IMPROVEMENTS IN SHIPS' WINDLASSFS
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Horatio Harfield, of the Mansion House
Buildings, in the City of London, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SHIPS' WINDLASSFS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Horatio Harfield at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 10th November 1880.
WILLIAM HORATIO HARFIELD, of the Mansion House Buildings, in the City of
London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHIPS' WINDLASSES."
The object of my Invention is to improve the construction of ship's windlasses
driven by means of a worm and wheel.
In such windlasses I fit the worm upon a horizontal shaft directly under the
windlass, and it gears with a worm wheel thereon.
The windlass is provided with a chain holder or ring, to the under side of which
the cable is led; usually the windlass is provided with two chain holders. By this
arrangement the friction is very considerably reduced, as a great part of the
strain falls directly on the worm and not on the axis of the windlass.
By arranging the worm below the windlass I am enabled also to place an oil
trough below the worm, and the worm and the worm wheel are thus constantly
lubricated.
To work the windlass by steam I arrange upon the shaft upon which the worm
is mounted cranks connected by connecting rods with the pistons of steam engines.
In some cases I arrange the engines to drive an intermediate shaft, upon which is
mounted a bevil pinion, gearing into a bevil wheel upon the worm wheel shaft.
The engine shaft in this case stands at right angles to the worm wheel shaft.
I can work the windlass by hand when the steam power is not available by
means of the capstan, the spindle of which has a bevil wheel upon it gearing into a
bevil pinion upon the worm wheel spindle. The worm can be thrown in or out of
gear by a clutch, the engine can thus be used for working the capstan either when
the windlass is being used or when it is stationary.
When it is required to drive the windlass by an endless "messenger chain"
from the steam winch, I place upon the worm shaft a bevil wheel gearing into
another bevil wheel upon a horizontal shaft at right angles to the worm shaft.
This second shaft carries at its other end a wheel with which the messenger chain
engages. Should it be necessary to work the windlass by manual power I placo
at the upper part of the bevil wheel on the worm shaft a bevil pinion gearing into
it. This pinion is mounted upon a vertical shaft, and the upper end of the shaft is
provided with another pinion which again gears into a pinion upon a horizontal
shaft provided at each end with crank handles for men to work.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Horatio Harfield in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
10th May 1881.
WILLIAM HORATIO HARFIELD, of the Mansion House Buildings, in the City of
London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHIPS' WINDLASSES."
The object of my Invention is to improve the construction of ships' windlasses
driven by employing a worm and wheel in the position and manner hereinafter
described.
In such windlasses I fit the worm upon a horizontal shaft directly under the
windlass, and it gears with a worm wheel thereon.
The windlass is provided with a chain holder, to the under side of which the
cable is led; usually the windlass is provided with two chain holders.
By this arrangement the friction is very considerably reduced, as a great part
of the strain falls directly on the worm and not on the axis of the windlass.
By arranging the worm below the windlass I am enabled also to place an oil
trough below the worm, and the worm and the worm wheel are thus constantly
lubricated.
To work the windlass by steam I arrange upon the shaft upon which the worm
is mounted cranks connected by connecting rods with the pistons of steam engines.
In some cases I arrange the engines to drive an intermediate shaft, upon which is
mounted a bevil pinion gearing into a bevil wheel upon the worm wheel shaft.
The engine shaft in this case stands at right angles to the worm wheel shaft.
The windlass may be worked by hand when the steam power is not available;
by means of the capstan, the spindle of which has a bevil wheel upon it gearing
into a bevil pinion upon the worm spindle.
The worm can be thrown in or out of gear by a clutch; the engine can thus be
used for working the capstan either when the windlass is being used or when it is
stationary.
"
When it is required to drive the windlass by an endless "
messenger chain
from the steam winch, I place upon the worm shaft a bevil wheel gearing into
another bevil wheel upon a horizontal shaft at right angles to the worm shaft.
This second shaft carries at its other end a wheel with which the messenger
chain engages. Should it be necessary to work the windlass by manual power I
place at the upper part of the bevil wheel on the worm shaft, a bevil pinion gearing
into it. This pinion is mounted upon a vertical shaft, and the upper end of the
shaft is provided with another pinion which again gears into a pinion upon a
horizontal shaft provided at each end with crank handles for men to work.
In order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and readily
carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto annexed.
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation, and Figure 2 is a plan of a ship's windlass
constructed according to my Invention.
a is the windlass axis, and b, b, are the bearings in which it is carried; c is a
worm wheel upon a barrel, which is fast upon the axis a; d, d, are two chain
holders mounted upon the axis a, and capable of being made fast with the barrel 4
and axis by frictional clutching arrangements of well known construction; e, e, are

page_text: the hand wheels by which these clutching arrangements are operated; f is the
worm by which the worm wheel c and the windlass are driven; it is upon an
horizontal shaft g carried in bearings g'; the shaft g has upon it the cranks g², g²;
h, h, are steam engine cylinders; the pistons working within these cylinders are
connected through their piston rods and through connecting rods with the
cranks g.
The standards on which are the bearings b, b, are not fully. shown in these
Figures, the fore parts being broken away, but they are shown complete by other
Figures; they have shelves upon them to support the chain after it leaves the
upper side of the chain holder, and as it passes aft around the standard.
The chain in approaching the windlass comes to the under side of the chain
holder near to the place where the worm acts against the teeth of the worm wheel c,
consequently a great part of the strain comes directly upon the worm and does
not fall upon the axis a or bearings b.
The loss of power by friction in working is consequently less than where the
main strain is conveyed through the axis and bearings of the windlass.
Figure 3 is an elevation partly in section, and Figure 4 is a plan showing a
somewhat modified arrangement of stean driving gear; and the same Figures
show the method in which in some cases I combine a capstan with a steam
windlass.
The horizontal shaft g has a bevilled wheel i upon it which is in gear with a
bovilled pinion upon the transverse horizontal crank shaft k of the steam engine
of which h, h, are the cylinders.
Z is the capstan, and l' is a bevilled wheel upon the capstan axis. The wheel l
gears with a pinion m, which, as here represented, is upon the same horizontal
shaft g with the worm f;- the worm f is not fast on the shaft g, as shown in
Figures 1 and 2, but is capable of being clutched and unclutched by the clutch g².
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation, and Figure 6 is a plan of a. windlass which is
driven by means of a messenger chain from a steam winch; n is the endless
messenger chain, it passes around the chain wheel o upon the transverse horizontal
shaft o. The shaft o* carries a bevilled pinion o' gearing into the bevilled wheel ♬
upon the horizontal shaft g which carries the worm f.
The same Figures also represent hand driving gear. p is an horizontal axis
carried in bearings upon standards, and capable of being rotated by crank handles
applied at its ends; p' is a bevilled pinion on this axis, driving the bevilled wheel q'
on the vertical axis q; the same axis also carries another bevilled pinion q* in gear
with the bevilled wheel ƒ³.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would havo it understood that I claim,―
First. My improvement in ship's windlasses driven by means of a worm and
wheel, which consists in arranging, substantially as herein described, a worm upon
a horizontal shaft so as to gear with the under side of the worm wheel which is
on the windlass shaft, the windlass also being constructed to receive the chain on
the under side of the barrel, so that much of the strain on the chain falls directly
upon the worm and not upon the axis and bearings of the windlass.
Second. My improvements in ships' windlasses driven by steam power, consisting
in arranging the steam driving gear, substantially as described and illustrated by
the Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the annexed Drawings.
Third. My improvement in ships' windlasses driven by steam power, consisting
in connecting the capstan therewith by means of a bevilled wheel on the axis of
the capstan, in gear with a bevilled pinion, which can be clutched fast with a
horizontal driving shaft passing fore and aft beneath windlass, and conveying
the steam power, substantially as described and illustrated in the annexed
Drawings.
Fourth. My improvement in ships' windlasses driven by a messenger chain,
consisting in the arrangement of gear transmitting the power from the chain to the

page_text: windlass, substantially as described and illustrated by the Figures 5 and 6 of the
annexed Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Horatio Harfield, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Tenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
W. H. HARFIELD. (L.S.)