IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ORDNANCE
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Sir William George Armstrong, of Elswick Works,
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Knight, C.B., for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ORDNANCE, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF
ORDNANCE."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Sir William George
Armstrong at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 28th
December 1880.
Sir WILLIAM GEORGE ARMSTRONG, of Elswick Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne,
Knight, C.B. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED
IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ORDNANCE."
This Invention has for its object improvements in ordnance, and in apparatus
to be used in the construction of ordnance, and relates to that class of ordnance in
which strength is obtained by coiling wire upon a tube or cylinder under definite
tension.
I will proceed to describe the apparatus which I employ in coiling wire upon
the tube or cylinder.
At
The wire to be used for this purpose is reeled upon a pair of drums mounted in
a frame which slides by the action of a leading screw in a direction parallel to the
tube or cylinder on which the wire is to be coiled. Only one of these drums is
used at once, the other being left at liberty for receiving a fresh supply of wire
ready for application when the wire on the other drum has been wound off.
the commencement of the process the outer end of the reel of wire is made fast to
the tube upon which the wire is to be wrapped, and which tube is rotated in a
lathe or other similar machine, by which means the wire is drawn off the drum
and coiled spirally upon the tube. The frame containing the drums is travelled
at such a rate as will lead the wire on in a close spiral, and the varying speed
which is required for this purpose may be effected by any of the ordinary feed
motions in screw cutting lathes or other lathes, or in a more satisfactory manner
by applying a small 3 cylinder hydraulic engine to revolve the screw, the speed
being regulated by varying the opening of the valve by which the water is admitted
to the engine.

page_text: The degree of tension to be put upon the wire is controlled and regulated by
the apparatus to be next described. Each drum in travelling with the frame
slides upon a square shaft which revolves with the drum, but permits the drum to
slide upon it the whole length of the travel. Upon one end of each shaft there is fixed
a friction wheel to prevent the shaft from turning except under the resistance of
the friction put upon the wheel by means of a band which surrounds it. This
band has two levers attached, one of which is a mere arm projecting from it, and
the other has a fulcrum upon one end of the band and pulls upon the other end by
means of a short crank, as is usual in friction brakes, and by which means the
band is tightened upon the wheel. These two levers are parallel to each other, or
nearly so, the one for tightening the band being the upper one. When these
levers are drawn together at the outward ends the friction band tightens, and when
the ends are drawn apart the friction is relaxed. Suppose then these two levers
to be projecting from the band rather below the horizontal position, and the upper
one to be sufficiently weighted at the end to produce a friction on the wheel
somewhat in excess of the equivalent tension to be put upon the wire; suppose
further that the lower lever or arm be loaded with such a weight as will when
added to the weight on the tightening lever, and after taking into account the
weight of the levers themselves, balance the required tension on the wire. Under
these conditions when the wire is drawn off the drum the weight will be
lifted, and would be carried round the circle were it not that provision is
made to cause the levers to separate as they rise and thereby lessen the friction,
and as the same provision causes them to close as they fall and thereby increase the
friction, it is easy to see that they may be made to adjust themselves in the hori-
zontal position, or within limits sufficiently near to it. This provision consists of a
chain carried over a pulley fixed above the levers and over another pulley fixed
beneath them. One end of this chain is attached to the upper or tightening lever at
any distance from the centre of the wheel, and other end of the chain after passing
over the lower pulley is attached to the lower lever at a point a little more distant
from the centre than the other point of attachment. The slack of the chain is taken
up by an adjusting screw or any other convenient arrangement. If the levers now
rise the chain is taken up by the lower lever a little quicker than it is slacked off
by the upper one, the difference being proportionate to the difference of radial
distance of the two points of attachment from the centre of the wheel. The result
is that the levers are gently separated without materially affecting the aggregate
load upon them, and thus the friction is reduced until it no longer exceeds the
required tension on the wire. On the other hand, if the friction becomes too little
to hold up the weights the levers begin to descend, and in so doing the reverse
action of the chain allows them to close, and thereby augments the friction until
the tension and the friction again reach equilibrium.
Thus, by allowing the levers to range up and down a short distance above and
below the horizontal line the wire can be wound off the drum with a practically
uniform tension, and the amount of that tension can be regulated by the combined
load on the levers. It is not necessary to put any part of the weight upon the
lower lever; but in that case the variation of the load due to the differential action
of the chain will be at a maximum, and although it may not even then be
sufficiently large to have any serious disturbing effect, it is better to divide the
weight and so reduce the disturbance as much as practicable.
To guard against a jerking action being set up by the elasticity of the levers,
and the changes from friction of rest to friction of motion, I apply a cataract
cylinder and piston beneath each cylinder to prevent its too sudden descent at any
moment. The same steadying effect may be obtained by using a "fly," which
resists any sudden change of motion by fanning the air or any fluid in which it is
immersed.
For the purpose of winding the wire upon each drum, hand gear is applied to
enable the wire to be taken on while the other is paying off.
I use a three cylinder hydraulic engine for rotating the tube on which the wire

page_text: is coiled because a more steady and adjustable action can be attained by such an
engine than by the use of steam power, applied either separately and directly to
the coiling machine, or through the medium of shafting used for driving other
machinery as well
The wire is of rectangular section, and it is coiled upon the tube or cylinder
between shoulders, one at either end. The wire is secured to the shoulders at the
commencement and at the end of each layer. For this purpose radial grooves are
cut in the shoulders. The wire before commencing to coil is headed at the end,
and the head is inserted into one of the radial grooves corresponding in form with
the head. To secure the end of the wire on the completion of the layer, the wire
as it lies upon the cylinder is bent or bulged out so as to make it enter a groove
(of another form) in the shoulder. The bending is effected by the insertion of a
tapered tool between the last convolution of the wire and that which immediately
preceeds it. The groove in the shoulder is of such a form as to be filled by the
bulge in the wire thus produced. Several tools may be employed in succession to
force the wire home into the groove, and then a small filling piece is inserted into
the cavity produced between the two adjacent convolutions of the wire. Tapered
filling pieces passing around the cylinder are laid against the shoulder both at the
commencement and the ending of the coiling of each layer of wire. These filling
pieces occupy the spaces which would otherwise be left vacant between the coils
and the shoulders. Over the coiled wire a jacketting tube in one or several pieces
is applied, and is made to add to the longitudinal strength of the barrel through
the intervention of a hoop fixed upon the breech end of the barrel beyond the base
of the bore. This hoop may be notched or hooked upon the barrel in the usual
manner where end hold is to be given, and the jacketting cylinder may be similarly-
attached to the exterior circumference of the hoop; or the attachment may in both
cases be effected by the method hereinafter described.
Where the necessary longitudinal strength cannot be obtained without making
the barrel of objectionable thickness, I either make up the deficiency by shrinking
upon the barrel an additional cylinder, above which the wire coils are applied, or Ï
interpose between any two layers of spiral wire, or above or below them all, a
layer or layers of longitudinal wires or rods, which are held against end strain by
the friction due to the pressure of the superposed material in tension, and where
the superposed material is deficient in thickness for that purpose, I head the ends
of the wires so that they may take hold of a hoop firmly attached to the barrel.
In order to obtain where needed a more effectual longitudinal connection between
an enveloping cylinder and the barrel or cylinder it encloses than as afforded by
the usual method of notching and hooking, I slightly reduce in diameter the end
of the barrel or enclosed cylinder for a few inches in length, and screw the reduced
surface. I also screw the enveloping cylinder for a similar length at the same end
so that when it is shrunk upon the barrel an annular cavity is left between the
two screwed surfaces. Into this cavity I pour melted phosphor bronze or other
suitable metal, which is thus moulded into the form of an interlocking screw.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Sir William George Armstrong in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 27th June 1881.
Sir WILLIAM GEORGE ARMSTRONG, of Elswick Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne,
Knight, C.B. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED
IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ORDNANCE."
This Invention has for its object improvements in ordnance and in apparatus
to be used in the construction of ordnance, and relates to that class of ordnance in
which strength is obtained by coiling wire upon a tube or cylinder under definite
tension.
In using the term "wire" in this Specification I mean steel, or iron, or other
ductile metal reduced by drawing, rolling, or otherwise to a sufficiently attenuated
section for wrapping in the cold state upon a gun cylinder, and I do not confine the
term to any particular form of section.
I will proceed to describe the apparatus which I employ in coiling wire upon
the tube or cylinder.
The wire to be used for this purpose is reeled upon a pair of drums mounted in
a frame, which slides by the action of a leading screw in a direction parallel to the
tube or cylinder on which the wire is to be coiled. Only one of these drums is
used at once, the other being left at liberty for receiving a fresh supply of wire
ready for application when the wire on the other drum has been wound off. At
the commencement of the process the outer end of the reel of wire is made fast to
the tube upon which the wire is to be wrapped, and which tube is rotated in a lathe
or other similar machine, by which means the wire is drawn off the drum and
coiled spirally upon the tube. The frame containing the drums is travelled at such
a rate as will lead the wire on in a close spiral, and the varying speed which is
required for this purpose may be effected by any of the ordinary feed motions
in screw cutting lathes or other lathes, or in a more satisfactory manner by applying
a small three cylinder hydraulic engine to revolve the screw, the speed being
regulated by varying the opening of the valve by which the water is admitted to
the engine.
The degree of tension to be put upon the wire is controlled and regulated by
the apparatus to be next described. Each drum travelling with the frame slides
upon a square shaft which revolves with the drum, but permits the drum to slide
upon it the whole length of the travel. Upon one end of each shaft there is fixed
a friction wheel to prevent the shaft from turning except under the resistance of
the friction put upon the wheel by means of a band which surrounds it. This
band has two levers attached, one of which is a mere arm projecting from it, and
the other has a fulcrum upon one end of the band and pulls upon the other end by
means of a short crank, as is usual in friction brakes, and by which means the
band is tightened upon the wheel. These two levers are parallel to each other,
or nearly so, the one for tightening the band being the upper one. When these
levers are drawn together at the outward ends the friction band tightens, and
when the ends are drawn apart the friction is released. Suppose then these two
levers to be projecting from the band rather below the horizontal position, and the
upper one to be sufficiently weighted at the end to produce a friction on the wheel
somewhat in excess of the equivalent tension to be put upon the wire; suppose
further that the lower lever or arm be loaded with such a weight as will when
added to the weight on the tightening lever, and after taking into account the
weight of the levers themselves, balance the required tension on the wire. Under
these conditions when the wire is drawn off the drum the weight will be lifted,

page_text: and would be carried round the circle were it not that provision is made to cause
the levers to separate as they rise, and thereby lessen the friction, and as the same
provision causes them to close as they fall and thereby increase the friction, it is
easy to see that they may be made to adjust themselves in the horizontal position,
or within limits sufficiently near to it. This provision consists of a chain carried
over a pulley fixed above the levers, and over another pulley fixed beneath
them. One end of this chain is attached to the upper or tightening lever at any
distance from the centre of the wheel, and other end of the chain after passing
over the lower pulley is attached to the lower lever at a point a little more distant
from the centre than the other point of attachment. The slack of the chain is
taken up by an adjusting screw or any other convenient arrangement. If the
levers now rise the chain is taken up by the lower lever a little quicker than it is
slacked off by the upper one, the difference being proportionate to the difference
of radial distance of the two points of attachment from the centre of the wheel.
The result is that the levers are gently separated without materially affecting the
aggregate load upon them, and thus the friction is reduced until it no longer
exceeds the required tension on the wire. On the other hand, if the friction
becomes too little to hold up the weights the levers begin to descend, and in so
doing the reverse action of the chain allows them to close, and thereby augments.
the friction until the tension and the friction again reach equilibrium.
Thus by allowing the levers to range up and down a short distance above and
below the horizontal line the wire can be wound off the drum with a practically
uniform tension, and the amount of that tension can be regulated by the combined
load on the levers. It is not necessary to put any part of the weight upon the lower
lever; but in that case the variation of the load due to the differential action of the
chain will be at a maximum, and although it may not even then be sufficiently large
to have any serious disturbing effect, it is better to divide the weight and so reduce
the disturbance as much as practicable. Although a chain attached to the levers
at different radial distances and passing over pulleys is a very simple and effective
method of producing the closing and separating action of the levers, yet it is not a
necessary feature in the arrangement, as the same effect may be produced on the
levers by other appliances.
To guard against a jerking action being set up by the elasticity of the levers and
the changes from friction of rest to friction of motion I apply a cataract cylinder
and piston beneath each lever to prevent its too sudden descent at any moment.
The same steadying effect may be attained by using a "flyi which resists
any sudden change of motion by fanning the air or any fluid in which it is
immersed.
"
For the purpose of winding the wire upon each drum, hand gear is applied to
enable the wire to be taken on while the other is paying off.
I use a three cylinder hydraulic engine for rotating the tube on which the wire
is coiled because a more steady and adjustable action can be attained by such an
engine than by the use of steam power, applied either separately and directly to
the coiling machine, or through the medium of shafting used for driving other
machinery as well.
I prefer wire of a rectangular section, and it is coiled upon the tube or cylinder
between shoulders, one at either end. The wire is secured to the shoulders at the
commencement and at the end of each layer, or if wire of sufficient length be used
it may be coiled to and fro so that more than one layer may be completed before
the terminating fastening be made. For this purpose radial grooves are cut in the
shoulders. The wire before commencing to coil is gibbed or headed at the end, and
the head is inserted into one of the radial grooves corresponding in form with the
head. To secure the end of the wire on the completion of the layer, the wire as it
lies upon the cylinder is bent or bulged out so as to make it enter a groove (of
another form) in the shoulder. The bending is effected by the insertion of a
tapered tool between the last convolution of the wire and that which immediately
preceds it. The groove in the shoulder is of such a form as to be filled by the bulge

page_text: in the wire thus produced. Several tools may be employed in succession to force
the wire home into the groove, and then a small filling piece is inserted into the
cavity produced between the two adjacent convolutions of the wire. Tapered filling
pieces passing around the cylinder are laid against the shoulder both at the
commencement and the ending of the coiling of each layer of wire. These filling
pieces occupy the spaces which would otherwise be left vacant between the coils
and the shoulders. Over the coiled wire a jacketting tube in one or several pieces
is applied and is made to add to the longitudinal strength of the barrel through the
intervention of a hoop fixed upon the breech end of the barrel beyond the base of
the bore. This hoop may be notched or hooked upon the barrel in the usual
manner where end hold is to be given, and the jacketting cylinder may be similarly
attached to the exterior circumference of the hoop, or the attachment may in both
cases be effected by the methods hereinafter described.
Where the necessary longitudinal strength cannot be obtained without making
the barrel of objectionable thickness, I either make up the deficiency by shrinking
upon the barrel an additional cylinder, above which the wire coils are applied, or I
interpose between any two layers of spiral wire, or above or below them all, a layer
or layers of longitudinal wires or rods, which are held against end strain by the
friction due to the pressure of the superposed material in tension, and where the
superposed material is deficient in holding power for that purpose, as it generally
will be towards the ends of the cylinder to which the longitudinal wires are
applied, I head the ends of the wires and notch them into a hoop firmly attached
to the cylinder at each end of the coil. An additional advantage obtained by this
arrangement is that the wires may be put on hot and allowed to contract so as to
produce a state of initial tension, which increases their efficiency for longitudinal
support.
In order to obtain where needed a more effectual longitudinal connection between
an enveloping cylinder and the barrel or cylinder it encloses than is afforded by
the usual method of notching and hooking, I slightly reduce in diameter the end
of the barrel or enclosed cylinder for a few inches in length, and groove the
reduced surface either spirally or concentrically. I also groove the enveloping
cylinder in the same manner for a similar length at the same end, so that when it is
shrunk upon the barrel an annular cavity is left between the two screwed or
grooved surfaces. Into this cavity I pour melted phosphor bronze or other suitable
metal, which is thus moulded into the grooves like an interlocking screw. I also
effect the same object by serrating the surfaces to be held against slipping and
interposing a thin sheet of copper. The outer cylinder being then shrunk upon
the copper squeezes the copper into the serrations, and so interlocks the two
cylinders.
In order that my said Invention may be most 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 the mechanism for winding the wire on to the
tube or gun; Figure 2 is a plan of the same; Figure 3, an end elevation showing
the hydraulic engine for traversing the drum laterally at a variable speed under
the control of the operator, so that the wire unwinding may lead truly on to the
tube or gun; Figure 4 is a section of the machine on the line S, S, in Figure 1.
In the above Figures A, A, are the paying off drums; B, B, is the frame
containing the drums, and which is travelled longitudinally in either direction by
the operator of the hydraulic engine and under the control of the operator; C is t
the leading screw which travels the frame; and D is the hydraulic engine which
revolves the screw. Each drum slides upon a square shaft E which revolves with
the drum; F, F, are the friction wheels fixed at one end of each square shaft; G is
a lever which tightens the friction band on each wheel; H is the lever which
projects as an arm from the friction band to which it is attached at the two 5

page_text: points h, h; I, I, are the weight cases for loading the tightening lever G; and
J, J, are the weight cases for loading the projecting arms H, H. Each pair of
levers is connected by a chain or cord K, K, which is fastened to the tightening
lever G at a point k¹, and after passing over a pulley L above, and then over
another L' below, is made fast to the lower lever or projecting arm H at a point k³,
at a little greater radial distance from the centre of the friction wheel than the
point . The tension on the wire is regulated by the joint load on the levers,
which are prevented from lifting their loads to an inconvenient height by the
action of the chain or cord, which by pulling downwards on the lower lever and
upwards on the upper one relieves the friction on the band during the ascent of
the weight without materially affecting the resistance due to the aggregate load on
the levers; M, M, are the cateract cylinders for steadying the motion of the levers;
N, N, is an ordinary winch arrangement, which can be thrown into gear with
either square shaft, leaving the other one free, and which serves for coiling wire
upon one drum while the wire on the other drum is being wound off upon the
gun; O is a reversing handle for changing the direction of the frame, and which,
as shown in the Drawing, is effected by clutch wheels, but may equally well be
effected by reversing the rotation of the feed engine; P is the starting and stopping
lever of the hydraulic engine; Qis a portion of one of the pair of standards,
between which the tube or gun is carried in an horizontal position and rotated by
an hydraulic engine which is not shown in the Drawings.
Figure 5 is a longitudinal section through an enveloping cylinder of coiled
wire A, containing four layers of longitudinal wires each, marked B. It also shows
a similar section of a portion of a lower coiled wire cylinder C, which does not
contain any layers of longitudinal wires. D1, D2, and D³ are the hoops to which
the ends of the wires are made fast. The heads of the longitudinal wires and the
circular grooves in which they are inserted are marked E. The cylinder on which
the wire is coiled is shown at F, and the outer hoops or casing of the wire are
marked G.
Figure 6 is an enlarged view of one end of Figure 5, and shows each separate
wire in section.
Figure 7 shows a side elevation or a plan of a portion of the tube or gun, and
represents the mode of fastening the ends of the coiled wire. At the starting end
of the coil the wire is forined into a gib of the shape shown at A, and is inserted
into a radial groove of a corresponding form in the hoop to which the attachment
is to be made. The depth of this radial groove may be sufficient to receive any
number of wires. In Figure 6 the depth of these grooves is shown by dotted
vertical lines at the places marked A in that Figure. The finishing end of the
coil is fastened by bending the wire sideways, as shown at B, into a radial groove
of corresponding form. The bending is effected by a series of wedge like tools
inserted one after the other, and the end is finally secured by a wedge or filling
piece C. D, D, are inclined or tapered pieces laid in against the hoop to fill in
between the coil and the hoop on the tube or gun.
Figure 8 is a section shewing the mode of fixing an outer cylinder upon an
inner one, so as to resist the tendency to slide longitudinally. A, A, are two
grooved or screwed surfaces, the one on the outer and the other on the inner
cylinder. Between these surfaces there is an annular space B to be filled with
The fused metal becomes moulded
fused phosphor bronze or other suitable metal.
into the grooves on either side, and thus locks the two cylinders together.
Figure 9 is a section showing another modification of the method of preventing
one cylinder sliding lengthways over another. In this case the surfaces of the
cylinders are slightly serrated, as shewn at A, A, and a thin sheet of copper or
other compressible metal is bent round the inner cylinder. The outer one is then
shrunk upon the copper, which becomes embedded in the serrations, and so
interlocks the surfaces. This method may be applied either at the ends of the
cylinders, or at any intermediate part, or over the whole length.

page_text: Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I claim,―
First. The arrangement of the paying off drum in such manner that it can be
traversed laterally with a variable feed motion, so that as the wire is unwound
from the drum it may be laid on to the tube or gun in a close spiral, substantially
as described.
Second. The method of regulating the tension upon the wire by means of a
friction wheel and weighted levers which, by a differential action, substantially as
described, maintain a nearly uniform tension on the wire, the amount of which is
regulated by the load upon the levers.
Third. The combination with such frictional apparatus of controlling mechanism,
substantially as described, to prevent sudden variation in position and a jerking
action in the levers.
Fourth. The method, substantially as described, of securing the wire at the
starting end by means of a gib or bent head inserted in a radial groove.
Fifth. The method, substantially as described, of fastening the wire at the
terminating end of the coil by bulging and wedging it into a groove of corresponding
form.
Sixth. The application of layers of wire laid longitudinally to give end strength
to the gun, and the method of securing the ends of the longitudinal wires by
heading and notching in the manner described.
Seventh. The method of increasing the longitudinal hold of an outer cylinder
upon an inner one by introducing another metal into a grooved annular recess,
which metal adapting itself to the form of the recess locks the two cylinders
together, substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Sir William George Armstrong, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
W. G. ARMSTRONG. (L.S.)