for Steam Engines
Year: 1885

page_text: for Steam Engines.
THOMAS SMITH 74 Cyprus Road, Bootle-Cum-Linacre in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for INTERLOCKING GEAR
AND SAFETY INDICATOR FOR REVERSING GEARS FOR STEAM ENGINES, to be as
follows:-
:
A cross slide is fixed on the present quadrant for reversing lever. Two catches
are placed in this slide, one on either side of the reversing lever, which are worked
by a cam, which works on the cross slide. This cam, (which is indicated, ahead
and astern) is worked by the man in charge of the ship from the bridge. When
he requires the engineer to go ahead, he moves the cam on the cross slide, which
takes in the catch on the head side of the reversing lever, and leaves the catch out
on the astern side of reversing lever,. so that the engines cannot go the wrong way.
In case the engines are on the centre, the above catches are provided with a lever
and a spring, so that the engineer can push them in the cross, slide, should he want
to go ahead or astern, (as the case may be,) to get the engines off the centre.
When he goes ahead again, this catch, which is provided with a spring, shoves the
catch out again, on the astern side of reversing lever, as soon as the reversing
lever is put ahead again, thereby preventing any mistake in starting the enginės
the wrong way.
יונות

page_text: D sliding box Inked to telegraph chains by means of smaCKIES W.
E cam surface on box D.
F F¹ catches jointed at G and having bowls or rollers H running on cam E.
I continuation of support of quadrant B or other piece firmly secured to, or
forming part of same.
J handle pivoted on piece I, by means of pin K and locked by chain pin K¹.
L connecting link, M frame linked to. L, and carrying two push pieces N N¹
sliding in grooves in frame C and bearing against the ends P P¹ of jointed
catches F F¹. O spring in stop F F¹, P Pi end of stop F F¹ held in place by
spring O, when not forced aside, joint G is a knuckle joint so as to enable
ends P P¹ to bend towards each other on joints G, but not to move beyond the
perpendicular.
Qis the usual dial on the upper deck with handle R and pointer S as usual-
T telegraph chain passing over grooved and clip or pitched chain pulleys U U as
usual VV frame plates supporting the mechanism, W studs supporting quadrant B,
lever A, and other mechanism.
The mode of action is as follows:-
The box D is graduated and marked as shown to correspond with the dial Q on
the bridge.
When the engines are stopped, the reversing lever A of the engines is
in the middle of the stroke, and the apparatus as set forth in the drawings. When
the officer in charge requires the engines to go ahead, or astern, say ahead, he moves
the indicator handle on the bridge of the ship to "ahead," chain T conducts this
motion to the box D causing it to move till the word " ahead" thereon is opposite
the pointer on C (shown in the drawings at "stop"). The box D having travelled
downwards, the upper stop F1 has come out of cam embayment E, and thus presses
into the path of lever A, as set forth in dotted lines in Figure 3.

page_text: The engineer, if by any chance he misunderstood the signal, and tried to move
the lever astern would find it locked by stop F' and only capable of moving
ahead. If at any time the engineer wished to move the engines independently of
orders he can do so by unlocking handle J, and pressing it down or up to
correspond with the direction required to be freed, if say, he pressed it up, bar N
would come against the spring end P P¹ of stop F' and press it aside as set forth
in dotted lines, so as to enable the handle to clear the stop in the direction of full
speed astern. If the stop F has been pressed back by pulling the handle J down-
ward, the reversing handle would be free to be moved ahead. As in no case is
the handle locked for both directions, this hand freeing apparatus by freeing the
direction locked leaves both directions open.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is :-
1st. The manufacture and use of apparatus for transmitting signals to the
engine room for reversing or altering the speed of engines in which the trans-
mitting apparatus is provided with interlocking gear, preventing the reversing
handle from being turned beyond "stop" in the wrong direction.
2nd. In combination with an interlocking apparatus for indicating to the engine
room the stops with knuckle spring joints or their equivalent and apparatus for
instantly throwing them, or either of them out of gear, when it is required to
reverse the engines independently of orders, substantially as described.
3rd. The combination of the cam box D, or its mechanical equivalent, carried by
the telegraph chain, and carrying a series of indications corresponding to the
indications on the dial, on the bridge, or other end of the telegraph elsewhere,
with the guided stops F F¹ and reversing lever, substantially as and for the
purposes described.