IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLING ON CANALS AND RIVERS
Year: 1851

page_text: THESE TREDEN
JOHN
LAKE, of Apsley, in the County of Hertford, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Eighth day of December
(One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one), in the fifteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said John
Lake, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole pri-
vilege and authority, that I, the said John Lake, my exors, adññiors, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said John Lake, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all tinies
during the term of years 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 PROPELLING ON CANALS AND
RIVERS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said
John Lake, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in
writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High
Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately 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
John Lake, hereby declare that the nature of my Invention, and in what

page_text: manner the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascertained in
and by the present Specification thereof, that is to say:-
My improvements in propelling boats and barges on canals and rivers have
for their object,-
First, the employment of steam power in lieu of horse power to drag the
said boats and barges.
Secondly, the dispensing with the steersmen who are now required for every
boat or barge.
Thirdly, the substitution of an inclined plane of a peculiar construction for
the existing canal locks, by which several means combined all the lockage
water now required will be saved, and the expenses of haulage and mainte-
nance of the canal works will be considerably diminished.
The manner in which I propose to effect these desirable objects is exhi-
bited in the accompanying Drawings:-
Figure 1 shews the plan of a canal, with the alterations and additions
requisite to be made therein for carrying out my improved system of propulsion.
Figures 2, 3, and 4 are sections at different points illustrative of the mode of
construction shewn in Figure 1. A trackway or railway T, T, (for the boats
to run upon or between) is laid upon piles a, a, a, sunk into the bed of the
canal, that is to say, within the present waterway. The piles are in two
parallel rows about nine feet apart, with intervals between them (in the longi-
tudinal direction) of about fifteen feet. b, b, are the horizontal walings or rails
which are laid on the top of these piles above the water level, and firmly
bolted thereto. c is a thin strip of iron which is superposed on the upper
surface of these rails or walings, and screwed to them with countersunk
screws or spikes. In Figures 1 and 3 only a single trackway is supposed to be
employed; but there may be two such trackways, as shewn in Figure 4, or as
many as the width between bank and bank will admit of; or, instead of two
lines of rails within the water area, there may be one line of rails formed within
the water area, as in Figures 1 and 3, and another laid down along either
bank, either upon piles driven therein, or upon ballast and sleepers in the
usual way of constructing railways on land. The depth to which the piles a, a, a,
will require to be driven will, of course, depend on the nature of the ground
forming the bed of the canal or river. The height also of the horizontal
walings b, b, above the waterway may be raised to suit circumstances, but
need not in general be more than about eighteen inches above the usual
high water mark. In cases where the bed of the canal or river is composed
of rock or hard material into which piles cannot be driven by the ordinary
methods, I propose either to drill or bore holes for their reception, or I

page_text: a
support them by means of framework such as shewn in Figure 5. Frame-
work of a similar description may be also employed for carrying the trackway
over aqueducts or high embankments, or other parts where the driving of piles
would be objectionable or diflicult. These trackways may have the same
bends or curves as the canal or river itself. In all cases I propose to make
the width of the trackways in canals or rivers two or three feet wider than the
greatest width or beam of the boats or barges used. The mode in which I
contemplate employing steam power for propelling trains of boats in these
track ways is as follows:-I propose that the first boat in a train shall contain a
steam engine, with its boiler, fuel, and all other necessary appliances, and that
the steam engine shall give motion to a pair of driving wheels B, B, either
directly from a crank shaft or by means of intermediate wheel gearing. The
rims of these driving wheels, which will be of considerable width, will rest on
the iron strips c, c, which are screwed upon the horizontal walings b, b. To the
shaft of the driving wheels are attached two levers L, L, Figures 1°, 2ª, & 3ª,
which are moveable on centres W, W, and connected at their ends by
transverse beam or beams, and these levers can be raised or lowered, as may
be required, by means of the screw Y and handle X. Now, if we suppose
the driving wheels to be resting on the rails b, b, and the handle to be turned
so as to depress the ends of the levers, it is plain that as the rails b, b, form an
unyielding fulcrum, the screw Y, which is firmly attached to the bottom of the
boat, will have a tendency to raise the boat and the weight in it out of the
water, and if this tackle were sufficiently powerful the boat might be raised
entirely out of the water, and its whole weight be made to rest on the driving
wheels and horizontal rails. The driving wheels, however, may be made to
press with any degree of force on the rails b, b. The degree of pressure which
would require to be brought upon them would depend on the resistance to be
overcome or load to be dragged. In ordinary cases a weight of five or six tons
would be all that would be required. Now, if the driving wheels, when
pressed down upon the rails with the required degree of force, are made to
revolve by means of the steam engine with which they are connected, it
is plain that so long as no slipping takes place between the wheels and the
iron strip motion will be given to the boat, and to the whole train attached to
it. In navigating canals or rivers according to this system I prefer boats
constructed as shewn in the Drawings, for the following among other reasons:-
They would be cheaply constructed in the first instance, as, no steersmen being
required, no cabins would be needed; they would have the same room for
stowage as the existing canal boats within a less superficial area; they coukl
be propelled backwards almost as easily as forwards; and as they would be

page_text: coupled up nearly close to each other the resistance from the water would be
considerably less in a long train than if propelled separately and inde-
pendently of one another. The existing boats could also be converted into
vessels of the above description at a small cost, or should it be preferred the
same boats as are now in use might be continued with a slight alteration. It
is plain that no loss of power would be incurred in propelling boats by steam
on this plan, for so long as there was no slipping of the driving whicels upon
the rails the effect would be precisely analogous to the mode of propelling
carriages on the ordinary land railways, whereas in every case in which the
water of the canal itself is used as the fulcrum of motion, as in propelling by
paddle wheels or the screw, full three fourths of the power of the engine is lost
by the "slip." As the resistance opposed to the motion of canal boats through
water at a speed of two or three miles per hour is exceedingly small, and as
no steersmen will be required, an engine of small power used in the manner I
propese will be enabled to drag very long trains of boats at a minimum of cost,
and this being the case a single trackway would be sufficient to carry the
traffic of any of the existing canals in Great Britain. It would, of course, be
necessary to provide at certain intervals along the line of the canal or river
passing places or sidings to enable trains of boats going in opposite directions
to meet and pass each other.
Figure 6 shews a plan of a passing place for this purpose. It consist in
fact of a double line with an opening at each end, so that a train may enter
or leave either side, in the manner shewn in the Drawing. One train is here
shewn as waiting for another coming in the opposite direction; on the latter
arriving at A the engine would cease propelling, and as the opening, to allow
of its passage to the other line of rails, is not more than forty or fifty feet in
length, the momentum which the train had acquired previous to the engines
ceasing to work will be sufficient to cause it to carry it some distance into the
siding, or until the driving wheels are again resting upon the rails. As soon
as the whole of this train has entered the sliding then the first-mentioned
train, which was waiting in the other trackway, would start again on its journey,
and the momentum of this train would in like manner be sufficient to carry
the engine over the open space at the entrance to the siding. With two
trackways, one for the "up" and the other for the "down" traffic, these
sidings of course would not be required. To enable boats to lay alongside
wharves on the line of the canal or river it will be necessary to leave
an opening in the rails of a length sufficient to enable a boat to be moved in or
out of the trackways, and, as this in no case can exceed fifty feet, the absence
of that length of rails would not cause any stoppage of the through trains,

page_text: which would not require to stop at the wharves where these openings are made,
as the momentum of the train would be amply sufficient to carry the boat
containing the engine over the openings. Boats may thus be left or picked up
at any required part on the line of the canal or river with the greatest facility.
In all the preceding arrangements it has been assumed that the canal or river
is not encumbered with locks, but as this is but rarely the case provision must
be made for an opposite state of things. Locks are usually only of sufficient
magnitude to admit the passage of one or two boats at a time, but as consi-
derable delay would arise to the passage of a long train of boats by passing
them through the very largest locks, I propose to supersede locks altogether by
means of an inclined plane or planes of such a'construction that it will allow
of a train of boats being worked from one level to another by the same engine
which is used for propelling them along the level portions of the canal or river,
thus rendering unnecessary any stationary power for that purpose.
.
Figures 7 and 8 shew a plan and elevation of an inclined plane of this
description, with a train of boats passing over; and Figure 9 a cross section of
the same. The Drawings shew a strong timber framing, upon which, at
intervals of about ten feet, are fixed two rows of stout travelling rollers a, a,
Figures 7, 8, 9, and 10, two or three feet in diameter, working in proper
bearings or plummer blocks b, b. These rollers may have any rate of
inclination given to them, from the foot of the plane at A to its summit at B,
that may be considered most suitable; but the contour of the plane at its
upper part near the summit should be such a curve as will admit of the easy
transfer of the boats from one level on to the other. I prefer an inclination of
about one in twenty-five for these inclined planes. For working over these
fixed rollers the bottoms of the boats will be provided with two stout strips of
iron c, c, Figure 9, secured or rivetted thereto, which will act as rails, and will
rest upon the rollers a, a, during the passage of the boats over the inclined
planes. The rollers a, a, are continued under the water levels of the upper
and lower pounds down to the bottom of the canal, as shewn in Figure 8. As
the adhesion or bite of the driving wheels on a rail with a plain surface
would not be sufficient to enable the engine to mount these inclined planes
with a heavy load, I propose to obtain à sufficient fulcrum for this purpose by
laying down on the walings two stout toothed racks (v, v,) into which two
pinions h, h, connected with the shaft of the driving wheels may work. Any
number of pinions may be made to work into these racks; and so any degree
of hold or fulcrum that is required may be obtained. At the upper part of
the plane D these racks would be continued on walings lying about eighteen
inches above the upper water level for a considerable distance, so that the

page_text: toothed pinions may remain in action till the last boat of the train has mounted
to the summit of the plane or nearly so. The plain driving wheels B', B',
working on the plain rails will then keep the pinions engaged to the proper
depth in the racks. To prevent accidents, in the event of the couplings
failing, &c. during the ascent of the inclined planes, strong palls may be made
to work into the racks from each side of the boat which contains the engine,
and also from every second or third boat of the train, if requisite. In the
descent of the planes a powerful brake fixed on the engine shaft will be made
use of, and a brake also might be attached to the last boat of the train, which
would be under the controul of a guard. The manner of working a train of boats
over these inclined planes will be exceedingly simple, and the rate of travelling
will be only limited by the power of the engine used. On arriving at the foot
of the plane the toothed pinions will become engaged with the racks, and no
stoppage whatever of the train need take place. When the last boat in the
train has arrived at the summit of the inclined planes the engine will then
propel with the plain wheels, which will rest on the walings in the upper
pound or level. In cases where the canal locks come near or close together,
or where there is a succession or "flight" of locks, these inclined planes may
be made continuous for any distance required, so that any heights may be
In some cases, particularly with passenger boats, it may be desirable
to carry a portion of the weight of each boat upon the rails of the trackway by
means of wheels, as shewn in Figure 11, the other portion of the load and
the boat floating and being carried in the water in the usual manner. These
wheels may be attached to levers so as to admit of being raised or depressed
for the purpose of regulating the amount of weight to be carried by the rails
and water respectively, and they may be fitted with springs to give ease of
motion.
overcome.
Having now particularly described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is as
follows:
First, I claim the employment in canal and river navigation of trackways
between or on which boats can travel without the aid of steersmen, and be
propelled by means of steam or other elementary power, as before described.
Second, I claim the mode of obtaining a sufficient "bite" or adhesion for
the driving wheels by making use of a part of the weight of the boat and
cargo in which the engine is placed for that purpose, as before described.
Third, I claim the method of sustaining the weight of a boat and cargo
while in the course of transit, partly on the rails of a trackway laid down as
aforesaid, and partly by the water of the canal or river, as usual.

page_text: Fourth, I claim the employment, in canal and river navigation, of inclined
planes for the passage of trains of boats from one level of the canal or river to
another, constructod as before described, and the working of the said planes by
means of racks and pinions actuated by the same engine as is used for pro-
pelling on the level.
In witnoce whenee L
1