From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Failed experiment involving gears, flywheels, and bevels to achieve constant velocities.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 75\1\ scan0046 | |
| Date | 5th February 1913 guessed | |
| -3- that they would give constant velocities, then the gears and flywheels would run together with perfect freedom and sweetness. If however, the curves of the teeth were slightly incorrect, then the flywheels would have a very great objection to running together and would strive quite automatically to grind off the metal from the teeth which forms the obstruction to constant velocities. I thought the idea was so simple and appeared to be so perfect in theory that I had a set of bevels rigged up in a milling machine, in order to try the idea. The adjustments of the bevels were carried out with care and to the driven flywheel I fitted a very light brake (I think this latter was a mistake when taking into account the comparative lightness of the flywheel). The result of these tests was complete failure. I did not however attribute the failure to any error in the principle of the scheme, but I thought it due to :- (1) Inability to reproduce the setting (of the gears in the machine) in the axle. (2) The use of light flywheels or (3) The use of a brake which was too great in comparison with the inertia of the flywheel. In thinking about the matter further I now see however faults which I will explain later. I did not abandon this idea, but have kept it | ||