Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
3'71~ ,
This invention relates to a method and apparatus
for use in handling and baiting long fishing lines of the
kind which are used with sea-going fishing vessels, for
catching white-fish such as cod, ling, ray, turbot, plaice
and haddock by the method known as "long line" fishing.
Such fishing lines have hooks spaced apart along the
main line and attached to the main line by short trailing
lengths of line called "snoods". The individual hooks have
to have pieces of bait attached thereto, the bait-material
used when fishing for white-fish usually being cut-up pieces
of mackerel or herring.
In the past baiting of the hooks of such fishing lines
; has been carried out manually, either aboard the vessel, or
even ashore. In the latter case, spare sets of fishing lines
have to be provided so that spare lines can be baited by
shore personnel while the vessel is at sea, so that a supply _
of baited lines will be available when the vessel returns to
port after each fishing voyage. In that event an excessive
number of fishing lines has to be provided, while in either
case (i.e. using manual baiting either aboard the vessel or
ashore) the manpower requirement is excessive.
Devices have been proposed for baiting such fishing
lines mechanically but the devices proposed have not been found
satisfactory in use. In some cases, it has been found that
~25 a line emerging from such a device has bait engaged with only _~
reiatively few of the hooks on the line; that is to say, the
"success rate" of baiting is poor. In other cases it has
- 2 -
,
3~
been found that even when a substantial number of the hooks
emerging from the device do have bait engaged therewith, `
such bait is not firmly engaged with the hooks and tends
to fall off the hooks, or else that the construction of the
device is such that there is a tendency for the bait to be
knocked off the hooks, for example because the line has to
pass through a narrow aperture as it emerges from the device.
It is therefore an object of the present invention, to
provide an improved method and apparatus for baiting fishing
lines.
A further object of the invention is to provide apparatus ~;
which will enable a line to be baited in a continuous
operation, as it is paid out from the fishing vessel.
During fishing operations using a fishing line of the
above-mentioned kind, as the line is hauled inboard, the
fish may be removed from the hooks, the hooks may then be
cleaned and the line with the snoods and hooks carried thereby
may then be fed to a magazine, in which the line is stored
until reouired for a further fishing operation. It is a still
further object of the invention, to provide an improved
form of line-magazine.
The invention will be more fully understood from the
following description, given by way of example only, of
one form of apparatus constructed in accordance therewith.
In the drawings:- _
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the main part of the
apparatus, including the baiting device propeF;
. .
:: :: . ,. . -,
-
.
Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line II-II ,
in Fig. l;
Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line III-III in
Fig. l;
Fig. 4 is an elevational view showing a line-magazine
which is used in conjunction with the baiting device of
Fig. l;
Fig. 5 is a scrap view in section on the line V-V
in Fig. 4, drawn to a larger scale.
,,_~_ .,
' ' . ; ~ ' ' , : :
: . . : . ,: .
' ' ''' ' ~
1~.3',~
The apparatus which will now be described,
includes a baiting device for carrying out the operation
of baiting a fishing line of the kind having hooks spaced
apart along it and attached to the main line by "snoods",
and a magazine for storing the line to be baited. The
baiting device and the magazine are shown respectively
in Fig. 1 and Fig. 4 and in order to obtain an overall
view of the apparatus, it is necessary to consider Figs. 1 and
4 together. The components of the apparatus are shown somewhat
diagrammatically,without the supporting means therefor being
shown. In practice, the components of the apparatus are
carried by a suitable frame-work (not shown in the drawings)
which is mounted aboard a fishing vessel.
Referring to Fig. 1, there is shown a baiting
device indicated generally at 10, which comprises a hollow
body fabricated from stainless steel by welding and
consisting of an elongated tubular member 11 of rectangular
cross-section, welded to a funnel-member 12. As can best
be seen in Fig. 3, the internal passage 13 in the tubular
member 11 opens into the funnel-member 12 by way of a
rectangular opening 14. Thus the funnel-member 12 serves
as a receptacle to receive surplus bait discharged from
tubular member 11 by way of the opening 14.
The upper part of the funnel-member 12 consists
^ 25 of an open trough-like portion 15, while the lower part 16
is of downwardly convergent form and leads to a discharge
orifice 17 (Fig. 2) communicating with a discharge pipe 18.
,._ ............................. . . . .
- . . . ~ -
-: :
- . . : . . . :
. ' ' ' . - : . , . :. ,
''' '' .-
,
~L3~
At the end of thc tubular member 11 opposite
to the opening 14, the member 11 has an opening 19 fitted
with a conical guide-member 20. The openings 19 and 14
provide respectively, an inlet and an outlet spaced
apart along the length of the member 11, by means of
which a line 21 can pass into and out of the member 11
and thence through the trough-portion 15, emerging _~
through opening 22.
At its upper part, the member 11 has an opening
23 (Fig. 3) fitted with a hopper 24 for bait to be fed
into the member 11, in the form of a sloppy mixture made
by mixing cut-up bait with water.
As the line 21 passes through the guide-member
20 and into the passage 13, the guide-member 20 serves
to align snoods 25 carried by the line 21, so that the
snoods 25 and hooks 26 carried thereby pass into the
passage 13 without becoming twisted or tangled.
The line 21 is guided towards the opening 19
by way of a pulley 27. Referring to Fig. 3, it will be
seen that the configuration of the whole arrangement is ~
such that the line 21 bears on the one hand, on the lower
edge of inlet opening 19 at A and on the other hand, on
the lower edge of opening 22 at B, and follows a rectilinear
track between these two points, passing through approximately
the central point of opening 14 at C.
- 6 -
.. . . . .
.
- ''' : ~.
'
1~13'~
A brush-assembly 31 is fitted into the trough-
portion lS, by being slid vertically downwards behind
two brackets 32,33 welded at suitable positions in the
trough-portion, and rests on the walls of the convergent
lower part 16 of funnel-member 12, at 34,35 ~Fig. 2). The
brush-assembly 31 consists of a U-shaped wooden block 36
which forms a mounting for brush-bristles 37. The
bristles 37 are mounted to extend generally radially
relatively to aperture 38 in U-shaped block 36, but so as
to be inclined outwardly relatively to the plane of block 36, t
thus projecting into the trough-portion 15, as most
clearly shown in Fig. 3.
As bait is fed by way of the hopper 24, it
collects in the passage 13 of the member 11. The
array of bristles 37 serves to retain a mass of bait 40
in the passage 13 and, as the line 21 with the hooks 26
thereon is drawn through the mass of bait, pieces of bait '~
are impaled by the hooks. Because of the flexibility
characteristics of the bristles 37, the hooks and the
pieces of bait carried thereby are able to pass through
the outlet 13 without the bait becoming detached from
the hooks. At the same time, a considerable amount of
loose bait also escapes past the bristles and falls into
the funnel-member 12. Any bait which subsequently
falls off the hooks also drops into the funnel-member 12.
.
: . '' ' , : ..,
..
~13'~
Hoses 29 are provided in association with the
trough-portion lS, so as to direct jcts of water into
the latter, and bait is washed down into the convergent
part 16 and thence into the pipe 18, from which it is
collected for re-use. The baited line 21 emerging from
the baiting device through opening 22 is paid out
continuously into the sea.
Bait which is washed down the pipe 18 may be
led by means of a hose (not shown) into a container
which is trailed over the side of the vessel in the sea
and is thus kept fresh for subsequent re-use.
The bristles 37 are commercially available nylon
brush-bristles of a grade stiff enough to ensure that
the mass of bait 40 is retained in the passage 13, but
not so stiff as to hamper the individual baited hooks
from passing out of the outlet 14, or to cause bait to
be torn off from the hooks. It is not the intention
that the bristles 37 should prevent all unhooked bait
from passing through the outlet 14. This would require
an unacceptable degree of stiffness in the bristles.
In practice, approximately 30% of the bait fed to the
hopper 24 eventually falls down loose into the funnel-member 12.
However, there is no disadvantage in this, since all the
loose bait is recovered and re-used.
As the line 21 passes through the mass of bait 40
in the member 11, the individual hooks may pick up several
-- 8 --
- . - ........ - , . . ......... ::: . : . : : .
''' '- - "' ~ ' ' .
~, , .
1~.3L3iit7.3!.~3 ~
pieces of bait, some of which may be knocked off the
hooks as the line passes through the trough-portion 15,
or may be washed off by the water jets from the hoses 29.
However, it is found in practice that over 90% of the
hooks have sufficient bait still engaged therewith.
In carrying out tne method of the invention,
the bait used will usually be cut considerably smaller
than has customarily been the case hitherto. Preferably
the bait (e.g. mackerel or herring) is cut into cubes
having an edge-dimension of from 10 mm to 20 mm and the
cut bait is mixed with water to provide a mixture of the
desired sloppy consistency. r
When using cut bait of this size, as the hooks 26
pass through the member 11, several pieces of bait may be
hooked on each individual hook. However, as each hook
passes through the member 11, some of these pieces of bait
may be knocked of f and replaced by others which become -
more securely hooked, in what may be regarded as a "hit
and miss" process.
The line to be baited is fed to the baiting
device 10 from the line-magazine shown in Fig. 4 and
designated generally by the reference numeral 100. The
magazine comprises a narrow upright box-like structure 101,
having side walls of trapezium-shape, with two narrow end
walls between them. Thus one of the end walls 102 is
upright while the other end wall 103 is inclined to the
.
-- g _
. , . ~
.
:- :
1~13'~
vertical. Only one of the trapezium-shaped side walls is
visible in the drawing. It consists of a wooden frame 104
having an opening 105 fitted with wire-mesh 106, so that
air can circulate through the magazine to assist in
S drying the line therein.
The end wall 102 is extended upwardly to form
an upright 107 which supports a rail-member 110 prajecting
horizontally from the upright 107. When a line to be
stored is fed into the magazine, the hooks of the line are
slid into engagement with the rail-member 110, a few such
hooks being shown in Fig. 4 and designated 126. The
snoods 125 hang downwardly from the hooks 126 and thus
the main line is suspended in loops 121 in the box 101.
The magazine 100 as a whole, is slidable into
and out of the operative position shown in Fig. 4. The
full magazine is slid into position in the direction
indicated by the arrow a in Fig. 4, and the end 109 of
the rail-member 110 is thus brought into end-to end
engagement with a fixed rail 130 which is visible in both
Fig. 4 and Fig. 1.
After the line has been withdrawn from the
magazine for baiting, the magazine is removed by sliding
it outwards in the opposite direction to the arrow a. A
further line can then be fed into the empty magazine by
sliding the hooks of the line into engagement with the
rail-member 110, from the free end 109. The snoods 125
then hang down in the manner previously described, and the
_
-- 10 --
..
. .
. .
'
,
1~3'7~
loops 121 of the main line are packed into the box 101.
The rail-member 110 is made of stainless steel
and, as can be seen in Fig. 5, it has a hollow profile
consisting of a bottom wall 111, two upright walls 112,113
and an upper wall 114. A rod 115 of circular cross-
section is welded to the edge of the wall 113. The
upper wall 114 projects from the wall 112 towards the
wall 113, and thus defines with the rod 115, a slot 116.
An inter~ediate wall 117 extends from the wall 112,
internally of the hollow profile. Successive hooks are
slid into engagement with the rail-member 110, starting
from the free end 109, with each hook 126 being engaged
in the slot 116, and being guided in its sliding movement
along the rail-member 110, by the rod 115 and the
intermediate wall 117.
Two brush-assemblies 141,142 are supported by
the framework of the apparatus. As can be seen from Fig. 5,
the upper brush-assembly 142 consists of two wooden battens
143,144, each carrying a row of brush-bristles 145,146.
As shown in Fig. 4, the lower brush-assembly 141
is mounted so as to extend at an angle to the upper
brush-assembly 142. It is of similar construction to the
assembly 142, but its bristles are stiffer.
One of the battens of each brush-assembly 141,142
is mounted so as to be pivotable towards and away from
the other batten of the assembly, as indicated in the
case of the batten 144 in Fig. 5, by the arrow b. In order
to bring the full magazine 100 into the position shown in
-- 11 -- ,
,
::
'.
~ ' . ' , ~
~5 13~7~8
Fig. 4, by sliding movement in the direction of the arrow
a as previously described, it is necessary for the movable
brush-battens of the assemblies 141,142 to be pivoted
into displaced positions, so as to allow the snoods 125
to pass between the opposed rows of bristles. When the
magazine has been brought into its final position, the ,
movable brush-battens are returned to their normal
positions, so that the snoods are engaged by the opposed
rows of bristles. This position is shown in Fig. 5,
where bristle-rows 145,146 are shown engaging snood 125.
In order to carry out the baiting operation,
the line is drawn out from the box 101, over the pulley 27
and thus into the inlet 19 of the tubular member 11. As
the line is drawn out in this way, the individual snoods
are pulled out of engagement with the brush-assemblies t
141,142 and successive loop portions 121 of the main line
are thus pulled up into engagement with the brush-assembly
141 as shown in Fig. 4. This movement is assisted by
the inclined configuration of the wall 103. Thus the
line is guided into correct alignment with the pulley 27.
At the same time each individual snood 125 is pulled
towards the pulley 27 so that the associated hook 126
slides along the rail 110, under the control of the
brush-assembly 142.
The successive hooks then slide from the rail
110 on to the rail 130 and along the latter towards the
inlet 19. A further brush-member 131 is provided above
. _ . . .
' .. . .
.
.
- ' . .
71~3
the rail 130, with its bristles in engagement with the
upper edge of the rail 130, so that these bristles serve
to control the sliding movement of the hooks along the
rail 131. Finally, the snoods and hooks are guided
into the inlet 19 by the action of the guide-member 20,
in the manner previously described.
, - 13 -
.
- ~ ~' . . .-
'
-
- - '
