Improvements in Propelling or Manoeuvring Vessels or Ships, Aërial Machines and the like, and in Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1891

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
✓ Improvements in Propelling or Manoeuvring Vessels or Ships,
Aërial Machines and the like, and in Apparatus therefor.
I, AUGUSTE ARMAND TRINQUIER of 2, Rue Juliette Lamber Paris in the
Republic of France, Retired Lieutenant Colonel, 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 device which employ for the purposes of propulsion is in the form of an
oar, and my invention consists essentially in giving this oar, by means of devices
hereinafter described, or in any other suitable way, the three following combined
movements :-
1. A. continuous circular movement applied at a point in the shaft of the oar:
2. An alternating back and forward movement communicated to the shaft of the
oar in the direction of its axis ;
3. A movement of partial rotation of this oar round its axis.
Further, in order to render absolutely practicable the application of this oar,
with its three combined movements, to marine and aërial navigation, I have devised
arrangements as simple as they are efficacious, whereby the movement of the oar may
be reversed, curves be made, the direction be changed, the speed be reduced or
increased, and stoppages be made without touching the motor.
The following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings,
will allow of the nature and extent of my improvements being understood:-
As shown in Figure 1 of the drawings, the shaft of the oar b is gripped at a
given point by a collar c in which it can turn freely without shifting in a longitudinal
direction.
This collar carries the knob on which the crank d of the motor shaft e is attached.
Further, the shaft a is extended through a collar, which serves as a guide for it
in its axial movement, which collar receives the necessary oscillating motion so
that its plane shall be always perpendicular to the oar shaft.
In order to produce the partial rotation of the oar on itself, a groove following
a given radius is formed in the collar and, on the shaft a of the oar, two pro-
jections g and are arranged, placed at right angles one to the other, and connected
by a helicoidal thread. These projections engage in the groove of the collar f
and, when the shaft a is displaced longitudinally, they force this latter to make a
half turn during their passage across the collar f
It is seen that, by this arrangement, the propellor duly receives the three move-
ments above named; a continuous circular movement from the point c where the
crank is applied, an axial displacement of the shaft guided by the collar serving
as a point of leverage, and a partial rotation of the oar produced by the pro-
jections g and h sliding in the groove of the collar f
It results, further, from what has been stated, that the oar, during its motion,
presents, to the fluid in which it is plunged, alternately its face and its edge.
A space in the form of an oval flattened on its upper part, for the centre of the
front of the oar b, corresponds to the circular course traversed by the point.
The action of an oar thus formed is necessarily not continuous, therefore, in
order to obtain a continuous propelling effect, I couple two oars together, actuating
them by the same shaft and arranging them in such a way that one exerts its power,
whilst the other is no longer in a position of active work.
I can further form a propellor of a greater number of oars, if desirable,
regulating their relation to one another with a view to the regularity of the
effective work at any given moment.
When this kind of propellor is to be applied to ships or boats, I employ, if

page_text: necessary, according to the nature of the vessel, a propellor partially immersed, or
totally immersed. I can employ a single propellor, or one or more lateral or longi
tudinal pairs can place the apparatus in front, behind, at the centre, or at the two
sides of the boat or partly at one place, partly at another, all this depends on the
result which it is desired to obtain, on the fitting up of the boat, on its nature, on
that of the waters on which it is intended to sail, on the service which it is designed
to perform, etcetera.
At whatever point the propellor is placed, it is arranged in such a way that the
plane of the curve described by the oar is parallel to the axis of the boat. The
only exception is for submarine and aürial navigation, which I shall describe
hereafter.
Figure 2 shows a coupled propellor composed of two connected paddles such as
I have actually tried in a boat. The two blades are shown at the moment when
they are accomplishing their rotary movement round the shaft.
Figure 3 shows the position of the blades at the moment when they are crossing
one another.
The points in the curve, where these rotary movements must take place, are not
a matter of indifference for, on their position, depend both the speed of the boat
and the coefficiency of the yield of power of the engine which sets the propellor in
inotion. In fact, if the position of the paddle, Figure 4, be fixed in twenty
different places described by the course of the summit of the crank on the cir-
cumference, A B D F (points 1, 2, 3, 4. 5 etcetera,. 20 places at 18 degrees of
interval one from the other) we shall have the curve A D B G F H', in which
the point A corresponds to the point A, and the point B to the point B.
It will be noted that the diameter A. B', which corresponds to the diameter of
the circle A. B, is not the grand axis of the curve A D B G F H, but that
this greater axis is the line H G which corresponds to the two radii H C and C G
drawn from two distant points from A. and B of less than 18 degrees (about
16 degrees).
This established, we see that on the circle A B D F, the courses A H and B G
are negative, whilst we see that, on the curve A' D' B₁ G¹ F1 H', the corresponding
courses of the blade A¹ H and B' G are positive, consequently the negative work
of the blade comprises merely the portion HF, G of the curve.
Further, the speed of the crank on the circumference A B D F is constant,
whilst the speed of the blade on the curve A' D', B' F' is variable, it is null at the
points, then it increases up to the point D₁ where it is at a maximum, it then
decreases down to H, where it is once more null.
When the ship is not in motion, the negative work of the paddle is only from
the point H (11) up to the point (19), but, when the ship is moving, the
negative work of the paddle commences when the speed of the ship is superior to
that of the paddle, for, in that case, the drag of the blade reduces the speed of the
ship, and this negative work commences then considerably before the paddle passes
by the points H₁ (11) and G' (19).
If the speed of the ship varied but slightly from the average speed of the blade,
the portion of the curve, H D G, which would become negative, would be
considerable, but, in consequence of the recoil of the water, from the inclina-
tion of the blades out of a vertical position, a portion of the propelling force of
the blades is lost, and the speed of the ship differs considerably from that of the
blades it results therefrom that the angular speed M'O P₁ of the oar, between
the points 9 and 8, being but slightly different from the angular average speed of
the curve HD' G', the points where the negative work of the paddle commences,
in the case of a moving ship, will be somewhere near the points M' and N', the
distance of which corresponds to of the total curve.
It is, therefore, necessary, in the case of a rotary propellor having the blades
only partially submerged, that the paddle shall emerge entirely from the water at
the point M, and only re-enter it at the point N, in order to utilise, to the greatest
extent, the power of the engine.

page_text: The rotation of the blade is then performed out of the water, preferably towards
the points Hand G¹.
When the blades are completely immersed, the rotation should necessarily be
made towards the points M' and N1, in order that the blade shall present its edge
to the water, as soon as its work commences to be negative.
In order to vary the point where the blade returns on its curve, it suffices to
vary the distance of the point in the middle of the helicoidal thread.
According to the degree of immersion of the blades, the apparatus allows of the
following movements being made without the aid of a rudder, and without stopping
or reversing the steam, namely, forward, backward, turning and stopping. These
changes are brought about by a rotary movement imparted to the collar fin which the
projections and the helicoidal thread on the shaft travel; this collar, in place of being
fixed on its supporting blade, is movable around its centre, so as to allow of its
making a quarter revolution. Further, it is given an oscillatory motion, which
always maintains it in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the oar, the effect of
which is to diminish the friction.
Figures 5 and 6 represent a plan view of the collars in their front position and a
vertical section of the blades in this position, when seen from behind.
.
Figures 7 and 8 show the collars, turned by means of the arms R R¹ into a
perpendicular position, for backing (of the ship) as well as the position of the
paddles corresponding to this movement.
The forward movement is shown in Figure 3, in this figure the blade, which
follows the lower branch of the curve and travels from the front backwards, is
shown in face view; that which follows the upper branch of the curve, and goes
from the back to the front, is shown in profile. For travelling backwards, it is
sufficient to give the collars, which carry the projections on the shafts of the
nars (Figure 7), a quarter turn, that is to say, to bring the arms from 1 to 3, and
from 4 to 2. In consequence of this simple rotation, the two paddles of Figure 6
assume the position of Figure 8, in which the lower paddle is in profile, and the
upper one in full face; but, as the paddles travel at the top of the curve in an
inverse direction to that which they follow at the bottom of the curve, it results
that, although both the shaft and the paddles revolve always in the same direction,
the boat travels backwards instead of continuing to travel forward. This instan-
taneous reversal of the movement without shutting off or reversing the steam for
the purpose of backing is extremely curious and very important in manoeuvring
ships. In order to stop (the ship) without arresting the movement of the engine, it
is sufficient if the two centre blades travel forwards and the two side ones backwards,
so that the ship. drawn by two equal and parallel forces but acting in a contrary
direction, remains immovable although the shaft and the blades continue to
revolve.
It is further understood that, by stopping the arms R R so as to move the collars
into the intermediate positions, shown, for instance, on the graduated squares, the
most varied evolutions may be obtained.
It will frequently happen, in navigation, that it is of advantage to vary the
degree of immersion of the oars, either in consequence of the variable loads of the
ship, which modify its draught of water, or for any other reason. I arrange my oars
for this purpose in such a way that, at a given moment, I can fix them in a higher
or lower position. In such a case, the projections, in place of being fixed directly
on the shaft a, are placed, for instance, on a sleeve, traversed with slight friction by
the said shaft which is attached thereto by an adjustable connection, such as bolts,
screws, or any other suitable method. The collar e, which carries the knob of the
crank, is also fitted on this sleeve.
I may remark that the facility which my propellor possesses of being adapted
to every draught of water, and of working at variable depths, allows me to arrange
it well above the level of the keel, and, consequently, to protect it from the
chances of breakage, or of accident, to which propellors at present in use are
exposed,

page_text: The rotary propellor, when completely immersed, may be applied to submarine
navigation for rising, sinking, moving forwards or backwards, turning or stopping
in a longitudinal or vertical direction.
It is thus not necessary to fill the reservoirs in order to descend, or to empty them
in order to ascend.
In this new application, the propelling apparatus, having four paddles, may be
placed horizontally at the centre and on the deck of the ship, two paddles to the
right and two to the left, as shown in Figure 9 (elevation view) and Figure 10
(plan view).
If, when immersed, it be desired to move forwards, the arrangement will assume
the form of Figures 9 and 10, the couples will turn in a horizontal direction and
from the front to the back, but, as they are symmetric, the two shafts will revolve in
an inverse direction, that of the right will move from the left to the right, and
that of the left from right to left.
For going backwards, or turning or stopping, I proceed as in ordinary ships
fitted with rotary propellors. When it is desired to ascend, the cylindrical frame,
which carries the four paddles and the two cylinders of the apparatus, is caused to
make a quarter turn, so that the latter are placed in the position of Figure 11
(elevation view) and Figure 12 (plan view).
In this position, in order to ascend, the two shafts must continue to revolve in
the same direction and in a contrary direction to each other. The paddles travel
from above downwards when facing, and from below upwards when edgewise, in
profile.
In this position, the movement is reversed or arrested, which is effected, as has
been previously mentioned, by rotating the collars.
In order to effect this rotary movement without having to change the position of
the moving parts as regards one another, the two cylinders of the machine CC
(Figure 9) and the rods B B1 B2 B3 are enclosed within a cylinder II of suitable
diameter through which the bent rods A A', which impart the motion to the
pallets, traverse.
These last are supported by frames D D', fixed to the upper part of the
cylinder I, and the frames receive both the collars and the extremities of the
crank rods A A'..
The cylinder 1, which is closed at both ends, turns within a cylindrical cover E
fixed on the ship's bridge, in which it is recessed for about a quarter of its circum-
ference the cylindrical cover E is furnished with grooves or lengthened windows
(in Figure 9, there are six, but this is only an arbitrary number) so as to allow the
four uprights of the frames D D' and the two crank rods A. and A to pass, and to
allow of their turning a quarter of a turn when this revolution is effected within
the cylinder.
This system of two cylinders turning one in the other has for its object to avoid
the employment of transmission gearings within the interior part of the ship at
the exterior part occupied by the pallets.
When the submarine boat moves forwards or backwards, the plane of the curve
described by a paddle is parallel to the axis of the boat. When in a position for
ascending or des ending vertically, the plane of this curve is perpendicular to this
axis. If the propellors be located in intermediate positions between these two
extreme positions, a movement forward or backward may be obtained simultaneously
with an ascending or descending one.
This arrangement of propellors in submarine boats may be applied equally well
to aërial navigation. In balloons, I place the propellors at one or more suitable
points, as in the case of ships; the central position appears to be the best, if it be
desired to utilise the apparatus not only for moving forwards or backwards, but
also for propelling it upwards in order to aid the ascension without throwing out
ballast, and for diminishing the speed of the fall when coming to the ground.

page_text: In flying apparatus without balloons, the propellors are horizontal, and their
blades act vertically, which produces the ascension. Two couples, placed one at
the right and one at the left of the car, maintain the stability of this latter and
yield a continuous uniform motion. When the ascension is effected, a simple rotary
movement of a quarter of a turn of the support carrying the system of propellors
allows of the forward or backward movement as desired.
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
1. A system of rotary propellors composed of an oar or rather of several oars
coupled together and provided with three combined movements;
(a) A continuous circular movement from one point of the shaft of the oar;
(b) An alternating back and forward movement of the oar:
(c) A partially rotary movement of the oar around its axis.
2. The improved means for obtaining the three movements of the oar, constituting
the propelling action and consisting in the combination of the crank d of the motor
shaft gripping the shaft a at a given point by means of a collar «, or of a case
in which this shaft may revolve, with a collar f, the plane of which remains
preferably perpendicular to the shaft in all positions of the latter.
3. The application of the system of propellors hereinbefore described and
shown, to river and maritime navigation under such conditions that the plane of the
curve made by the blade remains parallel to the main axis of the boat.
4. The application of the system of propellors hereinbefore described and shown
to submarine and aerial navigation under such conditions that the plane of the
curve described by the paddle shall be parallel to the main axis of the boat, or of
the flying machine, for moving backwards or forwards, and perpendicular to this
axis for ascending or descending, and in an intermediate position for obtaining
simultaneously both these effects, substantially as has been described, reference
being had to Figures 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the accompanying drawings.
5. In a propelling apparatus of the kind hereinbefore described, the optional
raising or lowering of the oars so as to vary their degree of immersion, either by
means of a case clasping the shaft a combined with any suitable method of fixing
such as described, or by other suitable means.
Dated this 18th day of November 1891.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.