IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THICK PLATES A WANAM TRON FOR Å RHOND PLATES AND OTHER PURPOSES."
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Edward McConnell, of Dean's Yard, in the
City of Westminster, Civil Engineer, and George Hinton Bovill, of
Durnsford Lodge, Wandsworth, in the County of Surrey, Civil Engineer,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THICK PLATES
A WANAM TRON FOR Å RHOND PLATES AND OTHER PURPOSES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Edward McConnell
and George Hinton Bovill at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 18th May 1863.
We, JAMES EDWARD MCCONNELL, of Dean's Yard, in the City of West-
minster, Civil Engineer, and GEORGE HINTON BOVILL, of Durnsford Lodge,
near Wandsworth, in the County of Surrey, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
THICK PLATES OF WROUGHT IRON FOR ARMOUR PLATES AND OTHER PURPOSES," to be
as follows:-
This Invention relates to the manufacture of thick plates of wrought iron,
such as armour plates, intended for the protection of ships or land forts, or for
other purposes, and consists, firstly, in forming the rough slab or block from
which the armour plate is to be rolled by piling one above the other a number

page_text: of angular plates of a length corresponding to the desired length of slab, and
of a width equal to the thickness of such slab, the number of these plates
varying according to the width of the slab to be formed. In piling these
angular plates, (which are first shaped by rolling) the apices of the angles, are
placed upwards, and fit one inside the other, so that when the pile is put into
the furnace on its edge, the several junction surfaces will be inclined down-
wards from the centre of the slab towards its two sides or faces, and when a
partial fusion of the several plates takes place the sicilicon or other impurities
which militate against the production of a perfect weld will escape more
readily from between the joints by reason of their inclination, at the same time
no dirt or foreign matter can work in between the layers of the pile whilst in
the furnace.
The second part of our Invention relates to an improved mode of heating
the large mass of iron composing the piles or slabs for armour plates, and for
this purpose the bars, whether angular as herein-before mentioned, or flat or
of other form, are to be piled one upon another till their combined number
makes the width of the slab required, the thickness of the slab being the width
of the bars forming the pile; thus if it be desired to pile for a slab 6 feet long
by 4 feet wide, and 12 inches thick, the bars would be, if flat and of an inch
thick, 48 in number, 6 feet by 12 inches. The pile is then to be placed in the
furnace on its edge; the heat is directed against both sides of the pile, and its
intensity regulated as required as the iron gets to a welding heat, the weight
of the bars one upon another will materially aid the process of welding the
pile in the furnace. The furnace or muffle in which the slab is heated is
made narrow and to suit the upright position of the slab. A number of fire
holes are made in the sides, through which the flame is directed either by a
blast of air or chimney draught against each side of the slab. The fire holes
are provided with regulating dampers, so that the action of the fire upon all
parts of the plate can be regulated, and the whole pile brought to a welding
heat at the same moment. The furnace or muffle is arched, so as to produce
a reverberatory action of the flame upon the mass of metal. So soon as the
slab has attained the proper temperature for rolling, it is drawn out of the
furnace or muffle upon a suitable carriage or traversing frame, and is imme-
diately subjected to the action of a powerful steam hammer or squeezer, which
serves to compress and consolidate together the several bars or plates composing
the slab. After being thus compressed, the slab is run forward (still in its
vertical position, that is to say, resting upon one of its edges) to a rolling mill
constructed with the rolls placed vertically instead of horizontally, where it
receives the requisite rolling and shaping to complete the armour plate. This

page_text: rolling mill is to be double-acting, to roll the plates backwards and forwards,
and is composed of three vertical rolls, placed side by side in a straight line, or
two pairs of vertical rolls, working in opposite directions with the three-roll
arrangement. The two outer rolls rotate continuously in one and the same
direction, whilst the centre roll is rotated continuously in a contrary direction.
The slab is first passed between the rolls 1 and 2, and is received upon a
transverse traverser or carriage, which conveys it laterally opposite to the
space between the rolls 2 and 3, which draw the slab back again in a contrary
direction to the first rolling; a second traverse returns the slab to the first-
mentioned pair of rolls 1 and 2, where it receives a third rolling, and so on,
the slab passing to and fro between the vertical rolls without necessitating the
reversing of the gearing, as is the case in ordinary heavy rolling mills. When
two pairs of vertical rolls are employed instead of the set of three rolls, each
pair is driven in a different direction, so that the plate under the process or
rolling is first past through one pair, and back through the other pair, as
previously described when employing three rolls. Horizontal rolls are added
to the rolling mill, which act upon the edges of the slab at the same time
that the vertical rolls are acting on the face, by which means the edges of the
finished plate are perfectly true and solid. If the edges of the plates require
to be grooved, the edging rollers can be turned to give the necessary form of
groove, or a projection can be rolled on one edge to correspond to a groove on
the other, so that the plates, when placed together, may interlock. When
armour plates are required with flanged edges, the top and bottom bars
forming the pile or slab are made of increased width and thickness in propor-
tion to the size of flanges required. The rolls are grooved for rolling the
flanged plates, so that the projecting bars or flanges of the slab are acted upon
equally with the body of the plate in the process of rolling, and the edges and
flanges of the plate come out true from the rolls. For rolling plain plates
without flanges the rolls may be grooved, so as to prevent the lateral spreading
of the plate in the process of rolling, and by which a plate with parallel edges
will be produced.
In order to protect the workmen from the intense heat of the incandescent
mass of metal, and from the sparks or particles of molten metal emitted there-
from whilst on its way from the furnace to the rolls, and whilst undergoing
the hammering and squeezing operation, shields and protecting plates are
fixed on each side of the traversing frame in which the slab is conveyed to the
rolling mill.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Edward McConnell and George Hinton Bovill in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 18th November 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
EDWARD MCCONNELL, of Dean's Yard, in the City of Westminster, Civil
Engineer, and GEORGE HINTON BOVILL, of Darnsford Lodge, Wandsworth, in
the County of Surrey, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of May, 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 us
the said James Edward McConnell and George Hinton Bovill, Her special
license that we, the said James Edward M'Connell and George Hinton Bovill,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
James Edward M'Connell and George Hinton Bovill, our exccutors, adminis-
trators, or 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
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THICK PLATES OF WROUGHT IRON FOR
ARMOUR PLATES AND OTHER PURPOSES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
we, the said James Edward McConnell and George Hinton Bovill, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our hand and
seal, or under the hand and seal of one of us, 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 we, the said James Edward McConnell and George
Hinton Bovill, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the
accompanying Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that
is to say :-
Our said Invention relates to the manufacture of thick plates of wrought
iron, such as armour plates, intended for the protection of ships or land forts,
or for other purposes, and consists, firstly, in forming the rough slab or block
from which the armour plate is to be rolled by piling one above the other a

page_text: number of angular plates of a length suitable for the desired length of slab,
and of a width equal to the thickness of such slab, the number of these plates
placed one upon another varying according to the width of the slab to be
formed.
Figure 1 of the annexed Sheet of Diawings represents a transverse section
of one of these plates, a complete pile of which is shewn in end and side views
inside the heating furnace at Figures 2 and 3 respectively. In piling these
angular plates (which are first shaped by rolling) the apices of the angles aro
placed upwards, as shewn in Figure 2, and fit one inside the other, so that
when the pile is put into the furnace on its edge the several junction surfaces
will be inclined downwards from the centre of the slab towards its two sides
or faces.
We do not confine ourselves to the particular form shewn of the angled
bars forming the pile, as the same may be varied without departing from the
principle of our Invention.
When a partial fusion of the several plates takes place the sicilicon or other
impurities which militato against the production of a perfect weld will escape
more readily from between the joints by reason of their inclination, at the
same time no dirt or foreign matter can work in between the layers of the
pile whilst in the furnace.
The second part of our Invention relates to an improved mode of heating
the large mass of iron composing the piles or slabs for armour plates, and for
this purpose the bars, whether angular as herein-before mentioned, or flat, or
of other form, are to be piled one upon another till their combined number
makes the width of the slab required, the thickness of the slab being the width
of the bars forming the pile; thus, if it be desired to pile for a slab six feet
long by four feet wide and twelve inches thick, the bars would be, if flat and
of an inch thick, forty-eight in number, and six feet in length, by twelve
inches in breadth. The pile is then to be placed in the furnace or heating
chamber (of which Figures 2 and 3 represent respectively a transverse and
longitudinal section) on its edge; the heat is directed against both sides of
the pile A, and its intensity is regulated as required as the iron gets to a
welding heat. The weight of the several bars of the pile one upon another
will materially aid the process of welding the pile in the furnace. The
; furnace or muffle B, in which the slab A is heated, is made narrow and to suit
the upright position of the slab. A number of fire holes C, C, C, are made in
the sides, through which the flame is directed either by a blast of air or
chimney draught against each side of the slab. The fire holes are provided
with regulating dampers (not shown in the Drawings), so that the action of

page_text: the fire upon all parts of the plate can be regulated, and the whole pile
brought to a welding heat at the same moment. The furnace or muffle is
arched, so as to produce a reverberatory action of the flame upon the mass of
metal, as shewn by the arrows in Figure 2. D, D, D, are the fire-places,
disposed on each side of the muffle or heating chamber B; E, E, are apertures
formed in the arched top of the muffle; these apertures communicating with
the flues or passages F leading direct to the chimney G. So soon as the slab
has attained the proper temperature for rolling, it is drawn out of the furnace
or muffle upon any suitable carriage or traversing frame, and is immediately
subjected to the action of a powerful steam hammer or squeezer, which serves
to compress and consolidate together the several bars or plates composing the
slab. After being thus compressed, the slab is run forward (whilst still in its
vertical position, that is to say, resting upon one of its edges) to a rolling mill
constructed with the rolls placed vertically instead of horizontally, where it
receives the requisite rolling and shaping to complete the armour plate.
This rolling mill is to be double-acting, so as to roll the plates backwards and
forwards, and is composed of three vertical rollers, placed side by side in a
straight line, or two pairs of vertical rolls, each pair working in opposite
directions. The two outer rolls (when three rolls are employed) rotate
continuously in one and the same direction, whilst the centre roll is rotated
continuously in a contrary direction, as shewn in the diagram plan, Figure 4,
in which the straight arrows indicate the passage or path of the slab to and fro
between the rolls. The slab is first passed between the rolls 1 and 2, and is
received upon a transverse traverser or carriage, which conveys it laterally
opposite to the space between the rolls 2 and 3, which draw the slab back
again in a contrary direction to the first rolls, a second traverse returns the
slab to the first-mentioned pair of rolls 1 and 2, where it receives a third
rolling, and so on, the slab passing to and fro between the vertical rolls without
necessitating the reversing of the gearing, as is the case in ordinary heavy
rolling mills. When two pairs of vertical rolls are employed instead of the
set of three rolls, each pair is driven in a different direction, so that the plate
under the process of rolling is first passed through one pair and back through
the other pair, as previously described when employing three rolls. Horizontal
rolls are added to the rolling mill, which act upon the edges of the slab at the
same time that the vertical rolls are acting on the face, by which means the
edges of the finished plate are perfectly true and solid. If the edges of the
plates require to be grooved, the edging rollers can be shaped to give the
necessary form of groove, or a projection can be rolled on one edge to corre-
spond to a groove on the other, so that the plates when placed together may

page_text: interlock. We may here observe, however, that we make no claim to the use
of rolling mills containing horizontal and vertical rolls, excepting where such
rolling mills are employed for rolling slabs or piles of the construction herein-
before described. When armour plates are required with flanged edges, the
top and bottom bars forming the pile or slab are made of increased width and
thickness in proportion to the size of flanges required, and the rolls are grooved
for rolling the flange plates, so that the projecting bars or flanges of the slab
are acted upon equally with the body of the plate in the process of rolling, and
the edges and flanges of the plate come out true from the rolls. For rolling
plain plates without flanges the rolls may be grooved or provided with shoulders
or flanges, so as to prevent the lateral spreading of the plate in the process of
rolling, by which means a plate with parallel edges will be produced, but we
do not claim this as a part of our Invention.
In order to protect the workmen from the intense heat of the incandescent
mass of metal, and from the sparks or particles of molten metal emitted there-
from whilst on its way from the furnace to the rolls, and whilst undergoing the
hammering and squeezing operation, shields or projecting plates are fixed on
each side of the traversing frame in which the slab is conveyed to the
rolling mill.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Hinton Bovill, on the part of
myself the said James Edward McConnell, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eleventh day of November, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-three.