Year: 1886

page_text: I, JOHN ADAM BENNINGER, residing at, 1634, W. Main Street, in the City of
Louisville, County of Jefferson, and State of Kentucky, one of the United States
of America, gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to means for preventing vessels from sinking should they
spring-a-leak from any cause; and it consists in the employment both outside and
inside of a vessel's hull of a system of bags or buoys all communicating by means
of pipes with a common reservoir containing a gaseous element in a highly
condensed or compressed state, said pipes being provided with suitable valves.
for regulating the flow of gas to the bags, floats or buoys, and said bags being
provided with flexible connections all of which constitute a new and improved
system whereby, even under most adverse and extraordinary circumstances, a
leaking vessel and its cargo can be kept afloat and conveyed safely into port, as
will be fully understood from the following description when taken in connection.
with the drawings, in which,-
?
Figure, 1, is a side view of a two masted vessel showing the flexible bags, sacks,
or buoys which are applied on the outside of the hull.
Figure, 2, is a longitudinal central section of the vessel, showing the bags or
sacks which are applied to the inside of the bull between decks, and also the
system of pipes which form communications between them and a gas or air holder.
Figure, 8, is a cross section through the hull taken in the vertical plane indicated
by dotted lines, x-x, on figure, 2, showing some of the exterior and interior sacks
or baga inflated and others collapsed.
Figure, 4, is an enlarged sectional detail in perspective showing two of the
exterior sacks or buoys and their chain and tube connections.
.
Before describing my improved system and its details I will state that I am
aware that bags, buoys, bulkheads and other like vessels have been long employed
for raising sunken vessels, and also for keeping ships afloat in case of their
springing-a-leak said bags or buoys being filled with atmospheric air by pumping
the same into them after they are sunk, and then displacing the water which they
contained. This slow method of rendering the submerged bags buoyant is not
always practicable and is not herein claimed. I am also aware that vessels have
been provided interiorly with flexible bags permanently attached and provided

page_text: with an air forcing engine for filling them and thus preventing a vessel from
sinking for want of tenable space for water, and this feature I broadly disclaim.
The drawing represents my improved buoying system applied to the hull of a
two masted schooner, but it will be obvious from the following description that it
may be applied to larger or smaller sailing vessels, or to vessels provided with
steam propelling power.
A, designates the hull of the vessel; B, the decks, and, C, C, bulk-head com-
partments, if the latter be used. Between the decks and preferably in close
relation to the inner sides of the hull I suitably attach a series of flexible bags,
or sacks, D, which may be made of canvas, saturated or otherwise treated to render
them gas tight and fire proof. These bags may also be strengthened by flexible
bands or a flexible netting, so that when they are collapsed they occupy very little
space and when dilated they will resist considerable internal pressure. I prefer
to make the bags tubular with bulging ends as shown in the drawings, but their
size and shape will depend on the position they are required to occupy in the hold
of a vessel.·
I have above stated that these bags, or sacks, D, are suitably attached to the
hull, but in some cases they may be movable and arranged in spaces which may be
necessarily left between boxes, bales, or other pieces of the cargo. The said bags
or sacks on each side of the longitudinal center of the vessel'are connected together
by short tubes, a, provided with suitable trap valves, all opening in one direction,
and at the bow or stern of the vessel as the case may be, the bags or sacks com-
municate by a pipe, c, with an air or gas bolder, E, adapted for containing air or a
.gas under great pressure, or a liquid, such for instance as liquid carbonic acid,
which when set free will instantly expand into a gas and fill the said bags or sacks,
thus rendering them highly buoyant and dispensing with pumping engines.
The pipe connection, c, should be provided with a gas tight cock, d, by means of
which an attendant can regulate the flow of gas to the bags and cut off the flow
at will.
When these internal bags or sacks, D, are charged with air or a gas they fill up
and render air tight the spaces between or about the objects that surround them
and form the cargo.
G, G, designate what I denominate main pipes which are suitably secured to the
sides of the hull inside & preferably located below the upper deck. These pipes
communicate with the gas holder, E. At suitable intervals along the said
mains, G, G, are unions, g, provided with cocks the handles, g', of which are
preferably connected by a rod or chain, k, to the handle of the cock, f, so that
when the rod or chain, k, is moved end wise to discharge gas into the mains or to
cut off, all of the cocks in the unions or branch. pipes of the mains will be simul-
taneously moved and the bags, H, will be quickly filled with gas or air.
H, H, designate several series of flexible bags or buoys, which are preferably
made and strengthened like the bags or sacks used inside of the hull. These bags
or buoys, H, may be made of any desired shape and size, but I prefer to make thein
of the shape represented in figures, 1, 'and, 4, & to connect each series together by
chains, h, & to establish communication between the buoys by means of flexible
pipes, i, preferably provided with trap valves, r, like the valves of the pipes
connecting the bags or sacks, D. The pipes, j, of each series of buoys, H, are
provided with screw couplings adapted for connecting them gas 'tight to the
unions, g, or branch pipes of the mains, G, G.
It will be observed from the above description that when the bags or buoys, D,
and, H, are arranged. as shown in the annexed drawings, they all communicate
with one common gas holder, E, so that in the event of the hull being stove in said
bags or buoys inside and outside of the hull can be filled with a buoyant gas
almost instantly and by one person, who can regulate the charging of the bags
or. buoys according the necessities of the case..
}
"
The external buoys, when not in immediate use, can, be hauled in board and
compactly stowed away. When an accident requires their use a rope is, thrown
1

page_text: over the side of the vessel either at the stein or stern, both ends being held inboard,
and this rope is drawn beneath the keel. The coupling pipe, j, of one end of a
series of buoys, H, is then attached to a union of one main, G, & by means of said
rope the other end is drawn under the hull and attached by its pipe, j, to a union
of the other main, G.
It will thus be seen that each series of buoys, H, communicate with the
mains, G, G, and gas holder, thereby allowing the several external series of buoys.
to be quickly charged with gas.
If desired the bags, sacks, or floats, D, used inside of the vessel's hull may be, and
for some vessels, will be, connected together in transverse series, like the external.
buoys, H, and provided with means for coupling them to the mains, each coupling
device being provided with an independent cock.
By this means any one or more of the series can be charged with gas or
compressed atmospheric air, from the gas holder according to the emergency.
A single two-way cock applied to a pipe, which communicates with the com-
pressed gas or air holder, E, and also with the internal & external series of
bags, floats or buoys will suffice to charge them simultaneously with the buoyant
element.
In practice I shall employ well known pressure guages or safety valves applied
to the holder, E, and also to the bags to prevent undue strain.
It is essential in carrying out my invention that means, such as I have described,
should be employed in filling the buoys on the outside of the vessel from the
reservoir, E, independently of the means for filling the buoys used inside of
the, vessel, also that the cocks which are applied to the branch pipes of each
main pipe, G, should be connected, as described, so that all of the cocks can be
simultaneously opened.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1st. The combination with a vessel's hull of collapsible bags connected together
in a series by means of pipes provided with valves and located at the middle of the
length of the bags, all connected together by means of chains near their ends, the
supply pipes, j, coupled to branch pipes, of main pipes located along the sides of
the vessel inside thereof & communicating with a reservoir adapted to contain
compressed air and the cocks applied to said branch pipes, and connected by their
handles to an end wise movable rod by which all of the cocks can be opened
simultaneously, substantially as and for the purposes described.
2nd. A vessel's hull provided with collapsible bags or floats.connected together
by means of vertical pipes and chains in several series, & communicating with
mains inside of the vessel by means of pipes provided with valves adapted to be
moved by a single rod, the reservoir with which said mains communicate, the
collapsible bags located inside of the vessel, communicating with each other and
also with said reservoir by means of pipes provided with a cock, substantially as
described.