Improvements in or relating to Apparatus for Regulating the Speed of Marine or other Engines.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in or relating to Apparatus for Regulating the
Speed of Marine or other Engines.
I, ROBERT FORD COURTENAY KEATS, of 9, Garnier Street, Portsmouth, in the
County of Hants, 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 :-
This invention consists of improvements in or relating to governors or apparatus
for regulating the speed of marine or other engines and I will proceed to fully describe
same with reference to the accompanying drawings as follows:-
Fig. 1 is a view in elevation-partly in vertical section-of the apparatus according
to the present invention.
Fig. 2 is a "local" longitudinal section (on an enlarged scale) showing the
disengaging mechanisın according to this invention the apparatus being in mid-
position.
Fig. 3 is a view on the line 3-3 Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow x.
Fig. 4 is a view in elevation of Fig. 2 only with the cylindrical part of the pulley
B removed to show the interior mechanism-in the extreme position.
Fig. 5 is a detail view of part of the interior mechanism as hereinafter explained.
For the sake of example have illustrated and will describe my invention as
carried into practice for governing marine steam engines-although I wish it clearly
understood that same may be used for any other engines or motors (steam or
otherwise) to which same may be applicable.
A is an auxiliary or separate small steam engine which I term the controlling
engine by which the crank a² of the shaft a is revolved at any desired speed-said
shaft being screw-threaded at a³.
B is a pulley adapted to be driven by an endless belt from or operated by the main
engine to be governed; this pulley B being detachably affixed to the long internally
screw-threaded sleeve or-as I term it--"nut" b in suchwise that normally said
pulley B and out bare locked together and cannot revolve independently of one
another-except in certain extreme positions when they (the pulley B and the nut b)
are automatically disengaged from one another as hereinafter described.
In the space or channel between the two flanges b¹ 62 fixed or formed on the nut b
a collar (not shown) or equivalent is mounted carried in and by the upper forked
end d of the lever d so that any movement of the nut b (in the direction of the
longitudinal axis of said shaft a) will thereby be imparted through said collar to the
forked end d of said lever and thereby to the latter.
This lever d is pivotted at d to the lever arm fand is also pivotted at d² to the
valve rod e of an auxiliary engine for operating the throttle valve or valve gear of

page_text: the main engine. The aforesaid lever f is pivotted at f¹ to the fixed frame z and at
its other end is connected to the piston rod g (of said valve-operating engine) by
means of the pin g² on said rod g which works in the slot f2 of the said lever f.
The shaft and screw-threaded part ax thereof are connected up rigidly through
and by means of the two dises a² (one of which is rigidly fixed to or formed on
the shaft a and the other on the screw-threaded part ax) which discs a² are
bolted together (as shown in Fig. 1, so that the crank a' crank shaft a discs a² and
screw are all rigidly connected up practically as one part (which I shall
hereinafter refer to as the screw a) a washer or means being provided to hold
said discs a² a sufficient distance apart to receive and hold between same the ring
washer or collar which latter is held between said disc a² to prevent lateral
movement of the collar h but so that the latter is free to revolve (or not) quite
independently of the said dises a².
The exterior of the nut b has formed thereon or fixed rigidly thereto a circular
ratchet wheel or wheels for instance I have illustrated a double-faced circular
ratchet or wheel i having lateral teeth i.e. ratchet teeth formed on each face j
thereof the teeth j on one face of such circular ratchet being oppositely arranged
to the teeth on the other face, see Fig. 5.
The periphery of this circular ratchet device is cylindrical and smooth see
Fig. 5 and over this is slid the disengaging ring m which surrounds said drum
or cylinder but is quite free to either revolve, or slide lengthwise, thereon-
this ring m being connected by the rods n (which pass freely through the side
cheeks B of the pulley B) to the aforesaid collar h held between the discs a²
and thus the ring or collar m is always held in a fixed position i.e. always the
same distance apart from the discs a² and collar and therefore it follows that
the disengaging ring m is always maintained in the same position relative to the
screw a*.
The nut b is screwed on said screw ax on which it is free to screw along in
either direction within certain limits-and when in its (the nut's) normal or
mid-position the said circular ratchet i (carried on said nut b would be in mid-
position i.e. exactly central or thereabouts within said ring m as shown in Fig. 2.
The pulley B as shown in the drawings is constructed with the cylindrical portion
and one side cheek 31 all in one part-and the other side cheek B² arranged and
adapted to be bolted thereto so as thus to make B B₁ & B2 practically all one part
when put together. Each side cheek separate or combined being adapted to revolve
upon the exterior of the nut b and independently thereof.
On the inside face of each side cheek B1 and B2 respectively I arrange and mount
one or more pawls for instance three pawls o as illustrated in the drawings arranged
in a ring concentrically around-and pivotted at o¹ to the lugs o² on-the inside face
of the side cheek B2 as shown at Fig. 3; and similar pawls o are mounted upon the
inside face of the other side cheek B¹ see Figs. 4 and 5.
pp are springs (attached to the inside face of said side cheeks B1 B2) which
normally press said pawls o away from the side cheek on which same are mounted
the movement of each said pawl o on its pivot o¹ being limited by any suitable
means such as forming the pivotted end of said pawl o to bear against the inside
face of said side cheek at the desired limit of movement of said pawls o.
When the parts are all in mid-position as shown in Fig. 2 then the pawls o on
both side cheeks B1 and B2 are by the springs p forced against the ratchet faces j on
the ratchet wheel that is to say all the pawls are in action or ready for action and
therefore whichever way the pulley B he turned thereby one pawl or set of pawls o
on one side of the ratchet wheel i will gear with the lateral teeth on one face of
the latter and thereby revolve same and consequently the nut b will be revolved
therewith, that is if the nut b be revolved in either direction it will through said
ratchet wheel and pawls o thereby revolve the pulley B.
As will be seen (particularly in Fig. 3) the pawls o are rather wide and so
arranged that part of the end of each said pawl o lies in a circle of the same
diameter as said circular ratchet teeth j while the other part of said pawls o lie

page_text: in a circle of larger diameter that is they lie in a circle of the same diameter
as the diameter of the disengaging ring m (see Fig. 4) so that when the pulley B
and with it the pawls o are moved longitudinally with respect to said screw at.
thereby at the limit of the travel of said pulley B and nut b the outer parts of
the pawls are pressed against the fixed disengaging ring m (see Fig. 4) whereby
the pawls o are thereby forced back and held out of gear with the ratchet teeth j
and consequently the nut b and pulley B are now freed and disengaged from one
another the pawls on the other face running idle over the oppositely disposed
ratchet teeth.
The operation is as follows:-
The governing engine A is set to revolve the screw a at precisely the same speed
as the main engine (at its normal speed) revolves the nut (on said screw a) and
thus the nut band screw (although independently revolved from different and
independent sources of power as aforesaid) are exactly evenly revolved together
and the nut b maintains its normal or mid-position with respect to the screw a. If
now however the main engine begins to race or increase its speed consequently the
speed of the pulley B and nut 6 is accelerated and directly any differentiation of
speed occurs between the nut b and the screw the nut is thereby caused to travel
along the screw and consequently the lever d is thereby operated and the steam shut
off or partially shut off and "racing" prevented while the aforesaid disengaging
mechanism comes into play to release the pulley B from the nut b. before the
parts a and b could become locked together-the parts re-engaging themselves and
acting entirely automatically.
Thus the said governing engine A can be set to regulate the main engine at any
desired speed and by reducing the speed of the governing engine the speed of the
main engine will be correspondingly reduced and then controlled and governed as
before in the event of any racing.
In Fig. 1 of the drawings I have illustrated a method and means which I have
invented to facilitate the action of the governors and to operate the main engine
throttle valve or valve gear so as to make said governor very
"sensitive as
follows:-
When the forked end dx of the lever d is operated by the longitudinal movement
of the nut b along the shaft a a* as aforesaid at such moment the lever f is held
rigid and the point d' is a temporary fixed point on which the lever d pivots or turns
and thereby the valve rod e (and with it the valve ex) is moved in or out and thus
steam is admitted to one side of the piston g* of the aforesaid auxiliary main valve-
operating engine whereby the piston rod g is moved in or out and thereby the main
engine throttle valve or valve gear is operated while at same time the lever fis
turned on its permanent fixed point and as the forked end dx (between the
flanges b¹ 62) is now a temporary fixed point consequently the upper end of the
lever (where same is pivotted at d¹ to the said lever d) will move said lever d and
thus move back the valve rod e and valve ex and the parts are now all in position again
ready for the next movement of the nut b as before and so on.
It will be obvious that if desired may use the governor without necessarily
employing the auxiliary engine for operating the main throttle valve and system of
levers and connections ef and g and instead thereof I may operate the main engine
throttle valve or valve gear by direct connections from the lever d or otherwise directly
or indirectly operate the main engine throttle valve or valve gear.
For governing twin screw engines I arrange and mount a separate governor accord-
ing to my present invention for each engine respectively and to equalise or regulate
the speed of the two separate sets of engines I couple together (advantageously by
means of a coupling which can be readily uncoupled) the shaft a of each said
governor for instance where the twin main engines are separated by a longitudinal
bulk-head I pass a short intermediate length of shaft through said bulk-head and
couple each end thereof to the shaft a of said governor on each side of said bulk-
head the action of each of the governors being perfectly free to govern its own +

page_text: engine should same have any tendency to race etc. independently of the other
engine while at same time such coupled up governors would have the effect of
synchronising the speed of the two engines.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In governors or apparatus for regulating the speed of marine or other engines
the combination, with a screw shaft a nut screwed thereon and an auxiliary engine to
revolve said shaft at a set speed, of a pulley-driven from the main engine to be
governed--connected to said nut in suchwise that said pulley and nut cannot revolve
independently of one another except in certain extreme positions when they (the
pulley and nut) are automatically disengaged from one another substantially as and
for the purposes described.
2. In governors or apparatus for regulating the speed of marine or other engines
the combination, with a screw shaft a nut screwed thereon and an auxiliary engine
to revolve said shaft at a set speed, of a lever such as d adapted to be operated by
the movement of the said nut in the direction of the axis of said shaft, a rod pivotted
to said lever and adapted to operate the valve of another and separate engine the
piston rod of which latter operates the throttle valve or valve gear of the main
engine, and a pivotted lever connected at one end to said lever d and at the other to
said piston rod 9 all arranged and operating substantially as and for the purposes
described.
3. In governors or apparatus for regulating the speed of marine or other engines
the combination, with a screw shaft a nut screwed thereon and an auxiliary engine
to revolve said shaft at a set speed, of a pulley-driven from the main engine to be
governed connected to said nut in suchwise that said pulley and nut cannot revolve
independently of one another except in certain extreme positions when they (the
pulley and nut) are automatically disengaged from one another, a lever such as d
adapted to be operated by the movement of the said nut in the direction of the axis
of said shaft, a rod pivotted to said lever and adapted to operate the valve of another
and separate engine the piston rod g of which latter operates the throttle valve or
valve gear of the main engine, and a pivotted lever connected at one end to said
lever d and at the other to said piston rod g, all arranged and operating substan-
tially as and for the purposes described.
4. In governors or apparatus for regulating the speed of marine or other engines
the combination, with a screw shaft a nut screwed thereon and an auxiliary engine
to revolve said shaft at a set speed, of a double-faced ratchet wheel such as i fixed on
said nut, spring pawls such as o oppositively disposed concentrically around the
inside face of the said pulley and adapted to engage with said ratchet faced wheel i
and to be disengaged therefrom, a ring such as m adapted to fit loosely around said
ratchet wheel i, a collar h held between the discs a² with arms n thereon carrying
said ring m in a fixed position with respect to said screw shaft and adapted to force
the pawls back when said pawls bear against said ring m and thus automatically dis-
engage the pulley and the nut, substantially as and for the purposes herein before
described.
5. The herein described apparatus for governing or regulating the speed of marine
or other engines-constructed and arranged to act substantially as and for the
purposes hereinbefore set forth and as illustrated in Figs. 2 to 5 of the drawings
hereunto annexed.
6. The herein described mechanism interposed between the governing mechanism
and the throttle valve or valve gear of the engine to be governed constructed and
arranged to act substantially as herein before described and as illustrated in Fig. 1 of
the drawings hereunto annexed.
7. The construction and arrangement of apparatus for governing and transmitting
the governing motion from the governor to the throttle valve or valve gear of the

page_text: main engine combined and arranged to act substantially as and for the purposes
herein before described and as illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5 of the drawings hereunto
annexed.
... Bell
T
1
1000
TONGUE & BIRKBECK,
Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.