IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY USED IN SHIP BUILDING
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Lamport, of Workington, Ship Builder, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY USED IN SHIP BUILDING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Lamport at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 25th
February 1854.
I, CHARLES LAMPORT, of Workington, Ship Builder, do hereby declare the
nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY USED IN SHIP
BUILDING" to be as follows:-
In preparing the frame of a ship about to be built, the usual mode of
proceeding is to shape and bevel the timbers composing the frame as near as
possible to what is required to give the ship her proposed form, both vertically
and longitudinally, when on the ground, and by manual labor. When the
frames are erected in their places, any irregularities arising from error or
straining are adzed away, and the said frames dressed or flattened to receive
each plank.
In place of finishing them as above by hand, I rough the timbers out by
axe or saw, and in this state put the frames together, and when in place reduce
them to the curves and bevels (marked on each from the moulds in the ordi-
nary way), by the employment of revolving cutters or planing irons, set in
motion by steam or other motive power for this purpose.

page_text: I employ the ordinary railway for a travelling crane, to run the whole length
of the slip on which the ship is to be built.
Upon and pendant from the transverse carriage I have a moveable frame
to sustain the pulleys, shafts, wheels, and apparatus necessary to give motion
to the cutters, which are so arranged as to move up and down within or upon
the said pendant frame, to adjust them to the height upon the frame of the
ship as may be required, while the travelling carriage will carry the frame
along the ship's side as required..
I communicate motion to the pulleys and cutters by means of shafts, or
continuous bands, either at the level of the railway or at any advisable
height upon the pendant frame, and capable of being raised or lowered as
required.
I also employ the machinery to bore the bolt and treenail holes in the
frames and planks of the ship by the substitution of centre bitts, augers, or
other borers in place of the cutters.
I further employ the machinery to dress and plane the planks when on the
ship, also the stanchions, bulwarks, and other parts, and to mould the rails,
gunwales, and other parts, and to plane or fair the flat of the deck; and I use
the same machinery to bore the holes in the plates and angle irons, and other
parts of iron ships, when in place, so as to ensure the exact coincidence of the
several holes in the different parts.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Lamport in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
24th August 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
LAMPORT, of Workington, Ship Builder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the seventeenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Charles Lamport, Her special licence that I, the said Charles Lamport, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
Lamport, my executors, administrators, 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

page_text: vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY USED
IN SHIP BUILDING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles
Lamport, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly 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 Charles Lamport, 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
thereof (that is to say):-
In preparing the frame of a ship about to be built, the usual mode of
proceeding is to shape and bevil the timber composing the frame as near as
possible to what is required to give the ship her proposed form, both vertically
and longitudinally, when on the ground, and by manual labour. When the
frames are erected in their places, any irregularities arising from error or
straining are adzed away, and the said frames dressed or flattened to receive
each plank. In place of finishing theni as above by hand, I rough the timbers
out by axe or saw, and in this state put the frames together, and when in
place reduce then to the curves and bevils (marked on each from the moulds
in the ordinary way), by the employment of revolving cutters or planing
irons, set in motion by steam or other motive power. For this purpose I
employ the ordinary railway for a travelling crane to run the whole length of
the slip on which the ship is to be built. Upon and pendant from the trans-
verse carriage I have a moveable frame to sustain the pulleys, shafts, wheels,
and apparatus necessary to give motion to the cutters, which are so arranged
as to move up and down within or upon the said pendant frame, to adjust them
to the height upon the frame of the ship as may be required, while the tra-
velling carriage will carry the frame along the ship's side, as required. I com-
municate motion to the pulleys and cutters by means of shafts or continuous
bands, either at the level of the railway, or at any advisable height upon the
pendant frame, and capable of being raised or lowered as required. I also
employ the machinery to bore the bolt and treenail holes in the frames and
planks of the ship, by the substitution of centre bitts, augers, or other borers
in place of the cutters. I further employ the machinery to dress and plane
the planks when on the ship; also the stanchions, bulwarks, and other parts,
and to mould the rails, gunwales, and other parts, and to plane or fair the flat
of the deck. And I use the same machinery to bore the holes in the plates

page_text: and angle irons, and other parts of iron ships, when in place, so as to ensure
the exact coincidence of the several holes in the different parts.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to describe
the Drawings hereunto annexed.
Upon the cross carriage A of an ordinary travelling crane, the railway for
which may be carried along the heads of strong stage poles, or the supports of
a shed covering the slip, is placed a small carriage B, on four wheels, in the
middle of which, and between the sides of the cross carriage A, is a circular
iron frame C, to which are attached, or through staples in which may slide up
or down, four pendants of wood or iron D, D, D, D. The top of C is formed
by a flange which rests upon and freely turns in a strong iron ring G, sup-
ported by the trunnions or pivots H, H, resting on the carriage B. In the
ring, or in the flange, are four or more rollers I, I, I, I, so that the frame C,
with its pendants D, D, D, D, can freely turn on its own axis, or swing on the
pivots H, H. Placed within the iron frame C, is a grooved pulley K, driven
by the rope L, which extends the whole length of the slipway, and which is
kept in its relative position to the frame C by guide pullies, and a weighted
pulley at the farthest extremity. Connected with K are the wheel and pinion
M and N, and the pulley O, which by the strap P drives the planing shaft Q,
and the boring shaft R. These are attached to a frame and platform S, which
slide up and down the pendants D by means of a winch T, and ropes or
the cutters and drills to their required position on
the ship's side; or instead of the said frame S sliding upon the pendants,
I propose to fix it to the bottom of the said pendants, and cause them by
the action of the winch T to slide up through the frame C, by which
means the said platform, &c. will be always above and out of the way of the
stages required along a ship's side. Motion fore and aft the ship is caused by
the rotation of the square shaft W and pulley Y, acting upon the stationary
rope Z. The rope being fixed at the stem and stern post of the ship will
oblige the carriage B and frame C, &c. to follow the curve of the ship's side
at the same time they move longitudinally, while the sheer curve or curve of
the plank upwards is followed by the guides or shoes A, so as to keep the
cutters in their proper place on the ship's side as the machine progresses.
The shaft W can be stopped or made to reverse its motion by means of the
lever and rope X, acting upon two small bevil wheels. The plate supporting
the pedestals and shafts Q and R is intended to move fore and aft, so as to
allow the cutters, &c. to clear the outside of the pendents D, D, that they may
work under such shores or props as may be requisite to support the frames,
and also angularly by the handle and screw Bb, so as to adjust the cutters to a
racks, so as to adjust

page_text: greater degree of nicety than can be done by the turning of the whole frame.
The mode of working is as follows:-The ship's frames are roughed out
without regard to the exact bevilling by axe or common vertical or circular
steam saws, and put together without dressing, the exact curve of the mould
being marked clearly on the moulding edge of such set of timbers. The
frames are then erected in the ordinary way with strong "ribbands," so
that as few shores as possible may be required, and a few bilge planks
inside and out put on, and firm packings put under the bilges. The
machine can then be set to work. The guide rope Y will keep the appa-
ratus close to the ship's side as it moves along, while the guides A",
control the action of the cutters which plane the timbers, until the surface
is wrought fair with the moulding line on each timber. By this simple
process the form of the frame and the true bevilling will be worked
correctly, while the outside edges of the cutters are planing the upper
edge of the plank to any given angle with the perpendicular surface of the
frame, and ensuring a correct and even seam for caulking. When one
machine only is at work on a ship, the carriage B must be pushed to the
other extremity of A, to the other side of the ship, and the frame C and
pendents turned entirely round in the ring G, the driving and guide ropes
having been previously detached. In the wake of the shores the machine can
be swung or moved off, and brought to again on the other side, the cutter
plate and shaft having been caused to traverse sufficiently to work under the
shore. At each extremity of the ship, where the timbers incline outwards,
the frame D, D, must be swung until the face of the cutters are parallel to the
timber. It may, however, be advisable to work some of the frames aft under
the quarter in the ordinary way. I claim as my Invention the application
of machinery to trim, smooth, dab, plane, or otherwise work to their form
the timbers of wooden ships, inside and outside, and to bore the same for
bolts, treenails, &c., when such timbers are erected in their places: also to
trim, smooth, dab, plane, &c. planks when attached to the said timbers; to
bore the same, and also to bevil and fair the edges; also to work all beads,
chamfers, mouldings, required on the sides at the gunwale or on the bulwarks
and rails, and also to plane and smooth the flat of the deck. In addition to
the mode of effecting the same already described, I claim the use of wheels,
pinions, and shafts to give motion to the cutters, and the use of racks and
pinions to cause the same to traverse, and also lying shafts and cross shafts
the use of vertical as well as hori-
in place of the driving rope. I also claim
zontal cutters, and to employ a railway fixed on the ground, or attached

page_text: to the stage poles, bearer, or pillars, at any convenient height, so as to ensure
the action of the machine upon all and every part of the ship required.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Lamport, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
Witness,
PHILIP H. HOLT,
of Liverpool,
Merchant.
CHARLES LAMPORT. (L.S.)