ARRANGEMENT OF LASHING RODS FOR A CONTAINERSHIP

Abstract: The present invention concerns a containership (20) having at least one transverse lashing bridge (1) comprising first lashing eyes (7) from which first lashing rods (9) extend upwards to secure containers (8) at an upper level. The lashing bridges (1) have at least one substantially horizontal walkway (4) for handling of said lashing rods (9). The lashing bridge (1) moreover comprises second lashing eyes (17) which are located at substantially the same level as said first lashing eyes (7), and from which second lashing rods (10) extend horizontally outwards to secure containers (8).

Description: Arrangement of lashing rods for a containership Field of the invention The present invention concerns containerships. Container- ships having transverse lashing bridges mounted on the upper deck of the ship are known in this field. The lash¬ ing bridges comprise various types of locks and/or secur¬ ing devices for securing the adjoining containers which are frequently stacked in several levels on top of each other. Closest prior art Containerships are known whose lashing bridges comprise first eyes located at the walking level of the walkway, and from which first lashing rods extend upwards to se¬ cure containers at an upper level in the adjoining con¬ tainer stack. The ships moreover comprise second lashing eyes in the 3-4 m lower deck level, from which second lashing rods extend upwards to secure the containers at an underlying level, which is usually the second level of containers from the deck and upwards. The lower level of the containers is secured directly in the hatch covers of the deck. The lashing rods are formed by strong iron bars in extension of large rigging screws with a total weight of up to 40-50 kg and a total length of about 4 m. During a cycle of securing the containers in a stack the staff first lash all the containers at the underlying level, working in a standing position on the deck with their arms raised high in the mounting of the lashing rods. Then the staff have to walk up to the walkway of the lashing bridge to continue the working process of lashing the containers at the upper level from there. This causes a slow working process when containers are loaded and unloaded. This adds to the costs, which today constitute a too great share of the freight rates. It should be borne in mind here that it is a very large num¬ ber of containers that have to be lashed, since the ships often carry up to 5000-6000 containers, half of which is stacked on the deck. Moreover, the described method of lashing or securing the containers is not optimal from the point of view of the particular forces acting upon the containers of the stack. Thus, by securing the containers by means of in¬ clined lashing rods extending from one level to another, deformations of the lowermost containers caused by the uppermost containers following the movements of the ship when sailing cannot generally be restricted to the de- sired degree, leading to stability problems of the entire stack of containers. Object The object of the invention is to provide a containership of the type mentioned in the opening paragraph, which en¬ ables faster lashing of the containers and thus higher earnings in the service of containerships while at the seme time allowing for a more stable and reliable stack¬ ing of the containers. The novelty of the invention The containership of the present invention is character¬ ized in that the lashing bridge comprises second lashing eyes which are located at substantially the same level as said first lashing eyes. Second lashing rods extend sub¬ stantially horizontally outwards from these second lash¬ ing eyes to secure containers. Advantages The advantage of the present invention is that the entire lashing of the containers in a stack may take place from the same walking level. This results in a rapid lashing process, since the staff can work effectively and termi- nate the lashing of the container stack concerned from the same working level, viz. the walkway of the new lash¬ ing bridge. Furthermore, the substantially horizontally extending lashing rods to a large degree prevent deformation of the containers, i.e. prevent a situation where a container is deformed to assume a parallelogram-shape where its top is shifted laterally relative to the bottom of the con¬ tainer. Is this context it is noted that the substantially hori¬ zontal course of said second lashing rods ensures that the containers can carry a larger weight than is the case in the known containerships. Further, the lashing rods may be stowed in a horizontal position directly where they are to be used. Mode of operation When lashing containers, a container stack is placed be¬ tween two successive lashing bridges. The lower level of containers is placed directly on the hatches. Thus, the staff have access to all lashing rods from the walkway of the lashing bridge and the lashing eyes of said lashing rods may moreover be located at a suitable working height, e.g. 1 m above the walking level. The first lashing rods are then secured upwards to the containers which are located at an upper level in a stack, and second lashing rods are secured substantially horizontally outwards to the containers which are located at an underlying level, preferably the second level of containers in a stack, seen from the hatches and upwards. Finally, the containers are clamped in a stack by tight¬ ening the rigging screws of the lashing rods. The substantially horizontal course of the second lashing rods also ensures a very "user friendly" lashing, where the staff do not have to lift the lashing rods noticea¬ bly, while permitting a higher weight of the containers in the stack during a voyage, seen in relation to what has previously been possible with the known lashing bridges. Advantageous embodiments In an advantageous embodiment of the invention the level of the lashing eyes may be disposed at a distance of be- tween 2.59 m (8.5 feet) and 2,90 m (9.5 feet) above the level that supports the container stack. In another expedient embodiment of the invention the walking level of the walkway is lowered between 0.5 and 1.5 m in relation to the level of the lashing eyes. This ensures that the staff can work in a standing position and do not have to bend to catch the lashing rods during the mounting thereof, which also reduces the number of injuries. Furthermore, the lashing bridge may be provided with di¬ agonal struts which expediently absorb the transverse forces from the horizontal lashing rods which act on the bridge. This is particularly the case during a voyage in rough weather. Descriptions of drawing The invention will be explained more fully below with reference to the drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a containership according to the invention, Fig. 2 is a lateral view of one of the lashing bridges of the containership, and Fig. 3 is an end view of the same. Detailed description of an advantageous embodiment The containership 20 shown in Fig. 1 comprises lashing bridges 1. The lashing bridges 1 extend transversely to the ship 20 to secure intermediate stacks of containers (not shown), which are placed on the hatch covers in the deck of the ship. As appears from Figs. 2 and 3, the lashing bridge 1 is constructed as a column structure which is supported by vertical columns 2 which stand up from the deck 18 of the containership 20. In an embodiment of the invention di¬ agonal struts are inclined between the columns 2 to ab¬ sorb transverse forces which act on the lashing bridges during a voyage. Each lashing bridge 1 comprises first lashing eyes 7, from which first lashing rods 9 extend upwards to secure the containers 8 at an upper level, which, in the shown embodiment, is the third level of containers in a stack, seen from the hatch covers and upwards. According to the invention, the lashing bridge also comprises second lash¬ ing eyes 17 which are located at substantially the same level as the first lashing eyes 7, and from which second lashing rods 10 extend laterally substantially horizon¬ tally to secure containers 8 at an underlying level, which, as shown, may be the second level of containers in a stack. The lower level of containers rests directly on the hatches. The lashing rods are secured to the bottom of the containers concerned and extend diagonally later¬ ally with a view to absorbing transverse forces during a voyage. In the embodiment shown in Figs. 2 and 3, all the lashing eyes 7,17 are located at a level of between 2,59 m (8.5 feet) and 2.90 m (9.5 feet) above the deck level, i.e. corresponding to a level between the lowest and the high- est standard height of a container. A high flexibility is obtained in particular when the lashing eyes are located at a level halfway between the two mentioned standard heights, since the horizontal lashing rods then either extend slightly obliquely downwards when the container stack (or at least the lowermost container) has the low¬ est standard height (8.5 feet), or extend slightly obliquely upwards when they have the greatest standard height (9.5 feet). The lashing bridge comprises an upper, horizontal walkway 4. The staff 5 can move to and fro along it and handle said lashing rods 9,10. The walking level of the walk-way 4 may be arranged at a lower level than the lashing eyes 7,17. In the shown em¬ bodiment, the walking level of the walkway 4 is thus at a level which is about 1 m below the lashing eyes 7,17. The walkway 4 moreover has strong hand rails 6 which consti¬ tutes the upper boundary of the lashing bridge 1. In the shown embodiment, the handrail 6 is connected with the underlying column structure 12 to provide a particu¬ larly stable and load-receiving structure, so that the lashing eyes 7,17 may be secured directly in the hand- rail 6. The handrail 6 moreover ensures that the staff 5 cannot fall down from the lashing bridge. The containers 8 are secured in that the outer ends 11 of the lashing rods engage recesses 12 in the lower corners of the containers 8. Fig. 3 shows clearly how first lashing rods 9 extend up¬ wards to containers 8, which are located at a third con¬ tainer level seen in relation to the cover 18 correspond- ing to an upper container tier, while second lashing rods 10 extend substantially horizontally outwards to secure containers 8 at a second container level seen in relation to the hatch 18, corresponding to an underlying container level. When the second lashing rods 10 extend substan- tially horizontally, it is ensured that the containers can carry a larger weight. The lashing rods 9, 10 moreover extend obliquely up¬ wards/forwards. Each lashing rod 9,10 is hereby secured to a container 8 which is located at the side of the lashing eye 7,17 concerned, as appears from Fig. 2. The lashing rods 9,10 consist of an outer end 11 which is adapted to engage recesses 12 in the containers 8. In ad- dition, the lashing rods 9, 10 have an inner end 13 which pivotally engages the lashing eyes 7,17, so that the lashing rods 9,10 may pivot between a position of rest in which they extend substantially in parallel with the lashing bridge 1, and a lashing position in which they are secured to an upper container level and an underlying container level, respectively. The lashing rods may comprise several detachable parts in a known manner, such as an intermediate part 14, hooks 15,16 and a rigging screw 22, so that their length may easily be adapted to the various standard sizes of con¬ tainers. The rigging screws 22 serve to tighten the lashing rods, after mounting, to safely secure the containers. As appears from Figs. 2 and 3, the lashing bridge 1 moreover comprises a lower walking level 21 which is ex¬ clusively used for service, etc. In the example shown in Fig. 1, six lashing bridges 1 are mounted on the container ship. However, the number of lashing bridges may vary depending on the length of the ship 20 and the size of the containers 8. The lashing bridges 1 may likewise be constructed in many ways within the scope of the invention. For example, the diagonal struts 3 might be replaced by whole plates, and the handrail might have another shape, just as the bridge does not necessarily have to be constructed as a column structure.

Claims: Patent Claims : 1. A containership (20) having at least one transverse lashing bridge ( 1 ) comprising first lashing eyes (7) from which first lashing rods (9 ) extend upwards to secure containers (8) at an upper level, said lashing bridge ( 1) having at least one substantially horizontal walkway (4) for handling said lashing rods (9), c h a r a c t e r ¬ i z e d in that the lashing bridge (1 ) comprises second lashing eyes (17) which are located at substantially the same level as said first lashing eyes ( 7), and from which second lashing rods (10) extend substantially horizon¬ tally outwards to secure containers ( 8 ) . 2. A containership according to claim 1, c h a r a c ¬ t e r i z e d in that the level of the lashing eyes is disposed at a distance of between 2.59 m (8.5 feet) and 2.90 m (9.5 feet) above the level which supports the con¬ tainer stack. 3. A containership according to claim 1 or 2, c h a ¬ r a c t e r i z e d in that the level supporting the container stack is formed by the hatch covers (18) in the deck of the ship. 4. A containership according to claim 1, 2 or 3, c h a ¬ r a c t e r i z e d in that the lashing bridge ( 1 ) has diagonal struts (3).

Inventors: LINDBERG KARSTEN, RASMUSSEN POUL KELD, LINDBERG, KARSTEN, RASMUSSEN, POUL, KELD
Applicants: LINDBERG KARSTEN, ODENSE STAALSKIBSVAERFT, RASMUSSEN POUL KELD, LINDBERG, KARSTEN, ODENSE STAALSKIBSVAERFT A/S, RASMUSSEN, POUL, KELD
Application year: 1996
Main classification: B63B25
IPC codes: B63B25