Improvements in Marine Life-saving Appliances.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 30th Nov., 1892-Accepted, 31st Dec., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Marine Life-saving Appliances.
I WILLIAM HENRY HARVEY. Secretary, of 3 Victoria Street, Westminster,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
:
:―
My invention for improvements in marine life-saving appliances has for its object
to provide improved means to enable a stranded vessel to send and anchor a
communicating line to the shore, and when not required for such purpose to serve
as a life-buoy and consists essentially in a hollow closed tube, carrying centrally.
at each end an air vessel, concavo convex or crescent shaped in section. One or
both of these air vessels is made readily removeable so that it can be reversed or
replaced with a fresh one if required. When used as a life buoy, the air vessels
are fixed with their convex surfaces facing each other, and when employed to carry
a line to the shore the vessel on one end of the tube is reversed and a suitable line
is attached to the other end. The apparatus is then thrown overboard, and by the
action of the waves, current, and wind driven ashore, when its shape, even without
the intervention of extraneous aid, enables it to anchor firmly in the sand shingle or
rocks and resist any backward drag. The line may be a light double rope passing
round a pulley block on the end of the apparatus, so that a stronger rope can
readily be drawn through in its place.
Dated this 1st day of March 1895
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40, Chancery Lane, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Marine Life-saving Appliances.
1 WILLIAM HENRY HARVEY, Secretary of 3 Victoria Street Westminster, 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 for improvements in marine life saving appliances has for its
object to provide improved means to enable a stranded vessel to send and anchor a
communicating line to the shore and when not required for such purpose to serve
as a life buoy and consists essentially in a hollow closed tube, carrying axially at
each end an air vessel concavo-convex or crescent shaped in section. One or both
of these air vessels is made readily removable so that it can be reversed or replaced
with a fresh one, if required. When used as a life buoy the air vessels are fixed
with their convex surfaces facing each other and when employed to carry a line to
the shore the vessel on one end of the tube is reversed and a suitable line is
attached to the other end. The apparatus is then thrown overboard and by the
action of the waves current and wind driven ashore when its shape even without
the intervention of extraneous aid enables it to anchor firmly in the sand shingle or
rocks and resist any backward drag. The line may he a light double rope passing
round a pulley block on the end of the apparatus so that a stronger rope can
readily be drawn through in its place.
In the accompanying sheet of illustrative drawings
Figure 1 is a view of an appliance constructed according to this invention
arranged as a life buoy and
Figure 2 is a similar view partly in section showing the apparatus arranged for
carrying a line towards the shore.

page_text: A closed tube A carries upon each end an air vessel B which is slipped on and
held in position by the shoulder and the projecting flanges of the screws D
fitting into the closed ends of the tube A. The screws D are shown provided with
eyes E for holding a line or rope.
Each air vessel B' consists of two curved or dished surfaces & fixed axially and
one within the other on a tube of such size as will readily slip on the ends of the
closed tube A.
When the convex surfaces of the two air vessels point in the same direction as
shown in Figure 2 the apparatus serves as a line carrying buoy and grapnel. When
thrown overboard from a stranded vessel in this latter form, with a line attached,
the resultant propulsive action of the waves travelling shoreward will be greater on
the concave surfaces than on the convex and the buoy will consequently be carried
along with the waves towards the shore.
When thrown up upon the land whether on shingle sand or rock, the grip of the
cupped surfaces will resist backward pull and will materially help a man to haul
himself ashore even if there should be no one at hand to lend aid.
By using three or four of these buoys suitably connected more grip can be
secured if necessary and if one of them be fitted with a pulley block and a light
double line be employed it would be possible to run a larger and stronger rope
through in its stead. A buoy of this description would also be useful for floating a
line away from a ship's side so that a rocket line fired across it might foul it and be
hauled aboard.
When the air vessels. B are so placed that the convex surfaces are adjacent to
one another as shown in Figure 1 the apparatus serves as a life buoy. A person
swimming ashore with one of these buoys might when in shallow water prevent
himself from being carried out by the under tow. by digging the cupped end of the
buoy into the shingle or sand.
If desired one of the air vessels B can be permanently fixed on the tube A.
Should the tube be injured or it be thought otherwise desirable to dispense with
it the air vessels are clipped on a rope and secured by knots or other suitable
devices.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that. what I
claim is
1
TR
1. A line carrying buoy consisting of two concavo convex air vessels connected
together substantially as described,
2. A combined, life buoy and line-carrying buoy consisting of two concavo
convex air vessels adapted to be fixed on the ends of a closed; tube, or rope
substantially as described.
3. The improvements in marine life saving appliances substantially as described
with reference to the drawings.
Dated this 30th day of November 1892.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.