IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF CONSTRUCTING SHIPS AND VESSELS TO PROTECT THEM FROM INJURY PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Henry Armit, of No. 22, Union Road, Tufnel
Park, in the County of Middlesex, a retired Lieutenant in Her Majesty's Navy,
and Henry Wickens, of No. 96, Palmerston Buildings; Old Broad Street, in the
City of London, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MODE OF CONSTRUCTING SHIPS AND VESSELS TO PROTECT THEM FROM INJURY
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Henry Armit and
Henry Wickens at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
30th November 1876.
ROBERT HENRY ARMIT, of No. 22, Union Road, Tufnell Park, in the County of
Middlesex, a retired Lieutenant in Her Majesty's Navy, and HENRY WICKENS, of
No. 96, Palmerston Buildings, Old Broad Street, in the City of London, Gentleman.
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF CONSTRUCTING SHIPS AND VESSELS TO PROTECT
THEM FROM INJURY BY RAM, TORPEDO, AND SHOT."
Our Invention relates to the construction or alteration of ships and vessels of war
by the introduction of air-tight cellules or compartments to contain water, placed
between the armour or other plates forming the outer sides of the vessel and their
inner backing or sides for the purpose of arresting the progress of shot or sliell.
Also to the introduction of frames or ribs of convex shape outwardly, so arranged
as to form waterways on either side of the keel under the bottom of the ship,
enclosed by an outer covering of solid or perforated plates extending from the
water line along the whole length of the ship from stem to stern, and to the keel;
this outer covering being called the torpedo shield. The water in the waterways
under the ship confined between the torpedo shield and the sides of the vessel is
intended to act as a cushion in deadening the effect of a ram or torpedo, and to
protect the bottom of the vessel from injury therefrom.
Also in some cases to the combination of a hollow keel with syphon pipes com-
municating therewith from the lower bilges of the ship, whereby should water
enter the said bilges it would be discharged overboard, such vessels being thereby
prevented from becoming water-logged..

page_text: The hollow keel may be open at the stem and the stern of the vessel or at the
stern only, and may contain sluice or other stop valves.
The above arrangements can also be made applicable to merchant and other
vessels.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Robert Henry Armit and Henry Wickens in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 30th May 1877.
ROBERT HENRY ARMIT, of No. 22, Union Road, Tufnell Park, in the County of
Middlesex, a retired Lieutenant in Her Majesty's Navy, and HENRY WICKENS, of
No. 96, Palmerston Buildings, Oid Broad Street, in the City of London, Gentleman.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF CONSTRUCTING SHIPS AND VESSELS TO PROTECT
THEM FROM INJURY BY RAM, TORPEDO, AND SHOT."
Our Invention relates to the construction or alteration of ships and vessels of war
by the introduction of air-tight cellules or compartments to contain water, placed
between the armour or other plates forming the outer sides of the vessels and their
inner backing or sides for the purpose of arresting the progress of shot or shell.
Also to the introduction of frames or ribs of convex shape outwardly, so arranged
as to form waterways on either side of the keel under the bottom of the ship,
enclosed by an outer covering of solid or perforated plates extending from the
waterline along the whole length of the ship from stem to stern, and to the keel,
this outer covering being called the torpedo shield. The water in the waterways
under the ship confined between the torpedo shield and the bottom of the vessel is
intended to act as a cushion in deadening the effect of a ram or torpedo, and to
protect the bottom of the vessel from injury therefrom.
Also in some cases to the combination of a hollow keel with syphon pipes com-
municating therewith from the lower bilges of the ship, whereby should water enter
the said bilges it would be discharged overboard, such vessel being thereby prevented
from becoming water-logged.
The hollow keel may be open at the stein and stern of the vessel or at the
stern only, and may contain sluice or other stop valves.
The above arrangements can also be made applicable to merchant and other
vessels.
Figure 1 on the Sheet of Drawings is a plan of the midship section of the vessel
constructed with the view of rendering her more buoyant. In this plan a is the
main deck; b is the lower deck; c is the lop deck, hold, magazines, and engine and
boiler rooms; f represents a series of water-tight compartments running fore and aft,
which can be used as coal bunkers and store rooms; g,g', represent a series of water-
tight compartments running along the inner side of the vessel and under the hold.
We connect these compartments with a hollow keel i by means of the syphon
pipes of suitable material and dimensions. The hollow keel i discharges the
water therein through the stern post into the screw well. This hollow keel may
also be left open at the bow in order to admit of a current of water passing through
it, and it should also have sluice gates or stop valves fixed within it, both at the
bow and the stern, and within the ship in such manner as to be easily accessible.
K is a waterway formed by the lines of the vessel, as shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4,
which runs from stem to stern and gives the water displaced by the bow an easy
and direct route to stern.
If preferred the waterway K can be enclosed so as to form a water-tight com-
partment outside the inner bottom ; m is the outer bottom enclosing the
waterway K. This outer bottom is left open both at the bow and the stern when
K is intended to act as a waterway, for which openings perforated plates may be
used. The outer bottom is joined on to the stem and stern by the perforated plates
fastened to longitudinal girders, and is closed when K is intended to act as a water-

page_text: tight compartment. The water within the waterway K is intended to act as a
cushion to protect the inner bottom of the vessel from injury by ram or torpedo.
Should the inner bottom 1, 1, 1, however be penetrated at any time and admit
water into compartments g, g', the syphon pipes will eject it, and by this means
vessels constructed according to our Invention will to a very great extent be
rendered less liable to sink.
The top sides of the vessel are constructed to prevent the penetration of shot by
means of cellules containing water, marked W, W, W, inserted within an outer skin
of soft iron plating, such as bowling iron (B, I,) and an inner skin of hard steel
plates, such as creuzot steel with teak or other hard backing (S, T,); n³, n², n³, is
the immersed portion of the ship's bottom, the space h, h¹, being the freeboard.
Fig. 2 is a sheer plan of a vessel constructed according to our said Invention
with sectional plan of midship section at station 7, and of stations 2, 4, 5, 9, 10,
and 12.
Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan showing the lines of the ship at stations 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10,
and 12.
Fig. 4 shows the deck load (A) and light water line (B) of a vessel constructed
according to our said Invention.
The screw propeller may be worked either in an ordinary open aperture or within
tubes or tunnels.
The dimensions preferred are that the length shall equal 6 times the width, and
that the depth should equal one-tenth of the length, thus for example 300 ×
50 x 30.
To withstand the ram we place longitudinal frames outside the ordinary
vertical frames commonly called ribs to which we attach the outer skin of the ship's
bottom.
Having described the nature of our said Invention and in what manner the same
may be performed, we wish it to be understood that we claim as our Invention the
several combinations, substantially as herein-before described,-
-
Also the torpedo shield, solid or perforated, as preferred, m, m³, m².
Also the syphon pipe for discharging into the hollow keel i.
Also the water cellules W, W, W, to prevent shot or shell entering the ship's
freeboard.
In witness whereof, the said Robert Henry Armit and Henry Wickens,
have hereunto set their hands and seals, this Thirtieth day of May, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven,