A NEW OR IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR PROPELLING BOATS AND VESSELS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Palmor Evelyn, of the Army and Navy
Club, Pall Mall, in the County of Middlesex, Lieutenant-Colonel in
the Army, for the Invention of "A NEW OR IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
PROPELLING BOATS AND VESSELS."
Sealed the 26th November 1866, and dated the 30th May 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Palmer Evelyn
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
30th May 1866.
I, GEORGE PALMER EVELYN, of the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall, in
the County of Middlesex, Lieutenant-Colonel in the Army, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "A New on IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
PROPELLING BOATS AND VISSELS," to be as follows:-
The purpose of this Invention is to propel a boat or vessel by means of a
vertical paddle working in a pivot, hinge, or joint at the end of a lever pro-
jecting astern, the pivot allowing the paddle to oscillate laterally only. The
required propulsion is obtained by working the lever horizontally to and fro by
manual, steam, hydraulic, or other power applied on board. The angle to the
097

page_text: lever which the paddle assumes when forced laterally through the water is
regulated and controlled by stops or by forming the end of the lever with a
fork, between the prongs of which the paddle oscillates at each stroke. The
flexibility of the lever increases the angle at which the paddle works and is
A similar
also useful in springing it across from one stop to the other.
result could be obtained by spring stops. The paddle may be used for steering
a vessel.
By a somewhat modified arrangement I propose to make a paddle available
to drive a vessel astern us well as ahead. The plan by which this is to be
effected may be briefly explained by supposing a paddle controlled by stops,
but otherwise working like a vane, with a greater area exposed to the action
of the water on one side of its pivot. than on the other. When the greater
arca is abaft the pivot the action of the paddle propels the vessel ahead, but
when in front of it or between it and the vessel theaction is reversed and the
vessel driven astern. Two paddles might be used, one for going ahead and
one for going astern, or a paddle might move in a frame to and fro in the
wake of a vessel, or backwards and forwards in a line with the wake by a
direct thrusting action.
By these arrangements the long lever might be dispensed with. In the use
of the direct thrust action the wings or paddles should be jointed to a shaft
passing through water-tight,bearings, the paddles having stops bearing on pro-
jections on the shaft, or spring stops might be applied.
Another modification of a direct thrust action is to apply a vertical shaft
astern set in an universal jointed bearing, actuated by a horizontal lever, by
the rocking action of which the vertical shaft to which the paddles are joined
would propel the boat or vessel. This arrangement is also applicable to side
propulsion. By reversing or turning the vertical shaft half round the position
of the paddles would be reversed and the vessel driven astern.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, Eled
by the said George Paliner Evelyn in the Great Seal Patent Office on 3
the 30th November 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
PALMER EVELYN, of the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall, in the County of
Middlesex, Lieutenant-Colonel in the Army, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 3

page_text: Patent, bearing dato the Thirtieth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said George Palmer Evelyn, Her special licence that I, the said George
Palmer Evelyn, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said George Palmer Evelyn, 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLING BOATS AND VESSELS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said George Palmer Evelyn, 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 George Palmer Evelyn, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say :-
The purpose of this Invention is to propel a boat or vessel by means of a
paddle working in a pivot, hinge, or joint at the end of a lever projecting
astern, the pivot allowing the paddle to oscillate in one direction only. The
required propulsion is obtained by working the lever to and fro by manual or
other power applied on board. The angle to the lever which the paddle
assumes when forced through the water is regulated and controlled by stops
or by forming the end of the lever with a fork, between the prongs of which
the paddle oscillates at each stroke. This paddle may be worked by moving
it from side to side horizontally through the water, but I prefer to move it up
and down vertically.
Figure 1 is a section of a boat with a paddle of this description applied to
it. a is the lever; it passes out through the stern of the boat at a', where it
is pivoted to the boat in such manner that its inner end may be worked up
and down vertically by a man or meu propelling the boat. The joint a' being
beneath the water level is rendered water-tight by means of a tube of leather
or vulcanized india-rubber, or in any other convenient manner. At its outer
eud the lever a is forked or made with two prongs a³, a³, and between these

page_text: two prongs the paddle blade 6 is jointed so that the paddle blade is limited in
its play by the prongs, which act as stops. When the outer end of the
lever a is moving upwards the paddle blade rests on the lower stop and forms
an incline such that the water reacting upon it forces the boat forward.
Similarly when the outer end of the lever is moving downwards the paddle
blade b rests on the top stop forming an incline in the opposite direction on
which the water reacts as before.
Figure 2 is a plan of the lever a and paddle blade b. This paddle not only
propels but steers the vessel, for which purpose the pivot at a' should be so
arranged that the lever a may be moved from side to side in addition to its
up-and-down movements, so that the lateral pressure may force round the
stern. The paddle may if desired be so arranged as to admit of the pitch or
angle being varied or adjusted. The arrangement may be modified by
dispensing with the long lever a and arranging the paddle b to move in a
frame vertically to and fro in the wake or at the stern of the vessel, the paddle
being actuated by a direct thrust action. Such an arrangement is shown in
side view at Figure 3. c is the frame in which the paddle works; it is
secured at the top and bottom to the vessel; d is a slide capable of moving
up and down on this frame, and actuated by the rod e, which at its upper end
is jointed to the lever f, which pivots at f¹ on a rocking standard g, which in
turn is jointed at g₁; h is the paddle blade pivoting at h' on the slided and
capable of playing between the spring stops i, i, fixed to the slide d. In order
to steer the vessel by means of the propelling apparatus the frame c is arranged
to rotate; it has a pivot at its lower end at c', and at its upper end it turns in
a guide, and the joint g' of the standard g connects it with an arm bolted to
the frame c; then by turning the leverf to one side or the other the paddle
blade h, which may be inflexible or more or less flexible, moves with it, and
so the lever fbeing at the same time worked up and down the vessel is steered.
In order to render the paddle available to drive the vessel astern as well as
ahead, and also to turn her round in as short a space as may be, the appa-
ratus is arranged in such manner that the paddle blade or the greater area
thereof inay be transferred from one side of its pivot to the other. When the
paddle blade or its greater area is abaft the pivot the action of the paddle
propels the vessel ahead, but when in front of it or between it and the vessel
the action is reversed and the vessel driven astern. Thus in reference to
Figure 3 to admit of propelling the vessel astern as well as ahead the joint g'
is not formed on an arm on the frame c but on a separate frame c* capable of
turning about the upper part of the frame c independently of the said frame.

page_text: The two frames c and c* are when at work locked together by a locking lever
or bolt c**, then when it is desired to reverse the direction in which the boat
is propelled it is necessary only to raise the lever or bolt c** so as to unlock
the frame c and c* and to turn the frame c with the paddle blade half round
independently of the frame c*, then by putting down the lever or bolt c** the
frames c and c* are again secured together, and the up-and-down motion of
the lever being continued causes the vessel to move astern.
The arrangements above described are suitable only for boats or vessels of
small size. Figure 4 shows similar apparatus suitable for a large vessel and
to be propelled by steam or other power. a, a, is the stern post of the vessel,
up and down which a slide 6 is capable of moving; this slide receives its
motion from a connecting rod c actuated by a crank on the shaft d which is
driven by steam or other power. This slide 6 has a ring 6 upon it which
embraces the collar f, which is thus caused to work up and down on the
guide g. h is the paddle; it is jointed at h' to the collar f, and in place of
being able to play to and between stops,as in the arrangements before described,
it is controlled by springs, as in vessels of large size the force with which the
paddle would strike the stops would be excessive. ¿, i, are these springs; they
are connected by links i¹ with the paddle blade, thus the paddle blade is not
suddenly checked, but the springs yield until their tension is equivalent to the
pressure of the water on the blade. Or the paddle blade may be reversed by
mechanical means in place of being reversed by the water. The guide g is
formed like a balanced rudder, and it acts more or less in this capacity, or it
may be inade of sufficient width to act as an efficient rudder when the vessel
is under sail and the propeller is not in use. It turns in bearings at the top and
bottom, and it is geared, as is shewo, with the steering wheel k. When the
guide is turned to one side by the steering wheel it, as will be seen, carries the
propeller with it, and consequently the course of the vessel is very effectually
controlled.
By continuing the motion of the steering wheel so as to turn the propeller
half round the position of its blade with respect to its pivot will be reversed,
and the vessel will move astern.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same I would have it understood that I do not confine myself
to the exact details described, but what I claim is, the employment at the
stern of the vessel of a propeller blade mounted on a pivot between spring or
other stops, or otherwise similarly governed and moved bodily together with
its pivot through the water, as hercin-before described.

page_text: I also claim the arranging the propeller blade so that it or its larger areɛ.
can be transferred from the after to the forward side of the pivot to reverse the
motion of the vessel, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Palmer Evelyn, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of November, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
GEORGE PALMER EVELYN. (L.S.)