The brothers Maurice and Oscar Tips made a complex rotary engine with 18 radial cylinders cooled by a mixed air and water system.

“Tips engine diagram”

-It can be considered a bi-rotary engine, but besides with a reduction gear for the propeller.

-In such a way that while the crankshaft rotated at 1,800 rpm, the propeller, through the front reduction gear, rotated at 1,080 rpm and also, the entire main body of cylinders did so at 60 rpm.

“Side view of the Tips engine”

-This slow 60 rpm rotation of the assembly caused the cooling water to circulate from the cylinder liners to the nine tubular radiators, which eliminated the set of pipes.

-It was made around 1920, and the power was 480 CV with almost 1,718 cu. in. of total displacement.

From appendix 12: Maurice Tips and his brother Oscar made a canard-type airplane with a Pipe engine that turned out to be heavy.

-It flew with a Gnome (photo). They later designed their own radial with new technical solutions for the time, especially in the distribution of the valves.

“Gnome rotary radial used before the Tips”

-It was around 1912. The engine gave 25 HP with seven cylinders without classic valves. Later they made a 50 hp one and another one that gave 70 hp.

-Between 1913/14 the Tips brothers made a valveless rotary engine which was actually a rotary valve like a tap which rotated continuously 360°, revealing the different ports.

“Mechanical construction principle of the Tips engine”

“Tips 1913 ad” (PeT= AA)

“Two examples of Tips valves”

-As we can see, they were presented at exhibitions, such as the Automobile Show, finally offered for hydrofoils.

-The Belgian company Minerva was given a construction license.

-With more detail than in the main text, the following illustrations:

-Later, around 1917, it presented an 18-cylinder rotary radial engine giving 480 hp.

“Patent drawing of the 480 HP engine”

-With cylinders in groups of two parallel and with a single rotary valve in the middle of the two cylinder heads doing the work of four valves of the common mushroom type.

“Diagram of the 18-cylinder, 480 CV engine”