IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLERS, AND IN ENGINES SUITABLE FOR DRIVING THE SAME
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick Astley Whelan, of 15, Walterton Road, Saint
Peter's Park, Paddington, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLERS, AND IN ENGINES SUITABLE FOR DRIVING
THE SAME."
Sealed the 25th April 1879, and dated the 29th October 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick Astley Whelan
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 29th October 1878.
FREDERICK ASTLEY WHELAN, of 15, Walterton Road, Saint Peter's Park,
Paddington, in the County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLERS, AND
IN ENGINES SUITABLE FOR DRIVING THE SAME."
This Invention has for its object improvements in propellers, and in engines
suitable for driving the same.
I arrange at the stern of the vessel, one on either side, two upright shafts, which
are rotated by the engine in opposite directions. On these shafts frames with radial
arms are fixed, and they carry vanes or propelling blades, which are connected to
them by pivots parallel to the shaft. About these pivots the vanes or blades are
able to turn. Around the upper part of each shaft there is a tube, carrying at its
lower end a bevilled pinion, with which bevilled wheels mounted upon axes carried
by the radial arms gear.
At the outer ends of these axes there are also bevilled pinions taking into and
driving other corresponding pinions upon the upper pivots of the vanes or propelling
blades. The tube around the shaft remains for the most part stationary, and each
vane or blade, as it is carried round by the rotation of the shaft, is caused by the
gear to make half a turn on its own pivots.
When the tube upon the shaft and the pinion at its lower end are turned partly.
round, the direction in which the propelling effect is exerted is changed, and thus
the vessel may be turned without the aid of a rudder. This propeller may be
employed with the driving shaft or shafts horizontal.
In some cases I employ a hollow driving shaft with the feathering shaft inside
it; in this arrangement a pinion is carried by a stud axis upon the crank itself.
גל
71

page_text: This pinion gears on its upper side with a pinion on the feathering shaft, and on
its lower sides-takes-into-and rolls upon a ring of teeth formed upon a collar,
which is free to turn upon the outer shaft, but which is held in position-by-a-
worm.
In some cases I also propose to effect the rotation of the propelling blades upon
their axes by a cam or crank upon the feathering shaft before described.
In place of this arrangement I sometimes employ screw propellers, which I drive
each by two vertical shafts, one within the other:
The screw is capable of revolving upon a stud axis fixed in a boss, through which
-the-inner-of-the-two vertical driving shafts passes in a transverse direction. The
propeller has a ring of bevilled teeth formed upon it around-its-stud-axis,-and-with
these teeth two bevilled pinions carried respectively upon the two driving shafts
engage the one on the upper, and the other on the under side. So long as the two
driving shafts rotate precisely at the same speed, but in opposite directions, the
screw boss will remain stationary, and the propeller will continue to exert its thrust
in the same direction, but a slight momentary acceleration or retardation of one or
other of the driving shafts will cause a change in the position of the screw boss and
in the direction of thrust.
Thus in this case also the vessel can be turned by the propeller without the aid
of a rudder.
The steering in this arrangement may be accomplished by means of a collar
capable of turning freely upon the inner shaft, and carrying upon a stud axis a
bevilled pinion gearing with two other pinions, one on each of the driving shafts.
The collar has also a ring of teeth with which a worm engages, and the steering
wheel is upon the axis of the worm. When by means of the steering wheel a
change is made in the position of the collar, a corresponding change in the position
of the screw boss, and in the direction of the thrust of the screw results.
In some
cases I mount two screws upon the boss, one at the front, and the other at the
back.
In some cases I employ two screw propellers, one in front of the other, and
driven in opposite directions by a bevelled pinion between them. The propellers are
mounted upon studs fixed into a hollow post or frame, through which the vertical
driving shaft having the bevilled pinion passes. By a worm and worm wheel the
post or frame can be rotated to alter the direction of the line of thrust, and so to
steer the vessel. On the top of the same hollow post or frame, the engine by which
the screws are driven is carried. The engine consists by preference of four single-
acting cylinders, with the opposite pistons coupled in pairs by two frames at right
angles the one to the other. In these frames there are transverse slots, through
which the pin of the crank upon the upper end of the driving shaft passes.
steam is admitted to the cylinders by a rotating valve taking its motion from the
crank shaft, and by a dise upon the back of this valve the cut off can be varied;
the steam and exhaust pipes are so arranged that the hollow post or frame, with
the engine upon it, is free to turn without deranging the supply and exhaust.
The
For driving the propeller first herein-before described, I employ an engine consisting
of two cylinders placed back to back, and with their axes fore and aft.
In each cylinder a piston works, and it has a piston rod carrying a T head, from
which connecting rods pass back to cranks upon the upper ends of the two vertical
propeller shafts; each crank thus receives the connecting rods from each of the
piston rods, and the cylinders are so placed between the shafts that all the con-
necting rods are of the same length, and the angle which they make at each crank
is such that the propelling force exerted is nearly uniform in every part of the
revolution.
The slide valve is by preference a rotary one, admitting steam to both cylinders
and having a disc upon the back of it, by which the cut-off can be varied.
This engine is also applicable for other uses.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Frederick Astley Whelan in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
29th April 1879.
FREDERICK ASTLEY WHELAN, of 15, Walterton Road, Saint Peter's Park,
Paddington, in the County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PROPELLERS, AND
IN ENGINES SUITABLE FOR DRIVING THE SAME."
This Invention has for its object improvements in propellors, and in engines
suitable for driving the same.
I arrange at the stern of the vessel, one on either side, two upright shafts, which
are rotated by the engine in opposite directions. On these shafts frames with radial
arms are fixed, and they carry vanes or propelling blades, which are connected to
them by pivots parallel to the shaft. About these pivots the vanes or blades are
able to turn. Around the upper part of each shaft there is a tube carrying at its
lower end a bevilled pinion, with which bevilled wheels mounted upon axis carried
by the radial arms gear. At the outer ends of these axes there are also bevilled
pinions taking into and driving other corresponding pinions upon the upper pivots
of the vanes or propelling blades. The tube around the shaft remains for the most
part stationary, and each vane or blade, as it is carried round by the rotation of the
shaft, is caused by the gear to make half a turn on its own pivots.
When the tube upon the shaft and the pinion at its lower end are turned partly
round, the direction in which the propelling effect is exerted is changed, and thus
the vessel may be turned without the aid of a rudder.
In some cases I employ a hollow driving shaft with the feathering shaft inside it ;
in this arrangement a pinion is carried by a stud axis upon the crank itself. This
pinion gears on its upper side with a pinion on the feathering shaft, and on its lower
side takes into and rolls upon a ring of teeth formed upon a collar, which is free to
turn upon the outer shaft, but which is held in position by a worm.
In some cases I also propose to effect the rotation of the propelling blades upon
their axes by a cam or crank upon the feathering shaft before described.
and
In place of this arrangement I sometimes employ screw propellers, which I drive
each by two vertical shafts, one within the other. The screw is capable of revolving
upon a stud axis fixed in a boss, through which the inner of the two vertical driving
shafts passes in a transverse direction. The propellor has a ring of bevilled teeth
formed upon it around its stud axis, and with these teeth two bevilled pinions
carried respectively upon the two driving shafts engage, the one on the upper,
the other on the under side. So long as the two driving shafts rotate precisely at
the same speed, but in opposite directions, the screw boss will remain stationary,
and the propeller will continue to exert its thrust in the same direction; but a slight
momentary acceleration or retardation of one or other of the driving shafts will
cause a change in the position of the screw boss and in the direction of thrust.
Thus in this case also the vessel can be turned by the propeller without the aid of a
rudder.
The steering in this arrangement may be accomplished by means of a collar
capable of turning freely upon the inner shaft, and carrying upon a stud axis a
bevilled pinion gearing with two other pinions, one on each of the driving shafts.
The collar has also a ring of teeth with which a worm engages, and the steering
wheel is upon the axis of the worm, when by means of the steering wheel a change
is made in the position of the collar, a corresponding change in the position of the
screw boss, and in the direction of the thrust of the screw results.
In some cases
I mount two screws upon the boss, one at the front and the other at the back.
In some cases I employ two screw propellers, one in front of the other, and driven
in opposite directions by a bevilled pinion between them. The propellers are
mounted upon studs fixed into a hollow post or frame, through which the vertical

page_text: NEWS Improveme
driving shaft baving the bevilled pinion passes. By a worm and worm wheel the
post-or frainc can be rotated to alter the direction of the line of thrust, and so to
steer the vessel. On the top of the same hollow post or frame, the engine-by-which-
the screws are driven is carried. The engine consists by preference of four single-
acting cylinders, with the opposite pistons coupled in pairs by two frames at right
angles the one to the other. In these frames there are transverse slots, through
which the pin of the crank upon the upper end of the driving shaft passes. The
steam is admitted to the-cylinders by-a-rotating valve taking its motion from the
crank shaft, and by a disc upon the back of this valve the cut-off can be varied;
the steam and exhaust pipes are so arranged that the hollow post or frame, with the
engine upon it, is free to turn without deranging-the-supply-and-exhaust..
For driving the propeller first herein-before described, I employ an engine con-
sisting of two cylinders placed back to back, and with their axes fore and aft. In
each cylinder a piston works, and it has a piston rod carrying a T head, from which
connecting rods pass back to cranks upon the upper ends of the two vertical
propeller shafts; each crank thus receives the connecting rods from each of the
piston rods, and the cylinders are so placed between the shafts that all the connect-
ing rods are of the same length, and the angle which they make at each crank is
such that the propelling force exerted is nearly uniform in every part of the
revolution.
The slide valve may be a rotary one, admitting steam to both cylinders, and
having a disc upon the back of it by which the cut-off can be varied.
This engine is also applicable for other uses.
$
In order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and readily carried
into effect, I will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shows a vertical section of propelling apparatus constructed according
to my Invention; Figure 2, a side elevation to a sinaller scale; Figure 3, an hori-
zontal section of the same. Figures 1 and 2 also show the engine for actuating the
propeller; in Figure 2 the engine is seen in section; Figure 4 also is a plan of the
engine.
a, a, are portions of the stern of the vessel supporting the vertical shafts b, b,
which are rotated by the engine at equal speeds and in opposite directions; b¹, b',
are frames with radial arms fixed on the shafts b, b; c, c, are the propelling vanes;
Each shaft b
they have pivots c³, c², carried in suitable bearings in the radial arms.
is surrounded by a tube d, having a pinion d' at its lower end, and spur wheels e, e,
gear with the pinion. The wheels e are fixed upon axes, which are carried within
or upon the radial arms, and on the same axes are also the pinions e¹, e'. Upon the
upper pivot of each vane there is a pinion c*, which gears with the corresponding
pinion e. By this train of gear the vanes c, c, are caused to make one half revo-
lution, each on its own pivots, whilst they are carried one around the central shaft b.
The tube d remains stationary, excepting the small motion which from time to time
is given to it in one direction, and the other for the purpose of steering the vessel.
f is the steering wheel; I provide an indicator in connection with it to show the
position of the helm. f1 is a bevilled pinion on the axis of the steering wheel; it
drives a corresponding pinion g' on the horizontal axis g, and this by bevilled gear
gives motion to a shaft, on which there are two worms h, h, engaging with the worm
wheel d, d, on the heads of the tubes d, d.
As already mentioned, the arrangement may be modified by employing hollow
driving shafts, with the feathering shafts within them, and the connection between
the feathering shaft and the vanes may be controlled otherwise than by bevilled
gear.
The engine consists of two cylinders i, i, back to back; the heads of the piston
rods are connected by four rods ke, k, with cranks 1, 1, on the top of the two vertical

page_text: shafts b, b;
is a bevilled wheel on the top of one of the cranks; by intermediate
bevilled gear it gives motion to an upright axis m on the valve chest which by
cams works a pair of reciprocating slide valves, or a rotating valve may be
employed.
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation, showing the method in which a screw propeller
is employed in accordance with my Invention, so that it may be available for steering
the vessel. a is a vertical shaft, receiving motion from a steam engine, and suitably
supported at the stern of the vessel; b is a hollow shaft surrounding the shaft a.
There is a collar loosely surrounding the shaft a; at c it has radial studs fixed upon
it, and these carry the bevilled wheels c', c'. The wheels c' gear with two other
bevilled wheels a and b, the one on the crank shaft a, and the other on the hollow
shaft surrounding it, so that these rotate in opposite directions and at equal speeds
so long as the collar c is held stationary; d is a boss, through which the shaft a
passes transversely, and in the arrangement shown the boss has tubular supports
formed in connection with it, which are received into bearings fixed to the stem of
the ship, so that the boss becomes the support of the two shafts, but if preferred
the shaft a may be continued through into a bottom bearing,
The boss & carries the propellor e upon a stud axis, and around its stud axis a ring
of bevilled teeth el is formed on the propellor. The teeth e¹ gear both with the
pinion a³ on the shaft a, and with the pinion 62 on the shaft b. f is the axis of the
steering wheel; it has a worm upon it, which engages with a ring e² of worm teeth
surrounding the collar c.
Figure 6 is a sectional elevation of an arrangement in which two screw propellers
are employed; they are carried by a hollow post containing the driving shaft, and
upon the top of the post the engine is mounted, so that when the post is moved by
the steering gear the engine turns with it. a, a, is the stern of the vessel; b, the
hollow post, capable of being turned in its bearings by means of a worm on the
axis c of the steering wheel engaging with a worm wheel b¹ on the post; d, d, are
the screw propellers carried by stud axes fixed in the post b; d, d¹, are rings of
bevilled teeth upon the propellers, engaging with the bevilled pinion e¹ at the lower
end of the driving shaft e; f is an engine, consisting of four single-acting cylinders
driving the shaft e. As the Drawing shows, the steam and exhaust pipes are
connected by glands concentric with the post b, so that the engine is free to move
with the post, upon which it is carried whilst the pipes remain stationary.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I claim,-
First. The propellor, consisting of vanes carried by pivots upon radial arms, and
geared to make one half of a rotation about their pivots, whilst the arms make a
complete rotation about the centre of the system, substantially as described.
Second. The arrangement of the gear of the vane propeller in such manner that
by the action of steering mechanism the positions assumed by the vanes may be
varied, so as to change as may be required the direction of the propelling thrust,
substantially as described.
Third. The engine or motor, consisting mainly of two cylinders with pistons and
piston rods, which by four connecting rods are coupled with cranks upon two parallel
shafts, substantially as described.
Fourth. The method of actuating a screw propeller by two shafts, one within the
other, and rotating continuously in opposite directions, such shafts driving tho
propeller through bevilled gear, substantially as described.
Fifth. The method of steering by means of a screw propeller, by so mounting it
that it may be caused to incline by varying the relative speeds of a pair of driving
shafts from which the propeller is driven, substantially as described.
Sixth. The method of applying a screw propeller or propellers for steering, by
mounting the saine upon a post capable of being rotated by the steering gear, such
propeller post carrying upon it also the engine or motor, which drives the propeller
or propellers, substantially as described.

page_text: Seventh. My improvements in propellers and engines, substantially as described,
and illustrated in the annexed Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick Astley-Whelan,-have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this 25th day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine..
F. A. WHELAN.
(L.S.)