US1030580A - Device or appliance for the protection of canal-lock gates. - Google Patents

Description

N. W. GOWAN.

DEVICE 0B. APPLIANCE FOR THE PROTECTION OF CANAL LOOK GATES.

- APPLICATION FILED nun. 9, 1911.

1,030,580, Patented June 25,1912. 7

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UNITED STATES PATEN T UFFICEQ NASSAU WILKINSON GOWAN, OF ST. CATHARINES, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIG-NOR OF THREE-FIFTHS T0 JAMES BATTLE, OF THOROLD, CANADA.

DEVICE OB APPLIANCE FOR PROTECTION OF CANAL-LOCK GATES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NASSAU WILKINSON GOWAN, of the city of St. Catharines, in the county of Lincoln, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, gentleman, having invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices or Appliances for the Protection of Canal-Lock Gates do hereby declare that the following is-a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements in devices or appliances for the protection of canal lock-gates; and the objects of my invention arefirst to protect and guard against canal lock-gates from being carried away and torn from their holdings or positions by accidental or other contact with vessels entering canal locks; sec 0nd, to insure a true mitering of such lock gates; and third, to insure the lock gates remaining in the quoins provided for them. I attain these objects by the device or appliance illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a plan of a pair of lock gates mitered in the usual closed position showing the position of the upper pair of fingers on the gates. Fig. 2, is a plan showing the position of the gates when one of them is struck by a vessel and pushed partly open and showing how the finger a supports the end of the gate leaf Z) holding it in its normal. position.

a represents a finger firmly attached to the gate leaf b a represents a finger firmly attached to the gate leaf Z) 0 represents the direction of water pressure.

d and (Z represents recesses in the lock wall to receive the finger a and 0/ when the gates are open.

6 represents the bow of a vessel striking one leaf of the gate.

The number of fingers to be attached to Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 9, 1911.

Patented June 25, 1912.- Serial No. 613,460.

each gate leaf will depend on the height of the gates, their vertical strength and the pressure of water against them, the object being to have sufficient fingers on the gate leaf 6, for instance, to hold it in position when its supporting leaf Z) is driven away from it. The fingers are arranged in pairs on the different leaves of the gate in such a manner that the fingers on one leaf will be both inside, or in the alternative will be both outside, the fingers on the other gate. The reason for the fingers being so placed is to counteract the tendency of one leaf to lift up when the other is struck by a vessel.

At present when a vessel strikes one leaf of a lock gate, and they very rarely strike exactly in the angle between the leaves, one leaf is forced open and away from the other leaf andthis leaf losing its support is invariably carried away by the pressure of water against it, but by reason of this invention attached as above described, the lock gate loaves, even when subjected to such pressure, are held from being carried away and when the vessel recedes in the lock the leaves, being guided by the fingers, return to their normal and correct position. In building new gates the fingers might economically form part of the regular construction instead of being attached as above described.

I claim as my invention The combination with canal lock-gates of guide fingers secured to the meeting edges thereof and overlapping each other, whereby said gates are prevented from being carried away by pressure or rush of water when they have been accidentally forced apart by the impact of a vessel and are guided to normal position when such impact is removed.

NASSAU WILKINSON GOVVAN.

In the presence of THOMAS FRANCIS BATTLE, WVINNIFRED STEVENS.

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

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