US1035573A

US1035573A - Armor-plate.

Info

Publication number: US1035573A
Application number: US67385012A
Authority: US
Inventors: Louis Gathmann
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1912-01-27
Filing date: 1912-01-27
Publication date: 1912-08-13
Anticipated expiration: 1929-08-13

Description

L. GA'IHMANN.

ARMOR PLATE.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

tra srara ra'rnar arten.

LOUIS GATHMAN, 0F WASHINGTON, DISTtICT OF COLUMBIA.

ARMOR-PLATE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Aug. i3, MM2

Application flied January 27, 1912. seran No. Grasso.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Louis GATHMANN, a citizen of the United States, residing in Washington, District of Columbia, have iu.- v'ented certain new and useful Improve- `ments in Armor-Plates, of which the folpreventit from piercing the plate.

Another object of my invention is-to provide improved means for absorbing the shocks o1" explosion above and below Athe water line.

In carrying out my invention I form armor plate 1on its outer side with horizontallylarranged ribs with intervening grooves and preferably so form such ribs and grooves that die upper face of each rib lis inclined to a greateriextent than the lower tace thereof, so that a projectile when entering a groove Vwill strike the face of the rib having the greatest inclination and glance upward therefrom. In rear of each groove I form a horizontally disposed chamber which is so arranfred that that part of the wall of the chamber` which is locatedlin the lower part of the rib and above the subjacent groove will be thinner than the wall pf the upper Vpart of the chamber. In this way each rib is provided with a part having less resistance than other parts, and thispart of least resistance is so located that when a projectile strikes the top of a rib it will glance and be directedtoward the part of least resistance, the projectile being turned or tilted and its penetrating power being destroyed or reduced, in many cases the projectile being fractured by reason of its side wall coming in contact with the ribbed surface of the plate. In order to protect the hull of the vessel l below the water line from the shocks of explosion of torpedoes, shells, etc. I :torni the armor plate with a downwardly projecting relatively thin extension having an outwardly extending flange at its lower end to which is secured the lower end of an outer' plate the upper-end of which" is `secured to the lowermost rib ot' the armor plate. The armor plate is shouldered and. rests on the top of the Cotter-dam in the hull ot the vessel while the extension covers the collerdam to a sutticient extent.' In this way a hollow shoclrabsorbing belt is obtained which can be applied at the same time with the armor plate there being no weak joint or part between the armor plate and the belt.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of a combined armor plate and shocleabsorbing belt, constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail view onan enlarged scale and in section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l. Figs. 3

. and 4 are detail views in section-ot certain modifications.

A indicates the armor plate and B the shock-absorbing belt. The plate A is provided at the :trout with parallel horizontally arranged ribs a' separated by intervening grooves a3 and each rib is formed with a horizontally disposed chamber a, each two chambers being separated by a solid part of the plate. It will be observed that the upper face of each rib is inclined to a much greater extent than the lower face thereotl and that the wall y of each chamber a in the lower part of the adjacent rib is considerably thinner than the wall y in the upper .part thereof. In this way I provide a part having less resistance than the other parts and this part is so located that when a projectile strikes the inclined upper tace of a rib, as indicated in F ig. 2, it will glance, tilt and strike and shatter the wall g/ and will then further tilt and its side will strike the rib immediately below it and cause the projectile t0 fracture. In this way thepenc- 'trating power of the projectile is destroyed or reduced. The construction is also such lthat the weight ot' the plate is very nia- The chambered and ribbed armor plate A may have a backing A', as shown, although this is not essential. The plate A is formed with a shoulder a2 which rests on the top of the cofendam E and it is formed integrally with a downwardly extending port-ion Z1 which covers the upper portion of the Cotter-dam and protects it. At its lower end the extension b is formed with a forwardly projecting flange b2 to which is secured the lower end of a relatively thin plate b3, the upper end of which is secured to the lowermost rib a of the armor plate. In this way a chamber b is formed which may be closed at opposite ends and which constitutes an air chamber. In order to drain o' any water that may cnter it -I provide a draining tube D. In this way l can conveniently apply a shock-absorbing belt to a vessel at the same time that the armor plate is applied. The combined armor plate and shocleabsorbing belt are readily placed on the upper part of the Colfer-dam. There is no weak joint or weak part between the belt and armor plate and the extension Z7 serves to reinforce the plate and the hull of the vessel.

The armor plate may be made in various ways, either by forming chambers or chanl nels in the ribs, in the manner indicated in Fig. 1, or the plate may be made in two sections, as shown in Fig. 3, ythechannels or chambers being arraiigetl partly in both sections. Or, as shown in Fig. 4, recesses may be formed in the, ri-bs which extend through the back of the plate and the plate thus formed may be secured to a plate C as shown in Fi 4. l

Other modlficat-ions of the invention may be made without departing from the novel features of my invention. Y I claim as my invention:

1. Armor plate formed on its front wall with chambered ribs, each of which has a projectile-receivin wall made thicker and thus of greater' resistance than its other wall which is made relatively weak to receive the point of the projectile glancing from the thicker wall of an adjacent rib.

2. Armor plate formed on its front face with' chambered ribsv having walls of less walls, are formed to have less resistance to e penetration of a projectile than thc upperv walls thereof. n j

5. An armor plate formed on its frontl face with chambered ribs, each having a projectile-receiving wall made of'greater varea and of greater resistance than thje other wall which is made relatively weak to receive the p oint of the projectile.

6. Armor plate formed on its front `face with chambered ribs having their upper faces inclined to a greater extent than their lower faces, while the lower iyalsot Asaid ribs are made thinner than tlie"upper walls thereof. f 1

7. Armor plate having a downwardly extending portion formed integrally with lit tou form one wall of a shocle. bsorbing belt andl to protect the hull of a ivessel below the water line. Y

8. Armor late having aidownwardly extendin portion formed integrally with it to' form t e inner wall of ashock-absorbingii .SER

belt, and a front plate secured to the'armor plate and to the downwardly extending portion thereof. j

9. Armor plate having a downwardly extending portlon formed integrally with it to ,form the inner Awall of a-shock-absorbing belt, and having a forwardly projecting, ange at its lower end and an outer plate secured at its lower end to said flange andat its upper end to said armor-plate there being outer plates for the purpose specified.

LOUIS GATHMANhI.

Witnesses:

PAUL J. vChrrHMANN, M. E. BURRELL.

a chamber between the inner and