Improvements in Apparatus for Aerial Navigation.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Aug., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 5th May, 1892-Accepted, 11th June, 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Aerial Navigation.
I, HORATIO FREDERICK PHILLIPS, of Riverside, Long Ditton, Surrey,.
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention has reference to apparatus for aerial navigation of the kind in
which there is used in conjunction with suitable propelling apparatus, narrow
blades or sustainers (hereinafter referred to as blades) for raising and supporting
the aerial machine in the air, these blades or sustainers being arranged at
suitable distances apart so that air may act independently upon each without
disturbance by the others and each blade having its upper surface made convex
so that air striking it, will be deflected in an upward direction thus causing
partial vacuum over a portion of the upper surface of the blade and aiding the air
below to support the weight.
a
When the under surface of such a blade is made flat, or nearly so, and the
blade is travelling with its under surface parallel with the direction of motion,.
the sustaining power of the blades will be that due to the difference between the
pressure of the atmosphere on the under surface, and the pressure of the partial.
vacuum on the upper surface. When the under surface of the blade is concave, an
eddy is formed in the concavity, and the atmospheric pressure acting to support
the blade is thereby reduced.
Now the object of this invention is to so form the under surface of each blade
that a much greater pressure than the atmospheric pressure shall act on its under
surface so as to obtain a greater sustaining or lifting power than would otherwise
be possible with any given amount of blade surface. For this purpose I form the
after portion of the under side of each blade with a large amount of concavity,
but to avoid an eddy, and to induce the air to enter the concavity, I form the
forward portion of the under side of blade with a reverse curve so that the air
will first meet a convex surface and thus be caused to enter the concavity.
Dated this 6th day of August 1891.
W. Lloyd Wise,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, Loudon, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Aerial Navigation.
I, HORATIO FREDERICK PHILLIPS, of Riverside, Long Ditton, Surrey,.
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:―
My invention has reference to apparatus for aerial navigation of the kind in
which there are used in conjunction with suitable propelling apparatus, narrow
blades or sustainers (hereinafter referred to as blades) for raising and supporting the
aerial machine in the air, these blades or sustainers being arranged at suitable
distances apart so that air may act independently upon each without disturbance by
the others, and each blade having its upper surface made convex so that air striking-
it, will be deflected in an upward direction thus causing a partial vacuum over a
portion of the upper surface of the blade and aiding the air below to support the
weight.
When the under surface of such a blade is made flat, or nearly so, and the blade:

page_text: is travelling with its under surface parallel with the direction of motion, the
sustaining power of the blade will correspond to the difference between the pressure
of the atmosphere on the under surface of the blade, and that upon the upper
surface thereof, which will be less than the former, owing to the partial vacuum
produced over a portion of such upper surface.
When the under surface of the blade is made wholly concave, an eddy is formed
in the concavity, and the atmospheric pressure acting to support the blade is
thereby reduced.
Now the object of this invention is to so form the under surface of each blade
that a much greater pressure than the atmospheric pressure shall act on its under
surface so as to obtain a greater sustaining or lifting power than would otherwise
be possible with a blade surface of any given area. For this purpose I form the
after portion of the under side of each blade with a large amount of concavity, but
to avoid an eddy, and to induce the air to enter the concavity, I form the forward
portion of the under side of blade with a reverse curve so that the air will first
meet a convex surface and thus be caused to enter the concavity, as I will now
proceed to explain by reference to the accompanying drawings,
Fig. 1 is an end view; and
Fig. 2 a plan of a blade, such as hereinbefore referred to.
As will be seen the upper side A of the blade is made convex as before, but the
after portion of the lower side of the blade is made concave as shewn at B, whilst
the curvature of the forward portion of this lower side is in the form of a reverse
curve consisting of a convex curve C at the forward edge followed by a concave.
curve D. A blade such as described may for example be of wood 12 feet in length
and six inches in width from the forward edge E to the rearward edge F. These
sustainers are fixed transversely to the centre line of the body of the machine or
apparatus for aerial navigation so that the long edge E is the leading edge. The
particles of air struck by the convex upper surface A at the point E are deflected
upwards, as indicated by the dotted lines, thereby causing a partial vacuum over
the greater portion of the upper surface. The particles of air under the point E
follow the lower convex and concave surface CD until they arrive at about the
point G, where they are brought to rest. From this point Ġ the particles of air
are gradually put into motion in a downward direction, the motion being an
accelerating one until the after edge F of the blade is passed. In this way a
greater pressure than the atmospheric pressure is produced on the under surface
of the blade.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. Apparatus of the kind herein referred to for aerial navigation, wherein the
after or rear portion of the under surface of each of the blades or sustainers
employed for raising and supporting the apparatus in the air, is formed with a
large amount of concavity and the forward portion of such under surface is formed
as a reverse curve substantially as hereinbefore described for the purpose specified.
2. In apparatus of the kind herein referred to for aerial navigation, blades or
sustainers each having its upper surface made convex and its lower surface made
with a rearward concavity Band with a reverse curve such as CD substantially
as described and shewn for the purpose specified.
Dad hith dow of 1002
W. LLOYD WISE,
Per F. J. Brougham,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.