Steering gear

Abstract

To provide a steering gear capable of more rapidly switching rudders in a steering gear with multiple rudders and with one driving mechanism.SOLUTION: A steering gear 1 comprises multiple rudders 2, rudder shafts 3 to drive each rudder 2, one drive mechanism 4 to rotate rudder shafts 3, and a power mechanism 5 to drive the drive mechanism. The drive mechanism 4 has one input shaft 9 connected directly or indirectly to the power mechanism 5, and a clutch mechanism 10 installed between the input shaft 9 and each rudder shaft 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a steering device, and more particularly, to a steering device including a plurality of rudders.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there is a steering device, so-called gate rudder (registered trademark), in which a pair of rudders are arranged not behind the propeller of a ship but on both sides of the propeller. Since there is no rudder behind the propeller in the gate rudder, it is possible to reduce the rudder resistance and to generate more thrust on the rudder plate of the rudder, and it is possible to reduce the hull resistance in the self-propelled state (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] On the other hand, in a steering device in which such rudders are arranged in a pair on both sides of the propeller, development of a steering device capable of moving a pair of rudders with a single drive mechanism has been attempted (for example, see Patent Documents 2 and 3).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the gate rudder, a pair of rudders do not always operate in the same direction, and sometimes each rudder may operate in the reverse direction (see FIG. 2). Therefore, in the gate rudder, it is necessary to make each rudder operable independently. Naturally, it is also necessary to enable the operation of each rudder to be performed quickly.

[0006] In the steering device described in Patent Document 2, in order to move two rudders with one drive mechanism, it is necessary to connect the rudder plates of the rudders, and each rudder cannot be moved independently. Therefore, in this steering device, the two rudders cannot be operated in different directions.

[0007] Further, in the steering device described in Patent Document 3, the input shaft of the steering mechanism is made movable and the positions of the gears for moving each rudder are shifted and arranged so that a gear that can mesh with the input shaft can be selected according to the position of the input shaft, whereby two rudders can be moved with one drive mechanism and each rudder can be moved independently. However, since it takes a relatively long time to move the input shaft, there is a problem that the time required for rudder switching becomes long.

[0008] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a steering device that can switch rudders more quickly even when there is only one drive mechanism in a steering device having a plurality of rudders.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The present invention includes a plurality of rudders, a rudder shaft for operating each rudder, one drive mechanism for rotating the rudder shaft, and a power mechanism for driving the drive mechanism. The drive mechanism has one input shaft directly or indirectly connected to the power mechanism, and a clutch mechanism provided between the input shaft and each rudder shaft. It is a steering device characterized by that.

[0010] Furthermore, in the present invention, the rudder is a pair of rudders consisting of a first rudder and a second rudder arranged on both sides of the propeller at the stern, and by controlling the clutch mechanism, only one of the first rudder and the second rudder can be turned.

[0011] In the present invention, although the expressions "first" and "second" are used, these expressions are only used to distinguish the respective components of the present invention and have no particular meaning in terms of the numbers or order.

Advantages of the Invention

[0012] Since the present invention provides a clutch mechanism between the input shaft of the drive mechanism and the rudder shaft, in a steering device equipped with a plurality of rudders, it is possible to provide a steering device with one drive mechanism that can quickly switch the rudders.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] Embodiments of the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 1 and 2. This embodiment is an example of applying the present invention to a gate ladder. The steering device 1 includes a rudder 2, a rudder shaft 3, a drive mechanism 4, and a power mechanism 5.

[0015] A plurality of rudders 2 are provided. In this embodiment, the rudders 2 are configured as a pair of rudders including a rudder 2A (hereinafter referred to as the left rudder 2A) and a rudder 2B (hereinafter referred to as the right rudder 2B) arranged on both sides of the propeller P at the stern. During normal navigation, the rudder 2 is moved in a substantially V shape with respect to the direction of water flow A so that lift is generated by the water flow. When it is necessary to reduce resistance, the rudder 2 is moved to be substantially parallel. At this time, the left rudder 2A and the right rudder 2B need to be moved in opposite directions.

[0016] The rudder shaft 3 is provided to operate each rudder 2, and the same number of rudder shafts 3 as the rudders 2 are provided. In this embodiment, the rudder shaft 3 has an output shaft 6 and a bearing 7 of the output shaft 6, and two rudder shafts 3, namely a rudder shaft 3A (hereinafter referred to as the port side shaft 3A) connected to the left rudder 2A and a rudder shaft 3B (hereinafter referred to as the starboard side shaft 3B) connected to the right rudder 2B, are provided.

[0017] The output shaft 6 has one end connected to each rudder 2 and a gear provided at the other end. The gear constitutes the gear of the clutch mechanism 10 and the gearbox 8, and the driving force from the input shaft 9 is transmitted to the output shaft 6 when these gears mesh with each other.

[0018] The bearing 7 is provided to reduce the reaction force from the rudder 2 received by the gear constituting the gearbox 8, thereby reducing the strength required for the gear and enabling cost reduction and the like.

[0019] The drive mechanism 4 is provided to rotate the rudder shaft 3 and one is provided. The drive mechanism 4 has an input shaft 9 directly or indirectly connected to the power mechanism 5 and a clutch mechanism 10 provided between the input shaft 9 and the rudder shaft 3. The power mechanism 5 is provided to drive the drive mechanism 4. In this embodiment, one end of the input shaft 9 is connected to the power mechanism 5 and a gear is provided at the other end. The gear constitutes the gear of each clutch mechanism 10 and the gearbox 11.

[0020] The clutch mechanism 10 is provided to operate only the rudder 2 that needs to be operated among the plurality of rudders 2. In this embodiment, the clutch mechanism 10 has a clutch portion 12 and gears provided at both ends thereof. One gear meshes with the gear of the input shaft 9 and the other gear meshes with the gear of the output shaft 6, so that the driving force from the input shaft 9 is transmitted to the rudder shaft 3. Also, the clutch mechanism 10 is provided on both the port side and the starboard side.

[0021] Also, in this embodiment, the clutch mechanism 10 is provided as an engagement clutch, and by controlling the engagement and disengagement of the clutch portion 12, it is possible to operate only one of the left rudder 2A and the right rudder 2B. Note that the type of the clutch mechanism 10 may be a friction clutch as long as it can appropriately transmit the driving force from the input shaft 9 to the rudder shaft 3.

[0022] By engaging both the clutch parts 12 on the port side and the clutch parts 12 on the starboard side, the driving force from the input shaft 9 is transmitted to both the port shaft 3A and the starboard shaft 3B, enabling both the port rudder 2A and the starboard rudder 2B to operate.

[0023] Also, by engaging the clutch part 12 on one side and disengaging the clutch part 12 on the other side, the driving force from the input shaft 1 is transmitted only to the rudder shaft 3 on one side, enabling only the rudder 2 on one side to move. By doing so, after moving one of the port rudder 2A and the starboard rudder 2B, and then moving the other of the port rudder 2A and the starboard rudder 2B, it becomes possible to move the port rudder 2A and the starboard rudder 2B in opposite directions.

[0024] Therefore, in the steering device 1 of the present embodiment, by engaging and disengaging the clutch parts 12 of the clutch mechanism 10, it is possible to switch the rudder 2 to be operated. Since the engagement and disengagement of the clutch parts 12 can be performed quickly, even if there is only one driving mechanism, the rudder can be switched more quickly.

[0025] Also, as a secondary effect of the driving mechanism 4 having the clutch mechanism 10, by using a semi-clutch state, even if there is only one driving mechanism 4, the turning speed can be adjusted for each rudder 2.

[0026] As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and can be appropriately modified without departing from the gist of the invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0027] 1 Steering device 2 Rudder 2A Port rudder 2B Starboard rudder 3 Rudder shaft 3A Port shaft 3B Starboard shaft 4 Driving mechanism 5 Power mechanism 6 Output shaft 7 Bearing 8 Gearbox 9 Input shaft 10 Clutch mechanism 11 Gearbox 12 Clutch part A Traveling direction P Propeller

Claims

1. A steering device comprising a plurality of rudders, a rudder shaft for operating each rudder, one drive mechanism for rotating the rudder shaft, and a power mechanism for driving the drive mechanism, wherein the drive mechanism has one input shaft directly or indirectly connected to the power mechanism, and a clutch mechanism provided between the input shaft and each rudder shaft.

2. The rudder is a pair of rudders consisting of a first rudder and a second rudder arranged on both sides of a propeller at the stern, The steering device according to claim 1, characterized in that by controlling the clutch mechanism, only one of the first rudder and the second rudder can be operated.

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