Improvements in Screw Propellers for Steering Ships.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 21st June, 1895
Complete Specification Left. 20th Mar. 1895 Accented 25th Apr.
1896
Date of Application, 21st June, 1895
Complete Specification Left. 20th Mar. 1895 Accented 25th Apr.
1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Screw Propellers for Steering Ships.
I, JOACHIM JOHANNSEN of 21 Cronsforder Allee in the City of Lübeck,
Empire of Germany, Captain of Steam Vessel, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in screw-propellers for steering ships.
It is a well known fact that steam vessels, when travelling at a very slow rate,
or during a stoppage or return movement of the machine, allow of performing only
an unreliable steering and turning of the vessel, which fact constitutes a con-
siderable disadvantage upon rivers with rapid flow, in narrow channels and in
harbours, and this so much the more, when the vessel is moving in the direction
of the current or with the tide or when the latter passes across the fair way, even if
a strong breeze blows against the broad side of the vessel. These disadvantageous
conditions which have in many cases been the cause of ships colliding or running
aground opposite or inside the harbour after their having safely returned from a
voyage or reached their destination, are intended to be rendered as nearly as
possible harmless by the aid of this improved steering arrangement hereinafter
described.
Into the bottom of the bow of the ship a vertical tunnel shaft, limited below by
a transverse tunnel, is built. Into the said vertical shaft a tubular casing can be
lowered down, for instance by rack bar gearing. The bottom of the casing is
formed by two bearing grooves and a hood connecting the said grooves; beneath
this hood a steering screw propeller is located. The axis of this propeller, lying
transversely with regard to the direction of the ship is carried in the said two
grooves and has cranks arranged thereon, to which connecting rods are attached.
A small steam engine or similar motoric arrangement serves for actuating the con-
necting rods and for revolving the steering screw propeller in the desired direction,
in order to enable the ship to be turned with its bow ahead, out of its course into
any other desired direction.
The axis of the steering screw propeller is secured against axial displacement in
its bearings by means of pressing rings and is surrounded by tightening stuffing
boxes toward the interior of the bearings. In order to allow of the packing of
the stuffing boxes to be screwed or forced down, if necessary, from an accessible
space of the vessel, a fork can be displaced in front of each seat of the stuffing
boxes by means of a suitable rod passing from the said fork upward and capable
of being adjusted by screw nuts; thus the seat can be pressed further into the cup
of the stuffing box. This fork namely bears the wedge shaped tapering surfaces
against the front surface of the seat, and is held in this position by means of
guide rails which are fixed to the inner surface of each bearing groove aforesaid
and grip laterally over the fork. Consequently by displacing a fork rod in the
tapering direction of the wedge surfaces of the fork the respective stuffing box is
drawn tighter.
The two lower branches of the aforesaid tubular casing are down to the bearing
grooves made preferably of elliptic form, and so arranged that the large axis of
this ellipse lies transversely with regard to the ship and that the said two
branches thus offer less resistance to the water worked upon by the steering
screw propeller as would be the case if they were of circular cross section.

page_text: This improved steering screw propeller is more especially intended to serve as
an auxiliary device in combination with those steering arrangements used up to the
present time which latter are sufficient in broad and undangerous water,-in
order to impart to the bow of the ship, especially in narrow navigable water
courses with great traffic a rapid and strong turning motion.
In case the steering screw-propeller is presumably not to be used for some
considerable time or in case the same is to be repaired or replaced, it can be lifted
out through the tunnel shaft of the bow.
Dated this 21st day of June 1895.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
I, JOACHIM JOHANNSEN, of 21 Cronsforder Allee, in the City of Lübeck,
Empire of Germany, Captain of Steam Vessel, 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 :-
My invention relates to improvements in steering apparatus in which transverse
steering-propellers are used in order to assist the action of the ordinary steering
device that is to say, of the commonly used helm-and to increase thereby the
steerage of the ship; and it consists in certain features of construction and
combinations of such features of construction which will be hereinafter described.
In the accompanying drawing
Figure 1 is a vertical section through the fore-body or bow of a ship provided
with my improved steering apparatus.
Figure 2 is a transverse section of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is an horizontal section on the line I I, Figure 2, showing ou an enlarged
scale a bottom view, partly in section, of the steering-propeller and its crank-shaft
and the bearings for the latter.
Figure 4 is a vertical section on the line II II, Figure 3, and
Figure 5 a transverse section on the line III III, Figure 4:
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the
drawing.
The marine vessel is provided in its fore-body near the bow with a vertically
downward-extending well a and a transverse opening or passage a¹, both being in
communication with each other. In the well a there is arranged a casing b,
containing the steering apparatus, and capable of being lifted or lowered in the
said well by means of suitable racks and pinions c c. From the bottom plate d¹
of the movable casing 6 project two hollow arms or brackets b', the lower ends of
which are closed by means of channel or U-shaped caps d, securely fixed to the
tubular arms 6-that is to say, the lower closed end of the casing is bifurcated
and the legs are provided with bearings for the steering-propeller shaft, the inner
or proximate bearings being constructed to exclude water from the interior of the
casing, as will appear hereinafter. The crank-shafts carrying the steering
propellers, is journalled in the sides of the said caps d and tubular arms b', so that
the steering-propellers is placed between the said arms and beneath the
bottom plate d² of the casing b, and may be lifted and lowered together with
this casing b. Motion is imparted to the propellers from a suitable motor D by
means of connecting-rods & attached to the cranks s' of the shaft so, the cranks s¹
being within the hollow arms b¹ and their caps d.
For using the steering apparatus the casing b is lowered in the well a, so that
the arms d and the propeller s project into the transverse water channel or

page_text: passage a¹, as shown by Figures 1 and 2, whereupon the motor D is put in motion
in order to revolve the propeller s in the desired direction. It is evident that the
propellers, according to the direction in which it revolves, will act upon the water
within the transverse passage a in one or the other direction and cause the bow of
the vessel to fall off to starboard or to port accordingly, assisting thereby the
action of the helm. When not in use, this auxiliary steering apparatus may be
lifted or hoisted in the well a.
Suitable thrust-collars s on the shaft s prevent the latter from being displaced
in its longitudinal direction, and stuffing-boxes e e, in connection with the inner
journal-bearings el el being provided to protect the interior of the hollow arms b
against leakage. In order to enable the adjustment of the stuffing boxes e e¹ from
the interior of the vessel the following means are provided: ff are bifurcated
rods, the wedge-shaped prongs of which are adapted to embrace the shaft so and
to act upon the gland of the stuffing-boxes e e¹, as shown by Figures 4 and 5, and
are for this reason vertically guided by suitable guide pieces 9 attached to that
side of the caps d, Figure 5, constituting the thrust-bearings of screw-shaft sº.
The described fork-heads may be operated by means of suitable nuts f³, screwed
on the threaded upper ends of the bars or rods f¹, Figure 2. When such a fork-
bar is drawn upward with the aid of the corresponding screw-nut f³, the
wedge-shaped fork-heads slide along on the similarly-inclined surface of the
gland or cover e, Figure 4, pressing thereby the latter at the time more or less
into the stuffing-box, as it may be desired.
In most cases it will be advantageous to give the arms 6ª and caps d'an elliptic
or turtle-shaped form, (see cross-section, Figure 3), as this form is most adapted
to overcome the resistance and pressure of the water entering into the transverse
channel a¹.
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 I
am aware that prior to my invention steering apparatus have been made with
transverse-acting steering-propellers and therefore do not claim such an
apparatus broadly; but what I claim is :-
1. The combination with a vessel provided with a vertical well and with a
transverse open-ended passage intersecting the lower end of said well; of a
steering shaft, a steering propeller secured to said shaft, mechanism for lowering
the steering shaft into and lifting it out of the aforesaid transverse passage,
and a motor for revolving the shaft, substantially as and for the purpose set
forth.
2. The combination with a vessel provided with a vertical well, a transverse
passage intersecting the lower end of said well, a steering shaft, a steering
propeller secured to said shaft, mechanism for lowering the shaft into and lifting
it out of said transverse passage and a motor connected with and adapted to
revolve said shaft, said motor moving up and down with the steering shaft, for the
purpose set forth.
3. The combination with a vessel provided with a vertical well and with a
transverse open-ended passage intersecting the lower end of said well, a casing
contained in the latter, said casing having its lower closed end bifurcated and
provided with bearings, a steering shaft revoluble in said bearings, a steering
propeller secured to the shaft between the legs of the bifurcated closed end of
the casing mechanism for lowering and lifting the casing in its well, and a motor
for revolving the steering shaft, for the purpose set forth.
4. The combination with a vessel provided with a vertical well and an open
ended transverse passage intersecting the lower end of said well, a casing having
its closed lower end bifurcated, bearings formed in the legs of the bifurcated
portion, the inner or proximate bearings provided at their inner end with a
stuffing box, and a stuffing box gland for said stuffing box; of a steering pro-
peller shaft revoluble in said bearings, adjusting devices adapted to be operated

page_text: from a point above the well, said devices acting upon the stuffing box glands to
move the same into their stuffing boxes when said adjusting devices are moved in a
given direction, a lifting and lowering mechanism for the casing, and a motor for
revolving the steering propeller shaft, substantially as and for the purpose set
forth.
5. The combination with the legs b' of the casing 6, bearings in said legs, the
inner or proximate bearings provided with interior annular grooves and with a
stuffing box at their inner end, and a stuffing box gland for said stuffing box; of a
steering shaft revoluble in said bearings and provided with thrust collars fitting
the grooves therein, and a steering propeller secured to the shaft between said
legs b', of fixed abutments and wedge-shaped bifurcated adjusting devices working
against said abutments and upon the stuffing box glands, substantially as and for
the purpose set forth.
6. In a steering apparatus the combination of a casing (6) capable of being
lifted in a vertical well (a) and lowered into a transverse channel (a) of the vessel,
of hollow arms (1) projecting from the said casing and being closed at the bottom
ends by means of caps (d) forming the bearings for a crank-shaft (s), of a steering-
propeller (s) fixed to the crank-shaft and arranged between the said hollow
projecting arms (6'), and a motor (D) for driving the crank-shaft and steering-
propeller, substautially as described.
7. In a steering-apparatus the combination of a casing (6) capable of being
lifted in a vertical well (a) and lowered into a transverse channel (a¹) of the vessel,
of hollow arms (¹) projecting from the said casing and being closed at the bottom
ends by means of caps (d) forming the bearings for a crank-shaft (so), of a steering-
propeller (s) fixed to the crank-shaft and arranged between the said hollow
projecting arms (6¹), and of a motor (D) for driving the crank-shaft and steering-
propeller, of a movable bar (f¹) having wedge-shaped arms (f) adapted to act
upon the correspondingly shaped gland (e) of the stuffing box, and of guide-pieces g
for the said arms (f), substantially as specified.
Dated this 20th der of March 1806
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.