Improvements in Mechanism for Moving Doors or Valves, such as the Water-tight Doors of Ships' Bulkheads.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Mar., 1894-Accepted, 16th June, 1894
Improvements in Mechanism for Moving Doors or Valves, such as
the Water-tight Doors of Ships' Bulkheads.
I, JAMES ANGELO MCELROY, of 3, Edward Street, Overnewton, in the County
of the City of Glasgow, North Britain, Engineer, 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, that is
to say :-
My said invention has for its object to apply improved mechanism to any doors
or valves which like the water-tight doors of ships' bulkheads may on an emergency
or for any purpose be required to be capable of being closed with rapidity and
certainty. My said invention comprises further improvements in apparatus of the
kind described in my Patent Specification No. 3610 of 1886.
In carrying out my present invention in the case of a door for a ship's bulkhead
I have on the door and in gear with a vertical screw spindle, employed for opening
and closing the door, a worm wheel, which, when prevented from turning by a
friction brake, can be raised or lowered, and with it the door, by turning the screw
spindle. The friction brake can also be actuated to release the worm-wheel and
allow the door to descend by its own weight, the wormwheel then rolling down the
screw spindle. Mechanism, hereinafter described, is provided in conjunction with
the friction brake, to control the descent of the door. The improved mechanism
is arranged for opening or closing the door from the deck or from below, the
closing of the door being effected either slowly or
rapidly as desired.
And in order that my said invention and the manner of performing the same may
be properly understood, I hereunto append a sheet of explanatory drawings, to be
hereinafter referred to, and showing a water-tight door for a ship's bulkhead as
made with my improved actuating mechanism.
Figure, 1, of the drawings is a plan of deck plates hereinafter described.
Figure, 2, is a sectional elevation of the improved apparatus.
Figure, 3, is a side elevation of the door frame (with some parts removed) as at
right angles to Figure, 2.
Figure, 4, is an enlarged vertical section of the deck plates and other details.
Figure, 5, is an enlarged horizontal section as at the top of the door.
Figure, 6, is an enlarged sectional front elevation of a part of the door.
In these drawings the same reference letters and numerals are used to mark the
same or like parts wherever they are repeated.
As in my former apparatus, the door consists of a plate, A, on which is riveted a
wedge-shaped oblong rectangular frame, A 1, the plate and frame sliding in a guide
frame, A 2, framing the opening or doorway in the bulkhead. The doorway
frame, A 2, is shaped to fit the door, and it is fitted at the sides with outer covering
plates, A 3, (one being supposed to be removed in the drawings) which cause the
door, when closed, to be pressed tightly against an inner bearing strip or
shoulder, A. 4, on the doorway frame. On the face of the door plate, A, all around
close to the edge there is fixed an anti-friction brass strip, B, which bears on the
parts, A 4, of the doorway frame, A 2. Fixed in the sides of the door are
projecting brass pieces, C, which slide in vertical parallel-sided grooves in the
doorway frame, A 2, sufficient clearance being allowed between the brass pieces and
the inner sides of the grooves for the door to come close against the door frame.
The brass pieces, C, are employed to steady the door when it is raised as without
them it would be free to move owing to the thin part of the door being then in the
wide part of the jaw of the door frame, A². To enable the door, when at the

page_text: bottom of the door frame, A 2, to be taken out without having to raise it up out of
the frame, parts, D, are cut out of the door frame to give passage to the brass
pieces, C.
At the top of the door there is loose on a fixed horizontal shaft, E, a worm-
wheel, F, which gears with a vertical screw shaft, G, stepped at the bottom in
a transverse rail or frame, F 1, on the doorway frame, A 2, and held at its upper
part in a bearing, H, in a bracket, H 1. The upper part of the screw shaft, G, is
joined by a screw coupling (not shown) to a short piece, H 2, extending up through
a stuffing box, H 3, to the interior of a metal box, H 4, and having its upper end
formed like a clutch to engage with projections H 5, on a disk, H 6, turning in the
metal box and formed to admit of a turn-key being applied to it. The disk, H 6,
is held in place by a covering deck plate, H 7, which is fixed to the metal box, H 4.
The wormwheel, F, is made with a rim or cylindrical flange on which is
fitted a friction ring, J, having one end securely held by a projection, J I, on the
door, and the other end gripped by one end of a lever, K. The lever, K, is centered
on a rod or spindle, K 1, fixed in the door, and it is jointed to a stud, K 2, on a
screwed ring, K 3. The ring, K 3, is screwed on the upper part of a sleeve, L,
through which passes a vertical square shaft, M, this shaft being stepped at the
bottom in the rail, F1, and having its upper part held in a bush, M 1, in a
bearing, M2, in the bracket, H 1. The sleeve, L, has its lower part fitting in a
cover or cap, L 1, which is fixed to the door. Below the sleeve, L, and inside the
cap, L1, there is a helical spring, L2, which maintains a steady pressure on the
sleeve. The vertical shaft, M, extends only to the top of the bush, M 1, and is
made with a slight twist throughout its whole length. Fixed by pins, M 3, to the
shaft, M, and the bush M 1, is a tube, M 4, which is connected by a screwed
coupling (not shown) to a short tube, M 5, extending up through a stuffing box, N,
to the interior of a metal box, N 1, bedded in the deck. The tube, M 5, is formed
at the top like a clutch to engage projections, N 2, on a disk N 3, turning in the
metal box and formed to admit of a turnkey being applied to it. The disk, N 3, is
held in place by a covering deck plate, N 4, which is fixed to the metal box, N 1.
Above the bush, M 1, there is loose on the tube, M 4, a collar, P, fixed by
cutter, P1, to a brass piece, P 2, inside the tube. The brass piece, P 2, is fixed
to a vertical rod, P 3, which extends up inside the disk, N 3, where it is screwed
to a small knob or head, P4, fitted to slide inside the disk. Clearance is cut in the
tube, M 4, for the cutter, P 1, to permit of the collar, P, sliding up and down the
tube a little. On the bracket, H 1, there is fixed a stud, Q, on which is centered
a lever, Q1, having a forked end underneath the collar, P, capable of moving it
upwards. The other end of the lever, Q 1, is jointed to the upper end of a vertical
rod, Q2, which is guided at the bottom by passing through an eye bolt, (2 3, fixed
to the door frame, A 2. On the rod, Q2, is a projection, Q4, which comes in
contact with a projection, Q5, on the door when it is nearly closed. The weight
of the collar, P, and rod, P3, is such that, when left to themselves, they will keep
the knob or head, P4, below the level of the deck. The same key can be used for
both parts, H 6, and N 3, and access is got to those parts without having to unscrew
any cover
a
When it is desired to close the door quickly from deck a suitable turnkey is
applied to the disk, N 3, and by it the vertical shaft, M, is turned so as to lower
the screwed ring, K 3, and cause the lever, K, to take the pressure of the friction
ring, J, off the wormwheel, F. The door descends instantly by its own weight, the
wormwheel, F, meanwhile rolling down the screw shaft, G. The door cannot
however descend so rapidly as to damage itself, for the screwed sleeve, L, as the
door descends is turned by the twist on the vertical shaft, M, (on which it slides)
so as to raise the ring, K 3, and cause the lever, K, to tighten the friction ring, J,
on the wormwheel, F, and stop the door. The square shaft, M, requires to be kept
turning more or less slowly until the door is quite down.
When the door is just about to close the projection, Q5, on its side comes into
contact with the projection, Q 4, on the rod, (2, and moves the rod downwards,

page_text: thereby raising, through the lever, Q1, the collar, P, and the rod, P 3, upwards
so as to push the knob or head, P4, flush with the deck when the door is quite
closed. It can be ascertained in the dark whether the door is completely closed,
by feeling the knob, P 4.
The door can also be opened or closed from the deck by applying a turnkey to
the disk, H 6, and turning the screw shaft, G, to act on the worm wheel, F, the
wormwheel being securely held by the friction ring, J. The door can be opened
or closed from below by turning the handle, R, to actuate the bevil wheels, R 1,
and, R2, the former being on a stud, R 3, on the rail, F 1, and the latter fast on
the screw shaft, G. When the door is raised a small lever catch, S, jointed to a
pin, S 1, in the doorway frame, A 2, and having a weighted outer end, has that end
raised by a person below to cause its inner end to come below the door. The door
is then lowered to rest on the inner end of the lever catch, S. When opening the
door from deck or below it is only necessary to raise it a little to clear the catch, S,
the outer end of which thereupon drops and turns the inner end out of the way
and allows the door to descend.
An important feature of my present improved apparatus as also of my former
arrangement is that when the door is descending the top of the wormwheel, F, or
the tops of both wormwheels move away from the screw spindle, G, and consequently
any article dropping in will not stop the descent of the door, but will be at once
thrown out.
If desired the square shaft, M, may be transposed to the opposite side of the
screw shaft, G, from that shown in the drawings, and the other parts may be
arranged to suit.
It is an important advantage of my improved apparatus that no chains or ropes
are required for actuating any part of it.
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. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting my improved
mechanism for moving doors or valves such as the water-tight doors of ships
bulkheads substantially as herein before described.
2. In mechanism for moving doors or valves, the combination of a screw shaft
with a single wormwheel capable of rolling along the screw shaft, or of being held
fast by a friction ring actuated by mechanism substantially as and for the purposes
hereinbefore described.
3. The combination and arrangement of the improved mechanism for indicating
the position of a door or valve such as the water-tight door of a ship's bulkhead
substantially as herein before described.
Dated this Thirtieth day of March 1894.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.