Improvements in Ventilators for Ships.
Year: 1896

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Ventilators for Ships.
I, WILLIAM COTTER, of 78, Egerton Street, in the City of Liverpool,
Shipwright, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to ventilators for use on board ship, and has for its object to
prevent water, which may find its way into such ventilator, from entering the
cabin, engine-room, forecastle, deckhouse, coal-bunker, or other space to which
the ventilator is fitted.
Deck ventilators as at present used on board ship are open to the objection that
during heavy weather they are liable to be flooded by seas breaking over them,
thereby admitting water below, and it is therefore frequently necessary to batten
down or close such ventilators with tarpaulins.
I overcome the above objections by so forming a ventilator that should a small
quantity of water enter the ventilator head it will fall into a chamber and drain
away without entering the air conduit which leads below, and should the ventilator
head be flooded by a seá, or even entirely carried away, the said conduit will be
automatically closed by the water.
In carrying out this invention 1 form in connection with a ventilator head a
chamber, into which the air passes. From the upper part of such chamber the
conduit which conducts air below is led. Such conduit is controlled by a valve
operated by a bell-crank lever pivotted within the chamber. Upon such bell-crank
lever I mount a float. Normally the air conduit below is open for the ingress or
egress of air, but should the ventilator head be flooded by a sea, the float will rise
upon the water in the chamber and close the air conduit by means of the valve
above mentioned. The chamber is provided with scuppers which allow the water
to drain away; the float then sinks and withdraws the valve from the air conduit.
It will be understood that the arrangement and disposition of the air conduit,
float, lever, and valve, may be varied. Thus, the air conduit below may lead out
of the side of the chamber, the valve being carried on a horizontal spindle working
in guides and connected with the float-lever. Or the valve may be attached to
one arm of the float-lever and open and close with a radial motion. Or the air
conduit may lead out of the top of the chamber, in which case the float and valve
would be mounted on a vertical spindle.
Provision is made for locking the valve in its closed position when ventilation is
not required.
My improvements are equally applicable to upcast and downcast ventilators.
An automatic float-operated ventilator closing valve such as above described
will work satisfactorily even when the ship has a heavy list, and even should the
ventilator head be carried away, the air chamber, float and valve will still remain
operative and prevent water from getting below.
The scuppers are preferably provided with a valve which prevents entry of
water and also escape of air from the chamber.
The air conduit may be carried to the bottom of the ship, or pass through a
bulkhead.

page_text: Figure 1. In this case the lever E would be done away with, and the valve D and
float F mounted on opposite ends of a vertical spindle working in guides in the
chamber B. The chamber B shewn in the drawing is formed so that the air
duct C may be transposed from the end to the top thereof.
The air chamber B may be conveniently fitted to a hatch combing, engine room
skylight, bulkhead, to the deck, or any other suitable place. It may be constructed
of cast metal as shewn in the drawings, or of wrought or sheet metal, and being
well secured to the deck or other part and of strong construction it will withstand
the heaviest sea, and in the event of the coldhead A being carried away the
chamber B will, with the valve D and float F, remain operative and prevent water
from getting below.
The ventilator herein described may be used either as an upcast or downcast
ventilator, and the duct C may be led to the bottom or any other part of the ship.
The ventilator máy be applied where an ordinary coldhead has been placed, without
making another, or a special, hole in the deck therefor, and the old coldhead may
form the coldhead A above referred to.
In place of working horizontally or vertically, the valve D may be attached to
the end of the lever E, so that it has a radial motion.
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 :-
The chamber B fixedly attached to the deck or other part of a ship and adapted
to intercept water entering a coldbead A. mounted thereon, an air duct C leading
out of the upper part of said chamber, and a valve D operated by a float F and
lever E or its equivalent and adapted to close said duct when the chamber is
flooded with water, all in combination and operating substantially as and for the
purpose herein set forth.
J. A. COUBROUGH,
Registered Patent Agent (Qual. by Exam.),
10 St. George's Crescent, Liverpool, Agent for the Applicant.