IMPROVED MARINE LIFE-PRESERVING APPARATUS
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Hyde, of Spring Hill, Ohio, in the United
States of America, but now of 17, Cornhill, in the City of London, for
the Invention of "IMPROVED MARINE LIFE-PRESERVING APPARATUS."
Sealed the 17th August 1855, and dated the 6th March 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Hyde at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 6th
March 1855.
I, WILLIAM HYDE, of Spring Hill, Ohio, in the United States of America,
but now of 17, Cornhill, in the City of London, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVED MARINE LIFE-PRESERVING APPARATUS" to
be as follows:-
The Invention consists in the construction of a life-preserving apparatus,
sufficiently buoyant to float as many persons as it will contain, of parts so made
that when not required for life-preserving purposes, they may be used as
packing cases, trunks, lockers, arm chests, or other articles of ship furniture.
The apparatus consists of a central case, of sufficient depth to give the
float a hold upon the water, & of stem & stern & side cases, of proper size
& form. These cases are made water-tight, and so constructed & fitted that
they may readily be put together in case of need to form the life-preserving
apparatus, and when separate be capable of being used as furniture; or if

page_text: made on a small scale, constituting a set of trunks & travelling boxes for
use by passengers.
The parts of my apparatus when separate would not be an encumbrance
to the ship. They may be joined, when required for use, by bolts, with
india-rubber washers, the number, size, & position of such bolts & washers
depending on the size & form of the apparatus. Bulwarks may be provided,
if desired; and some of the cases in each set should be supplied with water
& provisions, as well as with a compass, oars, & other requisites.
The details of my Invention will be fully described in my final Specification,
and illustrated by Drawings.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Hyde in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
5th September 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HYDE, of Spring Hill, Ohio, in the United States of America, but now of
17, Cornhill, in the City of. London,, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the seventeenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Hyde, Her special licence that I, the said William Hyde, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Hyde, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter 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 "IMPROVED MARINE LIFE-
PRESERVING APPARATUS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
William Hyde, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
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 William Hyde, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following

page_text: statement, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, in
which Figure 1 is a side view of my improved apparatus; Figure 2 is a side
view of an oar, with signal attached; Figure 3 is a top view of the apparatus ;
Figure 4 is a top view of one of the side cases; Figure 5 is a top view of the
bow case; Figure 6 is a section of one of the cases, showing compartments
for storing provisions, water, &c.; Figure 7 is a top view of case C, with its lid
open. The same parts are designated by the same letters in all the Figures.
The nature of my Invention consists in the construction of a life-preserving
apparatus, sufficiently buoyant to float as many persons as it will contain, its
component parts being so made and put together that when not required for
life-preserving purposes they inay be used as packing cases, trunks, lockers,
arm chests, or other articles of ship furniture.
In the Drawings A is the central chest or case, made of sufficient depth to
give the apparatus a hold upon the water. B and C are the end cases, and
D'and E, the side cases: . These cases-are-made water-tight, and have corre-
sponding bolt holes or tubes for the reception of the bolts, by which they are
held together when the apparatus is ready for use. One of the cases (see
Figure 6) may have a water tank within it, and some of the lockers be kept
filled with provisions, so that when brought into use the apparatus will be
supplied with a store of food and water for its passengers.
The several cases are connected by transverse and vertical bolts a, a, a, a,
&c., having india-rubber washers under their heads and nuts, the number and
position of these bolts depending on the size of the apparatus, and the number
of cases and other parts of which it is to be composed. The bolts may be
carried in one of the side cases D or E when not required for use. The
apparatus may, if desired, be strengthened by the bulwark pieces F, G, H,
attached to it by the same bolts that hold the parts together.
Figures 1 and 3 in the Drawings represent my apparatus with bulwarks
complete; I being the pump of the water tank; J, the mast; and K and L,
additional bands and braces used to bind the whole structure together; M, M,
are syphons, to keep the chests free from water. The mast J may be made of
an oar, and have attached to its upper end a signal N (Figure 2) in the
shape of a triangular prism with slightly concave sides. The sides of this
signal I cover with tinsel or other polished substance, in order to reflect the
rays of the sun in various directions, for the purpose of attracting the attention
of vessels at a distance. The greater depth of the central portion of the
apparatus will prevent its being upset, while the buoyancy of its component
parts will keep it from sinking. One case of each set may be furnished
with a compass and other instruments useful in navigation.

page_text: Having now described my Invention, I do not claim rafts constructed of
pontoons or other floats; nor do I claim the construction of many-chambered
life boats; I claim only the peculiar construction of trunks, packing cases,
and ship furniture in sets, as described, so shaped, fitted, and furnished with
bolts and fastenings as that each set may at will be converted into a life-
preserving apparatus substantially in the manner herein-before set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Hyde, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of September, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
NOURSE, & Co,
67, Gracechurch Street,
Agents.
WILLIAM HYDE. (L.S.)