Improvements in and relating to Means for Steering Vessels from a Distance, also applicable for Controlling the Propelling Engines, Firing Guns, Exploding Charges, and Performing such like Operations.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Mar., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Dec., 1898-Accepted, 24th Mar., 1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Means for Steering Vessels from a
Distance, also applicable for Controlling the Propelling Engines,
Firing Guns, Exploding Charges, and Performing such like
Operations.
GEORGE FRANCIS FITZGERALD, of 7, Ely Place, in the City of Dublin,
Erasmus Smith's Professor of Natural Philosophy, in the University of Dublin,
and FREDERICK THOMAS TROUTON, of "Caerleon," Ballybrack, in the County of
Dublin, Assistant to the Erasmus Smith's Professor of Natural Philosophy in the
University of Dublin, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
The invention consists in steering vessels or other craft from a distance by
means of electromagnetic waves, oscillations, or impulses. These are originated
by the steerer by discharging conductors arranged as electrical condensers, or
otherwise, through a spark gap, or by other electromagnetic oscillations or forced
vibrations. The receiving apparatus is located on the vessel or craft to be steered
and is suitable to receive these electromagnetic waves, oscillations or impulses.
The electromagnetic disturbance produced in the receiver is to operate on the
rudder or other steering apparatus of the vessel or craft to be steered by means
of apparatus carried in the vessel or craft. The invention futher consists in per-
forming other operations, such as steering the vessel craft up and down, control-
ling the propelling engines, firing guns, exploding charges, and such like
operations, by means of electromagnetic waves, oscillations, or impulses. One way
of carrying out this invention is as follows. The originator of electromagnetic
disturbances may be a Hertzian vibrator in which a conductor or conductors are
discharged by means of a disruptive spark and thus electromagnetic waves are
produced. The receiver may be a tube of metallic filings or other loose contact
connected with conductors above water and with a local source of electromotive
force, and a telegraph relay in circuit with it. The decohering may be provided
for in any of the ordinary ways. The electromagnetic disturbance must be of two
distinct kinds, as hereinafter described, one in order to steer the vessel or craft
to port and the other to starboard. Other distinct kinds of disturbances, as
hereinafter described, may be arranged for steering a submerged vessel or craft
up or down in the water, for controlling the propelling engines, for firing guns,
exploding charges, and other such purposes. One way in which two kinds of
electromagnetic disturbances may be sent is by means of short and long signals.
The receiving apparatus should be so designed that for example a succession of
short signals should cause mechanism to be engaged turning the vessel to port
while a succession of long signals should cause other mechanism to be engages
turning the vessel to starboard. Mechanism of this kind has been designed for
other purposes. Other distinct kinds of disturbances may be produced by other
successions of long and short signals, as for example by a short and a long follow-
ing one another in succession, or by a long and two shorts. By a variety of suc-
cessions of this kind a corresponding variety of operations may be performed on
board the vessel or craft such as those already described and the like.

page_text: Other ways by which distinctive disturbances may be sent and received may be
by utilising either electromagnetic or mechanical resonance, or by varying the
plane of polarization of the disturbance.
Dated this 21st day of March 1898.
GEO. FRAS. FITZGERALD.
FRED. T. TROUTON.
Improvements in and relating to Means for Steering Vessels from a
Distance, also applicable for Controlling the Propelling Engines,
Firing Guns, Exploding Charges, and Performing such like
Operations.
We, GEORGE FRANCIS FITZGERALD, of 7, Ely Place, in the City of Dublin,
Erasmus Smith's Professor of Natural Philosophy, in the University of Dublin,
and FREDERICK THOMAS TROUTON, of Caerleon," Ballybrack, in the County of
Dublin, Assistant to the Erasmus Smith's Professor of Natural Philosophy in the
University of Dublin, 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: —
The invention consists in steering vessels or other craft from a distance by
means of electromagnetic waves, oscillations or impulses. These are originated
by the steerer by discharging conductors arranged as electrical condensers, or
otherwise, through a spark gap or by other electromagnetic oscillations or forced
vibrations. The receiving apparatus is located on the vessel or craft to be steered
and is suitable to receive these electromagnetic waves, oscillations or impulses.
The electromagnetic disturbance produced in the receiver is to operate on the
rudder or other steering apparatus of the vessel or craft to be steered by means
of apparatus carried in the vessel or craft. The invention further consists in
performing automatically other operations from a distance, such as steering the
vessel or craft up and down, controlling the propelling engines, firing guns,
exploding charges, lighting lamps, making sound signals, and such like opera-
tions, by means of electromagnetic waves, oscillations, or impulses. One way of
carrying out this invention is as follows: The originator of electromagnetic
disturbances may be a Hertzian vibrator in which a conductor or conductors are
discharged by means of a disruptive spark and thus electromagnetic waves are
produced. The receiver may be a tube of metallic filings or other loose contact
connected with a conductor above water and with a local source of electromotive
force, and a telegraph relay in circuit with it. The decolering may be provided
for in any of the ordinary ways. The electromagnetic disturbance must be of
two distinct kinds, as hereinafter described, one in order to steer the vessel or
craft to port and the other to starboard. Other distinct kinds of disturbances as
hereinafter described may be arranged for steering a submerged vessel or craft
up or down in the water, for controlling the propelling engines, for firing guns,
exploding charges, lighting lamps, making sound signals, and other such pur-
poses. One way in which two kinds of electro magnetic disturbances may be
sent is by means of short and long signals. The receiving apparatus should be
so designed that for example one number of short signals followed by a long one
should cause mechanism to be engaged turning the vessel to port while another
number of short signals followed by a long one should cause other mechanism
to be engaged turning the vessel to starboard. Mechanism of this kind has
been designed for other purposes such as A B (and other step by step tele-
graph instruments. One convenient way in which this may be effected s as

page_text: follows: The signals either directly or by means of a relay cause the arma-
ture of an electromagnet to be moved. To this armature is attached a pawl or
ratchet by means of which when it moves it pushes or pulls a toothed wheel
round through one or more teeth. There are at least as many teeth on the
wheel as there are operations required to be performed. To this wheel is attached
a hand connected though the axis with one terminal of a battery, the end of the
hand passing over two or more contacts, as desired, making contact with each
in turn as it rotates round. There should be as many separate contacts as there
are operations required to be performed and they should be so placed that the
wheel after moving from one tooth to the next causes the hand to then make
contact with one or other contact piece. These several contact pieces are con-
nected each through a separate electromagnet to the other end of the battery.
These separate electromagnets are either directly or by means of a relay each
work a dynamo or other electromagnetic engine by means of which such opera-
tions as steering the ship to port or to starboard, or controlling the propelling
engines and the like, may be performed. Thus the sender of the signals at a
distance can make the hand on board the ship turn and in succession make con-
tact with the various contact pieces. He can further cause the hand to pause for
any desired time on any one contact piece by either sending a signal of long
duration or by pausing some time between two signals. Thus by sending a series
of short signals and then a long one he can by properly choosing the number of
short signals cause the hand to pause upon any desired contact piece. Now it is
desirable that each of the mechanisms at the distant place may not be set in
motion by the corresponding contacts as they are rapidly passed over but that
only that one connected with the contact on which the contact pauses for some
time shall be set in motion. This is accomplished by arranging that the dynamo
or other electromagnetic engine which performs the various operations shall each
be set in operation by means of a corresponding relay, whose motion is controlled
by a dash pot or vane or other mechanism by which it shall take some short time,
say a second, before it can be sufficiently moved to make the contact required
for bringing its corresponding dynamo or other electromagnetic engine into
action. The general result of this particular method of using various combina-
tions of short and long signals is that an operator at a distance will be able to
perform any one of a series of prearranged operations on board a vessel by send-
ing a proper succession of short signals and then a long signal, the succession of
short signals being different for each required operation. A convenient way of
sending the proper succession is by means of a hand travelling round a dial or by
means of keys arranged round a dial, after the manner used in ordinary step by
step A. B. C telegraph instruments, the various operations to be written round
the dial or on the keys, in the same way as the letters of the alphabet are in
the ABC telephragh instrument. The currents sent out through this sender
should cause corresponding sparks or succession of sparks, to be produced in the
Hertzian radiator and thus send corresponding electromagnet waves to the vessel.
Another method of sending two or more distinct kinds of signals may be used
depending on signals being sent at different epochs, as used in synchronous
printing telegraphs.
The drawing is a diagram of a convenient arrangement where only two actions
such as steering to port or starboard is required.
The commutator wheels (A and A¹) one at the directing station and one on
the vessel are run by clockwork at the same rate. Two contact brushes touch
each wheel (b c and 6 c) but so arranged that when one makes circuit the other
is on one of the insulating pieces let into the wheel.
At the transmitting station by means of two keys (P and S) contact as desired
can be made so as to steer to port or starboard.
The immediate action on depressing a key is that a circuit is closed as fre-
quently as possible through the commutator wheel to work the relay (D) closing
thereby the circuit of the primary of a Rhumkorff coil (M). This coil works

page_text: one of the forms of the Hertzian oscillator. The arrangement thus produces
periods of radiation interrupted by equal periods of quiescence. The form shown
consists of two metallic balls one connected to an aerial conductor and the other
to earth in the manner suggested by Marconi.
On the vessel the radiation is taken up by one of the forms of Hertzian radia-
tion receivers, that shown consists of a colierer E (having one end connected to
an aerial conductor and the other to earth) in circuit with a battery cell actua-
ting a sensitive relay (R) by means of which through the commutator wheel A¹
one of the relays (1) or Ds) is worked according as the contact brushes b' or d
is making metallic contact. As the epoch when is making contact is precisely
that when is making contact the relay Dp can only be worked by the key P.
and likewise Ds by S. The relays and 1 s are each provided with a dash-pot
allowing quick descent but only a slow return. The return takes an interval
as great or slightly greater than the interval an insulating piece on the com-
mutator wheel takes to pass under a brush. In this way the relay Dp can be
kept continuously down by depressing the key P. Likewise Ds by C.
The particular decohering arrangement which may be adopted can be worked,
as shown in the diagram, by the current which passes through the commutator
wheel.
The relays D and Ds are shown arranged to close the circuit of a steering
motor so as to send current in opposite directions through it according as the
key P or S is depressed.
When more than two operations are required the receiver may be provided with
mechanism such as that employed in known printing telegraphs in which a part,
namely the type wheel, assumes different positions in response to different series
of signals and then performs the act of printing, the latter act in the present
case being replaced by the closing one or other of a number of relay circuits, one
for each operation it may be desired to perform. The working of the instrument
however should not depend on the signals being of different polarities.
Other ways by which distinctive disturbances may be sent and received may
be by utilizing either electromagnetic or mechanical resonance, or by varying
the plane of polarization of the disturbance.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is: --
1. Controlling operations, such as steering vessels, steering vessels up and
down, controlling engines, firing guns, exploding charges, lighting lamps, making
sound signals on board a vessel, automatically by means of electromagnetic waves
or disturbances produced at a distance.
2. The combination of a transmitter capable of sending two or more different
electromagnetic signals, or different series of signals through space, a vessel
having on it a receiver capable of responding to the signals or series of signals,
and electromagnetic machinery, operated either directly or by means of relays.
on the vessel set in action by the receiver and performing or regulating the per-
formance of the desired actions.
3. Means for steering vessels, controlling the propelling engines, firing guns,
exploding charges, lighting lamps, making sound signals, and the like, substanti-
ally as described and illustrated in the drawing.
T: 01.
Danamh 1200
GEO. FRAS. FITZGERALD.
FRED. T. TROUTON.