US1039087A - Current-motor. - Google Patents

Description

0. D. BOTH.

CURRENT MOTOR..

APPLmA'rIoN FILED 0011. so, 1911.

Patented s911124, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

vFig 1.

ga@ 7J /.f// l A TGR/v O. D. BOOTH.

CURRENT MOTOR.

APPLICATION FILED 001. 3o. 1911.

Patented Sept. 24, 1912.

2 -BHEBTS-SHBBT 2.

MEO/111% WITNESS!! s COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH C0..WAsH|Nu'r0N, DA cY lUNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE. t

foscAR D. BOOTH, or` EVERETT, wAsHINGToN, AssIGNoR To IDEAL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, or EVERETT, WASHINGTON, A CORPORATION.

CURRENT-MOTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent. l Patented Sept. 24, 1912.

Application filed October, 1911. Serial No. 657,616.

To all whom 'it may concern.' 1 `Be it known that I, `OSCAR D. BOOTH, a citizen of the United States, residing lat Everett, in the county of Snohomish, State of `Vlashington, have Vinvented a new and useful Improvement in Current-Motors, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to current y motors and comprises certain improvements which will be hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims. y

The object of my invention is to'improve and simplify such devices, to make them cheaper to construct, more reliable in operation and more effective in their working.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown my invention in the form which is now preferred by me. y

" Figure 1 is an elevation of my device looking down stream, the up-stream wheel being removed to better show the supporting frame. Fig. 2 is a plan in section along the line of the transmission shaft. Fig. 3 is an edge view of one of the wheels upon a large scale. y

The power generating element of my present invention consists of one or more wheels of the general typerepresented by a propeller wheel, these being secured to a shaft which `'extends in the direction of the flow of the current, and being submerged vin and turned by the current. I have shown two such wheels 1, 1, secured to a short shaft 10, which shaft turns in bearings 30 in a hollow box or frame member 3. This places one wheel upstream from the frame and one downstream therefrom. Within the box 3 a bevel gear 4 is secured to the shaft so as to serve, in conjunction with the downstream face of the box, as athrust bearing for said shaft. A transmission shaft 50 enters this box from one side and has a bevel gear 40 secured thereto and meshing with the gear 4. Surrounding shaft 50 is a tube 5 which is in communication with the box 3 and supports bearings 51 for the transmission shaft 50. The communication between the tube 5 and the box 3 needs be but a slight one, only suicient to transfer the pressure of the oil with which tube 5 is intended to be filled to the oil with which box 3 is filled so as to replace from tube 5 all leakage from box 3 through the bearings of the wheel shaft 10. The leakage through a small groove in each of the upper bearings of shaft 50 is suflicient for this'purpose. The tube 5 extends upward and laterally toward the bank of the stream toa point above the surface of the water, and is to be kept filled with oil to a level `above the water so as to `provide a pressurewithin the tube 5 and box 3 greater than that of the surrounding water, thus preventing Water-borne grit from entering the bearings. A supporting frame consisting of the parts 11, 1l, is secured to box 3 and extends downwardly to beneath the bottom of the wheels and is designed to rest upon the stream bed. Arms 12 extendlaterally in opposite directions from the bearing box 3 to beyond the periphery of the wheels, and bars 13 connect with their outer ends and extend upstream and connect with'an an- "d:

choring cablell, to resist the pressureof the current. The wheels, one of which is shown 1n edge view In Fig. 3, have vanes which, in cross section, are concaved upon M their upstream face, 15, so that as the water .not do if this surface were straighttran'sf versely. In addition, the blades are twisted, so that the angle with the current is increased as their outer end is approached. This compensates for the more rapid movement of their outer ends through the water, the desire being to produce a relatively constant rotative efficiency at all points in the length of the blades. The wheel which I prefer to use has these features embodied therein, although differently shaped wheels may be used in a device embodying the other features of my invention. I claim as my invention- 1. In a current motor, in combination, a wheel having blade surfaces at an angle to the direction of the flow of the stream, an axial shaft secured to the wheel, a Vhollow body receiving said shaft and carrying the bearings therefor, a power shaft also entering said hollow body, a power transmission mechanism within the hollow in said body and connecting said shafts, and a tubular body surrounding the power shaft and communicating with the chamber containing the transmission gearing fwhereby a lubricant under pressure may be supplied to said chamber. y Y l 2. A current motor com rising' a bladed Wheel having its blade su to the current, a shaft for said wheel, a frame having bearings for said shaft andl comprising .members adapted torest upon the stream bedk and carry the wheel above' said bed, and a hollow armextending trans'- versely of the'current and with one end extending abovethe water level, a transmission shaft Within said hollow arm, a driving connection between said transmissionshaft and the wheel shaft, and a box like memberl inclosing said driving Connection and communicating with said hollow arm.

.3.,In a current motor, in combination, a wheel., having angularly placed blades and with its axis extending in the direction of the current, a shaft secured to said wheel, a frame having bearings for said shaft, and also having legs adapted to 4support said wheel from and above the stream bed, a hollow arm extending from s'aidframe transversely the current and upwardly to above the water surface, stay bars extending upstream from said frame and adapted to be secured to an anchoring cable, and a power transmission mechanism extending from said wheel through said hollow arm to the surface. l

4; In a current motor, in combination, a propeller wheel and its shaft, a frame having bearings for said shaft, arms extending froml said frame to beyond theperiphery of the wheel, bars extending from the outer ends of said arms up-stream and there being joinedl andadapted to connect with an an aces at 'an angle' rsaidfrarne towvai'dthe bank,'and means for transmitting the power generated by the wheel to the shore along said arm,

` 5. A current motor comprising a power wheel having blades with surfaces angularly placed tothe current, a shaft therefor, in

line with the-current, a box carrying bear- -ings for the wheel shaft and through which said shaft passes, a bevel gear secured to said wheel shaft within said box, a'transmission shaft entering said box, a bevel gear onthetransmission shaft engaging' the bevel gear upon the wheel shaft, a tubecommunicat-ing withthevbox yand surrounding the transmission shaft Vand extending to above the Water, and means for -xingsaid mechanis'm with the power wheelsubmerged.

6. In aV current motor, in combination, a pair of propeller wheels secured in separated positions upon a common shaft, a hollow frame forming a closed chamber surrounding said shaft between said wheels and carrying bearings for said shaft, a tubular member extending from the side of said chamber and communicating therewith to above the water level, a power shaft extending within said tubular member and entering the said chamber, and bevel gear connections between said shafts within said cham-r ber, whereby said shafts and their connections may be lubricated by filling said tubular member with lubricant.

OSCAR D. BOOTH.

WVitnesses:v i. A SCHUYLER DURYEE, PERoY GARDINER.

Copies of this patent may` be obtained for rvfe cents each', byv addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

Images