Improvements relating to Ships' Hatchways and other Places of Communication in Ships' Decks.
Year: 1896

page_text: PRO
NA
Improvements relating to Ships' Hatchways and other Places of
Communication in Ships' Decks.
I, GEORGE ALBERT CHADDOCK, of 6 Crosby Square, in the City of London, Master
Mariner, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to ships hatchways and all openings and places of com-
munication in ships decks and has for its object the attainment of great security.
to the ships and to life and property in the ship.
According to my invention I provide for closing the hatchways or other openings
by hatches battened up or secured from below the combings of the hatch by
drawing them upwards. My improved hatches are constructed to slide in guide
ways or on rollers underneath the deck as close as possible or convenient to the
deck beams, and are secured when closed by catches that compress them against
the combings of the hatch, any suitable watertight medium such as India rubber
being placed between the hatch or shutter and the combings. Preferably the
hatches and fittings are made of iron or steel or other suitable metal. The "fore
and afters" are arranged to fit in sockets and to be locked therein and are remov-
able to allow of the full opening of the hatchway. They are constructed with
grooves forming a continuation of the guide ways of the hatch. Cross strengthen-
ing sections are provided for the purposes of strengthening the hatch. In some
instances the hatches are constructed to travel athwartships instead of fore and
aft, in which case the "fore and afters" become the strengthening pieces.
Means are provided to prevent the cargo from shifting at sea to such a position
where it would block the shutters or hatches and prevent them from being
opened upon arriving at port.
1806
Improvements relating to Ships' Hatchways and other Places of
Communication in Ships' Decks.
I, GEORGE ALBERT CHADDOCK, of 6 Crosby Square, London, England, Master
Mariner, 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:-
This invention relates to improvements in ships hatchways and other places of
communication in ships decks particularly to hatchways and other openings in

page_text: the lower deck ar decks and has for its objects the greater security of the ship and
life and property therein.
According to my invention I provide for closing the hatchways or other openings
by hatches battened up or secured by being drawn upwards against the hatch
coamings or carlings instead of being secured by battening down as before or by
simply laying on from the top. By these means the hatch is made capable of
resisting the upward pressure of water from below without bringing excessive
stress due to such pressure on the bolts or other fastenings and so greater security
is obtained than is possible with hatches constructed and secured as heretofore.
My improved hatches are preferably constructed to slide in guideways or on
rollers underneath the deck as close as possible or convenient to the deck beams
and the said hatches are secured when closed by devices that press them tightly
against the coamings or carlings of the hatch and against the strengthening fore
and afters and cross beams in the hatchway where such are used, any suitable
water-tight medium being employed to ensure a water tight joint.
Referring to the accompanying drawings
I
Figure 1 is a plan of a hatchway adapted to be closed by two hatches, a portion
of the deck flooring, being removed to show the hatch guides.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section, and
Figure 3 is a transverse section of the hatch.
IT
Figure 4 is a side elevation of a removable beam forming a guide and support
for the inner sides of the hatches, and shows the manner of supporting the beam
by the coamings.
Figure 5 is an end view of the said beam on a larger scale; and
Figure 6 is a transverse section on the line a, a of Figure 4-also on a larger
scale.
.
Figure 7 is a diagrammatic plan of an arrangement where several hatches are
employed to close the hatchway.
Figure 8 is a fore and aft section, and
..1
Figure 9 is a transverse section of a companion way and hatch constructed
according to my invention.
Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in the several figures.
A is the hatch which can slide underneath the deck B in guides C secured to
the deck beams D. C' Care horizontal and vertical rollers provided in the guides
to facilitate the sliding movements of the hatch. E, E are the coamings or car-
lings of the hatchway firmly secured by angle brackets E' or otherwise to the deck
beams. To close the hatchway, the hatch is moved from under the deck into posi-
tion under the hatchway and is then drawn upward by bolts F, F and pressed
tightly against the edge of the coamings or carlings. The securing bolts are placed
at suitable intervals all round the hatchway and are provided with heads adapted
to engage with the edge of the hatch as shown, or in some instances with lugs or
arms projecting from the hatch. The bolts on one side of the hatchway can when
slackened be turned and raised out of the way of the hatch so as to allow the hatch
to slide as desired. To ensure a good watertight joint between the hatch and the
coamings I furnish the former with India rubber or other suitable packing
material A placed in a groove or otherwise secured in position.
A single moving hatch would of course be suitable only for small hatchways
or openings; for closing large hatchways it is necessary to provide two or more
hatches. Figures 1, 2, and-3 show for example two long hatches arranged side by
side and working fore and aft or athwartships, such a construction being suitable
for new ships with spacing especially arranged therefor. The joint between the
hatches is made by a central removable beam G constructed with guide grooves or
channels at the sides and furnished with rollers G¹ to act as guides for the inner
edges of the hatches. The ends of the said beam are suitably supported by the
coamings, preferably by lugs E2 provided on the face of the coamings, as shown
in Figure. 4 and locked by bolts G³ which serve to tighten the packing material G³
against the coamings, thus making a watertight joint therewith. The beam can

page_text: be speedily removed after the hatches are slid back, by loosening the locking bolts
and then turning the beam laterally: The enlarged end view and section of this
beam shown in Figures 5 and 6 illustrate its construction. The bolts G³ act
through plates G to compress the packing against the beam and coamings to ensure
a water tight joint.
T
G³, G are bolts for securing the hatches to the beam. The said bolts are pre-
ferably shaped, the arms being sometimes bent up at the ends as shown. In
some instances the arms are pivoted to the stem at the centre. When the said
bolts are tightened up, the ends of the arms bear against the lower faces of the
two hatches and press the hatches against the upper faces of the grooves in the
beam. The hatches are fitted with packing material and a watertight joint is
ensured. The packing material A¹ at the ends of the hatches is made with a
bevelled edge as shown in Figure 5 to fit closely against the correspondingly
bevelled edge of the packing G so that the two packings can overlap and make
a secure joint without necessitating more than one thickness of packing.
After the hatches are secured in place I prefer to further support them, and fo
strengthen the hatchway by cross beams H inserted between the sides of the hatch-
way in line with the deck beams. The hatch may if desired be secured to these
beams, and compressible bearing or packing material H may be inserted between
the hatches and the said cross beams so that the latter may assist in supporting
the hatch against upward pressure. These beams may also serve to support the
weight of cargo on top and prevent such weight coming on the hatches as would
preclude the making of a watertight joint with the coamings.
The centre guides C for the hatches may be arranged on each side of the midship
stanchions without interfering therewith. In some instances the hatches are
strengthened by the central bulkhead or by "shifting boards" where such are
used, but if the ship is not constructed with a central bulkhead and is not furnished
with "shifting boards" the hatches may be strengthened to resist upward pressure
by stanchions above the same in lieu of or in addition to the cross beams above
referred to.
It is obvious that the number and arrangement of the hatches for each hatchway
may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention, for example, in
Figure 7 I have shewn a large hatchway closed by five hatches two of which open
forward, two laterally on opposite sides, and the fifth which is a long one also
opens laterally; other arrangements of hatches may obviously be provided accord-
ing to the proximity of the ships sides and bulkheads.
If in any case the coamings are not continuous by reason of the interposition
of a bulkhead, for example at the fore and after end of the hatchway, the comple-
tion of the coamings may be effected by a suitable attachment on the bulkhead
which would be furnished with the necessary fixtures for securing the hatches.
In all cases a protective sheathing is fixed to the guides C under the hatches to
prevent the cargo shifting to such a position where it would interfere with the
free opening of the hatches.
In applying my invention to small hatches for companion ways I provide a
bolt K which can be dropped in front of the hatch when the latter is open to pre-
vent the accidental closing of the hatch by the motion of the vessel.
batch can be unfailingly and instantly closed in cases of emergency by raising the
retaining bolt and simultaneously grasping and pulling the wire rope or other con-
nection L by which the hatch is drawn across the opening. I also prefer to provide
a catch M which when the hatch is closed will engage with one of a series of
notches M and lock the hatch in the closed position thus preventing the rebound
of the hatch when it is closed very rapidly. The ladder or companion steps N
and hand rail N' have a gap in them to admit of closing the companion way
without interfering with the steps and rail. The upper end of the lower part of
the ladder is supported by brackets N attached to the deckbeams clear of the
hatch, and the upper part of the ladder is fixed to the coamings of the hatchway.
The hatch may be arranged to move fore and aft or athwartships, and is con-

page_text: structed to make a water tight joint with the coamings, means being provided for
raising it against the coamings as hereinbefore described.
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. Providing a ships deck with hatches constructed to slide in guides beneath
the deck beams and to be secured in place by pressing the same upward against
their seat, substantially as, and for the purpose, specified.
2. The arrangement of the bolts for securing the hatches, substantially as
described.
3. Strengthening the hatchway by removable cross beams, and fore and afters,
by which the hatches and the cargo on top are further supported, substantially as
described.
4. The improvements in ships hatches substantially as described with reference
to the accompanying drawings, and for the purposes specified.
Dated this 23rd day of March 1897.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.