IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING THE CON- STRUCTION OF SUBMARINE TUNNELS AND OTHER WORKS BELOW WATER
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Thomas Hughes, of the Firm of
Hughes and Son, Patent Agents, of 123, Chancery Lane, London,
for the Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING THE CON-
STRUCTION OF SUBMARINE TUNNELS AND OTHER WORKS BELOW WATER."—A
communication from abroad by Jerome Wenmaekers, of Brussels,
in the Kingdom of Belgium.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Thomas Hughes
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 27th August 1874.
I, EDWARD THOMAS HUGHES, of the Firm of Hughes and Son, Patent
Agents, of 123, Chancery Lane, London, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING THE
CONSTRUCTION OF SUBMARINE TUNNELS AND OTHER WORKS BELOW WATER," a
communication to me from abroad by Jérome Wenmaekers, of Brussels,
in the Kingdom of Belgium, to be as follows:-
This system enables large submarine constructions to be made at
small cost and without fear of being stopped by obstacles, the work done

page_text: being open to the sky, so that it can be advanced with the greatest speed
and the least obstruction.
The apparatus is combined in sections of about three yards in height
or of such dimensions that may be considered most suitable for the work
to be executed, the depth of the water and the magnitude of the required
construction determining the number of the sections, and each of these
sections is formed of two or four parts, according to the weight which
can be carried by two boats or ships bridged together.
The apparatus is shaped to agree with the form of the projected works,
whether circular, square, or any other shape, but the circular form is:
preferable as being best able to resist the pressure of the water, combined
with the action of the tides or currents.
The interior of the apparatus is divided into easily accessible places or
compartments, such as the upper deck chamber or platform for the
workmen, chambers for holding ballast, chambers for holding the
materials, chambers containing the exhausting or draining machines,
and chambers for various uses or purposes, and the top or deck is
provided with tramways, travelling cranes, and all necessary machines
and tools.
The apparatus is constructed in sections or in divisions if the con-
struction has to be made at the depth of several yards, for in this case
the size of the apparatus would be such that it would be impossible to
launch in its entirety like a ship, and therefore it would have to be
floated or launched in parts.
The construction of the apparatus by division diminishes the weight
to be carried by the bridged boats or ships; besides it is necessary for all
works.extending to a certain height above the level of the water, and at
the same time the construction of the apparatus by section and division
is effected in less time and cost, it being understood that the strength
and magnitude of the works to be exccuted must regulate the size and
strength of the apparatus, the depth and current of the water and
tempestuous weather having to be taken into account.
The different parts of the apparatus are put in their places by means
of the bridged boats, which may be made from old ones having their
bottoms and lower timbers put in good condition, each boat having a
carrying capacity of from one hundred and fifty to two hundred tons,

page_text: and on these boats is constructed a bridge of wrought-iron bars or rails
so as to connect them together, there being a space between the two
boats of one or more yards longer than the external diameter of the
apparatus, and when the first circle of the apparatus is formed the
others are built up one after the other by means of the boats in propōr-
tion to the depth of the water.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Edward Thomas Hughes in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 27th February 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
THOMAS HUGHES, of the Firm of Hughes and Son, Patent Agents, 123,
Chancery Lane, London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Edward Thomas Hughes, Her special
licence that I, the said Edward Thomas Hughes,. my executors, admini-
strators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Edward Thomas
Hughes, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any 'timo
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times. there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Chaunèl Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING THE CONSTRUCTION OF SUBMARINE
TUNNELS AND OTHER WORKS BELOW WATER," a communication to me from
abroad by Jèronic Wenmackers, of Brussels, in the Kingdom of
Belgium, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Edward
Thomas Hughes, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the
same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
montlis next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Edward Thomas Hughes, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement, reference being had to the figures on
the accompanying three Sheets of Drawings and to the letters and
explanations marked and written thereon (that is to say) :-
The object of this Invention is to provide means, by the employment
of which the building of any structures under water may be accom-
plished with the same facility and celerity as on dry land.
For ages past means have been sought for building under water. Our
ancestors, for works of little importance in rivers of small depth, followed
the general rule when constructing under water of finding the means of
temporally removing it in order that it should not obstruct regular
working in the construction of dams, banks, or piers, and this art has
made but little progress since, except that in latter times they have sunk
in deep water by means of compressed air pillars for supporting bridges,
a system of building which is slow and costly, and also impracticable
when constructing tunnels, quays, and similar works. The main feature
of this system consists in forming direct connection with the surface of
the water from below, the work being open to the sky, so that the
expense for the transportation of the earth and the materials required is
reduced considerably, while the work may be carried on with greater
rapidity and in any direction.
I construct the apparatus of horizontal compartments or sections,
each being of such dimensions as required for the special work to be
executed. A number of sections, one above the other, is employed,
according to the greater or lesser depth of the water. Each tier is
preferably composed of two or four semicircular or quadrantal sections,
according to the diameter of the apparatus and the means available for
their transportation to the place of building."
The shape of the apparatus conforms to that of the works projected,
being either round, square, elliptic, octagonal, or of other required form.
The circular construction is however preferred, as it offers in proportion
to the strength the greatest resistance to the pressure of the water, and
exposes a smaller surface to the current, wind, and other obstacle.
The interior of the apparatus is divided into concentric compartments,
which communicate vertically through the sections, and are to be used

page_text: mainly as storage for the ballast, the building material, and in the upper
tier as rooms for the workmen employed.
The pumping engines are placed in the lower parts of the apparatus,
and suitable supporting frames and tracks for the hoisting machines aro
stretched across the top part of the apparatus.
The sections which form the tiers of the apparatus are of suitable
size to be readily conveyed from place to place. The apparatus, if built
as a whole, would be too bulky and unwieldy for handling, as the same
could not be launched like a vessel, while cach section may be readily
transported by being taken up by boats coupled together for that
purpose.
The division into tiers admits the use of the apparatus for structures
of different heights, the size and strength of the apparatus being com-
puted previously to the commencement of the work and in conformity
with the magnitude of the same.
C
A single tunnel requires a lighter and smaller apparatus than a double
one, while the depth and force of the current of the water in which the
work is to be performed has to be brought into computation, and also
unforeseen contingencies, as floods or the like, which may occur during
the progress of the work.
The sections are conveyed from the wharf, by means of transports,
for which two boats connected by a suitable bridge-like structure may
be used, the width from boat to boat being somewhat greater than the
outer diameter of the apparatus, so that the sections may be suspended
from the bridged part and conveyed by the boats to the point of desti-
nation.
When the first tier is formed by the connection of its sections the
same is weighted until nearly submerged, the next tier being then placed
and attached thereon, which is continued until the first reaches tho
bottom and becomes firmly seated thereon.
The wharf for shipping the material and the sections should be con-
structed with slips at both sides for the entrance of the boats in such
manner that the bridged part thereof may have a position vertically
above the sections on the wharf.
Immediately after the completion of the sections the preliminaries for
placing the same on the bed of the river are made. If the bed is not

page_text: level enough for the apparatus it must be graded by suitable dredging
machines. The apparatus is then sunk in the manner described, it being
charged with ballast and material to a sufficient degree. The valves of
the water compartments are next opened and the same filled up, so that
by the increased weight of the apparatus the firm position of the same
The valves are then closed, and for further security a
double series of piles are driven around the exterior circumference of
the whole apparatus. The admission of water to the interior compart-
ment may however be postponed until the submerging is fully
accomplished by the weight of the ballast and the building materials.
is obtained.
After the sections have been securely seated on the river bottom the
water in the part enclosed by the apparatus is pumped out by the
engines, and piles are driven in around the interior circumference. The
supporting frames, tracks, and hoisting machines are now placed in
position so that the excavation may be commenced as soon as the bottom
is laid dry. When the earth is removed to the required depth, width,
and length for the tunnel the masonry or cement construction of the
same is then completed.
The building stones are prepared on land or the cement blocks cast in
suitable moulds to be transhipped to the apparatus.
After a section of the tunnel is finished the extreme end of the same
is closed by a temporary partition of strong vertical piles or beams which
are driven into the ground. The tunnel section is then covered up with
a part of the excavated earth which has been stored for this purpose in
some of the compartments of the apparatus until it is on a level with
the surrounding river bed. The valves of the water tanks are then
opened and water admitted to the interior space of the apparatus. The
valves are then closed, and the water is pumped out completely from
the water compartments and the piles withdrawn, thus allowing the
apparatus to float, the whole operation only requiring a few hours of
time.
As soon as the apparatus floats, say a foot or more above the river bed,
it is guided by means of capstans, anchors, and cords in the direction of
the tunnel axis until stopped by the projecting end beams of the com-
pleted section. The apparatus is again lowered by admitting water to
the tanks, and the next section completed in the manner described.

page_text: Whenever the river bed, as is most usually the case, is composed of
earth and sand it is readily levelled by means of dredges, but when it is
formed of projecting rocks of unequal size the bed must be brought to a
level by means of double sacks of some strong fabric, which are filled
with sand and stuffed in the outer part with moss. These sacks are
placed on the uneven surface until a level artificial base for the apparatus
is produced. The exterior piles are driven down to the rocks, the interior
piles being dispensed with in this case. After a section is finished the
sacks are taken up by means of the hoisting machines and again applied
for the same purpose.
If desired the apparatus can be modified so that instead of every
section being divided by a floor and by reservoirs or water tanks, they
can make use of iron and wooden beams to replace the floors, which aro
fastened together at equal distances to strengthen them and give greater
power of resistance. Also the reservoirs of water and the material
serving for ballast can in case of need be deposited together in the
compartment which forms the cylinder of the apparatus. Also the
draining machine can be fixed in the upper part of the apparatus, so
that in this manner the interior forms only one compartment which, or
in the inside, is crossed at equal distance by beams and iron bars, which
keep the outer and inner sides together.
The apparatus and mode of employing the same will be readily under-
stood from the foregoing description and the explanations and letters of
refrences on the accompanying three Sheets of Drawings.
Having now described the nature and particulars of the said Inven-
tion, I claim the improved apparatus for facilitating the construction of
submarine tunnels and other works below water, substantially as herein
described and shown on the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Thomas Hughes, have here-
unto set my hand and scal, this Twenty-seventh day of February,
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.