Patent ID: 8827595

Claim:
An apparatus adapted to achieve controlled relative rotation between a pipe being laid on the sea floor from a floating pipelay vessel and the pipelay vessel, the apparatus comprising: a clamp disposable on the pipelay vessel and adapted to be secured to the pipe at a position along a lay path of a pipelay structure of the pipelay vessel, said position being taken by the pipe during laying from the pipelay vessel when said relative rotation is required, said clamp being adapted to support the weight of the laid pipe; and a mounting system for said clamp adapted to provide controlled relative rotation of the clamp with respect to the pipelay vessel, wherein said mounting system comprises a brake assembly capable of preventing said relative rotation and a drive assembly capable of providing predetermined rotation and torsional damping, wherein the mounting system comprises a turntable, a framework, and a thrust bearing, and wherein said clamp is secured to the turntable and supported for rotation on the framework of the mounting system via the thrust bearing of the mounting system, and wherein the brake assembly is associated with the turntable and comprises a brake disc, disc pads co-operable with the brake disc, and a brake actuator, and wherein the drive assembly is a drive motor or torsional damping unit mounted on the framework and engageable with the turntable for said rotation and damping.