IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR WORKING, AND LOADING, GUNS
Year: 1884

page_text: I, ALBERT SAUVÉE, of 22 Parliament Street, in the City of Westminster, in 'the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR WORKING, AND
LOADING, GUNS" and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
In the specification of patent N° 279 dated 2nd January 1884, which has been
granted to me I claim as my invention a mode of loading guns mounted either in
turrets "en barbette" or in closed turrets by means of improved charge carriers
guided in a tube fixed in the centre of the platform supporting the gun carriage
and therefore movable with the gun. This arrangement which allows of the loading
of the gun in any position of lateral training even when the gun carriage is actually
revolving can be modified according to the relative position of the gun to the central
tube.
In the first arrangement described in the above mentioned patent the face of the,
breech of the gun came close to the axis of the tube..
When the face of the breech does not overhang the edge of the central tube
(see sheet 1 of the accompanying drawings) I guide the charge carrier by means of
two guide bars fixed inside the tube and also parallel to its axis, so as to be able to-
bring the charge carrier behind the breech by acting on it by means of the rods of
a bydraulic cylinder, in which work telescoping pistons or by means of chains,
screws or pulley-blocks.
When the back portion of the breech overhangs the central tube to a great
extent, I arrange the charge carrier as shown in sheet 2.
-
The charge carrier is mounted on a platform carried on small rollers and worked
by means of a telescopic hydraulic cylinder or by means of chains, screws or
pulley-blocks. This platform is guided in its movement up and down in the central
tube by sliding on vertical guides. When tlie charge carrier reaches the level of
the gun carriage floor, it hooks itself to the end of a hydraulic piston and at the
Dia 31"

page_text: same time lets go a catch which works the valve introducing the water at the back
of the piston. The stroke of this piston is so calculated that when at the end of
the stroke the charge carrier is clear of the face of the breech. This position is
shown in the drawing in black lines. When it reaches this position the charge
carrier presses a catch that admits water into a vertical telescopic cylinder and the
charge is brought exactly opposite the breech of the gun.
I also use this arrangement with a fixed central tube, but when the platform A
reaches the required level I make the charge carrier turn round its axis so as to
place it in the proper position; it then hooks itself to the end of the piston B and
the manipulation is completed as if the charge carrier had been lifted inside a
central tube movable with the large platform carrying the gun itself.
The various movements described of the charge carriers are if required performed
by means of chains, screws or pulley-blocks instead of by hydraulic cylinders.
Charge Carriers. In plates and 2 I have shown an improved form of charge
carrier which I employ in certain cases.
The projectile rests directly on the bottom of the charge carrier and the charges
of powder are carried above on each side by means of two troughs that are hinged
horizontally on each side of carrier.
When the projectile has been rammed into the gun I let go the catch, say of the
right hand trough by means of a lever fixed at c and one half cartridge drops in the
place previously occupied by the projectile; this half cartridge is rammed in and
then the other half is operated upon in the same way.
To lift the men into the turret or to remove the wounded I replace the charge
carrier by a litter specially devised for the purpose.
I also generally use the central tube for training the gun laterally by. acting
directly on the tube by any of the usual means, such as gearing, screws,
chains, etc.
Ram rod. I use for loading the gun an improved telescopic ram rod arranged as
follows. The rods of the intermediate pistons consist of two tubes between which
the water under pressure can pass from the back to the front so as to bring back
these pistons inside each other by means of Cwater as soon as the exhaust pipe
is opened at the back.
The inlet openings are so arranged that the ram rod can be fully extended to ram
the projectile into its proper place and that the water only acts on one or two of the
pistons when ramming the cartridges in, that is ramming them a sufficient length
so as not to crush the powder.
Figs 1 and 2. (Sheet 3) represent two sections through the axis of the ram rod
and show clearly the working and the arrangement of the combination.
The outside cylinder C has three openings i, j and k. The opening i allows of
the inlet or outlet of water-under the two pistons Land M. The pistons L and M
have side openings 8 and 8 which admit the water under pressure only under the
small piston N when, all the pistons being run in, I open the circular valve T to
allow the water to pass through the opening j. The small piston N alone goes
forward (see Fig 2); the opening j is also used for letting off the water under the
small piston when I wish it to run back.
The opening is constantly opened for letting in the water; it is in commu-
nication with the front of each piston to bring in the piston as soon as the water is
let off at the back. The pistons L and M are provided. with hot pressed leather
rings; their piston rods consist in two tubes having between them an annular
space through which the water under pressure is constantly let in front of the
pistons by means of the opening k and also the openings 7, 8, t and u.
For working the ram rod I use a circular valve worked by a fly wheel on which
Fig 3 shows a plan of this
a fixed indicator V points to the various manoeuvres.
valve.
To ram in the projectile when the charge carrier has reached its proper height
I let in the water under pressure through the opening ; and the openings o and o¹

page_text: at the back of the small piston first; the inlet opening p of the valve is now at the
point g and the opening i is opened to let off; when the small piston is fully run
out I turn the valve a quarter of a turn so as to bring the opening p to commu-
nicate with opening g and this introduces the water under pressure to the back of
the two pistons L and M which strike forward and ram the projectile to its proper
position inside the gun.
The running in back of the pistons L and M is effected by turning back the
valve of a turn, which opens the exhaust port gl. Another quarter of a turn
the same way will also bring back in the small piston as the water under pressure
is always in front of the piston. Letting off the water at their back will bring them;
all in.
To ram the cartridges in I only use the small piston; its stroke is such that the
two half-cartridges are rammed in their proper place without crushing the powder;
the second half-cartridge pushes home the first. In some cases I use two pistons
instead of one for ramming the cartridges.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. The use of a moveable central tube attached to the platform of the gun
carriage and moving with it for guiding the charge carrier and raising it straight
behind the breech of the gun in the proper position for loading by means of
straight guides, the charge carrier being elevated by a hydraulic telescopic lift,
chains, screws or tackles, all substantially as herein described and shown in the
drawings.
2. The use of a moveable central tube attached to the platform of the gun
carriage and moving with it for guiding the charge carrier during training and
raising it under the breech of the gun with hydraulic telescopic lift, chains, screws
or tackles, and bringing the charge carrier behind the breech of the gun in the
proper position for loading by means of horizontal and vertical hydraulic cylinders,
chains, screws or tackles, all substantially as herein described and shown in the
drawings.
3. The use of a charge carrier with two top troughs hinged on the sides to let
the charges drop to replace the projectile when it has been rammed home, all
substantially as herein described and shown in the drawings.
4. The use of the central tube attached to the platform of the gun carriage for
acting on it by means of screws, chains, pinions, etc. to train the gun, all substan-
tially as herein described.
5. The use of the usual hydraulic telescopic rammer improved with hollow piston
rods and disposed to push the shot home with the full length of the piston rods and
push the powder charges into the chamber to the length required with one or two
piston rods only, in order not to crush the powder, all substantially as herein
described and shown in the drawings.