CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON INSTRUMENTS OR APPARATUS FOR THE MORE READILY OR CERTAINLY ASCERTAINING THE TRIM AND STABILITY OF SHIPS OR OTHER VESSELS
Year: 1826

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
KINGSTON, Master Millwright, of llis Majesty's Dockyard, Portsmouth, and
GEORGE STEBBING, Mathematical Instrument Maker, High Street, Portsmouth,
send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twentieth day of December, One thousand eight hundred
and twenty-six, in the seventh year of His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs
and successors, give and grant unto us, the said William Kingston and George
Stebbing, Ilis especial licence that we, the said William Kingston and
George Stebbing, our exors, adiñiors, and assigns, or such others as we, the
said William Kingston and George Stebbing, our exors, adiñiors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, our Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON INSTRUMENTS OR
APPARATUS FOR THE MORE READILY OR CERTAINLY ASCERTAINING THE TRIM AND
STABILITY OF SHIPS OR OTHER VESSELS;" in which said Letters Patent is con-
tained a proviso obliging us, the said William Kingston and George Stebbing,
by an instrument in writing under our hands and seals, or under the band seal of
one of us, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of our said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to

page_text: be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more
fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, tho
said William Kingston and George Stebbing, do hereby declare that the
nature of our said Invention, which we call a Nauropometer, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described by the Drawing
hereunto annexed, shewing Figures No. 1, 2, and 3.
Figure 1 shews the internal parts of the instruments. A is a socket, made of
brass or any other material, which is to be fixed at the under side of the deck of
the ship or vessel at any convenient part or at any other convenient place, and into
which the instrument is to be suspended by the sling B, moving on two centers
C, C, which centers are fixed firm in the case D. On each of the centers are
fitted the hands E, E, also two index plates G, G, screwed to the sling (which
are shown more clearly in Fig. 2), and which shews the rolling motion of the
ship or vessel, and the number of degrees for the sling being fixed firm to the
socket, and that to the deck or any other convenient place, and the hands
fitted firm to the centers C, C, the case D, and the hands E, E, will keep in a
perpendicular direction; therefore, as the ship or vessel inclines, the case will
move the hand, and shew correctly on the index plates what inclination the ship
or vessel has made. The trim of the ship or vessel is shewn in the following
manner, viz-In the case D, which is made of brass or any other material,
is suspended on a center placed at right angles with the centers C, C, at Z, Z, a
weight H, I, and at the lower end of the weight a paddle I, which is immersed
in quicksilver (or any other fluid) contained in the trough K, K. This fluid
prevents the weight II getting a vibratory motion when the instrument is in
use. A toothed segment I, is also fitted at any required height to the weight.
This segment gives motion to the pinnion M, and the wheel N; the wheel
gives motion to the pinnion O, and the arbors or spindles which carry the
pinnion and wheel revolve in the index plates P, Fig. 3. These arbors or
spindles carry round the hands, and as the ship or vessel alters the trim the
case will alter its perpendicular position, and thereby cause the weight and
segment to act on those parts which move the hands and show how much the
trim is altered. The quicksilver or any other fluid in which is immersed as
before described the paddle I, at the lower end of the weight, must be con-
fined as much as possible to prevent a vibratory motion to the instrument.
In making our aforesaid instrument we do use segments or quadrants,
wheels, pinnions, rollers, springs, and levers, of any size or number, so as to

page_text: give increased or decreased motion agreeably to the dimensions of the ship or
vessel. The same letters refer to the same parts in all the Figures.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Stebbing, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven.