US1037804A - Flying-machine. - Google Patents

Description

T. A. TANNER.

' FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1312021, 1910.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

3% uentoz T. A. TANNE R.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1730.21, 1910.

Patented. Sept. 3, 1912 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' ,3 wuemtoz GUM/nu T. A. TANNER.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED DEC. 21, 1910.

1,037,804, mama Sept. 3,1912

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT o TBAUGO'I'TE A. TANNER, or rLm'r, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO mama FRANKLIN MILLER, JR., OF FLINT, MICHIGAH. g

' FLYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 3,1912.

Application filed December 21', 1910. Serial No. 598,511. r v

To all whom it may conccm:

Be it known that I, TRAUGOTTE A. TaN NER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Flint, in the county of Genesee and State of Michigan, have invent-ed new and useful Improvements in Flying-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to flying machines, and particularly to means for controlling and maintaining the lateral balance of such machines, the main object of the invention being to provide novel gyroscopically-operated means for actuating balancing devices, whereby an automatic balancing action will be secured. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel construction of gyroscope and drive gearing therefor, and means for throwing said gearing into and out of action at will.

With these and other objects in view, the nature of which will more fully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of devices, hercinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, in which 1 I,

Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section of the machine on the line l1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 isa sectional plan view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical transverse section on the line 4.4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a front elevation, with the front part of the casing broken away, of the gyroscope. Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical transverse section of the same on the line 66 of Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is an enlarged fore and aft section of the same on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5-.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated my invention as applied to a conventionaltype of biplane machine, although 45 .it is to be understood that it may be applied in suitable form to monoplanes and multiplan es generally.

1 in the drawings designates the frame of the machine and 2 and 3 the upper and lower supporting surfaces. Arranged at the front of the frame on opposite sides of the longitudinal center thereof are propellers 4 mounted on shafts 5 rovided with beveled gears 6 which mesh with gears 7 on a the machine is in flight.

transversely extending drive shaft 8, which shaft is connected by bevel gears 9 and 10 with a vertical transmission shaftll, which shaft is driven by intermeshing bevel gears 12 from the shaft of the motor 13.

The controlling mechanism comprises a gyroscope 14: mountedupon the frame and embodying a frame ring 15 fitting within an outer channeled supporting member 16,

composed of upper and lower sections suitably united to permit of the application and removal of the ring. The member 16 is arranged vertically upon the frame and extends transversely thereof or at right angles to the line of flight and 'is provided at its sides with trunnions 17'journaled in bearings 17 which pivotally connect'thegyroscope as a whole with the machine, by which the latter is permitted to tiltin a fore and aft direction without affecting the gyroscope.

The ring 15 corresponds in arrangement,

relative to the frame, with the member 116, and the latter is adapted, as the machine tilts laterally in one direction 'or the other to turn or pivot on said member 16,*which latter is held from motion in the ope'rat'ioir of the machine by the action of the rotary member of the gyroscope. This rotary member comprises a vertical shaft 18'journaled at its lower end in an antifriction bearing 19 at the base of the ring and'at its upper end in an antifriction bearing sleeve 20 disposed at-the top of the ring, which shaft carries a horizontally arranged gyroscope wheel or disk 21 arranged to rotate between the sides of the ring and within a suitable inclosing casing composed of sections 23 and 24 respectively carried by the ring and channeled supporting member. This casing protectsthe gyroscope wheel from the entrance of dust and other foreign particles and from any other disturbing in fluence, such as the action of the wind when The shaft18 is driven from the propeller drive shaf 8 by a flexible shaft 25, which is journaled at end in a bearing yoke 26 and provided with a beveled fl'lCtlOIl gear 27 driven from a bevel gear 28 on said shaft 8, the opposite or lower end of the flexible shaft being provided with a clutch member coupled for thetransmission of motion from a one to the other, the friction gearing being proportioned to rotate the gyroscope wheel at a desired-high rate of speed. The clutch member 29 is provided with an annularly grooved collar engaged by pins on the arms of'a fork 31 forming part of a bell crank shipper lever 32, by which said clutch member may be adjusted into and out of engagenient with the clutch member 30, said lever being provided with a spring-actuated pawl or dog 33 adapted to interlock with a rack 34 forming part of the collar or ring 15, by which said clutch member 29 may be held fixed in adjusted position.

The gyroscope is adapted on. the lateral tilting of the vessel in one direction or the other to control balancing devices, whereby the balance of the machine will be automatically restored. These balancing devices are shown in the present instance in the form of ailerons or balancing planes 35 arranged between the lateral extremities ofthe supporting surfaces 2 and 3, but may be of any other desired-form, constructlon. and arran ment suitable for the purpose,

.the-inventlon contemplating in this particular the use of balancing mediums of any of the types commonly used, includingjbalancing planes or ailerons, warping tips or any other of the elements commonly employed for the purpose.

In the present instance I have disclosed the use of ailerons of elliptical form and 'havin their major axes arranged normally at rig t angles to the line of flight, said ailerons being rigidly mounted upon vert1* cal shafts 36 at a normal angle of about 15 to the horizontal, the normally inner end a of each aileron being at a higher level than the outer end a thereof, each aileron thus extending at an outward and downward inclination and at a negative angle of incidence. The shafts 36 are respectively provided with forwardly and rearwardly projecting crank arms 37 and 38, the crank arm' 37 ofone shaft and the crank arm 38 of the other shaft being connected by wires or cables 39 to some suitable portion of the gyroscope member 15, as the sleeve 20, while the other two crank arms 37 and 38 of said shafts are coupled to each'other by a wire or cable 40, the construction being such as to simultaneously eifect a movement of the ailerons in reverse directions upon the tilting of the machine in either direction.

It will thus be-eunderstoodthat when the machine is inflight the rapid motion of the gyroscope wheel will maintain the fixed member 15"of the gyroscope in a perpendicular position irrespective of the tilting motion of the machine in either general direction, and that the machine may tilt inv a fore and aft direction without influencing the gyroscope 'or the connections leadi'ngto the ailerons. If, however, the machine should tilt laterally in one direction, the maintenance of the gyroscope member 15 and shaft 18 in normal position will result in a relative tilting motion between the machine and said gyroscope member, by which the connection 39 leading to' the aileron shaft at the elevated side of the machine will be drawn upon and the other connection 39 sla-ckened to swing the end a .of the aileron at the high side rearwardly and correspondingly swing the end a of aileron at the depressed side forwardly, thus respectively decreasing and increasing the angle of incidence of said ailerons to restore the balance of the machine in the well-known way. When the machine tilts laterally in the opposite direction, a reverse adjustment of the ailerons occurs, as will be readily understood, whereby the machine will similarly be restored to normal position. Hence, at all times when the machine is in flight the lateral balance will be automatically preserved, obviating the necessity of manual control for the purpose. When in the operation of landing the machine, or in the act of gliding, the propelling power is out ed, the clutch mechanism may be disconnected to' free the gyroscope shaft from the flexible shaft, allowing the gyroscope wheel to revolve by momentum to automatically maintain control over the lateral balance until a landing is made.

Having thus described the invention, I-

journaled in said second ring, a gyroscope wheel carried by said shaft, a propeller shaft, a driving motor in gear therewith,

a flexible shaft in gear at one end with said propeller shaft, a clutch device for connect- .ing the opposite end of said flexible shaft with the gyroscope shaft, means mounted upon the said second ring for throwing said clutch device into and out of'action, and balancing devices controlled by the turning movement of the second ring.

2. In a flying machine, the combination of a gliding structure, a channeled ring mounted to tilt in a fore and aft direction upon the gliding structure, a second ring mounted to turn in a transverse direction in said channeled ring, agyroscope wheel Ynounted upon said shaft to rotate within the second ring,atwo-part casing securedto the chan neled ring and inclosing the gyroscope wheel .andthe major portion of the shaft, a bracket supported by the second ring and carrying a toothed rack, a propeller shaft a driving motor in gear therewith, a flexible shaft in with saidlpropeller shaft; by the turning movomefioS'of he-said sec a gllitch fivicd'for connecting thoopposite ondying.

endjofsaid propeller shaft with the' gyro- In testimony whereof I afilx my signature ",sco'pe; shoft iaflever' mounted upon the in presence of two witnesses.- I

5 bracket f0r'tli-1 owihg said clutch device into TRAUGOTTE A. TANNER. and (out of operation, said lever being provWitnesses:

wided with adog to engage said rack, and v BURTIS E. WOOLFITT,

i balancil lg-devices coupled to and controlled B. F'. MILU'JR, Jr.

06')! a! thin pliant mpybe obtained for live 'cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Intent 4 g p o v u

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