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1 Armstrong, Sir William George, Baron Armstrong of Cragside
[br]b. 26 November 1810 Shieldfield, Newcastle upon Tyne, Englandd. 27 December 1900 Cragside, Northumbria, England[br]English inventor, engineer and entrepreneur in hydraulic engineering, shipbuilding and the production of artillery.[br]The only son of a corn merchant, Alderman William Armstrong, he was educated at private schools in Newcastle and at Bishop Auckland Grammar School. He then became an articled clerk in the office of Armorer Donkin, a solicitor and a friend of his father. During a fishing trip he saw a water-wheel driven by an open stream to work a marble-cutting machine. He felt that its efficiency would be improved by introducing the water to the wheel in a pipe. He developed an interest in hydraulics and in electricity, and became a popular lecturer on these subjects. From 1838 he became friendly with Henry Watson of the High Bridge Works, Newcastle, and for six years he visited the Works almost daily, studying turret clocks, telescopes, papermaking machinery, surveying instruments and other equipment being produced. There he had built his first hydraulic machine, which generated 5 hp when run off the Newcastle town water-mains. He then designed and made a working model of a hydraulic crane, but it created little interest. In 1845, after he had served this rather unconventional apprenticeship at High Bridge Works, he was appointed Secretary of the newly formed Whittle Dene Water Company. The same year he proposed to the town council of Newcastle the conversion of one of the quayside cranes to his hydraulic operation which, if successful, should also be applied to a further four cranes. This was done by the Newcastle Cranage Company at High Bridge Works. In 1847 he gave up law and formed W.G.Armstrong \& Co. to manufacture hydraulic machinery in a works at Elswick. Orders for cranes, hoists, dock gates and bridges were obtained from mines; docks and railways.Early in the Crimean War, the War Office asked him to design and make submarine mines to blow up ships that were sunk by the Russians to block the entrance to Sevastopol harbour. The mines were never used, but this set him thinking about military affairs and brought him many useful contacts at the War Office. Learning that two eighteen-pounder British guns had silenced a whole Russian battery but were too heavy to move over rough ground, he carried out a thorough investigation and proposed light field guns with rifled barrels to fire elongated lead projectiles rather than cast-iron balls. He delivered his first gun in 1855; it was built of a steel core and wound-iron wire jacket. The barrel was multi-grooved and the gun weighed a quarter of a ton and could fire a 3 lb (1.4 kg) projectile. This was considered too light and was sent back to the factory to be rebored to take a 5 lb (2.3 kg) shot. The gun was a complete success and Armstrong was then asked to design and produce an equally successful eighteen-pounder. In 1859 he was appointed Engineer of Rifled Ordnance and was knighted. However, there was considerable opposition from the notably conservative officers of the Army who resented the intrusion of this civilian engineer in their affairs. In 1862, contracts with the Elswick Ordnance Company were terminated, and the Government rejected breech-loading and went back to muzzle-loading. Armstrong resigned and concentrated on foreign sales, which were successful worldwide.The search for a suitable proving ground for a 12-ton gun led to an interest in shipbuilding at Elswick from 1868. This necessitated the replacement of an earlier stone bridge with the hydraulically operated Tyne Swing Bridge, which weighed some 1450 tons and allowed a clear passage for shipping. Hydraulic equipment on warships became more complex and increasing quantities of it were made at the Elswick works, which also flourished with the reintroduction of the breech-loader in 1878. In 1884 an open-hearth acid steelworks was added to the Elswick facilities. In 1897 the firm merged with Sir Joseph Whitworth \& Co. to become Sir W.G.Armstrong Whitworth \& Co. After Armstrong's death a further merger with Vickers Ltd formed Vickers Armstrong Ltd.In 1879 Armstrong took a great interest in Joseph Swan's invention of the incandescent electric light-bulb. He was one of those who formed the Swan Electric Light Company, opening a factory at South Benwell to make the bulbs. At Cragside, his mansion at Roth bury, he installed a water turbine and generator, making it one of the first houses in England to be lit by electricity.Armstrong was a noted philanthropist, building houses for his workforce, and endowing schools, hospitals and parks. His last act of charity was to purchase Bamburgh Castle, Northumbria, in 1894, intending to turn it into a hospital or a convalescent home, but he did not live long enough to complete the work.[br]Principal Honours and DistinctionsKnighted 1859. FRS 1846. President, Institution of Mechanical Engineers; Institution of Civil Engineers; British Association for the Advancement of Science 1863. Baron Armstrong of Cragside 1887.Further ReadingE.R.Jones, 1886, Heroes of Industry', London: Low.D.J.Scott, 1962, A History of Vickers, London: Weidenfeld \& Nicolson.IMcNBiographical history of technology > Armstrong, Sir William George, Baron Armstrong of Cragside
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2 Mitchell, Charles
SUBJECT AREA: Ports and shipping[br]b. 20 May 1820 Aberdeen, Scotlandd. 22 August 1895 Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne, England[br]Scottish industrialist whose Tyneside shipyard was an early constituent of what became the Vickers Shipbuilding Group.[br]Mitchell's early education commenced at Ledingham's Academy, Correction Wynd, Aberdeen, and from there he became a premium apprentice at the Footdee Engineering Works of Wm Simpson \& Co. Despite being employed for around twelve hours each day, Mitchell matriculated at Marischal College (now merged with King's College to form the University of Aberdeen). He did not graduate, although in 1840 he won the chemistry prize. On the completion of his apprenticeship, like Andrew Leslie (founder of Hawthorn Leslie) and other young Aberdonians he moved to Tyneside, where most of his working life was spent. From 1842 until 1844 he worked as a draughtsman for his friend Coutts, who had a shipyard at Low Walker, before moving on to the drawing offices of Maudslay Sons and Field of London, then one of the leading shipbuilding and engineering establishments in the UK. While in London he studied languages, acquiring a skill that was to stand him in good stead in later years. In 1852 he returned to the North East and set up his own iron-ship building yard at Low Walker near Newcastle. Two years later he married Anne Swan, the sister of the two young men who were to found the company now known as Swan Hunter Ltd. The Mitchell yard grew in size and reputation and by the 1850s he was building for the Russian Navy and Merchant Marine as well as advising the Russians on their shipyards in St Petersburg. In 1867 the first informal business arrangement was concluded with Armstrongs for the supply of armaments for ships; this led to increased co-operation and ultimately in 1882 to the merger of the two shipyards as Sir W.G.Armstrong Mitchell \& Co. At the time of the merger, Mitchell had launched 450 ships in twenty-nine years. In 1886 the new company built the SS Gluckauf, the world's first bulk oil tanker. After ill health in 1865 Mitchell reduced his workload and lived for a while in Surbiton, London, but returned to Tyneside to a new house at Jesmond. In his later years he was a generous benefactor to many good causes in Tyneside and Aberdeen, to the Church and to the University of Aberdeen.[br]Further ReadingD.F.McGuire, 1988, Charles Mitchell 1820–1895, Victorian Shipbuilder, Newcastle upon Tyne: City Libraries and Arts.J.D.Scott, 1962, Vickers. A History, London: Weidenfeld \& Nicolson (a recommended overview of the Vickers Group).FMW -
3 Parseval, August von
SUBJECT AREA: Aerospace[br]b. 1861d. 22 February 1942 Berlin, Germany[br]German designer of tethered observation balloons and non-rigid airships.[br]Major von Parseval and his colleague Captain von Sigsfeld were serving in the German army during the 1890s when improved military observation from the air was being pursued. Tethered observation balloons, raised and lowered by a winch, had been used since 1794, but in strong winds a spherical balloon became very unstable. Manned kites were being developed by "Colonel" S.F. Cody, in Britain, and others, but kites were a problem if the wind dropped. A very successful compromise was achieved in 1897 by von Parseval and von Sigsfeld, who developed a kite-balloon, the Drachen ("Dragon"), which was elongated like an airship and fitted with large inflated fins. It was attached to its tethering cable in such a way that it flew with a positive incidence (nose up) to the wind, thus producing some lift—like a kite. The combination of these factors made the kite-balloon very stable. Other countries followed suit and a version designed by the Frenchman Albert Caquot was widely used during the First World War for observing the results of artillery fire. Caquot balloons were also used around London as a barrage to obstruct enemy aircraft, and "barrage balloons" were widely used during the Second World War. After working at a government balloon factory in Berlin where non-rigid airships were built, von Parseval designed his own non-rigid airship. The Parseval I which flew in 1906 was small, but larger and faster non-rigids followed. These were built by Luftfahrzeug-Gesellschaft m.b.H. of Berlin founded in 1908 to build and operate Parseval airships. The British Admiralty ordered three Parseval airships, two to be built by Vickers of Barrow (who had built the rigid airship R 1 Mayfly in 1911), and one to be built in Berlin. This one was flown from Berlin to Farnborough in 1913 and joined the Vickers-built Parseval in the Naval Air Service. During the First World War, Parseval airships had the unique distinction of serving on both sides. Three small Parseval airships were built between 1929 and 1932 for use in advertising.[br]Further ReadingA.Hildebrandt, 1908, Airships Past and Present, London (describes the kite-balloon). Fred Gütschow, 1985, Das Luftschiff, Stuttgart (includes a record of all the airships). Basil Clarke, 1961, The History of Airships, London (provides limited coverage of von Parseval's work).Basil Collier, 1974, The Airship: A History, London (provides limited coverage of von Parseval's work). -
4 VPH
1) Спорт: Victoria Park Harriers and Tower Hamlets2) Военный термин: Video Phase History, vertical photography3) Техника: viscosity pole height4) Ветеринария: Veterinary Public Health Conference5) Электроника: Volume-Phase Holographic gratings6) Силикатное производство: Vickers pyramid hardness7) Полимеры: Vickers pyramid hardness number (N)8) Расширение файла: Virtual Pascal Help file -
5 vph
1) Спорт: Victoria Park Harriers and Tower Hamlets2) Военный термин: Video Phase History, vertical photography3) Техника: viscosity pole height4) Ветеринария: Veterinary Public Health Conference5) Электроника: Volume-Phase Holographic gratings6) Силикатное производство: Vickers pyramid hardness7) Полимеры: Vickers pyramid hardness number (N)8) Расширение файла: Virtual Pascal Help file -
6 Holland, John Philip
SUBJECT AREA: Ports and shipping[br]b. 29 February 1840 Liscanor, Co. Clare, Irelandd. 12 August 1915 Newark, New Jersey, USA[br]Irish/American inventor of the successful modern submarine[br]Holland was educated first in his native town and later in Limerick, a seaport bustling with coastal trade ships. His first job was that of schoolteacher, and as such he worked in various parts of Ireland until he was about 32 years old. A combination of his burning patriotic zeal for Ireland and his interest in undersea technology (then in its infancy) made him consider designs for underwater warships for use against the British Royal Navy in the fight for Irish independence. He studied all known works on the subject and commenced drawing plans, but he was unable to make real headway owing to a lack of finance.In 1873 he travelled to the United States, ultimately settling in New Jersey and continuing in the profession of teaching. His work on submarine design continued, but in 1875 he suffered a grave setback when the United States Navy turned down his designs. Help came from an unexpected source, the Irish Republican Brotherhood, or Fenian Society, which had been founded in Dublin and New York in 1858. Financial help enabled Holland to build a 4 m (13 ft) one-person craft, which was tested in 1878, and then a larger boat of 19 tonnes' displacement that was tested with a crew of three to depths of 20 m (65 ft) in New York's harbour in 1883. Known as the Fenian Ram, it embodied most of the principles of modern submarines, including weight compensation. The Fenians commandeered this boat, but they were unable to operate it satisfactorily and it was relegated to history.Holland continued work, at times independently and sometimes with others, and continuously advocated submarines to the United States Navy. In 1895 he was successful in winning a contract for US$150,000 to build the US Submarine Plunger at Baltimore. With too much outside interference, this proved an unsatisfactory venture. However, with only US$5,000 of his capital left, Holland started again and in 1898 he launched the Holland at Elizabeth, New Jersey. This 16 m (52 ft) vessel was successful, and in 1900 it was purchased by the United States Government.Six more boats were ordered by the Americans, and then some by the Russians and the Japanese. The British Royal Navy ordered five, which were built by Vickers Son and Maxim (now VSEL) at Barrow-in-Furness in the years up to 1903, commencing their long run of submarine building. They were licensed by another well-known name, the Electric Boat Company, which had formerly been the J.P.Holland Torpedo Boat Company.Holland now had some wealth and was well known. He continued to work, trying his hand at aeronautical research, and in 1904 he invented a respirator for use in submarine rescue work. It is pleasing to record that one of his ships can be seen to this day at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport: HM Submarine Holland No. 1, which was lost under tow in 1913 but salvaged and restored in the 1980s.[br]Principal Honours and DistinctionsOrder of the Rising Sun, Japan, 1910.Bibliography1900, "The submarine boat and its future", North American Review (December). Holland wrote several other articles of a similar nature.Further ReadingR.K.Morris, 1966 John P.Holland 1841–1914, Inventor of the Modern Submarine, Annapolis, MD: US Naval Institute.F.W.Lipscomb, 1975, The British Submarine, London: Conway Maritime Press. A.N.Harrison, 1979, The Development of HM Submarines from Holland No. 1 (1901) toPorpoise (1930), Bath: MoD Ships Department (internal publication).FMW -
7 Williams, Sir Frederic Calland
SUBJECT AREA: Electronics and information technology[br]b. 26 June 1911 Stockport, Cheshire, Englandd. 11 August 1977 Prestbury, Cheshire, England[br]English electrical engineer who invented the Williams storage cathode ray tube, which was extensively used worldwide as a data memory in the first digital computers.[br]Following education at Stockport Grammar School, Williams entered Manchester University in 1929, gaining his BSc in 1932 and MSc in 1933. After a short time as a college apprentice with Metropolitan Vickers, he went to Magdalen College, Oxford, to study for a DPhil, which he was awarded in 1936. He returned to Manchester University that year as an assistant lecturer, gaining his DSc in 1939. Following the outbreak of the Second World War he worked for the Scientific Civil Service, initially at the Bawdsey Research Station and then at the Telecommunications Research Establishment at Malvern, Worcestershire. There he was involved in research on non-incandescent amplifiers and diode rectifiers and the development of the first practical radar system capable of identifying friendly aircraft. Later in the war, he devised an automatic radar system suitable for use by fighter aircraft.After the war he resumed his academic career at Manchester, becoming Professor of Electrical Engineering and Director of the University Electrotechnical Laboratory in 1946. In the same year he succeeded in developing a data-memory device based on the cathode ray tube, in which the information was stored and read by electron-beam scanning of a charge-retaining target. The Williams storage tube, as it became known, not only found obvious later use as a means of storing single-frame, still television images but proved to be a vital component of the pioneering Manchester University MkI digital computer. Because it enabled both data and program instructions to be stored in the computer, it was soon used worldwide in the development of the early stored-program computers.[br]Principal Honours and DistinctionsKnighted 1976. OBE 1945. CBE 1961. FRS 1950. Hon. DSc Durham 1964, Sussex 1971, Wales 1971. First Royal Society of Arts Benjamin Franklin Medal 1957. City of Philadelphia John Scott Award 1960. Royal Society Hughes Medal 1963. Institution of Electrical Engineers Faraday Medal 1972. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Pioneer Award 1973.BibliographyWilliams contributed papers to many scientific journals, including Proceedings of the Royal Society, Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, Journal of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Wireless Engineer, Post Office Electrical Engineers' Journal. Note especially: 1948, with J.Kilburn, "Electronic digital computers", Nature 162:487; 1949, with J.Kilburn, "A storage system for use with binary digital computing machines", Proceedings of the Institution of Electrical Engineers 96:81; 1975, "Early computers at Manchester University", Radio \& Electronic Engineer 45:327. Williams also collaborated in the writing of vols 19 and 20 of the MIT RadiationLaboratory Series.Further ReadingB.Randell, 1973, The Origins of Digital Computers, Berlin: Springer-Verlag. M.R.Williams, 1985, A History of Computing Technology, London: Prentice-Hall. See also: Stibitz, George R.; Strachey, Christopher.KFBiographical history of technology > Williams, Sir Frederic Calland
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