Woodward Governor Company
Encyclopedia
Woodward Inc. is the world's oldest and largest independent designer
, manufacturer, and service provider of energy control solutions for aircraft
engines, industrial engines and turbines, power generation and mobile industrial
equipment.
Woodward Inc. was founded as The Woodward Governor Company by Amos Woodward in 1870. Woodward Governor Company initially made controls for waterwheels ( first patent No. 103,813 ) and then moved to hydro
turbines. In the 1920s and '30s Woodward began designing controls for diesel
and other reciprocating engines and for industrial turbines. Also in the 1930s, Woodward developed a governor for variable-pitch aircraft propeller
s. And when the United States military's first turbine-powered aircraft successfully flew, its G.E. engine had a Woodward control. Starting in the 1950s, Woodward began designing electronic controls, first analog
and then digital
units.
in 1870 with Amos W. Woodward's invention of a noncompensating mechanical waterwheel governor(patent No.103,813). Thirty years later his son, Elmer, patented the first successful mechanical compensating governor for hydraulic turbines(patent No.583,527). In 1933, the company became more diversified by expanding its product line to include diesel engine controls(patent No.2,039,507) and aircraft propeller governors(patent No.470,284). Woodward governors followed the rapid advancement of diesel engine applications for railroads, mairitime and electrical generation in many fields. The advent of gas turbine engines for aircraft and industrial uses offered still more opportunities for Woodward designed fuel controls. And, of course, the science of electronics has added impetus to this industry.
Elmer E.Woodward conceived, designed and developed the first successful propeller control in 1933. This model PW-34 propeller governor is on display at the Smithsonian Institution. Today, approximately 75% of all propeller-driven aircraft use Woodward AES controls. A growing number of general aviation and commuter aircraft rely on Woodward AES overspeed governors, synchronizers and synchophasers for the turboshaft, turboprops and reciprocating engines. As engine controls have moved toward electric-based systems, Woodward has responded with a line of electric propeller controls. The engines that are controlled by Woodward Aircraft engines systems are from Honeywell(TPE331), General Electric(CT7),Pratt & Whitney Canada(PT6A series), Raytheon, Vans, and Rotax Corporations. For more historical facts and figures check out the oldwoodward.com website.
On January 26, 2011 the company announced that shareholders have approved the name change to Woodward Inc.
Designer
A designer is a person who designs. More formally, a designer is an agent that "specifies the structural properties of a design object". In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, such as consumer products, processes, laws, games and graphics, is referred to as a...
, manufacturer, and service provider of energy control solutions for aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
engines, industrial engines and turbines, power generation and mobile industrial
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
equipment.
Woodward Inc. was founded as The Woodward Governor Company by Amos Woodward in 1870. Woodward Governor Company initially made controls for waterwheels ( first patent No. 103,813 ) and then moved to hydro
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
turbines. In the 1920s and '30s Woodward began designing controls for diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
and other reciprocating engines and for industrial turbines. Also in the 1930s, Woodward developed a governor for variable-pitch aircraft propeller
Propeller (aircraft)
Aircraft propellers or airscrews convert rotary motion from piston engines or turboprops to provide propulsive force. They may be fixed or variable pitch. Early aircraft propellers were carved by hand from solid or laminated wood with later propellers being constructed from metal...
s. And when the United States military's first turbine-powered aircraft successfully flew, its G.E. engine had a Woodward control. Starting in the 1950s, Woodward began designing electronic controls, first analog
Analog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
and then digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
units.
Historical Information
The journey began in Rockford, IllinoisRockford, Illinois
Rockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...
in 1870 with Amos W. Woodward's invention of a noncompensating mechanical waterwheel governor(patent No.103,813). Thirty years later his son, Elmer, patented the first successful mechanical compensating governor for hydraulic turbines(patent No.583,527). In 1933, the company became more diversified by expanding its product line to include diesel engine controls(patent No.2,039,507) and aircraft propeller governors(patent No.470,284). Woodward governors followed the rapid advancement of diesel engine applications for railroads, mairitime and electrical generation in many fields. The advent of gas turbine engines for aircraft and industrial uses offered still more opportunities for Woodward designed fuel controls. And, of course, the science of electronics has added impetus to this industry.
Elmer E.Woodward conceived, designed and developed the first successful propeller control in 1933. This model PW-34 propeller governor is on display at the Smithsonian Institution. Today, approximately 75% of all propeller-driven aircraft use Woodward AES controls. A growing number of general aviation and commuter aircraft rely on Woodward AES overspeed governors, synchronizers and synchophasers for the turboshaft, turboprops and reciprocating engines. As engine controls have moved toward electric-based systems, Woodward has responded with a line of electric propeller controls. The engines that are controlled by Woodward Aircraft engines systems are from Honeywell(TPE331), General Electric(CT7),Pratt & Whitney Canada(PT6A series), Raytheon, Vans, and Rotax Corporations. For more historical facts and figures check out the oldwoodward.com website.
Modern Day Company
As of 2007 Woodward Governor became a $1 billion company with establishments all across the globe including: Japan, China, Europe and many others.On January 26, 2011 the company announced that shareholders have approved the name change to Woodward Inc.