US888053A - Apparatus for propelling vessels. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTED MAY 19,- 1908.

A". AHLBREGHT. APPARATUS POR PRQPELLING VESSEL-s. APPLICATION FALBD DEO. 29,1906. RENEWED APB. 13, .1908.

THE NcRRls PETERS coA, wAsmNaroN, b. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

APPARATUS FOR PROPELLING VESSELS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 19, 1908.

Application filed December 29, 1906, Serial No. 349,977. Renewed April 13, 1908. Serial No. 426,752.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, AUGUST AHLBRECHT, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in an Apparatus for Propelling Vessels; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to 'an improved apparatus for propelling vessels, such as ships, boats, tc., and it consists in a propeller blade, or a series of propeller blades, each of which is capable of being brought to a horizontal or vertical position and to be moved in such vertical position a limited distance and upon the return brought to an approximately horizontal position, and the invention further consists in a means for relieving the back pressure on said propeller blades, and it further consists in the certain details of construction and combination of parts, as willbe fully described hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings-Figure 1 is a side sectional elevation of my improved apparatus for propelling vessels, the same being constructed and arranged in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is an end sectional elevation of the same, said section being taken on the line X, X of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of a portion of the frame, showing the location of the sliding rods which operate the propeller to adjust its position. Fig. 4 is a detailed side elevation, partly in section, of the lever for operating the sliding head. Fig. 5 is a face view of the same.

To put my invention into practice, and thereby provide an apparatus for propelling vessels, such as ships, boats, &c., I form from cast metal, a frame 1, of a suitable size and form of construction, said frame to be either arranged in the bottom ofthe vessel or at one side thereof. Arranged within the frame 1, near one end, are parallel slides 2, in which a moving slidable head 3 is operated, said head capable of a limited horizontal movement and connected by a bar 4, to a pivoted lever 5, said lever deriving its motion from a crank 7, forming a part of a counter-shaft 8, the said shaft being fitted with sprockets 9, connected by a chain belt 10 to another sprocket 11, mounted on a drive-shaft 12, which may be propelled by any desired motor. Attached to the bottom of the slidable head 3, are two quadrants 13, arranged parallel, the one with the other, and each being formed on their inner periphery with a rack, adapted to engage with and operate toothed wheels 15, for the purpose of changing the position of the propeller blade 14, as will be fully described hereinafter.

Attached to the drive shaft 12, and rotated thereby, is a disk 35, having a deep eccentric groove 36 formed in one of its faces. Operating in this eccentric groove 36 are two rollers 37, arranged in slots 38 formed in the lower end of a pivoted lever 34, the said lever being connected by a link 33, to a horizontally moving bar 30, which is arranged in slides 31 located on the top of the frame 1. This sliding bar 30 is connected to bellcranks 28, by links 29, and the free or other ends of said cranks connected by links 27 to a horizontally-disposed bar 26, which bar is mounted between guides 32, which will permit the said bar to be lifted vertically a short distance.

disposed bar 26, or bars, are downwardly extending bars 25, which extend through the sliding head 3, and are connected by links 24 to bell-cranks 23. From the other ends of these last mentioned bell-cranks 23, connecting links are led to and connected by links 22 to projections 21, arranged on one side of the propeller blade 14. This propeller blade 14 comprises a flat rectangular body, which is hinged to the up er portion of the quadrants 13, and is capab e of occupying an approximately horizontal or.perpendicular position. Mounted in bearings on the forward side of the propeller 14 are two shafts 15, and 15, the one shaft parallel to the other, and the upper shaft 15 carrying the above described toothed wheels 16 which operate in the quadrant racks. Each of these shafts 15, 15 is fitted withsmall pinions 19, which are in mesh with a rack bar 17, mounted in slides 18, in such manner that the rotatable movement of the one shaft 15 will be transmitted to the other 15. At either side of the rack bar 17 are openings through the propeller 14, said openings being fitted wit covers 20 hinge-d to the shafts 15, 15', said covers being Loosely connected to this horizontally- I adapted to close said openings when the propeller is moved rearward in the direction indicated by the arrows on Fig. 1.

In operation, the drive-shaft 12 is rotated by any suitable motor, which motion is transmitted bythe eccentric grooved wheel and lever connections to the cranks 28, which will elevate the horizontal-disposed bars 26, thereby 0 erating the bell-cranks 23 to move the prope er blade 14 about its hinged connection to a vertical position. During this movement of the propeller blade 14 the rear wheels 16 are rotated by the quadrant rack 13 to revolve the covers 20 and close the openings through said propeller blade. When t e propeller b ade has been brought to this vertical position, the pivoted lever 5 operates to move the sliding head 3, carrying the propeller rearward to the limit of said slidable movement, thereby ropelling the vessel forward. Upon the bac rward stroke of the propeller blade 14, the pinions 16 operate to open the covers 20, and offer little resistance to the water.

This apparatus, above described, may be arranged either on the bottom of vessels or boats, in the latter case, two propellers would be used, the one on either side of the boat.

Various slight modiiications and changes ma be made in the details of construction wit out departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore l do not wish to confine myself to the eXact construction, shown and described, but wish to claim all such modified forms, as would come properly, within the general scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

An apparatus for propelling vessels or boats, comprising a sliding head, means for operating the same, vertically-moving bars carried by said head, means consisting of an eccentric-grooved wheel and connecting levers for operating said vertically-moving bars, a propeller blade hinged in position on the boat or vessel and operated to occupy an approximately horizontal position at the starting point, a vertical position, and to be carried horizontally by said moving head and vertically-moving bars operating' therein, openings iitted with hinged covers, in said propeller and means operated by the movement of said propeller to open and close said hinged covers, as and for the purpose described.

ln testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

AUGUST AHLBRECHT.

Witnesses WM. G. WALTER, I. A. GRAY.

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