US1008301A

US1008301A - Submarine workshop.

Info

Publication number: US1008301A
Application number: US59574910A
Authority: US
Inventors: William H Baker
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1910-12-05
Filing date: 1910-12-05
Publication date: 1911-11-14
Anticipated expiration: 1928-11-14

Description

W. H. BAKER.

SUBMARINE WORKSHOP.

APPLICATION FILED DEG. 5, 1910.

1,008,301. Patented Nov. 14, 1911.

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W. H. BAKER.

SUBMARINE WORKSHOP.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 5, I910.

Patented Nov. 14, 1911.

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WILLIAM H. BAKER, F BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT.

SUBIVIARINE WORKSHOP.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. BAKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, county of Fairfield, State of Connecticut, have invented an Improvement in Submarine Workshops, of which the following is a specification. v

This invention has for its object to provide a structure which I term a submarine workshop and which is especially adapted for use in submarine operations at a great depth and where operations must be continued for a considerable length of time.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a structure of this character by means of which operations may be continued for any length of time under high pressure and the operatives may be housed at the point of operations and may remain under the high pressure until the operations are completed, thus avoiding the danger of caisson disease, so called, which is supposed to be caused by the operative changing from the high pressure at which submarine operations are necessarily carried on to atmospheric pressure.

A further object of the invention is to so construct a submarine workshop that escape of the operatives therefrom shall be provided for in case of emergency.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in certain constructions and in certain parts, improvements and combinations which will be hereinafter described and then specifically pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a vertical section, partly broken away, of my novel submarine workshop on the line 1] in Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows; and Fig. 2 is a transverse section, partly broken away, on the line 22 in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

The body of the structure is cylindrical in form and comprises an outer wall 5, an inner wall 6 and radial partitions 7 between said walls by which the space is divided into living rooms 8.

9 denotes the bottom which is provided with an opening having gates 12, and 10 the working floor which is provided with an opening having gates 13. Between the bottom and floor 10 is a compartment 11 Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 5, 1910.

Patented Nov. 14, 1911.

Serial No. 595,749.

which is adapted to receive water or other ballast. l

The roof of the body is indicated by 14 and between this roof and floor 10 is a floor 20, thus providing two stories or tiers of living and working rooms in the body.

Inner wall 6 extends above roof 14: forming a tower which is indicated by 6. The upper end of the tower comprises an observatory 15 which is provided with windows 16 having protective gratings 17. The tower is provided with floors 21 and 22, thus providing additional working and living rooms, indicated by 55. It will of course be understood that as many floors or stories in both the body and tower as may be required for the comfort of the operatives and for carrying on any special kind of work are within the scope of the invention.

23 denotes vertical pillars or supports which extend from the bottom 9 to the roof 18 of the tower.

24: denotes stairs and 25 ladders which are provided between the floors, as may be required.

The inner wall 6 is provided with doors 56 giving access to the several rooms on each floor of the body.

26 denotes tubes (one only being shown) which extend through the bottom and through floors 10 and 20, and 27 cables in said tubes to which heavy weights or anchors 28 are attached. These cables lead over suitable guide pulleys to windlasses 29.

30 denotes motors, usually internal combustion engines, which are located on floor 10 and are supplied with liquid fuel by means of pipes 31 1eading from tanks 32 which are located outside of the structure and are secured to outer wall 5 by suitable brackets. A plurality of motors is provided in order that repairs may be made upon one motor while another is in operation. Suitable machinery is provided for the work required and is located on workingfioor 10.

33 denotes an air pump by which air is drawn into the structure through an air supply pipe 34, the upper end of which is carried by a raft 35.

36 denotes an oil pipe by which oil may be forced upward and distributed upon the water above the raft in case of high waves.

The roof 14 of the body is provided with escape openings 37 having closures 39. Sun

rounding these openings on the under side are collars l1 secured to the roof. Above openings 37 are tloatable escape chambers 43 which are constructed to withstand great pressure and are provided with corresponding openings having closures ist. The lower end of each chamber consists of a ballast collar which is made extremely heavy and serves to ballast the chamber and hold it in the upright position when released. These chambers are normally secured to the roof of the body in any suitable manner as by bolts l6 which. pass through the roof and through collars L5 and 41. Each escape chamber is provided with a door L7 and carries a pump 48 by which when the chamber rises to the surface, air may be drawn in to supply the occupants and the pressure in the chamber may be regulated.

4-9 denotes the main floatable escape chamher which normally rests upon cradle members 19 secured to the roof 18 of the tower. The roof 18 of the tower is provided with an escape opening 38 over which. chamber 49 is placed, said opening being provided with a closure 40 and on its under side with a collar 1-2. The escape chamber is provided with a corresponding opening having a closure 50. The lower end of the chamber is provided with a heavy collar 51 which serves to ballast the chamber and hold it in an upright position when released, the same as chambers as. Chamber 49 is normally secured to the roof of the tower by bolts 52 which.

pass through the roof and through collars the same as chambers 13.

The operation of my novel submarine workshop is as follows: The structure is supplied with food, tools and material for use in submarine work, operatives are taken 5 aboard and lodged in the various compart ments and then the structure is towed to the position at which operations are to be undertaken. Cables 27 are then paid out until the anchors 28 rest upon the bottom. Then .50 water is admitted to compartment 11 which partly overcomes the flotation of the structure so that it may be drawn downward by winding the cables on the windlasses until the structure rests on the bottom or until the 55 doors 12 in the bottom are properly located with reference to a wreck, submarine foundation or other structure upon which it is desired to operate. lVhen the structure is located or when the pressure of the water renders it necessary or desirable, a motor is started to operate the pump and air is drawn down through pipe 3-1 until the air pressure within the structure is equal to or greater than. the pressure of the water. When the air pressure within the structure exceeds the pressure of the water,

doors

12 and 13 may be opened and operations carried on through the openings in floor 10 and the bottom or by divers who leave the structure and return through these openings. Operations may be carried on continuously by shifts of workmen, those off: duty being furnished with eating and sleeping accommodations in the various rooms without material variation in the air pressure, thus preventing the variations in air pressure which are unavoidable when workmen are returned to the surface after completing their shift of work, and doing away with the principal cause of caisson disease.

If during the operations it becomes necessary or desirable for one or more of the workmen to leave the structure, he or they enter an escape chamber 5L3 or 49, secure the closure and loosen the retaining bolts, which releases the chamber and permits it to rise to the surface where it floats in an upright position owing to the ballast collar. As the air pressure within the chamber is approximately that of the main structure, it is reduced gradually to or below twenty pounds at which pressure the occupants may safely leave it.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. A submarine structure of the character described provided with a bottom wall, a working floor of equal area with said bottom wall, the space between said bottom wall and floor forming a ballast compartment, a living room above said floor, means for sup plying air to said living room, and centrally located gates in said bottom wall and floor, whereby when the pressure within the structure is equal to or greater than the water pressure operations may be carried on through said gates.

2. A structure of the character described comprising a bottom and a working floor,

between said bottom and floor a ballast compartment, above said floor a living room, gates in said bottom and floor, for the purpose set forth, a tube extending upward tl'irough'said bottom and floor, a windlass, acable from the windlass passing through the tube and an anchor attached to the cable, whereby when the ballast compartment is filled the structure may be drawn down ward. I

3. The combination with a structure comprising a bottom and a working floor, between said bottom and floor a ballast compartment, gates in said bottom and floor and above said floor a living room, of a pump within the structure, an air pipe leading thereto, a raft by which the other end of the air pipe is supported and an oil pipe extending from the structure to the raft.

t. A submarine structure of the character described provided with a room having an escape opening, a closure therefor, in com bination with an escape chamber having an extension coinciding with the said escape opening, a closure for the inner end of said extension, and means operable within the escape chamber and extending through the wall of said extension for detachably securing the latter to said structure.

5. The combination with a structure adapted to be lowered in the water and having a living room and an escape opening provided with a closure, of an escape chamber having a corresponding opening and a closure therefor, a ballast collar, for the purpose set forth, and bolts extending through said collar and engaging the structure, whereby the chamber is detachably secured to the structure.

6. The combination with a structure adapted to be lowered in the Water and having a living room and an escape opening provided with a closure, of an escape chamber having a corresponding opening and a closure therefor, means for detachably securing said chamber to the structure and an air pump within the chamber.

7. A structure of the character described comprising a cylindrical body having a ballast compartment at the bottom, gates for said compartment, means for supplying air to the structure and a central tower extending above the body.

. 8. A structure of the character described comprising a cylindrical body having a bottom and a working floor, both provided with gates, a plurality of living rooms in stories above the working floor and vertical pillars extending from the bottom and through all the floors to the roof.

9. A structure of the character described motor in one of said rooms, a liquid fuel reservoir exterior to the structure and a supply pipe from the reservoir to the motor.

10. A structure of the character described comprising a lower ballast compartment, an intermediate living compartment, and an u per escape chamber in combination with means operable from within said escape chamber for detachably connecting the latter to one wall of said living compartment.

11. A structure of the character described comprising a lower ballast compartment, an intermediate living compartment provided with a roof having an escape opening, and an upper escape chamber over said escape opening, in combination with means operable from within said escape chamber for detachably connecting the latter to said roof.

12. A structure of the character described comprising inner and outer cylindrical walls, said inner wall being extended above the body of the structure to form a tower, a ballast compartment at the bottom of the structure and means for supplying air to the structure.

13. A structure of the character described comprising inner and outer cylindrical walls, said inner wall being extended above the body of the structure to form a tower, floors in both the body and the tower, a ballast compartment at the bottom having upper and lower openings, gates for closing said openings and means for causing any required air pressure within the structure.

In testimony whereof I affix my signaturein'presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM H. BAKER.

Witnesses:

WALTER E. GURRIER, FRANK L. GIBBY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C.