Patents by Inventor Hein Wille

Hein Wille 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: 9933119
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100) comprising a converted LNG carrier with a hull and a plurality of LNG storage tanks (4, 104) wherein in that the floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100) comprises: —at least one sponson (2, 2?, 3, 3?, 102, 103) on the side of the hull, for creating additional hull volume, —process equipment (110) for LNG processing on the floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100), and—a reservoir for storing fluids separated during the LNG processing, wherein said reservoir is formed by the ballast tank or in the space reserved for the ballast tank of the original LNG carrier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2018
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings, Inc.
    Inventors: Adam Bernays, Hein Wille, Jeremy Duncan Stuart Joynson
  • Patent number: 9458700
    Abstract: A system for developing offshore hydrocarbon fields includes a floating hydrocarbon processing unit moored to the seabed and connected to a hydrocarbon reservoir via a riser and a wellhead on the seabed, the unit receiving and processing the hydrocarbon mixture received from the reservoir via the riser, and having equipment to separate the hydrocarbon mixture into oil, water and gas and store them in storage tanks. A gas storage buffer reservoir is placed at a distance from and isolated from the hydrocarbon reservoir. A gas export riser is connected to the floating hydrocarbon processing unit and the gas buffer reservoir to export separated gas and inject it into the gas buffer reservoir. A gas riser has one end connected to the gas buffer reservoir and another end connected to the floating gas processing unit for processing gas received from the gas buffer reservoir for enabling transportation to shore.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2016
    Assignee: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Harke Jan Meek
  • Patent number: 9297350
    Abstract: A combined offshore system for generating electricity includes of an offshore windmill unit with a generator for extracting power from wind and transferring it into electricity, a electricity export cable connected to the windmill for exporting produced electricity to offshore or onshore consumers, and at least one offshore wave power unit for extracting power from waves. This offshore wave power unit is characterized in that electricity produced by the wave power unit is transferred via the same electricity export cable as the electricity generated by the windmill unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Sophie Boureau
  • Patent number: 8740583
    Abstract: A system wherein cold water from near the sea floor is pumped through a primarily vertical pipe (12) to a body (14) floating at the sea surface so energy can be obtained from water temperature differences. A pump (50) located at the bottom of the pipe, is part of a pump module (46) that can be inserted and removed horizontally through a slot (44) in a bottom structure (22) lying at the bottom of the pipe. The top of the pipe is sealed to a movable pipe connector, by a U-shaped elastomeric seal (110). The pipe can include a short top pipe section (126) and a long bottom pipe section (127) of smaller diameter (D), whose upper portion can be pulled up through the top pipe section when the top pipe section is damaged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2014
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings, Inc.
    Inventors: Jack Pollack, Hein Wille
  • Patent number: 8729723
    Abstract: A floating energy generating device includes at least two wind turbines mounted on a floating open structure, the floating open structure being moored to the seabed with a mooring system, each wind turbine featuring in operation mode a blade and rotor part mounted at the top of a tower and being connected via a cable to a central control power electronic unit on the floating open structure, the central control power unit being connected to a submerged high voltage power export cable for exporting the electricity generated by the at least two windmills, characterized in that the floating open structure being connectable to or disconnectable from the mooring system and that when disconnected from the mooring system, the center of gravity of the floating open structure is at or below its center of buoyancy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Sophie Boureau, Hein Wille
  • Publication number: 20140091576
    Abstract: A combined offshore system for generating electricity includes of an offshore windmill unit with a generator for extracting power from wind and transferring it into electricity, a electricity export cable connected to the windmill for exporting produced electricity to offshore or onshore consumers, and at least one offshore wave power unit for extracting power from waves. This offshore wave power unit is characterized in that electricity produced by the wave power unit is transferred via the same electricity export cable as the electricity generated by the windmill unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2013
    Publication date: April 3, 2014
    Applicant: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein WILLE, Sophie BOUREAU
  • Patent number: 8624416
    Abstract: A combined offshore system for generating electricity includes of an offshore windmill unit with a generator for extracting power from wind and transferring it into electricity, a electricity export cable connected to the windmill for exporting produced electricity to offshore or onshore consumers, and at least one offshore wave power unit for extracting power from waves. This offshore wave power unit is characterized in that electricity produced by the wave power unit is transferred via the same electricity export cable as the electricity generated by the windmill unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2014
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Sophie Boureau
  • Publication number: 20130283825
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100) comprising a converted LNG carrier with a hull and a plurality of LNG storage tanks (4, 104) wherein in that the floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100) comprises:—at least one sponson (2, 2?, 3, 3?, 102, 103) on the side of the hull, for creating additional hull volume,—process equipment (110) for LNG processing on the floating LNG plant (1, 1?, 100), and—a reservoir for storing fluids separated during the LNG processing, wherein said reservoir is formed by the ballast tank or in the space reserved for the ballast tank of the original LNG carrier.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 16, 2011
    Publication date: October 31, 2013
    Inventors: Adam Bernays, Hein Wille, Jeremy Duncan Stuart Joynson
  • Patent number: 8414342
    Abstract: A steel pipeline (22) extends in a shallow catenary curve between two floating structures (12, 14). The pipeline is connected to each floating structure in a joint (60, 60B) that has a center lying on or very close to the pitch and roll axes (54, 56, 54B, 56B) of the corresponding structure hull. A first structure has a recess (52) extending upward from the bottom of the first structure hull to at least the pitch and roll axes of the hull. The shallow catenary curve pipeline extends at an incline (C) of many degrees to the vertical into the recess, and the pipeline end (30) connects to a pipe connector (70) lying on the pitch and roll axes. The pipe connector preferably allows free relative pivoting of a plurality of degrees about horizontal axes between itself and the first pipe end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings, Inc.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Jack Pollack
  • Patent number: 8142108
    Abstract: A riser installation method including the steps of providing a first vessel situated over a hydrocarbon well, supporting a hydrocarbon transfer duct from the first vessel by a first end that is attached to a lowering device on the first vessel, and attaching a second end of the hydrocarbon duct to a second vessel, at a position near the first vessel. The method also includes the steps of lowering the transfer duct, increasing the distance of the second vessel from the first vessel, pulling the transfer duct until the second vessel is near the third vessel, contacting a section of the transfer duct with the sea bed, displacing the second end of the transfer duct from the first vessel, returning the second end of the transfer duct to the mooring position, and bringing the second end of the hydrocarbon transfer duct in fluid communication with the third vessel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2012
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Jack Pollack, Hein Wille
  • Publication number: 20120024391
    Abstract: A system for developing one or more offshore hydrocarbon fields includes at least one floating hydrocarbon processing unit moored to the seabed and connected to a hydrocarbon reservoir via a riser and a wellhead on the seabed, the unit receiving and processing the hydrocarbon mixture received from the reservoir via the riser, and having equipment to separate the hydrocarbon mixture into oil, water and gas and store them in storage tanks. A gas storage buffer reservoir is placed at a certain distance from and isolated from the hydrocarbon reservoir. A gas export riser is connected to the floating hydrocarbon processing unit and the gas buffer reservoir to export separated gas and inject it into the gas buffer reservoir. A gas riser has one end connected to the gas buffer reservoir and another end connected to the floating gas processing unit for processing gas received from the gas buffer reservoir for enabling transportation to shore.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2010
    Publication date: February 2, 2012
    Applicant: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Harke Jan Meek
  • Patent number: 8074687
    Abstract: A flexible cryogenic transfer hose for connecting two cryogenic facilities, has a length of at least 20 m, and: an inner flexible hose with at least two segments, interconnected via at least two transverse inner connecting members, an outer hose surrounding the inner hose and including a watertight elastomeric or composite material, the outer hose having at least two segments mutually connected via two outer connecting members, the outer hose having a wall thickness of at least 2 cm, a bend radius of at least 2 m, and an internal diameter of at least 20 cm, the inner hose being kept at a distance from the outer hose via spacer elements bridging a distance between the outer wall of the inner hose and an inner wall of the outer hose, which distance is between 0.1 and 0.8 times the internal diameter dio of the inner hose.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2011
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Jean-Pierre Queau, Jack Pollack, Hein Wille, Liselotte Van Dijk
  • Publication number: 20110298215
    Abstract: Systems are described for obtaining energy from water movements in shallow waters, using panels (4) that are pivotally mounted (13) near the sea floor in shallow water and that extend up to the sea surface, or that are pivotally mounted above the sea surface and extend down into the sea. As water near the sea surface moves in ellipses (48), or largely back and forth, the panel pivots back and forth. A cylinder (8, 18) with one end (7?) mounted on a stationary base and an opposite end (7) connected to the panel, carries at least one sheet (70) of elastomeric material that has electrodes (72, 74) at its opposite faces, with an electrical charge between the electrodes. As the panel pivots back and forth, the sheet is repeatedly stretched and relaxed to vary the voltage between the electrodes in order to generate electricity. A cylinder (8) can be used whose ends move toward and away from each other, or a cylinder (18) can be used whose ends pivot about a cylinder axis relative to each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2011
    Publication date: December 8, 2011
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Sophie Boureau
  • Publication number: 20110241347
    Abstract: A floating energy generating device includes at least two wind turbines mounted on a floating open structure, the floating open structure being moored to the seabed with a mooring system, each wind turbine featuring in operation mode a blade and rotor part mounted at the top of a tower and being connected via a cable to a central control power electronic unit on the floating open structure, the central control power unit being connected to a submerged high voltage power export cable for exporting the electricity generated by the at least two windmills, characterized in that the floating open structure being connectable to or disconnectable from the mooring system and that when disconnected from the mooring system, the center of gravity of the floating open structure is at or below its center of buoyancy.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2011
    Publication date: October 6, 2011
    Applicant: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Sophie BOUREAU, Hein WILLE
  • Patent number: 7975769
    Abstract: The invention relates to a hydrocarbon exploration system, comprising a first vessel (1) having a turret (3) around which the vessel can weathervane, the turret being moored to the sea bed (4), and a second vessel (7) connected with at least one riser (12) to a subsea well (5), the first vessel (1) being connected to the second vessel via a fluid transfer duct (20) comprising a first end section (23) attached to the turret of the first vessel (1), a substantially horizontal mid section (24), and a second end section (22) attached at or near the second vessel (7), the second vessel (7) weighing between 2,000 and 15,000 ton its base being attached to the sea bed via taut tendons (9), the weight exerted by the fluid transfer duct (20) on the second vessel being below 1,000 ton, a power generator being situated on the first vessel (1), power being transferred from the power generator via an electrical swivel on the first vessel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Jack Pollack, Hein Wille
  • Publication number: 20110067768
    Abstract: A system wherein cold water from near the sea floor is pumped through a primarily vertical pipe (12) to a body (14) floating at the sea surface so energy can be obtained from water temperature differences. A pump (50) located at the bottom of the pipe, is part of a pump module (46) that can be inserted and removed horizontally through a slot (44) in a bottom structure (22) lying at the bottom of the pipe. The top of the pipe is sealed to a movable pipe connector, by a U-shaped elastomeric seal (110). The pipe can include a short top pipe section (126) and a long bottom pipe section (127) of smaller diameter (D), whose upper portion can be pulled up through the top pipe section when the top pipe section is damaged.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 25, 2010
    Publication date: March 24, 2011
    Inventors: Jack Pollack, Hein Wille
  • Publication number: 20110037266
    Abstract: A combined offshore system for generating electricity includes of an offshore windmill unit with a generator for extracting power from wind and transferring it into electricity, a electricity export cable connected to the windmill for exporting produced electricity to offshore or onshore consumers, and at least one offshore wave power unit for extracting power from waves. This offshore wave power unit is characterized in that electricity produced by the wave power unit is transferred via the same electricity export cable as the electricity generated by the windmill unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 26, 2009
    Publication date: February 17, 2011
    Applicant: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Sophie Boureau
  • Patent number: 7793723
    Abstract: An offshore system allows a vessel (12) to sail to a predetermined sea location (14), quickly set up a loading system and start the transfer of hydrocarbons to or from a pipeline (22), and then quickly disconnect and sail away. The vessel is a DP (dynamic positioning) vessel that does not require mooring or anchor lines, so the only apparatus to install is a conduit (30) that can be picked up by the vessel to extend between a stationary pipe end (24) that lies at the sea floor and the vessel. The conduit includes primarily a flexible hose (70) that extends in a sine wave with two loops (80, 82). The conduit includes a rigid reinforced hose section (34) that is pivotally connected to the sea floor. A chain (114) can be provided with a portion of the chain lying on the sea floor, to help the disconnected hose coupling (42D) remain at a stable position above the sea floor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings, Inc.
    Inventors: Stein Vedeld, Pierre Balleraud, Hein Wille
  • Patent number: 7793605
    Abstract: The invention relates to a mooring system with a first vessel for containing hydrocarbons having at its bow and/or stern a transverse arm and a fluid transfer mechanism of a duct connected to a tank on the first vessel and a coupling end for connecting to a second vessel. The second vessel is moored alongside the first vessel and is attached via at least one cable, extending from its bow in the length direction of the vessel, to a mooring end of the arm. The mooring end of the arm is situated at or near a longitudinal centerline of the second vessel. The arm, during use, is in a fixed position and a pulling force element is attached to the cable for applying a pulling force on the cable upon relative movement of the second vessel with respect to the arm. The force element allows a predetermined maximum displacement of the second vessel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Single Buoy Moorings Inc.
    Inventors: Leendert Poldervaart, Jack Pollack, Hein Wille, Hein Oomen
  • Publication number: 20100186965
    Abstract: An off-shore structure is installed in a body of water. The body of water extends above a floor, such as a seabed, and has a water surface. A buoyant pontoon and a top structure are provided separately from each other. The top structure has a deck, a plurality of legs that are connected to the deck, and a jacking system for displacing the legs relative to the deck. The pontoon is submerged below the water surface. The submerged pontoon is connected to the floor with tendons. The top structure is aligned above the submerged pontoon connected to the floor. Then, the legs are jacked-down relative to the deck until the legs abut against the submerged pontoon connected to the floor. Subsequently, the jacked-down legs are attached to the submerged pontoon and the deck is jacked-up relative to the pontoon until the deck is standing above the water surface. A number of risers are installed for providing a fluid communication between the floor and the deck after jacking up the deck above the water surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 7, 2008
    Publication date: July 29, 2010
    Applicant: SINGLE BUOY MOORINGS INC.
    Inventors: Hein Wille, Jack Pollack