SYSTEME DE MANOEUVRE D'AGRES DE PECHE

SYSTEM FOR HANDLING OF FISHING GEARS

Abrégé anglais

Abstract
A system for the transfer of a net formed fishing gear to
a bin (2) aboard a vessel (1), which in association with
a pull means (5) comprises a guide means (6) which is adap-
ted to perform a swinging movement in mutually different
planes relatively to the pull means.

Revendications

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive
property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
1. A system for guided positioning of fishing
gear in the form of a net in a bin aboard a vessel, of
the type which comprises a winch for hauling the net,
and a pull roller disposed at an elevated position
relative to the winch for transferring the net to the
bin, wherein the pull roller is associated with a net
positioning chute extending downwardly between the pull
roller and bin, down which net from the pull roller is
free to fall under its own weight due to gravity into
the bin, means being provided to cause the net position-
ing chute to perform a swinging movement relative to
the pull roller in mutually angularly displaced planes.
2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
net positioning chute is in the form of a monolithic
tube.
3. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
net positioning chute is in the form of a telescopic
tube.
4. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
net positioning chute is provided with a tubular out-
let which is coaxial with the net positioning chute
and rotatable about the longitudinal axis of the same.

5. A system as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein
the net positioning chute is provided with a tubular
outlet which is coaxial with the net positioning
chute and rotatable about the longitudinal axis of the
same.
6. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein
the chute-swinging means comprise jacks operable to
swing the chute in directions athwart and fore-and-aft
of the vessel.
7. A system as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein
the chute-swinging means comprise jacks operable to
swing the chute in directions athwart and fore-and-aft
of the vessel.
8. A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein
the net positioning chute is in the form of a tele-
scopic tube, and including a jack-for adjusting the
length of the telescopic tube.
9. A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the
net positioning chute is in the form of a telescopic
tube and is provided with a tubular outlet which is
coaxial with the net positioning chute and rotatable
about the longitudinal axis of the chute, and including

a jack for adjusting the length of the telescopic tube.
10. A fishing vessel fitted with a system as
claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3.
11. A fishing vessel fitted with a system as
claimed in claim 4, 6 or 8.
12. A fishing vessel fitted with a system as
claimed in claim 9.

Description

~ J 6~366
-- 1 --
The pre~ent invention relate~ to a 6ystem for
handling fishing gear, viz. the transfer of fishing
Bear in the form o~ a net into a bin aboard a vessel,
and i8 particularly intended ~or u~e aboard pod or pur6e
seine vessel~ in which it i5 0~ importance that gear,
such as a seine which iB to be hauled after use, may be
cleared ~or new setting as quicl~ly and simply as possible.
In connection with fishing gear provided with
weights or sinkers along one edge, i.e. the ground, and
with floats, ~uch as cork floate, along the other edge,
it is of importance that the gear, during setting, be
disposed in an orderly manner in the gear binp with the
ground edge along one side of the vessel and the buo~ed
- edge ~n the ather. It is now usual for the gear to be
drawn by means of a winoh at one side o~ the vessel,
then passed over an elevated pull roller arrangement
at the end of a boom, and thence downwardly into a bin
in which the gear is placed in an orderly manner by the
crew3 a ta~k which is both heavy and cumbersome, as the
gear is arriving at a relatively high speed, and may be
very heavy.
~ he present invention relates to a 6ystem o~ the
type which comprises a winch for hauling the net and a
pull rol~er disposed at an elevated position relative
to the winch for transferring the net to ths bin, and
the purpose pf the invention i8 to effectively avoid or
~ubstantially ~educe the heavy manual labour of the
prior system~. Thi~ is achieved, according to the
present invention by a~sociating the pull roller with a
net positioning chute e~tendin~ downwardly between tha

fi ~;
-- 2 --
pull roller and bin~ down which net ~rom the pull roller
i8 free to fall un~er its own weight due to gravity into
the bin, means being provided to causo the net positionin~
chute to per~orm a swinging movement relative to the
pull roller in mutually angularly displaced planes. In
such a system, the gear may be placed or ~towed in orderly
runs or turn8 in the bin, 80 that it may sub~equently be
~et without fo~ming tangles or other disorder.
The system embodying the inventlon pre~erably
use~ a net positioning chute in the form of a tube,
which may be telescopic, and which is adapted to cooperate
with jack means adapted to cause the tube to perform
swinging movements for guiding the positioning o~ the
gear in the bin.
In order that the mvention may be more readily
understood, an embodiment of a system applied to a pod
or purse seine vessel will now be de~cribed with reference
to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
~ig. 1 is a ~ide view of the system;
~ig. 2 is a plan view of t~e system;
~ig. ~ is a view of the system as seen from the
left in ~ig. 1,~ i.e. in the fore and aft direction o~
the vessel; a~d
Fig. 4 is a side view of a detail of the system~
In -the drawing, 1 i~ the aft portion of a fishing
vessel, in which a bin 2 is arranged for the reception
of a net which may be hauled in by means of a winch 3 at
the side of the vessei. Inboard of the winch ~, the
net is carried through a tube 4 over a pull unit 5
positioned at an elevated position aboard the ves~el, for
in~tance at the end of a boom, and i3 then conveyed to

the bin 2. The seine i8 to be set out ~rom the bin 2.
The pull unit 5 i0 asso~iated with a net po~ition-
ing chute e~tendin~ downwardly between the unit 5 and
the bin 2, in the ~orm of a tube6,down which the net is
free to fall or ~lide under it~l own wei~ht due to gra~ity.
The tube ma~ be monolithic, in one piece, or, as shown,tele-
scopiC so as to adapt to the distance between t~ unit 5 and
the various points in direction6 athwart and fore and-
a~t of the vessel, where the net i8 to be placed in the
bin, and to the amount of net stowed9 for example
piled, in the bin ~. The tube 6 i8 provided with an
inlek collar 7, and an outlet nozzle 8 which may be
provided wqth means 9 (Fig. 4), coaxial with the tube 6
and rotatable about the longitudinal axis thereoi,
adapted to twist the net BO as to facilitate the position-
ing of the net in the bin 2.
Means are providedf associated with the tube 6,
for the purpose of varying the length of the tube 6 and
for swinging the same relative to the pull roller in
mutually displaced planes, i..e. in athwart and fore-and-
aft direction~ during the hauling of the net and the
placing o~ the same in the bin 2. The latter means com-
prises jacks, for example hydraulic piston-and-cylinder
means 10, 11 and 12 as shown, which respectively effect
adjustment of the tube length, and swinging o~ the tube
6 in athwart and fore-and-aft directions BO that the net
is pl~ce~ in the bin 2 with the ground edge of the net
towards the same side of the vessel as the winch 3 and
the buoyed edge toward~ the opposite slde. Thus,
~0 utilisation of the bin i3 maximised, and the s~bsequent

~J~ 6
paying out of the net may be performed without difficul-
ties.
In the embodiment ~hown, the nozzle 8 i~ positioned
at the outlet of the tube 6. ~owever, it may prove
advantageous to position the means for tWiBting the gear .
at an earlier point during the advance o~ the gear~ for
in~tance along the length o~ the tube 67 or even in the
guide tube 4
,