US601154A

US601154A - martin

Info

Publication number: US601154A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1898-03-22
Anticipated expiration: 1915-03-22

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 O. MARTIN. GUN MOUNTING.

No. 601,154. Patented Mar. 22,1898.

F|G.I.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2. G. MARTIN. GUN MOUNTING (No Model.)

Patented Mar. 22, 1898.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicE.

CARL MARTIN, OF MAGDEBURG-BUOKAU, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE FRIED. KRUPP GRUSONVVERK, OF SAME PLACE.

GUN-MOUNTING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 601 ,154, dated March 22, 1898.

Application filed June 50,1892. Serial No. 438,575. (No model.) Patented in Germany January 28, 1892, No. 65,553; in Belgium March 17,1892,No. 98,837; in France March 22, 1892,11'0. 220,323; in Switzerland May 7, 1892, No. 5,088; in England May 11, 1892, No- 8,954; in Sweden May 21, 1892, No. 4,234; in Spain June 11, 1892, No. 13,325; in Italy June 30, 1892, XXVI, 32,029; in Austria-Hungary June 21, 1893, No. 43/1839 and No.27/1,877,a11din Denmark Tune 25,

1893JNO: 127.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, CARL MARTIN, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and a resident of Magdeburg-Buckau, in the Kingdom of Prussia, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gu n-Mountings, (for which I have obtained Letters Patent in other countries, as follows: Germany, January 28,1892, No. 65,553; Belgium, March 17, 1892, No. 98,837; France, March 22, 1892, No. 220,323; Switzerland, May 7, 1892, No. 5,088; England, May 11, 1892, No. 8,954; Sweden, May 21, 1892, No. 4,234; Spain, June 11, 1892, No. 18,325; Italy, June 30, 1892, XXVI,

I5 No. 32,029; Austria-Hungary, June 21, 1893,

No. 43/1839 and No. 27/1,877, and Donmark, June 25, 1898, No. 127,) of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in rotatable cupolas, turrets, or other rotatable mountings for ordnance.

The object of my said invention is to increase the stability of armor-plated pivotal turrets or cupolas or other rotatable mount- 2 5' ings of the kind in which the training of the gun is effected byturniug the mounting upon a central pivot without diminishing the easy mobility by which mountings of this class are distinguished from those arranged to move 30 upon a roller-path.

According to this invention I use in lieu of the single central pivot heretofore employed two such pivots, each of which has its separate function.

3 5 In certain arrangements hitherto employed the turning movement of a cupola or turret, for example, took place upon a flat bearing fixed to the armored dome, which enabled the said dome to tilt upon the same so as to bear against the glacis when the gun was fired and to assume directly afterward an upright position upon the said bearing after the absorption of the recoil. This arrangement rendered the successful design of the turret or cupola a matter of considerable difficulty, for

the center of gravity of the system had to be vertically above the pivot. Moreover, for a gun of greatvweight a pivot of a very large diameter was necessitated, whereby the friction during the turning of the dome became 5o considerable, so that the system would have no advantage over a mounting provided with a roller-path. This defect is obviated by the present invention, inasmuch as it distributes the functions of tilting and turning between two pivots.

In order that my said invention may be clearly understood, I will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure I is a vertical central section of an improved cupola constructed according to my invention, including a detail plan view of the toothed wheel and pinion. Fig. II is a vertical central section of an alternative form of cupola also constructed according to my invention. Fig. III is an elevation at right angles to Fig. II of the brake mechanism shown in that figure. Fig. IV is a vertical central section of an alternative form of the tilting- 7o pivot shown in Fig. II. Fig. V is a plan view of a portion of Fig. IV and is hereinafter more particularly described.

Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures. In Fig. I the column A rests at its lower end upon one arm of the lever B, from the other arm of which the counterweights C are suspended.

D is the armor-dome, which when the coun- 8o terweight is in its highest position bears upon the glacis E, whereas when the said counterweight occupies its lowest position, as shown in the drawings, the dome rises from the glacis and the cmbrasure F is revealed, so 8 5 that the gun G can be run out.

H is a hand-wheel, which by means of bevelwheels H and a vertical shaft J and the pinion J, secured to the lower end of the said shaft, has working connection with atoothed wheel L, secured to the upper end of the column A, which is so arranged that it cannot turn.

M is a pivot, the base 0 of which in the present example is circular, but whichmay be of any other suitable shape, and is of considerably greater diameter than the body M. The said base is supported upon the head of the column A and prevented from turning by the feather P, which enters a recess in the base 0 of the pivot M, and a similar recess in the head of the column A. When the gun is fired, the cupola tilts upon the rearedge a of the base 0, and the latter rises a little from the feather P, but is compelled by gravity when the gun-carriage assumes the upright position to move the said mounting back again exactly to its former position. If the cupolais struck by a projectile, it tilts in a similar manner.

The rotation of the cupola takes place upon the upper plane surface of the pivot M. The said pivot prior to the firing is rigidlylocked to the rotary portion K of the turret and the dome D by means of a brake-lever N, carried by the turret and operating a suitable brake, which bears upon the pin M.

In Fig. II, to which, with Figs. III, IV, and V, reference will now be made, a cupola is shown in which the embrasure is always uncovered, and accordingly the dome D need only be raised when the gun isto be traversed, and then only to such an extent that its beveled edge will no longer touch the glacis E. In this example when the gun is fired'or when a shot hits the cupola the'part K of the carriage tilts around the edge of the pivot M, and the feather P insures its return movement to its original position. The turning-pivot M is at the lower end of the column A, which in this case is arranged to rotate and turns in the footstep b. The raising and lowering of the gun-carriage and dome is effected by raising and lowering the pivot O, which for this purpose is screw-threaded to engage with the upper end of the. spindle A, which also is screw-threaded, as shown.

Q is a cone, the upper end of which carries a disk Q.

R is a brake-band, the ends of which are connected bya spindle N,provided with righthand and left-hand threads and with a lever N. Between the said ends of the band R the forked end of an arm S, extending from the pivot M, embraces loosely the spindle N in such a manner that the said arm may slip ver- ,tically over the spindle when the pivot M is raised or lowered. The brake is applied to grip the said disk by turning the lever N. The rotary column A is provided with a bevelwheel L, which can be turned by the handwheel H by means of intermediary shafting and toothed wheels.

When the brake-band is tightened, thepivot M may be raised or lowered but cannot be turned, and when the brake-band is slackened after the dome is sufficiently raised, the pivot may be turned but cannot longer be raised or lowered, as is hereinafter more fully explained. This arrangement permits the operating mechanismto be very much simplified and the Workin g of the gungreatly fa: cilitated, as the raising, lowering, and turning of the mounting can all be effected by meansof a very simple operation, which will now be described.

Supposing the brake-bandR is released, if the dome D bears firmly upon the glacis E, a turning movement of the column A in the direction of the arrow, Fig. II, will not be possible, because the friction between the dome and the glacis is too great to permit the rotation of the carriage K, while the latter in turn prevents by the feather P the turning of the pivot M. This pivot would, however, allow the columnto turn in the direction of the arrow if the said pivot Mcould descend, which is prevented by the arm S bearing upon the top of the disk Q. If, on the other hand, the column A is turned in the opposite direction by means of the hand-Wheel H, the gun-carriage' K is not at first rotated because the dome bears upon the glacis, as aforesaid, and therefore the pivot M is screwedupward by the turning of the column A, but as soon as the pivot M, by lifting the carriage K and the dome D, raises the edge of the latter off the glacis the spindle A and the carriage and dome will all turn together. At this moment the turning movement of the hand-wheel H may also be changed, and a turning movement of the gun-carriage to the right may take place. If the dome is required to be lowered again, it is only necessary to prevent the gun-carriage from rotating by operating the brake-lever N and to turn the column A again in the direction of the arrow, Fig. II, by means ofthe hand-wheel H, whereupon the said column screws-the pivot M downward until the dome D rests tightly upon the glacis.

The advantages of this arrangement are as follows: One and the same device is used for raising and lowering the cupola and traversing the gun, and, further, hitherto in the majority of cases with separate devices for the raising and lowering and for the turning of the cupola, there was no measure or indication afforded as to how high the armor-plate cover had to be raised in order to enable rotation of the cupola or turret to be effected, and therefore it was generally raised too high, whereas in the improved arrangement herein described this is now regulated automatically as set forth. This advantage results from the separation of the turning-pivot from the other pivot about which the tilting occurs.

The principal advantages of the use of separate pivots are, as hereinbefore stated, that the pivot about which the tilting occurs may be made of any desired diameter without diminishing the ease with which the cupola, turret, or other mounting may be rotated, and that the gun-carriage is compelled by the feather P, which forms a guide, to return each time exactly to its former position. This latter is a very important advantage, as in former armor plated gun carriages with a combined turning and tilting pivot there existed always the tendency to alter the horizontal direction of the gun during firing or during the return of the gun to its position of equilibrium.

The hereinbefore-described examples have shown the application of the invention to cupolas in which the gun has no recoil in the carriage. If, however, it is preferred to allow the gun a slight recoil in the gun-carriage in order to put the material under as little stress as possible, the application of the invention would be the same, but the amount of the tilting would be diminished.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, declare that what I claim is 1. In heavy ordnance the combination substantially as set forth, of the gun, the central turning-pivot upon which the gun is mounted for training, and the separately-located additional rocking bearing upon which the gun tilts when it is fired or a shot hits the cupola, as explained.

2. In heavy ordnance, the combination'of the gun and the vertical central support, upon which the gun is mounted, formed with two separate bearings which respectively permit the turning of the gun for training and the tilting of the cupola, said tilting-bearing being provided with a guide which insures the return of the gun to the same position substantially as set forth.

3. In heavy ordnance, the combination of the gun, the vertical central support upon which the gun is mounted, provided with a turning-pivot for training and a separate rocking bearing, and means for rotating the gun,working connections with said means for effecting the raising or lowering as well as the training substantially as set forth.

at. In heavy ordnance, a mounting in combination with aturning-pivot arranged to turn in a bearing and upon which the mounting rests and adapted to rock, and a feather P interposed between the mounting and its pivot and embedded in said parts so as to prevent relative turning while permitting the rocking movement as explained.

5. In heavy ordnance, the combination of the gum-the central vertical support upon which the gun is mounted, formed with the training-bearing and the tilting-bearing, the brake, for locking the fixed and rotatable parts of the support against relative movement, said brake being carried by one of said parts and having a controlling-lever for forcing it into contact with the other, and means for moving the gun on its training-bearing, all substantially as set forth.

6. In heavy ordnance, the combination of the cupola, the gun, the central vertical support for the cupola and gun formed in two parts screw-threaded together and also with a training-bearing and a tilting-bearing, the means for rotating the gun on its trainingbearing and the brake for locking one of the screw-threaded parts, while the other rotates in order to change the length of the central support and raise or lower the cupola, all substantially as set forth.

7. In a gun-mounting the combination of the glacis, the cupola formed to seat upon the glacis, the gun beneath the cupola, the central vertical support for the gun and cupola, formed in two parts, scre w-threaded together, and with a training bearing, and means substantially as described for rotating the lower part of the central support in either direction, as and for the purpose explained.

8. In a gun-mounting, the combination of the gun, the central vertical support, upon which the gun is mounted, formed in two parts and screw-threaded together, and having a turning-bearing on the lower part, the

' driving connection for rotating the lower part,

the arm on the upper part provided with a brake and the fixed part of the structure co operating with the brake, all substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

9. In a gun-mounting the combination 0 the glacis, the cupola constructed to seat on the glacis, the gun and the central vertical support carrying the gun and adapted to lift the cupola; said support being formed in two parts screw-threaded together, of which the upper one is formed with a rocking, bearing for the gun and a brake for controlling rotary movement, and the lower one is formed with a rotating or training bearing and means for rotating the said lower part; all substantially as set forth and for the purpose specified.

10. In a gun-mounting, the combination of the central vertical support, formed in two parts screw threaded together, a rotating bearing and rotating connections for the lower part, a bearing for the upper part provided with a surrounding disk, an arm on said upper part, a band-brake surrounding the disk and connected with said arm and a controlling-lever for regulating the tension on said band-brake, all substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

CARL MARTIN.

Witnesses:

HERMANN LUBOWSKI, EMIL KALLNOOKER.