Improvements in the Manufacture of Buoyancy Apparatus and the like.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Feb., 1898 ·
Complete Specification Left. 10th Nov., 1898-Accepted, 17th Dec., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Buoyancy Apparatus and
the like.
We, FRANCIS SWANZY and WILLIAM CLEAVER, both of 147, Cannon Street, in the
City of London, Merchants, and JAMES THAME, of Orchard Works, Yiewsley, in the
County of Middlesex, Mining Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of buoyancy apparatus
for use in ships, ship's boats, rafts and the like and comprises amongst others
buoyancy or air tanks for ships and life boats, and life buoys. In carrying out this
invention we use as the base of construction a material consisting of a mixture of
properly oxidised linseed oil, made into a cement by admixture with any gums, such
as calophony, kauri, anime, or the like capable of being intimately combined with
the oxidised oil by grinding with the same under heat; the proportion of the in-
gredients being 70% of oil and 30% of gum or thereabouts.
The cement so produced we then combine or mix with from 30 to 75% of dry
shreded ground wood pulp.
The material so prepared is rolled into sheets, or moulded into any desired shape.
to produce the article required. Where it is found necessary to make the article
required in two or more parts, we prefer to join such parts together by means of
vulcanized rubber as described in Henry Thame's Patent No. 5603 1896,
or alternately we may employ a jointing material consisting of 80% of oxidised linseed
oil mixed with about 20% or such proportion of sulphur or of metallic sulphides such
as antimony sulphide as may be found in practice to produce the best results, the said
joints being vulcanised in a suitable dry heated vulcanizer; life buoys made under
this invention may be moulded in two halves, each half having a number of trans-
verse, partitions or bulkheads, moulded with the body of the life buoy, the final
joints being made water-tight by means of vulcanizable jointing material as above
described.
Tanks for ships or life boats may be made of the desired shape by bending: sheets
of the prepared material over a light wooden or skeleton frame-work the sheets of
prépared material forining the shell of the tank being held to or in the framework
by means of screws, clamps, grooves or other suitable device the joints between the
framework and the skin, being made as above described.
In the construction of life belts we may roll our prepared material into tubes, of
a circular octagonal or other shape the ends being blocked up by means of caps, or
covers, said caps or covers may have two rings, so arranged that one will truly fit
the inside and one the outside of said tubes. To further strengthen such tubes, we
may press into the same, one or more rings or discs of the same material; by
employing discs we should divide the tubes into a number of separate compart-.
ments so that in the event of one compartment getting perforated, the others would
still retain their buoyancy.
In conjunction with the material herein described, we may use a skeleton frame
of wood, made of the desired shape, the material in sheets, being fixed to the same

page_text: with strips of the prepared rubber, to form the joint, interposed between the edges
of skeleton frame and sheets of material and the completed article being submitted
to a dry heat approximately, 300° F. whereby the oil and gums in the material
are indurated and the jointing strips of rubber are converted into vulcanite or
hard rubber & adhere to & cement up the wood frame to the material; screws or
nails being used to keep the material in close contact with the rubber and wood.
The halves of life buoys are held together in the same way, round hoops of ash or
other flexible wood being used to form the skeleton frame work to which the
moulded halves of the said buoys with the interposed strips of rubber are fixed by
screws, nails, or other clamping device.
To further strengthen life buoys we may use 4 moulded halves, two forming an
inner buoy and two forming an outer buoy.
Where required the articles made under this invention may be painted, japanned,
or enamelled to give the same a good internal finish.
Dated this 14th day of February 1898.
FELL & JAMES,
1, Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C., Agents for the Applicants.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Buoyancy Apparatus and
the like.
We, FRANCIS SWANZY and WILLIAM CLEAVER, both of 147, Cannon Street, .in
the City of London, Merchants, and JAMES THAME, of Orchard Works, Yiewsly, in
the County of Middlesex, Mining 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 :-
This invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of buoyancy apparatus
for use in ships, ships' boats, rafts and the like and comprises amongst others
buoyancy or air tanks for ships and life boats. In carrying out this invention
we use as the base of constructiou a material consisting of a mixture of properly
oxidised linseed oil, made into a cement by admixture with any gums, such as
calophony, kauri, anime, or the like capable of being. intimately combined with the
oxidised oil by grinding with the same under heat; the proportion of the ingredients
being 70% of oil and 30% of gum or thereabouts.
The cement so produced we then combine or mix with from 30 to 75% of dry
shreded ground wood, pulp.
The material so prepared is rolled into sheets, or moulded into any desired shape
to produce the article required. Where it is found necessary to make the article
required in two or more parts, we prefer to join such parts together by means of
vulcanized rubber as described in Henry Thame's Patent No. 5603 1896, or alterna-
tively we may employ a jointing material consisting of 80% of oxidised linseed oil
mixed with about 20% or such proportion of sulphur or of metallic sulphides such as
antimony sulphide as may be found in practice to produce the best results, the said
joints being vulcanized in a suitable dry heated vulcanizer. Life buoys made under
this invention may be moulded in two halves, each half having a number of transverse
partitions or bulkheads, moulded with the body of the life buoy, the final joints
being made water tight by means of the vulcanizable jointing material as above
described.
Tanks for ships or life boats may also be made of the desired shape according to
this invention by bending sheets of the prepared material over a light wooden or

page_text: skeleton frame-work the sheets of prepared material forming the shell of the tank
being held to or in the framework by means of screws, clamps, grooves or other
suitable device the joints between the framework and the skin being made as above
described.
For example the skeleton frame of wood is made of the desired shape; the material
in sheets being fixed to the same with strips of the prepared rubber as described in
Henry Thames Patent No. 5603% to form the joint interposed between the edges
of skeleton frame and sheets of material and the completed articles are then
submitted to a dry heat approximately 300° F. whereby the oil and gums in the
material are indurated and the jointing strips of rubber are converted into vulcanite
or hard rubber and adhere to and cement up the wood frame to the material; screws
or nails being used to keep the material in close contact with the rubber and
wood.
The halves of life buoys of the usual ring shape are held together in the same
way; round hoops of ash or other flexible wood being used to form the skeleton
framework to which the moulded halves of the said buoys with the interposed strip of
rubber are fixed by screws, nails or other clamping device.
To further strengthen life buoys we may use four moulded halves, two forming an
inner buoy and two forming an outer buoy.
Where required the articles made under this invention may be painted, japanned or
enamelled to give the same a good external finish.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1st. Buoyancy apparatus consisting of a light framework of wood or other equivalent
material, a covering medium of indurated waterproofed pulp material jointedly
attached to the framework and fastening devices such as screws, nails, and the like,
substantially as described.
2nd. A covering or moulding medium for buoyancy apparatus consisting of 70% of
oxidised linseed oil and 30% of gum such as calophany kauri anime or the like
combined with 30 to 75% of dry shreded wood pulp, substantially as described.
Dated this 10th day of November 1898.
FELL & JAMES,
Agents for the Applicants.