The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1911-02-15
BRAIN IS NEB
FLYING lAllG FACTOR
AERO MECHANIclsM SECONDARY.
TO MAN DRIVING BIG
ty AERIAL VEHICLES. q.
.s%TABILlzING WORK

-
%STABlLlZING WORK
Efforts Being Concentrated on De
vice to Keep Machines
Straight.
Washington. DSC.-Maltiferous rs
are the lew devices which are being
applied to the navigation or the air.
IN connection with the present day
activity Of the, sport, none has been
Or Is likely 10 be found to lake the
place OF brains In the aviator. This
is the opinion OF James Fl. Col@tll,
the patent Office expert. who has I'M
mediate charge OF all flying machine
Inventions and who has given per-
sonal attention to almost every appli-
cation for n patent IN that line. Suni-
ming up his views today, he said ser-
%tentioasiy.
""Ten per cent OF every aerial flight
is due to the machine, Is Per cent 70.
tile motor and47 per cent to the man.
The man Of Indecision, poor Judgment.
weak nerves or slow judgment is US
much out Of place in an airship US a
defectiye MOTOR"
Airship invention has received a
stirring impetus within the last few
years and there is more reliable In
deg to this activity than that display
ed By the. records OF the United States
patent office. II began With the FRS
exhibitions by the Wright brothers on
the North Carolina coast and has in
creased in geometric ratio since that
time, with the consequence that up to
date about 5000 patents have been is
sued on these machines themselves or
on devices connected with them. The
bureau Is now handling M average
Of about ninety cases q month cases
a month. The work Is conducted IN
the division Of the office which gives
especial attention to inventions iiav-
ing 10 do with army ordinance and
marine propulsion. Important as are
those branches. more than half the
force, under the direction OF MIR. Col
well, is engaged upon the afr machine
portion Of the work.
The airship inventions have been
assigned to this division largely be-
cause OF the fact that the method OF
propulsion Is the most important part
OF aerial navigation. The patent Of
fee regards as established the priuci-
Pile of the plane in this method OF
transit and as q consequence OF the
general recognition OF this fact the
inventive genius OF the world is nov
concentrating its attention largely
upon the motive power. Electricity
as il motive power Is being made tho
subject Of careful inquiry. The weight
| OF the present day electric motor IL
a bar to its use in all aerial craft.
and It is feared that no progress, can
be made until a way Is found Of gath:
ering this force from the atmosphere.
Much attention Is being given BY
Inventors to "stabiliz;ng" by which
is meant the keeping Of the air car
In the right position. In case OF acct
dent they have a tendency 10 turn
turtle ard In that event they seek
the center OF the gravity with a sud
denness which generally means dis
aster to the operator. Already vast
improvements have been made and
still many more are hoped for in this
direction.
Inventors also are seeking for i'm
proved methods OF arising and alight-
ing and there are numerous applica-
lions for patents covering these
points. The airmen want a machine
that can lift itself suddenly from the
ground. like a bird and can alight
anywhere. To satisfy this demand
| the inventors are turning their at
, tention to the horizontal screw
!! such as Is used in water in connec-
tlon with submarine boats and, many
OF the applications dealing with this
principle have been filed.
Inventions looking to the use Of tho
alrship In time OF wal also are pour.
ing into office as are counter inven-
tons which contemplate protection
against them. AS the patent Office
views the situation. the difficulty in
using the aeroplanes for dropping
projectiles Is fourd in the nicer
tainty which must necessarily ac-
| company such effort. With q ma
chine going from fifty; to seventy-Ave
miles an hour, as most OF them do,
it Is extremely difficult 10 direct a
projectil. so as to insure It's striking
the mari, even though that mark be
a battleship or an extensive fortlaca.
tion. A. large number OF the airsliip
cases now coming into the patent Of
flee are those dealing with foreign
patents. The European governments
are more liberal IN their encourage
ment in the development OF aerial