IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF APPARATUS, AND IN PROCESS CONNECTED THEREWITH, FOR RAISING SUBMERGED SHIPS AND VESSELS
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Robert Punshon at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 10th May 1880.
ROBERT PUNSHON, of 16, Saint Michael's Place, Brighton, in the County of Sussex,
Civil Engineer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF APPARATUS, AND IN
PROCESS CONNECTED THEREWITH, FOR RAISING SUBMERGED SHIPS AND VESSELS."
The object of my Invention is to raise sunken ships or vessels from under water to
the surface. The means by which I accomplish my purpose consists of a suitable
number of hexagonal tubes bound or built up together, so as to form a vessel or
apparatus of a convenient form. Each hexagonal tube may be about six inches in
diameter, and about three feet in length. The size would depend upon the work
required to be done. Each tube is charged with a gunpowder composition of the
same kind and quality used for propelling rockets; this composition is in the form
of a small thin cake placed at the bottom of each tube. The cakes of gunpowder
composition in every separate tube are connected by means of the wire of an electric
battery, and fired simultaneously.
If fired by an ordinary blasting fuze, the gunpowder composition in each tube
would have contact or communication with each other by means of a small hole
drilled or placed at the bottom of each tube where the gunpowder composition is
placed. Upon the top of each cake of gunpowder composition, when placed at the
bottom of the separate tubes, is fixed a wooden plug about three inches in
thickness, and covered with a thin iron or copper plate to prevent the wooden plug
being charred or burnt while the composition is burning. Each separate plug fits
its own tube exactly, and the water (when the bound tubes are immersed in water)
is kept from the composition by means of greased yarn or worsted rapt round the
periphery of the plug. Each of these hexagonal plugs is fitted with a round hole
in the centre about one half inch in diameter, and kept closed by means of a strong
spiral spring attached to a half inch plug of metal which exactly closes the half
inch hole in the hexagonal plug; this balf inch plug acts as a safety valve in case
the pressure of the gas from the burning gunpowder composition should be more
than necsssary to force the hexagonal plug to the mouth of each tube, where two
spring catches fixed at the mouth of each of the hexagonal tubes hold the plug
D077

page_text: firmly in the mouth of each tube, so that the gases cannot force the hexagonal plug
out of the tube, or the pressure of the water outside force the plug back again into
the tube.
When the bound up tubes are ready to be placed in the vessel or apparatus
prepared for them, the most convenient way will be to place two sets of bound up
tubes end to end well secured together, so that the mouths of the tubes will form
the two sides of the vessel or apparatus. When the vessel or apparatus thus
constructed is ready to be sunk and attached to the sunken ship or other object,
the open mouths of the charged tubes which now form the two sides of the vessel
are closed by means of a revolving shutter, so that the bound up tubes or apparatus
is sufficiently bouyant to be floated to where it is wanted. When it is required to
sink the bound up tubes or apparatus into the position required for use, the shutter
is raised and sufficient water is admitted to sink the vessel or apparatus to the
required situation upon the sunken ship, where it is made fast in the usual way to
the ship to be raised, and then the whole of the gunpowder charges are fired
simultaneously, and as each hexagonal plug is forced to the mouth of its tube, and
fixed there by means already described, a nearly complete vacuum is formed in each
separate tube by the water being forced out by the pressure of the gas upon the
hexagon plugs in the tubes of which the vessel or apparatus is built of. Thus
the whole interior of the vessel or apparatus becomes full of gas and rises to the
surface of the water, bringing up the sunken ship or other object to which it has
been made fast, always provided a proper calculation has been inade of the flotation
power of the apparatus for the work to be done.
I do not bind inyself to the hexagonal form of tube, as in some cases it may be
necessary to use cylindrical or other form of tube.