades may be up to 8 inches long and 2-6 inches wide, and the roots are dark and fibrous. The plant reproduces either by seed or fragmentation. 
     Giant salvinia ( Salvinia molesta ) is an aquatic fen classified as a Federal Noxious Weed and prohibited in the United States by Federal law. Although native to South America, it has been introduced to several countries around the world, and notably has caused severe economic and ecological problems in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. The weed is currently infesting sites in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, and several other states. Salvinia invades lakes, streams, ponds, and bayous, spreading aggressively by vegetative fragments. Salvinia forms floating mats that shade and crowd out important native plants. Thick mats reduce oxygen content and degrade water quality for fish and other aquatic organisms and impede boating, fishing, and swimming. The mats also clog water intakes needed for the generation of electrical power and for irrigation. Salvinia has a very high growth rate and can double its biomass in less than a week under favorable conditions. 
     Where removal has been undertaken, harvesting has been performed by non-stationary barges which are typically self-powered machines that must navigate through, grind, bail, and/or contain the water vegetation. The biggest disadvantage of these vessels is the difficulty they encounter in navigating through shallow or obstructed water bodies, such as those replete with natural obstacles like fallen trees, and/or stumps. A harvesting barge which may be operated in a stationary mode is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,258,534, issued to C. B. Bryant on Mar. 31, 1981. The barge has booms, pontoons and deflectors for defining a throat to direct the flow of vegetation, a pickup conveyor with a mesh belt partially submerged in the throat, a discharge conveyor for discharging the vegetation onto dry land or other barges, a pump with an inlet disposed behind the mesh belt of the pickup conveyor for providing suction to draw vegetation into the throat, and pump outlets connected by hoses to outlets positioned at the ends of the booms to direct the flow of vegetation into the throat and to cause turbulence to break up clumps of vegetation. Evidently the pump used in the &#39;534 device is not a dredge pump, as the vegetation is not transported through the pipes, but by conveyor belts. The &#39;534 patent also does not teach the use of motorboats or Jon boats to direct the vegetation towards the throat. U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,033, also issued to Bryant on Feb. 3, 1981, describes a mobile harvesting barge propelled by paddle wheels for navigation through shallow water. U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,258, issued to T. J. McNabb on Jan. 30, 1996, discloses a non-stationary barge which pulls hyacinth from the water by a conveyor having runners, then grinds the hyacinth to a fibrous biomass, bales the biomass and connects the buoyant bales by rope so that they can be pulled to shore for further processing. Non-stationary barges often have multiple moving parts associated with propulsion and navigation systems which can result in harvest interruption, transit time loss, inability to access certain areas, equipment failure, and considerable expense. Thus, self-powered non-stationary harvesting machines have previously not been generally very economical. 
     Chemical controls have also been tried. Unfortunately, these techniques have undesirable side effects particularly during the summer months when hyacinth growth is at its peak. Herbicides can be toxic to humans, wildlife, beneficial vegetation, crops and the like, and have been proven to be costly and generally ineffective. Floating aquatic vegetation that has been chemically treated results in a decay process that depletes oxygen from the water, reduces fish stock, and harms the ecosystem. 
     The prior art fails to teach a stationary surface water vegetation removal apparatus and system as described herein. None of the above inventions or patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The water vegetation removal system includes a stationary barge and at least one motorboat equipped with a plow blade or vegetation rake for plowing vegetation on the surface of a body of water into the vicinity of the barge. The system includes a barge with a diesel engine mounted at one end and a pump box attached to the barge which provides a watertight chamber for housing a dredge pump powered by the engine. A hopper box with a spillway gate which may be lowered to admit water is attached to the pump box. A water tray is formed by a pair of walls hingedly attached to the hopper box to funnel vegetation into the hopper box. Vegetation is drawn into the water tray and hopper box by suction applied by an intake pipe from the dredge pump which extends into the hopper box. Vegetation is drawn into the pump and macerated, then discharged through a flexible discharge pipe to the shore for transport. 
     Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a system to remove water hyacinth and other problematic floating aquatic vegetation from occluded shallow bodies of water, by macerating the vegetation and then pumping the mulched vegetation onto nearby dry land through a flexible, preferably transparent, discharge hose for disposal. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a barge and pumping apparatus that is relatively light-weight and can be conveniently deployed in areas otherwise inaccessible to self-propelled barges. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a stationary barge apparatus that utilizes a pump with extended drawing chambers, spillway and discharge hose which permits an relatively uninterrupted flow of harvested water vegetation from the water surface to a shore area. 
     Still another object of the invention is to incorporate a light-weight plow means in cooperation with the barge apparatus to form a convenient system that serves the above purposes. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in difficult environments, and in accomplishing its intended purposes. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a water vegetation removal system according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic plan view of the water vegetation removal system according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic side view of the water vegetation removal system according to the present invention, partly in section. 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a hopper box with an adjustable gate. 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a water flow enhancement tray, partially submerged. 
     FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the attachment of a plow blade to an outboard motorboat according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 is a fragmented, diagrammatic side view of an alternative embodiment of a harvesting barge according to the present invention, partly broken away and in section. 
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The present invention is a system designed to remove problematic water vegetation, i.e. water hyacinth, salvinia, water lily, and other floating aquatic vegetation, from a body of water by macerating the vegetation into a mulch, and pumping the mulch onto nearby dry land through a flexible, preferably transparent, discharge hose for disposal. 
     FIG. 1 depicts an environmental view of the water vegetation removal system  10 . The system includes a stationary barge apparatus  12  that essentially functions as a large water suction draw, and a cooperating water vegetation plow  60  for moving water vegetation A towards the barge apparatus  12 , wherein the barge apparatus  12  floats in calm, shallow water. As shown in greater detail in FIG. 6, the vegetation plow  60 , consists of a small outboard motor boat  62  having a bow  64  upon which a plow attachment  66  is mounted. The plow attachment  66  is shown to comprise a plurality of rectangular aluminum frames  68  with a wire mesh  70  occupying the center of the frames  68 , the frames  68  being connected to form a substantially U-shaped plow attachment  66 . Mounting braces  72  on the rear of the plow attachment  66  may be attached to the bow  64  of the motorboat  62  by a plurality of mounted C-clamps  74  or other mechanical fasteners. 
     The preferred barge apparatus  12 , depicted in FIGS. 2-3, has four main components connected end to end along their major axis consecutively from back to front as follows: a stationary barge  14 , a pump box  16 , a hopper box  18  (best seen in FIG.  4 ), and a water flow enhancement tray  20  (best seen in FIG.  5 ). Each segment of the barge apparatus  12  has a back end, and a front end, the front end of each segment being in the direction of the tray  20 , and the back end being in the direction of the barge  14 . Each segment also has a top surface (facing the sky), and a bottom surface (facing the water) connecting the front end to the back end. Each barge segment has a vertical port wall and a vertical starboard wall, the port wall being to the left and the starboard wall to the right as one faces the tray  20  from a reference point on the barge  14 . 
     The barge  14  is the largest segment of the barge apparatus  12 . The size of the barge  14  may vary depending on engine size. In a first embodiment, shown in FIGS. 1-3, a stationary engine  22  is mounted on the deck of the barge  14 , preferably near the front end, while the remainder of the barge  14  is used for egress, equipment, fuel storage, an operator&#39;s comfort station, and other purposes. The barge  14  of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-3 preferably has dimensions 8′ wide by 3′ deep by 20′ long, and preferably weighs approximately 5000 pounds. The barge  14  is preferably constructed from marine aluminum in order to reduce weight, to increase the system&#39;s longevity, and reduce maintenance, but may also be made from steel or other appropriate material. In alternative embodiments, the barge  14  can be longer or shorter in length, deeper or more shallow in depth, or more narrow in width. A width of 8′ or less is critical for highway transport. 
     Although other type engines may be used, a stationary diesel engine  22 , such as a Detroit 671, is mounted to the deck of the barge  14 , and should have sufficient horsepower to drive a 6″ dredge pump. A 6″ dredge pump  24  is coupled to the engine  22 . As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the coupling may be accomplished by pulleys  26  mounted on the engine shaft and the pump shaft  28  which are connected by V-belts  30 . The engine mounting frame  32  is designed to raise or lower the engine assembly  22  to facilitate adjusting the pump drive belts  30 . The engine  22  may be equipped with a PTO Transmission to adequately engage and disengage the pump drive belts  30 . As stated previously, the back end  34  of the barge  14  preferably contains egress means (e.g. a ladder), equipment, a fuel storage compartment, and/or an operator comfort station. The barge  14  should comply with OSHA requirements, and include features such as handrails, equipment guards, a cover and safety walkways (not shown). 
     An open-topped rectangular pump box  16  is connected, preferably by welding, to the front end of the barge  14  such that the deck of barge  14  is substantially flush with the top of the walls of the pump box  16 . The pump box  16  is preferably made of aluminum and supports a dredge pump  24  at the bottom of the pump box  16 , near its front end and below the level of the base of the engine  22 . The back end of the pump box  16 , adjacent to the barge  14 , contains the pump shaft  28 , drive belts  30  and pulleys  26  connecting the pump  24  to the engine  22 . The bottom, or floor, of the pump box  16 , extends approximately one foot below the bottom of the barge  14 . The preferred dimensions of the pump box are 4′ wide by 4′ deep by 7′ long. The pump box  16  may be constructed with different dimensions to accommodate the size of the dredge pump  24 . 
     The pump  24  features a  6 ″ discharge port  36  with a quick connect coupler  38  to mate with another quick connect coupler fastened to a flexible, lightweight discharge hose  40 , protruding from the port wall of the pump box. The pump  24  also features a six inch diameter suction pipe  42  at the pump intake port which protrudes through the front end of the pump box  16  into the back wall of the hopper box  18 , and exits the pump box  16  below the surrounding water level. The suction pipe  42  is preferably seal welded to the pump box  16  wall at the pipe pass-through to prevent flooding of the pump box  16 . Because the pump box  16  is at least partly below the surrounding water level, the pump  24  can be easily primed, and since the pump box  16  is dry, pump maintenance and inspection will not present a problem. A removable clean out inspection plate is built into the suction line near the pump to allow easy internal pump inspection. The pump box  16  also provides additional buoyancy to help offset the weight concentrated on the forward end of the barge  14 . The pump box  16  may be fitted with a cover  17  (shown in phantom in FIG. 4) which may also provide a′ walkway between the barge  14  and the hopper box  18 . 
     A rectangular hopper box  18 , which may be open-topped, is connected, preferably by welding, to the front face of the pump box  16 . The hopper box  18  is preferably 3′ wide by 3′ deep by 3′ long and is positioned such that its back face is centered, between the port and starboard side, on the front face of the pump box  16 . The top of the walls of the hopper box  18  are flush with the top of the walls of the pump box  16 . Passing through the back wall of the hopper box  18 , adjacent the pump box  16 , is a suction pipe  42  connected to the impeller or dredge pump  24 . The pump suction line&#39;s open end  44  is located inside the hopper box  18 , near its bottom. The purpose of the hopper box  18  is to provide a flow of water containing aquatic vegetation to the open end of the pump suction line  42 . 
     As shown in greater detail in FIG. 4, a vertically adjustable spillway gate  46  provides the front face of the hopper box  18 . Gate  46  is an adjustable steel plate, preferably 3′ wide and 3′ deep, and having opposite side edges  48  seated within vertical tracks  50  disposed in the front port and front starboard inside walls of the hopper box  18 . Gate  48  can be lowered below the surrounding water level, thereby admitting water into the hopper box  18  through the water flow enhancement tray  20 . The hopper box  18  is preferably constructed from marine aluminum. In the preferred embodiment, expanded metal doors  17  and  52  open for maintenance and inspection and cover the top openings of the pump box  16  and the hopper box  18 . The doors  17  and  52  provide a safe walk area for the barge operator. 
     An open-topped wedge-shaped water flow enhancement tray  20  is removably attached with vertical hinge pins removable from hinges  54  along the front corners of the hopper box  18 . The mouth  56  of the tray  20  is its edge furthest from the barge  14 . The tray  20  is open at the mouth  56 . The back wall of the tray  20  is defined by the spillway gate  46 , which may be raised or lowered. The sides of the tray  20  are defined by port and starboard side walls  58 , which are hingedly attached to the front corners of the hopper box  18 . The port and starboard side walls  58  of the tray  20  can be described as two vertical walls, preferably made from aluminum, that diverge towards the mouth  56  and have an aluminum bottom, or floor  59 , that connects side walls  58 . The tray is attached by hinges  54  to the vertical outboard corners of the hopper box  18 . The tray walls  58 , as viewed from above, diverge outward and away from the hopper box  18 , like a truncated V, wherein the walls  58  serve as a funnel-shaped travel way for incoming vegetation. The tray walls  58  are preferably constructed of ⅛″ thick by 2′ deep by 4′ long aluminum, disposed such that the depth is vertically-oriented. The top back corners of the tray walls  58  are positioned near the top front corners of the hopper box  18 . The top of the tray walls  58  are preferably flush with the top of the walls of the hopper box  18 . The lower corners of the tray walls  58  are partially submerged in the water, above the bottom of the hopper box  18 . Disposing the tray  20  in this manner prevents aquatic vegetation from slipping over the tray walls  58  or under the aluminum floor  59  connecting the tray walls  58 . 
     The tray walls  58  are preferably positioned by use of a stacked hinge  54 , whereby one-half of the hinge  54  is welded to the inboard end of tray walls  58  in a vertical fashion, and the other half of the stacked hinge  54  is welded to the vertical outboard corner of the hopper box  18  in a vertical fashion. The tray  20  is removably connected to the hopper box  18  by inserting a pin into and through the matching hinge  54  holes, thereby securing the tray walls  58  in a vertical position to the outboard vertical corners of the hopper box  18 . Adjacent to the adjustable spillway gate  46 , the tray walls  58  are 3′ apart, and the outer ends of the tray walls  58  may be referred to as the “mouth” of the barge apparatus 
     The tray bottom or floor  59  is in contact with both tray walls  58 , and is positioned level with the top of the spillway gate  46  when the spillway gate  46  is in the down or open position, in order to permit the flow of water and vegetation into the hopper box. The main function of the tray floor  59  is to provide a closed route for water and aquatic vegetation to make its way to the spillway gate  46 . The floor  59  also adds stability to the tray walls  58 . The tray floor  59  edge adjacent the hopper box  18  has a seal means, preferably a rubber gasket  61 , to minimize any water draw between the hopper box  18  and the tray  20 , thereby maximizing the draw into the hopper box  18 . The flow of the water and aquatic vegetation through the tray  20  can be controlled by the operator changing the engine&#39;s  22  RPMs, or by raising or lowering the spillway gate  46 . 
     The barge apparatus  12 , having a total weight of approximately 10,000 pounds, may be partially disassembled for transport. That is, the tray  20  may be easily and conveniently removed by removing the hinge pins linking the tray  20  to the hopper box  18 . A winch, crane or other means may be used to pull the barge from the water onto a ramp and trailer. The apparatus  12  may be transported overland by conventional means (truck or trailer) and launched in the subject water body. In areas where launching is difficult, a crane may be employed to lift the barge off the trailer and place it into the water. 
     FIG. 6 illustrates how the barge apparatus can be incrementally moved within the water body, when necessary, as well as the primary means to move the vegetation to the stationary barge apparatus. One or two powered Jon boats  62  can move the barge apparatus  12  to the appropriate area within the water body. The barge apparatus  12  is anchored by use of spuds attached to the barge, anchored by marine anchors, or tied off with rope to nearby trees or other structures. Once the barge is anchored in place, a 6″ lightweight, transparent or translucent, plastic hose  40  having a flexible outer-ribbing, and a slick inner lining, is connected to the discharge port  36  of the dredge pump  24 . Transparency or translucency is useful in order to efficiently address any clogging of the hose  40 . The discharge end of flexible hose  40  is then routed to a convenient and suitable location on the bank in order to allow only discharged water to return to the water body, and prevent discharged vegetation from returning to the water body. 
     To operate the barge apparatus  12 , the spillway gate  46  is opened and the hopper box  18 , being positioned below the surrounding water level, fills with water. Suction forces created by the pump  24  and the suction pipe  42  draw down the water in the hopper box  18 . Water flows over the spillway gate  46  to fill the void in the hopper box  18 , creating a suction flow within the water flow enhancer tray  20 . Any aquatic vegetation within the confines of the water flow enhancer tray  20  and near its mouth  56  is drawn toward and over the spillway gate  46 , and into the hopper box  18  where the suction of the dredge pump  24  removes the vegetation mixed with water. The water and vegetation mix passes through the pump  24  where it is macerated and chopped by the impeller, discharged through the flexible hose  40 , and deposited on the bank or, alternatively, into a crate or other such container located on the bank, for use as feed, fertilizer, etc. 
     To gather the vegetation, powered Jon boats  62 , or “harvesting boats,” are equipped with plow blades  66  attached to the bow  64  of the boat, preferably by two to four C-clamps  74  or other mechanical fasteners. The Jon boats  62  proceed to collect and push vegetation to the mouth  56  of the tray  20 . When a sufficient amount of floating aquatic vegetation has collected at the mouth  56 , the barge operator starts the main engine  22  and engages the pump  24 . The next harvesting boat  62  delivers the next mat of vegetation to the mouth  56  and the operation continues, limited only by the number of harvesting boats  62  employed, until the operation has to be moved to a new location either because the vegetation in the immediate area has been depleted, or the discharge end of the flexible hose  40  has to be relocated. When a sufficient amount of the floating aquatic vegetation has been removed from the effected area, the operation is halted, and the barge  12  and equipment are secured and returned to the launch site for retrieval and deployment elsewhere. 
     FIG. 7 shows an alternative embodiment of the barge apparatus  12 . In this embodiment, the engine  22  is mounted in an engine compartment  80  countersunk in the barge  14  and defined by side walls  82  and a bottom wall  84  so that a substantial portion of the engine  22  is supported below the deck  86  of the barge  14 . An engine  22  smaller than the Detroit  671  is used to reduce engine weight, as it has been found that the Detroit  671  produces more horsepower than required to power the motor or impeller of a dredge pump  24  having six inch diameter inlet and discharge ports. mounting the engine  22  in a compartment  80  countersunk below the level of the deck  86  lowers the center of gravity of the barge  14 , making the barge  14  less top heavy and permitting the pump box  16  to be attached to the barge  14  below the barge deck level, making it easier to directly couple the engine  22  to the dredge pump  24  by a driveshaft  23  and universal joint couplings. The smaller engine size and reduced weight permit the overall dimensions of the barge  14  to be reduced, making the barge apparatus  12  easier to launch and safer to trailer and transport on highways and roads. Representative dimensions of the barge  14  shown in FIG. 7 may be about sixteen feet in length, eight feet in width, and two and one-half to three feet in depth. As before, a fuel tank  88 , equipment storage, operator comfort station, and other accessory functions may be disposed on the middle and aft portions of the deck  86  of the barge  14 . 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the sole embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.