RAISING AND FLOATING SUBMERGED VESSELS OR OTHER SOLID BODIES
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Arthur Dillon, of No. 7, Lower Sherard Street,
in the City of Dublin, Ireland, Gentleman, for the Invention of "RAISING
AND FLOATING SUBMERGED VESSELS OR OTHER SOLID BODIES."
Sealed the 24th November 1876, and dated the 28th July 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Arthur Dillon at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 28th July 1876.
THOMAS ARTHUR DILLON, of No. 7, Lower Sherard Street, in the City of Dublin,
Ireland, Gentleman. "RAISING AND FLOATING SUBMERGED VESSELS OR OTHER
SOLID BODIES."
Having proved by experiment that any sunken ship or vessel or other solid body
can be induced to rise to the surface of the water if a canvas or other sufficiently
water-tight fabric, rigid or flexible, be attached to said vessel or object, and that
if air or gas be forced beneath the canvas or other sufficiently water-tight fabric, in
the manner described in my previous Patent, No. 3550, 13 October 1875, entitled
Raising and Floating Sunken Ships and other Vessels," and having dis-
covered a simpler and more effectual method of attaching the covering alluded to
to the subinerged object, whereby the labours of divers are more effectually dis-
pensed with, since the operation of covering the sunken ship, vessel, or other solid
body can be completed from the surface of the water.
"
I propose to adopt the following method and apparatus for encasing or enfolding
the submerged object, ship, vessel, or solid object, which I desire to raise and float
by injection of air or gas. This method can be varied in details. I construct
ribbed frame sufficiently large and sufficiently strong, composed of iron or other
rigid material, which may be dropped over the ship, vessel, or other object,
and made to close in below the said ship, vessel, or other object on the calliper
or tongs principle so as to firmly grasp the said ship, vessel, or other object. This
frame may consist of one or more pairs of callipers or tongs, and of any convenient
number of rods, wires, lathes, ropes, or such like aids, and the form of the frame or
cage may be varied indifferently so long as certain points herein-after described
are kept in view. First, that the frame shall open and close so that the callipers
or tongs having jaws at their extremities to grasp the ship beneath her bilge or
batteries will keep the flexible covering distended and strengthened and sufficiently
away from the masts, spars, or gear which may happen to be in or about the sunken
ship or vessul.

page_text: The callipers or tongs closing the lower jaws will seize the ship or object to
be raised. The air pumps, gas injectors, or other lifting powers, as described
in my previous Patent above inontioned, will then inflate the bag sail frame, so
as to cause the latter when fastened to a sunken and broken ship or vessel to form
in conjunction with the latter a diving bell arrangement.
The "
cage grippers" (so called for convenience), as described, may and as far
as possible should be made to suit the shape and size of the object to be raised.
A round object should have round biting jaws, a long object long biting jaws, and
80 on.
The canvas can be folded on the jaws before the frame is dropped, and fastened
to the sunken ship or object, or it may be folded in the inner and upper angle, or
over the top, and hauled down to jaws after latter have bitten or gripped, or it
may be folded on a noveable frame attached to lower jaws of calliper cage and
hauled up from below, and made to close above in any convenient manner, either
just under or immediately over the water.
It is obvious that the callipers can be attached seriatum to the ship and the bag
sail dropped outside of them, and that the lower edge of the said bag may be
hauled down by ropes and kept firmly attached to the calliper or tongs cage so
built up, thus the canvas covering (termed a "sail bag") may be bound to the cage
while the cage is bound to the ship.
The callipers may in certain cases be made hollow with a view of threading
ropes, chains, or flexible rods beneath the ship, as where the ship is much broken,
and that part of her bottom might possibly break loose in the lifting, or where the
callipers or tongs not being quite strong enough require to be supplemented. It is
obvious that there are various instances likely to arise wherein chains, ropes, or
rods being looped along the sides of the calliper jaws, a junction beneath the ship
of such chains, ropes, or rods can be effected by using snap catches at the extremi-
ties to be joined, since the pressing together of the callipers or tongs will force the
snap catches to grasp into each other.
I do not claim the use of callipers per se; I claim use of tongs, callipers, as
described, in conjunction with the sail bag herein-before described, and I claim the
hollow calliper and side linked callipers or tongs with or without the sail bag
above described, and I further describe and claim the following form as novel and
useful:-
Supposing a ship to be sunk in water where currents and storms prevail, I pro-
pose to put on the callipers or tongs as the rafters of a house are erected, one after
another, and to let down lengths of canvas sail between each pair, using ropes or
chains to haul same down, and 1 cause each of such lengths to run in grooves pre-
viously made in the said rafters, which rafters (meaning callipers or tongs) are to
be grooved, and the sail is to be made air tight, as well as one do by using
internal or external valve flats, as are well known to mechanics.
This process can be varied in accordance with cach case, as will be understood by
mechanical and scientific men.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Thomas Arthur Dillon in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 27th
January 1877.
THOMAS ARTHUR DILLON, of No. 7, Lower Sherrard Street, in the City of Dublin,
Ireland, Gentleman. "RAISING AND FLOATING SUBMERGED VESSELS OR OTHER
SOLID BODIES."
My said Invention has for its object the raising and floating of submerged vessels
or other solid bodies, and the manner in which I accomplish this object is as
follows:-
Having proved by experiment that any sunken ship or vessel or solid body can
be induced to rise to the surface of the water if a canvas or other sufficiently water-

page_text: tight fabric (rigid or flexible) be attached to said vessel or object, and that if air or
gas be forced beneath the canvas or other sufficiently water-tight fabric in the
manner described in my previous Letters Patent, No. 3550, dated 13th October
1875, and entitled "Raising and Floating Sunken Ships and other Vessels," and
5 having discovered a simpler and more effectual method of attaching and securing the
covering above alluded to to the submerged object, whereby the labours of divers
are more effectually dispensed with, since the operation of covering the sunken
ship or vessel or other solid object can be completed from the surface of the water.
1
propose to adopt the following method and apparatus for encasing and enfold-
() ing the submerged ship, vessel, or solid object which I desire to raise and float by
injection of air or gas. This method may be varied in details. I construct a ribbed
frane sufficiently large and sufficiently strong, composed of iron or other rigid material,
which may be dropped over the ship, vessel, or other sunken object, and made to
close in below the said ship, vessel, or other sunken object on the calliper or tongs
principle so as to firmly grasp the said ship, vessel, or other object. This frame
may consist of one or more pairs of callipers or tongs, and of any convenient number
of rods, wires, lathes, ropes, or such like aids, and the frame or cage may be varied
indifferently so long as certain points herein-after described are kept in view.
First that the frame shall open and close so that the callipers or tongs, having jaws
at their extremities to grasp the ship beneath her bilge or batteries will keep the
flexible covering distended and strongthened, and sutficiently away from the masts,
spars, or gear which may happen to be in or about the sunken ship or vessel.
The callipers or tongs closing the lower jaws those jaws will seize the submerged
ship or object to be raised.
The air pumps, gas injectors, or other lifting powers, as described in my previous
Letters Patent above referred to, will then inflate the bag sail frame so as to cause
the latter when fastened to a sunken and broken ship or vessel to formu in conjunction
with such submerged ship or vessel a diving bell arrangement.
The "
cage grippers," so called for convenience, as above described, may and
as far as possible should be made to suit the shape and size of the object to be
raised, a round object should have round biting jaws, an oblong object should have
oblong biting jaws, and so on.
The aforesaid canvas can be folded on the jaws before the frame is dropped and
fastened to the sunken ship or object, or it may be folded in the inner and upper
angle or over the top, and hauled down to jaws after the latter have bitten or
gripped, or it may be folded on a movable frame attached to the lower jaws of
the aforesaid calliper cage and hauled up from below and made to close above in
any convenient manner either just under or immediately over the water.
It is obvious that the callipers can be attached seriatum to the ship and the bag
sail dropped outside of them, and that the lower edge of the said bag may be
hauled down by ropes and kept firmly attached to the calliper or tongs frame or
cage so constructed that the canvas covering (termed a "sail bag"), may be bound
to said frame or cage, while said frame or cage is bound to the ship.
The callipers may in certain cases be inade hollow with a view to threading
ropes, chains, or flexible rods beneath the ship, as where said ship is much broken,
and that part of her bottom might possibly break loose in the process of lifting,
or where the callipers or tongs not being quite strong enough require to be supple-
mented. It is obvious that there are various instances likely to arise wherein
chains, ropes, or rods being looped along the sides of the calliper jaws a junction
beneath the ship of such chains, ropes, or rods can be effected by using snap catches
at the extremities to be joined, since the pressing together of the callipers or tongs
will force the snap catches to grasp into each other.
I do not claim the use of callipers per se, I claim the use of tongs, callipers, as
herein described, in conjunction with the hercin-before described sail bag, and I also
claim the hollow calliper and side linked callipers or tongs with or without the
sail bag above described, and I further claim the following method of raising sunken
ships and other objects as novel and useful :-

page_text: Supposing a ship to be sunk in water where currents and storms prevail, I pro-
pose to put on the callipers or tongs as the rafters are laid on to form the roof of a
house one after the other, and to let down lengths of canvas sail between each
pair, using ropes or chains to haul the same down, and I cause each of such lengths
to run in grooves previously made in the said rafters, which rafters (meaning
callipers or tongs) are to be grooved and the sail is to be made air-tight by using
internal and external valve flaps as are well known to mechanics.
The process can be varied in accordance with each case as will be readily under-
stood.
As it may be sometimes inconvenient to tighten the calliper or tongs' jaws below
the water by any power used above the surface of the water, because of the.length
of the arms of said tongs or callipers, and as it is desirable to use as short
arins as possible, I adopt the following plan for closing the jaws of such calliper
arms:-
A chain or rope of sufficient strength is run through "cringles," or pullies, or
loops attached to the lower extremities of the callipers or tongs. This chain being
hauled tight by suitable pulling force ahead and astern will draw in the jaws of
the callipers round the bottom of the submerged ship or other object as can be
easily perceived by practical men.
Another method is to attach chains or ropes to the upper ends of the callipers,
and to twist such chains or ropes in "Spanish windlass "fashion until they tighten
the jaws.
By a third method ropes or chains may be attached to the upper ends of the
callipers, which ropes and chains having been crossed can be drawn in opposite direc-
tions so as to tighten said callipers.
"
"
I will now describe a simple form of calliper which may be employed in some
cases for grasping the sunken ship or other object. Under the bow and under the
stern I propose to sweep or draw sufficiently heavy and strong beams or
frames of timber or combination of wood and iron (by preference shaped to fit the
bows and stern). The ropes or chains whereby these strong beams or frameworks
are drawn beneath the bows and stern are to be crossed and bound, so as to prevent
said beams or framework from leaving their berths. The sail is then to be hauled
down to the beams and chains just described and fastened thereto, when the gas
or air power is to be ingected after the manner described in my herein-before
referred to Letters l'atent. It will be evident that the sail need not touch the
ship, since being fastened to the beams and chains, as described, and the latter being
cramped to the ship, the displacement of the water from beneath the sail will be
sufficient to empty the ship if the said ship be broken in her bottom.
In case the ship is not broken a U or siphon tube of as large diameter as
possible must be dropped thus, one end (by preference the short end of the siphon)
into the ship, and the other or longer end over the side and between the sail and
the ship.
In some cases of carrying out my Invention I use by preference a double sail
bag shaped in order that such sail may be inflated, floated, and towed over the
wrecked ship or other object to be raised at high water, so that as the tide drops
the double sail will sink down and settle over and on the wreck and thus be more
easily fastened thereto. The double canvas here described should be by preference
formed into longitudinal spaces, thereby forming a series of independent air com-
partments so that any number of these compartments, each fitted with suitable
valves or cocks, may be inflated or emptied independently of each other, and
consequently rendering the dropping of the sail more convenient and adjustable to
suit the various circumstances under which the same may be used.
In cases where a boisterious sea, rapid tides, or the position of the ship with
reference to the shore or otherwise would prevent free development of the methorls
herein-before described for laying down either double or single sails, I place a raft
or ship' head and stern of the sunken ship and stretch two or more strong tele-
graph iron wires, ropes, or ordinary chains or ropes, but preferably iron wire parallel

page_text: with the sides of the wreck, I put a series of rings on these side supports, and
having hooked the sail to said rings I haul out said sail until it lies evenly over
the wreck or sunken ship, when I lower the sail by hauling the corners and sides
thereof down to the above described framework (head and stern).
Having now fully described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same may be carried into operation, I would have it
understood that what I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as
the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent
is-
First. The method, substantially as herein-before described and set forth, and
the application of such methods to the raising and floating of submerged ships and
other bodies.
Secondly. The use of the double sail as herein described, substantially in the manner
and for the purpose herein-before described and set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Arthur Dillon, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
Witness,
J. A. FAHIE,
Nassau Street,
Dublin.
THOMAS ARTHUR DILLON. (L.S.)