Patent ID: 6899492

Claim:
A jacket frame offshore floating structure, comprising: at least one elongate open cross-braced jacket frame formed of tubular members interconnected together defining an interior, and having first and second ends; at least one first buoyancy capsule disposed in said interior near said first end adapted to be connected with ballast control means for selectively adjusting the buoyancy thereof; and weight adjusting means disposed near said second end for adjusting the weight of said structure selected from the group consisting of at least one second buoyancy capsule disposed in said interior and at least one keel tank, adapted to be connected with pump means for selectively pumping water in and out thereof; wherein the buoyancy of said at least one first buoyancy capsule is adjustably tuned to provide a buoyant force and a sufficient water plane area and moment of inertia required for stability of said floating structure; and the water mass and weight of said weight adjusting means is adjustably tuned to raise or lower the center of gravity of the entire mass of said floating structure with respect to its center of buoyancy according to ballast and variable or fixed loads including deck payloads, to stabilize the structure, and to compensate for different operational, environmental, survival and installation stages of the structure.