The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 14, 1996
Filed:
Aug. 21, 1995
Jack Pollack, Calabasas Hills, CA (US);
Imodco, Inc., Calabasas Hills, CA (US);
Abstract
An arrangement is described for mounting a turret (18, FIG. 3) on the outer ends of beams, or mounts, whose inner ends are supported by a vessel hull (14) that can weathervane about the turret. An upper bearing (42) is supported on a largely rigid upper mount (30), by a resiliently deflectable support structure (50) that includes a plurality of elastomeric shear pads (52). Each shear pad subtends an angle (B, FIG. 5) of no more than 20.degree. about a common point (26) along the rotatable axis of the turret. This allows a shear pad to use flat rubber sheets instead of spherically curved sheets, as well as avoiding excess stiffness. The support structure includes six posts (54) extending radially from the common point along the turret axis, each post having a gap where a shear pad is mounted, with the area around each shear pad being open to facilitate replacement of a shear pad. A limiter which extends in parallel with the shear pads to prevent them from being torn loose in the event of bearing seizing, can include a limiter member (122, FIG. 11) fixed with respect to one mount plate (70) of a shear pad and surrounding the opposite mount plate (72) of the shear pad.