Year: 1899

page_text: A communication from LEON CAILLEAUD, Engineer, of Rochefort-s-mer, in the
Republic of France.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of 111, Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
In boats so built as not to capsize, provided with central openings it frequently
happens that the water owing to the violence of a storm penetrates from
underneath the shafts into and up through such central passages thereby incom-
moding the passengers or occupants of the boat.
The object of the present invention is a protecting grating or cover for the
purpose of remedying this inconvenience.
To render the description of the invention clearer it will be described as
applied to a boat built so as not to capsize or be submerged.-
This arrangement of a protecting grating or cover can also be applied to boats
with circular openings or of any other shape. In the form of boat to be described
the opening is of considerable length and the bulb or counterweight or centre
board arranged in the opening extends substantially the whole length of the
vessel.
The device consists of a frame of wood or metal carrying a series of transverse
bars which support a set of longitudinal bars notched into or secured upon the
former, thus forming a kind of lattice deck near the bottom of the boat with clear
ways or open spaces therein.
The central part of this grating or cover that which is over the central opening
and slightly overlaps it, is provided with four bulkheads plates or boards of
wood or metal. The outer boards are permanently fixed to the transverse bars:
the two inner boards are movable on and united to the former by sunk hinges
placed and acting parallel with the longitudinal axis of the vessel: the hinges
being so arranged as to allow of the boards being swung back upwards for the
passage of the movable bulb or centre board.
The open spaces between the bars forming the grating are so arranged as to
render it possible for the water to run off as quickly as if there were no grating
at all, i.e., they leave sufficient space for that purpose without, however, weaken-
ing the structure.
In storms or at other times when the water 'is driven upwards in the central
opening it strikes against the under sides of the cover boards which are, however
sufficiently strong (or they may be strengthened by bolts springs or the like)
to resist the pressure without being opened. The water then flows upward to
the right and left underneath the staging formed by the transverse and longi-
tudinal bars its force being thus lessened and it returns towards the central
opening and escapes therethrough without hindrance.

page_text: This grating or cover can be installed on any vessel provided with a central
opening and built so as to be secure against submersion or capsizing, such open-
ings being of any form and the grating being either permanently fixed to the
boat or so as to allow of its being removed.
BOULT & WADE,
Agent for the Applicant.
A communication from LEON CAILLEAUD, Engineer, of Rochefort-s-mer, in the
Republic of France.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of 111, Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement:--
In boats so built as not to capsize, provided with central openings, it frequently
happens that the water owing to the violence of a storm penetrates from under-
neath the openings into and up through such central passages thereby incom-
moding the passengers or occupants of the boat.
The object of the present invention is a protecting grating or cover for the
purpose of remedying this inconvenience.
To render the description of the invention clearer, it will be described as
applied to a boat built so as not to capsize or be submerged such as is represented
in plan in Figure 1 and in transverse vertical section in Figure 2.
This arrangement of a protecting grating or cover can also be applied to boats
with circular openings or of any other shape. In the form of boat to be described
the opening is of considerable length and the bulb or counterweight or centre
board arranged in the opening extends substantially the whole length of the
vessel.
The device consists of a frame of wood or metal carrying a series of transverse
bars A which support a set of longitudinal bars B notched into, or secured upon
the former, thus forming a kind of lattice deck near the bottom of the boat, with
clear ways or open spaces C therein.
The central part of this grating or cover, that which is over the central open-
ing of the boat and slightly overlaps it, is provided with four longitudinal bulk-
heads, plates or boards DD, E E¹ of wood or metal. The outer boards D D¹ are
permanently fixed to the transverse bars; the two inner boards E E¹ are movable
on and united to the former by hinges placed and acting parallel with the
longitudinal axis of the vessel; the hinges being so arranged as to allow of the
boards being swung back upwards, for the passage of the movable bulb or centre
board.
The opening spaces between the bars forming the grating are so arranged as to
render it possible for the water to run off as quickly as if there were no grating
at all i.e. they leave sufficient space for that purpose without, however, weaken-
ing the structure.
In storms or at other times when the water is driven upwards in the central
opening it strikes against the undersides of the cover boards, which are, however,
sufficiently strong, (or they may be strengthened by bolts, springs or the like) to
resist the pressure without being opened. The water then flows outwards to the

page_text: right and left underneath the staging formed by the transverse and longitudinal
bars; its force being thus lessened, and it returns towards the central opening in
the hull and escapes therethrough without hindrance.
This grating or cover can be installed on any vessel provided with a central
opening, and built so as to be secure against submersion or capsizing, such open-
ings being of any form; and the grating being either permanently fixed to the
boat, or so as to allow of its being removed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
:-
1. A grating for boats provided with central openings for a centre board or the
like forming a staging or deck with open spaces and a central closed or full part
made of longitudinal boards arranged over the central opening of the boat, the
two central longitudinal boards being hinged to the grating or frame so as to
allow of their opening upwards, substantially as described.
2. A grating for boats provided with centre board or like openings substan-
tially as described or illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 13th day of October 1899.
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.