Improved Apparatus for Use in Coaling Ocean Going Vessels, applicable also for Transferring Coal and other Materials in Bulk from one Level to another.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Sept., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 4th July, 1895-Accepted, 24th Aug., 1895
Improved Apparatus for Use in Coaling Ocean Going Vessels,
applicable also for Transferring Coal and other Materials in
Bulk from one Level to another.
I, BOYE CHRISTOPHER THOMAS EDWARD BOYESEN of 7 Montague Place,
Russell Square, London, and of 2 Stone Street, New York, United States of
America, Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, to be as
follows:-
My invention has more particularly for its object to provide means whereby coal,
may be expeditiously transferred from barges and lighters to ships holds or bunkers
at an expense considerably less than that appertaining to present methods, of,
carrying out the operation, and the invention consists essentially in a barge or
lighter so constructed that a chain elevator or endless conveyor may be used for
raising the coal, this having been hitherto impracticable owing to the difficulty of
applying the elevator to the mass of coal without impeding its action, which
will necessarily be the case were the lower end of the elevator buried in,
the coal.
The invention is also applicable for raising or discharging other cargoes or
materials in bulk from trucks and other receptacles but as my aim is to facilitate
the coaling of ocean going steamers, I will describe the invention as applied to
this purpose, it being understood that I do not limit myself in this respect.
According to my invention, the barge or lighter is constructed with raised floors
forming inclined planes down which the coal tends to roll by gravity to the inlet
of a well or receptacle in which the lower end of the elevator works. The well or
receptacle is closed at the back and sides, so that the coal which is automatically
fed to the mouth of the well from all sides, is prevented from entering the receptacle
except at the inlet which is preferably provided with inclined grating bars serving
to obstruct the flow of coal and separately removable to permit of the supply being
controlled.
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The endless conveyor or elevator is of the ordinary type, the buckets or cross
bars with which it is provided being of such a character as to handle large blocks,
or comparatively large blocks of coal without liability of being damaged. The,
conveyor would generally be mounted on a separate barge, and provided with
means by which to adjust it, both as regards height and inclination. Its lower end.
works in a concave which fits in the well, and it is furnished with a guard which,
only permits of the coal being fed to the elevator on its ascending side.
Dated this 5th day of September 1894.

page_text: Improved Apparatus for Use in Coaling Ocean Going Vessels,
applicable also for Transferring Coal and other Materials in
Bulk from one Level to another.
I, BOYE CHRISTOPHER THOMAS Edward BOYESEN, formerly of 7, and now
of 34, Montague Place, Russell Square, London, and of 2, Stone Street, New
York, United States of America, Merchant, 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:—
My invention has more particularly for its object to enable coal to be expedi-
tiously transferred from barges or lighters to stores or wharves or to ships' holds or
bunkers at an expense considerably less than that appertaining to present methods
of carrying out the operation, and the invention consists essentially in a barge or
lighter so constructed that an ordinary endless chain and bucket elevator may be
used for raising the coal. The discharge of coal from a lighter by such means has
hitherto been impracticable, owing to the mass of coal impeding the action of the
elevator, as must necessarily be the case when the lower end of the elevator is
buried directly in the coal.
My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, wherein
Figure 1 represents a perspective view and Figure 2 a cross-section of a barge
constructed according to my invention, with the bucket elevator at work therein,
whilst
Figures 3 and 4 represent respectively cross and longitudinal sections of barges
to which my invention is applied under somewhat modified conditions.
According to my invention the barge or lighter is provided with raised
floors A, A1, A2, sloping from both sides and ends downwards to a well B in which
the lower end of the elevator C works. The well or receptacle is separated from
the cargo by bulkheads so arranged that the coal which slides automatically
down the inclined planes or floors A to the mouth or inlet of the well is prevented
from entering the well except at the inlet D.
In the arrangement illustrated in Figures 1, 2, and 3, the well B is supposed to
be at one side of the barge at about the middle of its length, one side being formed
by the side of the barge itself and the others by two fixed cross bulkheads b, b, and
a sluice door D', adapted to slide in guides in the bulkheads band worked by hand
gear from above. The well might, however, be situated at any other convenient
point and would, in any case, be so separated from the bulk of the cargo that none
can enter it except through the inlet D beneath the sluice door. The bottom of
the well is below the level of the lowest point of the inclined floor A leading
directly to the inlet D so as to admit of the elevator descending deep enough to
directly receive the coal from the floor A on its ascending side. In order to
compensate for the reduction of space in the hold of the barge, caused by the use
of the raised sloping floors, I may employ raised coamings c around the hatchway
so as to permit of the coal or other cargo being heaped up to a greater height
than would otherwise in practice be possible.
The arrangement illustrated in Figure 3 differs from that shewn in Figure 2,
only in the botom 6', of the well B being sunk beneath the general level of the
bottom of the barge so as to enable the elevator to reach and to lift coal from a
greater relative depth than it otherwise could. Such an arrangement, which is
obviously applicable more particularly in cases where the draught of water is
immaterial and in localities where lighters are always afloat, would reduce the
necessity of any addition of height to the coamings.

page_text: Figure 4 shews a barge having the well B at one end (say the stern end) and
arranged so as to allow of the elevator being introduced alongships over that end
of the barge instead of athwartships over the side as in the other figures. It will
be obvious that, in this case also, the bottom of the well B may be sunk, as in
Figure 3, if desired.
The elevator C is of an ordinary type, the buckets c', or cross bars with which it
is provided being set sufficiently apart from each other and being strong enough to
carry comparatively large blocks of coal without liability of being damaged. The
lower end of the elevator works in a concave E attached to the frame of the
elevator leg corresponding in width to the inlet D so as only to permit of the coal
being fed to the elevator on its ascending side.
In practice, the lighter to be discharged would go alongside the wharf or store
or ship and the elevator leg would be lowered into the well and after being properly
adjusted therein the door D', would be raised to a sufficient extent to permit of the
coal being fed to the buckets. The elevator could be mounted on a separate barge,
or on the coal wharf, or a lightly constructed elevator, easily shifted from lighter
to lighter, could be employed, so that one elevator could discharge any number of
lighters, one after the other.
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
1st. A coaling barge or lighter having a well or vacant space to receive an
elevator leg, said well or space being partitioned off from the cargo-carrying part
by bulkheads and a sluice door, the barge having a raised floor or shoot leading
down to the sluice inlet so as to cause the coal to be fed by gravity thereto and
admit of the elevator working below the level of the inlet so as to receive the coal
thereat, in order to raise it to the point required, substantially as specified.
2nd. The herein described barge or lighter designed more particularly for use in
coaling ocean going vessels constructed substantially as specified.
Dated this 3rd day of July 1895
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.