Mooring and fluid transferring method and apparatus

Claim 1

IN AN APPARATUS FOR TRANSFERRING FLUID TO OR FROM A VESSEL IN THE WATER, LOWER ELONGATED SUBSTANTIALLY NONEXTENSIBLE FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS SUBMERGIBLE IN THE WATER IN AN INCLINED POSITION AND HAVING OPPOSITE MOUNTING AND COUPLING END PORTIONS, MEANS FOR ANCHORING SAID MOUNTING END PORTION IN THE WATER, SAID LOWER FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS PROJECTING AWAY FROM SAID ANCHORING MEANS AND UNDER SAID VESSEL WHEN SAID APPARATUS IS CONNECTED THERETO, INTERMEDIATE FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS PIVOTALLY CONNECTED BETWEEN ITS ENDS TO AND IN FLUID COMMUNICATION WITH SAID COUPLING END PORTION, UPPER ELONGATED SUBSTANTIALLY NON-EXTENSIBLE FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS HAVING A LOWER END PORTION AND AN UPPER END PORTION, SAID LOWER END PORTION PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO AND IN FLUID COMMUNICATION WITH SAID ENDS OF SAID INTERMEDIATE FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS, MEANS FOR BUOYING SAID UPPER END PORTION AT A POSITION ALONGSIDE OF SAID VESSEL AND ABOVE SAID LOWER END PORTION BUT PERMITTING RISE AND FALL OF SAID UPPER END PORTION WITH RESPECT TO SAID LOWER END PORTION, MEANS FOR CONNECTING SAID UPPER END PORTION TO THE VESSEL THEREBY PLACING SAID UPPER, INTERMEDIATE AND LOWER FLUID CONDUCTING MEANS AND SAID CONNECTING MEANS IN TENSION BETWEEN SAID ANCHORING MEANS AND SAID VESSEL AS SAID VESSEL MOVES AWAY FROM SAID ANCHORING MEANS, SAID TENSION INCREASING AS THE VESSEL MOVES IN A DIRECTION AWAY FROM THE ANCHORING MEANS, SAID CONDUCTING, CONNECTING AND ANCHORING MEANS BEING CAPABLE OF MOORING SAID VESSEL TO SAID ANCHORING MEANS THEREBY TO LIMIT MOVEMENT OF THE VESSEL AWAY FROM SAID ANCHORING MEANS, SAID UPPER END PORTION FALLING AS THE TENSION DECREASES AND RISING AS THE TENSION INCREASES, AND MEANS SEPARATE FROM SAID CONNECTING MEANS AND NOT UNDER TENSION FOR ESTABLISHING FLUID COMMUNICATION BETWEEN SAID UPPER CONDUCTING MEANS AND SAID VESSEL.