Automatic variable pitch propeller for small boats

Claim 1

AN AUTOMATIC VARIABLE PITCH PROPELLER FOR AN ENGINE DRIVEN BOAT HAVING OUTBOARD DRIVE MEANS CONSISTING SUBSTANTIALLY IN ITS ENTIRETY OF, IN COMBINATION WITH A PROPELLER SHAFT EXTENDING HORIZONTALLY, REARWARDLY OF A BOAT, THE COMBINATION OF A CENTRAL HUB HAVING MEANS CONNECTING IT TO SAID PROPELLER SHAFT AND ROTATABLE THEREWITH, A PLURALITY OF PROPELLER BLADES EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY FROM SAID CENTRAL HUB, SAID BLADES EACH HAVING A LEADING EDGE AND A TRAILING EDGE RELATIVE TO THE DIRECTION OF ROTATION OF THE PROPELLER AND THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF THE BOAT IN A FORWARD DIRECTION, AND SAID BLADES EACH HAVING MEANS PIVOTTALY CONNECTING IT NEAR ITS LEADING EDGE TO SAID CENTRAL HUB FOR ROTATIVE ADJUSTIMENT ABOUT A RADIAL AXIS, WHEREBY SAID BLADES ARE MOVABLE ROTATIVELY ABOUT THEIR AXES IN THE DIRECTION OF THEIR MINIMUM PITCH POSITIONS BY RESISTANCE OF THE WATER TO ROTATIVE MOVEMENT OF THE PROPELLER, AND ARE MOVABLE ROTATIVELY ABOUT THEIR AXES IN THE DIRECTION OF THEIR MAXIMUM PITCH POSITIONS BY RESISTANCE OF THE WATER TO MOVEMENT OF THE BOAT IN A FORWARD DIRECTION AND SAID BLADES EACH HAVING AN INTEGRAL PROJECTING ELEMENT EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAID AXIS, IN SPACED APART RELATION THERETO, NEAR SAID TRAILING EDGE, OPERABLE TO TURN THE BLADE ABOUT SAID AXIS, A BLADE ADJUSTING MEMBER LOOSELY SURROUNDING SAID PROPELLER SHAFT AND HAVING MEANS LOOSELY CONNECTING IT THERETO FOR RECIPROCAL LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE THERETO, AND EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY THEREFROM, REARWARDLY OF SAID CENTRAL HUB, SAID BLADE ADJUSTING MEMBER HAVING MEANS FOR ABUTTING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE INTEGRAL PROJECTING ELEMENTS OF SAID BLADES WHEREBY SAID BLADES ARE ADJUSTABLE ROTATIVELY ABOUT THEIR AXES IN RESPONSE TO RECIPROCAL MOVEMENT OF SAID BLADE ADJUSTING MEMBER, AGAINST THE RESISTANCE OF THE WATER AS ABOVE DESCRIBED, AND CONVERSELY, SAID BLADE AJUSTING MEMBER IS ADJUSTABLE LONGITUDINALLY RELATIVE TO SAID PROPELLER SHAFT IN RESPONSE TO ROTATIVE MOVEMENT OF SAID BLADES ABOUT THEIR AXES, AND YIELDABLE MEANS ACTING ON SAID CENTRAL HUB AND SAID BLADE ADJUSTING MEMBER TO URGE THEM APART TO THEREBY BIAS SAID BLADE ADJUSTING MEMBER IN A REARWARD DIRECTION RELATIVE TO SAID PROPELLER SHAFT WHEREBY SAID BLADES ARE MOVABLE ROTATIVELY ABOUT THEIR AXES IN THE DIRECTION OF THEIR MAXIMUM PITCH POSITIONS.