US10891A - Method oe unloading canal-boats and other vessels - Google Patents

Description

To all whom t may concern UNITED PATENT onirica.

VVILLHIAM` LQUGHRIDGE, OF WEVERTON, MARYLAND.

METHOD or `Unioni)Ins CANAL-BOATS AND OTHER vnssELs.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 10,891, datedlVIay 9, 1854.

Be it known that I,WILLIAM LOUGHRIDGE, of leverton, in the county ofWVashington and `State of Maryland, have invented a new and useful Improvementin the Mode of Unloading Canal-Boats and` other Vessels; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and eXact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, forming part of this specification, `in whichi.

Figure l is a plan of thechamber, with the boat in the position for unloading. Fig. 2 is a section upon the line a" a' of F ig.` l.

Fig. 3 is a section upon the line yy of Fig.

9., showing the manner in which` my invention is applied. valves f for closing t-he inner portion of the openings in the bottom of the boat.

Similar letters in the several figures indi i cate the saine part.

The object ofmy invention is to facilitate `the unloading of canal boats and other vessels, by placing` them in a dock or chamber, from which the water may be withdrawn;

and then discharging `the cargo through apertures made for that purpose inthe bottom of the boat, on b oth sides of the keel `or Icenter: these apertures whichmay be either round orI square being surrounded by a frame or casing of wood, iron, or other `material closely and securely fastened to the ribs and bottom of the boat.

The apertures to be coveredby a sliding valve, which may be withdrawn at pleasure through a groove between the ribs of the boat, by a c hain or rodattached to said slide, andpassing under the fioorof the boat to the side, and under a roller up the side to the deck, where it is to be operated by a lever, screw, or other device of sufficient power to withdraw the valve or cover, and open the aperture. The

under side of theaperture to be closed by a dock for that purpose. The `chamber or Figa is a plan of the ldock should rest upon `posts or pillars and Qbeopenbeneath, and the `bottom of said chamber must be provided with apertures i corresponding in number and; position with those inthe bottom of the boat, each covered with a sliding" valve to be removed after the water is., drawn off, when the cargo is'discharged as will` be hereafter described. In the drawing A represents `the chamber, supported by the posts B, and having the cross timbers()` on which the boat isto rest; between these timbers C are the apertures a covered with the valves D.

p E is the gate for the admission of water l and F the one by which the water is let off.

To illustrate the operation of my improvement the chamber `is represented as being i above a river and having its `openings a connected with a chute Gr leading to a vessel H. The boat I is constructed as usual except that in the bottom are the apertures b between the `timbers of the boat,` which are cased with iron orwood1 and closed `on the exterior by i the doors `o having beveled edges and fitting itightly intothe openings; thesedoors being lined with leather, gutta percha or any other water tight material. The inner portion of the aperture is covered with the valve f each pair connected by the rods a and attached to the chain e so as to be capable ofsliding into the chamber Z when the aperture is to be opened as shown in Figs. 2 & 4. Vhen closed the valve f and door o are secured by the screw g, thus rendering the aperture impervious to water, and presenting on the inside no obstruction to the stowing of the cargo, while the exterior surface of the door c being Hush with the bottom of the boat prevents it from injuring the sailing qualities of the vessel. In the middle of the boat is the beveled partition it giving the interior the form of two hoppers leading to the apertures. d

The operation of my improvement is as follows: The valves c and f having-been properly closed as above described, the boat is loaded with coal, grain or any thing capable of being unloaded by my method. On the arrival of the boat at the discharging point, the chamber A is thrown open andthe boat floated in. The gates E are then closed and the water discharged; the boat on the discharge of the water will rest on the cross timbers C, as seen in Fig. l; the apertures b being directly over those in the dock. After the water has been entirely discharged from the chamber A the sliding valves D are withdrawn from the apertures a, and the doors c covering the apertures b in the boat removed by withdrawing the screws g. All being ready for the discharge of the cargo, the sliding valves f are drawn back by the levers attached to the chains e, and rest in the recesses CZ, permitting thecoal, grain or other cargo to be precipitated through the apertures in the bottom of the boat and the corresponding apertures in the bottom of the dock or chamber, into descending or inclined planes or chutes, by which it will be conveyed to the vessel, railway car, ware house, or other place of deposit to which it may be desired to transship the cargo of said boat. v To suit the locality various modifications of the above described arrangement may be made; among which I mention constructing the chamber as described for receiving the boat, which on -the discharge of the water settles down` upon a truck, upon which it is drawn forward to the chutes, and the cargo discharged as before. This is applicable to the ease where the point of deposit is necessarily a greater distance from the canal than would under the application of the described arrangement be convenient. Other modiiications may be made, but as they will readily suggest themselves in practice it will be needless to mention them.

The valves in the bot-tom of the chamber A are moved by the rods m having on their under surfaces the racks n meshing into a cogged pinion operated by a wheel p as shown in Fig. 3, or by any analogous device that will give the requisite power. y

I am aware thatvessels have been made with valves or traps yin their bottoms, for the discharge of their loads of earth, mud, &c., as in the case of I. R. Putnams patent of May 6th 184:1 and the withdrawn case of Sophia Putnam, of June 28th 184:7; I am also aware that vessels have been floated into dry docks, and the water drawn off through valves, leaving the vessel. dry and supported upon blocks or upon trucks. I therefore do not claim originality in contriving either of these devices; or in that of the chute. But What I do claim as new, is the method or process of unloading vessels described above,

by means of th'e combined arrangement of the vessel with valves in the bottom, the dry dock with valves immediately below those in the vessel, and the chutes to carry ofi:1 the load into boats or other receptacles placed below, but not immediately under the elevated dry dock all as aboveV described; thereby expediting the discharge of cargoes, and economizing labor, time, and money.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name before two subscribing witnesses.

WM. LOUGHRIDGE.

Witnesses:

J. DIXON ROMAN, WM P. ELLIOT.

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