IMPROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO STEERING APPA- RATUS WORKED BY STEAM OR OTHER FLUID, PARTS OF WHICH APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES WHERE STEAM ENGINES ARE USED. ARE
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Kennedy, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO STEERING APPA-
RATUS WORKED BY STEAM OR OTHER FLUID, PARTS OF WHICH
APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES WHERE STEAM ENGINES ARE USED.
ARE
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Kennedy at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th September 1878.
"6
DAVID KENNEDY, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster. IMPROVEMENTS IN
AND RELATING TO STEERING APPARATUS WORKED BY STEAM OR OTHER FLUID,
PARTS OF WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES WHERE STEAM ENGINES
ARE USED.
This Invention consists in a steering gear worked by steam or other fluid or by
hand as required. It consists,-
1st. In placing on the hand wheel shaft a cam somewhat resembling a crown
wheel, it being a disc with a series of small cams on the side near the cir-
cumference.
Against these cams the curved tappets or cams of the valve gear work.
2nd. I place the cylinders down close to the deck and connect them by piston
rods and connecting rods with a second shaft, having a worm that gears into the
chain barrel. This chain barrel can be connected by a clutch with the wheel shaft
by means of gearing, so as to work by hand when required, the clutch being so
arranged that when it puts the wheels into gear it shall set loose the crown cam,
and vice versa. On the shaft with the worm wheel I place excentrics, with rods
jointed by levers (or direct acting) to the valve rods, with springs and valve con-
nections so arranged that they loosely enclose the steam valve in such manner that
should the wheel be turned so fast that the valve is in danger of overrunning the
engine this subsidiary valve apparatus checks the valve and allows the engine to
keep pace with it. On the chain barrel or other convenient position a stop or

page_text: fractional gearing is arranged so that whenever the rudder is hard over the wheel
shaft shall be stopped, and thus there shall be no chance of overrunning the tether
and breaking something. The advantages of this arrangement are, among others,
1st., that it can be attached to existing apparatus without much trouble, using sub-
stantially the same mechanism with a few additions; 2nd., extreme simplicity of
parts; 3rd., the crown cam can be arranged with 5, 10, 20, or more projections,
and thus give 5, 10, 20, or other required number of revolutions to one revolution
of the wheel. By this means we can arrange the wheel and cams so that it will go
hard over with exactly as many turns as it would by hand, so that steersmen
accustomed to the hand gear will find no difference except in case.
4th. By putting a chain wheel on the wheel shaft and another on the bridge it
can be worked from the deck.
Another advantage too is that an ordinary slide valve is all the valve required.
The crown cam and valve gear is applicable to other engines, more especially for
use in winding and 'the like."

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said David Kennedy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th
March 1879.
DAVID KENNEDY, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster. IMPROVEMENTS IN
AND RELATING TO STEERING APPARATUS WORKED BY STEAM OR OTHER FLUID,
PARTS OF WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES WHERE STEAM ENGINES
ARE USED."
Fig. 1 is a plan, Fig. 2 side elevation, and Fig. 3 front elevation with crown wheel,
machine steering wheel, and tappet removed; Figs. 4, 5, and 6, enlarged views of
two variations of valve actuating apparatus. Like letters refer to like parts in all
the Figures.
This Invention consists in a steering gear to be worked by steam or other fluid
or by hand as required. It consists,―
1st. In placing on the hand wheel shaft A. a cam B somewhat resembling a crown
wheel, it being a disc with a series of small cams on the side near the circumference.
Against these cams the curved tappet C or cams of the valve gear work.
The
2nd. I place the cylinders D down close to the deck and connect them by piston
rods E and connecting rods F with a second shaft G, having a worm H that gears
into a worm wheel H₁ on the chain barrel shaft T, or an intermediate shaft A gearing
into the chain barrel shaft by sliding pinion U and spur wheel V as shown.
chain barrel I can be connected by a clutch not shown, but working in grooves J
and K with the wheel shaft W by means of gearing X, so as to work by hand when
required, the clutch being so arranged that when it puts the wheels X and X into
gear it shall set loose the pinion U, and vice versa.
Another plan for setting loose the crown cam B is shown in Figs. 4, 5, and 6. In
these the actuating wheel A¹ and crown cam B are rigidly keyed or otherwise
attached to a sleeve S running loose on the shaft A.
When however it is wanted
to draw the crown cam B out of gear with C it is brought into position as shown
and then drawn back, the pin M fitting into groove M₁ and holding all rigid. A
similar pin is shown at P in Figures 1 and 2, but its use is rather different. It
is also rigidly fixed to the shaft, and works freely in a groove in the loose sleeve
carrying crown cam B and actuating wheel A. It prevents the actuating wheel and
crown cam from running ahead of the engine, as no sooner has the crown cam been
pulled round faster than the engine can travel than the pin comes to the end of the
slot, and the forward notion of the slotted sleeve carrying the crown wheel is
stopped till the engine advances sufficiently to admit of the sleeve being again
moved forward. On the shaft with the worm wheel I sometimes place eccentrics
with rods jointed by levers (or direct acting) to the valve rods, with spiral springs
on valve connections Q, Fig. 6, so arranged that they loosely enclose the steam
valve R in such manner that should the wheel be turned so fast that the valve is in
danger of overrunning the engine this subsidiary valve apparatus checks the valve
and allows the engine to keep pace with it. This arrangement in fact is a mechanical
equivalent of the pin and slot before mentioned. Either plan will work, and if one
be used the other need not be applied.
On the chain barrel I or other convenient position a stop or fractional gearing is
arranged, so that whenever the rudder is hard over the wheel shaft shall be stopped,
and thus there shall be no chance of overrunning the tether and breaking some-
thing. The advantages of this arrangement are, among others,―
1st. That it can be attached to existing apparatus without much trouble, using
substantially the same mechanism with a few additions.
2nd. Extreme simplicity of parts.
3rd. The crown cam can be arranged with 5, 10, 20, or more projections, and thus
give 5, 10, 20, or other required number of revolutions to one revolution of the wheel.
By this means I can arrange the wheel and cams so that it will go hard over with

page_text: exactly as many turns as it would by hand, so that steersmen accustomed to the
hand gear will find no difference except in ease.
4th. By putting a chain wheel on the wheel shaft and another on the bridge it
can be worked from the deck. Another advantage too is that an ordinary slide
valve is all the valve required. The crown cam and valve gear is applicable to other
engines, more especially for use in winding and the like.
Having now described my Invention and the best mode known to me of carrying
it into effect, I wish it to be understood that wliat I believe to be new, and desire
to protect under the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,—
1st. The crown cam (B) or its mechanical equivalent attached to or connected
with the hand wheel (A) so as to move synchronously with it, actuating the valve
gear of the engine by a tappet or cam (C) so as to cause a given number of strokes
of the engine or engines for each revolution of the hand wheel, for use in steering
gear winding engines and other engines where hand adjusting is required.
2nd. In combination with a crown wheel B or its mechanical equivalent, which
causes the engine to make several revolutions for each revolution of the hand wheel,
the stop (P or Q) for preventing it from overrunning the engine.
. 3rd. The general arrangement of steering gear, substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof; I, the said David Kennedy, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twentieth day of March, in the year of our Lord 1879.
NIETYגל הזזת