IMPROVE- MENTS IN PROPELLING VESSELS
Year: 1852

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Hermann Turek, of Broad Street Buildings, in
the City of London, Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PROPELLING VESSELS."
Sealed the 22nd December 1852, and dated the 15th October 1852.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Hermann Turck at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 15th October 1852.
I, HERMANN TURCK, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLING VESSELS" to be as follows:-
My improvements in propelling consist in combining the use of
paddle-wheels with screw propellers in the same vessel by means of
certain mechanical arrangements and combinations (admitting of some
variety), by which the power of one or more steam engines, or other
first movers, may be applied to turn the said paddle wheels and the
screw propellers at the same time, whereby I avail myself of their
conjoint propelling properties; or under some circumstances I may
disconnect one or the other from the actuating power or powers at
pleasure, or unite them by suitable connections.

page_text: I wish it to be understood that I do not intend to claim any
particular novelty in the forms or constructions of either the paddle
wheels or in the screw propellers, or the modes of driving them, but I
limit my Invention to combining both means of propelling in one
vessel to be actuated by one or more powers.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Hermann Turck in the Great Seal Patent
Office, on the 15th April 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
HERMANN TURCK, of Broad Street Buildings, in the City of London,
Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in the six-
teenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Hermann Turck, Her special license
that I, the said Hermann Turck, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Hermann Turck, 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 PROPELLING VESSELS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Hermann Turck, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, 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 Hermann Turck, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the

page_text: same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawings
hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that
is to say):
This Invention relates to a mode of increasing the speed of vessels
propelled by steam or other motive power. It is well known that under
the varied circumstances to which sea-going vessels are subject sub-
merged propellers are sometimes found the most efficient, and at other
times the action of paddle wheels acting upon or near the surface of the
water are to be preferred. Now I propose by the present Invention
to combine the advantages of these two kinds of propellers by the use
of a screw or screws together with a pair of paddle wheels in one and
the same vessel. By this means I shall be enabled to apply the motive
power more advantageously than heretofore, and greatly increase the
speed of the vessel.
In applying the Invention to ships already built and fitted with
propelling machinery it will not be necessary to remove such machinery,
and replace it by a new arrangement, for my improvements may be
readily engrafted thereon. To illustrate the manner of carrying this
into effect I have shewn in Sheet I. of the accompanying Drawings
my improvements as applied to the "Great Britain" steam ship.
Fig. 1, shews so much of this ship in longitudinal section as will serve
to explain the arrangement of the motive power machinery as it at present
exists for driving the screw propeller; and Fig. 2, is an end view of the
same. The blue lines of Fig. 1, shew the position of the paddle wheels
and the engines for driving the same, and also the required additional
accessories, as boilers, funnels, &c.; and Fig. 3, is a cross section of the
vessel, shewing the lateral arrangement of the blue parts. In these
Figures a, a, are the cylinders of the engines for working the screw
shaft b, the motion of the crank shaft c, of the engines being commu-
nicated thereto by the gearing d, d. c, e, are the boilers for supplying
steam to the cylinders of the screw propeller which works at the stern
of the vessel. The proposed additional propelling machinery is shewn
in the form of a pair of paddle wheels at f, f, mounted in the ship's
bows; 9, 9, are the cylinders of the additional engines, and h, h, the
boilers therefor.

page_text: In some instances (as when one or both of the fore or art engines
become disabled) it may be found desirable to drive one or both kinds
of propellers with those engines only which belong to one or other of
the propellers. To admit of this use of the engines I propose to con-
nect them together by suitable shafting, the arrangement of which may
be varied to suit the various builds of vessels.
In Sheet II. of the Drawings Fig. 4, shews the lines of a vessel
containing a pair of oscillating cylinder engines a, and a pair of fixed
cylinder engines b, which are connected together so as to give motion
to a crank shaft (represented by the red line c, c,) which carries a screw
propeller. On the axle of the cranked paddle wheel shaft d, a bevil
wheel e, is mounted, and gearing into this wheel is a pinion f, keyed to
the shaft c, for the purpose of communicating rotary motion from the
paddle wheel shaft d, to the shaft c, or vice versâ, according to which
pair of engines is in action. When it is required to drive the two
kinds of propellers independently of each other, this may be done by
shifting the pinion f, out of gear with the wheel e. Fig. 5, shews
another mode of connecting the fore and aft engines together. In this
instance the shaft c, on which the pinion f, is mounted, carries at its
other end a spur wheel which gears
9,
into a spur pinion h, keyed to
the screw shaft indicated by the red line i.
my
It will be obvious to any practical mechanic that many other
arrangements, differing in detail from those above set forth, may be
devised for connecting the two kinds of propellers with the same pro-
pelling power. I do not therefore limit myself to the use of shafting
part of
and gearing, as above set forth, in carrying out this
Inven-
tion. I may also find it convenient, under certain circumstances, to
employ the motive power of all the engines in working either kind of
propeller alone. For this purpose it will be necessary to divide the
screw propeller shaft into two, and connect these two parts together by
a sliding coupling joint. The paddle wheel shaft must also be con-
structed to admit of its ends remaining stationary, while the central
part is driven by the paddle wheel engines, and fitted with coupling
joints, which will allow of the paddle wheels being readily thrown in
and out of action.
Having now described the nature of my Invention of improvements

page_text: in propelling vessels, and set forth the manner in which the same may
be carried into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above
in part recited Letters Patent I claim, first, combining in one and the
same vessel screw and paddle wheel propellers for the purpose of
increasing the speed of vessels driven by motive power machinery; and,
secondly, I claim connecting the two kinds of propellers to the motive
power machinery, where more than one pair of engines is employed, in
such a manner that in case of emergency either pair of engines may be
made to drive either kind of propeller.
In witness whereof, I, the said Hermann Turck, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of April, One thousand
eight hundred and fifty-three.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
HERMANN TURCK. (L.S.)