IMPROVEMENTS IN WINDLASSES FOR PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Avery, of 32, Essex Street, Strand, London,
Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WINDLASSES FOR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Avery at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 6th August
1855.
I, JOHN AVERY, of 32, Essex Street, Strand, London, Patent Agent, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
WINDLASSES FOR SHIPS AND OTHER PURPOSES," a communication, to be as follows;
and consists in a peculiar arrangement of gearing, whereby the speed of the
windlass shaft may be increased or diminished by reversing the direction of
the movement of the hand levers, and increased power obtained when speed
is not essential, and speed obtained when power is not required; also in a
peculiar device applied to the wheels or drums over which the chains pass, the
said device being so arranged that the requisite degree of friction may be
brought to bear upou said pulleys, in order to prevent them from turning
casually, and still allow them to turn and let out the chains when the vessel is
riding heavily at anchor.
The framing of the windlass may be constructed in any proper manner to
support the working parts. A shaft is placed transversely in the framing,
working in suitable bearings, and having permanently secured upon it two

page_text: bevelled tooth wheels, one considerably larger than the other. There are two
other wheels placed loosely on this shaft, the peripheries of which are grooved
in V form, and are provided with teeth or projections. These grooved wheels
carry the chains, and are connected to or disconnected from the bevelled
wheels by slides, fitted in collars or hubs attached to the said bevelled wheels,
and fit in spaces or apertures in the sides of said grooved wheels, or between
the arms of the wheels.
The vertical shaft working in suitable bearings is provided with a head, in
which holes are made to receive the hand levers. There are two bevelled
toothed wheels placed loosely upon this shaft, on the hubs of which are ratchet
teeth cut gearing in ratchets attached to the shaft; these ratchets have oblique
slots cut in them, in which pins attached to the shaft fit. The teeth of these
ratchets are cut obliquely in reverse directions, so that when the shaft is turned
in one direction, one of the wheels will be turned with the shaft, and the other
not, its ratchet working upward on its pins; and when the shaft is turned in
the opposite direction, the latter wheel will be turned, and the former one,
or the one that was previously turned, will not turn with the shaft.
The wheels on the vertical shaft gear into the larger and smaller bevelled
toothed wheels, which are on the shaft placed transversely in the framing. To
the outer sides of the grooved wheels there are cast with or permanently
attached pulleys, having smooth peripheries. Around each pulley is placed a
metal strap, so that when the anchor is let down, these straps may be adjusted
by any suitable means sufficiently tight around the pulleys, so as to prevent
them from turning casually, but still allowing the pulleys to give or turn when
the vessel draws upon the chains or cables, thereby allowing more cable to be
given a vessel while riding heavily at anchor, which will prevent the too
sudden strain upon the windlass and also upon the anchors.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Avery in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 1st
February 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
AVERY, of 32, Essex Street, Strand, London, Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said

page_text: John Avery, Her special licence that I, the said John Avery, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Avery, my
executors, administrators, and 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 WINDLASSES FOR SHIPS AND OTHER
PURPOSES," a communication, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said John Avery, 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Avery, 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 :--
The first part of the Invention consists in a peculiar arrangement of gearing,
which will be fully shown and described hereafter, whereby the speed of the
windlass shaft may be increased or diminished by reversing the direction of
the movement of the hand levers, and increased power obtained when speed
is not essential, and speed obtained when power is not required.
The second part of the Invention consists in a peculiar device applied to the
wheels or drums over which the chains pass, said device being so arranged
that the requisite degree of friction may be brought to bear upon said pulleys,
in order to prevent them from turning casually, and still allow them to turn and
let out the chains when the vessel is riding heavily at anchor.
In the annexed Drawing, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of my
improvement through the line x, x, Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical
section through the line y, y, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a section of one of the chain
wheels or drums, through the line z, z, Fig. 2. Similar letters of reference
indicate corresponding parts in the several Figures.
A represents the framing of the windlass, constructed in any proper manner
to support the working parts; B is a shaft, which is placed transversely in the
framing A, and works in suitable bearings a, a, therein, as shown in Fig. 2.
The shaft B has two beveled toothed wheels C, D, secured permanently upon
it, one of which wheels C is considerably larger than the other D. There are
also placed loosely upon the same shaft B two wheels E, E, the peripheries of
which are grooved in V form, and are provided with teeth or projections (6),
see Fig. 2. Each of the wheels C, D, is provided with a slide (c) fitted in

page_text: collars or hubs & attached to the wheels, one to each. The slides c work
longitudinally with the shaft B, and in and out from the collars. or hubs d.
By operating the slide c, the wheels E, E, may be connected to or disconnected
from the wheels C, D; the slides, when the wheels E, E, are connected to the
wheels C, D, fit in spaces or apertures in the sides of said wheels, or between
the arms of the wheels. I is a vertical shaft, which works in suitable bearings
a', a', in the framing A. This shaft has a head J on its upper end, in which
holes are made to receive hand levers. A loose head K. is also placed as
usual upon the shaft I. The shaft I has two beveled toothed wheels L, M,
upon it. These wheels are placed loosely upon the shaft I. N, O, are ratchets
also placed upon the shaft I. These ratchets have oblique slots cut in them,
in which pins c', attached to the shaft I, fit. The ratchets N, O, gear into
ratchet teeth P, cut on the hubs of the wheels L, M. The teeth of the
ratchets N, O, are cut obliquely in reverse directions, so that when the shaft
I is turned in one direction, one of the wheels, either L or M, will be turned
with the shaft, and the other not, its ratchet working upward on its pin c.
When the shaft I is turned in the opposite direction the latter wheel will
be turned with the shaft, and the former one, or the one that was previously
turned, will not turn with the shaft. The wheel L gears into the wheel C
on the shaft B, and the wheel M gears into the wheel D on the shaft B.
To the outer sides of the wheels E, E, there are pulleys F, F, attached
permanently to said wheels, and having smooth peripheries. The pulleys.F
may be cast with the wheels E, E. Around each pulley F there is placed a
metal strap G, the lower ends of which are attached to pins e, e, which are fitted
horizontally in the face of the inner end of a small shaft II in the side of the
framing. The pins e, e, are placed at opposite sides of the centres of the ends
of the shafts, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1, but more particularly in
Fig. 3. The outer parts of the shaft I have holes (f) made in them to
receive hand levers g, one of which is shown in Fig. 2.
OPERATION.
The chains Q pass over the wheels E, E, and if the chains are to be drawn
up slowly the shaft I is turned, so that the wheel L will turn with the shaft I,
and turn the larger wheel C on the shaft B. If the chains are to be hoisted or

page_text: When the anchor is let down, the straps G, G, may be adjusted sufficiently
tight around the pulleys F so as to prevent them from turning casually, and
still allow the pulleys F to give or turn when the vessel draws upon the chains
or cables, thereby allowing more cable to be given a vessel while riding heavily
at anchor, and preventing the chains or cables from straining or drawing
suddenly upon the windlass and also upon the anchors.
Having thus described my Invention, what I claim as new, and desire to
secure by Letters Patent is,
First, surrounding the pulleys F, F, which are attached to the wheels E, E,
over which the chains Q pass, by metallic straps G, G, the lower ends of the
straps being connected to pins e, e, which are attached to the inner ends of
shafts II, H, substantially as shown, for the purpose set forth.
Second, the arrangement of the gearing C, D, L, M, when arranged sub-
stantially as shown, for the purpose of operating the shaft B of the windlass
with a quick or slow motion and with a corresponding degree of power, one
set of gear wheels, C, L, being independent of the other set D, M, and
allowing the windlass, in case of the breaking of one, to be operated by
the other.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Avery, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
JOHN AVEKI. (L.S.)