IMPROVEMENTS IN STEERING GEAR FOR NAVIGABLE VESSELS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Esplen, of Liverpool, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, and James Clarke, of the same Place, Master
Mariner, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEERING GEAR FOR
NAVIGABLE VESSELS."
Sealed the 1st May 1866, and dated the 7th November 1865..
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Esplen and
James Clarke at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 7th November 1865.
We, WILLIAM ESPLEN, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer,
and JAMES CLARKE, of the same Place, Master Mariner, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEERING GEAR FOR
NAVIGABLE VESSELS," to be as follows (that is to say):
This Invention relates chiefly to the class of steering gear for navigable:
vessels which are actuated at or from the bridge of, say, a steam vessel, or
any other convenient position forward of the tiller head.
To apply this Invention to, say, a steam ship, the rudder head is provided
with a slotted tiller, in which works a shaft or trunnion, which is actuated by
means of a pair of hydraulic rams placed horizontally athwart ships on each
side of the tiller. These pair of hydraulic cylinders are fitted at their outer

page_text: ends with stout pipes, one of which pipes is carried along the side of the ship
the required distance, when it is turned in amidships, where it is connected
with and opens into an hydraulic cylinder which is fitted with a double-action
piston; the pipe attached to the reverse cylinder is carried along the opposite
side of the vessel and into the hydraulic cylinder at the reverse end of the
hydraulic piston, so that one of the pipes opens on each side of the piston like
the ports of an ordinary steam engine cylinder. This last-named hydraulic
cylinder is placed longitudinally in line with the keel of the ship, or in any
other convenient manner, and the piston rod on its outer end is formed with a
screw which works in a nut in the nave of the steering wheel, which is
elongated backwards to give the amount of action required. The nave of the
steering wheel revolves in a fixed bearing formed in the head of an upright
standard, from which extend backwards on each side of the piston rod parallel
guides, on which a cross head slides to prevent the piston rod turning as it is
advanced and receded by the action of the screw in the shank or rear end of
the nave, by reason of the female screw which is formed therein acting on the
screwed rod by revolving round the same. In some cases it is preferred to
use in place of the last-described double-acting piston cylinder a pair of
hydraulic cylinders and rams, one connected to each of the herein-before
described connecting pipes, which are attached to the rams placed on each
side of the tiller, in which case the said rams may be actuated by the ordinary
double-action screw steering gear, or by an ordinary single screw, as' is well
understood. In some cases it may be found desirable to give a slight
elasticity to the rudder, which may be done by inserting common hollow
india-rubber air balls in the water, oil, spirit, or other fluid through which the
apparatus is actuated, so as to form air cushons.
It will be readily seen from the foregoing description that upon the piston
being advanced towards, say, the rear end of the cylinder, that the water or
other fluid on that side of the piston will be forced through the connecting pipe
into the transverse horizontal hydraulic ram, eylinder, or press on that side of
the tiller, which causes the ram to act on the tiller, and turns it over to the
opposite side, at the same time the water or other fluid is withdrawn from the
sister ram on the opposite side of the tiller head, by which the space in front
of the piston is supplied. On reversing the action of the steering wheel of
course the tiller will be actuated in the opposite direction, and so on.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Esplen and James Clarke in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 7th May 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
ESPLEN, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer, and JAMES
CLARKE, of the same Place, Master Mariner, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said William Esplen and James Clarke, Her special licence that we, the said
William Esplen and James Clarke, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said William Esplen and James Clarke, our execu-
tors, 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 STEERING GEAR FOR:
NAVIGABLE VESSELS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
William Esplen and James Clarke, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
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 immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said William Esplen and James Clarke, do
hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement (that is to say):-
--
This our said Invention relates chiefly to the class of steering gear for
navigable vessels which are actuated at or from the bridge of, say, a steam:
vessel or from any other convenient position forward of the tiller head, and
refers to improvements in hydraulic steering gear.
(As heretofore constructed) the various forms of hydraulic steering gear have
been modifications of the Bramah press, requiring pumps and valves; but in
our Invention the fluid is used simply as a transmitter of a pressure, which may
be communicated by and received upon pistons of equal areas. We get the

page_text: requisite mechanical advantage by using a screw and nut in connection with
the steering wheel, which may be placed where most convenient, and thereby
we apply the necessary force to a piston or pistons-or rams fitted in suitable
cylinders, which are connected by stout pipes to another cylinder or cylinders at
the rudder head, and the pistons or or rams of the latter cylinders are connected
to a tiller on the rudder head, and the cylinders and connecting pipes are filled
with water or other fluid, so that a force applied at the first cylinder or cylin-
ders is transmitted by two pipes to the opposite sides of the pistons or rams in
the cylinders at the rudder, and thereby moves the rudder. In this way we
construct a direct-acting bydraulic steering gear without pump or valve and
with the fluid in the one pipe always distinct from and not communicating
with the fluid in the other pipe, also by the use of loaded concussion rams we
always maintain a great pressure in both pipes and prevent the
air.
-
of
Having thus shown what is the nature of our Invention, we will now more
particularly describe some of the forms of our improved steering gear. To
apply this our said Invention to, say, a steam ship to be worked from the
bridge, the rudder head we provide with a tiller, which is connected by a slot
and pin to a pair of hydraulic rams, which may be placed horizontally athwart
ships on each side of the tiller. This pair of bydraulic cylinders we fit at
their outer ends with stout pipes, one of which pipes we carry along the side
of the ship the required distance, when it is turned in amidships, where it is
connected with and opens into an hydraulic cylinder which is fitted with a
double-action piston; the pipe attached to the reverse cylinder we carry along
the opposite side of the vessel and into the hydraulic cylinder at the reverse end
of the hydraulic piston, so that one of the pipes opens on each side of the piston,
like the ports of an ordinary steam engine cylinder. This last-named hydraulic
oylinder we place longitudinally in line with the keel of the ship or in other
convenient position, and the piston rod on its outer end we form with a screw,
which works in a nut in the nave of the steering wheel, which is elongated
backwards to give the amount of action required. The nave of the steering
wheel revolves in a fixed bearing formed in the head of an upright standard,
from which 'extend backwards on each side of the piston rod parallel guides,
on which a cross head slides to prevent the piston rod from turning. In some
cases we prefer to use in place of the last-described double-acting piston cylin-
der a pair of hydraulic cylinders and rams, one connected to each of the
herein-before described connecting pipes, which are attached to the rams
placed on each side of the tiller, in which case the said rams may be actuated
as in the ordinary double-action screw steering gear, or by an ordinary single
any

page_text: screw, as will be well understood. In some cases we find it desirable to give
a slight elasticity to the rudder, which may be done by inserting common
hollow india-rubber air balls in the water, oil, spirit, or other fluid through
which the apparatus is actuated, so as to form air cushions, or we fit the
hydraulic cylinders in immediate connexion with the rudder head on the side
or top with a small cylinder and ram, the head of which is fitted with a spiral
spring or weighted lever to keep the ram in the small cylinder down until an
undue pressure is thrown upon the rudder, when the piston in this cylinder
presses up the spring or lifts the weighted lever, thus acting as a safety valve
and giving a certain amount of cushioning to the action of the rudder without
allowing the escape of the actuating fluid, thus forming a complete safety
valve system for the apparatus. The pressure on the ram may be regulated
by a set screw acting on a cap covering the head of a spiral spring, and which,
said set screw works through the crown or cross head of a pair of standards,
and we prefer to cover the whole with a cylindrical dome-headed metal cover.
screwed to the apparatus to prevent the same being injured or tampered with.
Now it will be readily seen from the foregoing description that when the
piston is advanced towards, say, the rear end of the cylinder, that the water or
other fluid on that side of the piston will be forced through the connecting.
pipe into the transverse horizontal hydraulic ram cylinder on that side of the
tiller, which causes the ram to act on the tiller and moves it over to the oppo-
site side, at the same time the water or other fluid is withdrawn from the sister
cylinder on the opposite side of the tiller head. On reversing the action of
the steering wheel of course the tiller will be actuated in the opposite direc-
tion, and so on. Although we have here described the improved steering gear
as for steering from the bridge, we wish it to be understood that the steering
wheel may be placed in any position that may be convenient.
That this our said Invention may be the more readily and clearly under-.
stood we have hereunto annexed Drawings of so much of our improved
steering gear as will be necessary to illustrate the mode of practically applying
the Invention with either one or two or first motion actuating cylinders, like,
letters and figures marked thereon being used to denote similar parts.
Figure 1 (Sheet 1) is a side elevation of the steering wheel and hydraulic.
cylinder and fittings in immediate connexion with the steering wheel, in
which the connecting pipes are omitted, and Figure 2 (Sheet 1) is a
partial sectional plan of the same with transverse hydraulic cylinders and.
rams on each side of the rudder head in connexion with the slotted tiller (the:
connection pipes for convenience are shown broken off).
Figure 3 (Sheet 2) is a side elevation of the steering wheel and divided,

page_text: cylinder and ram with the connecting pipes removed, and Figure 4 (Sheet
2) is a partial sectional plan of the same, showing the means we use in
connection with a transverse double-armed tiller, the connecting pipes in this
Figure for convenience are also shown broken off. Figure 5 (Sheet 2) is a
vertical sectional elevation of the ram safety valve, one of which is fitted to
each of the hydraulic cylinders in immediate connection with the tiller.
.
A, the steering wheel, which works in fixed bearings on the head of B,
fixed standard securely bolted down to the deck, bridge, or other position
in the vessel in which this part of the apparatus is placed; C (Figure 1
and 2) is what may be called the primary hydraulic cylinder, which it
will be observed is formed with D, a piston attached to E, a piston rod,
which works through stuffing boxes or glands on each end of the cylinder,
and extends through the axle and nave of the steering wheel, the said piston
rod being screwed on its outer end, and works through F, a female screw
formed in the hollow axle of the steering wheel; G, a cross head sliding on F
and H', fixed guide rods. The object of these guide rods and cross head being
to prevent the screwed spindle or piston rod E turning round, but allowing it
to be advanced or returned in a direct line through the axle of the steering
wheel. I, the connecting pipe between the steering wheel cylinder, and K,
the port hydraulic press, which is here shown in plan with a safety ram valve
removed; L, the pipe connecting the hydraulic cylinder in rear of the steering
wheel with M, the starboard hydraulic press, which is shown in partial sectional
plan. N, the hydraulic cylinder; O, hydraulic ram; P, the slotted tiller on Q,
the rudder head; R, a small cistern fitted to the cylinder C, and connected to
the interior of both ends thereof by stop-cock to supply any waste of fluid
that may take place. On looking at the Drawings it will be observed that
if the steering wheel be turned from right to left, the screwed piston rod with
its piston will be forced backwards, which will cause the fluid in the cylinder
on the rear side of the piston to be forced through the cylinder port into the
pipe L and the cylinder M, thus forcing the tiller over to the port side, and
at the same time allowing the ram of the cylinder K to enter, the fluid there-
from flowing through the pipe I into the cylinder C on front of the piston D;
and by turning the steering wheel from left to right a reverse action will take
place.
We will now proceed, with the aid of the Drawings, to describe our second S
form. In this arrangement it will be observed that the axle of the steering
wheel is made fast thereto, and revolves therewith, and that the rear end of
the axle is formed with a screw thread, on which works R, a cross head.
with a female screw formed through the centre thereof, and which works on

page_text: S and S', fixed guide rods; and to the outer ends of the cross head is attached.
T and T, rods connecting the screwed cross head with U, a cross bead
situated and connected to V, a double-headed ram, one end of which works
into W, a short hydraulic cylinder, which is connected to X, the port hydraulic
cylinder, which is shown in section; and W is a second hydraulic cylinder,
which is connected with the starboard hydraulic press X¹, which is shown in
plan with a safety hydraulic valve removed; Y, guide rods which works through
Y', guide eyes attached to the deck of the vessel; Z, the rudder head; Z', the;
double-armed tiller.
The action of this modification so far as the action of the fluid is concerned.
is precisely the same as that shown in the first arrangement, the only:
difference being that in the first the tiller head is formed with but one
slotted arm which projects forward, and the side bydraulic cylinders aro
placed athwart ships; whereas in the second arrangement we use a double
arm tiller placed athwart ships, and place the twin hydraulic cylinder
parallel to each other in line with the keel of the vessel, and we actuate the
double-headed hydraulic ram Y by causing the nut or cross head R to travel
in place of being fixed in the axle of the steering wheel, and thereby actuate
the double-headed ram working into the divided cylinders W and W'. On
the steering wheel being turned in one direction the the fluid is forced through
the connecting pipe into one of the parallel cylinder and withdrawn from the
other. By turning the steering wheel in the opposite direction the action will
.be reversed.
We would here remark that we prefer using this modification when the
apparatus is to be used in large vessels.
a (Figure 5), a small hydraulic cylinder, in which is fitted b, a ram to
counteract concussion, the head of which is fitted with d, a stout spiral
spring, the head of which is e, a metal cap, on the top of which abuts f, a
vertical set screw passing through 9, a bridge standard; h, a cylindrical dome
top cover enclosing the concussion ram valve. The whole of the several parts
are connected together on the head of the flange on the passage connecting
the same with the hydraulic cylinder.
Having now fully described and ascertained the nature of this our said
Invention, and the best means we are acquainted with for carrying the same
into practical effect, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit ourselves
to the details set forth, as the same may be varied without departing from
the peculiar character of our Invention, but what we claim as new and our
Invention is,
First, the use of a ram or piston, or rams or pistons, moved by a screw or

page_text: screws for communicating the pressure to the fluid in hydraulic steering
gear.
Secondly, in hydraulic steering gear for communicating the pressure to the
fluid, the use of a ram or piston having only one movement for one movement
of the rudder. :
Thirdly, the construction of hydraulic steering gear with the fluid in one
line of pipe kept quite distinct and separate from the fluid in the line of pipe,
and not communicating therewith.
Fourthly, the use, general construction, and arrangement of the several
parts of the modification of our improved steering gear herein-before described,
and in part illustrated by Figures 1 and 2, Sheet 1.
Lastly, the general construction and arrangement and use of the several
parts of the improved steering gear herein-before described and set forth, and
partially illustrated by Figures 3 and 4, Sheet 2.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Esplen and James Clarke,
have hereunto set our hands and affixed our seals, this Fifth day of
May, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-six.
Witness,
WILLIAM WALKER,
of 44, Castle Street,
Liverpool.
WILLIAM (L.s.) ESPLEN.
JAMES (L.S.) CLARKE.