AN IM- PEOVED ALARM APPARATUS FOR INDICATING AND REGISTERING THE RISE OF WATER IN THE HOLDS OF SHIPS OR VESSELS
Year: 1867

page_text: ETTERS PATENT to Marc Antoine Francois Mennons, of the Firm of
Mennons and Telescheff, Home and Foreign Patent Agents, of No. 8.
Southampton Buildings. in the County of Middlesex, and 27. Rue
Laffitte, Paris, in the Empire of France, for the Invention of "AN IM-
PEOVED ALARM APPARATUS FOR INDICATING AND REGISTERING THE RISE OF
WATER IN THE HOLDS OF SHIPS OR VESSELS."-A communication by
Charles Benjamin Norton, residing at No. 91. Champs Elysees. Paris.
in France.
Scaled the 4th October 1867. and dated the 29th April 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Mare Antoine Francois
Mennons at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 29th April 1867.
1. MARC ANTOINE FRANCOIS MENNONS, of the Firm of Mennons and
Telescheff. Home and Foreign Patent Agents. of No. 8. Southampton Build-
ings, in the County of Middlesex, and 27, Rue Laffitte, Paris, in the Empire
of France, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "AN
IMPROVED ALARM APPARATUS FOR INDICATING AND REGISTERING THE RISE OF WATER
IN THE HOLDS OF SHIPS OR VESSELS," (a communication). to be as follows: -
This invention consists in an improved combination of mechanism forming
an alarm apparatus. by means of which the rise of water in the holds of ships
from leakage or other causes may be accurately indicated and registered.

page_text: Figure of the accompanying Drawing is a transversal section of a ship
shewing the apparatus applied: Fig. 2 is a front view of the instrument with
the dial removed to show the working parts: Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse
central section of the same: Fig. 4 is a section of the chain barrel in a plane
parallel with Fig. 1. Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in the several Figures.
A, A, is an upright circular frame attached to a board B, and having secured
in front of it a dial C; D is a bell secured to the board B, and surrounding
the back part of the frame A, A; E is a hollow cylindrical barrel containing a
coiled spring F, and fitted to rotate upon a stationary arbor a, which is secured
in the frame A. A. so as to be incapable of rotation, one end of the spring
being secured to the arbor and the other to the barrel E; G is a chain or
cord secured at one end to the barrel E. and having attached to its other end
a float H, which rests upon the bottom of the vessel when there is no water in
the hold or pump well, or floats upon the surface of the water when water is
present in either. The arrangement of the spring F and chain or cord G is
such that when the float is at the bottom the spring is wound up like a clock
spring, and kept in that condition by the weight of the float. H. but that as
the float rises by reason of the increase of water in the hold or pump well the
spring unwinds itself, and turns the barrel upon the arbor a, and winds up
the chain or cord, and always keeps it tight between the barrel and the float.
The weight of the float must be suflicient to cause the chain or cord to wind
up the spring again as the float is allowed to descend by the fall of the water
in the hold or pump well. I, 1. are two hammers swinging within the bell on
two pivots b, b', secured in the framing A, A. said hammers having their
shanks elastic, and having arms c. c', attached one to each; J is a wheel fitted
to rotate on the arbor a, and carrying a number of pins i. i: d is a ratchet
wheel secured to the barrel E: e is a pawl attached to the wheel J. and
held in contact with the ratchet wheel d by a spring attached to the wheel J.
The teeth of the ratchet wheel d incline in such a direction that as the barrel
is rotated by the spring F. when the float is caused to rise by the increasing
water in the hold or well, the wheel J is rotated with the barrel by the
ratchet wheel and pawl, and the pins i. i. are caused to act upon the arms c.
of the hammers, and make the latter strike one after the other upon the bell
more or less rapidly as the water rises faster or slower, thus giving an alarm.
When the barrel turns in the opposite direction, as it does when the float
descends in consequence of the fall of the level of the water in the hold or
well, the ratchet wheel d raises the pawl e, and the wheel J dues not revolve,
consequently the hammers cease to operate, and their operation also ceases

page_text: when the barrel is stationary by reason of the level of the water no longer
rising. K is a ratchet wheel secured to the wheel J, and g is a pawl attached
to the frame A. A. and held in contact with the said ratchet wheel by a spring h.
that is also attached to the frame A, A, the teeth of the said ratchet wheel.
being set in such a direction that the pawl stops the ratchet wheel, and con-
sequently the wheel J from rotating with the barrel E as the float descends,
but is raised by the said feeth when the wheel J rotates with the barrel as
the float rises: 1 is a gear secured to the barrel E. and gearing with a gear m
upon an arbor n. which is fitted to bearings in the frame A. A. and protrudes
through the centre of the dial c. the said arbor n carrying a hand or index o to
point out on the dial, which is properly graduated, the exact depth or state of
water in the hold, so that whether the water rises. falls. or remains stationary,
as also the rate of its rise or fall, may be known by examining the dial. A
weight to operate like a clock may be applied to the barrel as a substitute for
the spring F. and the parts of the instrument may be arranged differently
to what I have represented in the Drawing, which is made to show the
arrangement at present consider the most convenient and in other respects
the best.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Marc Antoine Francois Mennons in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 8th October 1867.
I, MARC
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME,
ANTOINE FRANCOIS MENNONS. of the Firm of Mennons and Telescheff, Home
and Foreign Patent Agents, of No. 8. Southampton Buildings, in the County
of Middlesex, and 27, Rue Laffitte, Paris, in the Empire of France, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Marc Antoine Francois Mennons, Her special licence that I, the said Marc
Antoine Francois Mennons, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Marc Antoine Francois Mennons, mny executors, admi-
nistrators, 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, within the United

page_text: Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands. and Isle of
Man, an Invention for "AN IMPROVED ALARM APPARATUS FOR INDICATING AND
REGISTERING THE RISE OF WATER IN THE HOLDS OF SHIPS OR VESSELS," a
communication to me by Charles Benjamin Norton. a person resident at
91, Champs Elysees, Paris, in France, upon the condition (amongst others)
that. I. the said Marc Antoine Francois Mennons. my executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their
hands and seals, 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 Marc Antoine Francois Mennons, 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, reference being had to the Figures of the annexed
Drawing, and to the letters marked thereon, that is to say:
This Invention consists in the arrangement of parts hereafter cited relatively
to one another for united operation to produce a leakage alarm and register
for ships, to wit, the bell arranged on a firm part of the vessel. the spring
within the barrel and the barrel within the bell, the float chain on the spring
barrel, the hammers within the bell, the pin wheel and the mechanism by
which they are operated and controlled on the arbor of the spring barrel, and
the mechanism which measures the rise and fall of water alongside the signal
mechanism and so as to be actuated by the spring which sounds the alarmı
and at the same time that the alarm is sounded. This arrangement brings all
the parts compactly together and there is no liability of derangement. The
number of parts is lessened and there is no danger of the bell ringing from any
cause other than the rise and fall of water, whereas in other arrangements the
bell is liable to be rung by the motion of the vessel in a heavy sea or by any
sudden jar or collision, and will continue to ring during the rising or falling
of the water in the hold. This arrangement registers with a single hand, and
can by removing a number of the pins be made to ring an alarm as follows:-
1. 2. 3. or any given number of sounds upon the bell to every inch of water
in the hold of the vessel, whereas other arrangements can only be constructed
to give an occasional sound and register by two hands, thus rendering mistakes
liable.
To enable others to make and use the Invention I will proceed to describe
its construction and operation.
Fig. 1 is a transverse section of a ship showing the aların applied; Fig. 2

page_text: is a front view of the instrument with the dial removed to show the working
parts; Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse central section of the same; Fig. 4 is a
section of the chain barrel in a plane parallel with Fig. 1. Similar letters of
reference indicate corresponding parts in the several Figures.
A. A, is an upright circular frame attached to a board B, and having
secured in front of it a dial C; D is a bell secured to the board B, and
surrounding the back part of the frame A, A; E is a hollow cylindrical
barrel containing a coiled spring F, and fitted to rotate upon a stationary
arbor a, which is secured in the frame A, A, so as to be incapable of rotation.
one end of the spring being secured to the arbor a and the other to the
barrel E; G is a chain or cord secured at one end to the barrel E, and
having attached to its other end a float H, which rests upon the bottom of
the vessel when there is no water in the hold or pump well, or floats upon the
surface of the water when there is any in the hold or well. The arrangement
of the spring F and chain or cord G is such that when the float is at the
bottom the spring is wound up like a clock spring and kept in that condition
by the weight of the float H, but that as the float rises by reason of the
increase of water in the hold or pump well the spring unwinds itself and
turns the barrel upon the arbor a and winds up the chain or cord, and always
keeps it tight between the barrel and the float, and the weight of the
float must be sufficient to cause the chain or cord to wind up the spring
again as the float is allowed to descend by the fall of the water in the hold
or pump well; I, I, are two hammers swinging within the bell on two
pivots b, b', secured in the framing A, A, said hammers having their shanks
elastic, and having arms c, c', attached one to each; J is a wheel fitted to
rotate on the arbor a, and carrying a number of pins i, i; d is a ratchet
wheel secured to the barrel E; e is a pawl attached to the wheel J, and held
in contact with the ratchet wheel d by a spring attached to the wheel J.
The teeth of the ratchet wheel incline in such a direction that as the barrel
is rotated by the spring F, when the float is caused to rise by the increasing
water in the hold or well the wheel J is rotated with the barrel by the ratchet
wheel and pawl, and the pins i, i, are caused to act upon the arms c, c¹, of
the hammers and make the latter strike one after the other upon the bell
more or less rapidly as the water rises faster or slower, thus giving an alarm.
When the barrel turns in an opposite direction, as it does when the float
descends in consequence of the fall of the level of the water in the hold or
well, the ratchet wheel d raises the pawl e, and the wheel J does not revolve,
consequently the hammers cease to operate, and the operation of the latter
ceases also when the barrel is stationary by reason of the level of the water

page_text: no longer rising. k is a ratchet wheel secured to the wheel J, and g is a pawl
attached to the frame A, A, and held in contact with the said ratchet wheel
by a spring h, that is also attached to the frame A, A, the teeth of the said
ratchet wheel being set in such a direction that the pawl stops the ratchet wheel
and consequently the wheel J from rotating with the barrel E as the float
descends, but it is raised by the said teeth when the wheel J rotates with the
barrel as the float rises; I is a gear secured to the barrel E and gearing with
a gear m upon an arbor n which is fitted to bearings in the frame A, A, and
protrudes through the centre of the dial C, the said arbor n carrying a hand or
index o to point out on the dial, which is properly graduated, the exact depth
or state of water in the hold, so that whether the water is rising or falling, or
its condition stationary, or what the rate of its rise or fall, may be known by
examining the dial. A weight to operate like a clock may be applied to the
barrel as a substitute for the spring F, and the parts of the instrument may
be arranged differently to what is represented in the Drawing, which is made
to show the arrangement at present considered the most convenient and in
other respects the best.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention and the manner of
carrying it into effect, 1 declare that what I claim and desire to protect by
Letters Patent is, the arrangement of the parts hereafter cited relatively to
one another for united operation to produce a leakage alarm and register for
ships, to wit, the bell D arranged on a firm part of the vessel B, the spring F
within the barrel E, and the barrel within the bell, the float chain G on the
spring barrel E, the hammers 1, I', within the bell, the pin wheel J and the
mechanism by which they are operated and controlled on the arbor of the
spring barrel, and the mechanism which measures the rise and fall of
water alongside the signal mechanism, and so as to be actuated by the
spring which sounds the alarm, substantially as and for the purposes set
forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Marc Antoine Francois Mennons, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this First day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
M. F. MENNONS. (L.s.)