Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 27th July, 1898
Complete Specification Left, 24th Apr., 1899-Accepted, 27th May, 1899
A communication from abroad by THE MASCHINENFABRIK OERLIKON, of Oerlikon,
Zurich, Switzerland, Engineers.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE, of 46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to shrapnel which, as compared with the shrapnel hereto-
fore employed, comprises various improvements which are adapted to considerably
increase its efficiency.
The accompanying drawings illustrate a shrapnel shell in longitudinal section,
showing, by way of example, one way of carrying out this invention.
This
The shrapnel S has a chamber bursting charge which is situated in the usual
manner below the so-called driving plate m in the charge chamber n.
bursting charge consists, according to this invention, of gun cotton powder, with the
object of producing as powerful an effect as possible with a relatively small volume,
these conditions being perfectly fulfilled by the said explosive. The charge
balls which are arranged in the usual manner above the driving plate around
the central part of the shrapnel are contained within a case which encloses them
laterally, and on the under side, said case consisting preferably of steel plate. The
balls may be loosely inserted in this case and the interstices be filled up by pouring
in colophonium, or they may be inserted in layers pressed together. This arrange-
ment of the charge balls within the case has the object of keeping them together
so that they may form a firmly connected whole whilst the shrapnel is intact.
By this arrangement, the friction in ejecting the charge balls is reduced and a
more powerful impulse is produced upon the mass of charge balls as a whole than
in ordinary shrapnel, in which balls are inserted directly and loosely between the
walls of the shrapnel.
In the driving plate there is formed, as usual, a charging hole in which, in the
case of this improved shrapnel there is inserted a closing pini with a relatively
narrow hole which widens upwardly. The upper edge of this pin is riveted over
in a suitable cavity at the lower end of the bursting tube r, which extends centrally
through the charge ball chamber and which contains powder charges a.
The pin through a hole in which the fire of the powder charge in the bursting
tube is led to the chamber charge, serves to contract the charging hole in the
driving plate, and, by this means, to increase the pressure on the explosion of the
chamber charge and consequently to produce an increase of velocity of the balls.
It is advisable to employ a fuse z of aluminium, and thus to make the fuse and
the head piece of the smallest possible weight, in order that the impulse of the

page_text: chamber charge shall be transmitted with the least possible diminution to the
charge of balls.
A communication from abroad by THE MASCHINENFABRIK OERLIKON, of Oerlikon,
Zurich, Switzerland, Engineers.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE, of 46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly. described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention consists of improvements having for object to increase considerably
the efficiency of shrapnel.
The drawing filed with my Provisional Specification is a longitudinal section of
an example of a shrapnel according to this invention.
The shrapnel S has a chamber bursting charge which is situated in the usual
manner, below the so-called driving plate m, in the charge chamber n. This
bursting charge consists, according to this invention, of gun-cotton powder, with
the object of producing as powerful an effect as possible with a relatively small
volume, these conditions being perfectly fulfilled by the said explosive. The
charge balls k, which are arranged in the usual manner above the driving plate
around the central part of the shrapnel, are contained in a case of suitable
material such as sheet steel, which encloses them laterally and on the under (or
rear) side but not on the upper (or forward) side. The balls may be loosely inserted
in this case and the interstices be filled up by pouring in colophon (rosin), or
they may be inserted in layers in each of which they are pressed together. The
object of placing the charge balls within the case is to keep them together so that
they may form a firmly connected whole whilst the shrapnel is intact. By this
arrangement, the friction in ejecting the charge balls is reduced and a more
powerful impulse is produced upon the mass of charge balls as a whole than
in ordinary shrapnel, in which the balls are inserted directly and loosely between
the walls of the shrapnel.
In the driving plate there is formed, as usual, a charging hole in which, in the
case of this improved shrapnel, there is inserted, after charging, a closing pin i
with a relatively narrow hole 1 which widens upwardly. By driving into it a
suitable taper rod passed down the bursting tube r, the upper edge of this pin is
expanded to fit a suitable conical and annular recess made in the lower end of
the tube r, which extends centrally through the charge-ball chamber and contains
powder charges a. The pin, through whose hole the fire of the powder charge in
the bursting tube is led to the chamber charge, serves to contract the charging hole
in the driving plate and thereby to increase the pressure on the explosion of the
chamber charge and consequently to produce an increase of velocity of the balls.
It is advisable to employ a fuze of aluminium, and thus to make the fuze z and
the head piece of the smallest possible weight, in order, that the impulse of the
chamber charge may be transmitted with the least possible diminution to the charge
of balls.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
1 claim is:
-¡
1. In a shrapnel having a chamber bursting charge, a closing pin inserted in
the charging hole of the driving plate, expanded to fit a recess made in the bursting
tube, and provided with a narrow bore by means of which the impulse of the
chamber bursting charge on the mass of charge balls will be increased.
2. Shrapnel in which the bursting chamber is filled with gun cotton powder
connected with the fuze by a bursting tube whose lower end enters the charging
hole in the driving plate (m) and has a narrow hole, and in which the charge balls
are contained in a case which encloses them laterally and on the under (or rear)
side but not on the upper (or forward) side.
3. The improved shrapnel constructed and arranged as hereinbefore described
with reference to and shown in the drawing filed with my Provisional Specification.
Dated this 24th day of April 1899
W. LLOYD WISE,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C.,
Chartered Patent Agent.