IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION FOR RECEIVING THE THRUST OF SCREW PROPELLER AND OTHER REVOLVING SHAFTS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Thornton Read, Engineer in Her Majesty's
Royal Navy, at present residing at Ardrishaig, in the County of Argyle,
North Britain, and John Brough Fyfe, Civil Engineer, of Ardrishaig,
aforesaid, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Thornton Read
and John Brough Fyfe at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 3rd May 1865.
We, EDWARD. THORNTON READ, Engineer in Her Majesty's Royal Navy, at
present residing at Ardrishaig, in the County of Argyle, North Britain, and
JOBN BROUGH FYPE, Civil Engineer, of Ardrishaig, aforesaid, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR
RECEIVING THE THRUST OF SCREW PROPELLER AND OTHER REVOLVING SHAFTS," to be
as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention relates to improvements in apparatus specially designed for
receiving the thrust or longitudinal pressure of screw propeller shafts, inde-
pendently of the ordinary bearings thereof; and it is applicable to all revolving
shafts which experience a thrust or longitudinal pressure.
In carrying out the Invention the shaft is formed with or has fixed on it
an enlargement or boss, which is formed with end faces truly at right angles
to the shaft. Annular plates or discs, by preference of steel and of uniform
thickness, are fixed to the end faces of the boss, and the outer faces of these
discs constitute the thrust transmitting surfaces of the shaft, and are at right
angles thereto. The fixed or stationary thrust receiving surfaces are upon

page_text: similar discs, which are also by preference of steel, and which are fixed to a
block. The fixed discs are at right angles to the shaft, but they are formed
each with a shallow annular indentation or groove, a radial section of which
is shaped to the segment of a circle. The fixed discs are placed with their
grooved faces facing each other, and sufficiently far apart to receive between
them the shaft boss with its dises and two sets of balls, which are by preference
of steel, and which separate the boss from the fixed dises on either side, and
serve to transmit the thrust to one or other accordingly as the thrust is ahead
or astern. The balls are kept in their places by the shallow grooves, and to
admit of their being got out and in with the least possible trouble; each bearing
disc on the shaft is formed with a movable sector, on taking out which the
balls can at once be got out or in. The bearing discs, both revolving and
fixed, are made in separate pieces, as described, partly to facilitate their
adjustment or removal for repair, and to reduce the time required therefor.
The balls are subjected to a rolling motion, and their points of contact con-
tinually change in consequence of the centrifugal force due to rotation causing
them to bear slightly towards the outer sides of their retaining grooves. The
shaft discs may be grooved instead of the fixed discs, but it is unnecessary for
both to be grooved.
To facilitate the application of the apparatus to existing machinery, it is
preferred to make the block to which the stationary discs are fixed in two
halves divided longitudinally, but securely bolted together; and whilst
ordinary bearings for sustaining the shaft laterally must of course be retained,
it is preferred, particularly in the case of screw propeller shafts, to keep them
ahad from the thrust onnaratus
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edward Thornton Read and John Brough Fyfe in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 2nd November 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, EDWARD
THORNTON READ, Engineer in Her Majesty's Royal Navy, at present residing
at Ardrishaig, in the County of Argyle, North Britain, and JOHN BROUGH
FYFE, Civil Engineer, of Ardrishaig, aforesaid, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Edward Thornton Read and John Brough Fyfe, Her special licence that

page_text: we, the said Edward Thornton Read and John Brough Fyfe, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Edward Thornton
Read and John Brough Fyfe, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN APPARATUS FOR RECEIVING THE THRUST OF SCREW PROPELLER AND OTHER
REVOLVING SHAFTS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
Edward Thornton Read and John Brough Fyfe, our executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their bands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the
same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Edward Thornton Read and John
Brough Fyfe, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement in writing, reference being
had to the accompanying Drawings, that is to say:
Our said Invention relates to improvements in apparatus specially designed
for receiving the thrust or longitudinal pressure of screw propeller shafts,
independently of the ordinary bearings thereof, and it is applicable to all
revolving shafts which experience a thrust or longitudinal pressure.
And in order that our said Invention, and the manner of performing the
same, may be properly understood, we have have hereunto appended a Sheet
of explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to, and representing thrust
receiving apparatus for a screw propeller shaft.
Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in vertical section; Figure 2 is a
transverse vertical section as at the liue A, A, in Figures 1 and 3; Figure 3
is a plan, partly in horizontal section, and Figure 4 is a transverse vertical
section of the block or frame partly as at the lines B, B, and partly as at the
lines C, C, in Figures 1 and 3. Figures 5 to 9 are herein after more
particularly referred to.
In carrying out our said Invention the shaft 1 is formed with or has fixed
on it an enlargement or boss 2, which is formed with end faces truly at 'right
angles to the shaft. Annular plates or discs 3, 4, by preference of steel, and
of uniform thickness, are fixed to the end faces of the boss 2, and one of them
is shown separately in face view in Figure 5. The outer faces of these discs

page_text: 3, 4, constitute the thrust transmitting surfaces of the shaft 1, and are at
right angles thereto. The fixed or stationary thrust receiving surfaces are
upon similar discs 5, 6, which are also by preference of steel, and which are
fixed to a cast-iron block 7, 8. The fixed discs 5, 6, are at right angles to the
shaft 1, but they are formed each with a shallow annular indentation or groove
as at d, a radial section of which is shaped to the segment of a circle. The
fixed discs are placed with their grooved faces facing each other, and suffi-
ciently far apart to receive between them the shaft boss 2, with its discs 3, 4,
and two sets of balls 9, which are by preference of steel, and which separate
the boss 2 from the fixed dises 5, 6, on either side, and serve to transmit the
thrust to one or other accordingly as the thrust is ahead or astern. The balls
9 are kept in their places by the shallow grooves d, and to admit of their.
being got out and in with the least possible trouble each bearing disc 3, 4,
on the shaft 1 is formed with a movable sector 10, on taking out which the
balls can at once be got out or in. The bearing dises, both revolving and
fixed, 3, 4, 5, 6, are made in separate pieces, as described, and each in two
balves, to facilitate their adjustment, or their removal for repair, and to
reduce the time required therefor. The balls 9 are subjected to a rolling
motion when the shaft 1 revolves, and their points of contact continually
change in consequence of the centrifugal force due to rotation causing them to
bear slightly towards the outer sides of their retaining grooves; also when
the speed is not great their weight causes them to bear towards the lower side
for the time being of the groove, that is to the outer side of the groove in
passing under the shaft, and more or less towards the inner side in passing
over the shaft. The shaft discs 3, 4, may be grooved instead of the fixed
discs 5, 6, but it is unnecessary for both to be grooved.
To facilitate the application of the apparatus to existing machinery, we
prefer to make the block 7, 8, to which the stationary discs 5, 6, are fixed, in
two halves divided longitudinally, but securely bolted together, and whilst
ordinary bearings for sustaining the shaft laterally must of course be retained,
we prefer, particularly in the case of screw propeller shafts, to keep them
quite detached from the thrust apparatus.
In the case of screw propeller shafts, the thrust block 7, 8, is to be bolted
to the floors of the ship, and in the case of other machinery to the framing of
the machine. A tie bar 11 is fixed across the top of the open space in the
middle of the block 7, 8, to ensure strength.
In applications in which the thrust is always in one direction of course only
one disc on the shaft with one set of balls, and one fixed disc will be required,
and in many cases it may be unnecessary to provide a separate block (7, 8,) as

page_text: the framing of the machinery may be such that one or both stationary discs
can be conveniently fixed to it in suitable positions.
In the case of screw propeller shafts it may not always be considered
necessary to provide balls for receiving the thrust astern, and in that case there
may be substituted for the stern discs (3, 5,) and balls, steel discs 12, 13,
formed with anuular surfaces to bear against each other, and by preference
occupying as much space as the parts for which they are substituted, so as
not require a differently proportioned block 7, 8.
Figure 7 is an edge view of one of the shaft discs 3, 4, as detached; and
Figures 8 and 9 are side elevation and cross section, showing how the shaft
boss 2 may be made in two halves, to be bolted together upon the shaft 1,
with keys 14 (indicated by dotted lines in Figure 8), introduced to prevent the
boss from shifting.
In the case of engines and shafting of great power, two or more sets of our
improved apparatus may be applied to different parts of the shaft; or the discs
may be enlarged, but instead of similarly enlarging the balls, these may be
increased in number and be arranged in two or more concentric grooves or
channels.
Our improved arrangement is further obviously applicable for footstep
bearings for vertical shafts or spindles.
.
Having thus particularly described our said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, we have to state that we do not restrict ourselves
to the precise details herein described and delineated, and that we do not
claim the use of steel balls in general for obviating friction; but that what we
believe to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured to us by
the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the constructing and
arranging or combining together the parts of apparatus for receiving the
thrust of screw propeller and other revolving shafts, substantially in the
manner berein-before described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Edward Thornton Read and John
Brough Fyfe, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Thirtieth
day of October, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
EDW. T. READ. (L.S.)
JOHN B. FYFE. (L.S.)