IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR PROPELLING AND STEERING VESSELS FOR INLAND NAVIGA- TION
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Ashbury, of Sussex Place, Hyde Park, in
the County of Middlesex, Esquire, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS FOR PROPELLING AND STEERING VESSELS FOR INLAND NAVIGA-
TION." A communication from abroad by Charles Hemje, of the
City of Hoboken, County of Hudson, and State of New Jersey,
United States of America.
Sealed the 22nd May 1872, and dated the 3rd April 1872.
*
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Ashbury at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd April 1872.
I, JAMES. ASHBURY, of Sussex Place, Hyde Park, in the County of
Middlesex, Esquire, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR PROPELLING AND STEERING VESSELS FOR
INLAND NAVIGATION," a communication to me from abroad by Charles
Hemje, of the City of Hoboken, County of Hudson, and State of New
Jersey, United States, America, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of
combined apparatus for propelling and steering vessels for inland navi-

page_text: gation, whereby the injury to the banks of the canal arising from the
swell is obviated, whilst perfect command or steerage of the vessel with
increased speed is obtained.
When stationary
According to this Invention it is proposed to employ an ordinary screw
propeller and to enclose or surround the same in or by a cylindrical,
oval, or other shaped casing made open at both ends so as to allow of the
free entrance of the water into the front end thereof and the free exit at
the rear end. This casing may be either stationary or adjustable to any
desired horizontal angle with the. keel of the vessel.
its effect will be solely to protect the banks from the action of the wash
or swell created by the lateral action of the propeller blades, and to
increase the speed by presenting a more solid body of water to the action
of the propeller; but when made adjustable a perfect command or
steerage of the vessel is obtained by directing the current of water to
any desired angle with the keel in addition to the advantages above
referred to. This angular adjustment of the casing may be accomplished
by any well known steering apparatus. The casing is made by pre-
ference to rest upon a pivot or footstep bearing and is provided with an
upright shaft for turning or adjusting it; and in order to ensure that the
axial line of the casing shall be always parallel to the surface of the
water, whether the vessel draws more or less water at the stern, it is
proposed to adjust the vertical angle of the casing on its pivot by means
of an eye bolt embracing the upright shaft and passing through a
portion of the framing of the vessel, such eye bolt being adjusted by
means of adjusting nuts working on screw threads formed in the said
eye bolt.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Ashbury in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 2nd October 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES 3
ASHBURY, of Sussex Place, Hyde Park, in the County of Middlesex,
Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Third day of April, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the 35th 3

page_text: I
year of Her reign, did for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give. and.
grant unto me, the said James Ashbury, Her special license that
I, the said James Ashbury, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said James Ashbury, my executors, adminis-
trators, or 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 APPARATUS
FOR PROPELLING AND STEERING VESSELS FOR INLAND NAVIGATION," a com-
munication from abroad by Charles Hemje, of the City of Hoboken,
County of Hudson, and State of New Jersey, United States of America,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said James Ashbury,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, 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 James Ashbury, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings,
and to the letters and figures marked thercon, that is to say :-.
The said Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement
of combined apparatus for propelling and steering vessels for inland
navigation, whereby the injury to the banks of the canal arising from
the swell is obviated, whilst perfect command or steerage of the vessel
with increased speed is obtained.
According to, this Invention it is proposed to employ an ordinary
screw propeller and to enclose or surround the same in or by a cylindrical,
oval, or other shaped casing made open at both ends so as to allow of
the free entrance of the water into the front end thereof and the free
exit at the rear end. This casing may be either stationary or adjustable
to any desired horizontal angle with the keel of the vessel. When
stationary its effect will be solely to protect the banks from the action
of the wash or swell created by the lateral action of, the propeller blades,
and to increase the speed by presenting a more solid body of water to

page_text: the action of the propeller; but when made adjustable a perfect com-
mand or steerage of the vessel is obtained by directing the current of
water to any desired angle with the keel in addition to the advantages
above referred to. This angular adjustment of the casing may be
accomplished by any well known steering apparatus. The casing is
made by preference to rest upon a pivot or footstep bearing and is pro-
vided with an upright shaft for turning or adjusting it; and in order to
ensure that the axial line of the casing shall be always parallel to the
surface of the water, whether the vessel draws more or less water at the
stern, it is proposed to adjust the vertical angle of the casing on its pivot
by means of an eye bolt embracing the upright shaft and passing through
a portion of the framing of the vessel, such eye bolt being adjusted
by means of adjusting nuts working on screw threads formed in the said
eye bolt,
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the
Figures.
Figure I. of the Drawings represents a side elevation of the improved
propeller and steering apparatus; Figure II. is a plan of the same;
and Figure III. is a back or stern elevation.
A is a screw propeller, surrounded by an enclosure or cylinder B,
somewhat larger than the propeller wheel and open at both ends, made
out of sheet metal or other suitable material, which enclosure or
cylinder can either be made stationary or moveable according to the
results to be obtained. If made stationary the result will be that the
swell created by an unprotected propeller wheel (when in motion) will
be obviated, the water entering the enclosure or cylinder and passing
the propeller wheel will be forced back in the direction of the enclosure
or cylinder, and will not wash the banks of the canal. If made to be
moveable it will obviate the swell as above stated, and at the same time
can be used as a means of steering. The forward edge of the enclosure
or cylinder must be cut according to the shape of the boat aft, as shewn
in Figure 2, so as to give the easiest possible access of the water to the
propeller wheel, the after edge of it can be shortened more or less
towards the bottom, according to the steering power required. The
steering is accomplished by the column of water passing the propèller

page_text: wheel which is forced back through the enclosure or cylinder when the
boat is in motion, which column of water can be directed at such angles
with the centre line of the boat so as to give the most perfect steering
power, much more powerful than any ordinary rudder, and more easily
handled than the latter, To make the enclosure or cylinder moveable it can
be provided at the under side with a step (a¹), which stands on and moves.
in a shoe (6) extending aft from the keel or bottom of the boat; vertically
above this step can be fastened to the top side of the enclosure or
cylinder a shaft (C), extending upwards through the stern or fantail of
the boat. The enclosure or cylinder has to be placed so that the shaft C
of the same (around which the former is moveable) stands vertically over
the centre of the propeller wheel (measured fore and aft) or at least near
that position, as in case of a great variation therefrom the enclosure or
cylinder could not be moved enough but would come in contact with
the blades of the propeller wheel,
The steering gear can be attached in the same manner as on any
ordinary rudder. By means of an eye bolt (D) (through the cyc of
which the above-named shaft C passes at nearly right angles), which eye
holt is passed through a post inside the boat and has a thread cut on its
inner end, the enclosure or cylinder can easily be adjusted or tilted by
merely screwing up or unscrewing the respective nuts c, c, so as to be
level with the surface of the water in case the boat should draw more
water aft than forward, Through the use of the enclosure or cylinder
the speed is increased. By moans of the enclosure or cylinder the slip
of the propeller wheel is decreased, since it works in a solid body of
water with no chance for the latter to escape to the surface, whereas
with an unprotected propeller wheel considerable power is lost when the
blades of the same pass near the surface of the water.
All dangerous or injurious results to the banks of a canal which would
arise from an unprotected propeller wheel are hereby completely over-
come, as the water entering the front opening of the enclosure or cylinder
and passing the propeller wheel leaves the same in a solid mass or core,
taking only one direction, which is that of the centre line of the
cnclosure or cylinder.
In places where there are bends or turns in the canal no injury can be
done to the banks, since for the purpose of effecting these turns the
cnclosure or cylinder has to be moved, thereby always leaving the

page_text: current in the middle of the canal. It is obvious that the enclosure B
can also be made oval or prismatic.
..
.
The principal points and advantages of my Invention are,―
I. Obviation of the swell.
II. Steering by the current or column of water forced out of the
enclosure or cylinder by the propeller wheel.
III. Adjustment of the enclosure or cylinder level with the surface of
the water under any draft of the boat if necessary,
IV. Decrease of the slip of the propeller wheel, and consequently an
increase in speed through the use of the enclosure or cylinder.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider
to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the combina-
tion with a screw propeller of a surrounding casing or enclosure open at
both ends and made adjustable or not, substantially as and for the purpose
horein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Ashbury, have to this my
Specification set my hand and seal, the Twentieth day of Sep-
tember One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
JAMES ASHBURY. (L.S.)