IMPROVE- MENTS IN TACKLE FOR WORKING APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN CLEANING AND SCRUBBING THE SIDES AND BOTTOMS OF SHIPS AFLOAT to be as follows
Year: 1884

page_text: I, ALEXANDER DONALDSON SPIERS of Glasgow in the County of Lanark,
Insurance Broker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN TACKLE FOR WORKING APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN CLEANING AND
SCRUBBING THE SIDES AND BOTTOMS OF SHIPS AFLOAT to be as follows :-
"
:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in tackle employed in working
apparatus for cleaning and scrubbing the sides and bottoms of ships afloat and it
relates more especially to that apparatus for which Letters Patent, bearing date
the 11th day of September 1883, No 4340, were granted to David Hunter, although
the said improved tackle is also applicable to be used with other cleaning and
scrubbing apparatus.
Instead of connecting the cleaning or scrubbing apparatus to the martingale or
other forward part of the ship as described and shewn in the Specification and
drawings filed under the said Letters Patent, the apparatus is connected to a shoe
formed with sides upon it and placed on the cut water of the ship or vessel so as
to be capable of being raised and lowered thereon. The sides of the shoe are
preferably curved outwards at their rearward parts and at or near the centre or
preferably towards the top rear corner of each side an eye or ring is made-To one
of these eyes or rings or to both of them a shackle or block is secured and a line
or rope either fastened thereto by one end or one end of the rope may be secured
to the deck or other part of the ship or vessel and rove through the block the other
end of the line or rope being capable of being wound up or paid out so as to raise
or lower the shoe on the cut-water. At or near the centre or preferably towards
the bottom rear corner of each side of the shoe another eye or ring is made and a
block secured thereto the block being on the port or starboard side of the cut-water
accordingly as it is the port or starboard side of the ship or vessel that is being
operated on by the cleaner or scrubber. Through the said block a rope or line
(preferably of iron or steel wire) is rove, the said rope also passing through a
shackle or block on the forward part of the cleaning or scrubbing apparatus and
LD037

page_text: having one of its ends secured to the deck or other part of the ship or vessel whilst
its other end is capable of being paid out or hauled in as desired.
On the rope to prevent it chafing on the side of the ship a series of knobs,
rollers, or bobbins are placed loosely these being retained at proper distances apart
by collars or their equivalents on the rope. These knobs, rollers, or bobbins bear
on the ships side and whilst tending to reduce friction also tend to keep the rope
from chafing or catching on the bilge or elsewhere.
By the employment of this tackle the cleaning or scrubbing apparatus is enabled
to get to, or nearer to the keel of the ship.

page_text: I, ALEXANDER DONALDSON SPIERS of Glasgow in the County of Lanark
Insurance Broker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN TACKLE FOR WORKING APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN CLEANING
AND SCRUBBING THE SIDES AND BOTTOMS OF SHIPS AFLOAT" and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in tackle employed in working
apparatus for cleaning or scrubbing the sides and bottoms of ships or vessels afloat
and whilst generally applicable to that class of such apparatus which is moved over
the skin of the ship or vessel in an approximately vertical direction from the keel
towards the deck and vice versa, it is especially applicable to the apparatus for
which Letters Patent bearing date the 11th day of September 1883, N° 4340 were
granted to David Hunter of Troon.
The apparatus constituting this invention consists of a shoe or clamp removably
placed on the cutwater of the ship or vessel and capable of being raised and
lowered in position thereon. To the rearward part of each side of the said shoe or
clamp a shackle or ring or shackles or rings, is or are connected and to one of these
shackles or rings or to both of them, a block is secured by its forward end.
To a shackle or ring in the rear end of the said block a line is attached the
opposite end of the line being made fast at any desired position on the deck or
other part of the ship. A corresponding line is connected direct to the shackle or
ring at the other side of the shoe, or clamp; the said. line being carried up the
other side of the ship and similarly made fast on the deck or other part of the ship.
By these two lines the shoe, or clamp is held in position on the cut-water. The
cleaning or scrubbing apparatus is connected to one end of a line or rope, preferably
a wire rope, and the said rope is rove through the block above mentioned and
carried to the deck or other part of the ship where it is so secured as to be capable
of being hauled in and paid out as desired. At intervals apart on the said rope a
series of bobbins rollers or knobs are placed loosely but retained at proper distances
apart by collars, discs or washers and enlargements on the rope. These bobbins,
rollers, or knobs bear on the ships side and whilst tending to reduce friction they
also keep the rope from chafing on and scraping the paint from or otherwise
damaging the skin of the ship.
•
And in order that my said invention may be properly understood I have hereunto
appended an explanatory sheet of drawings whereon,
Figure 1, is a side elevation of the improved tackle.
Figure 2, is a plan thereof.
Figures 3 and 4, are details hereinafter more particularly referred to.
Figure 5, shows the application of the tackle to a cleaning or scrubbing apparatus
operating on the side of a ship or vessel.
The shoe or clamp which embraces the cut-water is marked A, and as seen more
particularly at figure 2, the sides of it are at their rearward parts preferably curved
outwards to facilitate adjustment and to keep the other parts of the tackle out
from the junction of the cut-water with the bow of the ship.
At its front end the shoe or clamp has or may have an eye B, formed on it and a
line O, connected thereto for the purpose of guiding the shoe in raising and
lowering it to the desired position and the interior front part of the shoe bearing
on the front of the cutwater is or may be serrated as indicated at a figure 1, or it
.C

page_text: may be formed flat or plain or have one or a series of rollers as indicated at w,
figure 3, At each of the curved rearward ends of the shoe or clamp A, an eye E,
is formed and through the said eyes, shackles D, D', are passed as shown. To the
shackle D, a sheaf or pulley block E, is connected by an eye v, and to another
eye u, at the rearward end of the block a line G, is secured.
The line as indicated on figure 5, passes to the deck or other part of the ship
where it may be made fast in any desired manner and position..
To the shackle D', another line H, is attached the said line passing as indicated
by the dotted line H figure 5, up the other side of the ship to the deck or other
point where it is also made fast in any desired manner and position. By these
two lines G, H the shoe or clamp A, is held on the cutwater and by paying them
out or hauling them in its position on the cutwater is adjusted.
Instead of connecting the said lines G, H, to an eye at the middle of the rear end
at each side of the shoe as shown the shoe may be constructed with two eyes at
each side as illustrated at figure 3, in which arrangement the line G, is attached to
the upper eye t, at one side of the shoe and the line H, to the corresponding eye at
the opposite side, the block F, being in that case connected to the lower eye t¹, It
is however preferred to make the connections as indicated at figure 1, in order to
obviate any possibility of fouling the lines G, H, with the rope to which the
cleaning apparatus is secured.
In the block F, a sheaf or pulley I, is carried on which runs the rope J, of the
cleaning apparatus.
This rope, which as before explained is preferably an iron or steel wire rope has
at intervals throughout its length a series of bobbins, rollers, or knobs K, these
being loose on the rope and held at the proper distances apart by discs or collars 8,
which are also loose but maintained in position by' winding a strand r, of wire,
cord, or equivalent material behind them on the rope or they may be so maintained
by other suitable means..
The bobbins, rollers or knobs K, in working with the tackle bear on the skin of
the ship so lessening friction whilst at the same time they keep the rope J from
chafing thereby also preserving the rope and the paint or composition on the ship.
To allow the bobbins to pass through the block F, without unduly increasing its
size, the sheaf I is centred towards the rear end of the block as shown. This sheaf
may either be a simple pulley or it may be made as indicated at figure 4, or in
other desired manner.
To keep the block itself from chafing on the side of the ship it is furnished with
leather, india rubber, canvas or soft pads p, which can be removed as they become
worn.
In working with the tackle one block F only may be used in which case one
cleaning apparatus only can be operated and therefore to render the position of
the block easily interchangeable from one side of the ship to the other the
shackles D, D', are each removably connected to the shoe A, It is however
obvious that with a tackle constructed as described a block F may be connected to
each side of the shoe A, in order to enable two cleaners to be worked at the same
time one on each side of the ship.
The operation of the tackle is as follows, The shoe or clamp A, having been
adjusted to the desired position on the cut-water the lines G, H are made fast
and the cleaning apparatus is then worked through a vertical arc over a breadth of
the skin of the ship from the shoe as a centre with a radius equal to the length of
rope between the shoe and the apparatus. When that breadth has been sufficiently
operated on a length of the rope J, equal to the length of the actual cleaning part
of the apparatus is paid out or hauled in and the said apparatus again actuated as
before. It is found in practice that with a tackle constructed as described the
difficulty heretofore experienced in working with cleaning apparatus of the class
mentioned viz the difficulty of efficiently operating on the turn of the bilge the
flat of the bottom and also in the run at the stern of the ship is overcome.

page_text: - 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
First For the purpose set forth tackle consisting of a shoe or clamp placed and
held on the cutwater and having lines for raising and lowering it to position in
combination with a pulley or sheaf block or blocks and a rope or ropes connected
to the apparatus to be operated and thence passed through the block or blocks to
the deck or other desired part of the vessel, substantially as described.
Second-In tackle for the purpose set forth a shoe (to fit on the cut-water)
formed with an eye or eyes in its outwardly curved rear ends and with its
forward bearing end serrated, plain or furnished with rollers substantially as
described.
Third In a tackle for the purpose set forth the combination with the apparatus
to be manipulated of a rope connected to the apparatus and provided with loose
bobbins rollers or knobs maintained at suitable distances apart substantially as
and for the purpose described.
.
GEO. M. CRUIKSHANK,
135, Buchanan Street, Glasgow,
Agent.