US1286048A - Auxiliary freight-carrier. - Google Patents

Description

C. E. MASON.

AUXILIARY FREIGHT CARRIER. APPLICATION FILED 050.29, I9I7- Patented Nov. 26, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l- W/T/VfSSES A TTOR/VEVS C. E. MASON.

AUXILIARY FREIGHT CARRIER. APPLICATION FILED 021:.29. l9ll.

1,286,048. Patented Nov. 26, 1918.

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l ,286,04:8. Patented Nov. 26, 1918.

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CASSITY E. Mason; or TABRYTOWN, NEW YonK.

AUXILIARY FREIGHT-CARRIER. -i

Specification of LettersPatent. hPa tented NOV. 26, 1918.

Application med December 29,1917. Serial No. 209,436,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GAssrrr E. MASON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Tarrytown, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, haveinvented a new and Improved Auxiliary FreightCarrier, of which thefollowing is a full, clear,

and exact description.

This invention relates to ships and has particular reference to a means for transporting freight or bulk merchandise from one shore to anotherwith safety andfacil- Among the obj ectsof the invention, therefore, is to provide a novel method of constructing floats wherebyjthe floats-may not only be made rapidly and of reliable construction, but which are particularly adapted for rapid manipulation and control having reference both. to the transportation and the loading'and unloading facilities,

Considering the lamentable fact that the number of available bottoms-for the transportation of coal, food stuffs and other supplies is exceedingly limited with respect to the demand therefor, the primary object-of this invention may be saidfto be to 'prdvide means or facllltles forincreasing thetonnage or capacity of the available ships or vessels having either sail or power facilities. for self propulsion to such an extent as tomeet the immediate demand just indicated and without requiring any extensive or costly additions to or alterations of thepresent equipment so far as the power means are concerned. p

A further object. of the invention is to provide a type of watertight shellor auxiliary float having a special form for passage through the water with the least possible re sistance, and with means to tow thesame from the parent vessel. whereby the strain upon eitherthe connection orthe vessels incident to any tendency for one of the vessels to move independently of the other will be reduced or eliminated.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a means in the nature of a bridle to be attached preferably at the stem of a parent or power ship so that any suitable number of auxiliary powerless freight carrying floats may be attached to a power vessel already in use and whereby the gross capacity of the power vesselfor transportao purposes m y be increased many fold.

connection applied for hoisting. Fig. 7 is a Still another object of the invention is to provide a bulk freight carrying float of peculiar construction and adapted to be so hoistedand tilted'as to be loaded or unloaded directly by gravity, the commodity thus -being made to enter or discharge from an opening provided directly in one end of the float. V With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in the arrangemeiit and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and while the. invention is not restricted to the exact details of construction disclosed or suggested herein, still for the purpose of illustrating a practical. embodiment thereof reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same parts inthe several views, and in which. H V y ,Figure. l i a diagrammatic representation of a power or parent. ship from which a number of separate and independently buoyantfreight carrying elements or floats arebeing towed, the connectionsbetween the parent ship and the floats belng'made atthe bow or stem. Fig.2 isa plan view of one of 1 the carrier units partly in longitudinal sectio'n:showing the. temporary form therein.

Figs? and '4 are vertical transverse sections on the corresponding linesof Fig. 2. '5 is a detail view of a bow or. a ship indicating the attachment means. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the diagrammatic plan view indicating a pluralitykof units with a transversebrace be- .tweenthem. FigJ 8 indicates the application of power to one of the units wherebyit may be tilted for-filling with material; and Figs; 9 and 10 are detail'perspective views fmodificd forms of attachmentyokes.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, 10 indicates a parentship which maybe of any conventional or well known type or construction such as steam propelled or a sailing vessel adapted for self propulsion. 11 indicates the bow or stem, end thereof, and connected to or over the stem is what I may term a bridle providlng attachment loops 12 on either bow of the stem. 13 indicates one of any. suitablenumber of auxiliary floats, described in detail below, and adapted to be supported in or upon the water independently of the parentship with respect to buoyancy, but connected either to the parent ship by means of a flexible connection 14 connected to one of the loops 12 and eye means 15. adjacent .to the point or how end of the float whereby the float is adapted to be towed by the power or parent ship, or, if desired, the auxiliary floats may be connected by flexible connections 14 from the bow thereof leading from the eyes 15 to loops 16 adjacent to the stern end of other floats.

In view of the fact that in the rough or rolling seas any vessel is subjected to severe rolling or pitching influences and caused to partake of an absolute speed subject to a great variation, as for instance when gliding freely into the trough of the sea or climbing up toward the crest thereof, it is important to provide in connection with a tow line or flexible connection some suitable automatic take-up means such as indicated at 17 to relieve the strain that would otherwise be incident to sudden disparities in speed be tween the two connected units. Obviously the tow line 14 or 14 may consist of any suitable rope, cable, chain, or the like, preferably of flexible nature and of suflicient strength for the purpose indicated. Any convenient means may be provided to connect the end of the tow line with the bridle and the towed floats, enabling the float units to be manipulated independently of the parent ship at the harbors. For this independent manipulation of the floats it is obvious that any suitable tug or pilot boats may be employed but which per se c0nstitute no part of this present invention, having in mind that the primary purpose is to provide a means for increasing the capacity or tonnage of the existing ships so as to meet the enormous demand for immediate and reliable transportation of various commodities.

In carrying out this invention with respect to the float units in what I regard at this time as the best practical form I construct or erect what may be termed a form whose outer surface corresponds to the interior of the finished shell or float body, said form being of a temporary nature but of suflicient strength to build therearound a. metallic skeleton for the super-structure of the finished shell. In the construction of this temporary form various expedients may be resorted to depending upon the facilities at the various shipyards where the inyention may be practised, but in any event the element of time is of maximum importance, such means or instrumentalities being brought into action as willserve to produce a form of suitable size and strength for the purpose just indicated. For the best practical service doubtless I believe that the making of the form in relatively small panels or sections of sheet meta-l to be the most suitable inasmuch as each section such as indicated at 18 may be provided with side and end flanges l9 and 20 adapted to abut against similar features of adjacent sections and through which temporary fasteners such as bolts 21 may be passed. In place of the flanges 19 and 20 a plurality of lugs may be formed, but having the same function or effect so as to produce a smooth continuous outer surface 22 for the form. According to this method or means for making the form it is obvious that after the float or carrier is completed thereover and is ready for launching the form sections may be readily disconnected on the inside of the structure by the removal of the temporary fasteners 21 and the form parts may all be passed out through the opening at the stern end of the structure. The making of these form sections obviously is a relatively simple engineering expedient. With the parts properly designed and shaped and suitably numbered or otherwise identified the erection thereof for the making of any desired number of carrier units in succession may be performed with facility and by employment of relatively cheap class of labor. Furthermore by the making of the form sections of sheet steel or the like it is obvious that they may be handled with more facility and with less liklihood of damage thereto than if made from cheaper material. I wish to point out, however, in this connection that in the absence of suitable material possessing the necessary strength for repeated use, the form may be made up of any suitable cheap material such as what is commonly known in architecture as staff or a composition of plaster of Paris or any suitable reinforcement filler.

After the temporary form is erected a plurality of loops or rings 23 are set up in parallel planes transverse to the longer axis of the carrier or float, while at the stern is set up a rim 2-1 also in the nature of a ring or annulus. This rim 24- constitutes in effect the rear end of the shell which may be described as being truncated by a plane perpendicular to said axis. The rim 24: may be of any suitable form as to the cross section of the metal from which it is made, and it is intended to constitute a seat for a closure plate or cap 25 adapted to fit therein or against and held in watertight connection therewith by any suit-able reliable and detachable means such for instance as a series of nuts 26 screwed upon the projecting ends 27 of longitudinally extending rods 28 or short bolts.

Extending from each ring 23 to the next in a forward direction are longitudinal ribs 29, while other ribs 30 extend to the bow point or nose piece 31 of any suitable construction. These transverse elements, longitudinal connecting bars or rods, and any suitable interlacing of reinforcing material being, flexibly connected to the eye or loop such as wires, pipes, rodsor the like'indicatedat 32, may be considered as the skeleton of the shell. In this connection I would point out at this time that the character of the material in the construction of the skeleton may partake ofla wide range for the reason that in various localities the source of supply for thiswork may vary to a great extent. Ordinarily speaking, however, ordinary pipe material may be employed, and the pipes" may be filled with concrete, if desired, to stiffen and strengthen them.

The rings 23 adjacent to the bow and stern ends of the shell may be formed into eyes or loops, one on each side of the structure and indicated at 15 and 16 above. Obviously I do not propose to be limited as to any particular manner of forming these eyes or loops or securing them strongly to the skeleton structure. It may be preferred,

however, to so provide the eyes or loops as not to project rigidly beyond the curved surface of the shell. From this fact it follows that the likelihood ofone carrier puncturing or otherwise damaging another in transit will be reduced to a minimum, or obviated. When the carrier units 18 are connected to the parent ship independently of one another as indicated in Fig. 1 and without transverse connection between the units there is sometimes a possibility that in a rough sea the units may impinge against one another, but ordinarily no damage result because of the nature of the construction of the units. It may be preferable, however, as indicated in Fig. 7 to provide transverse braces or stays 34 between adjacent units, the ends of the stays, however,

features of the carrier units so that the several units will be practically free for independent vertical movement under the force of the waves. For the most efficient towing or the least amount of resistance it may be better to so connect the carrier units to the parent ship that so far as possible each unit will follow in the wake of another thereby not only will the water resistance be reduced but the likelihood that the units will be caused to impinge against or upon one another will be reduced to a minimum.

After the skeleton above referred to is completed and all the parts rigidly braced with respect to one another with a view of stiffening the structure to resist not only crushing strains but strains directed outwardly in every direction, the skeleton is thoroughly filled with suitable plastic material such as concrete or the like so as to fill all of the interstices longitudinally between the rings and between the rim and the next adjacent ring and between the foremost ring and the nose piece 31 and radially between the outer surface of the temporary form and the geometric surface defined by the outer surfaces of the nose piece, rim and rings and What becomes the actual outer surface of the completed unit. Obviously after the lapse of a few hours this filling material or concrete hardens sufliciently to permit the laborers to enter the structure through the opening in the rim 2% and disassemble the sectional form or remove the form of whatever character, the form or the parts thereof being passed then out through the ring opening. The structure is then complete ready for the application of the closure 25.

In practice the outer surface or skin of the carrier unit may be supplied with suitable lubricant such as graphite, grease, or oil, for the purpose of reducing the skin friction thereof while being towed. through the water.

The attention of the reader is now called once more to the bridle or yoke 11 shown in detail in Figs. 5, 9 and 10. This yoke includes a plurality of hooks or claws 11 and which are adapted to engage up and rearwardly over the nose of the parent ship while the main body thereof lies in front of or over the'stem 35. The construction of the yoke is such as to adapt it'with little or no alteration to existing ships and yet constitute a means whereby any suitable number of floats or carrier units 13 may be flexibly connected thereto either through loops 12 having individual traces 12 to the body of the yoke or through a bar 12 on each side. of the bow of the parent ship which may have a single connection 12 leading to the yoke.

While I have referred herein particularly to the use of concrete as the filler for the body of the shell it is obvious that sheet metal or other materials may be employed for this purpose and hence I do not propose to be limited in the interpretation or scope of the claims unnecessarily.

I claim:

1. The herein described freight carrying float having a metal skeleton structure serving to strengthen the float so as to resist all strains to which it may be subjected in practice, said skeleton including a ring shaped rim at one end providing an opening to the hollow interior, means filling the skeleton making an imperforate shell, and a closure for said opening.

2. The herein descrlbed freight carrying float of elongated form substantially circular in cross section from one end to the other, the structure comprising a metal skeleton including a ring shaped rim at the stern constituting a seat for a closure, said skeleton also including a plurality of transverse rings spaced from one another longitudinally, longitudinal stringers extending between rings and between the said 10 forced concrete,

rim and the ring adjacent thereto, and also including attachment means for securing the float to a suitable power, and a plastic superstructure filling the skeleton and supported in place thereby.

3. The herein described hollow freight carrying float of substantially cigar shape, having one pointed end and a rounded oval body, said body being constructed of reinand the reinforcement means providing eyes or loops for the attachment of power means thereto.

4. The herein described Watertight hollOW freight carrying float having pivot connecting means adjacent to the center of its 15 Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, 'Washington, D. C.

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