Improved Means of Actuating Water-tight or Bulkhead Doors of Ships or Vessels.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Sept., 1893
Complete Specification Lelt, 18th June, 1894-Accepted, 4th Aug.. 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION,
Improved Means of Actuating Water-tight or Bulkhead Doors of
Ships or Vessels.
I, WILLIAM LOCKWOOD, of the City Standard Piston Works, Bramall Lane,
Sheffield, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to the raising and lowering or opening and closing of
water-tight or bulkhead doors of ships and vessels.
Such doors are normally open to permit of the passage of those having duties
to attend to, but at times of emergency or at other times are or may be required to
be closed to cut-off communication between adjacent parts of the ship.
.
I am aware that it has been proposed to raise such doors for opening the door-
ways by manually operated screws, the connections being so arranged as that the
doors are disconnected therefrom when required to be closed and fall by gravity,
and require to be again connected before they can be again raised.
According to my invention, I combine with the door, one or more pistons adapted
to work within a suitably supported cylinder or cylinders to which steam,
compressed air, water, or other suitable motive agent is admitted under the control
of valves or other suitable means of control. Or, vice-versa, I combine the cylinder
or cylinders with the door, and suitably support the piston-rod or rods.
:
If the door is adapted to slide laterally, as but very few of such doors are, then
I apply to the cylinder valvular apparatus adapted to admit the motive agent to
each end of the cylinder as desired, and to simultaneously open an exhaust from
the other end of the cylinder.
To prevent the motive agent from forcing the piston against the cylinder cover,
I form a grated chamber at the top end of the cylinder so disposed as that on the
piston passing the same, the motive agent will escape to the top side of the piston
(the exhaust being cut-off) and will oppose.a resistance, balancing the pressures,
and cushioning the piston.
By such means, I can, in the event (as is likely to happen) of a plank or spar of
timber getting carried into the doorway during the rush of any entering water
and tending to block the same, repeatedly actuate the door and reduce the
obstruction by hammering the door repeatedly on it, which could not be done by
the means firstly hereinbefore referred to.
Deted this 18th doveof Sentember 1802

page_text: VADI LEIE DI ECIFICATION.
Improved Means of Actuating Water-tight or Bulkhead Doors of
Ships or Vessels.
I, WILLIAM LOCKWOOD, of City Standard Piston Works, Bramall Lane,
Sheffield Engineer 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 :-
This invention relates to the raising and lowering or opening and closing of water
tight or bulkhead doors of ships and vessels.
Such doors are normally open to permit of the passage of those having duties to
attend to, but at times of emergency or at other times they are or may be required
to be closed to cut off communication between adjacent parts of the ship.
I am aware that it has been proposed to raise such doors for opening the door-
ways by manually operated screws the connections being so arranged as that the
doors are disconnected therefrom when required to be closed and fall by gravity
and require to be again connected before they can be again raised. I am also
aware that it has been proposed to both raise aud lower such doors by screws.
The present improvements are equally applicable to doors which open and close
in a vertical direction, or in a horizontal direction, or in an inclined direction.
On the accompanying drawings;
-
Fig. 1, represents a front elevation, partly in section, of a bulkhead door adapted
with the means I prefer to employ in carrying out the present invention.
Fig. 2, is a sectional side elevation thereof; and,—
Fig. 3, is a sectional plan.
a, represents the door, which may be of any ordinary construction adapted to
slide in guides &, in a vertical, horizontal, or inclined direction, according to the
position of the bulkhead e, in which it is disposed and its relation to other adjacent
parts. The door represented is adapted to be opened by raising it and to be closed
by lowering it, but it may be reversely placed.
In carrying out the invention according to the modification represented on the
drawings, combine with or secure by bands and bolts a', or other suitable means,
to the door, a hydraulic cylinder d, which is closed at the one end by a plate d',
and at the other end is fitted with an end plate d², formed or provided with
stuffing boxes d³, which act as guides to pipes e, e', both of which pass therethrough
and are screwed into a piston head e², the one opening into the cylinder on the one
side of the piston head, and the other opening into the cylinder on the other side
of the piston head, vide the arrows in Fig. 1. Externally of the cylinder, the
pipes communicate with a three-way valve e³, which also communicates with an
inlet e, for the pressure, and an outlet es, for the exhaust.
The valve so operates as to place the pressure in communication with the
pipes e, e, alternately, simultaneously placing the other of such pipes in communi-
cation with the exhaust. By such arrangement, the cylinder is always charged
with water, but pressure is only on the one side of the piston at a time.
It is obvious that such arrangement may be reversely applied, the cylinder being
stationary, and the piston working therein and being secured to the door; in which
arrangement the pipes e, e', would open into the cylinder at its opposite ends.
The valve e, can be situated in the neighbourhood of the door so as to be
operated from either side thereof, or in cases where there are several doors the
series of valves may be located in a common chamber, so as individually to be
under the control of an officer or seaman deputed to attend thereto..
I prefer to employ water as the motive agent, in preference to steam or
compressed air, owing to its practical incompressibility and to the feasibility of
maintaining any desired. pressure therewith..

page_text: I
To prevent the motive agent from forcing the piston against the cylinder cover,
may form a grated chamber at the top end of the cylinder so disposed as that on
the piston passing the same, the motive agent will escape to the other side of the
piston (the exhaust being cut off) and will oppose à resistance balancing the
pressure and cushioning the piston.
By the aforesaid improved means, I can, in the event (as is likely to happen) of
a plank or spar getting carried into or athwart the doorway during the rush of
any entering water and tending to block the same, repeatedly actuate the door and
reduce the obstruction by hammering the door repeatedly on or against it, which
could not be done by the means firstly hereinbefore referred to or at present.
employed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is ;-
1. In combination, a water tight or bulkhead door of a ship or vessel and means.
of actuating the same connected thereto and operating substantially in the manner
hereinbefore described.
2. The arrangement of such apparatus hereinbefore described with reference to.
the accompanying drawings.
DAY, DAVIES & HUNT,
321, High Holborn, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.