IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF AND IN THE APPARATUS FOR BUILDING AND WORKING UNDER WATER
Year: 1841

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TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
BUSH, of Deptford, in the County of Kent, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at Westminster,
the Twenty-first day of September, in the fifth year of Her reign; did, for Her-
self, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Bush,
Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said
William Bush, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Bush, my 'exors; admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term.of years
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend,
within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF AND IN THE APPARATUS FOR BUILDING AND
WORKING UNDER WATER"; in which said Letters Patent is contained a pro-
viso, 'that I; the said William Bush, shall cause a particular. description of
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Bush, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-

page_text: tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the
Drawing hereunto annexed and to the figures and letters marked thereou(that
is to say) :-
My Invention relates to means and apparatus for working under water, in
order to produce excavations and building foundations of lighthouses, piers,
jettys, and other structures under water.
And in order that the Invention may be most fully understood and readily
carried into effect I will proceed to describe the Drawing hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 represents the elevation of an external view of a caissoon, having
my improvements applied thereto; Figure 2 represents a section of Figure 1,
by which the mode of arranging and combining the apparatus for working
according to my Invention will be readily traced. a, a, a, is the caissoon, which
is constructed of a series of cast-iron plates affixed to each other by flanches
by the aid of the screw, bolts and nuts. This caissoon will be made of a height
depending on the depth of water, and also on the depth to which the lower
part is to be sunk before it comes to that solidity of botton as will be proper
for commencing the building or foundation for the building. The interior of
the caissoon is divided into several compartments, the nature and use of which
I will now describe. The lower part of the caissoon is open, and the lower
chamber, marked No. 1, is that in which the work people work, and is in this
respect when under water similar in its use to a diving bell, as the workmen
receive a constant supply of air (in the chamber No. 1) which will be in a
state of pressure depending on the depth to which the chamber No. 1 of the
caissoon is sunk below the water's surface. This chamber, No. 1, is formed by
the partition 6, b, which is composed of a series of plates of cast iron affixed
together by their flanges and by screw bolts and nuts; the upper portion of the
partition having a manhole c with a suitable valve d, which when on its seat
may be securely fixed by screws and other means, as are well understood by
engineers, so as to make it air and water tight when required; and it will be
seen that the partition b constitutes a floor of the next chamber. And it should
be stated that the joints of the caissoon and of the various partitions and floors
and other parts are all to be made water and air-tight, as is well understood
by engineers in putting together similar works, therefore will not require to be
described in this Specification: e, e, is another partition, put together the
same as that b, b, thus producing the chamber No. 2 between the partitions e, e,
and b, b. ff, is another floor or partition, put together in the same manner
as those at e, e, and b, b. There are two manholes g and h which are respec-

page_text: tively closed by the valvesiand j,such valves being capable of being closed water
'and air tight by screws and other means as are well understood by engineers.
To the under side of the manhole h is affixed the trunkk, having at its lower end
the valve l, as is shown, and m is a cock to allow air to pass into that trunk in
order that the air therein may become as compressed as that contained in the
chambers No. 1 and No. 2. The object of this trunk is to enable a workman
to enter into and pass from the chamber No. 2 from the chamber No. 3 with
as little waste of compressed air as possible, the valve / being closed, and the
stop-cock closed the valve i is to be opened. When a workman enters the
trunk the valvei is again closed and made tight, when the workman within the
trunk will open the cock m, by which the pressure of the air in the trunk
will be equalized with that in the chamber No. 2, when the valve may
'be opened and the workman descend into the chamber No. 2. "It should be
remarked that, although from the manner of making the section of the appa-
ratus shewn in Figure 2 it appears that the trunk k is on the same plane
as the opening into the chamber No. 2, such is not the fact, for the trunk k is
nearer to the side of the caissoon, as shewn in the plan of chamber floor
at ff, in Figure 3, and out of the way of the valve to the chamber No. 1.
On the chamber floor f, f, is constructed the chamber No. 3, which rises
up to any required height above the level of the water, so as to exclude
the water from entering into that part of the caissoon, or into the chambers
No. 3 or No. 2. There is a fourth chamber formed at the upper part of
the caissoon marked No. 4, which is closed at the upper part by two man-
holes r, r; hence it will be seen that the chamber No. 3 is the only one
which is generally open to the outer atmosphere, excepting at low water, when
the chamber No. 4'is open to the outer atmosphere by means of the valves n, n,
which are kept in their places or removed from their seats by the rods o, o,
passing through stuffing boxes s, s, into the chamber No. 3. p, p, are pipes or
tubes rising to the upper part of the chamber No. 4, and at their lower ends
they are connected to air pumps, one of which is shewn at q, affixed on the
chamber floor f, Figure 2, it being worked by a crank and fly wheel, as is
shewn.
Having thus explained the mode of arranging the parts of the apparatus, I
will describe the manner of using the same. The chambers Nos. 2, 3, & 4
being full of air, the valves n, n, are to be kept closed, and the caissoon
is to be floated out to the place where it is to be used. The valves n, n;
are to be opened and the water will flow into the chamber No. 4, and the
lower end of the caissoon descends below the water, and the chamber No. 1
will also be filled therewith, but the chambers Nos. 2 and 3 will be kept

page_text: free from water, the valve c at the upper part of the chamber No. 1
having been closed before putting it afloat. The caissoon having been
lowered down into its position, workmen are to be lowered down or are
to descend by ladders into the chamber No. 3 of the caissoon, some of
them descending into the chamber No. 2. The valve over the manhole g, h,
is then made fast, and the pumps set to work, by which the air is compressed
to a degree proportioned to the depth to which that chamber is sunk below the
surface of the water, when the valve on the opening into the chamber No. 1
is opened, and the pumps are kept constantly at work, which will keep the
water out of the chamber No. 1 in a similar manner to which water is kept
out of a diving bell, and the workmen will be enabled to descend into the
chamber No. 1 and excavate the sand or earth and throw it into the chamber
No. 2; and when a considerable quantity of sand or earth has been raised into
the chamber No. 2 the workmen ascend into the chamber No. 2, and close the
valve at c into the chamber No. 1, the valve j over the, manhole g of the
chamber No. 2 is opened, the air in the chamber No. 2 being allowed to
escape gradually, so as to equalize the pressure of the air in the chamber No. 2
with that of the, outer atmosphere. The earth or sand in the chamber No. 2
is then to be raised out of the caissoon through the manholeg, and through the
chamber No. 3 by suitable tackle and buckets, and in this manner is the sand
and earth to be raised from the bottom into the chamber No. 2, and thenceaway
through the chamber No. 3, the caissoon progressively sinking till comes to
a sufficiently solid bottom to allow of commencing the foundation of concrete
or other materials, or, if the bottom be a rock, then by masonry, till the
chamber No. 1 is considerably filled therewith, then the chamber partition or
floor b, b, is to be removed and the building continued; and if it be well done
it will prevent the flow of water, and then the whole of the interior works of
the caissoon may be removed and the building continued, and the upper part
of the caissoon may be removed above water mark or remain and constitute
an external casing to the building. It has been above stated that the air
pumps receive a supply of air from the chamber No. 4 by the pipe p,p; the
object of this arrangement is to take advantage of the compression of air
which may be obtained by the rising of the water in that chamber, and thus
save labor in using the pumps, as they will be working with compressed air,
for it will be evident that if the valves n, n, be placed in a position to be
above water line at low water mark, atmospheric air will enter and fill the
'chamber No. 4, and when the water rises the air within the chamber No. 4
will be compressed in proportion to the rise of the water therein, at the same
time there are to be stop-cocks on the pipes or tubes from the chamber No. 4,

page_text: in order to stop them should the supply be exhausted, and ways opened from
the chamber No. 3 into the pumps for the supply of air thereto.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself to
the precise details shewn, provided the peculiar character of my Invention
be retained; but what I claim is, the mode of constructing the interior of a
caissoon in such manner that the work people may be supplied with compressed
air, and be able to raise the materials excavated, and to make or construct
foundations and buildings, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Bush, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty tren