Apparatus for Lifting, Supporting, and Weighing Vessels and their Cargoes, and which can be Serve also, and a Valve to be to Vessels to be We in such Apparatus for Automatically Discharging Water there- from.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Dec., 1886.
Complete Left, 21st Sept., 1887
Complete Accepted, 21st Oct., 1887
Apparatus for Lifting, Supporting, and Weighing Vessels and their
Cargoes, and which can be Constructed to Serve also as a
Bridge, and a Valve to be Applied to Vessels to be Weighed
in such Apparatus for Automatically Discharging Water there-
from.
J, GEORGE SPENCER, of 77 Cannon Street, in the City of London, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
:-
This invention has reference to apparatus designed primarily for the purpose of
enabling the weights of the cargoes of vessels (as for example the weight of the cargo
of sugar cane contained in a punt) to .be ascertained without removal of the cargoes
from the vessels; but the apparatus may be used also for raising vessels out of the
water and supporting them whilst they are being turned over for examination, calked,
or for other purposes. Furthermore, under certain modifications, the apparatus being
provided with a suitable staging or flooring may be made to serve likewise as a
bridge.
The invention also comprises a form of valve to be applied to vessels intended to be
weighed with their cargoes in the apparatus above referred to, such valve being
designed to admit of the automatic discharge from such vessels of water that may have
leaked into them.
For weighing, hydraulic cylinders with rams are arranged to support girders or
frame-work to which are suspended cross-girders or bars or the equivalent thereof,
such as a grid, intended to support a vessel and cargo to be weighed, but so con-
structed as not to retain water. In connection with the cylinders and rams, an
accumulator or accumulators and pump or pumps are provided. Also a reducing
valve and an indicator gauge or gauges for weighing are provided, these being under
the control of the person in charge. The arrangement is such that, when the rams
occupy their lowered positions within the cylinders, the cross-girders or their
1177

page_text: equivalent for supporting the vessels will be submerged to such an extent as to permit
vessels to float over the same.
To weigh any cargo with such apparatus, the vessel containing it is floated over the
submerged girders or their equivalent; these are then raised by the hydraulic apparatus
so as to support the vessel and its cargo and raise the same above the surface of the
water. The weight borne by the rams of the hydraulic cylinders is then led off the
pressure gauge or gauges and the weight of the cargo is found by deducting
the weight of the vessel and of the apparatus supported by the rams from the weight
indicated by the gauge or gauges.
In order that any water which may have leaked into the vessel may be automatically
discharged, the vessel is provided with a valve of peculiar construction that opens
automatically on the vessel being raised out of the water, and is caused to shut by the
pressure of the water when the vessel is afloat.
The improved valve is self-acting, opening by gravitation when the vessel to which
it is applied is raised out of the water, and is closed as aforesaid by the water pressure
when the vessel is returned to the water. It has two seats-an inner one and an
outer one the inner one to prevent excess pressure acting upon it by the leakage of
the vessel.
If one valve be not found sufficient, additional valves such as referred to may be
distributed over the length of the vessel.
W. LLOYD WISE,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C.,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: 1, GEORGE SPENCER, of 77 Cannon Street, in the City of London, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
This invention has reference to apparatus designed primarily for the purpose of
enabling the weights of the cargoes of vessels (as for example the weight of the
cargo of sugar cane contained in a punt) to be ascertained without removal of the
cargoes from the vessels; but the apparatus may be used also for raising vessels out
of the water and supporting them whilst they are being turned over for examination,
calked, or for other purposes. Furthermore, under certain modifications, the apparatus
being provided with a suitable staging or flooring may be made to serve likewise as
a bridge.
The invention also comprises a form of valve to be applied to vessels intended to
be weighed with their cargoes in the apparatus above referred to, such valve being
designed to admit of the automatic discharge from such vessels of water that may
have leaked into them.
For weighing, hydraulic cylinders with rams are arranged to support girders or frame-
work to which aro suspended cross-girders or bars or the equivalent thereof, such as a
grid, intended to support a vessel and cargo to be weighed, but so constructed as not to
rotain water. In connection with the cylinders and rams, an accumulator or
accumulators and pump or pumps are provided-Also a reducing valve and an
indicator gauge or gauges for weighing are provided, these being under the control
of the person in charge. The arrangement is such that, when the rams occupy their
lowered positions within the cylinders, the cross-girders or their equivalent for
supporting the vessels will be submerged to such an extent as to permit vessels to
float over the same.
To weigh any cargo with such apparatus, the vessel containing it is floated over
the submerged girders or their equivalent; these are then raised by the hydraulic
apparatus so as to support the vessel and its cargo and raise the same above the
surface of the water. The weight borne by the rams of the hydraulic cylinders is
then read off the pressure gauge or gauges and the weight of the cargo is found by
deducting the weight of the vessel and of the apparatus supported by the rams from
the weight indicated by the gauge or gauges.
In order that any water which may have leaked into the vessel may be automatically
discharged, the vessel is provided with a valve of peculiar construction that opens

page_text: automatically on the vessel being raised out of the water, and is caused to shut by the
pressure of the water when the vessel is afloat.
The improved valve is self-acting, opening by gravitation when the vessel to which
it is applied is raised out of the water, and is closed as aforesaid by the water pressure
when the vessel is returned to the water. It has two seats, an inner one and an outer
one the inner one to prevent excess pressure acting upon it by the leakage of
the vessel.
If one valve be not found sufficient, additional valves such as referred to may be
distributed over the length of the vessel. The construction and arrangement of
apparatus made according to this invention will be clearly understood by referring to
the annexed sheets of illustrative drawings in which―
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section.
Fig. 2 a transverse section and Fig. 3 a plan of an apparatus constructed according
to this invention. Figs. 4 and 5 are detail views of one of the cross girders seen in
Fig. 2 and Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate in plan and section the self acting valve which
is fitted to the bottoms of the punts.
The same letters of reference refer to similar parts in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. A, A1, A2, A3,
are transverse girders, constructed as shown in detail in Fig. 4. The under side of
each end of each girder is provided with a cap piece shown at 6 Figs. 4 and 5. These
cap pieces take upon the piston heads of the hydraulic rams B. There are thus two
rams to each transverse girder. The transverse girders, of which four are shown
in the drawing, but of which any convenient number may be used according to
the dimensions required, are connected together on their upper surfaces by planking CC
and are further stiffened and held in position by diagonal iron rods as indicated in
Figs. 1 and 3. To cach transverse girder two pairs of iron suspension rods D D are
attached by the bolts E which pass over the girders A A A A³ and are secured by
suitable nuts as shewn in Fig. 3. Each pair of iron suspension rods is connected
together in a loop form at the bottom as shown in Fig. 1 and through the loops thus
formed the transverse angle iron bars F (Fig. 2) are passed so that the said bars F
are securely suspended from the transverse girders. The outside or end girders of
the system as A A³ are arranged to take into suitably formed projections in the vertical
guide posts G G¹G³G³. H, H, Fig. 2, represents brickwork or masonry for sup
porting the hydraulic pumps and forming at the same time a suitable basin in which
the vessel to be weighed is floated over the transverse anglo iron bars F as indicated
in the drawings. II¹ 1 &c. represents a system of hydraulic pipes leading from an
accumulator charged by a suitable hydraulic pump not shewn in the drawings. To
connect the hydraulic rams on one side of the basin or canal over which the weigh
bridge is fixed with those on the other side so that all of them may be worked simul-
taneously a pipe 12 in connection with the system may be carried along one of the
transverse girders as shewn in Fig. 2 in which case to allow for the rising and falling
movement of the girders telescopic joints are made at 13 1; or the rams on the two
sides of the basin or canal may be connected by pipes passing under the basin or canal
in which case although the pipe would be rather more difficult to get at for repairs
should such be needed the necessity for the telescopic joints above referred to would
be obviated. K (Fig. 3) is a reducing valve and L is an indicator for ascertaining
the pressure exerted by the hydraulic rams. Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate the self-acting
valve, to be fitted under punts or other vessels to be weiged, for discharging water
which may find its way into them by leakage. A is a valve disc with guide pin A¹;
B the seating upon which A is fitted and Can inner scating to prevent excess pressure
acting upon it by the leakage of the vessel. D is a cap or covering preferably of cast
iron, to prevent injury to the valve, provided with narrow slits or orifices which serve
as a sieve to prevent solid material being carried into the valve seating. The action
of this apparatus is as follows:-The punt or other vessel to be weighed is floated into
the apparatus as indicated in Figs. 1 2 and 3 over the transverse bars F. The hydraulic
pumps are then set to work and they raise the transverse girders which are connected
by the suspending rods to the transverse angle iron bars now situated under the bottom
of the punt or vessel; the punt or other. vessel will be raised by this means above the

page_text: level of the water. And any water in the punt or vessel to be weighed the presence
of which would interfere with the accuracy of the observation to be made will find its
way through one of the selfacting valves shewn in figs. 6 and 7 leaving the interior
of the punt or vessel free of water. When this takes place and the water has drained
from the interior of the punt or vessel the total weight of the bridge together with
that of the punt or vessel and its cargo can be ascertained by observing the total
pressure exerted in the pumps as shown by the indicator L; then by subtracting the
known weight of the bridge, and the tare of the punt or other vessel, the effective
weight of the cargo will be found. It will be evident that the hydraulic lift or weigh
bridge such as above described can be usefully applied to other purposes than that of
weighing the cargoes of vessels as for example it may be usefully applied for raising
such vessels free of the water for the purposes of cleaning calking painting repairing
and the like. It will be equally evident that the planking secured as described to the
surface of the transverse girders can be utilized as a bridge for foot or vehicular
traffic.
Apparatus made according to this invention may be modified in various ways to
suit particular cases without departure from the essential features of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :—
1. Apparatus for lifting vessels out of water and supporting them, comprising
transverse bars suspended from cross girders supported on hydraulic rams substantially
as described with reference to the drawings annexed.
2. In a punt or vessel, a self-acting valve or valves arranged substantially as
described to effect the discharging of water from such punt or vessel as above set
forth.
3. The improved apparatus for ascertaining the weight of the cargo of a punt or
vessel arranged and operating substantially in the manner hereinbefore described with
reference to the drawings annexed.
Dated this 20th day of September A.D. 1007.
W. LLOYD WISE,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C.,
Agent for the Applicant.