Adjustable apparatus for supporting a pipe, laid on a deep sea bed, at a depression in the sea bed

Claim 1

An adjustable apparatus for supporting a pipe, laid on a deep sea bed, at a depression in the sea bed, said apparatus being lowered on to the sea bed from a depot ship by means of a support cable, and conveyed on to the pipe to be supported by divers or a submarine, comprising an upper structure consisting of a floating caisson with a substantially square base and containing lowerly a longitudinal saddle recess for said pipe to be supported, and provided on its two transverse sides with two handles for gripping the apparatus by said submarine or divers, and on its roof with a ring for said support cable, there being welded to the inside of the caisson in proximity to its four vertices four vertical guide tubes which emerge from the caisson and into which are slidably inserted four support legs each provided with two opposing gullet tooth racks, means being provided for releasably locking said caisson to said legs and means for preventing said caisson from sliding downwards but not upwards relative to said legs, there being further provided a lower support structure consisting of four corresponding vertical guide tubes into which said four support legs are slidably inserted, said tubes being rigidly connected together longitudinally by two horizontal connecting cross members and supporting in proximity to their lower ends, by means of vertical hinges, four rotatable cross members provided upperly with semisaddles for supporting the pipe to be supported, and which can be rotated through 90° from a rest position, in which said cross members are positioned longitudinally, to a final or working position in which said cross members are positioned transversely and, by associating their semisaddles with each other in parts, constitute two complete saddles for supporting said pipe to be supported said rotation of the rotatable cross members being limited by shoulder stops provided with snap locks for locking the cross members in position and being supported by said vertical guide tubes, means being provided for preventing any downward sliding but not upward sliding of said lower support structure relative to said legs, said two structures being provided with means for sliding them upwards relative to said support legs.

Claim 7

An apparatus as claimed in the preceding claim, wherein said double acting hydraulic jacks are hinged to the two said horizontal cross members which longitudinally connect together the guide tubes of said lower support structure, by means of a releasable system.