IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING TO TORPEDOES USED IN WARFARE
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Alfred Julius Boult at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 7th March 1883. A communication
to him from Asa Weeks of Minneapolis in the county of Hennepin and state
of Minnesota one of the United States of America
ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of the firm of W. P. Thompson & Boult, Agents for
Foreign Patent [Patent] Solicitors 323 High Holborn in the county of Middlesex
Engineer, "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING TO TORPEDOES USED IN WARFARE."
a communication to me from Asa Weeks of Minneapolis in the county of Hennepin
and State of Minnesota one of the United States of America "
The invention chiefly relates to movable torpedoes used in warfare. The first
part of the improvements consists of a marine torpedo socket adapted to be fired
from a detaching davit which serves to give initial direction to the socket. The
socket charge is in a casing between guide boards or keels which terminate in
fixed rudders, the socket charge being in the form of a cylinder which is cored out
eccentrically so that after ignition when the charge has burned outwardly to the
casing at the nearest point, the further combustion will consume the rocket
composition in layers of crescent shape, and an approximately even burning be
secured. A novel form of percussion fuse is also used.
A steam launch or any other suitable boat is used for carrying the torpedoes,
provided with suitable deflecting armour fore and abaft. Within a fixed railing
the operators stand. Outside the railing but behind the armour are protected
recesses within which the torpedo floats are swung upon their davits when not
required to be lowered for action, These davits each consist of two rigidly braced
curved bars pivoted to the side of the boat by means of the blocks which admit of
vertical adjustment. The outer end of the davit carries a swiveling hook detaching
device composed of borizontally arranged hooks or bars. These hooks are free at
one end so that the rocket torpedo float pendant therefrom to two eyes may slide
freely off when fired.
The torpedo rocket float is preferably constructed with V-shaped sides. The
rocket proper extends from the rear of the float forwardly to about its centre while
the dynamite or explosive chamber extends from the bow rearwardly about one
fourth the length of the float. An air chamber, triangular in cross section is

page_text: ,
located at the bow of the float for the purpose of preventing the float from burying
itself in the water. Arm-holes registering with similar holes in the partition
between the air chamber and the dynamite chamber serve for the purpose of
charging the latter. The rocket float is provided also with two parallel fixed
steering rods extending astern and having fixed rudders at their ends. The
forward continuation of these steering rods form over hangers or side strips secured
to the float, and terminating with a bevelled face thereby giving buoyancy and an
upward tendency to the bow of the float. A suitable interior frame work gives a
proper shape to the shell of the float which is completely decked over and water
tight. The rocket shell is concentrically arranged within an exterior cylindrical
casing by means of studs or projections, The space between the two forming an
annular air chamber around the burning rocket. After the rocket has been charged
with firing composition it is bored out eccentrically. The object of this is that after
the rocket bas burned out to a certain degree, the burning area exposed will always
be approximately the same till the rocket is exhausted, thereby equalizing the
burning of the rocket and enabling it to exert a uniform force. When the rocket
is fired and the eccentric bore burns out to the upper side of the rocket shell, the
burning areas exposed will be in a series of crescent shapes whose areas are
approximately equal to each other.
The rocket may be made either single or if desired double in which case a head
is arranged mid way of the rocket composed of two partitions. The shell of one
part of this double rocket projects beyond the first partition and overlaps the
second, and contiguous partition, an annular recess being formed in the latter for
the insertion of a suitable packing to prevent the escape of gases. This head has
an eccentric opening through it in line with the eccentric bore of the rocket, as has
also the head at the rear of the rocket. The middle head is provided with a
temporary partition covering the eccentric hole for temporarily obstructing the
same until the first rocket has nearly or about burned itself out.
When made of iron it is pierced with a small hole through which the flames may
ignite the second rocket, and is further provided with a hinge so that the exbaust
of said rocket will drive it out and downward upon its hinge. The partition may
if desired be constructed of metal fusible at low temperatures such as zinc. The
eccentric bores do not extend entirely through the rockets but terminate at points,
so that the firing composition will burn out at the ends of the rockets at or about
the same time the composition burns away to the bottom of the rocket shell; in
other words the distance from the end of the bore to the inner end of the rocket
shall be equal to or thereabout the distance from the end of the bore to the bottom
of the rocket shell. A small hole leads from the inner end of the rocket to an
explosive charge received preferably in a block of wood. This charge serves to
explode the float should it miss the object aimed at. A lining of clay or other
material is placed against the heads, a segmental fire clay lining is held in place by
a metallic segmental lining. These linings are arranged along the upper interior of
the rocket shell to prevent any undue action of the fire at that point caused by the
burning away of the composition before the lower portion of the rocket has been
consumed. A cap is fitted to the casing, and electric wires are passed through the
packing box to an electric igniter. Gas guides are secured to the steering rods for
the purpose of guiding and preventing the stream of fire exhausted from the rocket
getting under the steering rods and tending to lift them.
An aperture and casting on the bow of the float communicates with the dynamite
chamber. In this is inserted the percussion fuse, the percussion cap is carried on a
nipple in communication with the interior of the dynamite chamber and is exploded
by a spring impelled hammer normally held retracted by a trigger which is
connected with a contact bolt by a pivoted link, a spring holds the bolt outwardly
and the trigger within the catch on the bolt or hammer.
This contact bolt projects at the bow of rocket float and fires the explosive
charge in chamber upon contact of the moving rocket float with the enemy's vessel
or other object. Where a vessel is protected by a torpedo netting a plate is

page_text: arranged forward of the contact bolt of sufficient length for catching the strands of
the net, This plate is mounted within a slotted frame, which has a screw socket
for attaching it to the casing of the percussion fuse, pins passing through the slots.
A spring holds the plate and its operating detent normally out of contact with the
contact bolt If one end only of the bar or plate were to strike the net or obstacle
the opposite end and its slot would act as a fulcrum on its pin to a resistance
applied to the contact bolt by the operating detent or lug, safety pins are inserted
in the slots when not in use and a safety cap adapted to be screwed on when the
plate is not used.
In action, the steam launch is headed "bows on" for the enemy. When the
upper prow of the boat is in line with the sight through the armour plate the
rocket floats will be in line with the attacked vessel. The floats are then swung
outwardly upon their davits by means of lines. The electric circuit is then closed
through the wires and the rocket ignited. The exhaust of the rocket throws out
the cap from the cylinder, and the rocket floats slide freely off the bars of the
davits having their course and aim determined thereby. A rod may be attached to
the davit extending astern and have a line attached to the davit and to the float
for preventing a premature dislodgment of the float. This rod and line extends
downwardly between the steering rods in line with the exhaust of the rocket so
that said line will be burnt in two on the ignition of the rocket and thereby
release the float.
The rocket floats however may be used in any connection other than with the
detaching davits, and boat and may be arranged with the davits under coverts on
shore for the purpose of discharging the rocket torpedo floats
The second part of the invention relates to spar torpedoes operated by a windlass.
The spar attached to the boat is adjusted lengthwise by means of a line. The
inclination of the forward section is adjusted by a screw bolt. This bolt is adapted
to be screwed out of contact with the forward section to enable the latter to be
swung backward upon the deck to allow the torpedo to be placed in a casing open
at the bottom within which it is carried. A pin on the torpedo at one end enters
a hole in the spar and a catch on the other end engages a catch or hook on the rear
end of the contact plate or piece of the spar and thus holds the torpedo in position.
This plate has a slot working on a pin in the casing in the latter of which is also a
transverse slot in which the rear end of plate works. A spring is attached to the
plate and to the casing the object of which is normally to hold the catch on the
plate in engagement with the catch on the torpedo. This contact plate extends
beyond the forward end of the spar, and the plate is adapted, upon striking the
enemy's vessel to give rearwardly or laterally or both depending upon what angle
the spar makes contact with the enemy.-When the plate makes contact its catch is
thrown out of engagement with the catch on the torpedo and the latter falls.
A line is attached to a firing-pin or percussion fuse secured to the torpedo and its
other end to the spar. The length of the line is sufficient to allow the torpedo to
fall into the water below the armour-plate of the enemy's vessel before the line is
pulled taut and the percussion fuse fired and the torpedo exploded.
This percussion fuse is similar to the fuse already described, the difference being
in that the bolt is pulled outwardly instead of being pushed inward, in order to
operate the trigger and release the spring impelled hammer A safety pin is passed
through the casing and through the bolt to secure the torpedo against premature
discharge when not required for use.
The third part of the improvements consists of a floating torpedo adapted to be
exploded by being run upon by the enemy. The torpedo is carried in a receptacle
below a hermetically sealed cylindrical air chamber. On a centrally mounted axis
is placed a hub carrying a series of radial contact arms suitably braced so that the
device may oscillate on the axis. Two rods passing through eyes on the arms are
connected with a lever pivoted at one end of the cylinder. This lever works in a
suitably protected casing and its lower end is preferably provided with an anti-
friction wheel normally in engagement with a short pivoted lever. The bottom is

page_text: hinged at one end, its other end being held in place by the short pivoted lower lever;
a line is attached to the float and to the firing or percussion fuse (the same as that
here before described). The radial arms are bent upwardly so as to prevent
accidental discharge by the action of the waves. A buoyed line is used to connect
a series of floats.
The torpedo is fired by the arms making contact with an obstacle which serves
to oscillate them slightly either way. This it does by one of the rods pulling on
the pivoted lever throwing the lower end of the latter out of engagement with the
short lever thereby allowing the bottom to swing downward and precipitate the
torpedo, the line being of sufficient length to allow the torpedo to sink below the
armour plate of the attacked vessel before its percussion fuse is fired. A clock work
is arranged for pulling the lever inward should the floating torpedo fail in its object
after a stated interval of time.
The buoyed line serves should the vessel run between any two of the floats to
catch the vessel and draw the floats to its sides thereby making contact. A safety
line passed through a hole is used to prevent any premature action of the lever when
the torpedo float is not desired for immediate use or when it is launched. Vanes
prevent the turning of the float in the water suddenly.