Robert Whitehead - Key Innovations

Key Innovations

Whitehead added two important features to the torpedo.

• A self-regulating device that kept the torpedo at a constant preset depth. This consisted of a hydrostatic valve and pendulum balance, connected to a horizontal rudder, which controlled the running depth.

• Gyroscopic stabilization to fix the torpedo's direction. In 1898, Whitehead purchased the newly invented gyroscope mechanism from Ludwig Obry, who was also a naval officer.

Whitehead was fiercely jealous of his trade secrets, and employees were often sworn to secrecy about the guidance mechanisms employed in his torpedoes.