IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR DRIVING PILES
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Eassie, of the Firm of William Eassie and
Company, of the City of Gloucester, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY FOR DRIVING PILES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Eassie at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 18th
May 1865.
I. WILLIAM EASSIE, of the Firm of William Eassic and Company, of the
City of Gloucester, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR DRIVING PILES," to be as follows:-
This Invention refers to that class of pile engines in which the ram or
monkey is lifted by an endless chain passing over a pulley at the top of the
machine, and round a toothed or other wheel on a crab or winch fixed on the
lower framework of the pile engine. In machines heretofore constructed the
lifting side of the endless chain is carried in a perpendicular direction from the
toothed wheel on the crab to the pulley at the top of the pile engine, and in
a line with the back of the uprights or between them, so as to be clear of the
ram or monkey when falling. Motion is given to the toothed wheel on the

page_text: crab which causes the chain to move with it. A catch or bolt is projected
from the ran or monkey which engages the chain, and the ram or monkey
is carried with it up the leaders; when the ram or monkey is at the desired
height the bolt is withdrawn, and the ram or monkey falls; the bolt is again
projected, and the operation of lifting the ram or monkey is again repeated,
and so on.
The present Invention is designed to obviate the excessive friction which
is produced by the chain lifting the ram or monkey from a point of attach-
ment at the back of the leaders, which is at a considerable distance from the
centre of its weight, and causes the ram or monkey to bear hard against the
leaders when being lifted.
In this Invention the periphery of the pulley at the head of the pile engine
is placed at or nearly over the vertical axis of the ram or monkey; a pulley
or pulleys, or a guide piece, may be fixed or mounted in a frame or arms,
which frame slides freely up or down the uprights. Where pulleys are
employed the chain is made to pass under one and over another pulley
mounted in the same frame, and thus the chain is guided clear of the back of
the ram or monkey, and so leads it down on the slack side of the chain to the
wheel in the bottom frame of the pile engine. Instead of employing a pulley
or pulleys mounted in a follower or travelling carriage, sliding up and down the
uprights of the pile engine, I substitute a curved guide piece, mounted within
the follower or travelling carriage, and so dispose the chain that it is caused
to pass from the guide piece, which is employed to keep the chain over the
vertical axis of the ram or monkey, and causes the slack of the chain to be
fair lead down the back of the ram or monkey to the toothed wheel in the
bottom frame of the pile engine. A catch is fixed on the top of the ram or
monkey at or near its vertical axis, and is so constructed that when the
follower falls down on to the ram or monkey the chain is caught or engaged
to the catch, when the ram or monkey ascends with the chain. When the
ram or monkey arrives at the desired height the catch is disengaged from
the chain, and the ram or monkey falls. The follower is then at liberty
to descend or follow after the ram or monkey, the friction of the pulleys
or guide piece preventing it doing so as rapidly as the ram or nonkey;
the chain then strikes on the catch which engages the ram or monkey to
the chain, and the operation of lifting the ram or monkey is repeated, and
so on.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Eassic in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
18th November 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EASSIE, of the Firm of William Eassic and Company, of the City of
Gloucester, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me.
the said William Eassic, Her special license that I, the said William Eassie,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I. the said
William Eassie, my executors. administrators. and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, with the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR DRIVING PILES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that T. the said William Eassic. my executors or administrators. by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, or under the hand and seal
of one of then, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause
the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Eassie, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
and accompanying Sheets of Drawings, that is to say:-
This Invention refers to that class of pile engines in which the ram or
monkey is lifted by an endless chain passing over a pulley at the top of the
machine and round a toothed or other wheel on a crab or winch fixed on the
lower framework of the pile engine. In machines heretofore constructed the
lifting side of the endless chain is carried in a perpendicular direction from
the toothed wheel on the crab to the pulley at the top of the pile engine, and
in a line with the back of the uprights or between them, so as to be clear of
the ram or monkey when falling, or clear of the carriage or blocking piece to
which the monkey or ram is attached. Motion is given to the toothed wheel
on the crab which causes the chain to move with it, so that between the

page_text: crab and the pulley at the head of the pile engine the outer line of chain is
in a state of tension whilst the ram is being lifted, and the portion or piece
of chain between the ram and the pulley at the bottom of the pile engine is
at the some time slack or unstrained. A catch or bolt is projected from the
ram or monkey which engages the chain on the ascending and slack side, and
the ram or monkey is carried with it up the leaders. When the ram or
monkey is at the desired height the bolt is withdrawn by means of a rope or
chain usually pulled by hand, and the ram or monkey falls: after which the
bolt is again projected, and the operation of lifting the ram or monkey is
again repeated, and so on.
The present Invention is designed (amongst other things) to obviate the
excessive friction which is produced by the chain lifting the rain or monkey
from a point of attachment at the back of the leaders. which is at a consider-
able distance from the centre of its weight, and causes the ram or monkey to
bear hard against and in front of the leaders when being lifted, and moreover
retards its free fall, and so reduces its useful effect; whilst if too much play
is provided for the purpose of enabling it to fall freely there is a natural
tendency to cant or bind between the leaders or uprights, and thus injuriously
affect the efficiency of the falling weight of the monkey.
In this Invention the periphery of the pulley at the head of the pile engine
is placed so that the front thereof is at or nearly over the vertical axis of the
ram or monkey, so that the line of draught and upward motion of the chain
is direct between the point of suspension of the monkey (or the attachment
to the ram or monkey) which has to be lifted and then released.
A pulley or pulleys, or a guide piece, may be fixed or mounted in a frame
or carriage or in arms, which frame slides freely up or down the uprights, and
is hereafter designated "the follower." Where pulleys are employed the
slack end of the ascending side of the chain is made to pass under one and
over another pulley, mounted in the same frame, and thus the chain is guided
clear of the back of the ram or monkey, and so leads it up on the slack end
of the ascending side of the chain from the wheel in the bottom frame of the
pile engine. Instead of employing a guide pulley at the bottom of the pile
engine, the slack end of the ascending side of the chain may be allowed to
run free without the intervention of a pulley between the base of the pile
engine and the toothed crab or winch; and instead of employing a pulley or
pulleys mounted in a follower or travelling carriage, so fitted as to slide up
and down the uprights and guide pieces of the pile engine, I prefer in some
cases to substitute a curved guide piece, mounted within the follower or
travelling carriage, and so dispose the chain that it is caused to pass from the

page_text: guide piece that is employed to keep the chain over the vertical axis of the
ram or monkey, and, so causes the slack part or portion of the chain to be
fair led down the back of the ram or monkey to the toothed wheel in the
bottom frame of the pile engine. A catch-like hook is fixed on the top of
the ram or monkey at or near its vertical axis, and is so constructed that
when the follower falls down on to the ram or monkey the chain is caught or
engaged to the catch, and thereupon the ram or monkey and the follower
ascend with the chain. When the ram or monkey arrives at the desired
height the catch or hook is disengaged from the chain, and the ram or
monkey falls.
For the purpose of insuring the release of the monkey from the chain at
the proper or desired height there is a rack provided going the whole length
of each leader in front of same, so that when the catch of the ram or monkey
comes in contact with an adjustable lever or disengager, arranged so as to
slide up and down the leaders, the catch or hook of the monkey is released
from the chain; the follower is then at liberty to descend or follow freely
after the ram or monkey, the friction of the pulleys or guide pieces preventing
it descending as rapidly as the ram or monkey does. thus giving the monkey
time to rebound off the head of the pile before it is next engaged by the
chain; the chain then, as before, is brought in contact with the catch or hook
which engages the ram or monkey to the chain, and the operation of lifting
the ram or monkey is again repeated. Whilst to prevent injurious strain to
the chain or catch and the lifting machinery from the sudden coming in
contact for the purpose of lifting, a spring may be fitted on to the lower end
of the bolt or pin to which the catch or hook is jointed or is connected, that
the spring being of a strength to resist a strain in excess of that which would
represent the dead weight of the monkey or ram, it only comes into play when
a sudden jerk or strain is thrown on the hook, or its equivalent, by which the
ram is lifted.
In pile engines worked by manual power it is often found advantageous
and necessary to use what is called a "needle" for the purpose of driving
piles below the stage or platform on which the pile engine is mounted, and
which needle" in the ordinary pile engine has to be removed from the pile
engine each time a pile is driven, and thus occasioning a serious loss of time.
I accomplish this, the driving of piles in such a situation, by an improved
arrangement of parts as follows:-1 employ a framing above the stage similar
to that of an ordinary pile engine, but with an increased space between the
leaders. I provide a separate framing or pair of supplementary leaders below
the stage, with a space between them, up and down which the monkey, chain,

page_text: and follower work. When the pile being operated upon has been driven
sufficiently deep, the supplementary leaders with the monkey or ram,
follower, and chain attached, are lifted up in the space between the main
leaders above the stage and clear of the same. The stage upon which the
pile engine is mounted travels longitudinally and transversely, so that a pile
may be driven in any position commanded by the rails upon which the stage
travels.
The pile engine according to my Invention may, for the purpose of operating
upon piles below the ordinary line of staging, be mounted upon any of the
ordinary and well-known descriptions of travellers commonly in use upon
public works.
In the several Sheets of Drawings hereunto annexed I have used or
employed the same or like letters of reference to denote corresponding parts
in each Figure or view wherever such parts are repeated.
Sheet contains four Figures. Figure 1, front elevation of a pile engine
constructed according to my Invention: Figure 2, side view of Figure 1;
Figure 3, plan view of base of pile-driving engine forming frame or platform.
upon which the pile engine and its machinery are mounted; Figure 4, plan
view of the travelling carriage upon which the frame, Figure 3, is made to
move or rotate.
Sheet 2 contains details of the principal parts of a pile engine as constructed
according to my Invention, and as shewn in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 in Sheet. 1.
Figures 5, 6, and 7 are views of the top chain roller and its fixings;
Figures 8 and 9 are views of the bottom chain roller or means of guiding the
chain from the crab or winch up to the follower; Figures 10, 11, 12, and 13
are views of the follower, shewing its construction in detail; Figures 14, 15,
and 16 are views of strike-off catch or means of disengaging the monkey
from the chain and follower; Figures 17, 18, and 19 are.views of the monkey
or ram, with the outline of the follower and strike-off catch, shewn in dotted
lines, by which their action upon and with the hook of the monkey is
explained; Figures 20, 21, and 22 are views of the screw arrangement for
adjusting the vertical portion of the pile engine by means of the back stay or
leader, as by the alteration of its position the sheers and runners of the pile
engine may be changed from the vertical to some angle from the perpendicular
to suit the requirements of the work to be done.
Sheet 3 contains two views of pile engine constructed according to my
Invention, and intended to be employed for the purpose of driving piles
below the level of the stage or platform upon which the pile engine is
mounted, Figure 23 being a side elevation, and Figure 24 a front elevation.

page_text: In Sheets and 2 of the accompanying Drawings, A is the lower frame or
carriage fitted with wheels for the purpose of traversing rails laid longi-
tudinally along the line of piling to be executed. This frame is fitted with
a circular ring or kerb a, upon. which the rollers of the upper frame which
forms the base or platform of the pile engine rest, and are made to rotate or
work round when necessary, for the purpose of driving a back row of piling
or transverse rows between the front row and back row without changing
the longitudinal position of the frame or carriage A. B is a frame, upon
which are mounted the sheet legs, runners, back stays or leader, the steam
engine, crab or winch, and other portions of the pile engine. This frame B
has a centre pin or stud by which the whole pile engine is enabled to pivot
or turn, and by means of the small friction rollers B'. B', B', which travel
upon the kerb plate or ring (a), the adjustment of the engine to its work is
readily effected. C. C, the sheer legs, jointed at the bottom to the frame B.
and at the top framed to the uprights or runners: these are braced together
by the horizontal pieces c', c', c. D. D, the uprights or runners which
form the guides within which the ram or monkey is raised, and when set free
is permitted to fall. Upon the face of each runner a rack is screwed or other-
wise fitted for the purpose of receiving the strike-off catch according to the
height at which the monkey is to be disengaged.
E. E, the 2 back legs. stays, or struts, framed at the top to the uprights
or runners, and at the bottom connected with the frame B by means of the
screw and metal guide piece (e): F, an iron cap and carriage surmounting
the pile engine, within which is mounted the axle or shaft having thereupon
the pulley G, around which the main chain of the pile engine goes, and there
is also another pulley H (shown more clearly in Figure 1); G, the top chain
roller; II, a pulley employed for lifting, by means of a chain from the crab,
either piles or other objects and things requiring to be raised or lowered;
J. J. J. rope or chain guys employed for steadying the pile engine while at
work: K. K, the endless pitch chain used or employed for transmitting
motion from the crab or winch k, being the pulley or bottom chain roller for
guiding the slack end of the chain at its bend upwards from the crab or
winch up to the follower or carriage by which the monkey becomes engaged
to the chain I, the follower or carriage running freely within and between
the runners or guides D, D. This follower or carriage is fitted with two
pulleys or rollers 1, 1, the outer edge or periphery of the upper one being in a
line with or approximately to the vertical axis of the ram or monkey, whilst
the lower one has the position of its outer edge or periphery so arranged or
placed that it is in a line within the framing of the pile engine so as to keep

page_text: the chain clear of the back of the ram or monkey. The chain K is thus
caused to stand off from the face of the runners when above the centre of the
height of the follower or carriage, and from thence passes between the cheeks
of the follower or carriage L to the back of the lower pulley I, and so in a
slack condition whilst the monkey is being raised down to the bottom of the
engine where it falls in a bend, from whence it is led to the crab or winch.
M is the monkey, and m the hook or catch which forms the means of engaging
with and disengaging the monkey from the pitch chain, as herein-before
described, and as shewn in detail on a larger scale in Sheet 2: N, the pile
which is in process of being driven home; O, a pile which has been slung to
and by means of the chain; P (which is made to pass over the pulley H at
the top of the pile engine) is shewn as being raised or suspended, the chain P
being acted upon by means of the barrel Q of the steam winch or crab, or
it may be carried over the head or drum q; R, R, the two racks applied or
fitted to the runners or guides D, D; S, the strike-off catch for disengaging
the hook m of the monkey M from the pitch chain K at its point of
contact with the small roller or pulley at the upper end of the runner or
carriage L.
The portable steam boiler T is shewn in Figure I as being mounted upon
a separate wheel carriage U, and is connected to the steam engine on the
frame or platform B, by means of the steam pipe t and exhaust pipe t'.
In Sheet 2, which contains the details of the several parts of the Figures 1
and 2 of Sheet 1, Figures 5, 6, and 7 are views of the top chain roller and its
fixings F, F, F, being the iron carriage which is fixed by means of bolts and
screws on to the cap piece of the pile engine, which cap secures the top of
the runners, uprights, and guides, and which serves to combine together the
back legs or ladder; this carriage also carries the horizontal spindle or shaft
with the pitch chain, pulley, or roller G. A pulley II is also fitted upon the
spindle or shaft, upon which it runs freely.
In Figures 8 and 9 the bottom chain roller is shown in side elevation,
and in plan, mounted in a cast-iron carriage or bracket, the pitch chain
K, K, passing down from the crab or barrel round the pulley and up to the
follower.
Figures 10, 11, 12, and 13 are views of the follower L shewing its con-
struction and action in detail. Within the case or carriage two small pulleys
or rollers, are fitted so as to revolve freely; the centres of these are not
placed in the same vertical line, and by this means the pitch chain K, K, is
guided on its way from the crab to the front of the upper roller L at a suitable
distance from the external face of the runners or uprights, so that it may be

page_text: brought in contact with the catch or hook of the monkey or ram.
Friction
rollers may be introduced for the purpose of aiding the change of the direction
of motion, and the guide pieces and stops by which the follower is caused to
slide up and down fairly may either be cast upon the front face, and those
upon the back side be screwed or bolted on, or vice versa, or each cheek may
be cast with a fillet back and front, or may have them screwed on; the axles
or pins of the rollers I, I, may be shouldered down so as to form studs or
distance pieces in addition to the other stud pieces introduced between the
cheeks.
Figures 14, 15, and 16 are views of the strike-off catch S. which is con-
structed as a carriage, made of two plates of the shape shown in side view,
Figure 14, framed together by means of studs and capable of travelling freely
up and down the runners to the lower lugs of this carriage; a pair of horns
or bent levers & are hinged or are made to pivot thereupon; the cross pin
thereof or front of the staple is made to project sufficiently, far from the face
of the runners or guides as to enclose the chain K within it, and also to come
in contact with the inclined upper end of the catch or hook of the ram or
monkey, whilst the tail ends of each side of the staples are formed into
palls which take into the rack. The strike-off catch is raised or lowered by
means of a rope, line, or chain, going over a pulley at the head of the pile
engine attached to the carriages by the eye bolts", "
Figures 17, 18, and 19 are views of the monkey or ram M, which has a
catch or hook m fitted to the wrought-iron pin or stud by which it is attached
to the monkey, the catch or hook m being free to vibrate to and from the face
of the runners to a limited extent through the joint connection between it and
the pin.
In Figure 18 the catch m is shewn in contact with the pitch chain by
which the monkey is being lifted; it is also shown in dotted lines in the
position it would assume when disengaged by the strike-off catch, the corres-
ponding positions of the strike-off catch being also shown. Two springs are
shewn attached to or fitted upon the lower end of the pin by which the monkey
is suspended, and although volute springs are shewn any other suitable form
of springs may be employed.
Figures 20, 21, and 22 are views of the means devised by me for adjusting
the position of the upright frame, so as either to work the engine perfectly
vertical or with any useful amount of batter or inclination whilst it is held
securely in the required position. This effect by means of the screw e
which is secured to the bottom frame or platform B, by means of a carriage g,

page_text: and a pin which allows of the screw e working thereon. At the bottom of
the back legs or ends of the ladder e, e, shoes h, h, are fitted, and they are
connected together by means of a cross piece i, which slides over the screw e
when the nut p formed by the handle is set in action. The movement of
the back legs is guided by means of a pin connecting them together, sliding up
and down in the slot of a side plate or guide piece on each side (r, r).
Jn Sheet 3 have shewn my Invention as applied to the requirements
incident to the driving of piles below the level of a line of staging, as in the
case of an excavated trench where the heads of the piles or pile heads before
the commencement of the driving are below the bottom frame or platform of
the pile engine, and therefore the monkey or ram has to work wholly or partially
beneath the platform or bottom frame of the pile engine.
Figure 23 is a side elevation and Figure 24 a front elevation of a steam
pile driver or pile engine constructed according to my Invention, and adapted
to the particular requirements herein-before mentioned. The action of this
apparatus is so self-evident after the description which has been given of the
several parts of Figures 1 and 2, in Sheet 1, and the details of the principal
parts thereof as contained in Sheet 2; that taken together with the textual
description of this portion of my Invention, as herein-before set forth, as 10
render any literal references to the parts thereof unnecessary.
Having now described my Invention of Improvements in Machinery for
Driving Piles," and illustrated the same with three Sheets of Drawings,
showing modes or methods of putting my Invention into practice, I wish it to
be understood that I claim,
First, the mode or method of constructing pile-driving engines and
machinery for driving piles, as herein described, and as illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing, Sheet I, by Figures and 2.
Second, the construction and mode of working pile-driving engines or
machinery for driving piles, as herein described and as illustrated in Sheet 3 of
the accompanying Drawings.
Third, the mode or method herein described of mounting, fitting, and
actuating the ram or monkey of pile-driving engines, as illustrated in Sheets 1
and 2 of the accompanying Drawings.
Fourth, the combination of a monkey mounted and fitted at its upper end
(as herein described and illustrated) with a follower or carriage (as herein-
before described) for the purpose set forth.
Fifth, the combination of a monkey and follower, as herein respectively
described and illustrated, with a chain and a top pulley placed and worked

page_text: in the position relatively to the vertical axis of the monkey or ram as herein
described, and as shown in Figures 1 and 2 in Sheet 1 of the accompanying
Drawings, and likewise as shewn in Figures 23 and 24 in Sheet 3.
Sixth, the use or employment of a spring or springs within the monkey or
ram of a pile-driving engine for the purpose herein set forth, and applied in
the manner herein described.
Seventh, the use or employment in pile-driving engines of the screw
adjustment herein described. by which the vertical position of the runners,
sheers, and apparains of pile engines can be varied, and also lirmly secured in
the desired position.
In witness whereof. 1, the said William Eassie, have hereunto set my
hand and seal. this Eighteenth day of November One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-five.
Witness.
JAMES STEVENSON.
19. Salisbury Street.
Strand:
WILLIAM EASSIE. (..s.)