Motion About Parallel Axes Patents (Class 416/111)
  • Patent number: 6065935
    Abstract: The invention provides for a cycloidal propeller, in strictly rudder operation, accessory apparatuses that mesh with a gear drive connected to a shaft of the respective wing. The invention accomplishes relatively small actuation movements of the accessory apparatuses, sufficient to achieve a large pivoting movement of the wings, so that the wings can be adjusted over large angles without impediment. Therefore, wings having normal profiles may be utilized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2000
    Assignee: Voith Hydro GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Herbert Perfahl
  • Patent number: 6007021
    Abstract: A flying apparatus has a body; power means; and lifting force generating units, the lifting force generating units being arranged parallel to a plane of symmetry of the body and turnable in a vertical plane, each of the lifting force generating units is formed as a rotor including a plurality of aerodynamic blades arranged uniformly on a disk and at equal distances from an axis of rotation so as to be turnable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 28, 1999
    Inventor: Mikhail Tsepenyuk
  • Patent number: 5993157
    Abstract: A cycloidal propeller to achieve strictly a rudder operation includes accessory apparatuses containing accessory drives. Clutches are used to couple the accessory drives to the propeller shafts, and additional clutches are provided to disengage the fixed connection of the normal propeller mechanism to the wing shafts in cruising operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 1997
    Date of Patent: November 30, 1999
    Assignee: Voith Hydro GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Herbert Perfahl
  • Patent number: 5971320
    Abstract: A model helicopter creates lift using rotor propellers mounted to the rotor arms of a gyroscopic rotor assembly. A controller converts front-back, and left-right inputs into speed control signals used to vary the speeds of the rotor propellers at selected positions of the rotor assembly as it rotates. The varying speed of the rotor propellers at selected rotor positions produces thrust vectors at those positions. The resultant thrust vector determines the direction of the helicopter's flight and enables it to pitch and roll in response to the front-back and left-right inputs. The rotor assembly can have two or more rotor arms, each with a propeller. The helicopter provides left-right yaw control with a yaw propeller on the helicopter body. Electric motors, or motors using other conventional power and speed control methods, can be used to drive the rotor and yaw propellers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 26, 1999
    Inventors: Phillip Matthew Jermyn, Steven Martin Davis
  • Patent number: 5876181
    Abstract: The described wind turbine has a set of propeller type wind force collecting rotor turbines which is comprised of an up-wind auxiliary rotor blade turbine, being disposed on the front end of the combined bevel-planet gear assembly, and a down-wind main rotor blade turbine together with attached extender having twice the radius of the auxiliary rotor turbine. These rotor blades rotate in opposite directions with respect to one another, and the extender enables the main turbine to be activated by normal wind speed without aerodynamic wake turbulence effects created by the movement of the auxiliary rotor blade. The super-large scale, integrated, multi-unit rotor blade wind turbine has four sets of wind force collecting rotor blade turbines composed of an auxiliary up-wind rotor turbine and three down-wind rotor turbine units evenly spaced around a central pivotal rotor hub on extenders which arc the same length as the radius of the auxiliary turbine blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1999
    Inventor: Chan Shin
  • Patent number: 5844323
    Abstract: In the rotatable wheel having several radiate skeletons, some auxiliary axles are mounted on each radiate skeleton and provided at the lateral of a limb of the radiate skeleton to the direction opposite to that of external forces; a movable blade or a force accepting assembly accompanied with two movable blades is connected to an auxiliary axle, they contact one extension portion of radiate skeleton when subjected to a force to be folded inwardly and contact another extension portion when subjected to a force to be folded outwardly; the pushing forces from all directions, except that the force exerted on the movable blades is applied along the auxiliary axle, can be turned into forces to drive the rotating axle, this can be used to develope wind power, kinetic energy of liquid flow such as tide, or rapid water flow etc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 1996
    Date of Patent: December 1, 1998
    Inventor: Ming-Tung Hung
  • Patent number: 5676524
    Abstract: A turbine has an upright shaft defining and rotatable about a vertical main axis, a support plate fixed to the shaft, a plurality of upright vanes pivotal on the support plate about respective vane axes offset from and generally parallel to the main axis, and a control plate rotatable adjacent the support plate about a vertical control axis. The control plate can be displaced relative to the support plate in an adjustment direction perpendicular to the axes. Respective formations on the vanes form grooves extending radially of the respective vane axes and open toward the control plate and respective link pins on the control plate are engaged in the grooves. Respective ring gears are provided on the control and main plates, centered on the respective axes, of the same diameter, and directed toward each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 7, 1996
    Date of Patent: October 14, 1997
    Inventor: Peter Lukas
  • Patent number: 5462406
    Abstract: The present invention provides an offset control mechanism and a variable blade-pitch mechanical kinematic system for cycloidal propellers. This is achieved by the concentric positioning of the drive shaft, the variable offset circular guide track, the eccentric X-Y slide plates, the propeller hub and the variable blade-pitch kinematic linkages, all about the axis of propeller rotation. The control actuation system is free-flooded in water and non-rotating, yet in close proximity to the rotating propeller hub. The pitch of each propeller blade is cyclically varied by the kinematic levers on each blade following a circular guide track during each revolution. Additionally, the circlar track swivel guide in the blade lever kinematics can also lever a trailing blade-flap to provide additional cyclic propeller lift in the direction of motion. The propeller improvements include a low-drag propeller hub and a variable-pitch blade ground plane ring about the ends of the blades.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 1993
    Date of Patent: October 31, 1995
    Assignee: Vitron Systems Inc.
    Inventors: Barry A. Ridgewell, Miles Fenton
  • Patent number: 5326344
    Abstract: The impellor of a blood pump is supported by permanent magnets on the impellor and pump housing and stabilized by an electromagnet on the housing. A control circuit supplies current to the electromagnet to maintain the axial position of the impellor at a control position in which the impellor is in mechanical equilibrium under permanent magnet forces and static axial forces on the impellor to minimize energy consumption in the support of the impellor. The impellor is rotated magnetically and stator coils in the housing are supplied with electric currents having a frequency and amplitude adjusted in relation to blood pressure at the pump inlet to match the flow characteristics of the pump to physiological characteristics of the natural heart. A cavity is formed in the impellor to match the average specific gravity of the impellor and portions of the suspension and drive systems thereon to the specific gravity of blood to further minimize power consumption by the pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 1992
    Date of Patent: July 5, 1994
    Assignee: Life Extenders Corporation
    Inventors: Gunter W. Bramm, Don B. Olsen
  • Patent number: 5297933
    Abstract: This invention is a paddlewheel apparatus having an epicyclic gear train in a rotatable holder at an end of a plurality of cantilevered paddles. The paddles are maintained substantially vertical throughout the rotation of the holder and they are completely unobstructed by any other part of the apparatus in all phases of operation. A housing which extends over the holder and the paddles is open at the bottom to pass the downwardly hanging paddles into the water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 29, 1994
    Inventor: Bruce S. Morgan
  • Patent number: 5195872
    Abstract: This invention is a paddlewheel apparatus having epicyclic gear trains in rotatable holders at opposite ends of a plurality of paddles. The paddles are maintained substantially vertical throughout the rotation of the holders and they are completely unobstructed by any other part of the apparatus in all phases of operation. A housing which extends over the holders and the paddles is open at the bottom to pass the downwardly hanging paddles into the water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1993
    Inventor: Bruce S. Morgan
  • Patent number: 5082423
    Abstract: This invention is a paddlewheel apparatus having epicyclic gear trains in rotatable holders at opposite ends of a plurality of paddles. The paddles are maintained substantially vertical throughout the rotation of the holders and they are completely unobstructed by any other part of the apparatus in all phases of operation. A housing which extends over the holders and the paddles is open at the bottom to pass the downwardly hanging paddles into the water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 1990
    Date of Patent: January 21, 1992
    Inventor: Bruce S. Morgan
  • Patent number: 5078741
    Abstract: The impellor of a blood pump is supported by permanent magnets on the impellor and pump housing and stabilized by an electromagnet on the housing. A control circuit supplies current to the electromagnet to maintain the axial position of the impellor at a control position in which the impellor is in mechanical equilibrium under permanent magnet forces and static axial forces on the impellor to minimize energy consumption in the support of the impellor. The impellor is rotated magnetically and stator coils in the housing are supplied with electric currents having a frequency and amplitude adjusted in relation to blood pressure at the pump inlet to match the flow characteristics of the pump to physiological characteristics of the natural heart. A cavity is formed in the impellor to match the average specific gravity of the impellor and portions of the suspension and drive systems thereon to the specific gravity of blood to further minimize power consumption by the pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 1990
    Date of Patent: January 7, 1992
    Assignee: Life Extenders Corporation
    Inventors: Gunter W. Bramm, Don B. Olsen
  • Patent number: 4979871
    Abstract: An improved vertical axis wind turbine is disclosed. The wind turbine in accordance with one embodiment, does not include a support tower but instead includes a bearing support for mounting a torque tube rotatably connected to blades, the bearing support being secured to ground by a plurality of guy cables. The torque tube may comprise a plurality of tube sections including an intermediate bearing and additional guy cables for supporting the torque tube to the ground in a vertical orientation. In another embodiment of the present invention, control means are disclosed for independently controlling the pitch of respective wind turbine blades in response to relative wind direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1989
    Date of Patent: December 25, 1990
    Inventor: Harold E. Reiner
  • Patent number: 4944748
    Abstract: The impellor of a blood pump is supported by permanent magnets on the impellor and pump housing and stabilized by an electromagnet on the housing. A control circuit supplies current to the electromagnet to maintain the axial position of the impellor at a control position in which the impellor is in mechanical equilibrium under permanent magnet forces and static axial forces on the impellor to minimize energy consumption in the support of the impellor. The impellor is rotated magnetically and stator coils in the housing are supplied with electric currents having a frequency and amplitude adjusted in relation to blood pressure at the pump inlet to match the flow characteristics of the pump to physiological characteristics of the natural heart. A cavity is formed in the impellor to match the average specific gravity of the impellor and portions of the suspension and drive systems thereon to the specific gravity of blood to further minimize power consumption by the pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 1988
    Date of Patent: July 31, 1990
    Inventors: Gunter W. Bramm, Don B. Olsen
  • Patent number: 4482110
    Abstract: A composite aircraft comprising a system of airfoils rotating about a horizontal axis providing lift and thrust in combination with a lighter-than-air gas containment bag providing bouyant lift; said aircraft being capable of lifting and transporting a load.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 1980
    Date of Patent: November 13, 1984
    Assignee: International Cyclo-Crane Licensing, A Virginia Partnership
    Inventor: Arthur G. Crimmins, Jr.
  • Patent number: 4424002
    Abstract: A device for conversion between flow and rotation includes a fixed revolution center shaft integrally provided with a center sprocket, at least one vane having a self-rotation shaft and turnable about the revolution center shaft and on the self-rotation shaft, a vane sprocket fixed to the self-rotation shaft and having twice as many teeth as the center sprocket, and a chain connecting the two sprockets, whereby the vane rotates through 180.degree. on the self-rotation shaft while it revolves around the revolution center shaft through 360.degree.. The device, even if made comparatively small in size, can efficiently convert energy of a flow to rotational energy or vice versa since the orientation of the vane or vanes is continuously varied to enhance the efficiency. Thanks to the self-rotation of vane, the device has an additional advantage that foreign substances, such as string, rope and straw, are automatically removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 1981
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1984
    Inventor: Osamu Nishiyama
  • Patent number: 4382199
    Abstract: A hydrodynamic bearing system for a motor. The motor is illustrated and described as driving a pump for an artificial heart. The motor stator has a cylindrical bore which is closed at one end. The rotor is slidable and rotatable in the bore. The rotor has affixed to its shaft an impeller with its outside diameter concentric to the rotor outside diameter. Both rotor and impeller are supported hydrodynamically such that the tendency is for the entire rotor/impeller assembly (the only moving element) to be completely suspended by fluid. The rotor can be rapidly reversed to provide heart pumping action or can be driven unidirectionally for artificial heart pumping action of another type. The fluid cannot easily escape from the closed end of the stator, thereby providing a dashpot effect which tends to keep the rotor from changing position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 1980
    Date of Patent: May 3, 1983
    Assignee: Nu-Tech Industries, Inc.
    Inventor: Milton S. Isaacson
  • Patent number: 4380417
    Abstract: An installation for extracting useful work, such as driving an electric generator from a fluid stream, includes a platform rotatable about a central axis and supporting a plurality of blades or vanes, each of which is rotatable about its individual blade axis to vary the angle of attack between the blades and the fluid stream during each revolution of the platform. The blades are coupled together so that each blade executes a similar motion during each platform revolution and so that the angle of attack of the fluid stream relative to a given blade is substantially zero when the fluid stream direction is perpendicular to the plane including the central platform axis and the axis of the given blade, the amount of variation in blade angle of attack during each revolution is variable to compensate for variations in the fluid flow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 1980
    Date of Patent: April 19, 1983
    Assignee: J. M. Voith GmbH
    Inventor: Werner Fork
  • Patent number: 4286923
    Abstract: An overload protection device for the drive engine of a propeller, wherein the pitch of the propeller blades may be adjusted: A servomotor with a piston therein and the servomotor being controlled by a control valve which is adjustable by an adjustment lever. The piston of the servomotor is connected via a push rod to the control station of the propeller. An adjustment device is associated with the control valve for adjusting the control valve in a direction to reduce the pitch thereof when drive engine overload occurs. A signal from the drive engine passes through a converter which magnifies it. The magnitude of the signal, as converted, is proportional to the loading of the drive engine. A reversing valve, controlled by the position of the control piston of the servomotor, operates a double acting piston connected with the operating rod of the control valve. Depending upon the shifting of the operating piston of the control valve, the servomotor is operated to adjust the pitch of the propeller blades.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 1978
    Date of Patent: September 1, 1981
    Assignee: J. M. Voith GmbH
    Inventor: Harald Gross
  • Patent number: 4225286
    Abstract: A device for generating a thrust in a liquid utilizing rotating cylinders. The cylinders are mounted on a rotatable hub and rotate about their own axes relative to the hub. The relative rotation follows, preferably, a sinusoidal path for producing the thrust, and in particular, each cylinder undergoes a reversal in its direction of rotation after each half rotation of the hub. A common control bar is included which is connected to each cylinder and eccentrically with respect to the axis of rotation of the hub so that the points of reversal and the direction of thrust can be adjusted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 1978
    Date of Patent: September 30, 1980
    Assignee: J. M. Voith GmbH
    Inventor: Werner Fork
  • Patent number: 4210299
    Abstract: A propulsive lifting rotor for an aircraft comprises two wings pivotally mounted about axes parallel to their leading edges. The wings (rotary airfoils) are located at respective sides of a plane at right angles to the rotor axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1977
    Date of Patent: July 1, 1980
    Inventor: Marcel Chabonat
  • Patent number: 4194707
    Abstract: A lift augmenting device to provide a vertical take-off capability in aircraft which includes a pair of rotor assemblies with independently individually pivoted rotor vanes so that the attitude of the vanes can be changed at different positions along the circumferential rotational path of the vanes as they rotate with the rotor assemblies to pump air therethrough and selectively generate lift on the aircraft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 1977
    Date of Patent: March 25, 1980
    Inventor: Thomas H. Sharpe
  • Patent number: 4168439
    Abstract: The following specification discloses an improvement in vertical axis wind machines having upstanding blades. The blades are attached to a rotatable ring which support the blades at an angle of forty five degrees to the horizontal plane of the ring. Associated with the wind machine is a wind velocity sensing device producing electrical signals responsive to the wind velocity. Means is provided the blades attached to the ring to adjust the angle of attack of the blades in response to the magnitude of the signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 1977
    Date of Patent: September 18, 1979
    Inventor: F. Neto Palma
  • Patent number: 4151424
    Abstract: Improved apparatus for withdrawing useful energy from a fluent medium, the apparatus comprising supports with tension members spanning the distance between them, foils distributed along the tension member spans, and circular members capable of rotating freely with the tension members, power being taken off the apparatus through fewer than all of the circular members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 1977
    Date of Patent: April 24, 1979
    Inventor: David Z. Bailey
  • Patent number: 4129787
    Abstract: A free standing, vertical axis rotor employs both fixed and pivoted airfoil blades assembled on a triangular rotor frame. The angle of attack of the pivoted blades is controlled with reference to the prevailing winds. The rotar base terminates on a ring shaped tower mounted on guiding wheels disposed in a circular pattern on pillars. The revolving ring shaped base forms the armature of an energy converter by electromagnetic induction allowing thereby the conversion of rotary motion to electric energy at ground level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 1977
    Date of Patent: December 12, 1978
    Inventor: Florencio N. Palma
  • Patent number: 4105363
    Abstract: This invention is an overspeed control arrangement for vertical axis wind turbines employing normally vertically positioned rotor blades, said control arrangement allows the rotor blades to tilt either forward or backwards to form a swept wing configuration, at wind turbine speeds beyond the design rpm. When the rotor blade is in a highly swept wing configuration its high drag and low lift reduces the turbine rotor torque to zero and eliminates excessive overspeeding and structural damage. The rotor blade can tilt about a radial or nearly so, tilt-support arm, mounted on a concentric bearing, the tilting starts at the feathering design rpm which is controlled by the geometric position of the combined center of gravity of both rotor blade and tilt-support arm. The control arrangement is automatic and passive and does not require the use of springs, pulleys or levers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 1976
    Date of Patent: August 8, 1978
    Inventor: John L. Loth
  • Patent number: 4097190
    Abstract: A wind driven blade is pivotally carried by a rotatable crank arm. The blade rotates relative the crank arm from a position perpendicular to the wind during the power stroke to a position parallel to the wind during the return stroke. The moving mass is dynamically balanced to provide a self-contained single blade modular unit. A selected number of the modular units are adjoinable to form a multi-blade wind motor in which any given module may be functionally disconnected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 1976
    Date of Patent: June 27, 1978
    Inventor: Herbert O. White
  • Patent number: 4037983
    Abstract: Wind motor comprising one or more sets of rotors, arranged each to project outwardly with respect to the adjacent one in the direction of the wind, such that only the useful part of the subsequent rotor is exposed to the wind flow. The vertical axis rotors are, in aligned arrangement on oblique V-like extending radial arms, pivotally mounted to a common and fixed vertical shaft for self-orientation in the direction of the wind and for angular self-adjustment by bringing the "V" arranged arms closer to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 1976
    Date of Patent: July 26, 1977
    Inventor: Rolando Poeta
  • Patent number: 4032257
    Abstract: A mill, particularly windmill of the horizontal or Chinese type having a l shaft supporting a vane rotor provided with a plurality of vane shafts rotatably mounted therein and with vanes secured to these vane shafts which vanes, when engaged by a wind flowing in a direction perpendicular to the mill shaft, will swing about their vane shafts from an operating position in which the vane is held by a stop on the rotor at an angle to the wind, to a free position parallel to the wind when reaching the lee-side of the rotor. Each vane shaft is coupled to an individual gear means carried by the rotor and engaging a stationary annular ring gear common to all gear means which gear means comprises a one-way free-wheel drive whereby when a vane swings about at the lee-side of the rotor an additional rotary driving force is transmitted to the latter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 1975
    Date of Patent: June 28, 1977
    Assignee: B.V. vuro vorr Wetenschappelijke en Techische Ontwerpen Wto
    Inventor: Hendrik Antoon Lorentz de Haas
  • Patent number: 3978345
    Abstract: Foil elements capable of generating lift forces and converting such forces into rotational movement of a body are suspended and submerged in a flowing stream or fluid current. Control means are provided to cyclically regulate the angles of attack of the foil elements in relation to the fluid current and to maintain substantially constant lift forces throughout a rotational cycle. Power take-off and/or generating means is included in the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 1974
    Date of Patent: August 31, 1976
    Inventor: David Zabriskie Bailey