EP1731418B1 - Propulsion unit for motor boats - Google Patents

Propulsion unit for motor boats Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1731418B1
EP1731418B1 EP06011317A EP06011317A EP1731418B1 EP 1731418 B1 EP1731418 B1 EP 1731418B1 EP 06011317 A EP06011317 A EP 06011317A EP 06011317 A EP06011317 A EP 06011317A EP 1731418 B1 EP1731418 B1 EP 1731418B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
boat according
boat
drive member
propeller
hull
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Active
Application number
EP06011317A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1731418A1 (en
Inventor
Fabio Buzzi
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
FB Design SRL
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FB Design SRL
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Publication date
Application filed by FB Design SRL filed Critical FB Design SRL
Publication of EP1731418A1 publication Critical patent/EP1731418A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1731418B1 publication Critical patent/EP1731418B1/en
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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63H—MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING
    • B63H23/00—Transmitting power from propulsion power plant to propulsive elements
    • B63H23/02—Transmitting power from propulsion power plant to propulsive elements with mechanical gearing
    • B63H23/08—Transmitting power from propulsion power plant to propulsive elements with mechanical gearing with provision for reversing drive
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63H—MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING
    • B63H1/00—Propulsive elements directly acting on water
    • B63H1/02—Propulsive elements directly acting on water of rotary type
    • B63H1/12—Propulsive elements directly acting on water of rotary type with rotation axis substantially in propulsive direction
    • B63H1/14—Propellers
    • B63H1/18—Propellers with means for diminishing cavitation, e.g. supercavitation
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63H—MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING
    • B63H5/00—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water
    • B63H5/07—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water of propellers
    • B63H5/08—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water of propellers of more than one propeller
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63H—MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING
    • B63H5/00—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water
    • B63H5/07—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water of propellers
    • B63H5/08—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water of propellers of more than one propeller
    • B63H5/10—Arrangements on vessels of propulsion elements directly acting on water of propellers of more than one propeller of coaxial type, e.g. of counter-rotative type

Definitions

  • the present invention generally relates to motor boats, and particularly, a propulsion unit for these boats.
  • Fig. 8 illustrates a propulsion system with a submerged propeller according to the prior art.
  • the thrust generated by the propeller is directed as the axis thereof, and thus - since the axis is inclined, a part of the thrust destined to propulsion is lost because a component is present, which is normal to the forward direction of the boat.
  • the ideal condition i.e. a propeller having a horizontal (or almost horizontal) axis is difficult to obtain because it is in contrast with the actual feasibility of installing the engine and reversing gearbox onboard the hull.
  • US-6361387 discloses some embodiments of a marine propulsion system comprising a single engine and a transmission group which drives a pair of shafts for submerged propellers.
  • the single output shaft of the engine extends in a forward direction and the transmission group, of the belt drive type, is placed at the front of the engine.
  • the driving shafts of the propellers extend in a rearward direction and in parallel relationship with the bottom of the hull and/or the water level.
  • the object of the present invention is to provide a propulsion unit for motor boats which allows considerably reducing, or even setting to zero, the inclination of the propeller axis relative to the waterline of the boat.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a propulsion unit for motor boats allowing the parts exposed to the corrosive action of water to be limited.
  • a further object of the present invention is to provide a propulsion unit that can be easily installed on any type of motor boat, independently of the configuration of the transmission (either V-Drive or in-line), either with submerged propeller or surface propeller.
  • a propulsion unit according to the present invention which is provided with a drive member allowing to lower the drive shaft to be as close as possible to the hull bottom, allows obtaining an inclination of the propeller axis which is either very close to 0°, or however forms a very small angle, normally less than 4°, relative to the water line of the boat.
  • the drive member is preferably mounted inside the hull close to the transom, whereas at least one propeller mounted close to the transom of the hull is provided on the outside, the hub of which has a radius substantially equal to the distance between the axis of the output shaft and the outer wall of the hull bottom.
  • the propulsion unit according to the present invention is further suitable for different embodiments, such as that in which the reversing gearbox is integrated within the drive member.
  • a propulsion unit according to the invention may advantageously comprise means for changing, in a controlled manner, the inclination of the output shaft axis relative to the waterline of the boat.
  • the invention further relates to a boat being provided with a propulsion unit of the type cited above.
  • the boat can be either provided with a G-Drive transmission, with the reversing gearbox being directly mounted on the drive member, or a V-Drive transmission (with the engine and reversing gearbox being placed above the propeller axis) or Ring-Drive transmission (similar to V-Drive but with closed loop, with the engine being supported by the transmission).
  • horizontal axes (or small inclination angles) can be obtained for the propeller, and the problems of installing power units onboard a hull (mainly with deep V planing bottoms) can also be reduced.
  • the submerged metallic parts are further reduced by adopting a propeller having a hub of a greater size than a conventional one, and a drive member mounted in proximity of the transom, because the long drive shaft projecting down into the water as well as the support thereof can be avoided.
  • Fig. 1 a drive member 10 without gears and mounted close to the transom 20 of a boat.
  • a propeller 30 having a hub 31 of a greater size than those generally used in known propellers.
  • the hub 31 has a radius R substantially equal to the distance H between the axis A, which is common to the propeller 30 and the output shaft from drive member 10, and the hull bottom.
  • Fig. 1B is schematically represented a possible embodiment of a drive member 110 of the type having gears.
  • One or two power takeoffs can be provided on the side facing the reversing gearbox, the one upper 111 and the other lower 112, which are connected to each other by a pair of respective gears 113 and 114.
  • the lower power takeoff 112 is co-axial with the output axis A, and together with the upper power takeoff, advantageously allows connecting the member 110 with any existing reversing gearbox, without requiring dedicated reversing gearboxes or however means for adapting the connection. This does not exclude, however, the possibility that (homokinetic or cardan) joints are used to connect the reversing gearbox to the member 110 when this is required in order to take advantage of the zero or reduced inclination of axis A.
  • one of the peculiar features of the drive member 10 is that it has a very low axis A exiting from the stern, and consequently, the angle formed between this axis and the waterline WL is about 0°, or however not greater than 4°.
  • each propeller 30 thus comes to be always out of the dynamic waterline WL, preferably working as a surface propeller, where only the lower blades 32, with planing hull, come in contact with water.
  • a propeller 30 having a hub with a greater diameter than a traditional one allows using the propeller axis having an inclination which is either zero or not greater than about 4° in an optimum manner. This further allows reducing the projection of the propulsion unit relative to the transom 20, and simultaneously reducing the number of metallic parts being in direct contact with water and reducing the drag.
  • the diameter of the hub 31 of a propeller being mounted very close to the transom 20 is such to lap by its lower part, in height, the hull bottom 21, such as to have, practically, a propeller 30 in which only the lower blades 32 project to the water relative to the hull bottom 21.
  • the propulsion unit described above can be as well applied to single-engine or double-engine equipment. In the latter case, or however with an even number of motors, the equipment is particularly advantageous, as the contrarotating propellers altogether cancel the torque generated by each engine or propeller.
  • the single-propeller solution also in the version of Fig. 1B with two power takeoffs 111 and 112 stands out for its compactness.
  • FIGs. 3 and 3A an embodiment of the invention is represented as being applied to a type of transmission with two co-axial and contrarotating propellers 30 and 35.
  • This solution is more advantageous than the single-propeller version discussed above, because the torques generated by the propellers - equal and opposite - are "automatically" cancelled and this is ideal for single-engine applications and optimum for equipment with any number of motors (two, three, four, etc.), also offering a greater acceleration and retrieving the energy dissipated in the rotary motion imparted to the water by the first propeller.
  • the gear drive member 210 of the double-propeller version is different from those already described above, since it has a hollow shaft 215 that houses a co-axial shaft 213 therein.
  • the two co-axial shafts 213 and 215 transmit a contrarotating movement to respective propellers 30 and 35.
  • Counter-rotation is ensured by a set of gears 211a, 211b and 211c as schematically represented in Fig. 3A . It can be noted that the operation of the contrarotating propulsion unit is ensured independently of the power takeoff selected for use, i.e. the upper power takeoff 218 connected to the gear 221 a, or the lower power takeoff 216 connected to the gear 211c.
  • a gear drive member with a drive shaft for each propeller also allows, when desired, selecting a different gear ratio for each propeller, by changing the size and number of teeth of the gears.
  • the contrarotating propellers of a propulsion unit according to the present invention can make a different number of revolutions.
  • a duct 51 can be seen which is provided for the engine exhaust gas.
  • the engine exhaust gas can be caused to pass through the hub of the propellers 30 and 35.
  • the bottom of the hub is preferably provided with holes.
  • a duct 52 to vent the propellers 30 and 35, i.e. to suck the air from above the water surface in the vicinity of the propellers may be also provided.
  • the two contrarotating co-axial shafts 213 and 215 can be differently supported.
  • a possible solution, which is particularly interesting, is that wherein both shafts are supported by means of rubber bushes 212 and 214 that are dynamically lubricated with sea water.
  • the propulsion unit provides a dynamic intake 250 that forces the water to enter the open lubrication "circuit".
  • a face seal is provided upstream, i.e. towards the transom 20, for each shaft.
  • the solution providing the shaft as being supported by means of a rubber bush, and forced lubrication with a dynamic water intake can be however adopted also for the single-propeller embodiments already described with reference to Figs. 1A and 1B .
  • the single-propeller drive shaft can be however supported with oil-bath bearings.
  • a gear drive member according to the present invention from which the shaft (or the two co-axial shafts) to which the propeller is fixed can be directly mounted close to the transom 20 due to a round hole made on the transom.
  • Fig. 4 illustrates an enlarged detail from Fig. 3 in which elastic sealing elements 220 are seen, such as rubber O-rings having a big section, and through holes 230 for fixing the propulsion unit to the hull by means of nuts and screws.
  • elastic sealing elements 220 such as rubber O-rings having a big section, and through holes 230 for fixing the propulsion unit to the hull by means of nuts and screws.
  • the provision of rubber sealing rings 220 allows using their capacity to deformation in order to obtain the possibility of slightly changing the inclination of the propulsion unit by means of rotation about an axis 280.
  • Fig. 5 illustrates another embodiment of a propulsion unit according to the present invention.
  • the gear drive member 310 as represented therein particularly comprises an envelope having a substantially spherical fitting portion 330 for the drive shaft(s) to pass therethrough.
  • the spherical portion 330 is housed in a correspondingly sized and shaped seat, which is provided for example by a pair of concave flanges 340 that are fixed to the transom 20.
  • a bellow-like elastic element 320 ensures the seal at the outlet hole of the propulsion unit from the transom.
  • the inclination of the propulsion unit can be changed by some degrees relative to the waterline WL of the boat by causing it to rotate about an axis 380.
  • This embodiment can be particularly advantageous because the whole system can be disassembled after installation, either when needed or in order to carry out the periodical maintenance and/or overhaul operations.
  • a further advantageous feature of the embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that it allows the inclination of the propulsion unit to be significantly changed.
  • suitable actuators can be provided, which can be operated in a controlled manner, and are capable of imparting a rotation about an axis 380.
  • An actuator that can be used for this application can be, for example, of a hydraulic, electrical or electro-hydraulic type, being arranged within the hull and thus not exposed to corrosion or inadvertent damage.
  • the actuator (not shown) can be fixed at one end thereof to a fixed part of the boat, such as integral with the transom, whereas the opposite end can be fixed to the gearbox.
  • the gear drive member is a separate element relative to the reversing gearbox that is normally associated with each engine.
  • gear drive member 410 and the reversing gearbox 490 are integrated in a single element 400.
  • the propulsion unit described herein is particularly suitable to be applied to fast hulls, both planing and displacement ones, either mono-hull or catamaran, with any number of engines.
  • Fig. 7A-7C Several exemplary applications of the propulsion unit according to the present invention to boats provided with different transmissions are illustrated in Fig. 7A-7C .
  • Fig. 7A there is illustrated a V-Drive propulsion system with engine 50 and reversing gearbox 40 placed above the propeller(s) axis.
  • the engine 50 and the reversing gearbox 40 are connected to the lower power takeoff of a gear drive member 210 through a shaft 60 being provided with suitable cardan or homokinetic joints 61 at the ends thereof.
  • a Ring-Drive transmission (similar to the V-Drive but with closed loop) is illustrated in which the engine 50 and the reversing gearbox 40 are supported by the same drive member 210, with the reversing gearbox 40 being connected to the upper power takeoff of the drive member 210.
  • a Ring-Drive transmission is again illustrated, in which, however, the engine 50 is connected to an element 400 which integrates both the reversing gearbox and the gear drive member.

Landscapes

  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Ocean & Marine Engineering (AREA)
  • Gear Transmission (AREA)
  • Connection Of Motors, Electrical Generators, Mechanical Devices, And The Like (AREA)
  • Production Of Liquid Hydrocarbon Mixture For Refining Petroleum (AREA)
  • Golf Clubs (AREA)
  • Superconductive Dynamoelectric Machines (AREA)
  • Valve-Gear Or Valve Arrangements (AREA)
  • Output Control And Ontrol Of Special Type Engine (AREA)
  • Valve Device For Special Equipments (AREA)
EP06011317A 2005-06-10 2006-06-01 Propulsion unit for motor boats Active EP1731418B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT001088A ITMI20051088A1 (it) 2005-06-10 2005-06-10 Gruppo di propulsione per imbarcazioni a motore e imbarcazioni cosi' realizzate

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1731418A1 EP1731418A1 (en) 2006-12-13
EP1731418B1 true EP1731418B1 (en) 2008-05-21

Family

ID=36954277

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP06011317A Active EP1731418B1 (en) 2005-06-10 2006-06-01 Propulsion unit for motor boats

Country Status (7)

Country Link
US (1) US20060281376A1 (zh)
EP (1) EP1731418B1 (zh)
CN (1) CN1876489B (zh)
AT (1) ATE396108T1 (zh)
AU (1) AU2006202397B2 (zh)
DE (1) DE602006001255D1 (zh)
IT (1) ITMI20051088A1 (zh)

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP2414222A2 (en) * 2009-04-01 2012-02-08 Robert A. Morvillo System and method for controlling aeration of a surface-piercing propeller
IT1395752B1 (it) * 2009-09-22 2012-10-19 Fb Design Srl Supporto passa-scafo per la timoneria e la propulsione di un'imbarcazione ed imbarcazione dotata di tale supporto.

Family Cites Families (18)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2242642A (en) * 1938-11-05 1941-05-20 Bogert John Lawrence Shoal draft vessel propulsion
US2224309A (en) * 1938-12-27 1940-12-10 Briggs & Stratton Corp Transmission
US3057320A (en) * 1960-08-05 1962-10-09 American Marine Outdrive Inc Boat transom propulsion unit
US3407779A (en) * 1965-12-21 1968-10-29 Satterthwaite James Glenn Marine bearing
DE1813439B1 (de) * 1968-12-07 1970-04-09 Carl Hurth Maschinen- und Zahnradfabrik, 8000 München Antrieb fuer Wasserfahrzeuge
US4334872A (en) * 1977-10-11 1982-06-15 Gaston William D Motor boat
US4459873A (en) * 1982-02-22 1984-07-17 Twin Disc, Incorporated Marine propulsion system
JPS6018095U (ja) * 1983-07-18 1985-02-07 三菱重工業株式会社 船舶用二重反転プロペラ装置
NL8502312A (nl) * 1985-08-22 1987-03-16 Schelde Nv Schip met tenminste een aandrijfschroef.
US4689026A (en) * 1985-08-26 1987-08-25 Small Mark S Propeller tunnel baffle and method
FI79991C (fi) * 1986-04-29 1990-04-10 Hollming Oy Propelleranordning foer ett fartyg.
US4790782A (en) * 1988-02-26 1988-12-13 Brunswick Corporation Balanced marine surfacing drive
US5863228A (en) * 1996-04-29 1999-01-26 Solomon Technologies, Inc. Method and apparatus for propelling a marine vessel
GB9802570D0 (en) * 1998-02-07 1998-04-01 Duncan Ian J Propulsion system
US6361387B1 (en) * 2001-01-19 2002-03-26 Brunswick Corporation Marine propulsion apparatus with dual driveshafts extending from a forward end of an engine
US6758707B2 (en) * 2002-11-12 2004-07-06 Acme Marine Group, L.L.C. Propeller drive shaft mounting support unit for an inboard drive marine vessel and method of forming same
FI116129B (fi) * 2003-04-07 2005-09-30 Waertsilae Finland Oy Vesialuksen propulsioyksikkö
CN1594031A (zh) * 2004-06-08 2005-03-16 杨锡尧 座舱机对转桨动力推进装置

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ATE396108T1 (de) 2008-06-15
CN1876489A (zh) 2006-12-13
AU2006202397A1 (en) 2007-01-04
ITMI20051088A1 (it) 2006-12-11
AU2006202397B2 (en) 2011-03-10
EP1731418A1 (en) 2006-12-13
US20060281376A1 (en) 2006-12-14
DE602006001255D1 (de) 2008-07-03
CN1876489B (zh) 2011-02-16

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