US2398815A - Submarine signaling - Google Patents

Description

E. E. TURNER, JR

' SUBMARINE f-IGNALING April 23, 1946.

Filed April 1, 1941 INVENTOR v EDwaN E. TURNER,JR. WM

ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 23, 1946 ATENT OFFICE SUBMARINE SIGNALING Edwin E.- Turner, Jr., West Roxbury, Mass., as signor toSubmarine Signal Company, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Maine Application April 1, 1941, Serial No. 386,311

12 Claims.

The present invention relates to the mounting and installation of submarine signaling apparatus on a vessel.

One of the greatest obstacles in the way of clear reception of submarine sound signals is extraneous noises in the vicinity of the receiving apparatus which for the most part raises the noise to signal ratio so that good reception is made difficult. This difficulty is observed in both sound ranging in which a directed high frequency sound beam is sent towards an object which reflects a reflected impulse and in the directive listening wherein a sound signal or noise is picked up by the listening vessel from some other vessel in the vicinity whereby the vessels direction is determined.

In order to determine direction of an oncoming sound Wave, particularly in the higher frequency ranges, that is at or above the limit of audibility,

the installation must be such that the sound passes to the pickup units without being altered in direction. It is obvious that if the installation on mounting is such that the sound pattern of the receiver is changed from its normal form, or if the sound pattern is-so distorted that the receiver no longer possesses its directive qualities, or if the sound is dispersed so that its direction at the receiver is no indication of the direction of. the sound source, it follows that the receiver or pickup units will not function properly to determine direction of the sound or the direction of the reflecting sound source.

For lower frequencies tank-mounted installations within a vessel have proven in many cases to be satisfactory. However, such installations are not as sensitive as installations externally of the vessel and deeper down in the water and for higher frequencies for various reasons, reception becomes generally poorer for this type of installation. As an alternative or perhaps an improvement upon tank-mounted installation within the vessel, particularly at high frequencies, it has been a common practice to project the soundprojecting or receiving unit which usually has directive qualities of reception, below the vessel from a sea chest and to rotate the sound receiver or sound projector from within the vessel. These devices have been made spherical in shape in order to decrease the water noise, particularly the noise created by the vessel moving through the water. However, considerable noise may still be created because of the projecting shaft and various other elements in the unit itself. In order to overcome these efiects I have created an entirely new type of installation which has a great number of advantages both in its construction and in its utility of operation.

In the present invention the unit is mounted externally of the vessel and joined to the vessel along a peripheral surface, When the apparatus is to be used for sound reception, the housing externally of the vessel is inflated by fluid means which may be the same liquid through'which the soundis propagated which is pumped into the enclosure formed by the flexible housing attached to the vessel and the vessel. The housing, when inflated, preferably is made to assume a shape whereby when the vessel is in motion, water will flow past it with a minimum of water noise. The shape should also be such that a positive pressure is built up at the front part of the unit well around towards the sides so that it is desirable under these conditions not to create pressure-release surfaces until towards the rear portion of the structure. The sound-projecting or pickup units are operative entirely within the expanding yielding enclosure, preferably in the portion towards the front, in a quiet medium in which it may be rotated or directed in the desired direction. The casing of the yielding cover is preferably made of a sound-transparent or substantially sound-transparent material so that the compressional waves approaching from any direction to the unit will not be interfered with or reflected as it passes through the wall of the unit. The unit preferably extends longitudinally with the keel of the vessel and, if desired, the receiving unit within the casing may be shielded from the ships propeller noises or from noises approaching from other sectors of the vessel. Shielding may be provided not only from the ship's propeller sounds but also from sounds transmitted through the hull by using shielding means in various portions within the section of the skin of the vessel partitioned off by the clamping unit. In addition to this, the clamping unit holding the yielding casing to the skin of the vessel may be of such size and mass that noises approaching to the housing so formed by the ring will be reflected back in the skin from the direction from which they came.

The present invention also provides a distinct advantage in that when the sound pickup units are wholly withdrawn within the vessel, the

yielding cover or casing may be sucked up against the skin of the vessel, thereby permitting the vessel to proceed in the water without resistance and also permitting the vessel to be drydocked for repairs without the danger of the unit or even the casing itself being harmed.

The invention will be more fully described in connection with the drawing in which Fig. 1 shows a mid-vertical section of the device as installed in the vessel, Fig. 2 shows a plan view as viewed from the bottom of Fig. l; and Fig. 3 shows a fragmentary section of the view shown in Fig. l.

In Fig. 1 the skin of the vessel is represented as I. To this. on a suitable flat portion of the vessel in the vicinity of the keel, is built up a large fairing plate 2 which may be of the order of 15 to 20 feet long and 4 to 8 feet wide. This fairing plate is welded or riveted to the skin I to form a substantially smooth and continuous surface with the skin. The plate 2 is provided with a recess or groove 3 extending in a continnous curve in its flat surface which, in conjunction with a similar recess 5 in the top clamping member 4, provides a cavity to contain and grip the yielding housing 6. The groove or recess 3 in the fairing plate 2 is of an oval shape and similarly also with the recess in the clamping plate 4. The clamping plate I. however, is provided with a shoulder 8 parallel with the surface of the fairing plate 2, which shoulder gradually is curved backwards at the surface 9 against which the yielding cover or housing'B may rest. The yielding casing or housing 6 is preferably made of a uniform extensible material such as gum rubber, or similar compounds, and may before inflation lie flat against the ship's skin within the clamped area, but, if desired, the unit may be made of a canvas or somewhat similar type fabric which is substantially yielding and flexible or semi-flexible, but not substantially extensible, in which case the housing 6 must be substantially shaped to conform to the desired shape of the housing or casing when in use. When a flat sheet of rubber is used, the peripheral edges may be reinforced under the clamping region with fabric or cord so as to confine the extensibility of the material beyond the clamping surfaces. The casing 6, when inflated by means of the pump III, which may use the external water medium through the connection II and the valve I2, is extended by the pressure which is set up within the housing I3 to a form somewhat like that shown in Fig. 1, which is substantially similar to one-half ellipse of revolution with the front end a little larger but of substantially the same sharpness or pointedness as in the rear end. The sound-propagating or pickup unit I4 is projected into the medium or space I3 of the housing by means of the shaft I5 extending through the sea chest I6 in the usual manner. The unit is positioned forward of the center so that a substantial forward angle of 180 or more, as defined by lines from the unit to the housing, contain the housing surface on which only positive pressure is built up by the motion of the vessel in the water and is held in place against upward pressure within the housing by suitable means not shown. The unit I I may be rotated by any well-known means by rotation of the shaft I5 so that it can be used to pick up sounds approaching in any direction. When the unit is not in use, the shaft I5 is raised and the unit I4 withdrawn into the housing I6. The liquid in the space I 3 may then be sucked in through the pump I0, in which position the skin will be held against the skin I of the vessel. In this construction the sound approaching from directions forward and to the side of the vessel will penetrate without distortion into the medium in the space I3 and will be received by the unit I 4 without any distortion. Under this condition whatever directional qualities are given to the unit I4, they may be utilized fully and completely without interruption in determining the direction of the sound source. The casing or cover 6 may. if desired, be removed when the vessel is docked by taking out or loosening the clamping screws I I and then pulling out the entire cover. The shape and size of the cover 6 are determined to some degree by the conditions under which the device is to be used. If only forward directions are desired, the forward portion of the unit may be made blunter and deeper than the rear portions of the unit, but if it is desired to build up pressure for better reception along towards the after portion of the unit, the unit will be less blunt and more uniform. On the whole, however, it will be desirable to place the receiving or projecting unit slightly forward of the center portion of the unit, as in this case a greater receiving direction can be maintained.

It may be desirable also to change somewhat the shape of the unit with the speed and characteristics of the vessel, but on the whole these will not vary greatly from the shape described above.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

1. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising a flexible yielding skin forming an elongated body extending substantially parallel with the normal forwardsmotion of the vessel and approximately streamlined, means for inflating said body with a sound-propagating medium, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned therein.

2. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising a flexible yielding skin, means clamping the skin at its edges to the bottom of the vessel. means for inflating said skin with a sound-propagating medium and forming an elongated body extending substantially parallel with the forward motion of the vessel, said body being approximately streamlined, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned therein.

3. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising a flat flexible extensible yielding skin having it periphery attached to the skin of the vessel, means for inflating the skin to form an elongated substantially streamlined body extending in the direction forward and aft of the vessel, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within said inflated body.

4. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising an extensible flexible yielding skin having its edges attached to the surface of the vessel, means for inflating said skin to form with the surface of the vessel a body of substantially elongated oval shape, and submarine-signaling means adapted to be positioned within said elongated body.

5. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising an extensible flexible yielding skin having its edges attached to the surface of the vessel, means for inflating said skin to form with the surface of the vessel a body of substantially elongated oval shape, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within said elongated body, said submarine signaling means being positioned forward of the central section of said body.

6. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling mean comprising an extensible flexible yielding skin having its edges attached to the surface of the vessel, means for inflating said skin to form with the surface of the vessel a body of substantially elongated oval shape, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within said elongated body, said submarine signaling means being positioned within said body whereby the forward 180 section formed with the submarine signaling means as a vertex includes portions of the surface of said body which is substantially at all times under positive pressure,

'7. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comtached to the skin of the vessel, said body being approximately 15 feet or more long and 4 to 8 feet in width, means for inflating said body with a sound-propagating medium, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within the vessel and extended into the medium within said body.

9. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising a flexible yielding skin forming an elongated body of substantially semi-oval form attached to the skin of the vessel, said body being approximately 15 feet or more long and 4 to 8 feet in width, means for inflating said body with a sound-propagating medium, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within the vessel and extended into the medium within said body, said submarine signaling means adapted to be rotated and having directional properties whereby the position of said means corresponds to a given direction of the sound source.

10. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising a flexible yielding skin forming an elongated body of substantially semi-oval form attached to the skin of the vessel, said body being approximately 15 feet or more long and 4 to 8 feet in width, means for inflating said body with a sound-propagating medium, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within the vessel and extended into the medium within said body, said submarine signaling means being directive and means for rotating the same to determine the direction of the incoming sound waves.

11. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling means comprising an extensibleflexible yielding skin having its edges attached to the surface of the vessel, means for inflating said skin to form with the surface of the vessel a body of substantially elongated oval shape, and submarine signaling means adapted to be positioned within said elongated body, and acoustic insulating means adapted to be positioned in the rear of said submarine signaling means to shield the same against noises arriving at the'submarine signaling means.

12. In combination with a vessel, an external mounting for submarine signaling, means comprising a flexible yielding skin forming an elongated body extending substantially parallel with the normal forward motion of the vessel and approximately streamlined, means for inflating said body with a sound-propagating medium, and means for withdrawing said inflating medium and holding said body flat against the skin of the vessel.

EDWIN E. TURNER, JR.

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