AN IMPROVED THRUST BEARING FOR SCREW PROPELLER SHAFTS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine,
Lake, & Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for
the Invention of "AN IMPROVED THRUST BEARING FOR SCREW PROPELLER
SHAFTS."—A communication from abroad by Cornelius Godfrey, of
Huntington, New York, United States of America.
Sealed the 19th June 1874, and dated 19th March 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 19th March 1874.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co.,
Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED THRUST BEARING FOR SCREW
PROPELLER SHAFTS," a communication, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to certain improvements in modes of securing
the screw shaft of a steam ship, to enable the shaft to withstand the
longitudinal or end pressure thereon caused by the action of the screw,

page_text: and its object is to obviate the loss of power by reason of friction, which
ts occasioned by all devices hitherto employed for that purpose.
The said Invention consists in a thrust bearing for a propeller screw
shaft composed of metal spheres or cylindrical rollers working in contact
with a flange or a face plate secured to or forming part of the shaft, and
each having an independent rotary motion, and having bearings in
suitable boxes or blocks securely fixed to the timbers of the vessel, by
which means the screw shaft is effectually kept from moving endwise by
the thrust or pressure caused by the action of the screw, and that
without any material loss of power by friction. The spherical or
cylindrical rollers. which work in contact with the said flange or face
plate are made adjustable by means of set screws attached to the boxes
in which the said rollers are held, and the said boxes may be made
adjustable by means of slots formed in the flanges which receive the
bolts by which the boxes are secured to the timbers of the vessel. Tho
flange above mentioned, which is secured to or forms part of, the shaft,
has a united edge formed on its periphery which closely fits into a
corresponding groove cut in the periphery of the cylindrical rollers; or
as modifications of this arrangement the said flango may have a plain
edge or periphery, and the cylindrical rollers may be set at right angles
to its line of motion with plain edges or peripheries working in contact
with the sides of the flange; or, again, the flange may have a circular
and semi-cylindrical groove cut in each of its sides near its periphery
and parallel therewith, to receive a series of spherical rollers working in
contact therewith, and located in boxes or blocks fitted to hold them,
the said boxes being secured to the timbers of the vessel and made
adjustable.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 17th September 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Company, Patent
Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, send greeting.
3
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of March, in the year 3

page_text: .
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence
that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "AN IMPROVED THRUST BEARING FOR SCREW PROPELLER SHAFTS," a com-
munication to me from abroad by Cornelius Godfrey, of Huntington,
New York, United States of America, upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or
one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was
to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great. Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is
to say:
This Invention relates to certain improvements in means or devices
for securing the screw shaft of a steam ship, to enable the shaft to
withstand the longitudinal or end pressure thereon caused by the action
of the screw, and its object is to avoid the loss of power by reason of
friction, which is occasioned by the devices hitherto employed for that
purpose.
My Invention consists in an improved construction and arrangement
of the parts of a thrust bearing for a propeller screw shaft, and according
5 to this Invention the thrust bearing is composed of two or more rollers.
which work in contact with a flange or face plate secured to or formed
upon the shaft, the said rollers having bearings in adjustable blocks or

page_text: boxes securely fixed to the timbers of the vessel, so that each of the
rollers has an independent rotary motion, by which means the scrow
shaft is effectually prevented from moving endwise under the thrust or;
and pressure caused by the action of the screw when in motion. The
flange or face plate above mentioned, which is secured or formed upon 5
the shaft, has a mitred edge formed upon its periphery which closely fits
into and works in a corresponding groove cut in the periphery of the
rollers; or the rollers may each have a mitred edge formed upon its
periphery, and fitting into and working in a groove cut in the periphery
of the flange or face plate. The boxes or blocks which hold the rollers 1
are or may be made adjustable by means of slots formed in the flanges
by which they are bolted or secured to the timbers of the vessel, and the
rollers may be adjusted or held in position by means of set screws in.
the boxes or blocks in which they are held.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood, I shall 1
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
I shall refer to the several letters and figures in the Sheet of Drawings
hereunto annexed, the same letters of reference indicating corresponding
parts in each of the Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings represents a plan view of my improved 2
thrust bearing, in which the flange has a groove, and each of the
bearing rollers a mitred edge formed on their respective peripheries;
Figure 2 is a similar view, showing the flange as having a mitred edge
on its periphery, and the rollers having corresponding grooves; and
Figure 3 is a vertical section of one of the blocks or boxes on the line 2
x, x, in Figure 1.
A represents the screw; and B, the screw shaft of a steam ship, both
of which may be of ordinary or common construction, except as herein-
after mentioned and described; O is a flange or face plate, keyed or
otherwise firmly secured to the shaft B, or it may be made solid with 30
the said shaft; D, D, are short cylindrical rollers provided with journals
on which they rotate, and which said journals have bearings in the
blocks or boxes E. These rollers D have a mitred edge formed on their
periphery, which fits into and works in a corresponding groove formed
in the periphery of the flange C (as shown in Figure 1), or as an 38
equivalent arrangement the rollers may be grooved, and the flange may
have a mitred edge (as shown in Figure 2), with the same result, as the

page_text: operation will be similar. The said boxes or blocks E are firmly secured
to the timbers of the vessel by screw bolts or other suitable means, and
are or may be made adjustable by means of slots m. in the flanges a,
which receive the bolts by which the said boxes are secured to the
timbers. The upper plate 6 of the box E is secured to the lower or bed
plate by screw bolts, and each of said plates has a semi-cylindrical
groove formed thereon to receive the journals of the rollers D, which
said grooves also receive the set screws F, by means of which the said
rollers may be kept in position and adjusted, so as to work closely in
contact with the flange C, and thus present any longitudinal movement
of the shaft B.
-
The set screw F is not essential to the operation of my said Invention,
as it may be dispensed with; or other equivalent means may be used in
lieu thereof to effect the same result, but it is useful in giving firmness
to the bearing, and insuring steadiness of movement to the rollers. Any
suitable number of. these roller bearings with their accompanying boxes
or blocks may be used in connection with the shaft, according to the
power of the engines by which the screw is driven, and the consequent
proportionate pressure of the screw, and the form of the blocks may be
slightly modified for similar reasons.
The relative sizes of the flange O and rollers D may also be varied
when desired, without materially affecting the operation, and as an
obvious modification of the angular groove and mitred edge herein-
before described formed on the periphery of the flange and rollers
respectively, a semi-cylindrical groove may be used on the flange or on
the rollers, with a corresponding convex or semi-cylindrical surface on
the periphery of the rollers or flange, as the case may be, to fit into and
work therein.
By means of the construction and arrangement of the several parts as
herein shown and described, the displacement of the screw shaft by
reason of the end thrust caused by the action of the screw is entirely
obviated, and that without material loss of power by friction, and thus
the power usually absorbed by devices hitherto used for preventing
longitudinal motion of the shaft is reserved and made available for
propelling the vessel, thereby securing either economy in the amount of
power employed, or else a higher speed with the expenditure of the
same amount of power.

page_text: Having thus described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be carried
into effect, I observe in conclusion that what I consider novel™ and
original in the said improvement, and therefore claim as my Invention
is, a thrust bearing for a screw propeller shaft composed of two or more
rollers D, each having an independent rotary motion, and having
bearings in blocks or boxes secured to the vessel, and which may be
made adjustable, the said rollers being arranged to operate in contact
with a flange or face plate secured to or formed upon the said shaft,
substantially as herein shown and described and for the purposes set
forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four.
Witness,
HENRY J. NOONE,
8, Southampton Buildings,
London.
W“. ROB™, LAKE. (L.S.)