Improvements in and relating to the Propulsion of Ships and other Vessels.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Feb., 1898-Accepted, 4th June, 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Communicated from abroad by JEAN JACQUES HEILMANN, of 19, Rue Cambon,
Paris, in the French Republic, Engineer.]
Improvements in and relating to the Propulsion of Ships and other
Vessels.
I, WILLIAM GEORGE HEYS, of 70, Market Street, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:―
This invention relates to the method of and means for propelling ships and
other vessels.
In carrying this invention into effect the propellers are driven by electro-motors
which are fed from a dynamo or from dynamos driven by steam turbines. By
this arrangement a saving in weight and space may be obtained, and the middle
of the ship, which is at present generally occupied by the engines or boilers, may
be reserved for passengers or for cargo, the engines being placed elsewhere.
The main dynamo or dynamos is or are excited by the current from one or more
small constant potential dynamos driven from the main or a special turbine. A
rheostat or variable resistance may be inserted in the exciting circuit by means of
which the motor speed and consequently the speed of the vessel may be varied.
An advantage attendant upon the use of turbines is that they may be completely
balanced so as to completely suppress vibration.
In order that this invention may be more readily understood a sheet of drawings
has been appended hereto illustrating the application of these devices to a screw
propelled vessel.
Figure 1 shows the vessel in partial longitudinal section, and Figure 2 illus-
trates it in horizontal section.
The vessel shown is driven by three pairs of screws H, arranged in pairs upon
the three shafts A1, A2, A3, one pair upon each shaft. Each shaft is driven by two
electro-motors M, M, so that the vessel may be driven at its maximum speed when
all the six motors are driving, or at reduced speeds with either five, four, three,
or two motors or one motor operating.
A change in the direction of rotation of the motors may be effected by changing
To change from
the direction of the current in any well known or usual manner.
going ahead to going astern all the motors may be simultaneously reversed, or
for purposes of evolution or manoeuvring the motors on one side only may be
reversed.
T1, T2, and T represent steam turbines driving the dynamos D¹, Dª, 1³, the cur-
rent from which drives the motors M. The turbines and dynamos are arranged in
rooms or compartments A in the forward part of the vessel which may also con-
tain the smaller special turbines t¹, 2 for driving the exciters d¹, d².
The principal dynamos may be coupled in series or in parallel and are able to
drive all or any number of the motors. It is evident that the reduced speed of

page_text: the vessel may be obtained by working one or more of the main dynamos, the
current being utilised to the best advantage.
Steam may be supplied to the turbines by two groups of boilers placed in the
two compartments B and D, on the outsides of which the coal bunkers S may be
arranged.
Advantages attending the adoption of the hereinbefore described invention are,
that the electric energy may be applied for other purposes on board the vessel.
Thus, an electromotor may be arranged to operate the rudder and may be con-
trolled by the officer in charge of the vessel, who may also have charge of the
rheostat or other devices by means of which the direction and speed of the vessel
may be varied.
The winches C, the pumps of the condensers C1 C2, and the other auxiliary
appliances on board may also be operated by electro-motors which derive their
currents from either the main dynamo circuit or from the exciter circuit, and the
electric lighting of the vessel may also be effected from the exciting circuit.
As a further advantage, electro-motors may be employed for producing a forced
draught in the boiler furnaces.
It will, of course, be evident that although I have described a certain number
of groups each of propellers, motors, dynamos, turbines and exciters, this order
may be departed from and any other number of groups of each may be employed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is:-
1. In a power propelled vessel, the combination of a propeller, an electro-motor,
a main dynamo, an exciting dynamo, and a steam turbine or any number of them,
and a rheostat or variable resistance inserted in the exciting circuit, all sub-
stantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accompanying
drawings.
2. The hereinbefore described means for propelling ships or vessels, arranged
substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accompanying
drawings.
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