Submersible drag barge

Abstract

A dredging system for removing material under a structure may include a barge body including a plurality of barge sections, each barge section of the plurality of barge sections configured to selectively be fully submersed or partially submersed to adjust a height of the barge body. A dredging system for removing material under a structure may include a winch system attached to the barge body and including a cable. A dredging system for removing material under a structure may include a drag beam coupled to the barge body via the cable and configured to vertically move via the winch system between a deployed position and undeployed position.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A dredging system for removing material under a structure, comprising:
 a submersible drag barge including:
 a barge body including a plurality of barge sections, each barge section of the plurality of barge sections configured to be selectively flooded to adjust a height of the barge body; 
 a winch system attached to the barge body and including a cable; and 
 a drag beam coupled to the barge body via the cable and configured to vertically move via the winch system between a deployed position and an undeployed position. 
   
     
     
         2 . The dredging system of  claim 1 , further comprising a boat configured to be attached to a rear end of the submersible drag barge and configured to push the submersible drag barge under the structure when the drag beam is in the undeployed position and pull the submersible drag barge when the drag beam is in the deployed position. 
     
     
         3 . The dredging system of  claim 1 , further comprising a support barge disposed adjacent to the submersible drag barge and configured to laterally support the submersible drag barge. 
     
     
         4 . The dredging system of  claim 1 , wherein the barge body includes a bumper extension. 
     
     
         5 . The dredging system of  claim 1 , wherein each barge section is attached to at least one adjacent barge section side-to-side, end-to-end, or end-to-side. 
     
     
         6 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , further comprising a support cable including a first end secured to the winch system and a second end secure to the drag beam. 
     
     
         7 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , wherein the drag beam includes a plate disposed at an angle towards a rear end of the barge body. 
     
     
         8 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , wherein the drag beam is disposed proximate to a front end of the barge body and the winch system is disposed at a rear end of the barge body. 
     
     
         9 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 8 , further comprising a guide system disposed at the front end of the barge body and receiving the cable from the winch system. 
     
     
         10 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 9 , wherein the guide system includes a sheave assembly. 
     
     
         11 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , wherein the drag beam has a length that is substantially the same as a width of the barge body. 
     
     
         12 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , wherein the cable is attached to the drag barge via an attachment assembly, the attachment assembly secured to the drag barge. 
     
     
         13 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 12 , wherein the attachment assembly includes a pad eye and a shackle, and the cable is secured to the shackle. 
     
     
         14 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , further comprising a support cable including a first end secured to the winch system and a second end secure to the drag beam and the drag beam includes a plate disposed at an angle towards a rear end of the barge body. 
     
     
         15 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 14 , wherein a first attachment assembly disposed on the drag beam receives the cable and a second attachment assembly disposed on the plate receives the support cable. 
     
     
         16 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 15 , wherein the support cable has a Y-shaped split, and one end is disposed on the first attachment assembly and an other end is disposed on the second attachment assembly. 
     
     
         17 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 1 , further comprising a sensor system configured to measure a depth of the drag beam. 
     
     
         18 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 17 , wherein the sensor system includes at least one sensor disposed on the drag beam. 
     
     
         19 . The submersible drag barge of  claim 9 , further comprising a guide pulley disposed between the winch system and the guide system, the guide pulley receiving the cable. 
     
     
         20 . A method of removing material from under a structure, comprising:
 providing a submersible drag barge including: a barge body including a plurality of barge sections, each barge section of the plurality of barge sections configured to be selectively flooded to adjust a height of the barge body; a winch system attached to the barge body and including a cable; and a drag beam coupled to the barge body via the cable and configured to vertically move via the winch system between a deployed position and an undeployed position;   lowering the barge body by selectively flooding at least one of the plurality of barge sections;   pushing, with the boat, the barge body under the structure;   lowering the drag beam via the winch system; and   pulling, via the boat, the barge body from under the structure, thereby displacing material from under the structure.