UNDERWATER TRANSPORT TUNNEL SYSTEM, TUNNEL SECTION AND TUNNEL SECTION JOINING DEVICE Russian patent published in 2006 - IPC E02D29/63 

FIELD: underground or underwater structures, particularly underwater tunnels composed of separate sections, immersed in water or laid on water pool bottom and auxiliary joining devices to connect tubular sections at water surface or under water.

SUBSTANCE: tunnel system is adapted to connect the first and the second shores of opposite land zones separated by water body. The tunnel system comprises the first and the second watertight elongated inclined inlet and outlet tubular tunnel sections built in the first and the second shores correspondingly. The first and the second elongated tunnel sections pass into water body for predetermined depth and extend one towards another. The tunnel structure has a number of underwater elongated watertight intermediate sections provided with roadway members and roadway support means arranged inside the sections and extending between intermediate section ends. The tunnel structure comprises watertight joining devices to connect opposite ends of neighboring tunnel sections and remote ends of the first and the second tunnel sections with the first ends of adjacent intermediate sections so that longitudinal axes of the first and the second sections are longitudinally aligned with that of intermediate tunnel sections. At least one intermediate tunnel section is provided with at least one movable partition to be built in roadway in lower horizontal position. The movable partition in its upper position hermetically blocks through passage defined over roadway of intermediate tunnel section. The elongated tubular tunnel section includes roadway and roadway support means arranged inside it between ends thereof. The tunnel section is provided with at least one movable partition to be built in roadway in lower horizontal position. The movable partition in its upper position hermetically blocks through passage over roadway of intermediate tunnel section. Tunnel section joining device comprises thrust collar to be mounted on surface of one tubular tunnel sections having ends facing each other near tunnel section ends and coaxial to the surface. The joining device also has several drives installed on the thrust collar along periphery thereof and adapted to drive joining members to bring them into contact with another tunnel section along section periphery near end to be joined thereof. The device is adapted to connect tunnel sections. The joining members are made as bars having proximate ends hinged to thrust collar and remote ends directed from drives out of tunnel section and extending beyond longitudinal tunnel section dimension after the thrust collar has been assembled. The drives are formed so that remote bar ends may be moved to thrust collar axis and/or moved away from the axis. Power drive of the partition may be used as power drive to close joining area during tunnel section connection.

EFFECT: increased tunnel operational safety, simplified method and reduced cost of tunnel system construction.

17 cl, 6 dwg