IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING THE SPEED OF MARINE ENGINES
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Julius Boult of the firm of W. P. Thompson
& Boult, Agents for Foreign Patent Solicitors of 323 High Holborn, in the
County of Middlesex and 6 Lord Street Liverpool in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND IN
APPARATUS FOR REGULATING THE SPEED OF MARINE ENGINES." Commu-
nicated to him from abroad by Robert George Brown of Paris in the Republic
of France, Electrical Engineer
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Julius Boult at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 11th July 1882.
ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of the firm of W. P. Thompson & Boult, Agents for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, of 323 High: Holborn in the County of Middlesex and
6 Lord Street Liverpool in the County of Lancaster Engineer
"IMPROVEMENTS
"
IN THE MODE OF AND IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING THE SPEED OF MARINE
ENGINES [A communication to him from abroad by Robert George Brown of
Paris in the Republic of France, Electrical Engineer]
This invention has for object the providing of means for efficiently regulating
the speed of marine engines by means of electricity, arranged in such a manner
that the speed of the said engines may be automatically reduced when the propeller
is out of the water.
The basis of the invention is the breaking of an electric circuit which in its
normal state is closed by the water, the propeller at that time being immersed
while when the propeller is raised out of the water, the terminal or terminals of
the said circuit are raised with it and break the current by their being in the air.
In order to make the invention more clearly understood in the annexed specimen
drawings are shewn, arrangements for putting the same into practice.
Fig: 1 is a theoretical diagram illustrating the principle of the working of the
apparatus.
Fig: 2 shows the invention as applied to a screw propeller ship.
Fig: 3 is a diagrammatic view showing a modification of the electric device.

page_text: In the diagram fig: 1 a is an electric terminal placed in any suitable position
near the propeller of the ship and insulated from the body of the ship, in any
suitable manner; b is another electric terminal of the circuit which is connected
with the side of the iron ship or similar to the first without the insulating material
this second terminal is placed as near the first as possible but far enough away to
be always in the water. A conducting wire c leads from a to b and in the so
formed electric circuit are placed.
1st A battery d or other electric generator or apparatus such as a magneto or
dynamo-machine, accumulators, etc. etc.
2nd An electro-magnet e provided with an armature of retracted by a coiled
spring g or any other suitable counteracting arrangement.
•
In the position shown by the diagram, both the contacts a and b are immersed
in the water and the electric circuit closed, causing the armature f to be attracted
by the electro-magnet e. Under these conditions the working of the engine is
normal, but as soon as the propeller rises out of the water sufficiently to cause the
engine to race, the contact a (the position of which is previously determined upon
with this object in view) is raised out of the sea.
And when this is the case, the circuit from a to 6 is broken and the spring 9.
retracts the armature f.
It is this movement of the armature that is utilized in any convenient manner
for regulating the speed of the engines.
It is obvious that the devices employed for this purpose may be greatly varied
without in any way departing from the nature of the invention; however one of
the simplest methods is to have the steam throttle valve or cock regulating the
flow of steam from the boilers to the cylinders, under the control of the armature.
As the armature would not have sufficient energy to directly work the said cock
or valve, it is better to employ its movement in actuating the slide valve of a small
auxiliary steam cylinder, the piston of which acts upon the above named cock.
Fig: 2 shows the diagram of such an arrangement of parts. a and b are the
contacts as above stated; the contact a is insulated by a socket a', whilst the other
contact b. is electrically connected with the body of the ship (when this body is
_ made of iron or steel) or with any metallic part thereof in the case of a wooden
built ship.
c are the conductors; da dynamo or magneto-electric-machine driven by means
of a belt h and a pulley i, keyed on the shaft k of the propeller or in any other
เ
suitable way.
-
m, m, are the cylinders of the engine; n the steam chest of the same; o the
piston rods which transmit motion to the crank shaft r.
The steam is admitted to the chest n of the engine by means of the pipe r,
' leading from the boilers; this pipe is provided at t with the cock or check valve
carrying the lever u.
This lever u. is connected to the piston v. of a small steam cylinder w, the slide
valve of which is acted upon by the spiral spring g, as soon as the electric circuit
is broken as above stated; the slide valve is returned to its original position and
the cock opened as soon as the circuit is again closed and this is effected by the
electro-magnet e. attracting the armature f. which is connected with the slide valve
rod, by means of the levers y.
Steam is admitted to the steam chest a by means of a branch pipe '.
It will be readily understood from the above description that the cock or valve t.
is partially closed when the propeller of the ship rises out of the water and that
the said cock is re-opened as soon as the propeller is re-immersed in the sea, so
that the engine is practically always maintained at a uniform speed.
The regulating device above described, is represented in the drawings as placed
upon a bracket 2 but it is to be clearly understood that the form and arrange-
ment of this device may be varied without in any way departing from the nature {
of the invention.
:::
At the stern of the ship there may be also placed a number of electrical terminals

page_text: such as a. disposed in such a manner as to close the electric circuit in each of a
corresponding number of electro-magnets which may be arranged to regulate by
means of suitable transmitting mechanism, the supply of steam in a manner pro-
portional to the non-immersion, immersion, or total immersion of the propeller, and
thus of course regulating the speed of the engine.
At the same time that the action of the armature shuts off the supply of steam
from the cylinders it could be arranged to open an exhaust pipe for the steam, so
as to avoid any danger of explosion in the boiler.
This invention may be applied to vessels or ships of any size and description
and it should be clearly understood that the characteristic feature of it is the
electro-magnetic part of the above described arrangement to which any convenient
mechanical transmitting device may be connected without in any way departing
from the principle of the invention.
Again, instead of a counteracting spring g. for retracting the armature, a second
electro-magnet may be employed placed on the opposite side of this armature,
through which the circuit would be closed, (or not) according to the action of an
electric relay placed in the circuit of the apparatus through which the circuit
would pass or not pass according as to whether the contacts a and b were electrically
connected or not by the water or sea.
This arrangement is shown in the diagram fig: 3 in which like letters of reference
designate parts similar to those in figs. 1 and 2; in the circuit c are added the
electro-magnet e¹ and the relay j. only, this latter causing the current to pass
through the piece j³, when the circuit is not closed through itself.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Alfred Julius Boult in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
-11th January 1883.
ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of the firm of W. P. Thompson, and Boult, Agents for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, of 323 High Holborn in the county of Middlesex and
6 Lord Street Liverpool in the county of Lancaster Engineer "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MODE OF AND IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING THE SPEED OF MARINE
"
ENGINES a communication to me from abroad by Robert George Brown of Paris
in the republic of France Electrical Engineer
This invention has for object the providing of means for efficiently regulating
the speed of marine engines by means of electricity, arranged in such a manner
that the speed of the said engines may be automatically reduced when the pro-
peller is out of the water.
The basis of the present invention is the breaking of an electric circuit which
in its normal state is closed by the water, the propeller at that time being
immersed, while when the propeller is raised out of the water, the terminal or
terminals of the said circuit are raised with it and break the current by their
being in the air.
In order to make the invention more clearly understood in the annexed specimen
drawings, arrangements are shown for putting the same into practice. In these
Fig 1 is a theoretical diagram illustrating the principle of the working of the
apparatus. Fig 2 shows the invention as applied to a screw propeller ship. Fig 3
is a diagrammatic view showing a modification of the electric device. The same
letters of reference indicate similar parts in all the above figures.
In the diagram Fig 1 a is an electric terminal placed in any suitable position
near the propeller of the ship and insulated from the body of the ship, in any
suitable manner, b is another electric terminal of the circuit which is connected
with the side of the iron ship or similar to the first without the insulating material
this second terminal is placed as near the first as possible but far enough away
to be always in the water. A conducting wire c leads from a to b and in the
so formed electric circuit are placed 1st A battery d or other electric generator or
apparatus such as a magneto or dynamo-machine, accumulators, etc. etc. 2nd An
electro-magnet e provided with an armature f retracted by a coiled spring g or any
other suitable counteracting arrangement.
In the position shown by the diagram, both the contacts a and b are immersed
in the water and the electric circuit closed, causing the armature f to be attracted
by the electro-magnet e. Under these conditions the working of the engine is
normal, but as soon as the propeller rises out of the water sufficiently to cause the
engine to race, the contact a (the position of which is previously determined upon
with this object in view) is raised out of the sea.
And when this is the case, the
circuit from a to b is broken and the spring g retracts the armature f. It is this
movement of the armature that is utilized in any convenient manner for regulating
the speed of the engines.
It is obvious that the devices employed for this purpose, may be greatly varied
without in any way departing from the invention; however one of the simplest
methods is to have the steam throttle valve or cock regulating the flow of steam
from the boilers to the cylinders, under the control of the armature. As the
armature would not have sufficient energy to directly work the said cock or valve,
it is preferred to employ its movement in actuating the slide valve of a small
auxiliary steam cylinder, the piston of which acts upon the above named cock,

page_text: Fig 2 shows the diagram of such an arrangement of parts. a and b are the
contacts as above stated; the contact a is insulated by a socket a¹, whilst the other
contact 6 is electrically connected with the body of the ship (when this body is
made of iron or steel) or with any metallic part thereof in the case of a wooden
built abip. c are the conductors; d a dynamo or magneto-electric-machine driven
by means of a belt h and a pulley i, keyed on the shaft k of the propeller or in
any other suitable way. m, m, are the cylinders of the engine; n the steam chest
of the same; o the piston rods which transmit motion to the crank shaft p. The
steam is admitted to the chest n of the engine, by means of the piper, leading
from the boiler S; this pipe is provided at t with the cock or check valve carrying
the lever u. This lever is connected to the piston of a small steam cylinder w,
the slide valve of which is acted upon by the spiral spring g, as soon as the
electric circuit is broken as above stated; the slide valve is returned to its original
position and the cock opened as soon as the circuit is again closed and this is
effected by the electro-magnet e attracting the armature f which is connected with
the slide valve rod by means of the levers y. Steam is admitted to the steam
chest x by means of a branch pipe '.
It will be readily understood from the above description that the cock or valve t
is partially closed when the propeller of the ship rises out of the water and that
the said cock is reopened as soon as the propeller is reimmersed in the sea, so that
the engine is practically always maintained at a uniform speed.
2
The regulating device above described, is represented in the drawings as placed
upon a bracket but it is to be clearly understood that the form and arrangement
of this device can be varied without in any way departing from the nature of the
invention.
At the stern of the ship may also be placed a number of electrical terminals
such as a disposed in such a manner as to close the electric circuit in each of a
corresponding number of electro-magnets which may be arranged to regulate by
means of suitable transmitting mechanism, the supply of steam in a manner
proportional to the nonimmersion, immersion, or total immersion of the propeller,
and thus of course regulating the speed of the engine.
At the same time that the action of the armature shuts off the supply of steam
from the cylinders, it could be arranged to open an exhaust pipe for the steam,
so as to avoid any danger of explosion in the boiler.
This invention may be applied to vessels or ships of any size and description,
and it is to be clearly understood that the characteristic feature of it is the electro-
magnetic part of the above described arrangement to which any convenient
mechanical transmitting device may be connected without in any way departing
from the principle of the invention.
Again, instead of a counteracting spring g for retracting the armature, a second
electro-magnet could be employed, placed on the opposite side of this armature,
through which the circuit would be closed, (or not) according to the action of an
electric relay placed in the circuit of the apparatus through which the circuit
would-pass or not pass according as to whether the contacts a and b were electrically
connected or not by the water or sea.
This arrangement is shown in the diagram Fig 3 in which like letters of reference
designate parts similar to those in Figs 1 and 2 in the circuit c are added the
electro magnet e¹ and the relay jonly, this latter causing the current to pass through
the piece when the circuit is not closed through itself.
Having thus described the invention as communicated to me, I wish it to be
understood that what I claim is:-
.
1st. The employment for regulating the speed of a marine engine, of the
movement imparted to the armature of an electro-magnet or any other equivalent
electro-magnetic device, by means of the breaking and closing of an electric
circuit normally closed, when its electrical terminals are immersed in the sea and
open when but one is immersed, substantially as above described.
2nd. In an electric regulator for marine engines, the combination with an electro-

page_text: magnetic device, of any suitable mechanical contrivance, transmitting to the steam
regulating cock or valve, the movement imparted to the armature of the said electro;
magnetic device, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
3rd. In an electric regulator for marine engines, the combination of a series
of contacts normally immersed in the sea, with a series of 'electro-magnets and
armatures and any suitable electric generator arranged so as to more or less close
the steam cock or valve in proportion as the immersion of the propeller is more
or less complete, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
4th. In an electric regulator for marine engines the combination of two contacts
a and b, electrically connected by the water and in the circuit c in which is placed
an electric generator d and an electro-magnet e with an armature f retracted by
a spring g or its equivalent, the whole working substantially as described in
reference to Fig 1 of the drawings and for the purposes set forth.
5th. In an electric regulator for marine engines, the combination of two contacts
a and b with an electric generator d placed in a circuit c, an armature f, two electro-
magnets e, e¹, a relay j and a contact 7, substantially as described in reference to
Fig 3 and for the purposes set forth.
6th. In an electric regulator for marine engines, the combination with the engine
m, n, o, p, the boiler S, the steam pipe r, and the cock or valve t, of two contacts
a and b (the former of which is insulated from the body of the ship while the
other is electrically connected with any metallic part thereof) an electric circuit c,
a dynamo machine d, an electro-magnet e, and an armature f, controlling through
levers the slide valve x of an auxiliary piston w the rod v of which is connected
to the lever u of the cock or valve t and a counteracting spring g or its equivalent,
the whole arranged and acting substantially as described in reference to Fig 2 and
for the purposes described.
In witness whereof I the said Alfred Julius Boult have hereunto set my
hand and seal this tenth day of January in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and eighty three.
חמס ז מהדAT D
Gol