Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Quick Firing Guns.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Nov., 1890
Complete Specification. Left, 1st Aug., 1891-Accepted, 3rd Oct., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Quick Firing Guns.
1, ANDREW NOBLE, a Companion of the Bath, late Captain in the Royal'
Artillery, of Elswick Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Manufacturing Engineer, do
hereby declare as follows:-
In mountings for quick firing guns the gun is carried within a cradle in which
it can recoil and the cradle is provided with trunnions which are received in bearings
in a block or frame which can swivel around a vertical post or pivot that stands up
from a base plate.
I provide a strong shield preferably of U form around the front and sides of the
mounting. The shield is carried by a ring secured to it near the bottom, the ring
rests on balls or rollers carried on the top of a strong pedestal and is kept con-
centric with the vertical pivot of the mounting.
The centre of gravity of the shield is arranged to be over the pivot to reduce
the friction to a minimum.
The gun is made to extend through a port hole formed through the front of the
shield and the shield is arranged to be turned with the mounting but is not rigidly
attached to it.
Preferably arms extending from the vertically swivelling block of the mounting
are made to lie between stops fixed to the inside of the shield. The arms may be
made flexible or of thin plate so that if the shield be struck the mounting will not
be injured.
For controlling the elevating and training of the gun I use an arm extending
rearwards from the vertically swivelling block of the mounting and carrying at
its end a shoulder piece for the man who is firing the gun to rest against. Freferably
the arm is made tubular and through the tube is carried a shaft upon one end of
which is a worm gearing with a toothed are on the cradle. Near the other end
the arm carries a hand wheel which can be turned by the man who is resting
against the shoulder piece and which through mitre wheels turns the shaft and
gives the required elevation or depression to the gun.
To control the training I use a second shaft also carried by the arm-this second
shaft carries at one end a worm to gear with a worm wheel which is attached to
the fixed pivot plate concentrically with the pivot and at its other end near to the
shoulder piece has a hand wheel upon it by which it can be turned the worm can
be readily disengaged by drawing the shaft to the rear through the worm until its
end is clear of the front plate of a bracket within which the worm is carried-the
worm and spindle can then be moved sidewise away from the worm wheel and the
worm so put out of gear the shaft can then be allowed to move forward again so
that its front end may enter another hole in the front plate of the bracket and
in this way the worm will be held out of gear.
A spring is provided at the rear end of the worm shaft to keep it up in place.
When the worm is disengaged the mounting can be trained by means of the
shoulder piece alone without the gear.
For controlling the recoil and running out of the gun I preferably secure the
gun by its trunnions to slide blocks which can slide along the sides of the
cradle the slide blocks I attach to the piston rods of hydraulic cylinders which
are carried by the cradle in front of the blocks in a similar manner to that
described in the Specification of a former Patent granted to me No. 12730 in the
year 1885 but the cylinders containing the springs for running out the gun I now

page_text: place underneath the cradle in place of directly in rear of the trunnions as is
described in that Specification.
Dated this 1+1 L
N 1000
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Quick Firing Guns.
I, ANDREW NOBLE, a Companion of the Bath, late Captain in the Royal
Artillery, of Elswick Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Manufacturing 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:-
In mountings for quick firing guns the gun is carried within a cradle in which
it can recoil and the cradle is provided with trunnions which are received in
bearings in a block or frame which can swivel around a vertical post or pivot
that stands up from a base plate.
I provide a strong shield preferably of U form around the front and sides of the
mounting.
The shield is carried by a ring secured to it near the bottom--the ring rests on
balls or rollers carried on the top of a strong pedestal and is kept concentric with
the vertical pivot of the mounting. The centre of gravity of the shield is arranged
to be over the pivot to reduce the friction to a minimum.
The gun is made to extend through a port hole formed through the front of
the shield and the shield is arranged to be turned with the mounting but is not
rigidly attached to it.
Preferably arms extending from the vertically swivelling block of the mounting
are made to lie between stops fixed to the inside of the shield. The arms may be
made flexible or of thin plate so that if the shield be struck the mounting will
not be injured.
For controlling the elevating and training of the gun I use an arm extending
rearwards from the vertically swivelling block of the mounting and carrying at its
end a shoulder piece for the man who is firing the gun to rest against. Preferably
the arm is made tubular and through the tube is carried a shaft upon one end of
which is a worm gearing with a toothed arc on the cradle. Near the other end
the. arm carries a hand wheel which can be turned by the man who is resting
against the shoulder piece and which through mitre wheels turns the shaft and
gives the required elevation or depression to the gun.
To control the training I use a second shaft also carried by the arm-this second
shaft carries at one end a worm to gear with a worm wheel which is attached to
the fixed pivot plate concentrically with the pivot and at its other end near to the
shoulder piece has a hand wheel upon it by which it can be turned-the worm can
be readily disengaged by drawing the shaft to the rear through the worm until
its end is clear of the front plate of a bracket within which the worm is carried
the worm and spindle can then be moved sidewise away from the worm wheel and
the worm so put out of gear, the shaft can then be allowed to move forward again
so that its front end may enter another hole in the front plate of the bracket and
in this way the worm will be held out of gear.
A spring is provided at the rear end of the worm shaft to keep it up in place.
When the worm is disengaged the mounting can be trained by means of the
shoulder piece alone without the gear.
For controlling the recoil and running out of the gun I preferably secure the
gun by its trunnions to slide blocks which can slide along the sides of the cradle-
the slide blocks I attach to the piston rods of hydraulic cylinders which are carried

page_text: by the cradle in front of the blocks in a similar manner to that described in the
Specification of a former Patent granted to me No. 12730 in the year 1885 but the
cylinders containing the springs for running out the gun I now place underneath
the cradle in place of directly in rear of the trunnions as is described in that
Specification.
In order that my said invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
effect I will proceed to describe the drawings hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure is an elevation partly in section of the gun with its carriage and
mounting arranged in accordance with my invention.
Figure 2 is a plan of the same also partly in section.
Figure 3 is a section on the line 3. 3 in Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a section on the line 4. 4 in Figures 2 and 3.
A is the gun and B is the cradle in which it is carried.
The cradle has trunnions B₁ which are held in bearings in the swivelling
frame C. D is the centre post and D' the base plate. E is the armour plate
shield surrounding the gun and mounting on the front side. The shield is roofed
over. E' is a ring fixed to the shield and bearing upon spheres contained in a
guide track on the top of the pedestal F.
Connection between the gun mounting and the shield is made by means of the
C² is the
comparatively flexible arms C' which ensure simultaneous movement.
arm on the frame C which carries the shoulder piece used in training the gun; in
this arm an axis is mounted and on it is the worm G. H is the hand wheel
which by the aid of bevilled gear serves to rotate the axis of the worm G. B² is
the toothed are on the cradle into which the worm G gears.
is another worn,
its axis has a hand wheel K upon it and is carried by the arm C². The worm
gears with a ring of teeth D' on the post D. The gun is slowly trained by turning
the hand wheel K but when rapid movement is required the hand wheel and axis
are drawn rearward compressing the spring L and the fore end of the axis then
escapes from its bearing at C³. A' are slide blocks which receive the trunnions of
the gun. Bare piston rods attached to the front of the slide blocks and B' are
the hydraulic cylinders on the cradle in which the pistons work. M M are springs
which after the recoil bring the gun forward again, these springs are contained in
the cylinders B beneath the cylinders B
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 quick firing gun mounting substantially as described.
2. The combination consisting of the gun and gun mounting supported together
with the shield E upon a pedestal F and connected by the comparatively flexible
arms C so that they turn simultaneously about the pivot.
3. The combination consisting of the gun and gun mounting arranged to rotate
about a pivot; the shield supported on rollers and also arranged to travel around
the pivot and a comparatively flexible connection between the gun mounting and
the shield.
4. A gun mounting capable of being trained around a pivot by means of an arm
and shoulder piece and having on the said arm an axis carrying a worm and rotated
by means of a hand wheel, such worm gearing with teeth on a central pivot or
post and being capable of being disengaged by the longitudinal movement of the
axis.
5. The combination in a gun mounting of the blocks A¹ supporting the gun and
sliding upon the cradle B; the piston rods B3 attached at the front of the slide
blocks and provided with pistons working in hydraulic cylinders B' upon the

page_text: cradle and the springs M also in front of the slide blocks but beneath the
cylinders B and operating through rods connected with the slide blocks to draw
them forward and to run the gun out after recoil.
ו'.
A