ICE-BREAKING HOVERCRAFT Russian patent published in 2003 - IPC

FIELD: ice-breaking jobs. SUBSTANCE: hovercraft 2 runs over ice 1 at resonance speed. Use is made of outer skirt 3. If amplitude of excited flexural gravitational waves 4 is insufficient for breaking ice 1, hovercraft 2 is stopped. Then, skirt 5 of smaller area is extended and is connected to high-pressure compressor 7. Skirt 5 may move under hull of hovercraft 2 (position 6). Then, flexible outer guard 3 is pulled (position 8) to bottom of hovercraft 2 and hovercraft 2 starts running over ice 1 at resonance speed. As a result, amplitude of flexural gravitational waves 4 rises to profile 9 and ice 1 is broken behind hovercraft 2 during her advance. EFFECT: enhanced efficiency of breaking ice. 2 dwg