Improvements in Means for Equalising the Speeds of Separate Prime Motors, applicable chiefly to the Engines of Twin or Multiple Screw Steam Ships.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Nov., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 12th Aug., 1893-Accepted, 16th Sept., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Equalising the Speeds of Separate
Prime Motors, applicable chiefly to the Engines of Twin or
Multiple Screw Steam Ships.
. I GEORGE WILLIAM SUTCLIFFE of 5 Norfolk Street, Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
My said invention relates chiefly to the regulation of marine engines for driving
twin or multiple screws in ships propelled by steam or other power. In the case of
twin screw engines for example it is usual to make these separate from each other
so that when entering or leaving port or in all situations where careful steering and
slow speeds are requisite the screw can be separately revolved or run in reverse
directions so as to manœuvre the ship smartly and safely. But when under way it
is desirable that as far as possible the engines should run in unison or practically
in unison and to obtain this result is the object of my invention.
I therefore connect two separate parts, for example two revolving shafts, each
shaft actuated by its own engine, and connect the same by means of a differential
part or wheel so mounted as to remain in the same relative position so long as the
speeds of the two shafts are in unison, but moving as soon as the speeds differ, the
said movement being utilised to increase or diminish the speed of one or both. of
the engines. In an arrangement for carrying my invention into practical effect
I cause each engine to give positive motion to a separate shaft, the two separate
shafts lying for example in line with each other. Each shaft is provided with
a bevel wheel and I connect the said bevel wheels by a similar intermediate
bevel wheel running loosely on the neck of a fork which might be pivotted on
the ends of the separate shafts. The tail of the fork constitutes a lever or part for
transmitting motion to a valve or other means for governing the supply of
pressure or otherwise regulating the engine or engines. Thus when one of the
separate shafts runs at a higher speed than the other, the revolving intermediate
wheel is moved bodily round on its pivot in the direction of the higher speed
and the fork tail then moves the lever or levers or parts by which the engine
or engines is or are governed so as to increase or decrease the speed of
oue engine or the other and thus bring the speeds into unison. The methods of
communicating the movements of the fork or intermediate wheel to the valves or
governing parts of the engines may be varied to suit circumstances and I do not
confine myself to any particular mode of effecting such communication.
When the engines are not required to run in unison or when it is desired to
reverse the engines the intermediate wheel is placed out of gear and this may be
done either manually or automatically. Previously to the connection of the
engines by clutching or other means, their mutual relation may be shown by means
of discs revolving side by side one disc being driven by its own engine. The face
of one of the discs is painted or marked with characters or colours and in the other
disc 1 form an aperture. According to the colour or character seen through the
aperture so may the relative position of the engines be judged. When a particular
colour or character is seen through the aperture the engines may be connected.
The same relative marks or colours might be made on the edges of two discs
revolving side by side.
The variations in the automatic regulator first described and also in the two discs
may be shown upon an index at any distance from the engines and may if desired
be recorded for future reference by means of any suitable continuous recording
apparatus.

page_text: Instead of the automatic intermediate differential governing gear hereinbefore
described I might obtain a similar effect by the use of differential screws.
Dated this 15th day of November 1892.
E. K. DUTTON & Co.,
5, John Dalton Street, Manchester, Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Equalising the Speeds of Separate
Prime Motors, applicable chiefly to the Engines of Twin or
Multiple Screw Steam Ships.
I GEORGE WILLIAM SUTCLIFFE of 5 Norfolk Street, Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Civil 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 and accompanying drawings:-
My said invention relates chiefly to the regulation of marine engines for driving
twin or multiple screws in ships propelled by steam or other power. In the case
of twin screw engines for example it is usual to make these separate from each
other so that when entering or leaving port or in all situations where careful
steering and slow speeds are requisite the screws can be separately revolved or run
in reverse directions so as to manoeuvre the ship smartly and safely. But when
under way it is desirable that as far as possible the engines should run in unison
or practically in unison and to obtain this result is the object of my invention.
I therefore connect two separate parts, for example two revolving shafts, each
shaft actuated by its own engine, the same being connected by means of a
differential part or wheel so mounted as to remain in the same relative position so
long as the speeds and relative positions of the two shafts are in unison, but moving
as soon as the speeds differ, the said movement being utilised to increase or diminish
the speed of one or both of the engines. In an arrangement for carrying my
invention into practical effect 1 cause each engine to give positive motion to a
separate shaft the two separate shafts lying for example in line with each other.
Each shaft is provided with a bevel wheel and I connect the said bevel wheels by
an intermediate bevel wheel running loosely on the neck of a fork which might be
pivotted on the ends of the separate shafts. The tail of the fork constitutes à lever
or part for transmitting motion to a valve or other means for governing the supply
of pressure or otherwise regulating the engine or engines. Thus when one of the
separate shafts runs at a higher speed than the other, the revolving intermediate
wheel is moved bodily round on its pivot in the direction of the higher speed and
the fork tail then moves the lever or levers or parts by which the engine or engines
is or are governed so as to increase or decrease the speed of one engine or the other
and thus bring the speeds and relative positions into unison. The methods of
communicating the movements of the fork or intermediate wheel to the valves or
governing parts of the engines may be varied to suit circumstances and I do not
confine myself to any particular mode of effecting such communication.
When the engines are not required to run in unison or when it is desired to
reverse the engines, the intermediate wheel is placed out of gear and this may be
done either manually or automatically. Previously to the connection of the engines
to the governing apparatus by clutching or other means, their mutual relation may
be shown by means of discs revolving side by side each disc being driven by its
own engine. The face of one of the discs is painted or marked with characters or
colours and in the other disc I form an aperture. According to the colour or
character seen through the aperture so may the relative position of the engines be
judged. When a particular colour or character is seen through the aperture the
engines may be connected. The same relative marks or colours might be made on
the edges of two discs revolving side by side.

page_text: The variations in the automatic regulator first described and also in the two discs
may be shown upon an index at any distance from the engines and may if desired
be recorded for future reference by means of any suitable continuous recording
apparatus.
Instead of the automatic intermediate differential governing gear herein before
described I might obtain a similar effect by the use of differential screws.
To render my invention clearly understood I will now proceed to describe
the same more particularly and with reference to the annexed sheet of drawings
which illustrate what is necessary to show of my invention.
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of the train of wheels by which the engine speeds are
governed.
Fig. 2 is a view at right angles to Fig. 1 showing the intermediate wheel mounted
on its lever.
Fig. 3 illustrates a convenient means of imparting the oscillations of the inter-
mediate wheel lever to the valve or other steam supply controller.
Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show the sight discs which serve as indications of the proper
movement for connecting the engines.
and 2.
Fig. 7 shows a modification of the appliance illustrated by Figs.
Referring in the first instance to Figs. 1 and 2, the arrangement is placed in a
situation which will readily command both engines, that is to say on or near the
centre line of the ship or close to the bulk-head between the two engine rooms.
The shafts a and b might be necessary parts of the engines or they might be simply
porter shafts put in to work the gear and receiving positive motion from the engines.
The shaft a is caused to revolve in one direction from one of the engines, for
instance the port engine, while the shaft is caused to revolve in the opposite
direction from the other engine for instance the starboard engine.
The ends of the shafts are independently carried in the bushed sleeve c which is
formed in one with or attached to the lever d. Part of this lever at d¹ forms a
journal neck upon which revolves a toothed bevel wheel e kept in place by a nut el.
The wheel e revolves loosely upon the neck d' and gears with two similarly toothed
bevel wheels one of which, a', is fast on the shaft a while the other b¹ is fast on the
shaft b.
Thus when the shafts a and b with their wheels revolve, the loose intermediate
wheel e also revolves idly between them. So long as the speeds of the two
shafts a and b are exactly equal, the intermediate wheel e will remain in a constant
position, but when the speeds of the two shafts differ, the wheel e will be carried
round to a certain extent in the direction of the greatest speed.
Thus the lever d would be turned upon its pivot and the upper end would move
through an arc of a circle to one side or the other as indicated at Fig. 2.
The free end of the lever d is connected by a rod f to the cam plate / shown at
Fig. 3. This cam plate is centred on a shaft or pivot i so as to be easily moved in
one direction or the other by the motions of the lever d. In the plate
cut a cam groove h¹ of a suitable form such as is shown in Fig. 3.
there is.
A lever k is carried on a shaft / which might be the shaft controlling the steam
supply of one of the engines, and the free end of this lever k carries a bowl k¹ which
runs in the cam groove h¹. When the cam plate his moved so as to bring the
bowl into the position shown in dotted lines the shaft is slightly turned so as to
operate the steam valve and so reduce the supply or vice versa. A second plate
with another groove is employed to operate the valve of the other engine, but it is
not necessary to show more than one." The motions of the lever d to right or left
or of any of its attachments show the inequalities of the running and these motions
may be permanently recorded by electrical or other means, by any suitable and
well known recording apparatus.
When it is desired to work the engines independently of each other the
intermediate wheel or the whole apparatus should be disconnected from the
engines.
This might be done manually but I prefer that in conjunction with such manual

page_text: means it should be done automatically, and such automatic disconnecting gear may
be of any suitable construction. For example if the apparatus were connected to
the engine by clutches, I would attach to the lever da further connecting rod, or
would attach another lever to the sleeve c, so as to operate a separate weigh shaft.
The weigh shaft would be provided with double levers and slotted links arranged
to operate the clutch levers and draw out the clutches.
The swing lever d carrying the intermediate wheel, would vibrate to each side
within the limits. which would operate the steam supply valves, without operating
the weigh shaft and clutch levers. But if the swing lever were carried round
outside of these governing limits, as would happen if one of the engines were
reversed for example, then the weigh shaft would be turned and the clutch lever
worked so as to disconnect the engines from the apparatus. I have not illustrated
this automatic arrangement as it is not per se a part of my invention and would
require to be modified according to different situations.
The relative positions of the two engines when working in unison and when
connected to the apparatus is chosen at that point at which the two engines balance
and work together with least vibration. For example when the port piston is
rising and the starboard piston falling. This favourable relative position of the
engines is fixed by index discs as shown at Figs. 4, 5 and 6. The back disc m is
carried on a sleeve » deriving its motion from one of the engines. The front disc o
is fixed on the end of a shaft p which passes through the hollow sleeve 72, and
derives its motion from the other engine. The face of the back disc m is coloured,
or otherwise distinctly marked, and the front disc has an aperture which
discovers a portion of the face of the back disc. When the distinctive mark,
colour, disc or other feature on the back disc m shows through the aperture the
engineer knows that his engines are in the required unison and thereupon engages
the clutches and connects the gear.
The clutches should be so made that they will not engage except when the
engines are in their proper and favourable relative positions. When running his
engines independently the engineer might attain approximate unison by observation
of the discs, checking or augmenting the steam supply to the respective engines
according to the indication of the discs.
A modification of my governing appliance is shown at Fig. 7 of the drawings.
I arrange two shafts r, s side by side which are equivalent to the two end-on
shafts a, already described with reference to Fig. 1.
These shafts, s are driven by means of wheels and s¹ the wheel deriving
its motion from one engine and the wheel s from the other engine, the two shafts
revolving in opposite directions. Upon the shaft r is mounted loosely a toothed
wheel t, and in line therewith is a clutch t' connected to the shaft r by a slip
feather and groove or similar device, so that it revolves with but may be slid upon
the shaft r.
When pushed in gear with the wheel t, the latter is caused to revolve with the
shaft r.
The wheel t gears with a similar wheel u, keyed upon a bush u¹ which is
threaded to engage with a quick screw cut on the shaft s. The wheels' is
connected to the shaft by a slip feather and groove, so that the shaft may slide as
well as revolve. Both of the shafts are supported in suitable bearings not shown
in the drawings. It will be evident that while the engines are running at equal
speeds the shafts r, s will also run at equal speeds.
But should the speed of the engines differ, the consequence will be that the
shafts will either lag behind or overrun the revolving bush u which has been shown
to derive its motion from the shaft r.
If it lags behind, then according to the direction of revolution shown by the
arrows, the shafts will be drawn forward to the right; if it tends to overrun the
bush it will be shifted to the left. From the shaft thus slid to and fro, it is an easy
matter to form any suital le connection with the steam supply valve, either by the
cam plate and connections shown in Fig. 3 or by any other suitable means.
The automatic disengaging apparatus hereinbefore referred to would be utilised

page_text: to slide the clutch t¹ out of gear with the wheelt in the event of the engines being
independently used.
Although I have throughout spoken of my invention as more especially applicable
to the regulation of twin screw marine engines, it is evident that it might be
applied to the regulating and equalising of the speeds of separate land engines.
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. The general arrangement construction and combination of parts comprising
my improved apparatus for governing and equalising the relative speeds of twin
screw and similar engines, substantially as described and shown.
b
2. As means for regulating and equalising the relative speeds of twin screw and
other engines the combination of the abutting shafts a, carrying fixed driving
wheels a, which gear with an intermediate loose wheel e carried on a lever
pivotted upon the ends of the abutting shafts a, b the whole constructed and acting
substantially as herein before described and illustrated.
3. The combination of the arrangement described in Claim 2 and also the
arrangement shown in Fig. 7 with the cam plate and steam supply controlling
mechanism substantially as described with reference to Fig. 3 of the drawings.
4. As means for regulating and equalising the relative speeds of twin screw and
similar engines, the employment of a screwed shaft arranged side by side with or in
juxta-position to another shaft and so arranged connected and driven that
inequalities in the speeds of the two engines cause a sliding movement of the
screwed shaft in one direction or the other which movement is utilised to regulate
the supply of steam to the engine substantially as described and shown.
5. The double disc arrangement for indicating the relative positions of the
engines substantially as described with reference to Figs. 4, 5 and 6 of the
drawings.
Dated this 11th day of August 1893
E. K. DUTTON & Co.,
5, John Dalton Street, Manchester, Agents.