Improvements in Regulating Valves for Steering Gears.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Mar., 1899 -Accepted, 15th Apr., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Regulating Valves for Steering Gears.
I, JOHN DUNLAP WILLIAMSON, Junior, of Richmond and York Streets, Phila-
delphia, United States of America, Mechanical Engineer, 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:-
The object of my invention is to regulate the admission of steam to the operat-
ing valve of a steering engine, to prevent the too sudden starting of the engine
when the steering wheel is operated at the central position of the rudder.
The great difficulty with steering engines of the ordinary construction is,
the too sudden opening of the operating valve by the quarter-master throwing
the steering wheel over too far when starting the engine, thereby giving such a
large admission of steam when the rudder is in the central position, and when
the engine has comparatively little work to perform, that it causes the engine
to jump and give undue strain to the working parts and also causes the waste
of steam.
By my invention the admission of steam to the operating valve is controlled auto-
matically by a valve operated by the drum, the valve opening as the drum is
turned. This valve is closed at the centre position, but sufficient steam is
allowed to pass the valve to start the engine at any desired speed.
I will describe my invention with reference to the accompanying drawings of
which,
Figure 1 is a side view, partly in section, of a steering engine illustrating my
invention;
Figure 2 is an end view;
Figure 3 is a section on the line 3-3 Figure 1; and
Figure 4 is a sectional view of the automatic regulating valve.
A is the frame of the steering engine, and mounted in bearings on this frame is
a shaft B carrying a rope drum 13. This rope drum is connected to a worm
wheel bon the shaft B, which worm wheel gears with a worm c on a shaft C
having cranks connected to the rods of pistons working in cylinders D provided
with ordinary slide valve chests d.
E is a valve for controlling the supply of steam to the cylinders D; this valve
is provided as shown in Figure 1, with a ported casing and a cylindrical or
piston valve e, the valve rod of which is connected to an arm e¹ on a rock shaft E¹
having a forked arm engaging a sleeve f on a shaft F geared by bevel
wheels f, f, to a shaft F₁ leading from the steering wheel.
On the shaft F is a screw thread, engaging a corresponding thread on the
sleeve f, so that the sleeve will be moved in one direction by turning the shaft F,
but the sleeve has a pinion f³ thereon gearing with a wheel 61 on the drum B¹
so that as the drum revolves the sleeve is moved on the shaft in a direction oppo-
site to that above described, and the valve is opened to admit steam to turn the
drum but the drum in turning tends to close the valve.

page_text: The above described mechanism is common in sicering engines heretofore made
by me; my present invention is as follows:―
G is my improved automatic regulating valve the casing of which is connected
to the casing of the operating valve E shewn, in the present instance, as being
made integral with it.
I is the steam inlet pipe entering at the back of the casing, 9 is a cyilnder or
piston valve having ports arranged to communicate through a passage g' with
the operating valve E.
The rod 3 of the automatic valve has il screw threaded por-
tion engaging the screw threaded hub of a gear wheel mounted
in a bearing a on the frame of the engine. The rod 2 has a squared
portion at its outer end engaging a forked plate a¹ secured to the bearing
extending over the bar. so as to prevent it from turning. On the drum shaft B
is a toothed wheel which gears with an intermediate wheel 6 on a stud pro-
jecting from the frame of the machine, this intermediate wheel gears with the
wheel g so that as the drum shaft B is turned the wheel is also turned,
thereby imparting a longitudinal movement to the valve g in its casing, allow-
ing more or less steam to flow to the operating valve.
When the rudder is in the centre position the regulating valve g is closed
and as the drum B₁ is moved to shift the rudder the valve is gradually opened
by the turning of the drum, and when the drum is turned to bring the rudder
to the central position the valve is gradually closed.
Sufficient steam to start the engine is admitted through a by-pass which I
prefer to construct as follows, with reference to Fig. 4: H is a hand valve of
the usual construction, h is a pipe leading from the back of the valve casing G
to the valve H and is a pipe leading from the valve H to the passage g¹ com-
municating with the operating valve e so that there is always sufficient steam to
start the engine. are pipes leading from the back of the valve casing G or
from the steam supply pipe I to the valve chests & Figs. 2 and 3, to, balance the
valves in the said chests.
.
By the introduction of a regulating valve g in the steam. passage, leading to
the operating valve E and operated automatically by the drum or drum shaft of
the engine all undue strains on the working parts are avoided and steam is, saved
to a considerable extent, as only sufficient steam to just run the engine at centre
position of rudder is supplied through the by-pass, all additional steam necessary
to do. the work of pulling the rudder hard over from centre position passing
through the regulating valve g.
As the regulating valve is operated by the engine it does not add any addi-
tional friction or labour when the engine is operated by the hand steering wheel.
In some instances the valve g may be so set in the casing G that there will
be sufficient leaking to start the engine, thus dispensing with the by-pass. It
will be understood that my invention can be applied to any of the ordinary forms
of fluid operated steering engines without departing from the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. The combination in a steering engine, of the drum, engines for operating
the same, a controlling valve operated from the steering wheel, and a regulating
valve in the fluid passage leading to the controlling valve and connections
between the drum and the valve whereby it is operated automatically, substan-
tially as herein before described.
2. The combination in a steering engine, of a drum, engines for operating
the same, a controlling valve operated from the steering wheel, a regulating
valve in the fluid supply passage leading to the controlling valve and geared to
and onerated by the drum, a by-pass around the said valve for the passage of a

page_text: limited amount of steam to start the engines when the controlling valve is
opened, substantially as herein before described.
3. The combination in a steering engine, of a drum, an engine controlling
the drum, a controlling valve connected to the steering wheel, an automatic
regulating valve casing, a valve therein, and a screw threaded valve rod, a gear
wheel having a screw threaded hub adapted to the thread on the rod, and
geared to the drum shaft, substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore
described.
4. The combination in a steering engine, of a drum, its shaft, a driven shaft
geared to the drum shaft, an engine for driving the said driven shaft, a con-
trolling valve connected to the steering wheel for controlling the flow of fluid
to the engine, an automatic regulating valve geared to the drum shaft, a steam
supply pipe entering the back of the regulating valve casing, a by-pass pipe ex-
tending from the back of the said casing to the passage leading to the con-
trolling valve, and a hand valve in the said by-pass, substantially as herein-
before described.
Dated this 11th day of March 1899.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.