Year: 1886

page_text: I, WILLIAM RICHARDSON BIGSBY-CHAMBERLIN, Retired Lieutenant Colonel late
of the 24th Regt. of Foot The Vale St. Leonards Road Eastbourne Sussex do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
That it can be constructed of any suitable materials and of such a shape that it
shall float partly above & partly below the surface of the water, the part that is
altogether under water, to face the waves; the higher part to be nearest the land,
or place to be protected, that is to say that the upper surface of the breakwater
shall have a declination downwards towards the sea-Also that that part that
is nearest to the waves shall be of such a shape that it will cause the waves to
break over, at that end that is under water; that part that is above water having
nothing to do, but recieve & throw off the spent waves.

page_text: I, WILLIAM RICHARDSON BIGSBY CHAMBERLIN Honorary Lieutenant Colonel
Retired, late of the 24th Regiment of Foot (now called South Wales Borderers)
of the Vale St. Leonards Road, Eastbourne, in the County of Sussex do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for A FLOATING BREAKWATER and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:-
Shall consist of a floating mass, fixed together in such a way that one end dips
into the water, and the other end is raised above and so made that it will not
raise and fall with each wave, but that the waves shall pass over it, as far as
they go.
This state of floating on the water I shall call in my description, being water-
logged.
It is not absolutely, neccessary for the purpose of a Break-water, that the ends
dip into, & raise above the water, or that the raft need be water logged, but it is
better and a shorter length of raft will do; and with this object I shall recommend,
in my description, that small obstacles should be placed upon it; so that the power
of the waves may be broken by degrees and without violence, in the shortest
length of breakwater; in the following manner, that is by delaying the passage
of the lower part of the wave, the upper part of the wave travelling faster will fall
over, & the wave partly broken much diminished in force, as is seen at low tide.:
also the part raising above the water will act as the shore does, and so expend the
rest of the waves force, without violence, and in a length of raft that will be of
practicle use.
I will now proceed to describe how I should direct a section of my breakwater
to be made, as it will be more convenient to make it in sections, the number of the
sections depending upon the size of the harbour, and as they will be much of
a shape, one section will answer for all.
The length of the section, will be for what I believe to be the best size to meet
(10) ten foot an under waves: also the two ways of water logging the breakwater,
that I think are the best: there are other ways, but as I do not think that they
will be so easy, or so cheap, I shall confine myself to the two ways, that I think
are of practical use; each way having a certain advantage over the other; it will
depend greatly upon the position and cost, as to which is the better; or both might
be used at any given place.
The first section that I describe will be for a place where there is no strong
under-current.
I should proceed to make a raft of any convenient width, and about (75) seventy-
five feet in length: to fix the raft together I should most likely use iron girders;
the ends of the girders slightly bent, I should have it so that the end of the raft
would dip some two or three feet into the water nearest the coming sea; under
this, and near that end, I should place an old boat, or boats B (an old canal boat
would answer well) and let it be full of water, or I should build a substitute for
one, of such
size that the weight of water in it would prevent any wave from
lifting it, then the wave would have to pass over the top of the raft.
At the other end of the raft I should build an inclined platform C. resting on
an old ship D. partly cut down; or build a water-tight compartment, E the upper

page_text: side having a slope of about one in four, it would be about (30) thirty feet in
length (width according to raft), and nine feet high at one end, the lower end
I should fix to the raft; making the whole compartment to float deep in the
water; E F with an allowance of the nine foot, above water at the end furthest
from the raft; and at the end nearest to the raft I should firmly fix a keel, this
would recieve and distribute any jar, if there should be any, that might come, from
a wave breaking.
In constructing the raft, I should construct it as raft are usually constructed,
using any convenient lengths of timber, and of any shape or size, new or old, and
fasten them to the iron girders; I should tie the timbers by preference, as this
would hold them firm, giving them a little play, I should not have them placed too
near to one another, one advantage of the gaps between them is that the water
could escape, another would be their roughness delaying the base of the wave.
I should also place obstructions on the breakwater, so that by breaking the
waves by degrees their force would be frittered away, and partly expended on
themselves The obstructions might be of any kind, so that there was free play
for the water, and that they did not offer a too solid obstacle to the passage of the
wave, nor should they be of more than four foot in height, I will now explain a few
that I think would be the best, viz. uprights of timber with an equal space
between them, and it would be better to cut them into a triangular shape the flat
side nearest to the shore, these might be fixed anywhere, but it would not be of so
much use on the first (20) twenty feet of the raft as the wave would not be well
on under that distance. Again short pieces of wood (or other substance might be
placed so as to give a short incline for the wave to run up, with the drop of about
a foot on the shore side-Boughs of trees would be very good, the thick end
pointing towards the coming wave, and fixed laying down on the raft, so that
some of the branches would extend upwards-The inclined plane I should make
rough with any bits of wood nailed on, not more than an inch or two in height
and pretty close together.
I cannot fix definite sizes as it depends upon the size of the waves; only a
general idea.
In places where there is a strong under-current I should naturally not place
under the breakwater, any obstruction, more than I could help so as to give free
play to the current.
My breakwater would have the raft the same as before A and a compartment
with the same incline E only I should make it to float as lightly as I could; and
under them I should place another raft, or rafts, to watter-log the upper break-
water-K or L fixed by girders N.
The size of the raft depends upon the depth it is fixed, and the amount of
water that there is between, it must be large enough to prevent the waves lifting
the breakwater.
A simple plan would be to make a raft of the same size as the breakwater; of
squared wood, so that it would fit close fitting (iron &c would do as well, or
better); and firmly fix it ten foot below the floating part; then no wave of ten
foot could get between, or under them.
The breakwater may be made of any material that can float & is fit for the
purpose.
The best way to moor this breakwater does not come into this patent, as it can
be moored in the ordinary manner of mooring vesels.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declair that what
I claim is;
1. I claim that a raft, or other floating body of sufficient size, and so con-
structed that the waves must pass over, or on to it, will break the waves, and
leave calm water on the other side of it, substantially as described in the foregoing
specification,

page_text: 2. I claim that by having an inclined plane and by putting obstructions on the
breakwater you can materially shorten the length of the breakwater; and so make
a good barbour for shipping, or for other purposes, in deep water at small expence,
substantially as described in the foregoing specification.
3. I claim the plan of water logging the breakwater, that is making the waves
to pass over the top, in the two ways, substantially as described in the foregoing
specification.