US2341577A - Airship - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 15, 1944.. J. D. STEWART AIRSHIP Filed May 6, 1942 3 SheetsSheet 1 J. D. STEWART AIRSHIP Filed May 6, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 F0 15, 1944 6 J. D. STEWART AIRSHIP Filer; May 6, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Feb. 15, 1944 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE...

AIRSHIP I John D. Stewart, Teton, Idaho Application May 6, 1942,: Serial No. 441,951

1 Claim."- (01. 244-27) This inventionrelates to airships; aeroplanes andsimilar devices, and has for the primary object the provision of a device of this" character which will have a maximumamount of carrying capacity, stability, durability and maneuverability and which may be economically manufactured and maintained in operation over long periods of time.

Another object of. this-invention is the provision' of a rigid body'de'si-gn'ed toprovide durability, stability and maximum carryingcapacity and for travel in either direction of its longitudinal axis with a minimum amount'of air resistance.

A further object of this invention: is the provision of power driven rotary wings for the body which will act to'sustain the body inflight and for theascent and descent thereof in a substantially vertical plane and for the propulsion of said body forwardly and rearwardly; and also may be employed as brakes for checking or retarding the flight of the body.

With these and other objects inview as will become more apparentas the description proceeds, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

For a complete understanding of my invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation illustrating an airship or similar device constructed in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view illustrating the device.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view illustrating the rotary wings and the power drive at corresponding ends thereof.

Figure 4. is a transverse sectional View illustrating the direction of rotation of the wings.

Figure 5 is a side elevation illustrating one of the wings with power applied to one end thereof.

Figure 6- is a view similar to Figure 5 illustrating the application of power to the opposite end of the wing.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral 5 indicates an elongated rigid body of substantially cigar shape having conical shaped ends.

6 to permit said body when in flight to move horizontally and in opposite directions with a minimum amount of air resistance. The end portions 6 of the body are provided with windows I, doors 8 and fins 9 on opposite sides thereof and secured to shafts 10 provided with controls ll whereby'said finsmay be caused to assume varioustpositions for the purpose of steering the body while in flight. Anysuitable control may be provided for the 'fins whereby they'may be independently adjusted into their various positions andalso permit the flnsat one end of the body to be oppositely operated for the purpose Ofsteering the body'to the right or left. The control for the fins as before stated, may be of any, well known construction and located in eitherend or both ends in order that the-pilot may steer the bodyin flight from whichever end is the advance end of the body when in flight.

Depending diverging struts I2 are secured to the lower ,wall' of the'body, and have attached thereto elongated skis I3 provided with upturned ends I4 on'which the body may rest While onthe ground'and will permitthe body to move longitudinally on the ground in opposite directions with'a minimum amount of ease.

A stabilizing fin I5 is secured" to the top wall of the bodyand extends longitudinally'thereoi to assist in sustaining the body stabilized while It will be seen that a body of thesconstructi-on and shape described: will provide a maximum amount of carrying capacity and will be capable of flight in either direction with a minimum amount of air resistance.

Opposite sides of the body between the end portions are shaped to form elongated longitudinally extending wells'or channel IS in which partly operate power driven rotary wings I! each including an elongated hub formation [8 and radially extending flexible blades l9 each curved. The hub portions l8 of the wings are secured on shaft-s 20 of tubular formation journaled on elongated rods or bars 2| suitably secured in bearings 22 carried by the side walls of the body 5 at the ends of the wells or channels I6. Opposite ends of the shafts 20 are geared to shafts 23 journaled transversely of the body. A drive shaft 24 is geared to one of the shafts 23 and a drive shaft 25 isgearedto the other shaft 23. The shafts 24 and, 25 are equipped with clutches 26 for connecting and disconnecting said power shafts to a prime mover 2'! arranged in the body. The control for the clutches 26 is indicated generally by the character 28. The control 28 may be of any conventional construction and the purpose thereof is to engage and disengage either of the clutches 26 whereby the drive shafts 24 and 25 may be either driven by the prime mover separately o-r simultaneously. This arrangement will permit power to be delivered to both ends of the rotary wings simultaneously or to either end.

The control 28 for the clutches may be operated from either end portion of the body.

The drive mechanism of the rotary wines from the prime mover as described, will rotate the wings in opposite directions as indicated by the arrows in Figure 4 and when power is applied to both ends of the wings simultaneously said wings act to sustain the body in flight with a maximum amount of lifting power.

During the application of power to bothends of the wings, the blades thereof sustain their normal shape and curvature, as shown in Figure 4;,

in order that the blades may produce a maximum lifting power. With the wings rotated as specified, the body may be caused to ascend in a substantially vertical plane and its elevation controlled or governed by the speed of rotation of the wings. When the wings rotate in the direction indicated in Figure 4 by th arrows, the blades when outwardly of the walls or channels will have action upon the air so as to provide a maximum amount ,of lift to the body and when operating within the wells or channels will have the air restricted thereto so that said blades when within the channels or wells will only offer a minimum action to the body in a downward direction.

When power is applied to one or the other of the ends of the wings, the blades thereof actin against the air will be caused to each take on a twist or spiral pitch increasing the traction of the blade in the air to propel the body longitudinally in a selected direction within a horizontal plane so as to cause the body to travel horizontally while in flight at a maximum rate of speed.

It will be apparent that by being able to apply power to either end of the wings, will permit the driving of the body while in flight horizontally in either direction. Also while the body is in flight and traveling horizontally a reverse application of power to the end of the wings will bring The twist or spiral pitch taken on by the blades of the wings by application of power to one or the other of the ends of said wings is clearly illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 of the ofiicial drawings.

By referring to Figure 1 it will be seen that the fins 9 are secured to the shafts l closer to one end than the opposite end and that the shafts are journaled in the end portions of the body so that said fins may be tilted upwardly and downwardly. Further, it will be noted in Figure 1 that the gear housings 30 are shaped to reduce air resistance by being set within recesses provided in the sides of the body with the outer walls of said housings taking on a curvature corresponding to the walls of the body. It will also be seen in Figures 1 and 3 that the ends of the blades of the rotary wings are rounded and that each blade is of elongated formation in order that it may have a maximum amount of action upon about a braking or checking action of the longithe air.

While I have shown and described the preferred "embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that minor changes in construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is:

In an airship, a rigid elongated body having wells in opposite sides thereof, rotary wings extending generally lengthwise of the wells and ,iournaled on said body at opposite sides thereof for movement partly within and partly out of the well and each including a plurality of radially extending elongated flexible blades each having an arcuate curvature extending transversely thereof, a power medium in said body, and means for'delivering power to the ends of the wings simultaneously and whereby power may be delivered to either end of said wings to bring about flexing of the blades in combination with the air resistance thereagainst to cause said blades to assume a spiral pitch for the propulsion of the body longitudinally in either direction.

JOHN D. STEWART.

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