US1097411A - Water-wheel. - Google Patents

Description

L. S. FLATAU.

WATER WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED D3014, 1910.

Patented May 19, 1914.

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L. S. FLATAU.

WATER WHEEL.

APPLIOATION FILED DEG.14, 1910.

'1,097,411. Patented May 19, 1914.

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L. S. FLATAU.

WATER WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED DBG.14, 1910.

1,097, 11 1 Patented May 19, 1914.

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L. S. FLATAU.

. WATER WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 14, 1910.

1,097, 11 1 Patented May 19, 1914.

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LOUIS S. FLATAU, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-THIRD 'IO DUDLEY C. WEAY AND ONE-THIRD TO T. .ALLIE \VBAY, BOTH OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

"WATER-WHEEL.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 19, 191 1:.

Application filed December 14., 1910. Serial No. 597,308.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, LOUIS S. FLA'raU, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented throu h the current until 'ravit Y and the c a:

current, or the current alone if the entire wheel is submerged, cause them to fall at the proper place and time as in other undershot wheels to receive the impact of the current, thus driving the wheel around on its axle and support, and from which the power created may be transmitted to a power house on the piers of stone or structural iron-work, seated on piling or otherwise, so as to drive dynamos for generating electric current or for other purposes.

My invention further consists in certain novel features of construction and combina tions of parts which will be hereinafter described and fully pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a view in perspective, showing my improved invention mounted on piers or abutments ready for use, Fig. 2 is a view in front elevation of the apparatus, Fig. 3 is a view in end elevation, and Figs. 4:, 5, and (3 are fragmentary views in detail showing different positions taken by the buckets or shutters. Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view showing the manner of fastening the spokes to the hubs, and how the hub is connected to the axle. Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the shutter and pin, showing the inner and outer straps in elevation and the manner of mounting the straps upon the pin.

The piers or abutment-s 1, 1, may be constructed of masonry or structural iron or steel, and erected upon piles or concrete or other foundation at any convenient point in the stream whose current is to be utilized,

and any superstructure 2 is built across the top, and is adapted to house the transmission dynamos or other machinery. A central axle 3 is mounted in hearings in the piers or abutments, and on this the wheel is socurely mounted. Any number of hubs i, 4-, may be employed (in the wheel illustrated, four only are shown). These are keyed to the shaft 3. Spokes 5, 5, are bolt-ed or otherwise secured to the flanges 6, 6, of these hubs, the outer ones to the inner side only of the flanges of the two outer hubs, and the inner spokes oppositely from both sides of the hubs, the bolts 7, 7, which socure them being in the latter instance common to two spokes, as the drawings indicate. The spokes may thus be said to be arranged in pairs converging to points at or near their centers, very much after the manner of a bicycle spoke, thus trussing the wheel structure and giving it great rigidity and strength to withstand the wear and tear to which machinery of this character would necessarily be subjected. At this point, approximately midway of the length of the spokes, they come together and extend parallel throughout the remainder of their length, embracing the rims 9, 9, and 10, 10, embracing the latter from opposite sides. Rods 11, 11, and 12, 12, extend across from side to side through the opposite ends of the parallel portions of the spokes, thus forming one securely braced and trussed wheel of great strength and rigidity, or what appears in the illustrated form of the invention to be practically three distinct wheels. The buckets or shutters 13, 13, are hinged to the inner surfaces of the outer ends of these spokes as illustrated, their size and dimension corresponding more or less perfectly to the like spaces encompassed by the outer ends of the spokes and the connecting rods 11 and 19.. The intermediate spokes serve as stops for the buckets or shutters. While these buckets or shutters may be connected or hinged to the spokes in any approved manner, my preference is a con- The loops 21, 21, of the outer straps 15, 15, of the hinges are larger than the loops 22, 22, of the inner straps 1%, 14, of the hinges, the purpose of which is to permit the buckets or shutters to drop a trifle 011 the inner hinge as a center or pivot, so that they drop and close with less force and noise than they would if both hinges were alike, which mechanical principle is well understood.

Adjustable stops 23, 23, in the illustrated construction in the form of bolts, are arranged in the outer rim about midway of the spokes to receive the buckets or shutters when opened, and feathering, and to prevent their swinging outwardly beyond the dead center, the purpose of which is to always in sure their dropping and closing at the proper time by gravity, as the wheel revolves in readiness to take the impact of the flowing current of water (as shown in Fig. 5) which action takes place with compara tive precision when unimpeded by the submergence of the wheel.

The loop 21 of the outer strap 15 is larger than the loop 22 of the strap 14, and is capable of movement longitudinally and laterally, so that when the shutter is swung to the position shown in Figs. 4 and 6 and the outer inner edge of the shutter is resting against a stop 23 on the outer rim 10, the shutter will assume or lie in an inclined position as shown in Fig. 4, and the outer edge of the shutter will lie farther away from the rim than the lower edge. That is the outer edge of the shutter to which the strap 15 is connected will be permitted by the enlarged loop 21 to lie farther away from the rim 10 than the edge of the shutter to which the strap It is connected so that an oblique surface is presented, and when the shutter comes into a position in the movement of the wheel to allow the water to come in contact with it, the water will force the shutter over until it is in a position where it will fall by gravity and the pressure of the current, into closed posit-ion. This wheel, however, is just as eficient when entirely submerged as when only the lower half is submerged. lVhen, however, the entire wheel is submerged, the very features which have been explained, namely the dif ferential between the outer and inner hinges which permits the buckets to tilt and travel from the horizontal, and the size and loca tion of the adjustable stops, cause the buckets or shutters to present an outer surface which inclines from the stop toward the outer sides of the wheel toward their inner ends (as is clearly shown in Fig. 6), so that when the closure of the buckets or shutters is dependent upon the current of water, that is to say, when the entire wheel is submerged and they do not close by gravity, the pressure on the surface of the buckets or shutters outside is necessarily in excess of the pressure from the opposite or inner surface, thus causing closure of the buckets or shutters by the action of the on-rushing current of water. In this way, as previously suggested, the wheel is equally eiiicient whether entirely or only partially submerged.

As a means for pumping water for irrigation or other purposes, a chain of buckets 25, is provided, they passing a spout 26, which leads to the water-main or other means of conveying or taking care of the water thus elevated.

The power developed by the wheel may be transmitted in any approved manner from the central axle, as by sprocket chains or other form of gearing, either to a countershaft, as shown at 27, and thence to the dynamo or dynamos as illustrated by the belts 2s, as.

To briefly review the operation, the wheel is driven by the impact of the current upon the closed buckets or shutters, thus closing by gravity, when not otherwise prevented at the upper portion of the wheel, after they have passed over the axle, and by the currents of water if the wheel is submerged, when the latter strikes the buckets or shutters, and after having done their work as the buckets or shutters open and feather through the water as they lift out of the stream.

The wheel as described, while capable of modification, is on approved scientific and mechanical lines of structure, afiording lightness and at the same time strong and durable. All parts adapted for certain purposes, such for instance as the outer rims, the spokes, hubs, buckets or shutters are interchangeable, and as these various parts are bolted together, the entire wheel may be dismembered and dismounted for the purpose of transportation, and easily, quickly, and conveniently erected wherever it is to be used. In short, a thoroughly braced and trussed skeleton wheel is provided, offering a minimum of resistance, and affording a maximum of power in the stream where it is mounted; and in this way, the power derived may be utilized at a minimum of expense for driving machinery, or the generation of electric current in dynamos, or for any purposes where power is required, and comparative economy is a. desideratum.

It is evident that more or less slight changes might be resorted to in the form and arrangement of the several parts described, without departure from the spirit and scope of my invention, and hence I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction herein set forth, but

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A water wheel mounted on an axle, comprising a trussed skeleton frame made up of spokes, rims, and cross-heads, buckets or shutters hinged in the frame and hinges connecting the buckets to the frame, a hinge on each bucket having loose connection with the frame which causes the other hinge to act as a pivot to insure the buckets dropping inwardly with less force toward the center either by gravity or the pressure of the current from the outside.

2. A water wheel mounted on an axle, comprising a trussed skeleton frame made up of spokes, rims, and cross-heads, buckets or shutters hinged in the frame and hinges connecting the buckets to the frame, a hinge 011 each bucket having loose connection with the frame which causes the other hinge to act as a pivot to insure the buckets dropping inwardly with less force toward the center either by gravity or the pressure of the current from the outside, and adjustable stops for determining the outward feathering movement of said buckets.

3. A water wheel mounted on an axle, comprising a trussed skeleton frame made up of spokes, rims, and cross-heads, buckets or shutters hinged in the frame permitting their dropping inwardly toward the center either by g 'avity or the pressure of the current from the outside, the outer hinges of the buckets or shutters loosely connected to the frame allowing greater play and freedom of tilting movement than the inner hinges, and stops for determining the outward feathering movement of said buckets.

4. In a water wheel, the combination with an axle, and wheel frame mounted on said axle, of buckets or shutters supported on said frame by outer and inner hinges, the outer hinges of the buckets or shutters loosely connected to the frame allowing greater play and freedom of tilting movement than the inner hinges.

5. A water wheel comprising a rotatable axle having hubs thereon, a frame-compris ing sets of concentric rims and spokes arranged in pairs, the outer ends of which converge from the hubs to which they are secured, thence to opposite sides of the rims, rods extending through said spokes and rims for seeming the rims fast and holding them apart, and buckets or shutters hinged to the outer ends of said spokes in position to have their free ends supported by the corresponding parts of the intermediate spokes.

6. A water wheel composed of a rotatable axle, hubs thereon, concentric rims arranged in a plane midway between the hubs, spokes secured to the hubs, whence they converge to the rims to which latter they are secured, buckets or shutters, hinges therefor, the shanks of one section of said hinges each extending through and secured to two spokes and spacing blocks which are interposed between the spokes.

7. A water wheel composed of a rotatable axle, hubs thereon, concentric rims arranged in a plane midway between hubs, spokes secured to the hubs, whence they converge to the rims to which latter they are secured, buckets or shutters, hinges therefor, the shanks of one section of said hinges each extending through and secured to two spoke and spacing blocks which are interposed between the spokes, and rods extending transversely through the several spokes and rims.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS S. FLATAU. WVitnesses C. A. NEALE, VERNON E. Honors.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatcnts, Washington, D. G.

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