IMPROVE- MENTS, IN MEANS OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR DIMINISHING THE ROLLING ACTION OF SHIPS OR VESSELS AT SEA
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William McNaught, senior, of Rochdale, in. the
County of Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS, IN MEANS OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR DIMINISHING THE ROLLING ACTION
OF SHIPS OR VESSELS AT SEA."
Sealed the 5th January 1875, and dated the 16th July 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William McNaught at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition; on
the 16th July 1874.
I, WILLIAM MCNAUGHT, senior, of Rochdale, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MEANS OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR DIMINISHING THE ROLLING
ACTION OF SHIPS OR VESSELS AT SEA," to be as follows:
·
'
My Invention consists in applying to the bottoms of ships or vessels
one or more vanes, paddles, or rudders in or about the line of
the keel, such vane or vanes being hinged or arranged to turn upon an
axis perpendicular to the keel, so that the flat sides of such vane or
vanes can be placed when required at an angle to the keel to act

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said William McNaught, senior, Her special.
license that I, the said William McNaught, senior, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Mo Naught, senior, my 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN MEANS OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR DIMINISHING THE ROLLING
ACTION OF SHIPS OR VESSELS AT SEA," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said William McNaught, senior, my executors or adminis-
·trators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of
their hands 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 I, the said William Mc Naught, senior, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner:
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement and the accompanying Drawings
(that is to say) :—
My Invention consists in applying to the bottoms of ships or vessels
one or more vanes, paddles, or rudders in or about the line of the keel,
such vane or vanes being hinged or arranged to turn upon an axis
perpendicular to the keel, so that the flat sides of such vane or vanes
can be placed, when required, at an angle to the keel, to act laterally
upon the water as the ship or vessel moves on her course, so as to give
her such an inclination, one way or the other, as she would assume
when rolling. This action of the vane or vanes is made use of to
diminish or prevent more or less the rolling action produced by the
waves, the vane or vanes being instantly set at the required angle, when
it is seen that a roll is about to take place, so as to counteract the
impetus operating to produce such roll,

page_text: 1
The vane or vanes may be worked by gearing and manual power, but
are worked by preference. by steam or other motive power, which, is
made to act upon a piston on a cylinder, which piston is connected with
an arm upon the axis of the vane or vanes; and the man in charge, by
means of the handle of a valve or valves, can instantly regulate the
immission and emission of the steam or other motive power, to give
the required movement to the vane or vanes.
The vanes are or may be arranged so as to be readily unshipped or
withdrawn through a "well hole" or "slot well hole" in the bottom
of the ship or vessel, when required, by any suitable arrangement or
gearing.
The man in charge of the vane or vanes will soon become expert in
working them, as he will readily perceive the direction, by the assistance
of a spirit level, and judge the force of an impetus tending to produce
a roll, and will be able to neutralize its action before it can have time
to fully operate.
Instead of vanes having regular movements, vanes may be used at a
fixed angle, which may be pushed outwards from the vessel's bottom to
act upon the water, to a greater or less extent, and withdrawn inwards-
as required.
The means by which I prefer to carry my Invention into effect, are
shewn at Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4, where Figure 1 represents a cross section
of the apparatus adapted to a ship with a double bottom; Figure 2 shows
a. lengthway section; and Figure 3, an horizontal section. The same
letters refer to the same parts in all the Figures.
"a is a "well" or receptacle, firmly. secured to the bottom of the
ship; is a vane and spindle, which is shown withdrawn into the
receptacle in Figures 1 and 3, but in Figure 2 the said vane and spindle
is shown as if lowered into the water; c is a cylinder with piston'and
rod connected by a link to a lever on the top of the spindle. The piston
can be actuated either by steam or water pressure by means of the
handle connected to suitable valves, so that the attendant is able to
turn the spindle and vane to any angle that may be required to oppose
the oscillation of the ship or vessel. 6' represents a collar, which is in two
pieces bolted together, and embraces the spindle loosely, and when the
vane is withdrawn, as shewn in Figure 1, it rests on the top of it. This
collar slides in two opposite grooves in the sides of the well or receptacle,

page_text: and when the vane is lowered into the water, as in Figure 2, it rests upon
ledges at the bottom of the grooves and forms a proper support for the
vane by means of the fast collar which is shown on the spindle which
rests upon the said loose collars when down.
The said vane may be raised by any ordinary hoisting tackle or by
rack and pinion, but when it is of considerable weight two water or
steam rams e, e, in cylinders f, f, may be employed, which by means of
the cross head d would effect the required purpose. The top of the
well or receptacle has a stuffing box, as shown, for the spindle to
pass through, but this would not be necessary if the top of such
receptacle was higher than the surface of the water.
The circles shown at g, g, represent the steam or water pipes, which
can be coupled either to the cylinder C or to the lifting rams. The area
of the vane will depend on the desired quickness of its action.
The force upon a vane requisite to destroy any required amount of
oscillation from extreme right to extreme left in a given time may be
found by multiplying the coefficient 12.2 by the weight of the ship and
its average load in tons, the square of its radius of gyration in feet,
and the given number of degrees of oscillation from right to left for
the dividend; then multiply the height in feet from the centre of the
vane when lowered to the centre of gravity of the ship by the square
of the time in seconds that may be judged to be sufficient for a divisor,
and the quotient will give the opposing force in pounds requisite to
destroy the given angle of oscillation in the given time by reversing
or changing the angle of the vane, so as always to oppose the direction
of the motion of the said oscillation, let it be in the direction from left
to right or from right to left. This being ascertained and the speed of
the ship being known, the required area of vane or vanes can be found
from the known resistance of water per square feet against flat surfaces
at various velocities, which is given in various well-known works on
natural philosophy, and in calculating this area I recommend that the
speed of the ship should be taken or considered to be half its maximum
speed.
When it is intended to apply one vane I recommend that it should
be placed at about one-third the length of the ship, measuring from the
bow, so as not to affect the steering of the ship, but if two vanes are
used I recommend that they should be near the ends; and it is obvious

page_text: -
that two such vanes might be used in an emergency for steering, by
placing them at opposite angles to each other, which could easily be
effected by the attendants and a proper code of signals.
I have now particularly described the nature of my Invention, and
the mode of carrying the same into effect, and claim as my Invention 5
the application of vanes, paddles, or rudders to ships or vessels to.
diminish their rolling action, substantially as herein-before. described:
and illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William McNaught, senior, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of 1
December, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-four.