Patents by Inventor Julian F. Bowes

Julian F. Bowes has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5915882
    Abstract: A locking mechanism is disclosed for use on the legs of a jack-up offshore platform. Each chord of the legs includes a rack for cooperation with pinions used in raising and lowering the legs. The locking mechanism of the invention includes a rigid frame attached to the hull of the platform and housing a plurality of vertically aligned toothed chock segments adapted to engage the teeth of the rack on a leg. The chock segments have upper and lower inclined surfaces which cooperate with upper and lower movable wedges for supporting the chock segments. The design makes the chock segments sufficiently adjustable for independent alignment and engagement of the teeth of each chock segment with the corresponding teeth of the rack. Dimensional variances in the rack teeth spacing, resulting from manufacturing tolerances, thereby are accommodated and force concentrations between the rack teeth and chock teeth are minimized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 1997
    Date of Patent: June 29, 1999
    Assignee: LeTourneau, Inc.
    Inventors: Mahmoud K. M. Darwiche, Michael J. Dowdy, Julian F. Bowes
  • Patent number: 5038702
    Abstract: A semi-submersible platform supported on columns with pontoons extending between and outboard of the columns. Damper plates are provided by flat surfaces either on top of the outboard section of the pontoons or by plates positioned on the columns above the pontoons to provide heave and pitch stabilization and motion phase control in relation to the wave action such that when the platform is in the drilling mode, the heave phase of the platform is approximately one hundred eighty degrees out of phase with wave action, and in the survival mode, heave action of the platform is substantially in phase with wave action, such that the platform will ride with the storm waves allowing the use of shorter columns than the current art.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 1989
    Date of Patent: August 13, 1991
    Assignee: Marathon LeTourneau Company
    Inventor: Julian F. Bowes
  • Patent number: 4909174
    Abstract: A semi-submersible platform supported on columns with pontoons extending between and outboard of the columns. Damper plates are provided by flat surfaces either on top of the outboard section of the pontoons or by plates positioned on the columns above the pontoons to provide heave and pitch stabilization and motion phase control in relation to the wave action such that when the platform is in the drilling mode the heave phase of the platform is approximately one hundred eighty degrees out of phase with wave action and in the survival mode heave action of the platform is substantially in phase with wave action, such that the platform will ride with the storm waves allowing the use of shorter columns than the current art.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 1985
    Date of Patent: March 20, 1990
    Assignee: Marathon Manufacturing Company
    Inventor: Julian F. Bowes