IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PADDLE WHEELS FOR PROPELLING SHIPS AND OTHER NAVIGABLE VESSELS THROUGH WATER
Year: 1870

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by George Hayes Carter at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th September 1870.
I, GEORGE HAYES CARTER, of Nottingham Lodge, near Eltham, in the
County of Kent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PADDLE WHEELS FOR PROPELLING SHIPS
AND OTHER NAVIGABLE VESSELS THROUGH WATER," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to paddle wheels in which the paddle boards or
floats are caused to change their position whilst the wheel is revolving.
Morgan's feathering paddles, well known and in common use, is an
example of the above-mentioned description of paddle wheel..
This Invention also relates to paddle wheels known and distinguished
as reefing paddles, in which the paddles or floats can be raised out of the
water and be retained in that position whilst the vessel is being propelled
entirely by its sails.
Now the object and intention of this Invention is to simplify the
construction and lessen the cost of such said wheels, and at the same
time render them more efficient in their action, and less liable to get
out of order than paddle wheels of the above kinds as heretofore
constructed.

page_text: The following is an example of the manner of constructing and
operating paddle wheels and their paddles or floats according to this
Invention, that is to say, instead of fixing the boards or floats of paddle
wheels to the arms thereof, as commonly practised, or mounting the
paddles on axes, as in Morgan's wheel above mentioned, I propose to
so arrange the several paddle boards or floats as that they slide up and
down the arms of the wheel; this I accomplish by connecting each of
the paddles by a rod to an excentric strap which embraces an excentric
plate fixed on a hollow shaft mounted on the shaft on which the paddle
wheel is fixed,-so-that-as-the-paddle-wheel revolves the aforesaid
excentric shall slide some of the paddles towards the centre of the
wheel, and some of them away from the centre towards the periphery of
the wheel, the excentric being so arranged as to force the paddles
outwards to their extreme range of action as each paddle comes under
the centre of the wheel, thus giving to each paddle thus forced out or
down the greatest depth of immersion and leverage to act upon the
water to propel the vessel; moreover as each paddle enters and leaves
the water it slides or cuts through the water instead of striking against
and lifting it as is now the case with paddle wheels constructed with
fixed paddles.
I would here remark that instead of employing a separate connecting
rod to each paddle, as above stated, I propose to make one connecting
rod govern two paddles; by these means the centrifugal force throws
one paddle from the centre of the wheel, and the centripetal force
towards the centre of the wheel, thereby equalizing the weight and
friction of the sliding motion and paddle boards or floats connected
therewith.
To reef the paddes when a vessel is using sails for propelling it is
simply necessary to so alter the action of the excentric as that it shall
move the paddles outwards above the centre of the wheel as it revolves
instead of below the centre, as before stated; by these means the paddle
boards that are below the centre of the wheel may be kept raised out of
the water when the vessel is sailing.