A Geometrically Exact Formulation for Three-Dimensional Numerical Simulation of the Umbilical Cable in A Deep-Sea ROV System

This paper proposes a geometrically exact formulation for three-dimensional static and dynamic analyses of the umbilical cable in a deep-sea remotely operated vehicle (ROV) system. The presented formulation takes account of the geometric nonlinearities of large displacement, effects of axial load and bending stiffness for modeling of slack cables. The resulting nonlinear second-order governing equations are discretized spatially by the finite element method and solved temporally by the generalized- implicit time integration algorithm, which is adapted to the case of varying coefficient matrices. The ability to consider three-dimensional union action of ocean current and ship heave motion upon the umbilical cable is the key feature of this analysis. The presented formulation is firstly validated, and then three numerical examples for the umbilical cable in a deep-sea ROV system are demonstrated and discussed, including the steady configurations only under the action of depth-dependent ocean current, the dynamic responses in the case of the only ship heave motion, and in the case of the combined action of the ship heave motion and ocean current.     

深海遥控潜水器多体系统非线性耦合动力特性模拟

建立带缆遥控潜水器(TROV)系统空间运动模型,探讨支持船-吊缆-中际站-脐带缆-潜水器多体之间的强非线性耦合运动机理。潜器的运动考虑为六自由度,缆索分段的三维动态方程中采用了"凝集参数"模型与平均切向量非线性流体动力载荷处理技术,通过计算非均匀缆索的动张力和瞬态构型,预报导致脐带缆保护层及其内部光电传输芯线结构破坏的巨大瞬间突变载荷,对避免谐振,延长缆索寿命和最大限度地扩大ROV系统安全操作的范围,确保潜水器安全入坞和回收,节约试验费,避免作业事故都具有重要意义。     

On the motions of the underwater remotely operated vehicle with the umbilical cable effect

In this paper, a hydrodynamic model is developed to simulate the six degrees of freedom motions of the underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV) including the umbilical cable effect. The corresponding hydrodynamic forces on the underwater vehicle are obtained by the planar motion mechanism test technique. With the relevant hydrodynamic coefficients, the 4th-order Runge–Kutta numerical method is then adopted to solve the equations of motions of the ROV and the configuration of the umbilical cable. The multi-step shooting method is also suggested to solve the two-end boundary-value problem on the umbilical cable with respect to a set of first-order ordinary differential equation system. All operation simulations for the ROV including forward moving, ascending, descending, sideward moving and turning motions can be analyzed, either with or without umbilical cable effect. The current effect is also taken into consideration. The present results reveal that the umbilical cable indeed significantly affects the motion of the ROV and should not be neglected in the simulation.     

A finite element cable model and its applications based on the cubic spline curve

For accurate prediction of the deformation of cable in the towed system, a new finite element model is presented that provides a representation of both the bending and torsional effects. In this paper, the cubic spline interpolation function is applied as the trial solution. By using a weighted residual approach, the discretized motion equations for the new finite element model are developed. The model is calculated with the computation program complier by Matlab. Several numerical examples are presented to illustrate the numerical schemes. The results of numerical simulation are stable and valid, and consistent with the mechanical properties of the cable. The model can be applied to kinematics analysis and the design of ocean cable, such as mooring lines, towing, and ROV umbilical cables.     

海洋缆体系统的统一凝集参数时域分析法

提出了海洋缆一体系统的三维动态性能时域分析法，并给出了计算机程序。采用凝集参数法模拟了缆一体结构系统，缆为圆形截面，可伸长，不考虑弯曲刚度，采用了四阶龙格一库塔法积分系统运动方程，计算了二个实例以验证程序的可靠性，程序可用于系泊，拖曳，潜器脐带缆等具有组合成分的海洋缆体系统的初步设计。     

深海采矿车布放回收中脐带缆轴向张力响应特性研究

在深海采矿车布放回收中,准确预报脐带缆在底部自由悬垂边界条件和顶部波浪载荷随机激励等共同影响下的动力响应是关键点之一。基于三维势流理论与集中质量法,结合水面支持船运动和海流联合激励,对深海布放回收中脐带缆的顶端张力等力学特性进行研究。结果表明：在布放回收过程中,轴向张力在结构载荷中占主要成分;由波浪引起的轴向张力极值与均值差距最大可达到54%;轴向张力的频谱存在双谱峰,分别为 0.14 Hz的主峰和0.10 Hz 的次峰;当浪向角为180°时,轴向张力处于峰谷。     

An integrated dynamic model of ocean mining system and fast simulation of its longitudinal reciprocating motion

An integrated dynamic model of China’s deep ocean mining system is developed and the fast simulation analysis of its longitudinal reciprocating motion operation processes is achieved. The seafloor tracked miner is built as a three-dimensional single-body model with six-degree-of-freedom. The track-terrain interaction is modeled by partitioning the track-terrain interface into a certain number of mesh elements with three mutually perpendicular forces, including the normal force, the longitudinal shear force and the lateral shear force, acting on the center point of each mesh element. The hydrodynamic force of the miner is considered and applied. By considering the operational safety and collection efficiency, two new mining paths for the miner on the seafloor are proposed, which can be simulated with the established single-body dynamic model of the miner. The pipeline subsystem is built as a three-dimensional multi-body discrete element model, which is divided into rigid elements linked by flexible connectors. The flexible connector without mass is represented by six spring-damper elements. The external hydrodynamic forces of the ocean current from the longitudinal and lateral directions are both considered and modeled based on the Morison formula and applied to the mass center of each corresponding discrete rigid element. The mining ship is simplified and represented by a general kinematic point, whose heave motion induced by the ocean waves and the longitudinal and lateral towing motions are considered and applied. By integrating the single-body dynamic model of the miner and the multi-body discrete element dynamic model of the pipeline, and defining the kinematic equations of the mining ship, the integrated dynamic model of the total deep ocean mining system is formed. The longitudinal reciprocating motion operation modes of the total mining system, which combine the active straight-line and turning motions of the miner and the ship, and the passive towed motions of the pipeline, are proposed and simulated with the developed 3D dynamic model. Some critical simulation results are obtained and analyzed, such as the motion trajectories of key subsystems, the velocities of the buoyancy modules and the interaction forces between subsystems, which in a way can provide important theoretical basis and useful technical reference for the practical deep ocean mining system analysis, operation and control.     

The dynamics of wave induced ship motions in shallow water

The analytical method developed by Svendsen (1968) for a forced heave motion is extended to the general problem of wave induced heave, roll and sway motions of a long ship at a depth of water which is only slightly larger than the draught of the ship. This corresponds, for example, to the situation of a fully loaded ship in a harbour area.After linearization of the problem, the water motion is considered for each of the three individual motions and for the wave reflection-transmission problem for a fixed ship. The ensuing results for the forces on the ship are then synthesized to form the equations of motion, which are presented with all coefficients given, including mooring forces.Analytical and numerical results are given for the three components of motion, for the associated resonance frequencies, and for the hydrodynamic masses and moments of inertia. Finally, the assumptions used are analyzed and evaluated by comparison with measurements and with other results for a special case.     

Effects of ship motion on a neutrally-stable towed fish

Digital computer simulation in two dimensions of a neutrally-stable fish towed on a faired cable has been used to investigate the response of the fish to disturbances in the ship motion. The numerical methods used are described broadly, excluding mathematical detail, and selected results are presented which indicate typical behaviour of the system.The free oscillations of the fish-cable system and its response to deterministic and random ship disturbances are investigated. This reveals the dynamic principles governing the motion and allows the formulation of simple rules to give a first approximation to the magnitude of the fish response. It is shown that, provided resonances of the ship and fish-cable system do not coincide, the overall amplitude of motion of the fish is proportional to the sine of the angle made by the top of the cable with the horizontal. Formulae are given for calculating approximately the resonant frequencies of the towed system.     

Motion compensation system for ocean profiling

The vertical profiles of ocean temperature and salinity measured with instruments lowered by cable from surface ships can be seriously affected by the nonuniform drop rate caused by ship motion. This paper describes a motion compensation system developed for conductivity, temperature, and depth profilers that significantly reduces the effect of ship motion on profiler drop rates, thereby enhancing the measurement capabilities of vertical profilers.     

波浪作用下缆船拖带系统非线性运动数值模拟

基于船舶操纵性运动方程和拖缆的三维动力学运动方程,提出了被拖点位置匹配的方法,建立了拖船—拖缆—被拖船系统整体非线性拖带动力学模型。为了考察被拖船航向稳定性与横向稳性的关系以及波浪载荷作用的影响,被拖船采用水平面四自由度运动方程,并引入了波浪的作用力和力矩。拖船采用PD控制方法较真实地模拟了拖船航向改变的运动过程。对一个拖船—拖缆—被拖船系统(5 000 t的拖船和3 000 t的被拖船)在时域内进行了规则波浪作用下拖带运动的模拟,计算结果表明被拖带船舶在波浪中运动呈现运动稳定、不稳定和临界状态3种可能的特性。根据模拟计算结果,认为波浪中拖带航向稳定是被拖带船舶保持稳性的必要条件。     

深海海底光缆敷设施工余量控制的原理和控制软件的应用

为解决深海有中继海底光缆项目技术难题,中国海底电缆建设有限公司开发了海底光缆敷设施工控制软件,填补我国相关领域的空白。文章介绍海底光缆敷设施工余量控制的原理和控制软件的操作流程:海底光缆余量包括区域余量、底部余量和释放余量,余量控制是海底光缆敷设施工中最关键的核心技术环节,应用控制软件可极大地降低计算量和提高计算精确度,并可通过在施工中不断调整计划,从而极大地提高施工质量,具有传统人工计算不可比拟的优势。     

遥控水下机器人脐带缆收放绞车设计及牵引力分析

脐带缆收放技术是有缆遥控水下机器人的一项关键技术,该技术直接影响水下机器人载体的收放及作业过程中脐带缆的安全。针对目前水下机器人收放系统中脐带缆收放技术的特点,给出了一种具有自动排缆、低张力缠绕、能够提供大牵引力和安全制动功能的紧凑新式脐带缆绞车方案,并对牵引绞车与储藏绞车之间脐带缆张力与牵引绞车的牵引力进行了理论分析,给出了二者之间的关系函数。     

Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis of Ocean Cables

This study has focused on developing numerical procedures for the dynamic nonlinear analysis of cable structures subjected to wave forces and ground motions in the ocean. A geometrically nonlinear finite element procedure using the isoparamnetrie curved cable element based on the Lagrangian folmulation is briefly summarized. A simple and accurate method to determine the initial equilibrium state of cable systems associated with self-weights, buoyancy and the motion of end points is presented using the load incremental method combined with penalty method. Also the Newmark method is used for dynamic nonlinear analysis of ocean cables. Numerical examples are presented to validate the present numerical method.     

Numerical analysis of a propeller during heave motion in cavitating flow

In practical maritime conditions, ship hulls experience heave motion due to the action of waves, which can further drive the ship’s propellers to oscillate relative to the surrounding water. In order to investigate the motion of a propeller working behind a surface vessel sailing in waves, a numerical simulation is conducted on a propeller impacted by heave motion in cavitating flow using the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) method. The coupling of the propeller’s rotation and translation is fulfilled using equations of motion defined for this purpose. The heave motion is simplified as a periodic motion based on a sinusoidal function. The numerical transmission of information from the unsteady flow field is achieved using the overset grid approach. In this manner, the unsteady thrust coefficient and torque coefficient of propellers in different periods of heave motion are analyzed. A comparative study is implemented on the unsteady cavitation performance and wake characteristics of propeller. With the propeller’s heave motion, the flow field non-uniformity constantly changes the load on the propeller during each revolution period and each heaving period, the propeller load and the wake field are closely related to the variation of heave motion period. The results obtained from the numerical simulation are expected to serve as a useful theoretical reference for the numerical analysis of a propeller in a heave motion.     

含月池和输运管的深海采矿船水动力特性研究

深海采矿船是未来人类获取深海矿产资源的重要装备,研究其水动力特性具有重要意义。月池和输运管是影响深海采矿船水动力特性的重要因素。以世界上第一艘超深水采矿船“鹦鹉螺新纪元”号为研究对象,基于三维势流理论,分析月池尺寸、输运管长度及内径对采矿船水运动特性的影响。结果表明：月池开口会使采矿船垂荡、纵荡和纵摇运动出现共振峰,峰值随着开口尺寸的增加而增大,其中垂荡运动峰值可增加将近2倍;输运管的存在会明显改变采矿船横摇运动固有周期,增大垂荡运动峰值,降低横摇运动峰值,对横荡和纵荡运动的影响亦较大,当输运管长度为 5 000 m,内径为0.480 5 m时,横荡和纵荡响应峰值能够达到无输运管时的3倍以上。通过探究月池开孔和输运管不同参数对采矿船运动的影响,为深海采矿船月池和输运管设计提供一定的借鉴和参考。     

基于ROV的近海底地形测量及其在马努斯盆地热液区的应用

针对重点的特殊深海研究区（如热液冷泉、洋中脊区域）,在船载多波束数据获得研究区大面积地形资料的基础上,有必要选取典型深海小靶区进行高分辨率地形测量为进一步深入研究提供保障。根据船载多波束实测数据选取PACMANUS热液区作为靶区,基于长基线定位,利用“发现”ROV搭载多波束系统进行近海底全覆盖地形测量。结果表明,依托于船动力定位系统及差分GPS,长基线为ROV提供了可靠的高精度定位,使得近海底测量的地形数据分辨率数倍优于船载多波束测得的地形数据的分辨率。高分辨率地形清晰的显示了PACMANUS热液区锥形丘体等特殊微地形,与已发现的热液点和火山区有很好的对应。进一步分析发现,该区域活动的热液区主要发育于坡度大于30°斜坡上的地形突变区,其成因仍需深入研究。利用ROV搭载多波束近底测量是获取深海小靶区高分辨率地形的可靠途径和方法,有利于提高深海海底研究的针对性,将促进我国深海科学研究的发展。     

A 3D fully coupled analysis of nonlinear sloshing and ship motion

This study investigates the coupling effects of six degrees of freedom in ship motion with fluid oscillation inside a three-dimensional rectangular container using a novel time domain simulation scheme. During the time marching, the tank-sloshing algorithm is coupled with the vessel-motion algorithm so that the influence of tank sloshing on vessel motions and vice versa can be assessed. Several factors influencing the dynamic behavior of tank–liquid system due to moving ship are also investigated. These factors include container parameters, environmental settings such as the significant wave height, current velocity as well as the direction of wind, wave and flow current acting on the ship. The nonlinear sloshing is studied using a finite element model whereas nonlinear ship motion is simulated using a hybrid marine control system. Computed roll response is compared with the existing results, showing fair agreement. Although the two hull forms and the sea states are not identical, the numerical result shows the same trend of the roll motion when the anti-rolling tanks are considered. Thus, the numerical approach presented in this paper is expected to be very useful and realistic in evaluating the coupling effects of nonlinear sloshing and 6-DOF ship motion.     

Moored fish cage dynamics in waves and currents

Recent work in the area of open ocean aquaculture system dynamics has focused separately upon either the response of fish cages in waves or the steady drag response due to ocean currents. In reality, however, forcing on these open ocean structures is a nonlinear, multidirectional combination of both wave and current profiles. At the University of New Hampshire-operated Open Ocean Aquaculture site, data were collected from a wave measurement buoy and a downward-looking Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler to characterize the surface elevation and water velocity profiles during an extreme northeast storm event. In addition to waves and currents, fish cage motion response in heave, surge, and pitch was inferred from accelerometer measurements during the same storm. The environmental data sets obtained during the peak of the storm were processed, analyzed, and used as input to a dynamic finite-element model. Simulations were performed using three load case scenarios: 1) in both waves and currents; 2) in waves only; and 3) in currents only. Model motion response results in both the time and frequency domain were compared with data obtained in situ . In addition to the motion response tests, the wave and current forcing influencing the mooring line tension response was also investigated. Analysis shows that in this case, the currents do not severely influence the oscillatory motion response, but do cause the cage to tilt, layback, and sink. The wave and current interaction effect did, however, influence the anchor line loads with a portion being attributed to nonlinear effects.     

On the identification of ship coupled heave–pitch motions using neural networks

This paper outlines a procedure for the derivation of the differential equations describing the free response of a heaving and pitching ship from its stationary response to random waves. The coupled heave–pitch motion of a ship in random seas is modelled as a multi-dimensional Markov process. The partial differential equation describing the transition probability density function, known as the Fokker-Planck equation, for this process is derived. The Fokker-Planck equation is used to derive the random decrement equations for the coupled heave–pitch motion. The parameters in these equations are then identified using a neural network approach. The method is validated using numerical simulations and experimental results. The experimental data was obtained using an icebreaker ship model heaving and pitching in random waves. It is shown that the method produces good results when the system is lightly damped. An extension for using this method to identify couple heave–pitch motion in realistic seas is suggested.