[0002] In this connection coil refer to any cylindrical objects, such as metal band coils, metal wire coils or paper rolls.

[0003]-Such an arrangement is previously known, in which the coils are placed in a coil transport support, which is arranged above the bottom of the ship's cargo space and which can be removed from the ship. Such an ar- rangement is used for instance in some of the ships of Oy Langh Ship Ab.

[0004] In this prior art arrangement the coil holders are fixedly ar- ranged in the coil transport support in such a manner that the coil holders form coil troughs, which extend in parallel with the longitudinal centre axis of the ship. The coils rest on the cylindrical surfaces thereof in the coil holders so that the centre axis of the coils is substantially horizontal with relation to the ship.

[0005] A problem with the above arrangement is that the coil hold- ers are short. This means that when coils are placed in the coil holders, a por- tion often remains in most coil holders that is too short for another coil to fit in, as the coil is too wide (the coil in the direction of the centre axis). These short portions can therefore not be utilized. Instead, if these too short coil holder por- tions could be combined, such a coil holder portion might be formed, into which the coil could be fit.

[0006] The simplest solution to the problem would be to enlarge, or extend, the coil transport support in the longitudinal direction of the ship so as to prolong the coil holders. However, this is not a very good solution, as it could lead to another problem. The coil transport support could namely be- come so large and so heavy that it would be very difficult to handle when plac- ing the coil in position in the ship's cargo space. It is for instance desirable that the coil transport support at the most weighs only so much that it can be placed in position using a quay crane or a crane intended for loading coils pro- vided with a limited lifting capacity, for instance 35 to 45 tons.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION l0007] It is an object of the invention to provide a method and an ar- rangement for loading and shipping coils onboard a ship and a coil transport support that solves the problems mentioned above.

[0008] The object of the invention is achieved with a method, an ar- rangement and a coil transport support, characterized in what is disclosed in the independent claims.

[0009] The preferred embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims.

[0010] The invention is based on the idea that coil holders are ar- ranged in the coil transport support so that the coil holders extend transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis of the ship. In other words, the support surface of the coil holder, against which the cylindrical surface of the cylindrical coil is arranged to be supported, extends transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis of the ship.

[0011] An advantage of the solution according to the invention is to allow the use of longer coil holders without increasing the external dimensions and weight of the coil transport support. Let us suppose for instance that the greatest possible diameter of the coils to be transported is 1.5 meters, mean- ing that the coils require a space that is approximately 2 meters wide. Space is needed on the sides of the coil for binding the coils to the coil transport sup- port, for example. For instance, a 6-meter long (in the direction of the centre longitudinal axis of the ship) and 12-meter wide (the width of the ship's cargo space between the sidewalls) coil transport support, in which both ends of the coil holder is provided with a 0.25 meter thick reinforcement in order to rein- force the coil holder, may in accordance with the solution according to the in- vention be provided with three 11.5 meter long coil holders, whereas only six 5.5 meter long coil holders were provided in the previous solution. In the solu- tion according to the invention this means that for example two coil holder por- tions, which were too short for one coil and were placed in different coil holders in the previous solution, are now combined in the solution of the invention in one coil holder in a single longer coil holder portion, into which the coil may be fitted. The solution according to the invention thus allows employing the sur- face area of the coil transport support more efficiently. The solution of the in- vention makes a coil transport support possible, which is provided with a smaller number of coil holders that may contain too short coil holder portions that cannot be utilized.

[0012] The solution according to the invention also extends the total length of the coil holders, i. e. increases the transport capacity of the coil trans- port support. In a 6-meter long (in the direction of the centre longitudinal axis of the ship) and 12-meter wide (the width of the ship's cargo space between the sidewalls) coil transport support this brings about the following. Let us again suppose for instance that the greatest possible diameter of the coils to be transported is 1.5 meters, meaning that the coils require a space that is ap- proximately 2 meters wide. In the previous arrangement, in which the coil holders extend in parallel with the centre longitudinal axis and in which both ends of the coil holder are provided with a 0.25 meter thick reinforcement in order to reinforce the coil holders, one coil transport support held 6 coil holders of 5.5 meters in length, meaning that the total length of the coil holders was 33 meters. In the solution according to the invention, in which the coil holders ex- tend transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis and in which both ends of the coil holder are provided with a 0.25 meter thick reinforcement in order reinforce the coil holders, a single coil transport support holds 3 coil holders of 11.5 meters, meaning that the total length of the coil holders is 34.5 meters.

[0013] Since the solution of the invention enables to employ longer coil holders and as the total length of the coil holders is greater, more coils may be placed in a coil transport support according to invention in comparison with the previous solutions.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment the coil transport support com- prises a coil holder, which is in the form of a trough having a V-shaped cross section. In other words, the coil holder support is in this embodiment a V- shaped structure open from the top or a structure comprising several such V- shaped structures open from the top, the structure extending between the sup- ports placed on opposite sidewalls in the cargo space. It is known in the art that such a V-shaped structure has a good bending resistance and therefore the"span length"of the coil transport support, i. e. the distance between the sidewalls of the cargo space, may be long and at the same time several heavy coils can be loaded in the coil holders of the coil transport support.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0015] In the following the invention will be explained in greater de- tail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side view in cross-section of a ship provided with an ar- rangement according to the invention, Figure 2 is a top view of the ship provided with the arrangement ac- cording to the invention, Figure 3 illustrates the ship shown in Figure 1 cut along line C-C in Figure 1, Figure 4 shows in cross-section a coil transport support provided with three V-shaped coil holders, Figure 5 shows the coil transport support, in which the coil holders extend entirely between a first side and a second side of the coil transport support, and Figure 6 shows another coil transport support, in which the coil holders extend between the reinforcements at the first side and the second side of the coil transport support.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0016] The invention firstly relates to a method for loading coils 1 onboard a ship 2 and for shipping the same onboard the ship 2.

[0017] What is used in this method is such a coil transport support 3, which comprises a coil holder 4 arranged to hold the coil 1 placed therein in position at least in the horizontal direction and in the direction pointing down- wards in relation to the ship 2. The coil holder 4 is of such a type that com- prises at least one support surface 11, against which a cylindrical surface 5 of the coil 1 is intended to be placed and supported so that a centre axis A of the coil 1 to be placed in the coil holder 4 is substantially horizontal in relation to the ship 2 when the coil transport support 3 is arranged onto the ship 2. The coils 1 thus rest on the cylindrical surface 5 thereof against the support surface of the coil holders. In the Figures, the cylindrical surface and the support sur- face 11 of the coil holders move substantially in parallel.

[0018] Such a coil transport support 3 is used in this method, in which the coil holder 4 is fixedly arranged in the coil transport support 3.

[0019] In this method, the coil transport support 3 is placed in a cargo space 6 of the ship and above a bottom 7 of the ship's cargo space. In this method, the coil transport support 3 is placed on supports 10 on a first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 and a second opposite sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space so that the coil transport support 3 extends from the sup- port 10 on the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 to the support 10 on the second opposite sidewall 9.

[0020] The supports 10 are preferably, but not necessarily, supports 10 that can be folded into the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 and the second sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space.

[0021] In this method, the coil 1 is placed in the coil holder 4 so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 is substantially horizontal regarding the ship.

[0022] Such a coil transport support 3 is used in this method, in which the coil holder 4 is fixedly arranged in the coil transport support 3 so that the coil holder 4 extends at least partly from a first side 12 of the coil transport support 3 to a second opposite side 13 of the coil transport support 3 so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 to be placed in the coil holder 4 extends substan- tially transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis B of the ship.

[0023] In other words, the support surface 11 of the coil holder 4, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil is arranged to be supported, extends transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis A of the ship so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 to be placed in the coil holder 4 is positioned substantially transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis B of the ship. In this method, several coils 1 are preferably, but not necessarily, placed in the same coil holder 4.

[0024] The invention also relates to an arrangement for loading and shipping coils 1 onboard a ship 2.

[0025] The arrangement includes a coil transport support 3 compris- ing a coil holder 4 arranged to hold the coil 1 placed in the coil holder 4 in posi- tion at least in the horizontal direction and in the direction pointing downwards in relation to the ship 2. The coil holder 4 is of a type that comprises at least one support surface 11, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil 1 is supported in such a manner that the centre axis A is substantially horizontal in relation to the ship 2 when the coil transport support 3 is arranged on the ship 2.

[0026] The coil holder 4 is fixedly arranged in the coil transport sup- port 3.

[0027] In this arrangement, the coil transport support 3 is arranged in the cargo space 6 and above the bottom 7 of the cargo space 6. The coil transport support 3 is arranged on the supports 10 on the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 and the second opposite sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space so that the coil transport support 3 extends from the support 10 on the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 to the support 10 on the second op- posite sidewall 9.

[0028] The coil transport support 3 is preferably, but not necessarily, removably arranged on the ship 2.

[0029] The coil holder 4 is fixedly arranged in the coil transport sup- port 3 so that the coil holder 4 extends at least partly from a first side 12 of the coil transport support 3 to a second opposite side 13 of the coil transport sup- port 3 so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 placed in the coil holder 4 is sub- stantially transverse in relation to the centre longitudinal axis B of the ship.

[0030] In other words, the support surface 11 of the coil holder 4, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil is supported, extends trans- versely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis A of the ship so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 placed in the coil holder 4 moves substantially transversely in relation to the centre longitudinal axis B of the ship.

[0031] The invention further relates to a coil transport support 3 for loading and shipping coils onboard a ship 2.

[0032] The coil transport support 3 comprises at least one coil holder of a type that comprises at least one support surface 11, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil 1 is supported in such a manner that the centre axis A is substantially horizontal in relation to the ship 2 when the coil transport support 3 is arranged on the ship 2.

[0033] The coil holder 4 is fixedly arranged in the coil transport sup- port 3. The Figures illustrate such coil transport supports 3, in which the coil holders 4 form troughs, or recesses, in the coil transport support 3. Alterna- tively the coil holders 4 may in a sense be placed on top of the coil transport support 3. The coil holders 4 may for instance comprise a lattice structure (not shown) placed on top of the coil transport support 3, in which the support sur- faces 11 are arranged so that the coils 1 can be supported to the support sur- faces 11.

[0034] The Figures show such coil transport supports 3, which comprise three coil holders 4. The number of coil holders may vary, and can therefore be for instance one, two or four.

[0035] The coil transport support 3 is dimensioned and designed to extend from the support 10 on the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 to the support on the second opposite sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6 so that the coil transport support 3 can be placed on at least one support on the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 and on at least one support on the second opposite sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6. The coil transport sup- port 3 comprises preferably, but not necessarily, a first side 12, which is in- tended to be placed close or adjacent to the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6, a second side 13, which is intended to be placed close or adjacent to the second sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6, and a third side 14 and a fourth side 15 extending from the first side 12 of the coil transport support 3 to the second opposite side 13 of the of the coil transport support 3.

[0036] In the Figures, the coil transport support 3 is provided with a straight first side 12, which is intended to be placed adjacent to the first side- wall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6 and substantially in parallel with the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6, and a straight second side 13, which is intended to be placed adjacent to the second sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6 and substantially in parallel with the second sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6. In the Figures, the support surface 11 of the coil holder 4 is straight and extends transversely in relation to the first straight side 12 and the second straight side 13 so that the centre axis A of the coil 1 to be placed in the coil holder 4 is perpendicularly positioned regarding the first straight side 12 and the second straight side 13.

[0037] The coil holder 4 extends at least partly from the first side 12 of the coil transport support 3 to the second opposite side 13 of the coil trans- port support 3 or from the second side 13 of the coil transport support 3 to the first opposite side 12 of the coil transport support 3.

[0038] Figures 5 and 6 show a coil transport support 3, in which the first side 12 is formed of a first side surface, which is intended to be placed close to the first sidewall 8 of the ship's cargo space 6, and in which the sec- ond side 13 is formed of a second side surface, which is intended to be placed close to the second sidewall 9 of the ship's cargo space 6. In Figures 5 and 6, the third side 14 is correspondingly formed of a third side surface and the fourth side 15 is formed of a fourth side surface, which extend from the first side surface of the coil transport support 3 to the second side surface of the coil transport support 3.

[0039] In Figures 5 and 6, the coil holder 4 extends in parallel with the first side surface and the second side surface in such a manner that the centre axis A of a coil 1 to be placed in the coil holder 4 is placed substantially in parallel with the third side surface and the fourth side surface of the coil transport support 3.

[0040] In Figures 5 and 6, each coil holder 4 comprises two planar support surfaces 11, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil 1 is sup- ported. In the Figures, each support surface 11 is perpendicularly positioned against the first side surface and the second side surface. In Figure 5, each support surface 11 extends entirely between the third side surface and the fourth side surface of the coil transport support 3.

[0041] In Figure 6, each support surface 11 extends partly between the third side surface and the fourth side surface of the coil transport support 3.

The first side 12 of the coil transport support 3 shown in Figure 6 is provided with a first reinforcement 16 and the second side 13 of the coil transport sup- port 3 is provided with a second reinforcement 17. In Figure 6, the coil holder 4 forms a trough-shaped structure extending from the first reinforcement 16 to the second reinforcement 17. The idea of the first reinforcement 16 and the second reinforcement 17 is, for instance, to prevent the coil holder 4 from ex- panding when the coils 1 placed in the coil holder 4 are supported against the support surfaces 11 of the coil holder 4 and press the support surfaces 11 downwards.

[0042] In Figures 5 and 6, each support surface 11 is formed at an angle in relation to the third side surface and the fourth side surface so that the support surfaces 11 form the coil holder 4, which has a V-shaped profile and which tapers downwards in the direction of the coil transport support 3. The V- shaped profile may be cut in such a manner that it does not extend all the way down in the coil holder. The coil holder 4 of such a shape may carry coils of different diameters, since the coil 1 may be supported on the coil holder 4 on several locations, since the support surface 11 is wide. A coil 1 having a smaller diameter is inserted deeper in the coil holder 4 than a coil 1 having a greater diameter.

[0043] Alternatively the coil holder may comprise for instance an arched support surface 11, against which the cylindrical surface 5 of the coil 1 can be supported.

[0044] In Figures 5 and 6, the support surfaces 11 extend substan- tially in parallel with the third side surface and the fourth side surface of the coil transport support 3. In Figures 5 and 6 the support surfaces 11 extend sub- stantially at a right angle in relation to the first side surface and the second side surface of the coil transport support 3. The first side surface of the coil trans- port support 3 illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 is planar and is substantially at a right angle in relation to the third planar side surface and the fourth planar side surface, and the second side surface is planar and is substantially at a right angle in relation to the third planar side surface and the fourth planar side sur- face. The basic form of the coil transport support 3 therefore resembles a right- angled prism. This allows placing the coil transport supports 3 close to one another, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

[0045] The coil transport supports 3 illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 are provided with fastening points 18, in which for instance load-binding belts (not shown) can be arranged for binding the coils to the coil transport support 3.

[0046] The coil holder 4 is preferably, but not necessarily, provided with a damping coating (not shown), which is arranged to be positioned be- tween the coil 1 and the coil holder 4. l0047l The coil transport support comprises preferably, but not nec- essarily, such lifting gear (not shown) arranged to operate in co-operation with a coil gripper of a crane (not shown). Such a solution accelerates loading, as the hook of the crane does not have to be changed to another, if for instance the space of the cargo space 6 below the coil transport support is first loaded with coils 1 and then the coil transport supports 3 are placed in position and coils 1 are loaded in the coil transport supports 3.

[0048] The coil transport support 3 comprises preferably, but not necessarily, such lifting gear (not shown), which is arranged to operate in co- operation with a hoisting apparatus intended for lifting containers. The lifting gear may for instance be of twist-look type.

[0049] The coil transport support 3 comprises preferably, but not necessarily, such twist-look type corner fittings (not shown), which are used for example in containers. There are preferably eight twist-look type corner fittings, one arranged in each corner (not indicated with a reference numeral) of the coil transport support. If the coil transport support 3 is provided with such fit- tings, several coil transport supports 3 can be placed and fastened on top of one another for example on the deck of the ship 2, when the coil transport supports 3 are not required. l0050] It is obvious for those skilled in the art that the preferred em- bodiments of the coil transport support according to the invention can be im- plemented in the method of the invention and in the arrangement of the inven- tion.

[0051] It is apparent for those skilled in the art that as technology advances the basic idea of the invention can be implemented in various ways.

The invention and the preferred embodiments thereof are therefore not re- stricted to the examples described above but may vary within the scope of the claims.