Improvements in Diving Apparatus and in Apparatus for Working in Irrespirable Gases.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Nov., 1899-Accepted, 23rd Dec., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Diving Apparatus and in Apparatus for Working in
Irrespirable Gases.
I, WILLIAM AUGUSTUS GORMAN, trading as Siebe, Gorman & Co., of 187, West-
minster Bridge Road, in the County of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
My invention relates to a valve for releasing the air from the interior of a
diver's dress or the like, and which can be regulated at will by the user according
to his requirements as regards air supply.
To enable the invention to be fully understood I will describe it by reference
to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 shows a side view of my valve:
Figure 2 is a vertical section of the same:
Figure 3 is an underside view:
Figure 4 is a partial side view at right angles to Figure 1 and is intended
chiefly to illustrate the guard piece of the apparatus; and
Figure 5 shows a diver's helmet in outline only with one of my valves fitted
thereto.
a
My valve comprises the valve proper A working in and upon a seating B,
the upper spindle A¹ of the valve A being inside a spiral spring C which bears
upon the top of the valve A and is located inside a screwed plug 1 having
milled head. The screwed plug D works in the cover E which is screwed on
to the seating or body of the apparatus B and which is further secured by means
of the guard piece. This guard piece consists of a ring F having two side
strips which are screwed with small countersunk screws G G to the body of
the apparatus B. The screwed plug D is prevented from being removed by
means of the ring H which is soldered or brazed in position after the said
screwed plug has been passed through the cover E. When it is desired to regu-
late the pressure at which the air is to be allowed to escape the screwed plug 1)
is turned one way or the other, so as to compress the spring C or allow it to
expand and thus to provide more or less resistance to the air pressure. The
escaping air finds an outlet into the water, after passing the valve, through a
series of small holes J J J in the cover E.
Figure 5 shews the valve fitted to a diver's helmet but it can be with equal
facility fitted to the breast-plate or to both helmet and breast-plate.
With this arrangement the diver can regulate valves constructed upon this
principle at his discretion and whenever he deems it desirable, so that no regu-
lation of the valves is necessary before the diver is submerged, as has hitherto
been the case.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. A valve A having a plug or cap D adapted to be moved nearer to or farther

page_text: away from the valve, so as to compress a spring C or allow the same to expand
and in this manner to enable the valve to offer greater or less resistance to air
pressure upon its underside, substantially as herein before described and illus-
trated.
2. Diving or like apparatus or dress having fitted to the breast-plate or helmet
one or more valves consisting of the parts constructed, arranged and operating,
substantially as herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
1
111
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.