US-12618214-B2 - Vibration device and method for inserting into the ground or removing from the ground a foundation element with electric motor

US12618214B2US 12618214 B2US12618214 B2US 12618214B2US-12618214-B2

Abstract

A vibration device for inserting a foundation element into the ground includes a frame, at least one vibration element that is operatively connected to the frame, and at least one drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration element. The at least one drive is an electric motor configured to drive the at least one vibration element. A method for inserting a foundation element into the ground.

Inventors

Hendrik Cejus de Roo
Laurens DE NEEF

Assignees

CAPE HOLLAND HOLDING B.V.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20221117
Priority Date: 20211117

Claims (19)

1 . A vibration device for inserting a foundation element into the ground, the device comprising: a frame; at least one vibration element that is operatively connected to the frame; and at least one drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration element; wherein the at least one drive is an electric motor configured to drive the at least one vibration element; and wherein the frame of the vibration device comprises an inner space, and wherein, during use, the frame extends around at least part of a side wall of the foundation element to at least partially enclose said foundation element in the inner space, and wherein the frame has an open position in which the device is positionable around the foundation element, and has a closed position in which the foundation element is clamped in the inner space of the frame.
2 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one vibration element is a plurality of vibration elements and wherein the at least one electric motor is a plurality of electric motors, wherein each of the plurality of electric motors is associated with a single one of the vibration elements to drive said associated vibration element.
3 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one vibration element is a plurality of vibration elements that are divided in a number of groups of associated vibration elements, wherein the at least one electric motor is a plurality of electric motors, and wherein each of the plurality of electric motors is associated with a single group of associated vibration elements to drive said group of associated vibration elements.
4 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one drive and the at least one vibration element are an integrated unit.
5 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the electric motor is a permanent-magnet electric motor.
6 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the frame, in a closed position, is a ring-shaped frame, and wherein the at least one drive is connected to an outer wall of the base frame, or is positioned inside the base frame between the inner wall and an outer wall thereof.
7 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , further comprising a control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to individually control each of the at least one vibration elements by controlling the at least one drive.
8 . The vibration device according to claim 2 , further comprising a control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to individually control each of the vibration elements by controlling the associated drive, or wherein the control unit is configured to individually control each of the groups of vibration elements by controlling the drive associated with said group.
9 . The vibration device according to claim 3 , further comprising a control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to individually control each of the vibration elements by controlling the associated drive, or wherein the control unit is configured to individually control each of the groups of vibration elements by controlling the drive associated with said group.
10 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is configured to, during use, provide an orientation or heading force to rotate the foundation element around its longitudinal axis.
11 . The vibration device according to claim 2 , further comprising a control unit that is configured to control one or more of: a tangential force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; a horizontal force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; and/or an axial vibration, a torsional vibration and/or a combination of an axial and torsional vibration exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; or a combination of one or more of a tangential force, a horizontal force, an axial vibration, a torsional vibration, a combination of an axial and torsional vibration and a heading and/or vertical inclination; wherein the control is performed by controlling one or more of: an RPM of each electric motor; a rotation of the electric phase of each electric motor between one or more electric motors of the plurality of electric motors; an RPM or rotational speed of each of the excentre masses; and/or a timing phase of the rotation of each of the excentre masses, wherein the timing preferably comprises synchronous rotation, asynchronous rotation or time-shifted rotation.
12 . The vibration device according to claim 3 , further comprising a control unit that is configured to control one or more of: a tangential force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; a horizontal force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; and/or an axial vibration, a torsional vibration and/or a combination of an axial and torsional vibration exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; or a combination of one or more of a tangential force, a horizontal force, an axial vibration, a torsional vibration, a combination of an axial and torsional vibration and a heading and/or vertical inclination; wherein the control is performed by controlling one or more of: an RPM of each electric motor; a rotation of the electric phase of each electric motor between one or more electric motors of the plurality of electric motors; an RPM or rotational speed of each of the excentre masses; and/or a timing phase of the rotation of each of the excentre masses, wherein the timing preferably comprises synchronous rotation, asynchronous rotation or time-shifted rotation.
13 . The vibration device according to claim 1 , wherein the device comprises clamping means configured to, in the closed position, clamp the foundation element in the inner space of the device, and maintaining the clamping position during upending and insertion of the foundation element into the ground.
14 . A vibration assembly for inserting a foundation element into the ground, comprising: a vibration device comprising: a frame; at least one vibration element that is operatively connected to the frame; and at least one drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration element; wherein the at least one drive is an electric motor configured to drive the at least one vibration element; wherein the frame of the vibration device comprises an inner space, and wherein, during use, the frame extends around at least part of a side wall of the foundation element to at least partially enclose said foundation element in the inner space, and wherein the frame has an open position in which the device is positionable around the foundation element, and has a closed position in which the foundation element is clamped in the inner space of the frame; and at least one foundation element.
15 . A method for inserting a foundation element into the ground or extracting a foundation element from the ground, the method comprising the steps of: providing a vibration device comprising: a frame; at least one vibration element that is operatively connected to the frame; and at least one drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration element; wherein the at least one drive is an electric motor configured to drive the at least one vibration element; wherein the frame of the vibration device comprises an inner space, and wherein, during use, the frame extends around at least part of a side wall of the foundation element to at least partially enclose said foundation element in the inner space, and wherein the frame has an open position in which the device is positionable around the foundation element, and has a closed position in which the foundation element is clamped in the inner space of the frame; and using the device to drive a foundation element into the ground, or alternatively using the device or the system to extract a foundation element from the ground.
16 . The method according to claim 15 , wherein the vibration device comprises a plurality of electric motors, and wherein the method comprises associating each electric motor of the plurality of electric motors with a single vibration element, or associating each electric motor of the plurality of electric motors with a group of vibration elements that are associated to each other, and further comprising driving the associated vibration element or associated group of vibration elements.
17 . The method according to claim 16 , wherein each vibration element is an excentre mass, the method further comprising one or more of the steps of controlling, with a control unit: a tangential force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; a horizontal force exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; and/or an axial vibration, a torsional vibration and/or a combination of an axial and torsional vibration exerted by the groups of vibration elements on the foundation element; a combination of one or more of a tangential force, a horizontal force, an axial vibration, a torsional vibration, a combination of an axial and torsional vibration and a heading and/or vertical inclination; wherein the steps of controlling are preferably performed by controlling, by the control unit, one or more of: an RPM of each electric motor; a rotation of the electric phase of each electric motor between one or more electric motors of the plurality of electric motors; an RPM or rotational speed of each of the excentre masses; and/or a timing phase of the rotation of each of the excentre masses, wherein the timing preferably comprises synchronous rotation, asynchronous rotation or time-shifted rotation.
18 . The method according to claim 15 , wherein the at least one foundation element comprises a profiled end.
19 . The method according to claim 15 , further comprising the step of clamping the foundation element with clamps and maintaining the clamping position during upending and insertion of the foundation element into the ground.

Description

This is a national stage application filed under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of pending international application PCT/NL2022/050660, filed Nov. 17, 2022, which claims priority to Netherlands Patent Application No. 2029799, filed Nov. 17, 2021, the entirety of which applications are hereby incorporated by reference herein. The invention relates to a vibration device and a method for inserting a foundation element into the seabed or into the ground. The vibration device and method are useable for both land-based and sea-based foundation elements. The invention also relates to a vibration system and a vibration assembly comprising such vibration device. Vibration devices for placing or inserting foundation elements, such as foundation piles, into the ground are known. Such devices are for example used in the placement of foundations for wind turbines. The known vibration devices are connected to an end portion, often the top part, of a foundation element and drive the foundation element, such as a solid or hollow foundation pile, into the ground using vibrations. To that end, the known vibration devices comprise at least one vibration block that is connected to the upper side of the foundation pile and a hydraulic drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration block. In use, the hydraulic drive powers the at least one vibration block to generate vibrations that insert the foundation element into the ground. A disadvantage of the known hydraulic drives is that such drives represent a significant weight and take up a considerable amount of space, which is especially a concern in a marine environment. With an increasing size and weight of the foundation elements, the weight and size of the drives which will increase even further. At present, the known drives are capable of handling foundation elements with a weight of about 700-800 tonnes, whereas future foundation elements are expected to weigh in excess of 2,500 tonnes. This means that there is a need to provide a more efficient drive, especially in terms of weight, size and/or power-to-weight ratio, to obviate or at least significantly reduce the abovementioned disadvantage. To that end, the invention provides a vibration device for inserting a foundation element into the ground, the device comprising: a frame;at least one vibration element that is operatively connected to the frame; andat least one drive that is operatively connected to the at least one vibration element;wherein the at least one drive is an electric motor configured to drive the at least one vibration element. An advantage of providing an electric motor as drive is that it has a high power-to-weight ratio, especially when compared to the known hydraulic drives. An electric motor and the required electrical connections may, in comparison with a hydraulic drive, provide a reduction in the size of the power unit with up to 50% and a reduction in the weight with up to 60% while still providing a similar power output. A further advantage of an electric motor is that it substantially obviates the risk of pollution by hydraulic fluid leakage, therewith reducing environmental risk of the operations. Another advantage is that an electric motor has an increased efficiency compared to a hydraulic drive, which reduces the carbon footprint of the operation to insert the foundation element using the device according to the invention even further. Yet another advantage is that an electric motor, due to its characteristics, allows a more precise control over the vibration elements. This is due to the fact that the power output of an electric motor, in terms of responsiveness to control changes, can be adapted substantially immediately, which is not possible with a hydraulic drive. This results in a more precise and local application of the vibrations and therewith to a more efficient inserting operation. Another advantage is that the electric power may be obtained from renewable sources, such as (on-board) solar power and/or wind turbines in the direct vicinity of the working location, which decreases the size and weight of the drive system even further. This is only possible when using an electric motor as drive. In addition, an electric motor and the associated power system are much easier to scale, which is relevant in view of the increasing weight of the foundation elements. As referred to earlier, the weight of a typical foundation element is about 700-800 tonnes, whereas future weight are estimated to be in excess of 2,500 tonnes. The vibration device according to the invention, and especially the electric motor thereof, can easily be scaled up to provide the necessary power. An even further advantage is that an electric motor does not require the use of a gear box, which reduces weight and, more importantly, also reduces maintenance costs due to the reduced amount of mechanical connections. Furthermore, the amount and weight of cables between the vibration block and the electric motor can be si