Improvements in Apparatus for the Launching of Locomotive Torpedoes under Water.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Mar., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 28th Dec., 1895-Accepted, 1st Feb., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for the Launching of Locomotive
Torpedoes under Water.
We, EDWARD WILLIAM LLOYD, formerly a Commander in the British Navy,
and now of the Firm of Sir W. G. Armstrong, Mitchell & Co. Ld., of Elswick
Works, Newcastle-on-Tyne, and CHARLES WESLEY HUTCHINSON, of the same
place, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to mechanism for launching locomotive torpedoes under
water, the mechanism being so arranged that the launching may be carried
out efficiently from a vessel steaming at full speed, as well as under other
circumstances.
In our apparatus we employ an outer cylinder, having within it an inner cylinder
arranged to contain the torpedo.
The inner cylinder forms the torpedo guide; it fits and works throughout its
travel, in the front part of the outer cylinder.
The front end of the outer cylinder may be formed in such a manner as to arrest
the travel of the torpedo guide, and to cushion the arrest. This may be done by
reducing the diameter of the front portion of the guide and allowing a ring or
outer tube to work over the reduced diameter, and at the end of the travel, so
meeting as to lock water between the ring and the guide.
The rear of the outer cylinder which may have its diameter increased for the
purpose, is arranged to provide an expansion chamber between it and the inner
cylinder or torpedo guide.
There are rear doors upon the outer and inner cylinders, and these doors open to
admit the torpedo.
There is also a sluice valve at the forward end of the outward cylinder, which
excludes the sea.
The forward length of the inner tube is formed somewhat semicircularly to its
nose; and is perforated to admit the flow of water through it when it is in
operation.
Along the inside of the inner tube, or torpedo guide, grooves are cut.
We prefer
using two or more along the top and two or more along the bottom to take two or
more corresponding guides on the top and bottom of the torpedo.
The joint between the guide or inner cylinder and the outer cylinder may be
made tight against the water pressure by means of a gland, and this gland can be
adjusted externally, without opening the cylinder or interfering with any of its
adjustments.
Gas or air, under pressure, can be admitted to the expansion chamber, for the
purpose of protruding the torpedo guide from the ship's side.
By means of a valve in the rear door of the inner tube, a little gas can be
admitted during the forward travel of the tube to cushion the torpedo. After the
tube has reached the end of its stroke the valve is automatically opened and a rush
of gas allowed to pass it. The gas thus admitted drives out the water in the tube,
and this carries with it the torpedo.
The opening of this valve may be controlled by means of a spiral spring or other
load, and a working lever governed by a guide groove or strip in the outer
cylinder.

page_text: The load upon the valve, to keep it close, is so adjusted that the gas or air to its
rear cannot pass through below a given pressure, which pressure is all that is
required for driving the tube.
Wherever desired, during the travel of the tube, gas may be admitted at a lower
pressure, by so forming the guide or strip of the valve lever as to reduce the load
on the valve.
In this manner the valve is always relieved as the tube approaches the end of
its stroke, so that when the tube reaches its ultimate position a sufficient volume
of gas may follow the torpedo and the water in the tube, to ensure the efficient
ejection of the torpedo.
Thus the guide is first ejected by the gas acting on it externally, then the
gas is admitted into the tube (which forms the rear portion of the guide) and ejects
the torpedo.
When so much gas has passed through the valve, that its pressure has fallen
below useful effect, the remaining load on the valve will close it, before the return
rush of water takes place.
To
On the return rush taking place, the torpedo guide will be driven inboard.
assist the inward movement, should assistance be required, a toothed rack and
pinion are provided; or in lieu of a toothed rack, we may employ a chain, a screw,
a wire rope, or hand tackle.
To relieve the friction resistance caused by the side pressure of the sea
current, rollers may be provided in the outer tube, against which the inner tube
may bear.
In lieu of arresting the guide by means of a water lock, we sometimes provide
spring buffers, suitably arranged.
And in addition to forming a water-lock, we sometimes employ spring buffers,
to assist the arrest, and to assist the commencement of the return movement.
On the outside of the outer cylinder is fixed, a high pressure chamber, with
cartridge chamber, and perforated disc.
Also, a ventilating valve and pipe are fitted.
Dated this 29th day of March 1895
EDWARD W. LLOYD.
C. W. HUTCHINSON.
Improvements in Apparatus for the Launching of Locomotive
Torpedoes under Water.
We, EDWARD WILLIAM LLOYD, formerly a Commander in the British Navy,
and now of the Firm of Sir W. G. Armstrong, Mitchell & Co. Ld., of Elswick
Works, Newcastle-on-Tyne, and CHARLES WESLEY HUTCHINSON, of the same
place, Engineer, 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 more especially to apparatus for launching locomotive
torpedoes from the broadside of a ship by an impulse imparted by compressed gas.
The gas is obtained preferably by burning an explosive such as cordite in a
closed combustion chamber.
The apparatus consists of a fixed outer tube or casing closed by a door in rear
and fitted in front with a sluice valve which when the apparatus is not in use (and
at other times when required) serves to exclude the sea. The outer tube or casing
contains another tube which receives the torpedo within it, the same being admitted
by a door at the rear end of the inner tube; this inner tube we term the torpedo
guide.

page_text: Between the two tubes at their rear ends an annular space is provided terminating
in front at a gland formed in the outer tube about midway of its length. The
torpedo guide can travel longitudinally through this gland. Compressed gas from
the combustion chamber enters the annular space between the tubes and drives the
torpedo guide containing the torpedo forward until it is arrested by a hydraulic
buffer stop; so the torpedo guide is made to protrude from the casing. There is
a valve upon the rear door of the torpedo guide by which the compressed gas may
pass also into the interior of the torpedo guide and the gas so admitted into the
torpedo guide impinges upon the torpedo, drives it forward and launches it upon
its course.
-
There are grooves within the torpedo guide two or more from end to end of it
at the top and two or more at the bottom, and entering the grooves there are
corresponding ribs upon the torpedo extending a short distance along it where it is
of its greatest diameter.
The fore part of the torpedo guide which in the launching operation is protruded
from the ship's side is cut away on one side and so is somewhat of a trough like
form; hence as soon as the ribs upon the torpedo clear the guiding grooves the
torpedo is free and can escape more or less laterally.
The gaseous pressure is generated in a chamber preferably at the side of the
casing and communicating with the annular space within.
To moderate the rush of gas resulting when the charge of cordite or other
explosive is ignited the gas is checked and baffled by being made to pass through
The annular space
perforations in a plate and to flow in a circuitous course.
within the casing serves as an expansion chamber for the gases and the gases when
in this chamber exert a pressure in rear of the torpedo guide and drive it forward
as already explained. The valve for admitting the gas to the interior of the
torpedo guide is controlled by a cam surface, a spring, and a lever, so that the
pressure applied within and without the torpedo guide may be duly proportioned.
When the apparatus is used upon a ship in rapid motion the lateral pressure of
the water upon the fore part of the torpedo guide when protruded is very great ;
in order that the torpedo guide may work freely under this strain we provide
rollers upon the casing to support it.
We also provide a screw or other gear to withdraw the torpedo guide, if in any
case it should fail to return automatically.
In order that our invention may be fully understood we will proceed to describe
the drawings annexed.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal and horizontal section of launching apparatus arranged
in accordance with our invention.
Figures 2 and 3 are transverse sections of the same, the one near the fore end
and the other near the after end.
Figures 4 and 5 show the screw withdrawing gear; Figure 5 being a section on
the line 5, 5, in Figure 4.
a is the outer tube or casing, b is a sluice valve at its fore end and c is a portion
of the ship's side to which the sluice valve is fixed, d is a door which closes the
after end of the tube or casing a; this door is opened for the admission of the
e is the inner tube or
torpedo, and is closed and locked gas tight behind it.
torpedo guide, for half of its length it is cylindrical and it is held in a gland
formed in the casing at f. Hand gear, as seen at g in Figure 14 may be provided
to adjust the tightness of the gland. e¹e are guiding grooves passing from end to
end of the torpedo guide. is the torpedo, it is seen in its place within the
torpedo guide. It will be observed that both at the top and bottoin of the torpedo
guide a pair of grooves is provided and the torpedo has corresponding ribs; this
duplication of the grooves and ribs is found to be necessary to obtain sufficient
strength to withstand the strain in launching.
i is the door at the rear end of the torpedo guide, it opens to admit the
torpedo and closes watertight behind it; the door is provided with a suitable
fastening.

page_text: k is a valve of large area mounted on the door i, a pair of springs tend to hold
the valve to its seat; the principal spring k¹ abuts upon a lever l at one end and
upon a disc on the stem of the valve at the other end.
m is a cam like bar on which the lever bears, it is fixed within the
casing a.
The lever
when the torpedo guide travels forward within the casing moves,
as it may be controlled by the inclines upon the bar m and so the compression of
the spring is made to vary and the valve is allowed to open more or less
freely.
is the fore part of the torpedo guide which is protruded from the ship's side in
launching the torpedo; this part of the guide is open on the side facing the stern
of the ship to allow the torpedo to escape laterally. e e³ are holes formed in the
fore part of the torpedo guide, they serve for the water to stream through so that
the water passing the ship may have access to the hinder end of the torpedo before
it gets free of the guide.
nn are rollers on the casing to support the torpedo guide when protruded; they
allow it to move freely under the heavy cross strain to which it may be exposed.
o is a lug upon the after end of the torpedo guide, it serves to keep the torpelo
guide central in the casing. p is a cavity formed around the torpedo guide
and is a corresponding annular rib or thickening at the fore end of the casing.
When the torpedo guide arrives at the fore end of its course the rib q is received
into the cavity p and water is trapped and can only escape by narrow clearance
spaces; thus the torpedo guide is brought to rest without undue shock to the
mechanism.
t is the combustion chamber, in it there is a socket t¹ to receive a central fire
cordite cartridge. The chamber is closed behind the cartridge by a cover not shown.
The socket carries a bell like baffle « it is formed of a piece with the socket t' and its
stem is slit longitudinally.
21
When the cartridge is fired the gases issue by the slits and then are turned back
by the bell like baffle, they reach the exit from the chamber and this is guarded by
the perforated plate v; it further delays the exit of the gases. The apparatus is
used in the following way :-
The sluice valve & being closed the water is run out of the apparatus by opening
a drain cock which is fitted upon the fore part of the casing a a.
The rear
doors d and i are now opened, the torpedo is put into the torpedo guide and the
doors are closed and secured behind it. The sluice valve bis then opened; it
admits the sea water to the interior of the torpedo guide around the torpedo ;
finally a cartridge is placed and made ready for firing in the socket t' of the
combustion chamber.
On firing, the gas passes from the combustion chamber into the annular space
between the casing and the torpedo guide; it here expands and exerting a pressure
on the rear of the torpedo guide it drives it forward. If the gas be of sufficient
pressure, and it is intended that it should be, the valve k opens partially and admits
some of the gas into the interior of the torpedo guide. The gas so admitted
commences to drive the water out from behind the torpedo and to start the torpedo
itself into movement along the guide. When the torpedo guide reaches the fore end
of its course it is stopped by the hydraulic buffer stop as already described but
previous to this the valve k is allowed to open more freely by the operation of
the lever and the cam like bar m. By the rush of gas which then takes place
through the torpedo guide the torpedo is driven out with high velocity. When the
gases have escaped and it will be observed that for the most part they are
discharged outboard, the sea will return to the interior of the torpedo guide and
the water pressure will drive it rapidly back to its original position; if it should
stick it is brought back by the screws. The sluice cock b may now again
be closed.
Residual gases may be permitted to escape by opening a valve upon the flue
pipe w or the flue pipe valve may be arranged to open automatically.

page_text: Compressed air or gas from other sources may be used in place of that derived
from the combustion of an explosive or rapidly burning material.
The withdrawing gear is arranged and operates as follows:-r is an axis mounted
in a longitudinal pocket or recess in the outer tube a, it can be turned partly round
by means of a handle r' with which it is engaged by toothed arcs.
Upon the axis r there are eccentrics which impart movement to blocks s. s. s¹ s¹.
The blocks carry and support a screws which can be turned by a crank handle s³.
The screw is coupled with the handle in a manner which permits the lateral
movement of the former which the eccentrics impart. There is a horn on the
rear end of the torpedo guide, it has screw teeth upon it and the screw can be
brought into engagement with these teeth by the use of the handle r'. Then by
turning the handles the torpedo guide which cannot turn in the casing a is caused
to travel along it.
In conclusion we would remark that apparatus for ejecting torpedoes below
water have previously been made so that the guide or shield shall be pushed
out before the ejection of the torpedo and in a separate motion, or so that
the ejection of the torpedo and of the guide shall be done in one and the
same motion. By our invention we take a third cause lying between the two
just named. The guide is pushed out before the ejection of the torpedo, but the
operations follow one another automatically and require but one action on the part
of the operator.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner
tube receiving the torpedo within it and serving as a torpedo guide, a gland in the
casing through which the torpedo guide can slide, means for admitting compressed
fluid to the space between the two tubes in rear of the gland and also into the inner
tube or torpedo guide in rear of the torpedo.
2. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, means for admitting compressed fluid to a confined space between
them, and a loaded valve upon the torpedo guide allowing some of the compressed
fluid to enter into the torpedo guide behind the torpedo when its pressure is sufficient
to lift the valve.
3. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, means for admitting compressed fluid to a confined space between
them, a valve upon the torpedo guide allowing some of the fluid to enter the torpedo
guide behind the torpedo and an inclined cam like surface controlling the opening
of the valve.
4. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, a gland in the casing through which the torpedo guide can slide,
means for admitting compressed fluid to the confined space between the casing and
the torpedo guide, and gearing on the exterior of the casing for regulating the
tightness of the gland.
5. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, means for protruding the torpedo guide from the casing, rollers
upon the casing enabling the torpedo guide to move freely when protruded and means
for ejecting the torpedo from the inner tube or torpedo guide.
6. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, means for protruding the torpedo guide from the casing, and a
cavity in which water is confined by the torpedo guide as it comes to the outer end
of iis course whereby the movement of the torpedo guide is checked.
7. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, a plurality of guiding grooves at the top of the torpedo guide, a
plurality of guiding grooves at the bottom of the torpedo guide, a torpedo with ribs
upon it corresponding to the grooves in the torpedo guide, means for propelling the

page_text: torpedo guide along the casing and means for ejecting the torpedo from the torpedo
guide.
8. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide and a screw which can be put into or out of gear with the inner
tube and when in gear will serve to withdraw the torpedo guide if it should fail to
return automatically.
9. Torpedo launching apparatus comprising an outer tube or casing, an inner tube
or torpedo guide, a space enclosed between the casing and the torpedo guide, a
combustion chamber communicating with the enclosed space and a perforated
partition moderating the rush of gases into the enclosed space.
10. Torpedo launching apparatus for ejecting torpedoes below water substantially
as described in which the water is wholly or partially ejected from a tube forming
the guide or shield leaving at a certain moment a space within this tube which is
occupied by gas or compressed air.
11. Torpedo launching apparatus substantially as described in which water having
been ejected together with the torpedo by gas or air from the interior of the tube
forming the shield or guide, the inward rush or recoil of water which takes place
after the gas or air has condensed or escaped from the tube, shall by giving a blow
to the tube start it into motion and force it inwards.
12. Torpedo launching apparatus substantially as described in which the gas
used to eject the torpedo below water, escapes into the water, so that the objection
which might otherwise arise to allow this gas to escape in large volume inboard is
avoided.
Dated this 24th day of December 1895
EDWARD W. LLOYD.
C. W. HUTCHINSON.