IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLING BOATS
Year: 1884

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I, JOHN MCGUIRL, Top of Brow Court, Maryport, County of Cumberland;
Labourer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
PROPELLING BOATS to be as follows:-
Two endless chains are passed round four Wheels; the chains are fast to eachother
and fans are made fast to them on a hinge on the out side of the chains. The fans
are made fast at the outer edge to the endless chains or ropes by stay chains or ropes.
There are two fans on every hinge one made fast to the aft part of the chain and
the other to the fore part of the chain, so that it may go backward or forward.
Two of the wheels are in horizontal line the other two a little higher up and one
the driveing wheel a little aft of the others and has two grooves in it for the
endless chains to work in but the stay chains or ropes are to fall one to each sido
so as to black tho fan coming up out of the water so that it may not throw up
water as it comes up. The driveing wheel may be connected to an other whocl
that a man or men turn by a crank or it may be worked by steam. Two of the
chains are placed on each side of the Boat or between hulls of a twin Boat.

page_text: I JOHN MCGUIRL of Top of Brow Court Maryport in the County of Cumberland
Labourer do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PROPELLING BOATS" and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This Invention consists of Fans or Paddles on Hinges, Hinges that are made fast
to the outside of an endless Chain. Band or Rope.
The Chain is passed over two or more Wheels on each side of the Boat (or
between the Hulls of twin Boats).
A Band may be made by making two endless chains of equal circumference fast
to each other by short Bars of Iron or Steel-The same Bars will answer as Hinges
for the Fans to be joined on, and the Fans are made fast from or near to their outer
edge to the endless chain Band or Rope by small stay chains or Ropes that run
diagonal from the Fan to the endless chain-One Fan is made fast fore, the other is
made fast aft so as to propel backwards or forwards as will be required―The stay
chains are made to fall one on each side of the aft Wheel when coming up out of
the Water so as not to throw, cast, or heave up Water as the Fans are coming up-
The number of Wheels on a big or large Boat may be three or four on each side as
may be required. When four are used, two of them to be placed in a horizontal
line, the others higher up, and one of them, which I call the driving Wheel, to be
a little aft of the others, and of a much larger size-The Driving Wheel may have
Grooves in it for the Chains to work in, and where more friction is required than
what the Chains can have in the plain Grooves of the driving Wheels there may
be notches or Cogs in the grooves to correspond with the Links of the Chain-The
Axle Boxes of the low wheels to work in grooves in the side of the Vessel and
made moveable by a screw up or down-The Grooves to be placed in a slanting
line fore and aft so as to keep the same tension or strain on the chain-The reason
of having the Axle Boxes moveable is to keep them high enough out of the Water,
so that the low Wheels or Drums may be kept over the surface of the Water when
the Boat is loaded and to keep the Fans the same depth in the Water when
loaded light-It will save the propelling force to have the Wheels out of the Water
for any thing projecting off the surface of the Vessel in the Water tends to retard
speed-The size of Fans for big Boats may be seven feet by six or more or less as
may be required-The Fans may be made of Steel, Iron, or Wood or all combined
or any other metal that is found. There may be about twelve Hinges, less or more,
on each Chain Band or Rope on each side of big Boats as may be required, and, if
required, two Fans on every Hinge, one for propelling forwards, the other for
propelling backwards when required-The fore and aft Wheels may be about
60 feet apart so as to give the Fans a good sweep-The Fans to be made in size
and number so as not to come back more than five feet while the Boat goes forward
GO or 70 feet, that is, after the Boat has got up her speed of going-There may be
single and double gear, single to start with, and double if required, when the Boat
gets her speed of going—A Boat may then got such force as to go at the rate of
30 miles an hour-The Fans when feathering or going from aft to fore are made to
fall flat on the Chains, one Fan falls fore, the other aft-They will come in less
contact with the air and pass more tidy by falling flat-The Chains may be
relieved by Rollers or Drums when there is a long distance between the fore and
aft Wheels--The outer end of the Axles of the small Wheels to be in Axle Boxes
Bu poited by Props or Stays that run diagonal to the side of the Vessel, each Prop
or Stay of the small Wheels baving two legs, the inner leg to be longer than the

page_text: one next the Chain-The legs or Props are made fast to a Plate of Iron or Steel
that lies fat to the side of the Vessel and is made fast to the Axle Boxes that are
on the other end of the Axle-The reason of having the outer Legs shorter than
the inner Legs is to keep them free from the Fans going round and I would also
suggest if needed for big Boats there may be hinges at right angles with the Hinge
on the Chain so that the Fan will fold in three parts, and on such Boats as need to
have those folding Fans, the Axle Boxes will require to be placed on Slip Axles, so
as to allow the Vessel to approach close to the Quay, Wharf or Pier. For small
Boats that are propelled by manual labour, the Fans may be about 6 inches by 7,
and the Driving made to give three or more rounds for one the Crank gives.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim in and for the purpose set forth is as follows
A Ship's Propeller consisting of an Endless Band, preferably formed of two
parallel Chains tied together by Steel Bars, which revolves on suitable adjustable
Pullies on the Vessels Side, and on which Fans are hinged in pairs, one being
stayed forward and the other aft in such a manner that the Stay Lines slacken
when passing over the after Pulley so as to feather the Floats on leaving the
Water, the Band being driven in any convenient manner substantially as shown
and described.
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