GB2148243A - Improved hose lifting member and method of manufacturing same - Google Patents

Abstract

A lifting member for location about the nipple end of a marine hose is forged from a single piece of material, preferably steel, to include a central, substantially flat body portion (2) with an aperture (4) formed therethrough for receiving therein the nipple end of the marine hose. A first eye (6) is formed to one end of the body portion (2) in substantially the same plane as said body portion (2), while a further eye (10) is formed to the other end of the body portion (2) in a plane containing the longitudinal axis of the body portion (2) and perpendicular to the common plane of the body portion and the first eye (6), the arrangement being such that the hook of a lifting mechanism can be located through one or other of the bores (8, 12) of the eyes (6, 10) to enable a hose in the aperture (4) of the body portion (2) to be manoeuvred as desired. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improved hose lifting member and method of manufacturing same This invention relates to lifting members for attachment to the nipple ends of liquid-carrying hoses, as well as to methods of manufacturing such products, and has particular application to members for enabling the lifting of marine hoses conveying for example oil, petrol, petro-chemicals or water from a dock to storage tanks on board ships or from storage tanks on ships to oil rigs.

Lifting members for such purposes, commonly known as 'hookies', are well established and usually consist of a length of steel of circular crosssection bent by a blacksmith into the desired configuration which includes a central, substantially part-circular portion to one end of which, in the same plane as the central portion, is provided a first eye and to the other end of which, in a plane perpendicular to that of the first eye, said plane extending longitudinally of the lifting member, is provided a further eye. The lifting member is completed by welding an annular receiving ring into the central portion of the member, through which ring the nipple of a marine hose to be lifted can be passed. The lifting member is then retained on the nipple by means of a clamp or like means.

It will be appreciated that the fabrication of such lifting members is somewhat tedious in that each one must first of all be bent by hand into the desired shape and then have the receiving ring welded thereto. Further, the lifting capacity of the member, typically one ton, cannot always be guaranteed and indeed recent experience has indicated that lifting members of this general construction can and do fail at loads of less than the supposed carrying capacity.

Clearly, such lifting members could be strengthened and the lifting capacity increased by increasing the diameter of the length of steel forming the body of the member. However this would result not only in an undesirable increase in the weight of the member but would substantially increase the costs involved.

It would be desirable to be able to provide a lifting member of the above kind which was simple to manufacture and which could handle loads well in excess of those detailed above without any substantial increase in the weight of the member.

According to the present invention there is provided a lifting member for location about the nipple end of a marine hose, the lifting member comprising a one-piece forging including a substantially flat body portion 3 through which is formed an aperture adapted to receive therein the nipple end of a marine hose, a first eye to one end of said body portion and formed in substantially the same plane as, to form a continuation of, the body portion, and a further eye to the other end of the body portion and formed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the common plane of the body portion and the first eye and containing the central longitudinal axis of the lifting member.

Thus, the central axis of the bore through the further eye is substantially perpendicular to the central axes through both the body portion and the first eye.

A method of manufacturing a lifting member as defined above comprises the steps of stamping the member from a two-piece die to provide the central body portion with an aperture therethrough, the first eye to the one end of said body portion and an upstanding portion to the other end of said body portion, the method further comprising the steps of machining the aperture in the body portion to the required diameter, and machining said upstanding portion into the further eye by providing a bore therethrough the central axis of which extends substantially perpendicular to both the central axis of the bore through the body portion and the central longitudinal axis of the lifting member.

By way of example only, a lifting member according to the invention and method of manufacture thereof will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings of which: Figure I is a plan view from above of a lifting member according to the invention prior to machining; Figure 2 is a side view of the member of Fig. 1; Figure 3 is a section on the line A-A of Fig. 2; Figure 4 is a plan view from above of a machined lifting member according to the invention, and Figure 5 is a side view of the member of Fig. 4.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3, the illustrated lifting member is fabricated from a single piece of high quality steel die-stamped into the initial shape shown in said drawings.

More particularly, the member so forged includes a substantially central body portion 2 of generally annular shape through which is formed a bore 4 of diameter less than that of the smallest marine hose nipple to be received therein. The member further includes a first eye 6 to one end of the body portion and provided with a hook receiving aperture 8 therein, the body portion 2 and first eye 6 being substantially co-planar.

To the other end of the body portion 2 is formed a solid upstanding portion 10 of generally disc shape the opposed faces of which are slightly outwardly convex, the central axis of the portion 10 extending perpendicular to the central axis of the bore 4 and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the lifting member itself.

The one-piece forging so formed is then machined into the required shape as follows. The bore 4 through the body portion 2 is accurately increased to a predetermined diameter, typically 9.1, 11.7, 14.2 or 15.2 cms appropriate to the diameter of the nipple end of the hose to be received therein and as indicated at 4' in Figs. 4 and 5. A mill cutter is used to flatten off the sides of the upstanding portion 10 which is then itself centrally bored to a desired diameter as shown at 12 in Fig. 5.

Thus there is provided a lifting member the bore 4' through the central portion 2 of which can be lo cated over the nipple end of a marine hose, the lifting member being retained on the hose by means of, for example, a clamp surrounding the hose adjacent the lifting member and such as to prevent removal therefrom. The hook of a crane or like lifting mechanism can then be located through one or other of the bores 8,12 of the member to enable the hose to be manoeuvred to the desired position.

The provision of a one piece forging in place of the relatively complex fabrications used heretofore enables the lifting capacity of the member to be increased of the order of four times without any increase in the overall weight of the member. In common with the known member, the provision of two eyes at right angles to one another means that, regardless of the orientation of the member on a deck or platform, there is always one eye accessible to the hook of the lifting mechanism.

It will be appreciated that, as the nipples onto which the lifting members are to be positioned are of standard nominal diameters, the bores 4' in the body portions 2 of the lifting members can be machined to suit particular requirements.

As mentioned above, the hoses to be lifted have application primarliy in the marine business, typically being for transferring oil, petrol, petro-chemicals, water and other liquids to and from the storage tanks of ships be it from dock to supply ship or from supply ship to oil rig or production platforms.

Claims (5)

1. A lifting member for location about the nip ple end of a marine hose, the lifting member comprising a one piece forging including a substantially flat body portion through which is formed an aperture adapted to receive therein the nipple end of a marine hose, a first eye to one end of said body portion and formed in substantially the same plane as, to form a continuation of, the body portion, and a further eye to the other end of the body portion and formed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the common plane of the body portion and the first eye and containing the central longitudinal axis of the body member.

2. A lifting member as claimed in claim 1 and forged from steel.

3. A method of manufacturing a lifting member as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 comprising the steps of stamping the member from a single piece of material using a two-piece die to provide a central body portion with an aperture therethrough, a first eye to the one end of said body portion and an upstanding portion to the other end of said body portion, the method further comprising the steps of machining the aperture in the body portion to the required diameter, and machining said upstanding portion into the further eye by providing a bore therethrough the central axis of which extends substantially perpendicular to both the central axis of the bore through the body portion and the central longitdudinal axis of the lifting member.

4. A lifting member substantially as described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

5. A method of manufacturing a lifting member substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.