Improvements in Grapples for Submarine Cables.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 80th Oct., 1807
Complete Specification Left. 18th July, 1898- Accepted, 20th Aug., 1898
Date of Application
Complete Specification Left. 18th July, 1898- Accepted, 20th Aug., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Grapples for Submarine Cables.
I, JOHN IMRAY, formerly of 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the
County of London, but now of Birkbeck Bank Chambers, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered
Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (as communicated to
me from abroad by La Societe Industrielle des Telephones, of 25, Rue du Quatre-
Septembre, Paris, France,) to be as follows:-
This invention relates to grapples for seizing submarine cables and for cutting
them when desired, so constructed as to ensure the drag of the grappling hooks
along the bottom. without the possibility of the hook lying on its side and so pass-
ing over the cable. For this purpose, the stem of the cable has spreading out from
its sides two arms or frames, and, in a plane at right angles to the plane of these
arms or frames, it has a grappling hook projecting at each side, each of these
hooks consisting of an oblique socket in which can be fixed one or other of a
number of pointed studs of various lengths, constituting the points of the hooks.
As the lateral arms or frames are dragged along while lying flat on the bottom, the
one or the other of the hooks necessarily ploughs along the bottom is that it must
pass under and seize the cable when it encounters it. When the grapple is to be
used for cutting the cable, a pair of shear blades are fixed in the angle where the
socket of the hook springs from the stem, the edges of these blades being at an
angle to each other so that they spread out at the mouth allowing the cable to
enter between them, and to be dragged farther in, and cut.
The grapple may be permanently provided with the cutters, but, in order that
they may not operate unless the cable offers excessive resistance to the drag, a
bar of metal of determined strength is fixed in front of the cutters preventing the
cable from entering between them unless the drag is sufficient to break the bar.
Dated this 30th day of October 1897.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Grapples for Submarine Cables.
I. JOHN IMRAY, formerly of 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the
County of London, but now of Birkbeck Bank Chambers, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered
Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (as communicated to
me from abroad by La Societe Industrielle des Telephones, of 25, Rue du Quatre-
ונ6. cn

page_text: Septembre, Paris, France,) 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 grapples for seizing submarine cables and for cutting
them when desired, so constructed as to ensure the drag of the grappling hooks
along the bottom without the possibility of the hook lying on its side and so pass-
ing over the cable.
For this purpose the grapple is constructed as will be described with reference
to the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is a front view and Fig. 2 is a side view of the grapple.
Its rod A which may be hollow terminates in two spreading arms B, C so that
the whole has the form of an inverted Y. Near the junction of the three branches
are two brackets a carrying removable teeth D E of various lengths D¹ D³, E¹ E
suited to the character of the bottom. These teeth may be fixed by screwing,
keying, or otherwise, or when it is not desired to change them, they may be
integral with the brackets a..
Obviously the only position which the grapple can take owing to its limbs B C
is that in which they lie on the bottom so that the one or the other of the teeth D E
must encounter the cable.
For the purpose of cutting the cable, there are provided at the junction of each
bracket a with the stem, a pair of shear blades 7 shewn separately in elevation
Fig. 3 and in sectional plan Fig. 4. These blades are usually prevented from
coming into action by cross fence bars H against which the cable bears. When
the strain exceeds that which the bar H can withstand it breaks and allows the
cable to engage itself between the shear blades. When on raising the grapple
the fence bar H is found to be broken, it shews that the strain resulted from a
cable being caught and not from encounter with a rock or other obstruction. The
shear blades are fixed in recesses m n m³ n¹ respectively and inclines S serve to
guide the cable into the gap of the blades. When no cutting is required the
blades are removed and pieces forming a rounded gab are substituted, or the
grapple is made simply of the forms shewn in Figs. 5 and 6.
As shewn in Figs. 7 and 8, the teeth D, E, may be beyond the arms B C.
For the arms BC side frames may be substituted as shewn in Figs. 9 and 10.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. A grapple constructed and operating substantially as described with refer-
ence to Figs. 1' and 2, or 5 and 6.
2. In combination with the grapple pairs of shear blades and fence bars, sub-
stantially as described.
3. The modified form of grapple shewn in Figs. 7 and 8.
4. The modified form shewn in Fig. 9.
5. The modified form shewn in Figure 10.