US2251133A

US2251133A - Flanking rudder

Info

Publication number: US2251133A
Application number: US251905A
Authority: US
Inventors: Herbert H Horstman
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1939-01-20
Filing date: 1939-01-20
Publication date: 1941-07-29
Anticipated expiration: 1958-07-29

Description

y 1941. H.-H. HORSTMAN 2,251,133

FLANKING RUDDER Filed Jan. 20, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented July 29, 1941 UNITE D: STATES. PATENT O FF ICE FLANKING RUDDER Herbert H. Horstman, Alton, Ill;

Application January 20, 1939, Serial N0. 251,905.

9 Claims.

The general object of this invention is to provide an improvement in the construction and operation of flanking rudders for tow boats which, in operation, will enable the boat to be accurately steered while it is being backed, to be turned at a sharper angle than is possible with-flanking rudders now used and, generally, will enable the boat to be turned in either direction while being backed, with facility, expedition and certainty, making it possible for the pilot to keep the boat under control at such times, even against extremely adverse winds, tides or currents.

The essential feature of the invention consists in having the flanking rudders off-set from the rudder posts in such-manner that in their normal, or parallel, position, or when turned at a slight angle, they will be in the slip stream produced by the propeller; and when turned at an angle of forty-five degrees, they will align themselves to form a single rudder double in length that of a single flanking rudder. When the rudders are in a parallel position, they act to stabilize the course of the boat owing to their location in the swift slip stream, which offers great resistance to lateral movement; when turned at a slight angle, but so as to be still positioned in the slip stream, they enable the boat to be turned to a corresponding extent in either direction with rapidity and certainty; and when turned into alignment to form a single flanking rudder, the slip stream will be diverted to one side and the rudder will oiTer to the water a large area of resistance, inclined to the median line of the boat at an angle of forty-five degrees, which will cause the stern of the boat to be turned to one side or the other rapidly and positively, so that flanking movements of the boat may be effected with certainty by the pilot, and the boat at the same time be kept under workable control, in practically all conditions of wind, tide, or current;

Where twin screw propellers are employed, it will be necessary to provide a pair of my improved flanking rudders for each propeller. In such tow boats, the under side of the over-hanging stern portion is usually provided with two semi-circular, longitudinal recesses to afford working spaces for the propellers, and the-tops of the flanking rudders necessarily move in a-plane slightly below these recesses, as otherwise they could only be turned at a slight angle, and in the case of my rudders they would be prevented fromturning into alignment by contact with the sides of the recesses. Such necessary positioning of the rudders, however, leaves large-spaces, formed by said recesses, above the respective sets of flanking rudders, through which the water may rush without encountering the resistance ofthe' rudders. To-overcome this disadvantage, an important feature of the invention, in. connection with twin-screw propellertow'boats', consists in providing a supplemental rudder for each pair of flanking rudders, located intermediate and above the same, and mounted in the corresponding propeller recess, these supplemental rudders being adapted to be operated simultaneously with the main flanking rudders by the same steering mechanism, and being of asize and shape as, whenturned at a sufiicient angle, to substantially obstruct the passage of water through the respective recesses in which they are located and thereby to supplement the action of the main flanking rudders in effecting'a flanking movement of the boat. a

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is'a view in side elevation of the stern portionof a tow boat provided with my improved flanking rudders Fig. 2 is aplan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4- is a view similar to-Fi'g. 3, but showing the flanking rudders turned into alignment to form a single rudder;

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan View of the parts shown in Fig. 1, the rudders being shown by full lines in their normalposition, that is, parallel tothe propeller shaft and to each other, and by dotted lines in the position they occupy when turned'to a'n'angle-of forty-five degrees to align with each other;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the stern portion of a' towboat having twin screw propellers and showing my improvedflanking rudders applied theret'o;,and'

Fig. 7 is a cross-section on the line 1'-l of Fig. 6 showing the supplemental; rudders I employ in. this type of tow boat.

Referring now to'the'drawings, the numeral I indicates the-hull of 'a tow boat and 2 the stern portion thereof which, as usual, is'recessed transversely 'andlongitudinally, as shown by Figs. 1 and. 3, to provide an" over-hang 3, in the space beneath the underside of" which are located the main rudder 4, thepropeller 'o'and propeller-shaft 6 and; in. the present case, my improved flanking rudders l. The reason-for'havingan overhanging stern is to permit therudders and propellers to be mounted under the stern above the plane. of the bottom of'theboat; so thatthese parts will be protected from injury by coming in contact with the bottom of the stream, or river, in which the boat is operating, or when the boat is passing over sand-bars. In order to mount my improved flanking rudders beneath the over-hanging stern 3, I rotatably mount in the stern at a suitable distance apart a pair of vertically-disposed rudder posts 8, which extend from-a point above the deck- 9 through the stem to a point below the under side thereof; beingmounteddn bearings l0;

as usual. Mounted on the lower end of each rudder post is an inwardly-extending arm, or support, I I, secured on the inner end of which is one of my flanking rudders 1, the rudders being se-' cured to the supports in a manner to be substantially centered thereon, and said supports, in general, extending inward at right-angles to the rudder posts and securing the flanking rudders in parallel relation to each other and, in their normal position, in parallel relation to the rudder shaft, as shown by Figs. 2 and 3. Each of the flanking rudders l is provided at its front and rear end with a central recess l2, which are to permit the rudders to clear the propeller shaft when they are turned into alignment, as will presently appear.

For turning the flanking rudders to effect a flanking movement of the boat, I secure on the upper end of each rudder post above the deck a lever-arm l3, Figs. 1 and 2, the outer ends of which are connected by an adjustable link It, centrally of which are secured the ends of steering cables i5, which run over pulleys 16 located at opposite sides of the stern and thence to drums (not shown), whereby they may be manipulated in the usual way to turn the flanking rudders simultaneously in one direction or the other.

From an inspection of Figs. 2 and 5, it will be seen that the flanking rudders l in their normal position are within the area of draft of the propeller, and accordingly will lie in the slip stream produced in operation by the propeller. They thus materially aid in stabilizing the position of the boat. But the principal advantage of my improved flanking propellers is that they enable the pilot to effect a rapid and positive flanking movement of the boat by converting the two rudders into a single rudder and thus presenting an inclined area of resistance to the water substantially double the size of a single rudder. To accomplish this, the lever-arms l3 are turned by the cables IS in one direction or the other through an arc of forty-five degrees and, as clearly shown by Fig. 5, this causes the outer end of one rudder to come in contact with and overlap the inner end of the other, at which point the rudders will align with each other to form a single rudder. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that a rudder of such increasedarea will effect a morerapid and positive turning of the stern than would be possible with two flanking rudders operating individually, as is the common practice. Furthermore, with the two flanking rudders aligned and positioned at an angle of forty-five degrees to the median line of the boat, this single rudder will extend across the slip stream produced by the propeller, causing it to be diverted to one side or the other, according to the inclination of the rudder, thus preventing the slip stream from passing under the boat and exerting a retarding action, and greatly adding to the rapidity with which the stern may be turned.

The main rudder 4 is positioned as usual at the stern of the boat, and operated in the usual manner by steering cables H, or otherwise, and no further reference to this rudder is necessary.

It should be stated that the steering mechanism I have illustrated has been adopted merely for simplicity of illustration, and modern methods of operating the rudders would of course be employed in practice.

I wish it also understood that my invention is not to be limited in application to flanking rudders, as it is obvious that the principle involved would be equally applicable to the main rudders of boats, especially boats of the stern wheel type.

Referring to Figs. 6 and 'I, when my invention is applied to a tow boat having twin screw propellers, a pair of my flanking rudders, l8 and [9, respectively, is positioned exactly in the manner previously described forward of each propeller, 20 and 2|, respectively, all of the lever-arms [3 being connected by a common link 22, which is operated by the steering cables I5 in the manner previously described, or by any other preferred means. However, as stated, this type of boat is usually constructed with two longitudinal,

semi-circular recesses

23, 24, respectively, on the under side of the stern, providing working spaces for the upper portion of the propellers, and as th tops of the flanking rudders must necessarily be located below these recesses in order that they may be turned through the desired angles, a relatively large space is left above the rudders when they are turned into alignment, through which the water may rush without meeting the resistance of the rudders. To overcome this disadvantage, I mount in the stern, between each pair of

rudder posts

25, 26, respectively, of the two sets of flanking rudders, an-

other rudder post 21, and on the lower end of each rudder post 21 I mount within the

respectiv recesses

23, 24, a supplemental rudder 28, which is of the shape of the recess and of such length and size that, when turned to an angle of forty-five degrees, it will substantially obstruct the passage of water through its recess. Each rudder post 21 is provided with a lever-arm 29 which is pivotally connected at its outer end to the link 22, so that all of the flanking rudders and supplemental rudders may be operated simultaneously. It will be seen that each supplemental rudder forms, in effect, an upward continuation in its recess of the flanking rudders, and when turned therewith to an angle of fortyfive degrees, it will lie substantially in the plane of and immediately over the flanking rudders and will therefore act to supplement the action of the latter.

While I have described the flanking rudders as being turned into alignment, I intend this word to have a wider range of meaning than its strict definition imports, in that it is not necessary that actual alignment, that is, contact with each other, of the rudders be effected, although such action is preferred. It will be apparent that the rudders operate on the principle of parallel rulers and are therefore always parallel to each other. Thus both rudders may be turned to an angle of forty-five degrees and their parallel relation be maintained; and while the outer end of one would overlap the inner end of the other, these overlapping ends need not be in contact, but a considerable space could be left between them without in any manner detrimentally affecting the action of the rudders as a single rudder.

I claim:

1. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an over-hanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller, a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on said steering posts and off-set therefrom inwardly to lie normally in parallel relation in the slip stream produced in operation by the propeller, and means for simultaneously turning said flanking rudders on their axes in either direction.

2. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an over-hanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller,

a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on said steering posts and off-set therefrom inwardly to lie normally in parallel relation in the slip stream produced in operation by propeller, and posiitoned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of forty-five degrees to the normal, said rudders will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder, and means for simultaneously operating said rudders.

3. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an over-hanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller, a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on said steering posts and oif-set therefrom inwardly to lie normally in parallel relation in the slip stream produced in operation by the propeller, and positioned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of forty-five degrees to the normal, said rudders will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder, with the outer end of one rudder overlapping the inner end of the other, and means for simultaneously operating said rudders.

4. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an over-hanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller, an arm projecting inward at right-angles from the bottom of each steering post, a flanking rudder mounted intermediate its ends on the inner end of each of said arms to lie normally in the slip stream produced in operation by the propeller and in parallel relation with the companion rudder, said rudders being positioned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of fortyfive degrees to the normal they will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder, with the outer end of one rudder overlapping the inner end of the other, and. means for simultaneously operating said rudders.

5. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an over-hanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller, an arm projecting inward at right-angles from the bottom of each steering post, a flanking rudder mounted intermediate its ends and sides on the inner end of each of said arms to lie normally in the slip stream produced in operation by the propeller and in parallel relation with the companion rudder, said rudders being positioned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of fortyflve degrees to the normal they will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder. with the outer end of one rudder over-lapping the inner end of the other, and means for simultaneously operating said rudders.

6. In combination with the propeller of a tow boat having an overhanging stern, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of the propeller, a shaft for the propeller extending centrally between said steering posts, a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on said steering posts and off-set inwardly therefrom toward said propeller shaft to lie normally in parallel relation therewith, each of said rudders being provided at each end with a recess in alignment with said propeller shaft, said rudders being positioned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of fortyfive degrees to the normal, they will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder, with the outer end of one rudder overlapping the inner end of the other and the recesses in such ends encircling the propeller shaft, and means for simultaneously operating said rudders.

7. In combination with a tow boat having twin screw propellers operating beneath an over-hanging stern provided with longitudinal, semi-circular recesses affording working spaces, respectively, for the upper portions of said propellers, a pair of steering posts mounted in and projecting below the bottom of the stern forward of each propeller, a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on the lower ends of each pair of said steering posts and ofi-set therefrom inwardly to lie normally in parallel relation directly forward of a propeller and within the area of draft thereof, the tops of said flanking rudders being located slightly below the open sides of said propeller recesses, a supplemental rudder for each pair of flanking rudders pivotally mounted in a propeller recess and operable simultaneously with the flanking rudders, the latter being positioned at such distance apart that when both are turned in one direction or the other to an angle of fortyfive degrees to the normal they will be brought into alignment to form a single rudder, and the supplemental rudder being of a size and shape and so positioned that when turned with the flanking rudders in either direction to an angle of forty-five degrees they will lie in the plane of and immediately over the single rudder formed by said flanking rudders and will substantially obstruct the passage of water through the recess in which it is located and supplement the action of the flanking rudders, and means for simultaneously turning both sets of flanking rudders and it;heir supplemental rudders in the same direcion.

8. In combination with a tow boat having a propeller and the under side of its stern providing a longitudinal space above the propeller, a pair of olT-set flanking rudders mounted directly forward of said propeller and in the area of draft thereof and adapted to be turned angularly into alignment to form a single rudder, a supplemental rudder mounted in said space above said flanking rudders and movable in unison therewith to form, substantially, an upward aligning continuation in said space of the single rudder provided by turning said flanking rudders into alignment, and means for simultaneously operating said flanking rudders and the supplemental rudder.

9. In combination with the propeller of a boat, a pair of steering posts mounted in and below the bottom of the stern forward of said propeller, a pair of flanking rudders mounted, respectively, on said steering posts and ofi-set therefrom inwardly to lie normally in parallel relation in the slipstream produced in operation by the propeller, and means for simultaneously turning said tflanking rudders on their axes in either direcion.

HERBERT H. HORSTMAN.