IMPROVEMENTS IN PADDLE WHEELS, AND IN COMMUNICATING ROTATORY MOTION FROM STEAM OR OTHER POWER, WHERE CHANGE OF SPEED AND POWER ARE REQUIRED
Year: 1838

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SAMUEL
PARLOUR, of Croydon, in the County of Surrey, Gentleman, send greeting..
years
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Fifth day of June, in the first year of Her reign, did, for Herself,
Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Samuel Parlour,
Her especial license, full power, solo privilege and authority, that I, the said
Samuel Parlour, my exors, adññiors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Samuel Parlour, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of:
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend,
within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PADDLE WHEELS, AND IN COMMUNICATING ROTATORY MOTION
FROM STEAM OR OTHER POWER, WHERE CHANGE OF SPEED AND POWER ARE REQUIRED;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Samuel
Parlour, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and imme-
diately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by
the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Samuel Parlour, do hereby declare that the nature of my Invention, and the
nanner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-

page_text: tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the
Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon,
that is to say-
:
My Invention relates, first, to an improved method of obtaining more
suitable angles to the float boards of paddle wheels for propelling vessels.
And, secondly, my Invention relates to a mode of communicating rotatory
motion to machinery in such manner that the parts driving shall produce two
revolutions to the parts driven to one revolution of the driving parts; and also
the driving parts may be so arranged, according to my Invention, as to produce
only one revolution of the parts driven for two revolutions of the driving parts.
And in order to give the best information in my power, I will proceed to
describe the Drawing hereunto annexed.
Figure 1 is a side view, looking from the ship's side, of a paddle wheel con-
structed according to my Invention; Figure 2 is another side view of the same
paddle wheel, looking towards 'the ship's side; Figure 3 is an edge or front
view, looking from stem to stern; and Figure 4 shews some of the parts sepa-
rately; in each of which Figures the same letters of reference are used to
indicate similar parts. a is the main or driving shaft of the steam engines;
b is a plate or circular disc affixed to the shaft a; on the face of this disc are
formed two grooves or governing tracks c, which cross each other at right
angles, in which grooves or tracks work the friction rollers d, d, which are
carried by the cross head or bar e, which cross head or bar is affixed to the
short shaft or axis f, which turns in a suitable bearing through the ship's side.
To the outer end of this short shaft is affixed the frame or wheel 9, and the
outer part of such frame is affixed by bolts i, i, to the main framing of the
paddle wheel; and the two side framings are also combined together by the ties
or bolts i, and there is a projecting axis; affixed to the centre of the side framing
which is nearest to the ship's side; and at the outer end of such shaft j is
affixed the cross head or wheel k, the ends of such cross head or wheel k
being combined with the outer main framing of the paddle wheel by screw
nuts upon the bolts i; the float boards m, m, are affixed to axes n, n, turning
in bearings in the two side or main framings of the paddle wheel, and on the
inner end of each axis n is affixed a crank or lever o; p is a wheel or circular
framing, with as many arms or spokes as there are float boards m; in the ends
of each arm or spoke of the wheel p there is an opening or bearing to receive
a crank pin; on one of the levers or cranks o the wheel or frame p revolves
round a point which is eccentric to the centre of the main framings of the
paddle wheel; hence, if the paddle wheel, and the wheel p, which is eccentric
thereto, were caused to revolve at the same speed, each float board m would be

page_text: 9
parallel to all the other float boards, which is a prejudicial position for the float
boards to assume in working; and the Drawings shew the arrangement to be
such that the angles assumed by the float boards are radial lines from the
centre of the axis m of the uppermost float board when that axis is directly over
the centre of the paddle wheel, which is effected by a mode of causing the
instrument which governs the eccentric movement of the wheelp to make only
one revolution' during the time that the paddle wheel is making two revolutions;
7 is a shaft, which, passing through, turns in a suitable bearing in the inner
framing of the paddle wheel; on the inner end of the shaft q is affixed a crank
or lever 'r, which, by a crank pin, connects the motion of the lever r to the
wheel or framing p; thus it will be seen that the paddle wheel in revolving
carries round with it the shaft or axis q, in addition to which the shaft or axis q
has a' rotatory motion communicated to it in the following manner:-It passes
through and has a bearing in the cross head or wheel k, and has a plate or
discs affixed to it, on the face of which there are two grooves or governing
tracks crossing each other at right angles, similar to what has been described
as applied to the main or driving shaft of the steam engines; the outer framing
of the paddle wheel turns on a fixed axis, on which is affixed a cross head or
bar t;.which has friction' rollers which work in the tracks or grooves affixed
to the outer end of the axis q, the consequence of which will be, in the revolu-
tion of the paddle wheel, that although the shaft q is carried round the axis j,
the axis q will, by the arrangement just described, cause the crank pin to
describe only half a circle during the complete revolution of the paddle wheel;
and it will be seen, in tracing the movement from the main shaft of the steam
engine, that, owing to the application of what I have called the governing
tracks or grooves c; and the parts which are worked thereby, the shaft f, and
consequently the paddle wheel, will make two revolutions during the time that
the main shaft a is making only one revolution.
Having thus described my Invention as applicable to paddle wheels, the
mode of applying my improvements to machinery of various descriptions will
readily be understood on reference to Figure 4. Thus, supposing a to be a
shaft from which it is desired to communicate motion to another shaft fin such
manner thas the shaft may make two revolutions to one of the shaft a, this
would be effected by combining the parts a, b, c, d, e, and f, as above described,
in communicating motion to a paddle wheel; and it will be seen on examining the
plan at Figure 4, and supposing the shaft a to be revolving in the direction of
the arrow, the friction roller d', which is in the portion of the groove marked c¹,
would be carried forward in the direction of the arrow, and the friction roller d'
would enter the portion of the groove or governing track marked c², and would

page_text: be carried round with it; the friction roller d' would then enter c³, and be carried
round with it, and the friction roller d² would enter c', and thus produce two revo-
lutions of the shaft for one revolution of the shaft a; and it will be evident
that if the shaft f were made the driving shaft it would communicate rotatory
motion to the shaft a, but only one revolution to two of itself; and further, if the
shafts at any time be desired to move at the same speed one with the other,
then the bearings of the shafts are to be suitably arranged to allow of the centres
of the two shafts being brought in the same line; then, whichever be driven,
they would both revolve at the same speed.
I would remark that I am aware that it is not new to obtain to the float boards
of the paddle wheels angles such as are herein described, but only the mode
of doing so; and those angles may in some degree be altered by fixing the float
boards in a slightly different direction on their axis n; and I make no claim to
any of the parts in their separate condition, and their combination may in some
degree be varied without departing from my Invention. But what I claim is,
first, the mode herein described of giving motion to and regulating the motion
of some of the parts in respect to others, as above explained; and, secondly,
I claim the mode of communicating rotatory motion from steam or other power
by means of the parts a, b, c, d, e, and f, whereby change of speed and power
are obtained.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Parlour, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifth day of December. One thousand eight hundred
DOWDESWELL.
SAMUEL (L.S.) PARLOUR.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fifth day of December, in the
year of our Lord 1838, the aforesaid Samuel Parlour came before our said
Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form above
written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Fifth day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and thirty-eight.