Undersea mining apparatus with means to establish a pressure balance across the inlet to the conveyor tube

Claim 1

AN UNDERSEA MINING APPARATUS COMPRISING: A SUPPORTING FRAMEWORK HAVING A BASE ADAPTED TO REST UPON THE SEA FLOOR; A CONVEYOR TUBE HAVING A LOWER PORTION FIXED TO SAID FRAMEWORK AND EXTENDING UPWARDLY THEREFROM TO THE WATER SURFACE, SAID TUBE BEING PROVIDED WITH A SIDE OPENING LOCATED ADJACENT SAID FRAMEWORK, SAID TUBE BEING OF SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT CROSS SECTION UPWARDLY ADJACENT TO SAID OPENING; A HOPPER MOUNTED ON SAID FRAMEWORK ADJACENT SAID TUBE, SAID HOPPER HAVING CONVERGING SIDES LEADING TO THE OPENING OF SAID TUBE; MEANS ON SAID FRAMEWORK ADAPTED TO TRANSFER MATERIAL FROM THE SEA BOTTOM TO THE HOPPER; AND MEANS ON SAID FRAMEWORK OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID TUBE FOR MAINTAINING A STREAM OF SEA WATER ACROSS SAID OPENING IN HYDROSTATIC BALANCE WITH THE WATER OUTSIDE OF SAID OPENING, SAID STREAM OF SEA WATER HAVING SUFFICIENT VELOCITY TO COUNTERACT GRAVITATIONAL FORCES ON MATERIAL WITHIN THE TUBE AND TO CARRY SUCH MATERIAL TO THE WATER SURFACE.