Improved Means or Appliances for Supporting Revolving Shafts and the Arrangement of Rotary Motors and Dynamos in connection therewith.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Aug., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 12th May, 1897--Accepted, 7th Aug., 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means or Appliances for Supporting Revolving Shafts
and the Arrangement of Rotary Motors and Dynamos in
connection therewith.
I, REGINALD WOOD, of Spring Cottage, Lindley, Huddersfield, in the County
of York, Electrical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to
be as follows:--
My invention relates to improved means or appliances for supporting revolving
shafts, more particularly the shafts of rotary motors of any kind, or other shafts
revolving at high speeds, in such manner as to practically avoid all friction in the
bearings or supports. For this purpose, assuming the shaft to be in a vertical
position, I provide at the lower end thereof a piece of metal which can be moved
horizontally so as to occupy and be fixed in any position within limits. The lower
end of this piece of metal contains a centre hole which rests on a point fixed to
the frame. At the upper end of the shaft a point fixed to the frame rests in a central
hole in a similar piece of metal similarly adjustable as to horizontal position on the
shaft. By adjustment of the position of the pieces of metal containing the centre
holes the centre line of rotation of the shaft and of all it carries may be made to
coincide with the line joining the fixed points. The weight of the shaft and all it
carries is not taken by the lower point, but a keeper is fixed on the top of the shaft
and an electro magnet is fixed above it to the frame so that the weight of the shaft etc.
is balanced by the attraction exerted by the electro-magnet."
According to one arrangement for this purpose I fix at some distance below the top
of the shaft a wide collar or disc or star wheel with studs projecting from near the
periphery parallel to the shaft towards the top, the studs being insulated if necessary.
Over the studs is slipped a sheet iron piece consisting of two sheet iron cylinders, one
inside the other, joined at the lower end by a sheet iron disc that is the semi-envelope
of a hollow cylinder. The studs pass through holes in the disc.
Then another similar sheet iron piece or semi-envelope of a hollow cylinder is
slipped inside this and the process repeated; finally a ring is slipped over the studs
and a nut screwed on each stud.
The cylinders of sheet iron end in two annular laminated surfaces about flush with
the top end of the shaft. Opposite and above these are similar annular iron surfaces
which are the lower ends of concentric hollow cylinders made of solid iron, joined at
their upper ends by a solid iron annulus and fixed to the frame.
Between the two upper hollow cylinders is placed a magnetising coil.
Looked at in section, the path of magnetic induction would be say, up the inner
upper cylinder, through the upper annulus, down the outer cylinder through the air
gap down a sheet iron outer cylinder of the shaft, across the lower annulus and up the
inner sheet iron cylinder, across the air gap and back to the inner upper hollow
cylinder. It will thus be seen that the upper hollow cylinders become an electro-
magnet and attract the lower ones thus supporting in space the shaft and all it carries,
so that no weight is taken by either of the above mentioned points, and when the

page_text: shaft revolves there is no hysteresis or eddy current. After the centre holes at the
ends of the shaft had been fixed in the right position, parts of the shaft could be
turned and small bearings or collars be fixed to the frame to act as guides to prevent
the shaft from bending.
In some cases it is unnecessary to fix the blocks on the shaft that carry the centre
holes but to allow them to adjust themselves so that the apparatus will find its own
centre line of revolution.
When the shaft thus supported constitutes the shaft of a rotary motor such as an
impulse turbine actuated by fluid flowing longitudinally through it, that is, parallel
with the shaft, the fluid would be fed up to one motor wheel and down to another so
as to prevent such motors from exercising end thrust, and I fix a dynamo on the
shaft between the two motors so as to convert the mechanical energy of the motors
into electrical energy, and thus avoid all side thrust in transmitting the power. Or
the double motor engine may be arranged in the middle of the shaft with a dynamo
at each end. When dynamos are thus combined with the shaft, a portion of the
current produced by these may be employed for exciting the supporting electromagnet,
or the dynamo and its armature may itself be so arranged as to perform the function
of the supporting electromagnet and its keeper.
When the shaft is arranged in a horizontal position two of the above described
supporting electromagnets would be required.
Dated this 14th day of August 1896.
ABEL & IMKAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improved Means or Appliances for Supporting Revolving Shafts
and the Arrangement of Rotary Motors and Dynamos in
connection therewith.
I, REGINALD Wood of Spring Cottage Lindley Huddersfield in the County of
York, Electrical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:--
My invention relates to improved means or appliances for supporting revolving
shafts, more particularly the shafts of rotary motors of any kind, or other shafts
revolving at high speeds, in such a manner as to practically avoid all friction in the
bearings or supports. For this purpose, assuming the shaft to be in a vertical
position, I provide at the lower end thereof a piece of metal which can be moved
horizontally, or preferably on a surface spherical about the centre of gravity of the
shaft & all it carries, so as to occupy & be fixed in any position within limits. The
lower end of this piece of metal contains a centre hole which rests on a point fixed
to, or capable of up & down motion in the frame, but in the latter case pressed up by
a spring.
At the upper end of the shaft a point fixed to the frame rests in a central hole in
a similar piece of metal similarly adjustable as to position on the end of the shaft.
By adjustment of the pieces of metal containing the centre holes the centre line of
rotation of the shaft & all it carries may be made to coincide with the line joining
the fixed points.
The weight of the shaft & all it carries is not taken by the lower point, but a
keeper is fixed on the top of the shaft and an electromagnet is fixed above it to the
frame so that the weight of the shaft etc. is balanced by the attraction exerted by the
electromagnet.

page_text: The position of the electromagnet & keeper is not confined to the top of the shaft
and there may be more than one electromagnet & keeper.
According to one arrangement for this purpose I fix at some distance below the top
of the shaft a wide collar or disc or star wheel, properly shaped, with studs projecting
from near the periphery parallel to the shaft towards the top, the studs being insulated
if necessary. Over the studs is slipped a slicet iron piece consisting of two sheet
iron cylinders, one inside the other, joined at the lower end by a sheet iron annulus,
that is an annulus trough, or the semi-envelope of a hollow cylinder. The studs pass
through holes in the sheet iron annulus.
Then another similar smaller sheet iron piece or semi-envelope of a hollow cylinder
is slipped inside this & the process repeated; finally a ring is slipped over the studs
and a nut screwed on each stud. The sheet iron pieces inay be slit radially, that is
iron wire may he used, and preferably. The semi-envelope of an anchor ring may be
used instead of a semi-envelope of a hollow cylinder.
The cylinders of sheet iron end in two annular laminated surfaces about flush
usually with the top end of the shaft. Opposite & above these are two annular iron
surfaces, which are the lower ends of concentric hollow cylinders made of iron,
usually solid, joined at their upper ends by an iron annulus and fixed to the frame.
These opposing surfaces are preferably made spherical about the centre of gravity.
Between the two upper hollow cylinders is placed a magnetising coil.
Looked at in section, the path of magnetic induction would be say, up the inner
upper cylinder, through the upper annulus, down the outer cylinder, through the air
gap, down a wire or sheet iron outer cylinder of the shaft, across the lower annulus
and up a wire on the inner sheet iron cylinder, across the air gap and back to the
inner upper hollow cylinder. It will thus be seen that the upper hollow cylinders
become an electromagnet & attract the lower ones, thus supporting in space the
shaft and all it carries, so that no weight is taken by either of the above mentioned
points, & when the shaft revolves there is no hysteresis or eddy current. After the
centre holes at the ends of the shaft had been fixed in the right position, parts of
the shaft could be turned down and small bearings or collars fixed to the frame to act
as guides to prevent the shaft from bending.
In some cases it is unnecessary to fix on the shaft the blocks which carry the centre
holes but to allow them to adjust themselves so that the apparatus will find its own
centre line of revolution. When I allow the blocks thus a little play I so arrange
the bodies on the shaft that the axis of rotation is the stable axis.
When the shaft thus supported constitutes the shaft of a rotary motor such as an
impulse turbine actuated by fluid flowing longitudinally through it, that is parallel
with the shaft, the fluid would be fed up one motor wheel and down another so as to
prevent such motors from exercising end thrust, and I fix a dynamo on the shaft
between the two motors so as to convert the mechanical energy of the motors into
electrical energy, & thus avoid all side thrust in transmitting the power. The
keeper above inentioned may thus be utilised as the armature of the dynamo with
the electromagnet for the field magnet. Or the double motor engine may be
arranged in the middle of the shaft with a dynamo at each end. When dynamos are
thus combined with the shaft, a portion of the current produced by these may be
employed for exciting the supporting electromagnet, or the dynamo & its armature
may itself be so arranged as to perform the function of the supporting electromagnet
& its keeper. The collar by which the keeper is fixed to the shaft may be so
shaped as to act as the double motor engine and the keeper as dynamo armature as
well as keeper. In this latter case by making the diameter large in comparison with
the length of the shaft the axis of rotation is the stable axis.
When the shaft is arranged in a horizontal position two of the above described
electromagnets & keepers, suitably shaped, would be required.
One illustration of the invention is shewn in Figure I. To the left of the centre
line the figure is in elevation, to the right in section C is the piece of metal containing
the centre hole. The lower surface of C is spherical about J the centre of gravity
of the shaft A andall it bears, and rests on a similar surface of B which is fixed by a

page_text: spindle to the shaft A. D is the point fixed by E to the frame R, rests in the centre
hole in C and is adjustable in all directions. T is a pin or screw for fixing C to B.
The lower D is similarly used with T and inverted B C, although it is shewn
without them.
By the adjustment of the position of each C with regard to its B, the line
joining D D, the line round which the shaft rotates may be made to coincide with any
desired line in the shaft.
N is the keeper, F the electromagnet, G the magnetising coil. N is composed of
iron plates or wires held between the non-magnetic M and ring K by the studs L
which are insulated. M is fixed to A by pins P. The semicircular lines in N
represent the sheet iron or iron wire, the thick lines round L represent insulation.
The opposing surfaces of NF are spherical about J and enclose a very short air gap
in the magnetic circuit, which is round U V N U.
N being attracted by F supports the shaft by L M, whilst the shaft is free to rotate
about D D without any loss of energy of importance.
The keeper and electromagnet may have many different forms. For instance,
considering their section to be that of a hollow anchor ring enclosing the coil, the
lower inner quadrant only may be fixed to the shaft, the air gap being then partly
horizontal & partly vertical, substantially.
The lower D may be pressed up by a spring and not be fixed rigidly in the
frame.
Arrangements may be provided to take the weight of the shaft etc. if the current
in G fails.
For D any suitable substitution may be made.
The arrangement of turbine wheels and dynamo armatures on the shaft is shewn
in Figs. II. III. and IV. In these figures the letters refer as far as possible to the
same things as in Fig. I. In addition a is a dynamo armature, b the magnet, shewn
of the double horse-shoe type, c the magnet coil, e the commutator. W is the turbine
wheel, the turbine supply pipe, Z the exhaust pipe, d is a flywheel.
Fig. II. shews two turbine wheels W, one fed up and the other down, mounted on
the shaft A between two dynamo armatures a, whilst Fig. III. shews a mounted
between two wheels W fed as above.
Fig. IV, shews two wheels W fed in opposite directions, that is one from the right
the other from the left, mounted on the horizontal shaft A between two armatures a.
According to the arrangement shewn A Wa are supported by the attraction of the
upper pole of b on u, the lower pole of b being further away from a than is the
upper pole.
As has been stated the dynamo and its armature may be so arranged as to perform
the function of the supporting electromagnet and its keeper.
In many forms of the electromagnet and keeper the magnetisation of the latter is
not subject to reversal, as for instance in Fig. 1.
If in Fig. I. the lower ends of the studs L. be connected by a ring and a collector
placed against it, and one against the ring K, the studs in that case being connected
to K, current may be collected. Then NLG act as a dynamo, L being armature
conductors. The armature current produces no want of uniformity of the magnetic
field. There is neither hysteresis nor eddy current.
If the armature current produces a sufficiently serious change in the strength of
the magnetic field the same ineans can be used to counteract it."
Should want of uniformity of field be produced and eddy currents are generated,
M&K must be so shaped as to wedge N in M. Then L can be used as armature
conductors only, and may be laminated & twisted in the usual manner, only suitably
for the position, or other means taken to prevent eddies.
The position of the armature conductors is not limited to the position in which L
is shewn in N, but may be in many places in N.
One ideal arrangement would be a keeper N etc. at the North pole of a sphere and
a keeper N etc. at the South pole, but at the South pole in this case the pull would
be downwards so the air gap must be longer than the air gap at the North pole. The

page_text: blades of the double motor engine would be placed round the equator and the frame R
would be a box connected to the condenser. When the keepers are kept outside the
turbine case the axis of the shaft etc. is made the stable axis by increasing the
moment of inertia of the turbine's wheels.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A magnet or electromagnet supporting a keeper and other bodies in such a
manner that rotation of the latter take place with substantially no loss of
energy.
mav
2. The arrangement on the shaft of two turbines or other motors between two
dynamos, or a dynamo between two motors.
3. An electromagnet and keeper arranged to act as dynamo field magnet and
armature substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
Tod thin 11th day of May 1907
REGINALD WOOD,
Applicant.