patent log: Meaning and Definition of

pat'ent log'

Pronunciation: [key]
— Naut. Naut.
  1. any of various devices for determining the speed of a ship by means of a vaned rotor streamed at the end of a log line upon which it exerts a torsion transmitted to a registering device on board. Also called
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.