Improvements in Apparatus for Stopping Leaks in Ships at Sea.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Oct., 1891-Accepted, 23rd Jan., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Stopping Leaks in Ships at Sea.
I, WILLIAM FREDERICK BEART, of Godmanchester, in the County of
Huntingdon, Gentleman, 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 :-
This invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for stopping leaks in
ships at sea.
For this purpose I provide a guide way along the outer side of the ship and a
locomotive or other carriage capable of travelling along the guide way. The
carriage is provided with brackets or arms projecting outwards and carrying a
roller on which a collision mat is wound.
The carriage is made to carry the mat to the place where it is required for use;
then by suitable appliances it is unwound from the roller and lowered in front of
the damaged part but well clear of it so that it may not be prematurely drawn
against the ship's side, finally by means of ropes or chains suitably applied the
collision mat is made to adapt itself closely to the damaged part.
The mat I construct of steel netting covered with canvas and with an outer
frame of iron plates.
The side plates are jointed to enable the mat to wind around the roller.
+
In some cases the roller is supported from the carriage at one end only so that
the mat may be brought to overlap a damaged part of the guideway.
Sometimes I employ two carriages one on either side of the ship and a collision
mat suspended between them beneath the bottom.
In order that my said invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
effect I will proceed to describe the drawings hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a war ship fitted in accordance with
my invention.
Figure 2 is a transverse section of part of the same.
Figure 3 is a plan partly in section shewing the apparatus and a portion of the
ship's side to a larger scale.
Figure 4 is an end view partly in section of the apparatus, again to a larger
scale.
Figure 5 is a plan partly in section and Figure 6 is a transverse section shewing
a modification.
Figure 7 is a transverse section shewing a further modification.
In Figures 1 to 4 a a¹ are two guide rails supported at intervals from the ship's
side and extending from bow to stern or as far as may be desired. These guide
rails are so fixed that ropes may when required be passed behind them. A carriage
is mounted upon the guide rails. bb are the two ends or brackets of the carriage,
they are connected by a strong beam or base plate c and they are provided with
rollers which bear upon the guide rails in the manner shown. The brackets b
carry in suitable bearings the necks of a hollow roller d and upon this roller a
collision mat e is wound. is a worm wheel fixed to the roller d and fis a worm
in gear with it and so locking the roller fast. There is a hand wheel f' on the
same axis with the worm by which it can be turned very easily when it is desired
to unwind and lower the collision mat. Within a reservoir g very highly com-
pressed air is stored and this air is employed to drive an air engine upon the
carriage. The air engine by means of intermediate gearing rotates the roller b
supporting the carriage at one end and also the toothed wheel 6' which is fast with

page_text: the roller. The wheel 68 gears with rack teeth on the rail a' and so when an
emergency arises, by starting the engine, the carriage can without manual labour
be promptly made to travel along the guide rails to the position in which it is
required for use. The roller d at its two ends beyond the part on which the
collision mat is wound has compartments for receiving wire ropes; these ropes
are each at one end made fast to the roller and at the other end provided with a
hook. The way in which the collision mat is.connected with the roller is shown in
Figure 5; two short chains e¹e are fastened to the upper corners of the mat and
these chains are brought to hooks upon the side flanges of the roller. If in the use
of the collision mat it should require to be lowered further than the chains attached
to it admit the lowering is stopped for a moment whilst the wire ropes wound in the
compartments are hooked on to the chains; these are at the same time unhooked
from the roller.
Where the ship has bilge keels as the drawing represents in Figure 1 I provide
pulleys h h on these bilge keels and keep light chains or ropes i i rove around them.
Before lowering the collision mat its lower corners are attached to these chains. The
purpose which the chains ii serve is to draw the lower end of the mat close in
against the ship's side after the mat has been let down over the damaged part.
is a winch for working one of these chains or ropes. Whilst unwinding from the
roller the mat must be allowed to hang well clear of the ship's side in order that it
may not be drawn in prematurely by the rush of water.
Where the pulleys h h and chains ii cannot conveniently be provided chains or
ropes & passing beneath the ship's bottom are employed. When necessary, in order
to draw the upper end of the collision mat closely to the ship's side, chains with
hooks at their ends are passed down between the ship's side and the guide rails and
these are hooked into the chains at the upper corners of the collision mat, and
drawn tight by suitable means.
In Figures 3 and 4 the portion of the ship's side which is supporting the carriage
and mat roller is shown to be movable about pivots l l. When this arrangement
is adopted the carriage may be brought inboard for more convenient stowage.
The guide rails are duplicated on the two faces of the movable portion of the ship's
side so that a second carriage may be worked on the guide rails if required and
they may pass one another.
In Figure 5 the carriage is so formed that the mat may be carried in front of it
so that if the guide rails should be damaged the mat may nevertheless be brought
by the carriage into position to cover the wound. m is a long axis carried by the
brackets b b and projecting beyond one of them and upon the projecting part the
roller n to receive the collision mat is provided. Between the brackets an air
reservoir to supply the engine is carried; it consists of two cylinders united at their
ends and with an annular air space between them.
In this figure and in Figure 6 a clutch is shown at o, this admits of the axis
being set free from the retaining worm and worm wheel when very expeditious
lowering is necessary.
pis a brake lever and band by which the lowering may be controlled.
Figure 5 also shows a portion of a collision mat such as I prefer to employ; it
is shown as it would appear spread out horizontally and not as hanging vertically
in its natural position. It consists of a strong rectangular iron frame, with its two
sides in numerous pieces hinged together to admit of its being wound upon the
roller. The space in the middle of the frame is filled in with interlocking steel
wire rings and may be in all respects similar to a torpedo netting such as is in general
The surface is covered on both sides with very strong canvas securely sewn
to the rings and frame.
use.
In Figure 7 in place of providing two guide rails for the carriage, a single rail
of suitable section is substituted.
In some cases it is convenient to employ two carriages simultaneously one on
either side of the ship with the collision mat suspended between them. The two
carriages travelling together carry the mat to the place where it is required and

page_text: then one or both of the rollers winds up until the mat is drawn closer in to cover
the damaged part.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A guide way around the ship and a carriage travelling thereon outside the
bulwarks, carrying a collision mat.
2. A guide way around the ship and a locomotive or other carriage travelling
thereon, outside the bulwarks, and carrying a roller on which a collision mat is
wound.
3. A guide way around the ship, a carriage travelling thereon outside the
bulwarks, and supporting by one end a spindle on which is a roller on which a
collision mat is wound.
4. A collision mat consisting of a sheet of interlocking metal rings and sheets of
canvas attached thereto.
5. Apparatus substantially as described and represented by the annexed
drawings.
Dated this 27th day of October 1891.
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents.