US1077563A - Airship. - Google Patents

Description

J. 0. SGHL'EICHER.

AIBSHIP. APPLIGATION FILED PEB.4, 1911.

Patented Nov. 4, 1913.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

J. c. SOHLBICHER.

AIRSHIP.

APPLICATION IILED FEBA, 1911.

Patented Nov. 4, 1913.

4 sann'rssnnm 2.

J. 0. SCHLEICHER.

AIRSHIP.

AIPLIOATION FILED 233.4, 1911.

Patented Nov. 4, 1913.

4 SHEETS-611E131. 4.

$5 Grim/14 213 TEZAJMW sTArns PAW OFFICE.

JDHN C(SCHLEIGHEB, OF MOUNT VERNON, NEW YORK.

a'msmr.

To all wiwm it may concern Be-it known that I,-Jo1m 0..SGHLE1GHIR,

a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Mount Vernon, inthe county of Westchesterand State of New York,-have invented certain new'and useful Improvements in Airships, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to air ships and particularly to air ships of the aeroplane type.

d An object of this invention is t'o'prod'uce men shi having novel-means for controlling its direction of travel, the said means .be'ingon the side of the center ofgravity and'eontrollable from the seatof the operator.

Furthermore an objectof this invention ia-to-provide, as a substitute for the rudder and' tail now commonly employed, novel I planes at the front and rear of the main planes, the said front and rear planes being tiltable to control the =altitude of the machine andha'vi'ng ndv'el means for operating 26 or =-manipulating the said planes.

' Furthermore, an object of the invention is-to'mount the front and rear planes in a novel manner'in order'that they will effect a-parachutedilre action on the descent of the 80 machine and upon their release by the controller.

Furthermore, an object of this invention is to :provide means for changingthe position ofthe o rotor with relation to the car 86 of the -machine,- thereby making it I ssible to accommodiite passengers and so pace the passengers and the operator as to equalize the weight ofthe occupants in order that the-oenter-of' avity will be properly positioned' with rtfiiition to the planes.

- A further object of this invention is --to provide in-an air shi means for guiding the same, the said guiding means being seated .on each-side of the longitudinal center and preferably well toward the ti of the planes, the said means being furt er eflective to depress the plane on one side of the car.

A further object of this invention is-t0 rovide novel means for forming-and bra'clug-the lanes and for producin resistance at theesges of the lanes whic will tend to right t e car or orce it to a horizontal position upon its movement sidewise as in.

the act of descendingwith the edges of the 55 planes at anacute angle.

With the foregoing and other ob ects 1n Specification of letters Patent. llpplioation filed February 4, 1911. Serial 110.8085.

Patented Nov. 4, 1913.

view, theinvention consists in the details of construction and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification wherein like characters denote correspondmg parts in the several views, and in which- Figure -1 illustrates a top-plan view of a flying machine, embodying the invention; Fig. 2 illustrates a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3 illustrates a. rear elevation view of the machine; Fi 4 illustrates a sectional view onthe line of Fig. 1; Fig 5 illustrates a diagrammatic view of the controller and means of operating the front and rear planes; Fig. 6 il ustrates a sectional view on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1; Fig. 7 illustrates a detail sectional view of the operators seat and its support and of the front and rear plane controlling wheels; and Fig. 8 illustrates a top lan view of the operators seat and the bearings for the controlling wheels.

Iii-these drawings 9 denotes a front truck and 10 a-rear truck on which a body or car 11 -iSIIl0l1Ill78d, the said body or car being here shown as in the form of a boat or pontoon. The main frame consists of sills 12, mounted on the body,-and posts 13 which extend upwardly from the said body and supports roof or cover 14 which is of curved formation transverselyand of such material as to form an aeroplane or supporting surface, the said roof having a series of transversely disposedribs 15 which tend to strengthen the structure.

The posts 13 have the frames 16 connected to them, the said frames extending outwardly and inclined upwardly toward the outer edges, the said frames having their lowerportions covered with approximately impervious material at 17. The frames are braced by the trusses 18 which trusses are connected to the frames 16 bymeans of the truss rods 19. Each frame 16 at its outer edge extends upwardly at an angle to the mean plane-0f the said frame 16, forming obliquely disposed planes 20 which offer resistance to the sidewisemovement of the machine and furthermore prove effective in preventing descent of the machine edgewise or sidewise upon tilting of the machine; in other words, the obllquely disposed frame tends to right the aeroplane or cause it to regain a horizontal position. As shown in the drawings, the planes on each frame 16 extend laterally from the posts 13, and it is on these lateral planes that 'the guiding mechanism is provided. By having the guiding mechanism at the sides instead of at the ends, the proper inclination of the air ship for the purpose of describing a sharp curve is attained and without forcing the said air ship to such an angle as would prove dangerous, the danger being obviated not onlv by reason of the fact that the weight is below the plane but by the presence of the obliquely disposed plane's 20, the functions of which have been stated.

The mechanism for guiding the air ship consists in the door frames 21 near the tips or outer edges of the lateral planes, the said door frames being mounted on pivotal pins 22 which are mounted in bearings 23 on the frame 16. The door frames 21 are covered with flexible material 24, which are hereinafter to ,be termed panels, and which are secured to the frame 21 for a portion of the length of the door from the front toward the rear thereof, but left free to move relative to the door at the rear end thereof, in order that said free ends 24' may be flexed or drawn forward or downward, so as to be acted on by the air. The door frames 21 are held normally alined with the frame 16 by means 'of the springs 25 which springs are anchored to the frame 16 and/bear against the door frames 21, on each si de of the pivot 22, thus the said springs ret rn the door to its normal position, after it has been swung on its pivot by means hereinafter described.

The free end 24 of the anel 24, which is hereinafter termed a rud er is engaged by springs 26, secured to the said frame 21 and tend to normally hold the said rudder 24 in alinement with the panel 24; but it is adapted to be moved or flexed with relation to the frame of the door as shown in Fig. 6, in which position it will offer resistance to the air and retard the end of the machine containing the manipulated rudder. The action of air on the flexible rudder will also have a tendency to raise or alternately depress the correspondin edge of the aeroplane and cause a quiet sharp turn of the machine when in flight.

As shown in Fig. 6, the door frames 21 which carry the panels 24 may be moved out of alinement with the frame 16 and there after the rudder 24 may be moved out of alinement with the frame 21, and by this means a greater efliciency is attained and speedy and effective action results.

Attention is directed particularly to the means for fastening the sheet material forming the planes to the frame, as is shown in Fig. 6, in which said material is applied to plane 17 between the ribs 27 and 28. I

have foundthat this arrangement affords a rigid construction which will withstand unusual strain.

One of the door frames 21 is moved m its pivot by a cable 29, extending through a guide 30 to a point within reach of the operator, and the other door frame 21 is moved on its pivot by the cable or flexible connection 31 operating through a guide 32. The guides 30 and 32 are. applied to the braces' 33 and 34 respectively, which extend 7 from the body to the frame 16 to points near the outer edges thereof. From an inspection of Fig. 8, it will be seen that by pulling on either of the flexible connections 29 or 31 the respective door 21 is moved downwardly at the rear end against the pressure of one of the springs 25 and that upon the cessation of the pull on the flexible connection, said springs 25 will return the door to its normal position.

The plane of each door frame is flexed through the medium of a ull on a flexible connection 35 which exten s through a suitable guide 18' on the trusses 18, and terminates near the operators seat 75, so that by a pull on one of the flexible connections 35 one of the planes of the door frame may be flexed as shown in Fig. 6, for the purpose of increasing or diminishing the resistance to the air which resistance will result in retarding one side of the machine and at the same time tipping it slightly, thus effecting a change indirection of the machine according to the length oftime that the resistance is maintained. It is to be understood that I may employ any proper means for holding and for manipulating the said flexible connections.

As a means for sustaining the machine and for directing the flight with respect to the altitude, the front and rear planes 36 and 37 respectively are provided, the said front planes 36 being of curved formation as shown in cross section, Fig. 4, the sheet 38 being secured between the ribs 40 and 39. A brace 41, is positioned on the plane substantially centrally thereof, and is also of curved formation, and is connected to the ribs 40 of the plane by the truss rods 42, the said truss rodsdifl'ering in length according to the distance between the ribs and the brace, the said brace extending above the plane of the ribs at the ends of the plane and. being connected to the upper portion 43 of an oblique plane 44, united with the plane 36. The obliquely disposed planes serve to prevent rapid sidewise movement of the plane and aid in maintaining the machine in horizontal position and under the contro"? of the operator.

The planes 36 and 37 are hinged to swing vertically in the direction of travel of the machine, and to that end brackets 45 and 54 respectively extend from the sills l2 and form planes 16. The plane 36 has a pivot 46 mounted in each bracket, by which the;

plane isivoted and tilt-ably mounted said brac ets. The plane 36 is pivotally 5 connected to the brackets at a point rear-' Wardly of the longitudinal center of, the said lane from the rear to the front there- 1 of, t us the rtion of the lane in front of the pivot 15 longer than t at portion of the frame in the rear thereof. The front plane, 36, is provided with two vertically disposed arms 47 which extend above the plane 36 and two arms 47 extended below the plane 36, the said arms having braces 48 connected to them and to the frame of the plane 36, whereby a rigid structure isits intermediate portion in engagement wit v to the frame of the machine in a manner a pulley 50 whereby rotation of the pulley actuates the ends of the arms to move them in opposite directions, thereb tilting the aeroplane according to the irection and degree of rotation of the pulley 50. One of the arms 47 and cables 40 are shown in Fig. 2, and it is to be understood that these parts are duplicated on the other side of the plane 36.- v

The rear plane 37 has arms 51 and 51' similar to the arms 47 and 47 and each arm is provided with a cable 52 and braces 53 similar in all respect to corresponding parts utilized on the front lane and they will not, therefore, be described in detail, except to say that the rear plane 37 is pivotally mounted on the arms 54 which are secured similar to that described in connection with the arm or bracket 45 except that its pivotal point is located forwardly tudinal center. By ivoting t e front plane 36 to the rear of its ongitudinal center, and pivoting the rear plane in front of its 1on gitudinal center, a safety device is provided 'as follows; viz. :-Should the cord or cable 49 break, or should the operator become faint or excited and lose control of the wheel 68; or should the ship, from any cause, suddenly start downward; the pressure of air under the planes would deflect the respective front and rear ends of the front and rear planes upward, and thereby impart a parac iute effect to the ship; the center of gravity of the ship and occupant being approximately midway between the pivots of said planes. The lower brackets 45 and 54 serve to limit the downward swing of the inner ends of the end planes, thus automatically stopping the movement of the planes on their pivots in one direction, and upon rapid descent of the aeroplane, the

of its longisaid,e nd planes will automatically assume an oppositely inclined. position to produce a parachuteeflect, The cable 52 has its intermediate portion applied to a drum or pulley 55 which is smaller than the drum or pulley 50. The cables 52- and 49 are so wound upon thedrums as to tilt the planes oppositely when under the control of'the operator. By providing the drum 50 of greater diameter than the drum 55, the front plane will be tilted at a greater angle than the rear plane; and by this means, while the air ship is capable of diving and rising with great. agility, it does so without too abruptly raising and lowering the rear of the car, where the operator is seated. The diagrammatic view, Fig. 5, will illustrate the arrangement of the pulleys and cables and will show the manner of oppositely tilting the said planes.

A motor 56 of any approved type may be mounted in the body 11, the said motor having a shaft 57' connected to the propeller shaft 58 by means of a sprocket chain 59,

although any approved means may be provided for driving the propeller shaft. The pro eller 60 is mounted on the shaft; but as t 1e propeller and the manner of driving it does not form a part of this invention, it will not be described in detail.

As a means for manually operatin the pulleys 50 and 55, I provide the standards 61 and 62 on the body, which standards areprovided with journal bearings 63 and 64. A sleeve or hollow shaft 65 is jour naled in the bearings and the pulleys 50 and 55 are secured to rotate with the said sleeve. The sleeve has an opening therein which is angular in cross section designed to,'re-- ceive the handle bar 66 which corresponds the contour of the openingin in shape to the sleeve, the handle bar being slidable in the sleeve and being limited in its move-' ment therein by the stop .pin 67. The handle bar is rovided with a wheel 68 for the purpose 0 turning the said bar, and as the said bar is slidable in the sleeve, the position of the operator may be changed with respect to the standards 61 and 62 and the handle bar may be moved in the bearings so that the wheel 68 may be within convenient reach of the operator.

The body 11 has a runway 69 therein provided with a rack 70, which rack engages a gear wheel 71 mounted in a bracket 72 which is secured to the seat board 73, the said seat board being movable longitudinally of the body. under the influence of the gear wheel 71 which engages the rack 70. The shaft 71, on which the wheel 71 is mounted, is provided with an operating handle 74 by which said gear wheel is turned for the purpose of causing the travel of the gear wheel, along the rack. An operators seat 7 5 is establhed onthe seat board and by the movement of the seat board, the position of the operator with relation to the standards 61 and 62 will be controlled. Thus if a passenger is to be taken and it is desired to shift the position of the operator to equalize the weight of the passenger and the weight of the operator, the operators seat may be moved to proper position" and the handle bar may be moved in the sleeve sothat the operating wheel 68 is. within convenient reach of the operator; and the purpose of the movable seat for the operator is to permit him to readily change his position toward the front or rear of the car, as the shifting of his weight will be of material assistance in controlling the flight of the air ship.

I claim- 1. In a flying machine, an aeroplane having a curved frame, a curved brace extending below portions of the frame and havmeans for holding the said flexible planes in mg its ends connected to the frame at the edges thereof, rods connecting the frame and braces, double ribs-held by the frame and a. plane secured between the ribs.

2. In a flying machine, a frame, laterally disposed planes, doors pivotally mounted in the planes, a flexible plane comprising a portion of each door, means for flexing the said flexible planes of the doors and alinement with the doors.

3. In-a flying machine, a frame, laterally disposed planes pivotally supported by the frame, each of said planes having an opening therein, a door frame supported in each of the planes, a panel on each frame, each of the panels having a flexible end portion, means for moving the door frames, and means for operating the flexible end portions.

4. In a flying machine, a frame, laterally disposed plane's, a rectangular opening in each of said planes, door frames pivotally mounted intermediate their len he in said planes, a panel on each of said rames, each of the panels having a flexible end portion,

means for operating the flexible end porbeing rearwardly of the longitudinal center thereof, the axis of the other of the second mentioned planes ,being forwardly of the longitudinal center, means for connecting the second mentioned planes whereby the movement of one plane will be communicated to the other plane, and means independent of the plane actuating mechanism for limiting the swinging movement of the planes.

6. In a flying machine, a plane, a steering plane forwardly of the first mentioned plane, a second steering plane rearwardly of the first mentioned plane, means for pivotally mounting the second mentioned plane rearwardly of its longitudinal center, means for mounting the third mentioned plane horizontally forwardly of its longitudinal center, means whereby the movement of one steering plane is communicated to the other steering plane, and means independent of the plane actuating mechanism for limiting the swinging movement of the planes.

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

JOHN .C. SCHLEICHER.

Witnesses:

LATIIE E. BARKLEY, HELEN N. RAMSEY.

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