Lionel Lukin (18 May 1742 – 16 February 1834) was a British carriage builder and inventor, noted for the invention of the 'unimmergible' lifeboat.
[2][3] He had a house in Chelsea and retired to Hythe, Kent, where he took an active interest in matters of the church.
His gravestone is inscribed: This Lionel Lukin was the first to build a lifeboat, and the original inventor of that principle of safety by which many lives and much property have been preserved from shipwreck, and he obtained for it the King's patent in the year 1785.
The design had increased buoyancy because of sealed air spaces along the side of the boat and in the bow and stern.
It was reported to have crossed the English Channel several times in rough weather but was believed impounded on suspicion of being used for smuggling.
Other ideas included a stove that could be used on a ship in rough seas, a rain gauge, an adjustable invalid's bed that was adopted in London hospitals, and a raft that could be used to rescue people who had fallen through ice.