Improvements in Breech-mechanism for Ordnance.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Nov., 1892
Complete Specification Left. 15th Aug., 1393-Accepted, 23rd Sept., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by JEAN BAPTISTE GUSTAVE ADOPHE CANET,
of 91, Avenue Malakoff, Paris, in the Republic of France, Civil Engineer.]
Improvements in Breech-mechanism for Ordnance.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
45 Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
--
My invention relates to improvements in breech mechanism for ordnance, and is
designed to provide means for facilitating the opening and closing of the breech in
heavy guns.
The said invention consists in various combinations of parts adapted to produce
successively, by the continuous movement of a lever or handle in one or the other
direction, all of the movements necessary for the opening or the closing of the breech
of a gun.
According to one of the modes in which my said invention is carried into
practice a metal end plate is attached to the breech end of the gun and is properly
constructed for supporting the breech mechanism. To the said end plate a carrier
A bracket is formed
ring is hinged at the side of the breech in the usual manner.
with and projects rearwardly from the said carrier ring and serves to support the
breech block when the same is withdrawn from the breech; it also carries the
withdrawing mechanism.
The ordinary catch or locking bolt is provided for locking the said carrier ring
to the end plate in a usual and well-known manner when the breech block is in
place, and also for locking the aforesaid bracket and breech block together as soon
as the latter is out of the breech.
A driving shaft provided with a hand lever for operating the breech mechanism
is arranged to turn in bearings in the end plate; and a screw or worm is keyed on
the said shaft. A worm wheel is fitted to turn freely on a vertical shaft and is
driven by the said worm. The said vertical shaft is also supported by the end
plate and forms the pivot on which the carrier ring is turned to and away from the
breech. A pinion with helical teeth is cast or otherwise formed in one piece with
the said worm wheel or is otherwise securely fixed thereto, and a second pinion
with helical teeth geared with the first-named pinion turns in bearings on the
carrier-ring. A screw with multiple threads is geared with the said pinion carried
by the carrier-ring and has its axis parallel to that of the said pinion. This screw
is supported at its ends in suitable bearings in the carrier bracket and a toothed
sector with inclined teeth is formed or fixed on the breech-block and geared with
the said multiple-threaded screw. The rotation of the breech-block is limited by
suitable stops.
The teeth of the helically-toothed pinions and of the sector and multiple-threaded
screw are preferably inclined at an angle of forty five (45) degrees. The spindles
of the said pinions wheels and screws are arranged to bear or to pivot on steel or
other hard metal dies to minimize the friction.
With my improved mechanism the continuous turning of the actuating handle in
one direction first releases the breech block from the screw threads in the breech
of the gun, secondly, withdraws the said breech block from the breech on to the
carrier bracket, and thirdly, turns the same about the pivot of the carrier away
from the breech; and the continuous turning of the said handle in the opposite
direction closes the breech; that is to say :-In opening the breech the handle of
the drawing shaft, when turned in the proper direction, first acts through the said

page_text: shaft, the worm, the helical-toothed pinions, the multiple-threaded screw, and the
sector on the breech-block to turn the said block about its axis to release the
threads of the same from those in the gun. Then without interruption of
the movement of the handle and driving shaft the turning of the breech block
about its axis is arrested by stops arranged to limit its rotation, but the multiple-
threaded screw continuing to turn about its axis and being prevented from moving
end wise, its teeth act like screw-threads on those of the sector on the block, that is
to say the said multiple-threaded screw and sector act respectively as a screw and
nut and thereby the breech block is drawn out of the breech. Then the breech block
having been drawn back till it abuts against the rear end of the carrier bracket
and comes into a position which permits the locking bolt to retire from engagement
with the end plate, the carrier ring and bracket are free to turn upon the hinge or
pivot at the side of the breech. As at this moment the rotation of the multiple-
threaded screw is stopped by reason of the abutment of the breech block against the
bracket and the said screw becomes virtually an immovable part of the bracket,
the continued rotation of the aforesaid handle and driving-shaft, acting through
the helicoidal gearing to thrust the multiple threaded screw rearward causes the
carrier and the breech screw to turn about the vertical shaft away from the breech.
The closing of the breech is effected by turning the handle in the opposite
direction, that is to say by continuously turning the said handle in a proper
direction to reproduce the above-described movements in the reverse order.
Although I have herein described, by way of example, one method in which my
said invention is carried into practice I wish it to be clearly understood that I do
not limit my invention to the precise details of construction and arrangement, set
forth, which may be varied without departing from the nature of my invention.
Dated this 15th day of November 1892.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Breech-mechanism for Ordnance.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent
Agents, 45 Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, 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 :-
My invention relates to breech-mechanism and is chiefly designed to facilitate
the opening and closing of the breech of heavy guns, although it may be applied
to guns of small calibre.
The said invention consists in various combinations of parts adapted to produce
successively all of the movements necessary for the opening or the closing of the
breech of a gun by the continuous movement of a lever or handle in one or the
other direction.
The said invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a rear end view of a gun provided with my improved breech-
mechanism.
Figure 2 is a similar view showing portions of the mechanism in transverse
section.
Figure 3 is a longitudinal central section.
Figure 4 is a horizontal section taken on two different planes, the right half being
taken on the line, a Figure 1, and the left half being taken on the line y, y
Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a sectional plan taken on the line z z Figure 1.
Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the drawings.

page_text: A is a portion of the body of the gun; B is the breech-plug or screw; C is a
metal end plate or bracket attached to the breech end of the gun and properly
constructed for supporting the breech mechanism. D is the carrier-ring hinged to
the said end plate at the side of the breech in the usual manner. D' is a bracket
formed with and projecting rearwardly from the carrier-ring and serving to support
the breech-plug when the same is withdrawn from the breech. It also carries the
withdrawing mechanism.
B.is the ordinary catch or locking bolt for locking in a well known manner the
said carrier-ring to the end plate when the breech-plug is in place, and also for
locking the said carrier-ring and breech-screw together as soon as the latter is out
of the breech. In Figure 4 this catch bolt is shewn in the position wherein it
locks the carrier-ring to the end plate C of the gun.
:
E is a shaft provided with a hand-lever E' for operating the breech mechanism.
E is an endless screw or worm keyed on the said shaft. F' is a worm wheel fitted
to turn freely on the vertical shaft F and driven by the said worm. The shaft F
forms the pivot on which the carrier-ring is turned to and away from the breech.
F' is a pinion with helical teeth cast or otherwise formed solidly or in one piece..
with the said worm wheel. G is a pinion with helical teeth geared with the
pinion F H is an endless screw with multiple threads geared with the pinion G.
and having its axis parallel to that of the said pinion. This endless screw is
supported at its ends in suitable bearings in the carrier bracket D' as clearly shewn
.at D³, D' Figure 3. B' is a toothed sector with inclined teeth formed or fixed on
the breech-screw B and geared with the endless screw H.
The teeth of the gear wheels F, G, and of the endless screw and sector are
inclined at an angle of forty five (45) degrees. The axes of the pinions, wheels
and screws are arranged to bear on steel or other hard metal convex surfaces to
minimize the friction; I may however employ other suitable means for this
purpose.
With my improved mechanism the continuous turning of the actuating handle E'
in one direction first releases the breech-plug from the screw threads of the guu,
secondly withdraws the said breech-plug from the breech on to the carrier bracket,
and thirdly turns the same about the pivot of the carrier away from the breech;
and the continuous turning of the said handle in the opposite direction closes the
breech; that is to say :-In opening the breech the handle E' being turned in
the proper direction, first acts through the shaft E the worm E, the helical
pinions F and G, the endless screw H, and sector B', to turn the breech screw B
about its axis to release the threads of the same from those in the gun. Then
without interruption of the movement of the lever handle and shaft E, the turning
of the breech-plug about its axis is arrested by a stop b arranged to limit its
rotation but the screw or worm H continuing to turn about its axis and being
prevented from moving endwise, its teeth act like screw-threads on those of the
sector B', that is to say, the said endless screw and sector act as a screw and nut
and thereby the breech-plug B is drawn out of the breech. Then the breech-plug
having been drawn back till it abuts against the rear end of the carrier bracket D₁
and into a position which permits the locking bolt B to retire from engagement
with the plate C the carrier-ring and bracket are free to turn upon the hinge or
pivot at the side of the breech. As at this moment the rotation of the endless
screw H is stopped by reason of the abutment of the breech-plug against the
bracket D' and the said screw becomes so to speak solid with the bracket, the
continued rotation of the handle acting through the helicoidal gearing to thrust
the endless screw H backward causes the carrier and the breech-screw to turn
about the shaft F away from the breech.
The closing of the breech is effected by a continuous movement of the handle in
the opposite direction. The means adopted for minimizing the friction of the shaft
as hereinabove stated allow the opening and closing of the breech to be very easily
effected.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :--
1. The employment for the purpose specified in combination with the breech-
block, of an endless screw or worm whose axis is parallel with that of the gun as
above described.
2. The breech-screw or plug provided with a toothed sector, arranged in
combination with a screw or worm the axis of which is parallel with that of the
gun and which through the medium of the helical and other gearing herein
described can be operated by a lever or handle on a transverse shaft, as, and for
the purpose, specified.
3. The combination of the breech-screw, with the hinged carrier-ring through
which the breech-screw can slide and which is provided with a bracket for
supporting the breech-screw out of the breech and which carries the aforesaid
endless screw or worm and is provided with a stop to limit the sliding movement of
.the breech-screw, substantially as described, and for the purpose specified.
4. A gun provided with breech-mechanism constructed substantially as described
with reference to the accompanying drawings and operating as set forth.
Dated this 15th day of August. 1893.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.