New or Improved Means and Apparatus for Raising Sunken Vessels.
Year: 1895

page_text: COBIT LUIE DI BOLTIVATION.
New or Improved Means and Apparatus for Raising Sunken
Vessels.
I, GEORGE HENRY CHAPPELL, of No. 10 Wall Street, in the City, County
and State of New York, United States of America, Manufacturer, 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 relates generally to a means for raising sunken vessels, boats and
the like to the surface of the water to be repaired or renewed as may be desired,
and consists in the novel apparatus hereinafter set forth.
The accompanying drawings illustrate a practical embodiment of an apparatus
adapted to carry out the invention, in which :-
Fig. 1 is an elevation of a sunken vessel to which the floats are attached, with a
boat containing the apparatus for manipulating said floats.
Figs. 2, 3 and 4, are enlarged sectional views of one of the floats, or a portion
thereof, respectively, on lines II, III and IV, showing particularly its novel
construction and the valves thereof.
Fig. 5 is a diagram in elevation of the general connections of the apparatus,
arranged to exhaust the floats of air and be filled with water so that they may sink
to the sunken vessel.
Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation of the apparatus, and
Fig. 7 is a sectional view of one of the valves or cocks, on line VII.
Referring to said drawings it will be understood that the improved apparatus is
particularly adapted to the raising of sunken vessels and the like from the bottom
of the water, a vessel A being represented in Fig. 1 on the bottom of a body of
water ; and the apparatus being carried by and connected with a boat B floating
on said water.
The apparatus in the main consists of one or more floats or hollow floating
bodies C adapted for connection with the sunken vessel A or other object to be
raised, such floats having connection with the exhausting and compressing apparatus D
carried by the boat B.
The floats C are preferably in the form of hollow and air tight barrel shaped
structures each connected by a flexible pipe or tube a with the apparatus D. Each.
float is provided with a hook or other attaching means barranged to engage with
certain eyes or other devices with which the sides of a vessel are provided or with
any other part of the object to be raised. The floats C, (Figs. 2, 3, 4,) are each
provided in either one or both of the heads thereof with an outlet valve d, and an
inlet valve e, through the inlet valve of which water may be drawn to fill the float
so that it will sink to the vessel to be raised, and through the outlet valve such
water may be expelled in the operation of filling the float with air to raise the
vessel.
Referring to the particular and improved construction of float, it is preferably of
barrel-form and may conveniently be about eight feet in diameter and eight feet
long. The ends are composed of planks and fitted with the necessary valves and
pipe referred to. The sides of the float are formed by stave-like sections of
planks of any convenient width, say one foot, cach provided with inner and outer
lips t t (Fig. 2) which permit the planks to overlap each other. Between the
planks are interposed water-tight packings u. The. heads are held in grooves
formed in the planks s, which grooves are fitted with water-tight packings w.
Each plank has attached to it two or more strips of steel running from edge to
edge of the plank and formed at each edge with a perforated ear y. In assembling

page_text: .
the parts of the float, bolts z are passed through the cars as seen in Fig. 2, tightly
compressing each two neighbouring planks together. At suitable points the
strips are provided with the eyes, such as whereby the float is attached to the
sunken vessel, or whereby the float may have a connection 6' attached for governing
it with reference to the boat B.
To ensure the tightness of the float I may line the same with a water-proof
canvas or other substance C¹.
The several floats C are connected through the pipes or tubes a with a common
chamber, cach pipe being controlled by a suitable opening and closing cock or
valve g by which one or more may be closed or opened as the case may be so that
the air pressure shall be confined to any one or more of the floats as may be
desired. The chamber fin turn is connected by pipes hi with a compressor or
pump E, by means of which the air may be exhausted from the floats or any one
or more of them, to fill them with water, and by which compressor also the water
may be expelled from the floats or any one or more of them and be filled with air.
The pipe is provided with opening and closing cocks or valves k, l, and a check
valve m; and the pipe i is similarly provided with cocks or valves n, o, and check
valve p. Each of the cocks or valves land o is provided with an air orifice l', o¹,
the opening in the plug of the cock being arranged at the proper time to register
with said air orifice in the one case, with the orifice to permit the compressor or
pump E to draw in air without drawing from the manifold f and the connected
floats C, as in Fig. 6, when in the act of forcing air into said floats; and in the
other case to expel air through the orifice o¹ as in Fig. 5, in exhausting air from
the floats to allow water to fill such floats.
In the arrangement and adjustment of the cocks and valves shown in Fig. 5 the
apparatus is in the act of exhausting air from the floats C, it being understood that
at such time the floats are in the water so that the air exhausted therefrom will be
replaced by water entering past the inlet valve e. In this operation the cocks n
and o of the pipe i are open and the cocks kaud of the pipe h are closed, the air
inlet orifice being closed and the air outlet orifice being open. When the
Compressor or pump E is operated, the air will be exhausted from one or all of the
floats C depending upon how many of the cocks g are open drawing the air by
the pipes a, chamber and pipe i past the check valve p, and discharging such air
past the check valve m through the air outlet orifice to the atmosphere. This
exhausting of the air from the floats C will permit water to flow thereinto through
the inlet valves e to fill such floats and cause them to sink to the bottom of the
body of water so that they may be attached to the sunken vessel or other object to
be raised. When this attachment has been effected, the cocks n and o of the pipe i
are closed as in Fig. 6, opening the air inlet orifice o¹, and the cocks k and 7 of the
pipe are opened, closing the air outlet orifice 1. The compressor or pump E then
being operated, air will be drawn in by the orifice o' and past the check valve p,
and forced through the pipe h, past the check valve m to the chamber f, and
pipes a, and each of the floats to expel the water therein out by the outlet
valves d of the floats. As the water is expelled and the air takes its place the
several floats are rendered buoyant and if the proper number and capacity of
floats have been connected with the sunken vessel such vessel will be caused to
rise with the floats to the surface of the water ready to be handled and repaired.
When the floats are sunk to the sunken vessel, by the weight of the contained
water, the inlet valve e will be held closed by the weight of the water within the
float and the other valve d will be likewise held closed by the pressure of the
water on the exterior of the float. These valves may also be partially controlled
by springs. As soon as the compressor is operated to expel the water contained
by the float such water will pass outward by the valve d which opens against the
exterior water pressure and this same pressure after the water is all expelled
therefrom will also act to hold the air which has taken the place of the water in
the float.
By using the two pipes and it is possible to employ a check valve in each

page_text: pipe to perform different functions, the valve m to hold the air pressure in the
floats after the pump has stopped acting, and the valve p to enable the air to be
exhausted from the floats.
From the foregoing it will be seen that an exceedingly simple and effective
apparatus is provided by which the desired number of Hoats may be caused to
sink to the sunken vessel and after being attached to such vessel be filled with air
to raise the vessel. The manipulation of the several cocks or valves to open and
close them and vice versa, may be effected each independently or by suitable
The
connections from a single actuating menus as will be readily understood.
chamber may be large enough to attach and operate as many floats C as may
be desired.
The chamber will have connection with a combined pressure and vacuum
gage G by which the effective action of the compressor or pumps may be seen.
It will be observed that my novel construction of float enables the parts of the
apparatus which would otherwise be very bulky, to be taken apart, transported and
readily reassembled, it being simply necessary in taking apart and reassembling
the float, to remove and replace the bolts .
The exterior of the valves de of the floats may be guarded from the admission
of foreign substances by a screen or netting e'.
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 float for raising sunken vessels consisting of the planks overlapping each
other by the lip tt, with interposed packings, and the enclosed heads, said float
having the inlet and outlet valves, pipe a, and means for attachment to a
sunken vessel.
2. A float for raising sunken vessels consisting of the planks having metallic
strips with ears at each end, connecting bolts and the enclosed heads r, said float
having inlet and outlet valves, the pipe a and means for attachment to a sunken
vessel.
3. The combination of a number of hollow floats, a single air chamber to which
said floats are independently connected, separate exhaust and supply pipes
communicating with said chamber, a suitable check-valve in each pipe, and an
exhausting and compressing apparatus, as set forth.
4. The combination of a number of hollow floats, a single air chamber to which
said floats are connected, separate exhaust and supply pipes communicating with
said chamber, a suitable check-valve and a relief cock in each pipe, and au
exhausting and compressing apparatus, as set forth.
5. The combination of a number of hollow floats, an inlet and outlet valve in
each float, a single air chamber to which said floats are connected, separate exhaust
and supply pipes communicating with said chamber, a suitable check-valve in each
pipe, and an exhausting and compressing apparatus, as set forth.
6. An apparatus for raising sunken vessels, comprising an air compressing and
exhausting apparatus, two pipes leading therefrom, a hollow float or floats, a single
pipe connecting the float with the two pipes, and a combined pressure and vacuum
gage connected to said single pipe, as set forth.
7. The herein described hollow float adapted to contain water and also air, and
provided with independent and automatically operative inlet and outlet valves, and
provided also with a pipe through which air may be forced having connection with
the float independent of the air inlet and outlet valves.
Dated this 16th day of December 1896,
Dated this 16th day of December 1895.
G. H. CHAPPELL,
Per W. H. Beck,
115 Cannon Street, London, Agent.
G. H. CHAPPELL,
Per W. H. Beck,
115 Cannon Street, London, Agent.