Device for use in demolishing a consolidated and hardened slurry body remaining in the hold of an iron-ore carrier

Claim 1

For use in the wet-loading and dry-unloading of an iron-ore carrier which is loaded with iron-ore in a slurry state in its hold, a device for demolishing, by using reciprocal movement, a consolidated and hardened slurry body remaining in the form of a wall along the side walls of said hold comprising: a first platform mounted on the opposing edges of a hatch opening of said hold capable of moving longitudinally of said carrier; a second platform mounted on said first platform being movable laterally of said carrier; a turning means mounted on said second platform and being turnable about an axis perpendicular to said platforms through a given angle; an outer cylinder mounted on said turning means in parallel relation with said axis of turning and turnable therewith and having an inner cylinder extensible therefrom vertically downward into said hold and retractable relative to said outer cylinder; and arm members being extensible from and retractable toward said inner cylinder solely in a horizontal plane and attached to the lower end thereof extending in horizontally opposite directions therefrom, and provided with a pair of demolishing edges disposed substantially perpendicular thereto at opposite ends thereof, respectively, one of said edges having a configuration corresponding to the corners of said hold while the other one of said edges has a configuration corresponding to the flat sidewalls of said hold whereby said edges may be utilized alternatively in demolishing portions of said slurry body remaining within said corners of said hold and along said sidewalls of said hold as a result of selective rotation of said turning means.