Improvements in Steering Machinery.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in Steering Machinery.
I, ANDREW BETTS BROWN, of the 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 construct, combine, and arrange steer-
ing machinery in an improved manner and so as to be satisfactorily applicable
for large battleships as well as for other vessels.
In the case of a battleship many of the parts of my improved steering
inachinery are provided in duplicate but each of such duplicated parts is made
capable of doing the work and withstanding the strains in the event of the
other part being disabled. For some purposes, however, the parts may not
require to be duplicated.
In one modification of my improved machinery as applied to a powerful battle-
ship, the rudder crosshead has each end connected by a pair of rods to a double-
ended ram working in a pair of opposite single-acting hydraulic cylinders, con-
nected by pipes to a three-cylinder steam pumping engine placed in the engine
room or other convenient locality, there being a separate pumping engine for
each pair of hydraulic cylinders.
The steam pumping engines are controlled by telemotor apparatus from a
conning tower or one or more steering stations, such apparatus acting on valves
to distribute the liquid pumped to the hydraulic steering cylinders and admitting
steam to the pumping engines as required. The steam admission valves are
by preference such as are described in my Patent Specification, No. 29,773, of
1897 and telemotor apparatus is by preference such as is described in my
Provisional Specification, No. 12,232 of 1898. The telemotor apparatus is
arranged for being actuated from one or more steering stations, there being
separate connecting pipes for each station, and stop valves being provided for
confining the action to any station.
As usual with steering machinery of the kind to which my invention relates
the movement of the rudder itself is made to return the controlling valve or
valves to the neutral position on the required movement being accomplished.
For this purpose, in my improved machinery, a rod, jointed to one of the rams
of the hydraulic steering cylinders, is arranged to act on the transmitting
cylinder of return telemotor apparatus, which is connected by pipes to telemotor
receiving cylinders at the pumping engines. The telemotor aparatus actuated
from the steering station or stations acts on a floating lever which acts on the
controlling valves, and the telemotor apparatus actuated by the ram of the
hydraulic steering cylinders acts oppositely on the floating lever so as to return
the controlling valves to the neutral position on the accomplishment of the
required movement of the rudder.
For indicating the position of the rudder at any of the steering stations, there
is fixed on the rudder head a bevil-toothed segment which gears with a bevil
pinion on a small shaft having on it bevel wheels gearing with bevil wheels

page_text: on spindles appertaining to two telemotor transmitting cylinders. The bevil
wheels on the small shaft have clutches to allow of either being put into or out
of gear as may be required, the two telemotor cylinders being provided so that
either can be used when the other is not in working order or is being examined.
The transmitting cylinders are connected by pipes to the indicators at the steer-
ing station or stations, branch pipes and stop valves being provided for making
or cutting off connection with either cylinder. At each steering station the
telemotor pipes are connected to two single acting cylinders having rams con-
nected to opposite ends of a lever which is horizontal in its middle or neutral
position and has an index pointer extending from its middle and moving over
a scale on which the rudder positions are marked. Each of the rams has in con-
nection with it a pair of springs, these springs being arranged to tend to return
the index pointer to its middle position when moved therefrom in either
direction. The index pointer is made with a hole which coincides with a hole
in the framing when the index pointer is in its middle position; and if a bolt
is inserted through the two holes it will prevent the indicator from moving.
Thus if the indicator is set free at one of several steering stations and not at the
others it will show the position of the rudder at that station only.
Provision is made for steering by hand when required, as for example when
the steam power is unavailable. The band gear consists of a set of four
large hand steering wheels fixed on a shaft on which is a worm gearing with
a worm wheel connected by a frictional clutch to a shaft having on it a pinion.
The pinion gears with a toothed sector fixed to or in the same piece and cross-
head which is connected to rods fixed to the hydraulic steering ranis and extend-
ing out through stuffing boxes at the forward ends of the forward cylinders.
The pinion may be of eccentric form, the teeth of the sector being correspondingly
disposed, with the object of obtaining increased leverage as the rudder is moved
over to either side.
Dated this Twenty-first day of December 1898.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.
Improvements in Steering Machinery.
I, ANDREW BEITS BROWN, of the 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 par-
ticularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement, that is
to say:
My said invention has for its object to construct, combine, and arrange steer-
ing machinery in an improved manner, and so as to be satisfactorily applicable
for large battleships as well as for other vessels.
In the case of a battleship many of the parts of my improved steering
machinery are provided in duplicate, but each of such duplicated parts is made
capable of doing the work and withstanding the strains in the event of the
other part being disabled. For some purposes, however, the parts may not
require to be duplicated.
A modification of my improved machinery as applied to a powerful battleship
is shown upon three accompanying sheets of explanatory drawings which
are hereinafter referred to in describing my improvements.
Figures, 1, and 2, on Sheet, 1, of the drawings are a plan and side elevation

page_text: of the machinery at the stern of a battleship. Figures, 3, and 4, on Sheet, 2,
are a plan and front elevation of one set of pumping engines. Figures, 5, and 6,
on Sheet, 3, are a plan and side elevation of apparatus for transmitting indi-
cations of the position of the rudder to one or more steering stations; and
Figure, 7, is an elevation showing the indicating apparatus and other parts at
a steering station. In these drawings the same reference letters and numerals
are used to mark the same or like parts wherever they are repeated.
As shown in Figures, 1, and 2, the rudder head has fixed on it a crosshead, A,
which has each end connected by rods, A 1, each comprising a T-shaped part
and a pair of rods, to a double-ended ram, B, working in a pair of opposite
single-acting hydraulic cylinders, C, connected by pipes, C1, to a three-cylinder
steam pumping engine, D, (Figures 3, 4) placed in the engine room or other
convenient locality, there being a separate pumping engine for each pair of
hydraulic cylinders.
The steam pumping engines, D, are controlled by telemotor apparatus from a
conning tower or one or more steering stations, such apparatus acting on valves
to distribute the liquid pumped to the hydraulic steering cylinders, C, and
admitting steam to the pumping engines, D, as required. The steam admission
valve, E, that is the valve which admits steam to the valve casing of the steam
cylinders of the pumping engines, is of the kind described in my Patent Speci-
fication, No. 29,773 of 1897; and the telemotor apparatus, which is partly shown
in Figure, 7, is such as is described in my Patent Specification, No. 12,232 of
1898. The telemotor apparatus is arranged for being actuated from one or
more steering stations, there being separate connecting pipes or branch pipes
for each station, and stop valves being provided for confining the action to any
station.
As usual with steering machinery of the kind to which my invention relates
the movement of the rudder itself, or of parts moving with it, is made to return
the controlling valve or valves to the neutral position on the required move-
ment being accomplished. For this purpose, in my improved machinery, a
rod, F, jointed to the double ram, B, of each pair of hydraulic steering.
cylinders, C, is arranged to action on the transmitting cylinder, F 1, of return
telemotor apparatus, which is connected by pipes, F2, to a telemotor receiving
cylinder, G, at the pumping engines D. The telemotor apparatus from the
steering station or stations, acts on a floating lever, H, (Figure, 3) which acts
on the controlling valves, and the telemotor apparatus actuated by the ram of
the hydraulic steering cylinders, C, acts oppositely on the floating lever, H,
so as to return the controlling valves to the neutral position on the accomplish-
ment of the required movement of the rudder. The floating lever. H, is jointed
at its middle to the rod, H 1. of the controlling valves; and the ends of the lever
are connected, respectively, by rods, H2, H3, to the piston rods of telemotor
receiving cylinders, H4, G, which are connected by small pipes, one to the trans--
mitting cylinder at the steering station, and the other to the transmitting
cylinder, F 1, at the hydraulic steering cylinders, C. Each telemotor piston rod
has applied in connection with it a pair of helical springs, J, tending to return
each piston to its middle position after having moved therefrom.
For indicating the position of the rudder at any of the steering stations, there
is fixed on the rudder head a bevil-toothed segment, K, (Figures 5. 6) which
gears with a bevil pinion, K 1, on a small shaft, K 3, having on it bevil wheels, K 3,
gearing with bevil wheels on spindles, K 4, appertaining to two telemotor trans-
mitting cylinders, K 5. The bevil wheels, K 3, on the shaft, K2, have clutches
to allow of either being put into or out of gear as may be required, the two
telemotor cylinders, K5, being provided so that either can be used when the
other is not in working order or is being examined. The transmitting cylinders,
K 5. are connected by small pipes, K 6, to the indicators at the steering station or
stations, branch pipes and stop valves being provided for making or cutting off
connection with either cylinder. At the steering station the indicating

page_text: apparatus is shown in Figure, 7, being in that figure represented as attached to
transmitting apparatus of the kind herein before referred to as described in my
Patent Specification No. 12,232 of 1898. The indicator pipes, K 6, are connected
to two single-acting cylinders, L, having rams, L 1, connected to opposite ends of
a lever, L2, which is horizontal in its middle or neutral position, and has an index
pointer, L3, extending up from its middle and moving over a scale, L4, on which
the rudder positions are marked. Each of the rams, L 1, has in connection with
it a pair of helical springs, I.5, these springs being arranged to tend to return
the index pointer, L3, to its middle position when moved therefrom in either
direction. The index pointer, L3, is made with a hole, L6, which coincides
with a hole in the framing when the index pointer is in its middle position; and
if a bolt is inserted through the two holes it will prevent the indicator from
moving. Thus if the indicator is set free at one of several stations and not
at the others it will show the position of the rudder at that station only, and
without its action being diminished through connection with other stations.
Provision is made for steering by hand when required, as for example, when
the steam power is unavailable. The hand gear consists of a set of four large
hand steering wheels, M. (Figures, 1, 2) fixed on a shaft, M1, on which is a clutch
and a pinion gearing with a spur-wheel. M 2, on a shaft, M3, having on it a bevil
pinion gearing with a bevil wheel, M4, on a vertical shaft, N. The vertical
shaft, N, has on a pinion gearing with a toothed sector, P, indicated by dotted
lines in Figure, 1, fixed to or in the same piece as a crosshead, P1, which is
connected to rods, Q, fixed to the hydraulic steering rams, B, and extending
out through stuffing boxes at the forward ends of the forward steering
cylinders, C. The pinion on the shaft, N. may be of eccentric form, the teeth of
the sector, P, being correspondingly disposed, with the object of obtaining
increased leverage as the rudder is moved over to either side. The hand-wheel
shaft, M 1, is provided with brakes, R, which are by preference of the well known
automatic differential-lever kind.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. The combination of parts forming my improved steering machinery, and
comprising the arrangement of hydraulic steering cylinders, the steam pumps,
the controlling valves of the steam pumps connected by telemotor apparatus to
the steering station or stations and to the hydraulic steering cylinders, the
telemotor apparatus for indicating the position of the rudder, and the alternative
hand steering gear, all substantially as hereinbefore described with reference
to the accompanying drawings.
2. The arranging of the hydraulic steering cylinders in a fore-and-aft position
and connecting their rams to a crosshead on the rudder head and to handwheel
mechanism substantially as herein before described.
3. The combination of telemotor-actuated admission and controlling valves
with steam pumping engines by which hydraulic steering cylinders are actuated
substantially as herein before described.
4. The combination of parts for indicating the position of the rudder by means
of the telemotor apparatus substantially as herein before described with reference
to Figures, 5, 6, and 7, of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this Eighteenth day of September 1899.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicant's Agent.