Improvements in Telemotor Apparatus for Indicating Direction, Speed, and Revolutions of Marine Engines.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Dec., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 7th Sept., 1898-Accepted, 15th Oct., 1898
Improvements in Telemotor Apparatus for Indicating Direction,
Speed, and Revolutions of Marine Engines.
I, ANDREW BETTS BROWN, of Rosebank Iron Works, Edinburgh, in the County
of Mid Lothian, North Britain, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows, that is to say:-
-
My said invention has for its object to provide improved apparatus for trans-
mitting actions from marine engines to the navigating bridge or to one or more
stations, so as to indicate automatically or from the engines themselves, the
direction in which the shaft may be turning at any time, and also the speed and
the revolutions.
The transmission is effected through pipes as in my well known telemotor steer-
ing apparatus, by means of air or other suitable fluid. A Root's blower or other
suitable blower is driven by means of pulleys and a belt or other convenient
gearing so as to produce increased pressure in the transmission pipe or pipes,
when rotating in one direction, and less or more of a vacuum when rotating in
the opposite direction, the intensity of the action corresponding to the speed of
the rotation.
An ordinary aneroid barometer may be used for the indicating apparatus, or
any suitable form of pressure indicator may be adapted for that purpose.
When an aneroid barometer is used the space in which atmospheric pressure
ordinarily acts is enclosed and has the transmission pipe connected to it, there
being also connected to it a nozzle with a stopcock by which atmospherio pressure
may be admitted or the issue of air of higher pressure regulated. There is a
pointer for showing atmospheric pressure when desired, and this pointer has
attached to it a card graduated to show pressures and rates of speed; and when
this pointer with its card has been set to atmospheric pressure it is fixed and the
varying pressures representing various speeds are indicated by a separate pointer.
For showing the actual rovolutions of the engine shaft pulsations of pressure
are produced in the transmission pipes, by leading the transmission current through
a hollow valve plug turned by the engine shaft, sand working in connection with
a port admitting atmospheric air at each revolution. The pointer acted on by
the pulsating current vibrates so that the revolutions can be observed and counted,
and it is connected by a pin and slot to another pointer which it moves to show
the maximum pressures between the pulsations and thus indicate the speed with
comparative steadiness.
The blower may be on the engine shaft or be driven at the same speed if made
of sufficient diameter; and it may be arranged to produce pulsations correspond-
ing to the revolutions of the shaft by means of one or more blades made to slido
outwards and inwards by means of a stationary eccentric or cam.
When the engine shaft turns in the ahead direction increased pressure is
produced in the transmission pipe or pipes, and the revolution and speed pointers
are moved to the higher-pressure side of the atmospheric pointer; rotation of the
shaft in the astern direction producing diminished pressure or vacuum and causing

page_text: the revolution and speed pointers to be moved to the lower-pressure side of the
atmospheric pointer.
Dated this Eighth day of December 1897.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.
Improvements in Telemotor Apparatus for Indicating Direction,
Speed, and Revolutions of Marine Engines.
I, ANDREW BETTS BROWN, of Rosebank Iron Works, Edinburgh, in the County
of Mid Lothian, North Britain, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say:-
My said invention has for its object to provide improved apparatus for trans-
mitting actions from marine engines to the navigating bridge or to one or more
stations, so as to indicate automatically or from the engines themselves, the
direction in which the shaft may be turning at any time, and also the speed and
the revolutions.
The transmission is effected through pipes as in my well known telemotor steer-
ing apparatus, by means of air or other suitable fluid. A Root's blower or other
suitable blower is driven by means of pulleys and a belt or other convenient
gearing so as to produce increased pressure in the transmission pipe or pipes
when rotating in one direction and less or more of a vacuum when rotating in
the opposite direction, the intensity of the action corresponding to the speed of
the rotation.
An ordinary aneroid barometer may be used for the indicating apparatus, or
any suitable form of pressure indicator may be adapted for that purpose.
For showing the actual revolutions of the engine shaft, pulsations of pressure are
produced in the transmission pipes. The blower may be on the engine shaft or
be driven at the same speed if made of sufficient diameter; and it may be
arranged to produce pulsations corresponding to the revolutions of the shaft by
means of one or more blades made to slide outwards and inwards by means of
a stationary eccentric or cam.
And in order that my said invention and the manner of performing the same
may be properly understood I hereunto append a sheet of explanatory drawings
to be hereinafter referred to and representing an example of my improved
apparatus.
Figure, 1, of the drawings is a sectional plan showing both the transmitting
and the indicating apparatus. Figure, 2, is an elevation of the indicating appar-
atus. In these drawings the same reference letters and numerals are used to mark
the same or like parts wherever they are repeated.
A shaft, A, which may be the engine shaft or a shaft geared thereto, has on it
a pulley, A.1, which by a belt, A2, acting on a pulley, A3, drives the
shaft, A4, of a blower, B, which may be of any simple and suitable kind, its
casing being made with ports, B1, and having connected to it a pipe, B2. The
blower produces pressure or vacuum in the pipe, B2, accordingly as the shaft, A,
rotates in the ahend or the astern direction. The pipe, B2, from the blower, is
connect to a valve box, C, to which is also connected the telemotor or
transmission pipe, D, leading to the indicating apparatus. In order to
produce pulsation in the telemotor pipe, D, and indicating apparatus,
The valve box, C, is formed with a port, C1, communicating with the
atmosphere, and provided with a screw plug, C2, capable of fine adjustment.

page_text: The valve box, C, is made with a cylindrical chamber in which fits and rotates
the end of a spindle, C3, which is attached to and turned by the shaft, A. The
end of the spindle, C3, is cup-shaped and formed with a port, C4, which once
for each rotation puts the passage in the valve box connected to the telemotor
pipe, D, in
communication with the port, Cl. If the pressure in the
pipes, B2, D, is above atmospheric pressure, it will be temporarily lowered once
for each rotation by the escape of air at the port, C4; whilst if the internal
pressure is lower than atmospheric pressure, it will be temporarily raised once for
each rotation by the entrance through the port, C4, pulsations being thus produced
in either case.
The telemotor or transmission pipe, D, is connected through a stopcock, D1,
to an aneroid barometer or pressure gauge, E, provided with a front glazed
cover, F, which can be closed airtight so as to enclose the space in which the
atmospheric pressure would act in an ordinary aneroid barometer. The frame
of the cover, F, is made with an angular rib round its inner side to bear on a
rubber ring held in a groove in the face of the barometer casing. A nozzle with
a stopcock, G, is fixed to the top of the casing to admit atmospheric pressure when
required. A valve box, M, provided with a screw plug, M 1, capable of fine adjust-
ment is fixed to the barometer casing for the egress or ingress of air accordingly as the
internal pressure, due to the action of the blower, B, is above or under atmos-
pheric pressure. There is a pointer, H, to show atmospheric pressure when desired,
and this pointer has attached to it a card, J, graduated to show pressures and rates
of speed; and when this pointer, H, with its card has been set to atmospheric
pressure it is fixed by means of a screw button, H1, and the varying pressures
representing various speeds are indicated by a separate pointer, K.
In connection with the pointer, K, there is a loose pointer, L, formed with a
Blot into which projects a pin on the pointer, K; and this pointer, L, remains in
the position of maximum pressure to which the pointer, K, moves it, and thus
gives a steady indication of the pressure and corresponding speed at any time.
The oscillations of the pointer, K, show the rotations of the engine shaft, and can
be observed and counted. If the shaft, A, rotates in the ahead direction the
pointers, K, L, will by the increased pressure in the telemotor pipe be moved to
the right-hand or very dry" side of the barometer dial; and they will be moved
to the other side if the shaft, A, rotates in the astern direction.
16
The action of the apparatus can be satisfactorily regulated by adjusting the valvo
plug, C2, the stopcock, D1, and the outlet valve, M.
The outlet of the valve, M 1, may have in connection with it two whistles with
check valves and such as to give different sounds, one sounding with increased
pressure and ahead direction and the other with vacuum and astern direction.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention and in what manner the same is. to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1
1. The indicating of the direction, speed, and revolutions of marine engines at
one or more points more or less distant from the engines by means of automatic
telemotor apparatus substantially such as is herein before described.
2. The combination of an air blower worked by the shaft of marine engines with
one or more transmission pipes, with regulating valves, and with indicating
apparatus of the nature of a barometer or pressure gauge, the parts being arranged
and operating substantially ns and for the purposes herein before described.
Dated this Sixth day of September 1898.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.