Systems and Methods for Protecting Bridges Over Maritime Shipping Channels

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

This invention relates to systems for protecting bridges from collisions with ships.

Bridges have always been vulnerable to catastrophic damage due to collisions with ships. Notably, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay suffered a collision in 1980 that resulted in the collapse of one of its spans and the loss of 35 lives. In 1993, a barge damaged a bridge enough to derail a train, causing the loss of 47 lives on the Big Bayou Canot Bridge near Mobile, Alabama. The damage from the barge was not enough to sever the rail line to signal a problem; yet the train derailed, showing the need to prevent even “minor” contact with a bridge or its pylons. Recently, on Mar. 26, 2024, the container ship MV Dali suffered a temporary loss of power, strayed from the shipping channel, collided with bridge pylons, and rapidly brought about the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge near Baltimore, Maryland. Six lives were lost.

Efforts at protecting bridges have followed those accidents. For example, crash mitigation systems have been constructed on bridge pylons, designed to lessen the momentum of an errant ship heading toward those pylons. Such crash mitigation systems suffer a particular flaw: the momentum of the ship is transferred through the system to the pylon.

Ships, from container ships carrying dry goods, to oil tankers, to cruise ships, are getting larger. Longer, wider, deeper, and more-massive ships dramatically endanger aging bridges designed to withstand impacts from much smaller vessels of a by-gone age. For perspective, the RMS Titanic had a length of 269.1 m and a width of 28.2 m, and carried 2,453 passengers. The recent cruise ship Icon of the Seas has a length of 364.75 m and width of 48.47 m, and carries a maximum of 7,600 passengers. Those larger ships are sailing under bridges such as the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which opened in 1977, and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, opened in 1952 and expanded in 1973.

Improvements are needed to better protect bridges from contact from errant ships and barges.

Applicant has invented systems and methods for protecting bridges that unexpectedly and dramatically address problems unforeseen by the current state of the art. With reference to, one such embodiment of the present invention is designed to DEFLECT shipand shipalong channel; ARREST ship, and to GROUND ship, in each case preventing contact between a ship and the bridgeor its pylons,,, and.

One such system for protecting a bridge over a maritime shipping channel from a ship contacting the system includes, on a first side of the channel, a first harborside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on a harborside of the bridge, and having a first harborside arresting section configured to arrest the ship striking the first harborside arresting section; a first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on a seaside of the bridge, and having a first seaside arresting section configured to arrest the ship striking the first seaside arresting section; and a first beam supported by the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower and configured to deflect a ship contacting the first beam along the channel.

As used herein, B.U.M.P. indicates a “bridge underpass maritime protection” system. BUMP™ (no periods) is a trademark of Applicant underwhich systems, and services for designing and constructing such systems, are offered.

Optionally, a B.U.M.P. tower includes a grounding section configured to cause a ship contacting this section to run aground. Further, that grounding section may be configured in some embodiments to steer the ship to turn, so the ship's heading becomes less normal or perpendicular to the bridge and its components, and more parallel to the bridge. This can be accomplished, for example, by designing the border of the grounding section with an adjoining portion of an arresting section to describe a curve or a J shape that will turn the ship. As a ship contacts that border, it will either stop or turn into a parallel heading.

It may be useful to protect only a single side of a channel. Perhaps the bridge crosses a horseshoe bend on a significant river such as the Mississippi River, and the prevailing currents would drive an errant ship to one side of the channel and not the other. Or one pylon of the bridge is rather close to the channel, and other pylons are significantly further away from the channel. Or even budgetary constraints force the protection of one side of a channel while funds are sought to protect the opposite side of the channel. In any case, further embodiments of the present invention also include those systems that protect a bridge with structure on both sides of a channel.

Accordingly, further embodiments relate to systems including, on a second side of the channel opposite the first side of the channel, a second harborside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on the harborside of the bridge, and configured to arrest the ship striking the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower; a second seaside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on the seaside of the bridge, and configured to arrest the ship striking the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower; and a second beam supported by the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower and configured to deflect a ship contacting the second beam along the channel. Optionally, the second B.U.M.P. towers can include corresponding grounding sections configured to cause a ship contacting those sections to run aground, or even to turn toward a heading more parallel to the bridge. Broadly, the second B.U.M.P. towers and second beam can include any or all of the features described herein for the first B.U.M.P. towers and first beam.

Additional embodiments relate to methods for building the protective systems and components described herein. Certain cases provide one such method of constructing any of the systems described herein, including constructing a plurality of foundation sections from reinforced concrete; floating the plurality of foundation sections to a region where the bridge crosses the channel; sinking the plurality of foundation sections in a plurality of locations in the region, forming a plurality of sunken foundation sections; optionally filling the plurality of sunken foundation sections with reinforced concrete, concrete, sediment, or other ballast material; constructing a plurality of encounter sections on the plurality of sunken foundation sections, thereby forming the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower, the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, and where present the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower; attaching or constructing a first beam structure between the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, thereby forming the first beam; optionally attaching or constructing a second beam structure between the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower, where present, thereby forming the second beam; thereby constructing the system.

Further suitable methods of protecting a bridge over a maritime shipping channel include providing any one of the systems described herein in a region where the bridge crosses the channel.

While the disclosure provides certain specific embodiments, the invention is not limited to those embodiments. A person of ordinary skill will appreciate from the description herein that modifications can be made to the described embodiments and therefore that the specification is broader in scope than the described embodiments. All examples are therefore non-limiting.

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale, and some features may be exaggerated to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as is commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. In the event that there is a plurality of definitions for a term herein, those in this disclosure prevail unless stated otherwise.

Wherever the phrase “for example,” “such as,” “including” and the like are used herein, the phrase “and without limitation” is understood to follow unless explicitly stated otherwise. Similarly “an example,” “exemplary” and the like are understood to be non-limiting.

The term “substantially” allows for deviations from the descriptor that don't negatively impact the intended purpose. Descriptive terms are understood to be modified by the term “substantially” even if the word “substantially” is not explicitly recited.

The term “about” when used in connection with a numerical value refers to the actual given value, and to the approximation to such given value that would reasonably be inferred by one of ordinary skill in the art, including approximations due to the experimental and or measurement conditions for such given value.

The terms “comprising” and “including” and “having” and “involving” (and similarly “comprises”, “includes,” “has,” and “involves”) and the like are used interchangeably and have the same meaning. Specifically, each of the terms is defined consistent with the common United States patent law definition of “comprising” and is therefore interpreted to be an open term meaning “at least the following,” and is also interpreted not to exclude additional features, limitations, aspects, etc. Thus, for example, “a device having components a, b, and c” means that the device includes at least components a, b and c. Similarly, the phrase: “a method involving steps a, b, and c” means that the method includes at least steps a, b, and c.

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words “comprise”, “comprising”, and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of “including, but not limited to”.

Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome or ameliorate at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art, or to provide a useful alternative.

As stated above, some embodiments of the present invention relate to systems for protecting a bridge over a maritime shipping channel from a ship contacting the system, one such system comprising, on a first side of the channel, a first harborside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on a harborside of the bridge, and having a first harborside arresting section configured to arrest the ship striking the first harborside arresting section; a first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on a seaside of the bridge, and having a first seaside arresting section configured to arrest the ship striking the first seaside arresting section; and a first beam supported by the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower and configured to deflect a ship contacting the first beam along the channel. A B.U.M.P. tower can be positioned beside a channel such that a cargo ship straying from the channel would be prevented from hitting the bridge or supporting structure such as the bridge's pylons. The beam, between two B.U.M.P. towers, would pass underneath the bridge between the channel and a pylon or set of pylons. The beam would guide a ship along the channel and underneath the bridge, deflecting the ship from collision with any pylons.

An arresting section is designed to bring an errant ship to a halt before it can hit a pylon or the bridge itself. It may happen that a ship encounters the arresting section at an angle so that it is directed toward the beam and down the channel, or alternatively, the ship proceeds into the grounding section. Accordingly, “striking an arresting section” does not include glancing contact that diverts the ship toward other sections of the system, or elsewhere. As used herein, “contacting” means any physical touch, such as between a ship and a B.U.M.P. tower. “Striking” means direct impact, and may describe a ship impacting a B.U.M.P. tower where the vector of the ship's velocity relative to the point of impact is normal or perpendicular to a tangential line through that point. “Glancing” means contact at an angle substantially less than perpendicular, and may describe a ship contacting the system in such a manner that the ship will slide along the beam and down the channel. A ship may also exhibit glancing contact with the arresting section as the ship moves further into the grounding section.

In some cases, a B.U.M.P. tower includes a grounding section configured to allow a ship to run aground. In this way, a ship on a collision course with the bridge is diverted and allowed to come to a stop more slowly than if the ship were arrested upon first contact with a B.U.M.P. tower. For example, the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower may include a first harborside grounding section, positioned on the harborside of the bridge, opposite the channel, and adjacent the first harborside arresting section; and is configured to cause the ship contacting the first harborside grounding section to run aground. Similarly, the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower may have a first seaside grounding section, positioned on the seaside of the bridge, opposite the channel, and adjacent the first seaside arresting section; and is configured to cause the ship contacting the first seaside grounding section to run aground.

As used herein, “harborside” indicates the direction from a bridge toward greatest landmass, while “seaside” indicates the direction toward the ocean. In some contexts, “harborside” could indicate an up-river direction, while “seaside” indicates a downriver direction. In some cases, proceeding in a harborside direction evokes the “red right return” rule for buoys and lights marking a channel. In the case where these terms are relatively meaningless, those terms refer arbitrarily to opposing directions. For example, if a system according to the present invention were to be used to protect a bridge in the Florida Keys over relatively open ocean, “harborside” and “seaside” simply indicate opposite sides of the bridge, and are arbitrarily chosen.

Certain instances of the present invention provide an arresting wall as part of the B.U.M.P. tower. An arresting wall is a structure of the B.U.M.P. tower typically at the edge of the B.U.M.P. tower furthest from the channel. An arresting wall is configured to arrest the ship contacting the system and striking the arresting wall. Any suitable materials can be employed to construct the arresting wall. Reinforced concrete, steel, or a combination thereof may be mentioned.

B.U.M.P. towers can be constructed in any suitable manner. For example, a B.U.M.P. tower can comprise a single section, from the sea floor to above the water line. Or it can include a foundation section having an upper engagement structure, an encounter section having a lower engagement structure, and upper engagement structure and the lower engagement structure mate to secure the first harborside encounter section to the first harborside foundation section. The mating of upper engagement structure can employ any suitable mechanism. In some cases, gravity is deemed sufficient to hold an encounter section to its foundation section. In other cases, while gravity assists in placing one section on another, mating further employs steel, reinforced concrete, or a combination thereof. In certain instances of the present invention, the upper engagement structure and the lower engagement structure mate robustly so that the entire B.U.M.P. tower receives the kinetic energy of an errant ship. In other words, in those instances, the ship impacts the entire mass of the B.U.M.P. tower, forcing the ship to deflect down the channel, arrest its bridge-ward movement, or to run aground. Further, B.U.M.P. towers can employ any suitable materials. Reinforced concrete, steel, or a combination thereof may be mentioned. Further, wood, stone, rock, old tires, slag, sediment, sand, gravel, scrap materials, dredged materials, and the like also may be mentioned, in some cases as ballast materials to add mass to the B.U.M.P. towers.

Similarly, beams can include any suitable materials. The beam will be designed to absorb the impact of an uncontrolled ship, and to guide that ship under the bridge along the channel. Considerations such as width of the bridge, beam length, beam mass, anticipated mass and velocity of ships using the channel, water current speeds that can increase the relative velocity of ships will inform the choice of materials. Steel, either a single piece or plural pieces connected together, may be mentioned for beam materials. Reinforced concrete, wood, and large rubber bumpers may also be used on beams, alone or in combinations with the steel of the beam. Cladding, for aesthetic or for functional purposes, may be applied to a beam. For example, cladding on the channel-side of a beam can help an errant ship slide along the beam and down the channel while lessening the damage to the vessel and the beam. Beam cladding can include any suitable materials, such as, for example, steel, plastic, wood, reinforced concrete, and combinations thereof. Suitable materials also may be selected for longevity in a marine environment, ease of maintenance, ease of repair, and cost.

A grounding section is designed to allow an errant ship to run aground, and thereby avoid a collision with a pylon or a lower portion of the bridge not over the channel. Accordingly, the grounding section can exhibit an increasingly shallow depth from the point of view of a ship entering the grounding section. A grounding section may have a contoured surface in some cases. A contoured surface means a decreasing depth as the distance to the bridge decreases, in some cases. That decreasing depth means a greater grounding effort is experienced by a ship traveling that decreasing depth. So, for example, a grounding section may have an initial grounding depth that is deeper than a static draft of the ship. At a distance farther from the bridge and its pylons, a grounding section might be designed to contact a fast-moving ship to slow the ship, before the ship encounters a depth that is less than its static draft. This can be done, for example, to minimize damage to the ship, especially if it can be stopped far from the bridge and its pylons. Then, closer to the bridge, the grounding section can have a shallower depth. For example, a grounding section can have a first subsequent grounding depth that is less than the static draft of the ship. For example, a grounding section can have a subsequent grounding depth that is less than about 90%, less than about 80%, less than about 70%, less than about 60%, or less than about 50% of the static draft of the ship.

Any suitable ship can represent the ship involved in contacting the systems of the present invention. When designing those systems, the skilled artisan can choose any ship. In some cases, an average ship can be chosen, while in other cases, the heaviest ship afloat or contemplated may be chosen, to calculate the needs of the system being designed. Physical parameters of the channel, such as channel depth, and height of the bridge at high tide or high water, that would limit the size of ships using the channel, also may inform the design of the system.

B.U.M.P. towers of the present invention can have any suitable dimensions. For example, a B.U.M.P. tower can have a maximum horizontal dimension of at least about 5 meters, at least about 10 meters, at least about 15 meters, at least about 20 meters, at least about 50 meters, or at least about 100 meters. A maximum horizontal dimension means a linear measurement taken in a plane parallel to the water. That maximum horizontal dimension can exist at any depth, such as, for example, at the seafloor, anywhere in the water column, at the water line, above the water line, at the maximum elevation of the B.U.M.P. tower above the water. If the top plan view of a B.U.M.P. tower is a square, for example, the maximum horizontal dimension is a diagonal of that square.

Similarly, a B.U.M.P. tower can have any suitable mass. For example, a B.U.M.P. tower may be independently configured to arrest a ship having a ship deadweight of at least about 50,000 tons, at least about 100,000 tons, at least about 150,000 tons, at least about 200,000 tons, at least about 250,000 tons, at least about 300,000 tons, at least about 350,000 tons, or at least about 400,000 tons, and a ship's speed of at least about 5 knots, at least about 10 knots, at least about 15 knots, at least about 20 knots, or at least about 25 knots, relative to the bridge. While it would be unusual for a ship such as a cargo ship to have a speed of say 25 knots near a bridge, consideration may be made of extreme cases of strong currents augmenting a ship's speed, or even of an intentional attack on a bridge using a commandeered ship.

A grounding section can have an initial grounding depth of any suitable depth. Such a depth may be designed with fluctuations in local water depth in mind, such as, for example, high tide, low tide, seasonal tide and flow changes, storm surge, and the like. In some cases, an initial grounding depth is at least about 20 feet, at least about 30 feet, at least about 40 feet, at least about 50 feet, at least about 60 feet, or at least about 70 feet. In further cases, an initial grounding depth is no more than about 20 feet, no more than about 30 feet, no more than about 40 feet, no more than about 50 feet, no more than about 60 feet, or no more than about 70 feet. For reference, so-called post-Panamax ships are designed to have a draft of about 15 meters, or about 50 feet. A grounding section will have subsequent grounding depths less than those initial grounding depths, up to zero depth if desired.

To further protect the bridge, and to avoid the transfer of the kinetic energy of the ship to the bridge, some systems of the present invention may be built without any physical contact between the system and any pylon thereof, nor any support structure of the bridge. In other words, the momentum of the errant ship should not be transferred through the system to the bridge. For to do so would be to potentially destabilize the bridge being protected. Additional cases provide a system that defines a minimum system-to-bridge-component distance of at least about 2 meters, at least about 5 meters, at least about 10 meters, at least about 20 meters, or at least about 30 meters.

The B.U.M.P. towers and beam can have any suitable geometries. A B.U.M.P. tower, for example, can have any suitable footprint on the sea floor. A square, a rectangle, a trapezoid, a triangle, any polygon, a circle, an oval, or any desired shape may be mentioned for the footprint of a B.U.M.P. tower. Such B.U.M.P. towers are designed independently of each other, and may have the same or different shapes, dimensions, and masses. Similarly, beams can have any suitable shapes and cross sections. Square, rectangular, oval, and circular cross sections for beams may be mentioned, without limitation. Where more than one beam is present, beams are independently designed, and may be alike or different.

As used herein, “sea floor” refers to the bottom of the waterway in the region of the bridge to be protected. Depending on context, it can mean a river bottom, a harbor bottom, a lake bottom, a reservoir bottom, or the bottom of an ocean. The sea floor may be in a natural state, or dredged, or prepared in some way, such as, for example, to receive the components of the systems of the present invention.

“Depth” indicates how deep a body of water is at a given point. It may refer to a customary measurement, such as, for example, mean lowest low tide, mean highest high tide, or the like. Of course, when designing the various structures of the inventive systems, any suitable parameters can be considered. For example, typical storm surges, seasonal variations, such as heavier springtime flows, ice in the winter, and the like may be considered.

In some cases, a B.U.M.P. tower has a border between the arresting section and the grounding section. That border can have any suitable design. In some cases, that border defines a J-shape. Certain instances provide where the J-shape causes a ship contacting the arresting section to turn from a collision course to a course more parallel to the bridge.

It may be desirable to protect both sides of a channel under a bridge from destructive collisions from an errant ship straying from the channel. In such cases, a system including a second set of B.U.M.P. towers supporting a second beam is possible. The second B.U.M.P. towers and second beam are designed from the first B.U.M.P. towers and first beam, and may be alike or different from them.

Systems of the present invention can be constructed in any suitable manner. In some cases, the B.U.M.P. tower can be constructed on site, for example by building a water-excluding caisson around the footprint where the B.U.M.P. tower will appear. In other cases, the B.U.M.P. tower or a lower portion thereof can be constructed elsewhere and floated to the site, and then sunk. For another example, another method of constructing a system of the present invention may involve constructing a plurality of foundation sections from reinforced concrete; floating the plurality of foundation sections to a region where the bridge crosses the channel; sinking the plurality of foundation sections in a plurality of locations in the region, forming a plurality of sunken foundation sections; optionally filling the plurality of sunken foundation sections with reinforced concrete, concrete, sediment, or other ballast material; constructing a plurality of encounter sections on the plurality of sunken foundation sections, thereby forming the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower, the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, and where present the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower; attaching or constructing a first beam structure between the first harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, thereby forming the first beam; optionally attaching or constructing a second beam structure between the second harborside B.U.M.P. tower and the second seaside B.U.M.P. tower, where present, thereby forming the second beam; thereby constructing the system.

A foundation section may comprise a single unit, or it can be made of several foundation modules. Similarly, an encounter section, independent of the foundation section, is a single unit or is made from several encounter modules. Modules can be connected together in any suitable manner. For example, two adjacent sunken foundation modules can be joined together on the sea floor to form part of the foundation section. Steel, reinforced concrete, or a combination thereof can connect two modules, for example.

The seafloor may receive the B.U.M.P. tower as it is found. Or, a portion of the seafloor in the region of where the bridge crosses the channel may be dredged to shape the seafloor, before the sinking of a foundation section.

B.U.M.P. towers may achieve the desired mass by any suitable means. In some cases, a B.U.M.P. tower or a foundation section thereof is filled with reinforced concrete, concrete, sediment, or other ballast material. Any suitable ballast material may be considered, such as, for example, wood, stone, rock, old tires, slag, sediment, scrap materials, and dredged materials.

Methods of protecting a bridge over a maritime shipping channel also form aspects of the present invention. Some such methods relate to constructing any of the systems about the channel and the bridge.

Further embodiments of the present invention can be described by reference to the accompanying drawings.

depicts one embodiment of the invention comprising systemshown in top plan view. Systemis configured to protect bridgeover a maritime shipping channel. First pylons,support bridgeon first sideof channel, and second pylons,support bridgeon second sideof channel. Harborsideof bridgeis seen to the left of, and seasideappears on the right. Bridgeis shown in dotted line format so that the components of systemcan be seen.

First harborside B.U.M.P. tower, positioned on harborsideof bridge, has a first harborside arresting sectionconfigured to arrest shipstriking first harborside arresting section. First seaside B.U.M.P. towerhas first seaside arresting sectionconfigured to arrest a ship (not shown) striking first seaside arresting section. First beamis supported by first harborside B.U.M.P. towerand first seaside B.U.M.P. tower, and is configured to deflect a ship (not shown) contacting first beamalong channel. First harborside B.U.M.P. towercomprises a first harborside grounding section, positioned on harborsideof bridge, opposite channel, and adjacent first harborside arresting section. First harborside grounding sectionis configured to cause shipcontacting the first harborside grounding sectionto run aground. First seaside B.U.M.P. towerincludes a first seaside grounding sectionpositioned on seasideof bridge, opposite channel, and adjacent first seaside arresting section. First seaside grounding sectionis configured to cause a ship (not shown) contacting first seaside grounding sectionto run aground.