IMPROVEMENTS IN PADDLE WHEELS."
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Muntz, of Millbrook Lodge, in the
County of Hants, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PADDLE WHEELS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry Muntz
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 28th February 1862.
I, WILLIAM HENRY MUNTZ, of Millbrook Lodge, in the County of Hants,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PADDLE WHEELS," to be as follows:-
These improvements apply to the ordinary radial form of paddle wheel
employed for propelling vessels, and consist principally in affixing the floats of
such paddle wheels to the arms lengthwise instead of across the face of the
wheel, as usual, the floats being narrow, and in length about two-thirds of the
radius of the wheel.
Each arm of the wheel may carry its own float, or the floats may be
attached to each alternate arm. Each wheel may be composed of only one
set of arms and floats, with their corresponding rim and boss, or of two, three,
or more sets of arms, floats, rim and boss, keyed side by side on the shaft, and-
braced together by diagonal or other tie rods.

page_text: Some of the advantages to be derived from the use of this Invention are as
follows:-
Firstly, as the floats enter and leave the water endwise (instead of the whole
breadth at once, as in the ordinary paddle wheels,) there will be less vibration
and concussion on their entering the water, and also less "back water" on
their leaving the same.
Secondly, the wheel may consequently be made to dip deeper with advantage,
thus gaining power, and enabling the vessels to load deeper than can be done
with the ordinary wheels, and at the same time the liability of the engine's
"running away" with the wheels is greatly lessened.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Henry Muntz in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 28th August 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HENRY MUNTZ, of Millbrook Lodge, in the County of Hants, Gentleman,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said William Henry Muntz, Her special licence, that I, the said
William Henry Muntz, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Henry Muntz, 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 PADDLE WHEELS," upon the condition, amongst others, that
I, the said William Henry Muntz, my executors or administrators, 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 late of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE,. that I, the said William Henry Muntz, do hereby
declare the nature of any said Invention, and in what manner the same is

page_text: to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement in writing, and on reference to the accompanying Drawings,
that is to say:-
These improvements apply to the ordinary radial form of paddle wheel
employed for propelling vessels, and consists principally in affixing the floats
of such paddle wheels to the arms lengthwise instead of across the face of the
wheel, as usual, the floats being narrow, and in length about two-thirds of the
radius of the wheel..
Each arm of the wheel may carry its own float, or the floats may be
attached to each alternate arm. Each wheel may be composed of only one
set of arms and floats, with their corresponding rim and boss, or of two, three,
or more sets of arms, floats, rim and boss, keyed side by side on the shaft, and
braced together by diagonal or other tie rods.
Some of the advantages to be derived from the use of this Invention aro as
follows:
Firstly, as the floats enter and leave the water endwise (instead of the whole
breadth at once, as in the ordinary paddle wheels,) there will be less vibration
and concussion on their entering the water, and also less "back water" on
their leaving the same.
Secondly, the wheel may consequently be made to dip deeper with advantage,
thus gaining power, and enabling the vessels to load deeper than can be done
with the ordinary wheels, and at the same time the liability of the engine's
"running away" with the wheels is greatly lessened.
Such being the nature and object of my said Invention for " Improvements
in Paddle Wheels," I will now proceed to describe more in detail the manner
in which the same is to be or may be performed or carried into practical
effect. And in order that the same may be distinctly understood, I have
annexed hereunto a Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof, and have marked
the same with figures and letters of reference corresponding with those in the
following explanation thereof, that is to say :--
In the annexed Drawing Figure 1 represents a side view of a radial paddle
wheel constructed according to my Invention; and Figure 2 is a front or
edge view of the same, the kind of wheel represented being a triple wheel
composed of three sets of arms, floats, rims, and bosses, keyed side by
side on the same shaft, and braced together by diagonal tie rods.
a, a, is
the shaft upon which the bosses b, b, b, are keyed, to which the rims c, c, c,
are connected by the arms d, d, d; e, e, e, are diagonal tie rods; and f,f,f,
are the floats which are bolted upon the arms d, d, d, being strengthened at
back and front by the plates 9, 9, 9. These floats may be made either of wood

page_text: or metal, and may be of either of the shapes represented at Figure 3, or of any
other suitable form, so long as their peculiar character of narrowness in pro-
portion to their radial length is preserved. As before stated, the floats may
be bolted to each arm or to alternate arms, and the faces of the three floats
may be either in the same plane or arranged so as to follow each other as
may be preferred, and the wheel may be made single, double, triple, quadruple,
or even wider, as may be deemed necessary.
Having now described the nature and object of my said Invention for
"Improvements in Paddle Wheels," together with the manner in which the
same is to be or may be performed or carried into practical effect, I would
remark, in conclusion, that I claim as my Invention constructing radial paddle
wheels with the floats placed lengthwise or in the radial direction of the arms
(instead of across the face of the same as usual,) such floats being narrow
and about two-thirds (more or less) of the length of the said arms, substantially
as above set forth and illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Muntz, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
W. H. MUNTZ. (L.S.)