Improvements in Folding Boats.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Jan., 1897-Accepted, 3rd Apr., 1897
Improvements in Folding Boats.
I, ERNEST CUTHBERT FECTOR JAMES, of Hyde Park Court, Albert Gate,
in the County of London, late of 87th Fusiliers, 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
--
My invention relates to improvements in the construction of folding boats; the
said improvements having mainly for their object to adapt such construction of
folding boats to large boats, and to so arrange the several parts that the entire
boat will both open.out automatically, ready for use, and fold up without requiring
any fixing or adjustment by hand, by the mere suspension of the boat, on the one
hand from attachments on the floor boards for effecting the folding up, and on the
other hand from attachments on the gunwales, for opening out the boat.
I will describe my said improvements with reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which
Figure 1 shews a perspective view of the boat in the folded condition; Figure 2
shews a longitudinal section of the same, and Figure 3 a plan in the opened out
condition;
Figure 4 shews a midship section, the right hand half being in the opened
position and the left hand half in the folded position.
Figures 5 to 7 shew details.
The main framework of the boat is generally similar to that described in my
prior specification, namely, the parts A A that form the keel and keelson, are bent
or built up at the stem and stern, and to them are fixed the blocks B B to which
are pivotted the gunwales C and the ribs C¹ C, of which there are two or more
on each side in this case, instead of only one each side as in the previous
construction.
The above parts are all built of two or more pieces, as shewn, between which is
fastened the canvas or fabric D forming the covering of the boat.
The gunwales and ribs are pivotted to plates E bent over and bolted to the
blocks B, and having ring bolts e; the gunwales and ribs have plates c c the ends.
of which are bent at an angle and formed as eyes through which pass the pivot
bolts c securing them to the plates E:
The pivot eyes of the lower ribs C' are preferably arranged behind the plates E,
while the others are on the front, as shewn.
The bottom rib C is connected to the gunwale C by means of struts F with
knuckle joint at F' and which are pivotted to loops on these parts; when the
boat is opened out, the struts are extended as shewn on the right of Figure 4, and
when it is folded, they are folded together as shewn on the left hand, and also in
Figure 1. To the lower limbs of the struts are pivotted the ends of the thwarts G
by means of metal eyes g, through which pass bolts on the struts. The thwarts G
are divided at the middle and are there pivotted by means of eyes g¹ to TṬ shaped
plates on the stanchions H, so as to allow of their folding together in the raised
position as shewn in Figure 1.
The lower ends of the stanchions H are connected by a rope loop P to the floor
boards I through slots in which the lower ends of the stanchions pass and above
which they are formed with shoulders as shewn at Figures 1 and 2.

page_text: The floor boards are divided into two separate parts down the centre line of the
boat, but are pivotted together by metal loops J, passing through the looped metal
strengthening bands i, as shewn more clearly in the enlarged detail side view at
Figure 5. The bands i extend along the under side of the floor boards to the
outer edge thereof, where they are formed into eyes that are pivotted to pins k
passing through eyes on plates K, fixed on the bottom ribs C'.
The manipulation of the boat constructed as above described is as follows:-
For opening the boat out from the folded position, the action is as follows:-
The davit-falls are hooked on to wire sling-spans M attached to eyes N on the
gunwales C, and a pull is put on the falls. By this pull the gunwales are raised
up, thereby opening out the struts F and at the same time drawing outwards and
upward the ribs C₁ C₁ by means of the boat canvas. By this motion of the struts
and ribs, the outer ends of the thwarts G and floor boards I, are also all drawn
outwards, thereby lowering their hinged middle parts, together with the stanchions H
until the several parts are all in the opened position shewn at the right hand of
Figure 4.
The boat is thus almost instantaneously opened and is securely held in the opened
position by the thwarts and floor boards, and is quite ready for use, requiring no
fixing or adjustment of any of the parts by hand.
Assuming the boat to be opened out, and requiring to be folded, the falls of the
ships davits are booked into wire loops L passed through holes in the floor
boards I as shewn at Figures 1 and 3, and a pull is exerted on the falls; by this
pull the floor boards will be raised up from the stretched position at the
right of Figure 4, to the raised position shewn on the left, and also at Figure 1.
By this motion the bottom ribs C¹ will be drawn inwards and downwards as
shewn; at the same time the floor in rising will push up the stanchions H by means
of their shoulders and these in their turn will push up the thwarts G; the outer
ends of these will thus be made to draw inwards the knuckle joint of the struts F,
and these in folding together will pull downwards the gunwales C, which will also
be drawn downwards and inwards, together with the upper ribs C³, by the before
described motion of the lower ribs, the gunwales and ribs eventually assuming the
closely folded position, one above the other shewn at Figures 1 and 4.
The above described construction can be modified by pivotting the thwarts G to
the middle ribs C' instead of to the struts, and the floor boards, when arranged
slightly higher, to the lower member of the struts F, as indicated by the dotted
lines in Figure 4.
I prefer to arrange one of the boards of the floor, such as x, Figure 2, so as to
be readily removeable in order to gain access to the space below the floor boards
when required.
The rowlocks O Figures 6 and 7 are formed as oval rings, that fit with stems O
into sockets P on the gunwales but they are always retained on the leather of the
oar by means of staples Q1 fixed in the latter at each end of the leather, so
that the rowlocks are always unshipped with the oars as shewn at Figure 1.
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. In folding boats of the kind herein referred to, the combination with the
struts F pivotted to the gunwales C and to the bottom ribs C¹ of thwarts G,
divided, and pivotally connected at the middle to stanchions H, while their outer
ends are pivotally connected to the one limb of the struts F, so that when stretched,
the thwarts hold the struts and consequently the sides of the boat securely in the
opened position while when the middle parts of the thwarts are raised upward,
they cause the struts and gunwales of the boat to fold together automatically
substantially as described.
2. The combination with folding thwarts G and struts F arranged and operating
as set forth in the first claim, of floor boards I divided at the middle and connected

page_text: together by a pivotal connection, while the outer edges are pivotally connected to
the bottom ribs C of the boat, and stanchions H passing with their lower ends
through slots in the middle of the floor boards and having shoulders above the
latter, so that on pulling upward the middle of the floor boards, these both push
upward the stanchions and the thwarts and at the same time draw inwards and
downwards the ribs C¹ and gunwales C, substantially as described.
3. The modification of the arrangement, referred to in the first and second claims,
wherein the thwarts are pivoted to the ribs C₁and the floor boards are pivoted to
the struts F, substantially as described.
4. A folding buat combined and operating, substantially as described with
reference
to the accompanying drawings, in such manner that the boat is
automatically opened out and secured in such open position by exercising an
upward pull upon the gunwales and is automatically folded together by exercising
a pull upon the pivoted middle of the divided floor boards.
1
. I
1907
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.