Rigid-hulled inflatable boat

A rigid inflatable boat ( RIB or RHIB English as shorthand for Rigid [ Hull ] Inflatable Boat ) is a boat with a solid hull. It has better buoyancy characteristics than ordinary inflatable boats and is suitable for offshore applications.

History

Already in the Second World War, the U.S. Navy inflatable boats and life rafts on a large scale as a rescue agent. The French physician Alain Bombard and adventurers came up with the idea of ​​combining all three hitherto existing design elements from the field of Bootsbaues, namely hoses in boat shape, the solid ground and the outboard motor to a RIB. It had Bombard first experimental vehicles in contrast to the modern rigid inflatable boats have a flat bottom.

In the former French aircraft manufacturer Zodiac Bombard found the workshops and the staff with whom a series production could be included. Initially normal inflatable boats and later real rigid inflatable boats were still in production. You are now worldwide in government, military, environmental organizations, fishermen and private users in use.

Construction

The hull of a rigid inflatable boats, is made of aluminum or Kevlar usually made ​​of glass fiber reinforced plastics ( GRP). The boats have the advantage that their weight can be compared with that of a comparable conventional boat greatly reduced. Due to the buoyancy of the air hoses are difficult unsinkable and can be moved freely capsize in heavy seas.

The side rolls, just the " tubing ", and also the floors may be inflatable today are divided into several chambers. This serves to prevent collapse of the entire hose if damaged. For steering of very small boats the outboard motor is controlled directly. For small boats, a mechanism with steering cable or Hydraulic systems are used. For large boats rudders are used.

Rigid inflatable boats today have a length of up to almost 20 meters. Most of them are driven by one or more outboard motors. There are now also inflatables with an inboard motor and Z- or water-jet propulsion. Alternatively, inflatable boats can be rowed or sailed. Only the motor as the drive shaft is completely disappeared. Depending on the construction and motor equipment, the boats can be 40 to 70 km / h.

The inflatable boats with solid hull, two construction types can be distinguished:

  • Rigid inflatable boats, the " Rigid Inflatable Boat " (in short " RIB " ) can be accommodated by some manufacturers in the hull buoyancy chambers aside, would this type without the inflated Schlauchwülste or only empty buoyant.
  • Rigid inflatable boats with surrounding Schlauchwulst to increase stability, "rigid boats with tubes", have a made ​​of any material body, which alone is already buoyant, but seaworthy without hose to a lesser extent. This rigid inflatable boats with circumferential Schlauchwülsten not be actual inflatables, but both of laymen as well as in text books referred to as such. Such a rigid inflatable boat is, for example, The Protector UPS.

Durability

Each boat is losing air. With an otherwise high-quality tube materials usually the valve is the leak. A RIB calls about once a month a small air supply.

The end of the life of a RIB is reached when the intervals at which the hoses must be refilled, are significantly shorter and significantly increases the amount of air to be replenished. With a high quality RIB with tubes made ​​of pure Mehrlagen-Neopren-/PU-Material after 10 to 15 years the time has been reached at which the boat has to be refilled almost every day.

The major manufacturers give their products a warranty of several years.

Tubing

High quality rigid inflatable boats are made ​​entirely of multi-layer material of which at least the outermost consists either depending on the purpose of the user and the manufacturer's philosophy of pure as possible Hypalon or polyurethane. Hypalon is not gas tight, and therefore at least one of the inner layers of neoprene must be made as pure as possible. Such RIB can largely be damage-proof and also manufacture firearms protection.

  • Hypalon - Neoprene mixtures, the pure multi-layer manufacturing of each pure, high quality Hypalon and neoprene, age as well as not, and anyone who has ever patched a bicycle inner tube may repair it. The bed is manufactured from such material dinghy is expensive, but lasts several decades.
  • PU: Pipes made ​​of polyurethane ( PU) are difficult to manufacture and therefore are not often used in rigid inflatable boats construction. PU has the advantages of high stability and a higher abrasion resistance than Hypalon and PVC. Former PU tubes obsolete rather quickly because of the UV sensitivity, but newer types are much more resistant in this regard and are often used in commercial RIBs. High quality PU tubes have a lifespan of more than 20 years.
  • Neoprene is the material that makes Hypalon gas-tight, but it is unfortunately also very sensitive to external influences, which is why it connects in multi- location use with pure Hypalon - plies, but not as the outermost or innermost, but always as a middle layer.
  • Other fabric: If you connect multiple layers of the same ( PVC PVC) or different ( Hypalon - Neoprene - Hypalon ) materials together to either increase the durability (PVC) or the gas tightness ( Hyplanon Neoprene Hyplaon ) of the tube significantly, would at ( in the course of production, during evacuation and transportation preparatory folds) take curvatures of the multi-layer material, the individual layers of different lengths. Thus, the compounds of the layers will be destroyed. Only the variants Hypalon - Neoprene - Hypalon remain gas tight even with separation of the layers. However, upon separation of the layers are mutually movable so that the neoprene wear at the bends over time. Only the variant Hypalon - Neoprene - Hypalon is still repairable.

A Replacing worn, leaky hoses is usually so expensive that it is not economically feasible.

Manufacturer

Known manufacturers of rigid inflatable boats are:

  • Zodiac Marine & Pool, France
  • Tornado Boats of Denmark
  • Ribeye, USA
  • Caribe, Venezuela
  • BRIG, Ukraine

User

Rigid inflatable boats are used worldwide by countless users. Known users are:

  • Rescue companies ( GMRS, DLRG, water rescue, etc.)
  • Environmental organizations (Greenpeace, Sea Shepherd )
  • Police, Fire, Technical Relief
  • The naval forces of many countries
  • Scientific institutions (AWI et al )
  • Oil-producing companies
  • Fisherman
  • Commercial supplier of expeditions ( whale-watching, etc.)
  • Private users.
Boat building Zodiac Aerospace Storm Hydraulics Sterndrive Protector USV Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
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