Method of measuring the trailing force exerted on a dredging arm during operation of a floating dredge and in particular a hopper suction dredge.

摘要

Method of measuring the trailing force exerted on a dredging arm during operation of a floating dredge, in which said trailing force is derived from an algorithm using process data being measured during dredging. The following data can be applied as process data, either individually or in combination:a) the concentration of the mixture brought up by dredging, in the suction tube;b) the velocity of the dredged mixture in the suction tube; andc) the pressure difference over the suction head.;With the use of a Kalman filter the relation between the actual trailing force exerted on the dredging arm and the measured pressure difference over the suction head is estimated continuously, so that the actual trailing force can be calculated.