Field of the invention

The Invention is concerning a method of raising a sunken vessel, equipment or material. The method rests in bringing the sunken vessel, equipment or material back to the water surface by utilizing a buoyant force generated by bodies attached to the sunken object; the so-called floats.

Background of the Invention

The CZ279060 patent specification discloses a method of raising sunken objects from the bottom of the sea which consists in attaching them to at least one float or a system of floats whose displacement (buoyancy) exceeds the weight of the sunken object; The method Is based on the fact that the sunken object is acted upon by the buoyancy of floats made from an incompressible material such as wood whose specific gravity is less than that of water. The floats are part of a complex submersible mechanism which is transported to the sunken object by means of attaching weights such as concrete blocks to it. The load generated by the weights (and acting upon the floats} exceeds the floats' displacement After attaching the sunken object to the submersible mechanism, the weights are disconnected from the submersible mechanism by means of setting off explosives. As a result of removing the weights, the buoyant (lifting) force of the submersible mechanism increases. When this force becomes greater than the weight of the sunken object; the submersible mechanism starts to rise to the surface, dragging the sunken object with it

The disadvantage of this method is that a complex submersible mechanism is required for its successful execution and that the transport of the submersible mechanism to the sunken object requires the production and use of disposable weights.

Principle of the Invention

These disadvantages are, to a large extent, eliminated by employing a method of raising a sunken vessel, equipment or material according to the present invention the essence of which consists in attaching shipping containers with closed ventilation openings to the sunken vessel, equipment or material and, subsequently, pumping air or gas into the containers.

The advantage of the method according to this invention is that It is not necessary to produce special floats in order to implement it Rather, it is sufficient to use commonly available shipping containers.

Example of the Invention Embodiment

Depending on the weight of the sunken object, one or more shipping containers with closed ventilation openings are transported to the sunken object in a suitable manner wherein the container is gradually filled with the surrounding water. The shipping containers are subsequently fastened to the object. Next, air or gas is pumped into the shipping containers* pushing out the water. As a result, the lifting force of the shipping containers is increasing. When this force is greater than the weight of the sunken object, the shipping containers start to move up towards the surface along with the sunken object.