Improvements in or connected with Speed or Revolution Indicators or Tell-tales for Engines.
Year: 1891

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 18 of the Patents, &c., Act, 1883) as allowed
by the decision of the Comptroller General of the 31st day of May 1897.
Date of Application, 8th Apr., 1891
Complete Specification Lelt, 8th Jan., 1892-Accepted, 27th Feb., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Speed or Revolution Indicators
or Tell-tales for Engines.
I, GEORGE ARCHIBALD WALKER, of Natal, South Africa, but at present
residing at 93, Bank Road, Bootle, in the County of Lancaster, Master Mariner,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to apparatus for indicating the speed or revolutions and
direction of engines, more particularly of steam engines of navigable vessels where
it is desirable to exhibit on one part of the ship, for example, the bridge, the
speed, or revolutions, and direction thereof, of the engines in the engine room.
My invention consists, mainly, in employing an electric communicating apparatus-
between a moving part of the engines, and a pointer or pointers, illuminating device
or devices, sounding device or devices, on the bridge or other place, the said electric
communicating apparatus being arranged and adapted to actuate the pointing,
illuminating, and sounding device or devices in unison with the revolutions of the
engine shaft and shew the speed and whether the engines be moving ahead or
astern..
As an example of an application of my invention, I will describe an apparatus
according to my invention suitable for use in a steam ship for indicating on the
bridge of the ship the revolutions and the direction thereof of the engines in
the engine room.
On the crank or other shaft of the engines, I provide a chain wheel or equivalent
device which moves with the shaft and is connected by an endless chain or
equivalent device with a second chain wheel or equivalent device mounted to run
free on a secondary shaft. On this shaft there is also provided two sleeves having
right and left hand ratchet wheels placed one on each side of the chain wheel
which is provided with pawls for working said ratchet wheels, and thereby the
sleeves, according to the direction of movement of the chain wheels. Each sleeve
is provided with an electric contact maker for intermittently making and breaking
the electric current between an electric battery or other electric source, and a
system of electro magnets placed in a suitable standard, said electro magnets being
adapted to operate and rock suitable pointers, one to indicate ahead and one to
indicate astern. Thus if the engines are making 60 revolutions per minute ahead,
the ahead pointer will rock 60 times in a minute, and more and less according to
the speed of the engines, and in like manner the astern pointer will rock if the

page_text: .
engines are going astern. In connection with the pointers I provide distinct
sounding devices to distinguish when the movement is ahead or astern.
The electric communicating apparatus may be arranged to work a shutter or dial
instead of the pointer, the 'movement of which indicates the revolutions of the
engines, also for night use an electric light device may be used, the alternate
illumination and eclipse of which denotes the revolutions. In connection with the
apparatus and on the standard I provide a shunt device by which the officer or
other person on the bridge can render the apparatus operative or inoperative at
pleasure.
Dated this 7th day of Al-1801
CHEESBROUGH & ROYSTON,
15, Water Street, Liverpool, Applicant's Patent Agents.
Improvements in or connected with Speed or Revolution Indicators
or Tell-tales for Engines.
I, GEORGE ARCHIBALD WALKER, of Natal, South Africa, but at present
residing at 93, Bank Road, Bootle, in the County of Lancaster, Master Mariner,
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 :-
This invention relates to apparatus for indicating the speed or revolutions and
direction of engines, more particularly of steam engines of navigable vessels where
it is desirable to exhibit on one part of the ship, for example, the bridge, the speed
or revolutions and direction thereof, of the engines in the engine room.
My invention consists mainly in employing an electric communicating apparatus
between a moving part of the engines and a pointer or pointers illuminating device
or devices, sounding device or devices on the bridge or other place, the said electric
communicating apparatus being arranged and adapted to actuate the pointing,
illuminating and sounding device or devices in unison with the revolutions of the
engine shaft and shew the speed, and whether the engines be moving ahead or
astern.
As an example of an application of my invention I will describe an apparatus
according to my invention suitable for use in a steam ship for indicating on the
bridge of the ship the revolutions and the direction thereof of the engines in the
engine room.
On the crank or other shaft of the engines I provide a chain wheel or equivalent
device which moves with the shaft and is connected by an endless chain or
equivalent device with a second chain wheel or equivalent device mounted to run
freely on a secondary shaft. On this shaft there are also provided two sleeves
having right and left hand ratchet wheels placed one on each side of the chain
wheel which is provided with pawls for working said ratchet wheels and thereby
the sleeves, according to the direction of movement of the chain wheels. Each
sleeve is provided with an electric contact maker for intermittently making and
breaking the electric current between an electric battery or other electric source
and a system of electro magnets placed in a suitable standard, said electro magnets
being adapted to operate and rock suitable pointers, one to indicate ahead and one
to indicate asteru. Thus if the engines are making 60 revolutions per minute
ahead, the ahead pointer will rock 60 times in a minute and more or less according
to the speed of the engines, and in like manner the astern pointer will rock if the

page_text: engines are going astern. In connection with the pointers there is provided
distinct sounding devices to distinguish when the movement is ahead or astern.
The electric communicating apparatus may be arranged to work a shutter or dial
instead of the pointer, the movement of which indicates the revolutions of the
engines, also for night use an electric light device may be used, the alternate
illumination and eclipse of which denotes the revolutions. In connection with the
apparatus and on the standard I provide a switch device by which the officer or
other person on the bridge can render the apparatus operative or inoperative at
pleasure.
The beforegoing generally describes the object, nature and effects of this
invention, it will now be further described with reference to the accompanying
drawings. The example of apparatus herein illustrated is an arrangement and
construction of parts according to this invention applied to indicate the rate of speed
and direction of the revolutious of a marine steam engine.
In the various figures of the drawings, the same parts are designated by the same
letters and they correspond with those used in the following explanation of the
example.
Figure is a sectional elevation illustrating a general arrangement of the
apparatus according to my invention; and Figure 1 is an outside view of the
indicating dial.
Figure 2 is a plan of the indicating instrument shewn in section through the
line X. X. Figure 1ª.
Figure 3 is a plan, and Figure 4 is an end elevation of the electric contact
making and breaking device.
With reference to the drawings, a designates the electric contact making or
breaking device generally, and b denotes the indicating instrument. The contact
making device a is placed in any convenient position where it can be worked by the
endless band c from a moving part of the steam engine, for example near the crank
shaft or other shaft of the engine. The indicating instrument & is placed on the
bridge of the vessel or in any other suitable place where it is desired to shew the
rate of speed and direction of the revolution of the engine. The contact device a
and the indicating instrument are connected by electricity conductors being
the wires d, d, e from an electric battery or other electric source.
The contact device a comprises a shaft driven from a moving part of the engine
by the band c and the pulley e', a disc g fixed on the shaft f, swinging weighted
double right and left pawlsh mounted on the disc, two sleeves i mounted on the
shaft, one on each side of the disc g, and provided with toothed wheels k k¹, and
with projecting parts. The contact makers consist of two springs m, n,
and m, n, the springs m, m' are fixed to but insulated from the device a and are
connected to the wires d, d' leading to the indicating instrument b. The indicating
instrument comprises a standard and case p, a dial pl, two pointers, r³, mounted
on the shafts provided with armatures's s' and striking hammers t¹; two
electric magnets u, u and a bell v, or there may be two bells of different sounds.
The dial is provided with windows ww behind which there are movable
secondary dials' provided with the words "ahead" and "astern." These dials
are mounted on a rocking bar having projecting arms, at, by which the dials
are moved as either armature s or s¹ moves over.
し
In operation, when the engine turns the pulley c¹ one way round, by means of the
band c, the disc g by means of the pawl turns the sleeve i and the projection /
round, and as the projection comes round it comes against the spring m and causes
said spring to make contact with the spring n and thereby completes the electric
circuit and causes the electro maguet u to draw over, by means of the armature,
the pointer for each contact (the return stroke of the pointer being caused by a
spring) and also causes the striker t to sound its bell. As the armature s moves
over it comes in contact with the projecting arm of the rocking bar and thereby
causes the dial to exhibit the word "ahead" through the window w², which
word remains exhibited until the engine reverses and moves the pointer. Thus

page_text: there is always exhibited the direction in which the engine was last moving. It
will be obvious that when the engine turns the pulley c¹ in the reverse direction,
the sleeve and the parts on its side of the contact device a are brought into
operation and the spring m' makes contact with the spring n', and the "astern "
pointer, and dial al of the indicating instrument are operated.
The indicating instrument is provided with a switch device y by which the
apparatus can be put in or out of operation. Thus in their normal condition
the pointers are stationary, and by moving the switch device y the pointer
corresponding to the direction in which the engine is running, will rock at the same
rate of speed as the engines, and the rate of speed of revolutions can be counted
:therefrom.
In the foregoing Specification there is described the nature of a certain example
of apparatus according to this invention, but it is to be understood that the precise
parts and arrangements may be amplified or modified and their equivalents
employed without departing from this invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
:-
1. An apparatus for indicating the rate of speed and direction of revolutions of
engines constructed and operating substantially as described, that is to say, an
apparatus comprising an electric contact making and breaking device operated from
the engine whichever way it is running, an indicating instrument comprising a dial,
pointers, and sounding device, a secondary or direction dial, and electro magnets
and armatures for operating said pointers, sounding devices, and secondary dial, the
said contact device and indicating instrument being connected by suitable circuit
wires or leads.
2. The combination and construction of parts of the contact device a as set forth
with reference to the drawings, consisting of the shaft fand pulley e' driven by the
engine; the disc g, pawls hh', wheels k, k¹ sleeves i, and contact devices,
operating as described.
3. The combination and construction of parts of the indicating device or
instrument bas set forth with reference to the drawings, consisting of the standard p
dial p¹, shafts, pointers rr, striking hammers t, bell v, armatures s s¹, electro
magnets u u³, secondary dial w w¹, and switch y; operating as described.
Dated this 7th day of January 1809
CHEESBROUGH & ROYSTON, Fels. Chart. Inst. P.A.,
15, Water Street, Liverpool, Applicant's Patent Agents.