Improvements in or relating to Hydraulic Motors.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Sept., 1894-Accepted, 6th Oct., 1891
Improvements in or relating to Hydraulic Motors.
A communication from LOUIS HIERNAN RAGUET. of Braine-le-Comte, in the
Kingdom of Belgium.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of 323 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, 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 :-
to be
This invention consists in a special arrangement of a preferably continuous
screw or worm, which enables the driving power of any watercourse
utilized without the aid of any artificial or other fall.
.In the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 is a plan, showing the apparatus in longitudinal horizontal section and
Figure 2 an end elevation of part of Figure 1.
The water works the motor not by its own weight, but by its vis riva. It is of
course presumed that a watercourse with a pretty rapid current is available; and
the motor is located in a cutting made for the purpose in one of the banks of the
stream; or there may be one in each bank.
The motor consists of a pipe or culvert A of large diameter, made of sheet-
metal, beton, masonry, brickwork or other suitable and convenient material. Both
ends of A are fitted with suitable disc-frames B carrying the bearings C in which
the motor-shaft E rotates. Stay-rings D are provided on the shaft to receive
the thrust and prevent longitudinal displacement. A screw or worm F made of
sheet metal or other suitable material is secured to the shaft, and caused to rotate
within the pipe or culvert A by the forward movement of the stream.
For
transmitting this movement (or power), journal-boxes H are located on the bank
of the cutting at one or both ends of the motor in the line of the shaft, and
provided with belt or grooved pulleys G keyed to the shaft, which may also be
conveniently fitted with a thrust-block (as shown on the left in Figure 1) similar
to those commonly used for propeller-shafts in steamships, the said blocks being
so located as to be easily examined and lubricated.
The arrangement for the inflow of the water to the motor comprises an overflow
weir K to pen the water, a grating 1, and further a regulating and cut-off valve or
sluice J.
In the illustration given by way of example in Figure 1 of the drawing the bed
of the stream L is shown in its usual course and the water is penned up by the
oblique overflow-weir K, the metallic motor-pipe being located in a cutting in one
bank only of the watercourse, and protected by a backing or ring of masonry or
brickwork M.
By the weir K if properly constructed, the entire volume of the stream can be
compelled to pass through the motor while the sluice or penstock J allows the
flow of the water to be cut off from the motor, in the usual way, or to be regulated
only so that the speed of rotation of the motor and the power developed may be
adjusted to requirements.
The shaft. E passes, as will be seen, obliquely through the retaining wall of the
race below the motor, by means of any suitable arrangement of gland or stuffing
box.
The chief advantage of this motor is that the water-level of a stream is not
raised while the pipe at the same time may be located in an excavation in the bed
of the stream in such manner that the lip of the overflow weir is not more than

page_text: 20 centimetres above the crown of the pipe and the water-level at the upper end or
inflow is scarcely raised to any material extent.
The erection and working of such a motor are simple in the extreme and further
a great number of such motors may be arranged one after another.
Thus, streams which have so far been useless may be utilized for the generation
of power, to be applied to the purposes of public lighting, and other industries,
at small cost; for instance irrigation works, with suitable pumping machinery may
in this manner be established and worked very economically.
According to the work to which the motor is applied and the nature of the
watercourse, will the arrangement of the pipe and rotary screw be determined in
point of size and materials.
ascertained the nature of the said
foreign correspondent, and in what
that what I claim is :-
Having now particularly described and
invention as communicated to me by my
manner the same is to be performed, I declare
1. A hydraulic motor comprising a horizontally-arranged pipe such as A. fitted
at both ends with disc-frames (B) for the reception of rings or bearings (C) in
which a worm-carrying motor-shaft E is so supported that the water flowing in at
one end rotates the screw (F) secured to the motor-shaft.
2. The arrangement of the motor-pipe (A) described in Claim: 1 in a lateral
cutting on the bank of a watercourse in such manner that by the construction of
a weir (K) with backing ring or culvert M for conducting the entire volume of
the water and compelling it to pass through the motor pipe (A) the water-level of
the stream above is not at all or only slightly altered so that it may be possible
to erect a series of such hydraulic motors one after another at short distances
apart along the bed of a stream or watercourse the inflow of the water to each
separate motor being regulated or cut off at will by means of a suitable valve or
sluice J.
Dated this 1st day of September 1894.
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.