Improvements in Appliances for Steering or Manoeuvring Ships or the like.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Aug., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 26th May, 1900-Accepted, 30th June, 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Appliances for Steering or Manoeuvring Ships or
the like.
I, WILLIAM MILLER WALTERS, of 7 and 9, Portland Street, Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to provide means whereby ships or other vessels
may be easily steered or manœuvred particularly when they are only moving
at such slow speed that the usual rudder is ineffective or when they are in con-
fined situations such as narrow rivers or docks. It is greatly desirable, in
storms, to be able to keep a ship's head to the wind without driving the ship at
speed which speed is necessary in order to enable the usual rudder to act efficiently.
Such driving at speed greatly endangers the ship owing to the liability of taking
large quantities of water on board.
My invention consists in providing in the deadwood of the ship a transverse
opening. The circumference of the opening consists of three rings one ring on
each side being attached to the skin of the ship the middle ring being loose and
provided with internal screw blades and a central shaft which shaft is carried in
bearings attached to the framing or skin of the ship. The middle ring is fitted
with teeth into which gears a second wheel. The second wheel is capable of being
revolved by power applied to its shaft say by a steam engine thereby causing the
middle ring with its screw blades to revolve and direct a current of water through
the transverse opening so as to cause the ships stern to move to one side or other
according to the direction in which the screw blades are revolved. Instead of
one second wheel a train of wheels or other devices may be employed to cause
revolution of the middle ring as desired. In order to prevent access of water
to the interior of the ship past the middle ring a casing is provided surround-
ing such ring and the second wheel or train of wheels or other device above
mentioned, and stuffing boxes are provided in the casing for the shaft of such
second wheel or for the shaft which operates the gearing for revolving the said
middle ring.
Dated this Twenty-fifth day of August 1899.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Appliances for Steering or Manoeuvring Ships or
the like.
I, WILLIAM MILLER WALTERS, of 7 and 9, Portland Street, Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
[Price 8d.]

page_text: tion 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:-
The object of this invention is to provide means whereby ships or other vessels
may be easily steered or. manoeuvred particularly when they are only moving at
such slow speed that the usual rudder is ineffective, or when they are in confined
situations such as narrow rivers or docks. It is greatly desirable, in storms,
to be able to keep a ships head to the wind without driving the ship at speed
which speed is necessary in order to enable the usual rudder to act efficiently.
Such driving at speed greatly endangers the ship owing to the liability of taking
large quantities of water on board.
In the drawings Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section on the line AA on Fig. 2.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line B B on Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 is a vertical
section on the line C C on Fig. 1 all of so much of the stern of a
ship as is
necessary to show the application of my invention which consists in providing in
the deadwood of the ship a transverse opening or passage a.
The circumference
of the opening consists of three rings b, c, d, the rings b, d, at the sides being
attached to the skin e of the ship. f is the keel and g is the stern post. The
middle ring c is loose from the side rings and is provided with internal screw
blades and a central shaft i, which shaft is carried in bearings attached to
frames or plates which may be supported by the rings b, d, as shown or such
plates may be brought further out and attached directly to the skin e the
shaft being correspondingly lengthened. The middle ringe is fitted with
teeth into which gears a second wheel m. The second wheel is capable of being
revolved by power applied to its shaft n say by steam engines o or other con-
venient means thereby causing the middle ring with its screw blades h to
revolve and direct a current of water through the transverse opening a ɛo as to
cause the ships stern to move to one side or other according to the direction in
which the screw blades are revolved. In order to prevent access of water to
the interior of the ship past the middle ring c a casing p is provided surrounding
such ring and the second wheel m and attached to or formed with the rings b
and d; and stuffing boxes 7 or the like are provided in the casing for the shaft ».
It will be obvious that instead of one second wheel a train of wheels may be
employed within the casing to cause revolution of the midde ring c as desired,
but in any case stuffing boxes on the shaft which passes through the casing
must be employed to prevent any water, which may pass the ring c, from obtain-
ing access to the interior of the ship. is the main screw shaft. Instead of or
in addition to being fixed in the deadwood at the stern the appliances above
described may be fixed in the deadwood at the bow in a similar manner.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
In steering or manoeuvring appliances for ships the combination with an open-
ing through a ship of fixed rings attached to the ship at each side, a movable
toothed ring disposed between the fixed rings and provided with internal screw
blades and supported by a shaft carried in bearings, a second toothed wheel
gearing into the movable ring, a casing surrounding the second wheel and the
movable ring, and a shaft passing through stuffing boxes or the like on the cas-
ing, for rotating the second wheel and thereby the movable ring and screw
blades, all substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
.-
1000
Dated this I wenty-mit I may
W. B. JOHNSON,
4, Clayton Square, Liverpool, Agent.