Water jet propulsion unit with means for varying area of nozzle outlet
AssigneeBombardier Motor Corporation of America
InventorClarence E. Blanchard
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A water jet apparatus for propelling a boat. The water jet apparatus has a mechanism for adjusting the size of the outlet of the exit nozzle. The size of the outlet is increased to provide initial thrust and decreased for high speed. A smaller opening is also desirable for low-speed maneuvering. A cone made of resilient material is mounted to the stator hub. A hydraulically driven piston causes the resilient cone to elongate. This changes the shape of the cone and the position of the cone in relation to the exit nozzle outlet. When the resilient cone is elongated, the area of the exit nozzle outlet is decreased.
Claims31
A water jet apparatus comprising:
- a flow-through housing comprising a nozzle having an outlet;
- a hub installed inside said housing;
- a shaft having an end extending inside said hub;
- an impeller mounted to said shaft;
- a bearing for rotatably supporting said shaft in said hub;
- a tail cone supported by said hub and located in the region of said nozzle, said tail cone being made of a material having an elasticity comparable to that of rubber;
- and
- a mechanism for changing the geometric shape of said tail cone.
A water flow apparatus comprising:
- a duct comprising a nozzle having an outlet;
- a hub installed inside said housing and arranged to provide an annular flow region between said hub and said housing;
- a tail cone supported by said hub and located in the region of said nozzle, said tail cone being made of a material having an elasticity comparable to that of rubber;
- and
- a mechanism for changing the geometric shape of said tail cone.
A water jet apparatus comprising:
- a flow-through housing comprising a nozzle having an outlet;
- a hub installed inside said housing;
- a shaft having an end extending inside said hub;
- an impeller mounted to said shaft;
- a bearing for rotatably supporting said shaft in said hub;
- an actuator which is axially movable relative to said hub;
- and
- a hollow elastic member comprising a first portion which is stationary relative to said hub and a second portion which is stationary relative to said actuator, said hollow elastic member being in an unelongated state when said actuator is in a retracted position and an elongated state when said actuator is in an extended position, said nozzle outlet and said elastic member defining a first outlet area when said elastic member is in said unelongated state and a second outlet area when said elastic member is in said elongated state, said second outlet area being different than said first outlet area.
A device for varying an area of an outlet of a nozzle having an axis, comprising:
- an actuator which is axially movable relative to said nozzle;
- and
- a hollow elastic member comprising a first portion which is stationary relative to said nozzle and a second portion which is stationary relative to said actuator, said hollow elastic member being in an unelongated state when said actuator is in a retracted position and an elongated state when said actuator is in an extended position, said nozzle outlet and said elastic member defining a first outlet area when said elastic member is in said unelongated state and a second outlet area when said elastic member is in said elongated state, said second outlet area being different than said first outlet area.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.