IMPROVEMENTS IN ROCKETS AND ROCKET TUBES
Year: 1879

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by James Fox Bland at the Office of the '
Commissioners of Patents on the 11th March 1879.
JAMES FOX BLAND, of the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall, in the County of
Middlesex, Lieutenant Colonel in the Army. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROCKETS AND
ROCKET TUBES."
My Invention has for its object to increase the accuracy of flight and the initial
speed and range of rockets, and consists, firstly, in imparting to the rocket a con-
siderable rotary motion or angular velocity round its longitudinal axis before or at
the moment of firing; and secondly, in more or less confining the gases generated
in the rocket during the first moment after ignition, so that the gases may attain a
greater initial pressure and propelling force at starting.
For the first named purpose, instead of allowing the rocket to rest upon the inner
surface of the rocket tube as heretofore, I provide it both at the front and at the
rear and with pivots in line with its longitudinal axis, and I mount these pivots in
bearings in the rocket tube, the front one of which is formed as a forked pendulum
bearing, so that as the rocket moves forward the bearing will be pressed down
thereby, and will afterwards rise again into the upright position. The rear bearing
may be formed as a lathe centre, so as to offer the least possible friction.
The rocket being thus free to revolve in its bearings, a rapid rotary motion is
imparted to it by any suitable means just before or at the moment of firing, such as,
for instance, by winding a cord round its rear end, and then drawing off the cord
rapidly by hand, as in spinning a top. This cord may also serve to fire the friction
tube after effecting the above operation.
By imparting this rapid rotary motion to the rocket at first starting, the oscil-
lating motion which it now has owing to its slow rotation at that time, is more or
less entirely obviated, and the accuracy of its flight will consequently be greatly
increased. Also, as it is possible to impart the entire required rotation to the rocket
by this means, the appliances now used for imparting such rotation by the action of
the gases escaping at the rear may be more or less entirely dispensed with, and as
these appliances produce a certain retarding effect on the rocket, its range of flight
will be more or less increased by my Invention.
For the purpose of increasing the initial pressure, and consequently the velocity
of the rocket at starting, I more or less close or obstruct the holes at the rear end,
through which the gases escape by means of some substance that will rapidly burn,

page_text: melt, or wear away by the action of the escaping gas, so that by the time the gases
have attained the full desired pressure inside the rocket, the escape holes shall have
assumed their full size, and thus the bursting of the rocket through undue accumu-
lation of pressure be avoided.
By thus increasing the force with which the gases issue at starting a greater
initial velocity will be attained, and as owing to the greature pressure and heat of
the confined gases the combustion of the charge will also take place more rapidly,
the maximum effect will be produced in a shorter space of time, tending still further
to increase the velocity at starting.
The restriction of the escape holes may be effected in various ways; thus they
may be covered by a wooden or metal disc, having very small holes, through which
the gases are allowed to issue, which holes will become rapidly enlarged by the
burning or melting of the wood or metal. Or the escape holes may be entirely
filled in with some material that will become melted by the heat, or be blown out by
the pressure of the imprisoned gases almost immediately after firing.
Owing to the rapid rotation of the rocket, and the imparting to it of increased
initial velocity, its accuracy of motion in the desired direction at starting will be
attained with a rocket tube of less length than is now required, and consequently
the friction and retarding effect of the latter upon the rocket will also be reduced,
which friction may be almost entirely obviated by providing in the tube a series of
antifriction rollers, over which the rocket passes instead of sliding along the surface
of the tube.