Improvements in Propelling Apparatus for Navigable Vessels.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 13th July, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 11th Apr., 1892-Accepted, 2nd July, 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Propelling Apparatus for Navigable Vessels.
I, THOMAS FRANCIS EASTWOOD of Vicarsfield Thomastown, in the County of
Kilkenny, Ireland, Clerk in Holy Orders, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in propelling apparatus for navigable
vessels and according thereto I arrange near the keel of the vessel, in a channel or
compartment to which the water has access, one or more hollow cylinders with
internal inclined or spiral vanes or blades, the cylinder or cylinders being arranged
to be rotated by suitable means, whereby the vanes are caused to act on the water
and propel the vessel forward or backward.
The channel or compartment for the cylinders may be the long tunnel, that
usually runs over the ship's keel, and is occupied by the shaft or shafts leading to
the screw or screws, the bottom and keel being removed and the water admitted.
In this compartment are fitted ono, two or more of the before mentioned cylinders
arranged longitudinally, that is to say having their axes longthwise of the vessel.
The plating of the vessel extends beneath the cylinders, an inlet being provided in
front of the cylinders for the admission of water to the lower cylinder, and a corre-
sponding outlet for the said water being provided in rear of the cylinders.
A convenient arrangement for driving such a cylinder is to arrange another
cylinder above it, the upper one serving as the driving wheel and causing the lower
one to rotate by means of a belt or strap of steel links adapted to engage with
projections ou the cylinders. This belt or strap may be formed of a number of
scalloped or channelled pieces, hinged or movably connected together at their
longitudinal edges, so that the whole somewhat resembles a sheet of corrugated
iron, except that it is flexible. On the oxterior of the cylinders suitable corruga-
tions are provided which correspond with the corrugations of the chain.
The upper or driving cylinder receives its motion in any suitable way such as
from the main engines of the vessel, and transmits it to the lower or propelling
cylinder by the metallic band aforesaid so as to cause it to rotate in the same
direction.
This lower cylinder (through which the water passes and which as before
mentioned is arranged in a part of the tunnel along which the shafts of screws
usually extend) is provided with vanes or blades consisting of sheets of metal,
fastened to the interior of the cylinder, and, either all joined together at their inner
edges, or leaving a small open space, and being bound together by two or more iron
rings or the like.
Each blade or vane winds in a spiral direction through the cylinder, having a
twist or angle of say 45°. Each blade may extend the whole length of the cylinder,
or two or more shorter blades may be used to make up the length.
The cylinders may be supported by strong metal walls or frames pierced with
circular openings opposite the cylinder ends, and the part of the frame extending to
the lower part of the tunnel, may be strengthened by strong bars which extend to
the upper part of the tunnel and form a grating in front of and behind the cylinder,
80 that wreckage or other large floating bodies cannot enter the cylinder.
Strong shoulders or flanges forming part of the cylinders may be employed to
keep the metal driving band in its proper position; and, to prevent water entering
between the flanges of the cylinders and the frame work, a metal ring or collar,
which may be suitably packed, is provided. This ring is secured to the frame
work and projects over the flange. The passages by which the water enters and
leaves the lower cylinder are controlled by suitable sliding doors, sluices, or sluice

page_text: valves, and manholes are provided so that when the said sluices have been closed
and the water has been pumped from the cylinder, entrance can be effected thereto
for inspection or repairs.
Dated this 13th day of July 1891.
W. LLOYD WISE,
Per F. J. Brougham,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Propelling Apparatus for Navigable Vessels.
I, THOMAS FRANCIS EASTWOOD of Vicarsfield, Thomastown, in the County of
Kilkenny, Ireland, Clerk in Holy Orders, 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 relates to improvements in that class of propelling apparatus for
navigable vessels in which the propulsion is effected by means of a rotary hollow
cylinder provided internally with screw blades or vessels and through which water
is caused to pass when the cylinder is rotated..
My invention has reference to an improved construction and arrangement of such
apparatus as I will now proceed to explain with reference to the accompanying
drawings in which
Fig. 1 shews partly in elevation and partly in longitudinal' section the improved
propelling apparatus adjacent parts of the vessel to which it is shewn applied being
also shewn in section.
Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line a Fig. 1, the driving belt being shewn
in elevation.
Fig. 3 is a detail view to a larger scale shewing the construction of the driving
belt used for rotating the propelling cylinder.
A is a part of the vessel within the lower portion of which, and below the water
line, is arranged the rotary hollow cylinder B which is provided internally with any
suitable number of screw blades or vanes C, and is heroinafter referred to as the
screw cylinder.
The screw blades or vanes, of which there are six in the example shewn, consist
of plates of metal fastened at their outer ends to projections Con the interior of
the screw cylinder by suitable means such as bolts, and connected together at their
inner ends by one or more metal rings or tubes C. Each blade, which may have a
twist or angle of eay 40°, preferably extends the whole length of the screw cylinder.
Each end of the screw cylinder, which is arranged with its axis lengthwise of the vessel,
is formed or provided with a collar or flange B', and is mounted to rotate in a strong
metal wall, frame, or bulkhead D (hereinafter called the wall) secured within the
vessel, the two walls together with the part A' of the bottom of the vessel, forming
a water tight compartment D' within which the scrow cylinder B is arranged to
rotate. The walls D also serve as thrust blocks against one or other of which,
according to the direction of motion of the screw cylinder, bear one or other of
the collars or flanges B. For this reason they should be rigidly built into the
vessel, so that the thrust of the screw cylinder, when in use, can be transmitted
through one or other of them to the vessel in an advantageous manner.
external water can pass freely to and from the screw oylinder by passages E and E
that are formed at the bottom of the vessel by curved plates Ex*, and one of which
serves as an inlet and the other as an outlet. FF are slotted plates or strong bars
arranged to serve as stays to strengthen the lower ends of the walls D, and to form
gratings that prevent wreckage or other bodies entering the screw cylinder. They
may be arranged diagonally as shewn in full lines, or horizontally as shewn in
dotted lines. GG are annular plates, each secured to the exterior of one of the
The

page_text: walls D and arranged to overlap the adjacent end of the screw cylinder against
which it is caused to tightly bear, either directly, or indirectly through a ring of
Buitable packing material placed in a recess on the inner side of the annular plate,
for the purpose of forming a water tight joint and prevent as far as possible the
entrance of water into the compartment D'. These rings G G³, or the packing
carried thereby, may be made adjustable to compensate for wear. The openings in
the walls D within which the ends of the screw cylinder works may be provided
with removable bushes with a like object. The screw cylinder is corrugated
externally as shewn and is driven by a correspondingly formed endless belt H,
from an externally corrugated driving cylinder I mounted to rotate in the
walls D, and driven by cranks L from the main engines of the vessel through
connecting rods that work onto the cranks. The belt is kept in place laterally
by the flanges B' on the screw cylinder, and by corresponding flanges I' on the
cylinder I.
The belt H may advantageously be formed as shewn in Fig. 3 of a number of
metal bars curved at oue side as shewn, so as to form a corrugated surface cor-
responding to the corrugated surfaces of the cylindera B & I, and hinged or movably
connected together at their longitudinal edges as shewn at H after the manner of
an ordinary hinge. For this latter purpose each bar is formed with lugs or
projections along its edges which take into corresponding recesses in the adjacent
bar, a pin H being passed through holes in each set of interlocking lugs or
projections so that the belt is rendered sufficiently flexible to work around the
cylinders B & I.
M Mare doors each arranged to slide vertically in guides N N₁ after the
manner of sluice valves and whereby the inner ends of the passages E E' can be
closed in a water tight manner so that after the water in the screw cylinder has
been pumped out, access can be gained thereto, if necessary, through a man-hole
at O, for the purpose of examining, clearing, or repairing the interior of the
cylinder and the screw blades therein, after which the doors can be again raised, as
for instance by screws, so as to again opon the passages 'E E',
As will be obvious two or more screw cylinders mounted and driven in the
manner hereinbefore described may be employed arranged sidewise of each other
after the manner of ordinary twin screw propellers, or two may be thus arranged,
whilst a third is arranged directly above the keel and to the rear of the others. It
will also be obvious that the screw cylinder, and the compartment D' in which it
works, may be arranged to project more or less below the bottom of the vessel in
which case no special inlet and outlet passages such as E E' will be needed, but
glotted plates or bars such as F F being employed for the purposes hereinbefore
described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what !
claim is-
1. Propelling apparatus for navigable vessels in which a cylinder provided
internally with screw blades or vanes and externally with corrugations and with
thrust collars or flanges, is mounted to rotate in fixed walls or frames and is driven
from another externally corrugated oylinder by an endless flexible metallic driving
belt, the said walls or frames forming with the lower part of the vessel, or with an
extension thereof, a chamber within which the screw cylinder works substantially
as described.
2. The improved propelling apparatus for navigable vessels constructed as
described and shewn.
Dated this 23rd day of March 1892