IMPROVEMENTS IN AND CONNECTED WITH SUBMARINE SHIPS AND VESSELS
Year: 1885

page_text: I, KURT DEGENER of 27 Endsleigh Gardens Euston Square in the County of
Middlesex Retired First Lieutenant German Army do hereby declare the nature of
said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND CONNECTED WITH SUBMARINE SHIPS
AND VESSELS to be as follows:-
22
.
In the specification of my patent application N° 11246 of 1884 I have amongst
other things described a submarine vessel which is intended to be propelled by the
impetus in the first instance given by seesaw or American revolving swing
appliances actuated by human power. Now according to my present invention
I establish communication between the interior of such a vessel and the atmosphere
for the purpose of introducing light into such submarine vessel and for introducing
into it as required human beings or animals or other objects or matter, all as
hereinafter described.
The light is introduced and intensified by means of lenses and reflecting
revolving and other mirror like appliances. The revolving parts are caused to
revolve by or from the so-called transmission wheels named in my aforesaid patent
specification. Such revolving mirror like parts being moved quickly and receiving
the sun light by suitable reflector appliances will so to say increase the light-
receiving surface and thus greatly increase the amount of light that can be
conveyed into and received into the vessel.
The light enters the vessel when at or near the surface of the water by a tube
which is provided with a lens through which the light is reflected into a mirror
placed in a slanting direction at inner end of the tube. Opposite this mirror is
placed a prismatic say three sided mirror which is made to revolve quickly on its
longitudinal axis. From this revolving mirror the accumulated light is reflected
into a conical mirror surface mounted on one side of one of my revolving trans-
mission wheels or in a circular recess on its outer circumference. From such a
mirror the light is reflected into another prismatic quickly revolving mirror, thence
again onto a stationary mirror surface which again reflects the light onto a pris-
matic revolving mirror, which throws the light onto a mirror surface on a second
revolving transmission wheel and so on. The mirror faces are enclosed by a light
sheet iron or other casing fixed to the axle bearings or other fixed p. and these

page_text: casings do not let the light escape into the other part of the vessel except at one or
more small lower openings. Or the light on entering the tube may at once be
reflected into a prismatic rotating mirror. The light may also pass from the outer
circumferential mirror surface of one wheel to that of the other by means of a
quickly revolving prismatic mirror. Or I may cause the light entering the tube
through the lens to be first reflected against an inclined stationary mirror thence
into a quickly revolving prismatic mirror and thence by stationary inclined mirrors
arranged in another tube placed at an angle to the first tube to another revolving
prismatic mirror and so on from and through one tube after another finally
emerging into the lower part of the interior of the ship. The vessel having been
so to say charged with light in the manner described may then be lowered in the
water and keep lighted there for some time, or till the air has to be renewed and
charged with light.
In order to introduce human beings, animals and other objects or matter into the
vessel while immersed and at the bottom of the sea I employ India rubber or other
water-tight sacks or vessels into which the person object or matter is enclosed.
Such an air sack when brought against an elastic mouth-like valve in the ship's
side with one conical end can be thus entered into the ship without the water also
entering. These sacks may be worked from within and may for this purpose be
constructed somewhat similar to the aforesaid submarine vessel itself that is to say
provided with flexible jackets to be charged with air, and the screw propellers and
other acting parts made hollow and of flexible material. The air or water for
driving is drawn into the jackets from a flexible hose and forced out through the
shaft and blades of the screw propellor or through the spokes and rim of a hollow
India rubber wheel.
In the interior of such a sack I sometimes place an electric motor or a seesaw
swing arranged between two air-pumps as described in my Specification N° 11246/84
The latter may be arranged to draw from one common source; their rods may be
connected by a beam.
The sacks connected to a rope which is attached with a bight to the ship and
led up to a winch are conveyed down to the ship which they enter one by one as
described.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Connected with Submarine Ships and
Vessels.
I, KURT DEGENER of 27 Endsleigh Gardens Euston Square in the County of
Middlesex Retired First Lieutenant German Army 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 the specification of my patent application N° 11246 of 1884 I have amongst
other things described submarine and other vessels which are intended to be
propelled by the impetus in the first instance given by see-saw or American
revolving swing appliances actuated by human power. Now according to my
present invention I establish communication between the interior of such a vessel
and the atmosphere for the purpose of introducing light into such submarine vessel
and for introducing into it as required human beings or animals or other objects or
matter, all as hereinafter described.
The light is to be introduced and on the one hand to be intensified as regards
strength and duration and for this purpose I employ rotating three cornered or
other prisms in combination with mirrors whereby the light is thrown from one to
the other. By this means it becomes possible efficiently to light the aforesaid
vessel even when below water through a small opening; also to determine and
resolve the light of any heavenly body by the Frauenhofer lines and to enlarge or
diminish an object reflected.
The reasons why a long enduring and strong light may be expected, are as
follows.
1. Suppose yourself changed into an atom on which the sun shines at mid-day,
then the light will appear enormous to you. But if the earth itself be supposed
very large relatively to the sun, then the latter will appear proportionately dim.
Hence the smaller an object is the greater will the light appear to be.
2. The light shines infinitely far when the atmosphere through which it passes
does not hinder it.
3. All objects absorb the light though not equally well, while some such as
mirrors reflect it almost entirely.
If therefore a prism is turned in the sun light and the light rays are caught by
a mirror placed in a slanting position thereto, then the light of the sun will appear
as seen by an atom. On the other hand by the quick rotation we obtain a large
surface acted upon or we obtain approximately the same amount of light as a
surface of like area would receive.
Dark objects absorb the light, while others throw it back. Mirrors hence
increase the light The light thrown into space appears to go into the infinite.
If such a ray of light could be concentrated, a strong light would be obtained.
This takes place by a suitable position of the mirrors.
In order to introduce human beings, animals and other objects or matter into the
vessel while immersed and at the bottom of the sea I enclose them in India-rubber
bags charged with air and convey them from land onto the vessel by suitable

page_text: winches or bauling appliances or by preference by means of special swing appliances
as referred to in the specification of my previous patent. By means of special
appliances on the vessel the sacks are introduced in such, manner that no water
enters the vessel. The sacks may be made to move from within and for this
purpose have projecting arm sleeve and leg sleeve, while also rolling on one or
more India rubber wheels forming for instance a tricycle. For propelling I may
also use a screw-propeller or broad oar also of rubber, or air may be ejected. All
the parts are made hollow and of India-rubber. The sack should be made with
one or more intermediate spaces or jackets all over, which again are divided into
compartments, so that if one should leak the others may still be useful. Valves
pumps and pipes are provided for compressing the air in any or all compartments
and for drawing air therefrom. The sack serves as bed, air reservoir and bath. In
Figure 1 a prism a is enclosed in a tube b and caused to rotate quickly thereby
casting the accumulated or accumulating light into the mirror c being thence
reflected onto the quickly rotating prism d which again reflects it accumulated
into the mirror e in a tube f and into the enclosed space to be lighted. In Figure 2
the light through the lense 1 is cast onto the mirror 2, which reflects it into the
revolving accumulating prism 3 to be reflected into the mirror 4, thence into the
mirror 5, thence onto the accumulating prism 6 which reflects it into the mirror 7
and so on by means of the mirror 8, rotating prism 9, mirror 10 and lense 11 onto
the mirror 12 and out of the tube into the enclosed place or space which is to be
lighted.
Figure 3 shows the same principle applied to the introduction of light into the
interior of a casing a which encloses one of my load transmission wheels b which
on the outside is provided with a mirror rim c which receives the reflected light
from the lense d, mirror e and rotating prism f
In Figure 4 I have shown a mode in which the light may be transmitted
from a casing a for a load transmission wheel to casing a¹ of another transmission
wheel.
In Figure 5 I have shown a means for causing the rotation of a prism by means
of a swing. A is the swing and A' the fulcrum. In a box at one end of the swing
I have placed a compound air compresser which forces compressed air into the air
turbine B and causes its rotation and thereby also that of the prism C. The ram a
is on the depression of that end of the swing brought into contact with one end of
a lever D the other end of which by a cord is connected with a tooth rack such as
shown in Figure 6 at . The ram a will thereby be driven partly into the
cylinder which can rise but is held by the teeth on pawl-wheel c.
This pump is
similar to the one described in the specification of my previous patent only that the
pump is placed upside down so that a long pump may be used, also there is a back
or recoil blow after the swing has gone back; the latter is effected by the air
passing through the hose pipe d and driving out the piston, the rod of which forces
down the left hand end of the lever D; a spring and rollers f bring the piston e up
again. g is a spring which by a cord and trigger releases the piston e so that the
compressed air may force it down. The pistons in the pump are jointed for better
action on the air. The stops at hand care released by the compressed air escaping
from the pipe i and entering into the flexible pipes k and 7 which are closed at their
other ends, but only momentarily, whereupon the flexible pipes spring back into
their former position. The stops are fixed again by the rising of the pump n by
the compressed air in the space 2 and by the catch lever m. The swing A is moved
by the wheel E which by the tappets moves the lever G, whereby the weight F will
be swung onto the table H and rest thereon. When the other end of the swing
goes down the weight is lifted off the table and tends to bring the swing down
again.
In Figure 6 I have shown a vertical longitudinal section of my submarine vessel
and Figure 7 part plan section. The light enters at a in the manner described,
passes from wheel casing to wheel casing by the tubes b and c-The axial friction
of the last three wheels A, B and C is utilized for driving the propellers D D and

page_text: the travelling wheels E. The same power may also be used for rotating the light
prisms. The wheel B is as shown at 6 Figure 7 provided with parts cut out so that
when the part gearing therewith comes opposite such parts the propeller is driven
by the axle friction, but otherwise by the wheel B itself. F is a basket hung in
gimbals and affording seats for passengers, and G a tubular helical ladder for
gaining access thereto.
Figure 8 shows a means for driving a rotating prism. One of my transmission
wheels drives alternately the connecting rod racks B which are jointed to cranks on
the shaft of the wheel Ď which is formed with a circumferential groove that gears
by friction with the spindle E of the wheel F. From this latter the power is
transmitted by endless band to the pulley G of the spindle of the rotating
prism H.
Figure 9 shows a vessel E from which a number of sacks such as A B and C
strung onto a rope is conveyed down to a submarine vessel D, only the sacks are
drawn to a much larger scale than the vessel E. This latter has its main strength
in the bottom frame a and the two slanting frames b. The wheel c which is driven
from the swing e and drives the large swing d, the grooved rim of the wheel c
driving the rack f which by spring catch contrivance is pressed against and away
from the toothed rim of the wheel c. The sack A Figure 10 is made with double
or jacketed sides and has an arm sleeve g and a leg sleeve h while it rests and may
be rolled on the hollow India-rubber wheel or ball i. k is a pipe for inlet of the
compressed air.
The sack B Figure 11 has wheels 7 for moving along the ground. m is a wheel
worked by treadles the operator sitting on one of the seats n. o represents an
electrical machine for dissolving water in the reservoir p; the two resulting gases
are then in such proportions as to produce a burning mixture. The vitiated air
entering the reservoir 9 and becoming heated escapes at s.
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The sack C Figure 12 is shown about to enter the vessel D through a flexible
mouth valve E surmounted by a tube F which will be filled by the sack to the
exclusion of the water when the sack has entered the valve E. m is a wheel as in
Figure 11, and n a seat for the operator. t is an air pump and u the air inlet pipe
the mouth of which by a float vis kept above the water when the sack is on the
surface and which otherwise can be shut by a valve from within the sack.
Figure 13 shows a means of communication between the submarine vessel and
the shore, G being a flexible tube with rubber ring g as internal ribs and with
entrance opening at h.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
First. The mode and means for conveying and accumulating .light substantially
as set forth.
Second. The mode and means for establishing communication with a submarine
vessel substantially as set forth.