IMPROVEMENTS IN SIGNAL LANTERNS SUITABLE FOR BEING USED IN OPEN BOATS."
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Price, of 84, High Street, Southampton,
Wholesale Ship Chandler, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SIGNAL
LANTERNS SUITABLE FOR BEING USED IN OPEN BOATS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Price at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 6th February
1863.
I, JOHN PRICE, of 84, High Street, Southampton, Wholesale Ship Chandler,
do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SIGNAL
LANTERNS SUITABLE FOR BEING USED IN OPEN BOATS," to be as follows:-
According to the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act open boats under
way will shortly be required to shew a red light on the left or port side of the
boat and a green light on the right or starboard side, and when at anchor
will be required to shew a bright light all round. Now a single lantern
constructed according to my Invention can be used for each of these purposes.
The lantern is by preference made three-sided, the upper half of each side is
glazed with white glass, so that when neither of the glasses is covered a white
light is shewn all round. Fitting freely within the lantern is a triangular
frame, the sides of which are parallel with the sides of the lantern. This
frame is of a depth equal to half the depth of the lantern, so that when this
frame is in its lowest position it does not cover any of the glazed portion of
the lantern. One side of the frame is glazed with red glass, and another with

page_text: green glass; the third side is provided on its inner face with a mirror, thus
when the frame is raised, one of the glasses of the lantern will be obscured by
the mirror, another will have a green glass behind it, and the third a red glass
behind it, so that a red light will be shewn on one side, and a green on the
other. The frame can be raised by a pin or small projecting handle, which is
screwed into the bottom edge of the mirror side of the frame; this pin or
handle passes out through a slot in the side of the lantern, which is parallel
with the mirror, and the frame when raised is retained in its highest position
by a sliding bolt, which is then slid under the pin or handle; this sliding bolt
also covers over the slot in the side of the lantern to prevent too great a draft
on the lamp. The side of the lantern which is parallel with the mirror is
provided with handles, so that the lantern when held out in front of any one
facing towards the bow of the boat will shew the proper light for each side.
The top of the lantern is made capable of turning back on a hinge, so that
when the pin or handle of the interior slide is removed by unscrewing, the
slide may be taken out at the top of the lantern, in order that the mirror and
glasses may be cleaned. The lamp is inserted into the lantern through a hole
in the bottom of the lantern, as is usual in signal lanterns.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Price in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th
August 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
PRICE, of 84, High Street, Southampton, Wholesale Ship Chandler, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Price, Her special licence that I, the said John Price,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
John Price, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time 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 Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "Im-
PROVEMENTS IN SIGNAL LANTERNS SUITABLE FOR BEING USED IN OPEN BOATS,"

page_text: upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Price, 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 months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Price, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
According to the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act open boats under
weigh will shortly be required to shew a red light on the left or port side of
the boat and a green light on the right or starboard side, and when at anchor
will be required to shew a bright light all round. Now a single lantern con-
structed according to my Invention can be used for each of these purposes.
The lantern is, by preference, made three-sided; the upper half of each side
is glazed with white glass, so that when neither of the glasses is covered a
white light is shewn all round. Fitting freely within the lantern is a
triangular frame, the sides of which are parallel with the sides of the lantern.
This frame is of a depth equal to half the depth of the lantern, so that when
this frame is in its lowest position it does not cover any of the glazed portion
of the lantern. One side of the frame is glazed with red glass, and another
with
green glass; the third side is provided on its inner face with a mirror,
thus when the frame is raised one of the glasses of the lantern will be
obscured by the mirror, another will have a green glass behind it, and the
third a red glass behind it, so that a red light will be shewn on one side, and
a green on the other. The frame can be raised by a pin or small projecting
handle, which is screwed into the bottom edge of the mirror side of the frame;
this pin or handle passes out through a slot in the side of the lantern, which
is parallel with the mirror, and the frame when raised is retained in its highest
position by a sliding bolt, which is then slid under the pin or handle; this
sliding bolt also covers over the slot in the side of the lantern, to prevent too
great a draft on the lamp. The side of the lantern which is parallel with the
mirror is provided with handles, so that the lantern when held out in front of
any one facing towards the bow of the boat, will shew the proper light for each
side. The top of the lantern is made capable of turning back on a hinge, so
that when the pin or handle, if the interior slide is removed by unscrewing
the slide, may be taken out at the top of the lantern, in order that the mirror

page_text: hole in the bottom of the lantern, as is usual in signal lanterns.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, I will proceed more
fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shows a front view of a ship signal lantern constructed according
to my Invention; Figure 2 is a back view thereof; Figure 3 is a vertical
section, and Figures 4 and 5 are horizontal sections, taken respectively at the
dotted lines (1), (1), and (2), (2), Figure 1.
a, a, a, is the frame of the lantern, which is, by preference, made with
three sides a, a, a³; the upper half of each of these sides is glazed with white
glass. Within the lantern is the frame b; this frame is glazed on one side
with red glass, on another with green glass, and on the third side the frame
is closed and not transparent; but it is preferred to have a mirror or reflector
on this side. The frame is capable of being moved up and down by the
small projecting handle c, which moves in a slot d formed in the side a³ of the
lantern, but the raising or lowering the frame may be by other convenient
means. The frame 6 is retained in a raised position by moving the sliding
bolte under the small projecting handle c, or the part may be otherwise
retained in position. When the frame d is in a raised position, and the
lantern is held by the handles f, f, a red light will be shewn on the left or
port side, and a green light on the right or starboard side, the light being
prevented from passing out of the third side. When the frame 6 is in its
lowest position a white light will be shewn all round the lantern. The sliding
bolt c also serves to cover the slot d when the frame b is in a raised position.
9 is the lamp, which is inserted into the lantern through a hole in the bottom
thereof, and is held securely therein by the small projections g', g', which in
introducing the lamp into its place pass through slots in the sides of the hole,
and then the lamp is fastened in its place by turning it partly round. The
top of the lantern is hinged to the upper part of the side a³, and h is a small
hook for securing it when closed. The sides a¹ and a² are provided with
metal slides i, i, to obscure the light when necessary.
Although I prefer to make lanterns according to my Invention each with
three sides, I do not confine myself to that form, as lanterns may be made
according to my Invention of a circular or other shape, and the manner of
putting the parts together may be varied.
I would state that I make no claim to any of the parts separately, and
I wish it to be understood that the peculiarity of my Invention consists in

page_text: combining the parts of a lantern in such manner that at one time (that is
when a boat is at anchor) the lantern may be capable of shewing a white or
bright light all round, and then for a time (that is, when the boat is in
motion,) the part of the lantern which is glazed all round with white glass
may be covered interiorly or exteriorly with a screen or screens consisting of
three parts or divisions, one part or division being opaque, one part or division
being composed of red glass, one part or division being composed of green
glass, so that the light in the lantern will be only thrown forwards through the
red and green screens, whilst the light will be stopped from being seen at the
third or back side of the lantern.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Price, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three..
JOHN PRICE. (L.B.)