US1981182A - Marine fender - Google Patents

Description

C. T. LYONS MARINE FENDER Nov- 20, l1934.

Filed Dec. 23, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 S11/venta N(w.20,1934.Y C -LLYONS j 41,981,182

MARINE FENDER 'Filed Deo. 25. 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 gmc/nto@ (half/e5 TLyons MMX Nov. 2o, 1934. T, ONS 1,981,182

MARIN-E FENDER Filed Dec. 25, '1931 4 sheets-Shes@ 5 lr- L Q E] 2l 50 r i 5 y I M m11111111111111\\\\\\'\\"l mi 'N l f ----H- 111.1111:'gig:,

@lar/e5 Lyon1* NOV. 20, 1934. Q T, LYONS I 1,981,182

MARINE FENDER Filed Dec. 23, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 v Patented Nov. 20, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcr-:f

MARINE FENDER Charles T. Lyons, Medina, Wash., assignor to Durable Mat Company, Seattle, Wash., a cor poration of Washington Application December 23, 1931, Serial No. 582,782

25 Claims.

My invention relates to marine fenders of the type generally shown in my Patent No. 1,781,403.

Fenders of the type shown in the patent Were found satisfactory for some purposes, but because of the circular disks then generally believed t0 be desirable, the fenders in some instances had a tendency to roll when this was not desired, and in any event the disks bore only at a tangent, rather than along an edge of considerable length. Furthermore, such fenders Were light and not entirely suitable to heavy duty, being of insuihcient strength or of insuiicient resilience. Accordingly, it is an object of the` present invention to devise a fender which is more rugged, better suited to heavy duty work, of a high degree of resilience, where that is desired, and one wherein the contact of the fender with either vessel is along an edge of considerable length, thus taking advantage of the full resistance of the material, with the minimum of distortion and strain.

It is also an object to devise a fender which can be built up in a variety of forms, and the principles oi which can be incorporated in bow fenders, in stern fenders, in side fenders, in corner tenders for barges and for piers, for the faces of piers, and in general which is adapted to any and all of the uses to which 'fenders are now ordinarily put.

It is, of course, a further object to devise a fender constructed of material which possesses a high degree of resilience, resistance to wear, resistance to slipping, even when wet, and

^ which is available in considerable quantitiesnamely, discarded tire material-to the end that the completed fender may be durable, resilient, capable of protecting both the tug boat and the vessel being maneuvered thereby from injury, and to have the quality of permitting considerable effort to be exerted by the tug boat in a quartering direction, thus avoiding the necessity cf attaching stern and `breast lines in certain instances, and enabling a single tug to do Work that under other circumstances might require several. v

It is a further object to devise a fender made of the type ci material indicated which has incorporated within it a metallic skeleton of core rods, links, and clamping plates, all for the purpose of holding the fender in shape to t the vessel, preventing buckling of the strips and making them mutually sustaining, and removing the strain ci' supporting parts of the fender from the rubber tire material itself.

Another object is the provision of a fender, and the association therewith of a built-in stem plate which will protect the stem, of the vessel, receive the thrust of the vessel through the stem and transmit it to the fender as a whole, equalizing the stresses on the several parts of the fender, and which in certain forms is so constructed that it will yield under excess stresses Without danger of injury to the stem plate.

A further object is to provide a fender which can have a built-up pudding section, and in some instances a recurved pudding, which will protectthe top of the stem post and protect the counter of a vessel beneath which the stem of the tug boat may run.

Other objects, and more especially those which refer to details of construction, will be best understood from a study of this specication, the drawings annexed thereto, and the claimsat the end of the specification.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown the principles of my invention embodied in a variety of forms, suitable for different uses'and places.

Figure 1 is a perspective View, with parts' broken away, of an illustrative form of my invention incorporated in a bow fender.

Figure 2 is a perspective View, similar to Figure l, ofj a modied form of bow fender.

Figure 3 is a further modied form of bow fender intended for heavy duty work.

Figure 4. is a plan view of a fender similar to Figure 3, showing a different type of stem plate incorporated .,therein.

Figure 5 is a perspective view. of a further modified form of bow fender.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a heavy duty type of bow fender. Y

Figure 7 is a perspective view, with parts omitted, of a simple form of stern fender.

Figure 8 is a view similar to. Figure '7 of a modined form of stern fender, intended for heavy duty work.

Figures 9 and 10 are further modified forms of stern fenders in perspective.

Figure 11 is a perspective view of a barge or pier corner fender.

In general, the same type of material is used as proposed in my patent referred to above, but for reasons explained above it is preferable that strip-like disks be employed. These strips may be cut from the entire width of a tire, so that in some instances Widths up to twelve inches can be obtained, and they can be obtained in itiV posed of vertical rods 3 extending through the lengths `corresponding to the extreme circumference of a tire, say twelve feet or more. These strips of discarded tire material, thus cut outy and laid dat, have considerable inherent resilience in the rubber, and the embedded fabric holds the rubber together and limits flexibility, extension, and to .some extent, the resilience of the rubber, but when a number-of such disks are held in face-toeface relationship, they mutually support each other and cause compression to be absorbed within the plane of the individual disks without permitting them to buckle.

The present invention diiers further from that shown in my patent in the provision of a definite skeleton of metal formed in the shape of the portion vof the vessel to be tted, upon which skeleton are supported `the strips vof tire material in such a way that the skeleton is mainly, if not entirely, embedded in the strips, yet the skeleton maintains the completed fender rigidin shape without affecting its resilience.

Figure `1 is an illustrative form of bow fender for medium duty. It is formed with three distinct sections-the pudding 1 and the side wings 2 and 20. The skeleton in this instance is comstrips 11 of the pudding and 21 of the wings, all of which are placed substantially horizontal and immediately adjacent each other in face-to-face relationship, and the core rods 3 are joined at intervals by the links 33. Thus the core'rods 3-are held denitely spaced from each other, though the links 33 may take the form of open link'm'ernbers 30, as seen in Figure 2, and in all instances where it is desirable to permit the core rods to approach each other, thus to give full eiect to theV resilience of the rubber material, the links are* slightly slotted longitudinally, as shown at 37, or the open links are used. These links 33 or 30 are made of less width than the strips 1l or 21, and lie between two adjoining strips, so that they are Aembedded within the completed fender and do not detract from its resilience. Y

'I'he strips may be held together in suitable `fashion`for instance, by the yclamping plates 31 and 32 at top and bottom of the pudding and wings, respectively, through which the core rods Spass, and they are secured in place suitably, as by the nuts 34. The ends of the plates 32 preferably extend into the pudding to a point where the core rodsy 3 of the pudding will pass through them, thus binding together rigidly the pudding and side wings.

To support the fender, and to make'it fast, bolts 4 may be` employed, these having eyes 43 at their inner ends, through which pass the corek rods 3,'and they may also be providedwith eyes 40 at their outer ends, to which suitable securing lines may be attached. As additional means of support, the clamping plates 32 Amay be'bowed, as indicated at 35, and lines may be looped through these bowed points.

The fender retains its shape, 'without' undue strains on the tirefstrips, because of the embedded skeleton andthejoining of the core rods of the wings and. pudding by links and by the extension of the clamping plates 32, and also because of the shapingk of the forward ends of the side Wing strips to nt the abutting edges of thepudding strips 1l, yet the entire structure is'resilient as a whole, and protects the vessels between which it is interposed. vThe strips 11 in the pudding, extending horizontally across the .,entire width of the stem of the tug boat,

Lesrlse struction of Figure 2, wherein the upper part of the ypudding is extended considerably above the level of the wings 2 and 20, and is curved aft, so as to present this upper part of the pudding beneath the counter of a vessel being maneuvered--that to say, between the counter of the vessel and the stem post oi the tug boat.

The form shown in Figure 2 is for comparatively light duty work, for the strips 21 are not closely adjacent to each other; rather washer blocks 23 are interposed at intervals between adjacent strips 21. However, the strips 21 are suliiciently held in the parallel planes as to mutually prevent buckling, though because of the limited possibility of buckling, this type of fender has greater yieldability than the type rst described. Furthermore, the lower part of the pudding is composed of the strips 11, but the forward ends of the strips 21 do not stop at the after side of the pudding, but extend into the pudding, where the pudding core rods 3 extend through these strips 21. Thus the strips 11 and 21 are interleaved.

The bow fender ofFigure 3 is for heavy duty work. Here the strips 11 are disposed as before in parallel planes, but two such groups are ernployed, one in advance of the other and the strips in the two groups being in edge-to-edge Contact with each other. To support the outer group links 36 may be employed. Preferably these extend diagonally between the vertical core rods 3, for this, with the slots 37, affords maximum yieldability of the pudding.

The side wings 2 and 20 of such a fender may have the strips 21 extending vertically instead of horizontally, as before, and insuch a case the core rods 3 of the side wings would extend horizontally and might be provided with eyes 37 at theiry forward ends, through which eyes the core rods 3 of the pudding pass. vThese core rods 3 of the Wings are connected by the links 33, as before, these links now extending vertically. The eye bolts 4` in this form extend from the top of the wings, and the bows 35 may be applied at the ends of the wings.

To transmit the very heavy thrust of the stern to the vessel to be maneuvered, it is desirable in k o such fenders to provide a stem plate 5. As shown in'Figure 3, this is formed of two substantially Z-shaped plates disposed vertically immediately aft of the pudding, two flanges being overlapped and suitably secured-for instance, by rivets or by welding-and the other flanges extending outwardlyand being apertured to permit the passage through them of the core rods 3 of the side wings. Thus the stem plate 5 directly supports'v the side wings, and directly transmits thrust from the stern to the pudding l. The flanges 50 are so disposed that if the side wings yield, or if extraordinary compression occurs in-the pudding and is l'transmitted 'to the side wings, these flanges will yield somewhat and will not break.

Figurel 4 illustrates a similar type of fender,

the stem plate 51 in this instance extending entirely-across the rear of the pudding 1, and having a channel-shaped member `52 disposed inside of the forward portion of the wings 2 and 20. The stem plate supports the pudding and vside wings by the passage of the core rods 3 of the Wings 'through the lateral extensions 53 of the plate.

in this ferm of fender the links 36 Within the pudding extend directly fore and ait instead of diagonally, and are shown in the form of open links, thus permitting yielding of the outer section of the pudding relative to the inner.

In .Figure 5 a fender similar to that oi Figure 1 is shown, except that the side wings .are formed in upper and lower portions, spaced from each other at la point where the guard or" the tug boat will come. Extra clamping plates 32' are employed in addition to the ordinary clamping plates .32, these plates 32 lying within the gap between upper and lower portions of the side Wings.

Figure '6 illustrates a heavy duty type of bow fender, in which the pudding and side wings are substantially continuous. A single core rod 3 extends from .the after end of one Wing, through the pudding, and to the yafter end of the opposite wing. A plurality of sections are employed, the strips being vertical in leach section, and the several sections being. placed one within the other, so that the strips meet in edge-to-edge relationship in the respective sections. It is preferable to employ a stem plate 5 in this structure, and in all essentials it corresponds to that described `in Figure 3.

Figure 7 shows a simple type of stern fender, the strips v6 being disposed in ver-tical planes, and the ycore rods 63 being horizontal and curved to iit the stern of .the vessel. Ordinarily at least .two such core rods would be employed, and these yare joined, as in the other forms, by links 62. Supporting eye bolts 6l extend from the core rods 63 to a point above the fender for securement, :and yadditional eyes may be formed upon the clamping plates '65 or upon the ends of the core rods, as indicated at 64.

In Figure 8 the stern fender is :shown formed 4of two sections, an outer and an inner section, in each of which the strips 6 are vertically disposed, the construction otherwise being substantially identical with that of Figure 7. Preferably the link members 62 are diagonally disposed to 4cross each other, thus affording greater resilience than if they were connected horizontally.

ln Figure 9 additional disks or short strips 66 are employed, placed inside the upper end of the strips '6 and connected by a clamping plate 67 and by internal links (not shown) to the core rod 63 of the strips 6. The strips or blocks 66 overlie thevessels guard, and the strips 6 lie outside yoi the guard.

A modification of this idea is shown in Figure 10, where the strips 66 extend .above the upper end or the strips 6 and are inclined somewhat to iit against the bulwarks oi the tug boat, and to rest at their lower ends upon the guard. This protects the bulwarks against damage should the stern of the tug get under the counter or other overhanging` part of a vessel being maneuvered.

Figure 1l illustrates a corner render adapted for application to barges and to piers. Except that it is formed with a substantially right angular bend, it is or may be constructed in all respects similar' to the stern fenders described.

What I :claim as my invention is:

1. vA ships fender comprising a metallic skeleton of rods, and links joining the same, and generally shaped to t the vessel ior which it is intended, and a plurality or" strips of resilient material disposed in parallel planes at right angles to the `rods of the skeleton, `and generally parallel to and enclosing the links, and means to hold the .strips in suoli disposition upon the skeleton, to mutually: resist buckling, and to` present them edgewise to the vessels outer surfaces.

2. In a ships fender, in combination, a skeleton including a plurality of horizontal members, disposed at diierent levels, and a plurality oi vertical members, the whole being joined substantially in the shape of the vessel, and strips of resilient, flexible material through which parts of said skeleton pass, the strips being disposed in parallel planes, and the :skeleton and strips mutually sustaining each the other to form a rigid, yieldable, shaped fender, in which the several strips are presented edgewise to compression, and are held against buckling.

3. In a ships bow fender, a plurality of strips of resilient material disposed in horizontal planes, core rods passed vertically therethrough, and means to secure said strips in mutually sustaining relationship upon said rods, the Whole constituting a pudding, and other core rods joined .to the pudding core rods, at each .side of the pudding, and themselves joined by links, strips oi'` resilient material through which the latter core rods are passed, and means to secure said latter strips upon their rods in mutually sustaining relationship and constituting side wings.

1i. in a ships bow fender, a plurality of strips of resilient v material disposed in horizontal planes, core rods passed vertically therethrough, and means to secure said strips in mutually sustaining relationship upon said rods, the whole constituting a pudding, and other core rods having eyes at one end, through which the pudding core rods pass, the latter-mentioned core rods extending .substantially horizontally, links joining the latter core rods, and strips oi resilient material disposed in vertical planes on said latter core rods, and held thereon in mutually sustaining relationship, to constitute side Wings.

5. In a ships bow fender, a plurality of strips of resilient material 'disposed in horizontal planes, core rods passed vertically therethrough, and means to secure said strips in mutually sustaining relationship upon said rods, the whole constituting a pudding, and other core rods having eyes at one end, through which the pudding core rods pass, the latter-mentioned core rods extending substantially horizontally, links joining the latter core rods, strips of resilient material disposed in vertical planes on said latter core rods, and held thereon in mutually sustaining relationship, to constitute side wings, and a stem plate having laterally projecting apertured portions through which the wing core rods pass, to support it immediately rearward of the pudding.

6. In a ships bow fender, in combination, a stem plate, supporting members extending laterally from the plate, a pudding comprising a plurality of strips disposed immediately in advance of the stem plate, in parallel planes, and means to retain them in such relationship,.to mutually sustain eachother against buckling,- and side Wings likewise Vcomprising a plurality soy of strips disposed kin parallel planes and means to retain them in such relationship, to mutually sustain each other against buckling, and to connect them to the pudding, and said latter means being supportingly engaged by the stem plate, to retain the latter in position to engage the vessels stem.

7.`In a ships bow fender, in combination, a group of strips of resilient material disposed in face-to-ace relationship in transverse horizontal planes, core rods extending vertically through the strips, a second group of strips similarlypositioned forwardly of the first group, in edge-to-edge relationship to the strips of the iirst group, other core rods extending vertically through the second group, link members extending between the core rods of the two groups, to support the second group from the first, and to constitute a pudding, and other strips disposed aft of the puddingand other core rods supporting said latter strips and connected to pudding.

core rods, to constitute side wings.

8. In a ships bow fender, in combination, a group of strips 01"' resilient material disposed in face-to-face relationship in transverse horizontal planes, core rods extending vertically through the strips, a second group of strips similarly positioned forwardly of the first group, in edgeto-edge relationship to the strips of the first group, other core rods extending kvertically through the second group, link members extending diagonally between the core rods of the two groups, to support the second group from the rst, and to constitute a pudding, and other strips of resilient material disposed aft of the pudding, in parallel planes, and other core rods supporting said latter strips to maintain them in mutually supporting relationship, and'themselves connected to the pudding core rods, to constitute side wings.

9. In a ships bow fender, in combination, pudding and side wing sections each composed of core rods and strips of tire material threaded upon said rods to lie in parallel planes and to be mutually sustaining against buckling, the pudding section extending above the level of the adjoining wing sections, to protect the stem post.

l. In a ships bow fender, inV combination, pudding and side wing sections each composed or" core rods and strips of tire material threaded upon said rods to lie in parallel planes and to be mutually sustaining against buckling, the

strips in the pudding section being disposedv i; transversely Aand the rods generally vertically,

of tire material disposed in parallel planes, saidv strips being spaced through a portion of the 1 length of each, core rods extending through the v tending between the core rods, parallel to and covered in by the strips, to form with the core .i rods .a supporting skeleton. i

13. In a ships bow fender, in combination, a. plurality of strips of rubber tire material, disposed in parallel horizontal planes to form pudding and two side wing sections, the forward ends of the wing strips being disposed between the strips of the pudding section, and core rods passing throughv the interleaved Wingv and pudding strips, and through the side wing strips to maintain them in the specified relationship.

14. In a ships bow fender, in combination, a pudding section, and side wing sections connected at their forward ends to the pudding sections, and extending aft therefrom, said side. wings comprising a plurality of strips of resilient material disposed in parallel planes and core rods holding them in such relationship, with an edge outermost, the side wing sections being divided longitudinally into upper and lower portions spaced to straddle the vessels guard.

15. In a ships stern fender, a plurality of strips of rubber tire material disposed in face-toface relationship, extending vertically, other strips of the same material disposed in face-toface relationship inwardly of the upper end of the first strips, to rest upon theguard and against the bulwarks, core rods passing through the several strips to maintain them in the specilied relationship, and link members connecting the several core rods to hold the fender in the shape of the vessels stern.

16. In a ships stern fender, a plurality of strips of rubber tire material disposed in face-toface relationship, extending vertically, other strips of the same material disposed in face-toface relationship inwardly ofthe upper end of the rst strips, to rest upon the guard and against the bulwarks, core rods passing through.

the several strips to maintain them in the specifled relationship, link members connecting the several core rods tohold the fender in the shape of the vessels stern, and bolts having eyes at each end, one of said`core rods passing through the eye at the lower end of each bolt, and the bolts projecting upwardly beyond the top of the fender, to enable it to be made fast.

17. In a ships fender, in combination, a metallic skeleton including two sets of members crossing each other, one set being continuous throughout a considerable portion of the fender, and the other being linked thereto, and permitting some movement of the continuous members towards and from each other, and strips of resilient material threaded on two or more of the continuous members and embedding the link members, the skeleton and strips mutually sustaining each the other to form a rigid, yieldable, shaped fender, in which the several strips are presented edgewise to compression, and mutually sustain each other against buckling.

18. A ships fender comprising core rods'and elongated strips of tire material threaded upon said rods to lie in parallel planes and'to be mutually sustaining against buckling, and links embedded between strips at intervals to form with the core rods a supporting skeleton.

19. Av fender. as in claim 18, the links being of metal and extending only between adjacent core rods. v

20. A ships bow fender including pudding and side wing sections each comprising core rods and elongatedv strips of tire material threaded upon said rods to lie in parallel planes and tobe mutually sustaining against buckling, and disposed for edgewise contact with the vessel.y

21. A ships bow fender' including separate l CTI pudding and side wing sections each comprising core rods and elongated strips of tire material threaded upon said rods to lie in parallel planes and to be mutually sustaining against buckling, and disposed for edgewise contact with the vessel, and metal links connecting core rods of the side wings with core rods of the pudding.

22. A fender asin claim 21, wherein the links are disposed Within the inside and outside surfaces oi the fender.

23. A fender as in claim 21, including embedded metal links connecting the several adjacent core rods within each individual section.

24. A fender of the character described comprising a lining section, a wearing section, said sections being composed of flat pieces of durable material having holes formed therein and having means passing through said holes for binding them together, and a cushion section interposed between said lining section and wearing section.

25. A fender of the character described comprising a lining section, a wearing section, each of said sections being composed of a plurality of relatively flat members joined by tie rods eX- tending through perforations therein, and a cushion section interposed between the lining and wearing sections.

CHARLES T. LYONS.

CERTIFICATE OE CORRECTION.

Patent No. l,981,182. November 20, 1934.

CHARLES T. LYONS.

It is hereby certified that error Iappears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5., strike out the subject matter comprising claims 24 and 25 inclusive; and that the said Letters Patent should be rend with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the elle in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 18th day o December, A. D. 1934.

Leslie Frazer (Seal.) i Acting Commissioner of Patents.

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