Automatic Sights for Guns.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Oct., 1888-
Complete Specification Left, 10th July, 1889-Accepted, 10th Aug., 1889
Automatic Sights for Guns.
I, WILLIAM ANDERSON, of 3 Whitehall Place, in the City of Westminster, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
In many cases it is inconvenient to lay guns by means of the ordinary sights with
which they are commonly fitted, this is especially the case in turrets where guns fire
through narrow ports and in barbette mountings in which the gun is much exposed.
In such cases I run a stout rocking shaft parallel to the centre line through the
trunnions of the gun either in line with the trunnions or above or below though not
necessarily vertically over or under the trunnions and key on to this shaft a bar or
beam which is set parallel to the axis of the gun and is made to follow its movements
in elevation or depression by a connecting rod uniting the outer end of the bar with
the rear or with the forward end of the gun itself, or of some portion of the mounting
which always moves parallel to the axis of the gun. The front sight is fixed in line
with the vibrating beam and at right angles to it and to the centre line of the rocking
shaft, while the rear sight is attached to the opposite end of the vibrating bar and
consists of a hollow pillar in which the regulation back, sight will slide and be secured
in the ordinary way. The pillar can be set at an angle to allow for drift, and the
regulation telescope sight can be affixed precisely in the manner it is now with the
automatic sights in use.
For practice firing a bracket can be attached to the vibrating bars and on this a
light gun or rifle can be clamped and set parallel to the axis of the gun and it is
obvious that it will then follow all its movements.
Although the system of sights described above applies more especially to guns
mounted on slides pivotted to fixed portions of the ship or fort and vibrating in a
vertical plane it can also be adapted to ordinary gun carriages in which case the
rocking lever should be pivotted to a bracket attached to the slide and the axis of
the pivot should coincide with the axis of the gun or nearly so. The rear end of the
bar should have a slot formed in it the length of which will be the full length of
recoil, in this slot a stud attached to the rear end of the gun will travel and cause
the vibrating bar to keep its parallelism with the gun in all positions when run out
for firing. The sights will be fixed as in the case already described and the advantage
of the arrangement is that the sights will not recoil with the gun though the rear
sight will have some vertical motion during recoil but this will not interfere with the
use of the sights up to the moment of firing. It is obvious that they may be placed
at any convenient level irrespective of the size of the gun, and that the system allows
of sights being arranged at some distance from the gun as for example in the case of
a pair of guns placed in one turret the sights of each gun may be brought together
to one aiming place in any part of the turret.
Did this och den of Antahe- 1000
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Automatic Sights for Guns.
I. WILLIAM ANDERSON of 3 Whitehall Place, in the City of Westminster, 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 many cases it is inconvenient to lay guns by means of the ordinary sights with
which they are commonly fitted, this is especially the case in turrets where guns fire

page_text: Figure 1 is a plan of a portion of a turret adapted to receive a pair of guns having
sighting apparatus arranged in accordance with my invention.
Figure 2 is a vertical section of the turret showing the arrangements at a sighting
station between the two guns.
Figure 3 is a vertical section showing the sighting arrangements at side sighting
stations.
Figure 4 illustrates the application of the invention to guns on ordinary carriages.
where the carriage recoils along a slide and the gun is moveable upon the carriage
by turning about its trunnions.
Figure 5 illustrates the application of the invention to guns mounted on disappearing
carriages.
In Figures 1, 2 and 3 A, A, are the guns, they are mounted on frames B, B, which
are pivotted to the turret at B, B1, the guns are free to move longitudinally only
upon these frames and they do so when recoiling and running out.
The requisite
elevation is given to the guns by the movement of the frames B about their pivots and
this movement is imparted to them by means of hydraulic presses C or other suitable
means. D is the sighting station between the guns, from this both of the guns can
be aimed. E, E, are other sighting stations on the outer side of each gun and from
these the adjacent gun only can be aimed. Thèse stations are so arranged that the
gunner standing on a suspended platform has a free view over the roof of the turret.
In connection with each sighting apparatus a rocking shaft F is provided, it is
carried in bearings fixed to the roof of the turret. A bar G is keyed fast upon the
rocking shaft and the hinder end of this bar G is connected by a link H with one
of the frames B along which the gun recoils and at such a distance from the centre B¹
that the frame B and the bar G move together about their pivots through equal
angles. This bar G may in some cases have the sights mounted upon it, but it is
usually more convenient to provide another bar I upon the rocking shaft F
to carry

page_text: the sights. J is the fore-sight, it projects upwards from the bar I through a hole
in the roof of the turret provided to allow it to pass. K is a pillar upon the rear
end of the bar 1 and this carries the rear sight K' which is adjustable up and down
in the ordinary manner. All the usual adjustments are provided in connection with
these sights and a telescope sight can be employed if desired.
As the angular movement of the bar G is at all times equal to that of the gun it
will be seen that mounting the sights upon this bar is equivalent to mounting them
upon the gun itself, and the same applies when the sights are mounted as shown
upon a second bar so connected with the bar G that the angular movements of, the
two bars are always equal.
In Figure 4 L is a gun which is supposed to be mounted by its trunnions
upon an ordinary carriage. The elevation is obtained by the movement of the gun
about its trunnions independently of the carriage; and when. the gun is fired the
carriage recoils with the gun along the slide which usually is inclined at a small
angle. M is a support fixed to the slide independently of the gun and its carriage;
this support carries the fore-sight N which, when the gun is run out for firing,
coincides in position with the axial line of the trunnions of the gun. O is a bar
jointed to the support M in such manner that it is moveable thereon about the fore-
sight as a centre. At the rear end of the bar O is the pillar P in which the rear
sight P1 is carried. O is a slot in the bar of a length somewhat exceeding the
distance that the gun recoils when fired, and Q is a pin fixed to the
and entering
gun
this slot. Then when the gun being in the firing position as shown in the Figure, is
elevated or depressed the bar O will move with it making an equal angular movement
so that if the line of sight be set parallel with the axis of the gun it will remain so
during any movement in elevation or depression imparted to the gun, or if the line
of sight has been previously set so that the axis of the gun has a certain angle of
elevation above the line of sight this angle will remain constant whilst the gun is
moved about its trunnions.
It is not essential that the fore sight N shall be at the trunnion, it may be anywhere
upon the bar O; or the sights may be on another bar so connected with the bar O
that its movements are parallel.
In Figure 5 R is a disappearing gun; its trunnions are carried by a frame S jointed
to the bed T and the breech end of the gun is controlled by a long link U connecting
it with an are V, which can be raised and lowered by gear, as shown, for aiming
the gun.
W is an arm fixed to the bed T and carrying the foresight at its upper
end: This fore sight is so placed as to be in the axial line of the trunnions when
the gun is raised to the firing position. To the arm W the bar X is also jointed
so that it can move around the fore sight as a centre, and the bar X is connected
also by a long link Y to the toothed arc V. The links U and Y are of the same
length and their centres coincide. At its rear end the bar X carries the pillar Z in
which the rear sight Z¹ is mounted.
It will be seen in this arrangement that any movement given to the gun when
in the firing position by raising or lowering the are V will be imparted also to the
bar X and the sights which it carries; the sights however are independent of the
gun and when fired, the gun descends leaving the sights in their previous position.
The sights can be adjusted when the gun is down and whilst it is being loaded, and
when the gun rises it will come up to a position in accordance with the adjustment
of the sights previously made.
It is not essential that the fore sight should be at the trunnion it may be anywhere
upon the bar X, or the sights in place of being upon the bar X may be upon another
bar receiving similar movements.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. Automatic sighting apparatus substantially as described, in which the sights are
carried upon a bar separate from the gun, so that the gun is free fo recoil independently,

page_text: and connected by a link with the gun mounting so that as the gun mounting is
inclined, to give to the gun the requisite elevation, the bar moves about its centre
through an equal angle as herein set forth.
2. Automatic sighting apparatus substantially as described, in which the sights are
carried by a bar movable about a centre coinciding with the axial line of the
trunnions when the gun is in the firing position and connected with the gun at a
distance from the trunnions but in such manner that the gun is free to recoil
independently of the bar, whilst nevertheless when the gun is inclined, to give it the
requisite elevation; the bar moves about its centre through an equal angle as herein
set forth.
3. Automatic sighting apparatus substantially as described in which the sights are
carried by a bar movable about a centre and so connected with the gun that when
the gun being in the firing position is moved by the elevating gear the bar carrying
the sights receives a corresponding movement.
4. Automatic sighting apparatus substantially as represented by the drawings
annexed.