Improvements in Air Compressors and the like.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Sept., 1894-Accepted, 27th Oct., 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Air Compressors and the like.
I, WILLIAM BATEMAN CRICHTON, of Vulcan Iron Works, Bradford, in the
County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to certain improvements in air compressors, pumps,
blowing engines and the like, and has for its object the positive closing and auto-
matic opening of the valves at the proper time, thereby obtaining the full power of
the compressor, pump or the like.
In order that my invention may be fully understood, I will describe the same in
detail by making reference to the accompanying sheet of drawings in which
Fig. 1 represents a plan view of an air cylinder or the like, coupled to an ordinary
steam engine cylinder.
Fig. 2 is a similar view but shewing a modification of my improvement, and
Fig. 3 represents an enlarged sectional detail of the air cylinder arranged
according to my invention.
The air cylinder or the like is indicated by the letter A. the piston B. being.
secured on the same rod C. as the ordinary piston in the steam cylinder D.
To each end of the air cylinder A. I mount an auxiliary cylinder E. at one end
and E at the other, each provided with a piston F. Each rod G. is connected by a
cross head H. to the valve rods J. of the respective inlet and discharge valves K¹
and K. at each end of the air cylinder A.
The air cylinder A. is provided with an ordinary valve chest L. the slide valve
of which is secured on the spindle M. which is connected to the ordinary slide
valve spindle of the steam engine cylinder D. by intermediate spindle M². The
steam chest L. is connected by pipe O. to a main steam pipe in any convenient
manner.
The valve spindles J. J. are formed with slot holes J J at one end, in which
are free to slide the pins J J of cross heads H. H. secured on auxiliary piston
rods G. G. one at each end of cylinder A.
The piston B. of the air cylinder A. in the position as shewn in drawings, is
along with the piston of the steam cylinder D. at the commencement of its return
stroke, and the slide valve in valve chest L. being operated simultaneously with
the slide valve of the steam cylinder, admits steam into the pipes P. P¹ which
respectively conduct the steam to the back end of auxiliary cylinder E. and
front end of auxiliary cylinder E' whereby the pistons F. F. are operated in the
direction of arrows, and by the piston rods G. G. being secured to the cross
heads H. H. the latter operate and tightly close the inlet valve K' at front end of
cylinder A. and the discharge valve K. at back end of said cylinder; and by the
ends of valve spindles J. J. having slot holes J'J' as before described, the discharge
valve K. at front end and the inlet valve K' at back end of cylinder A. are at
liberty to be operated, the former by the compressed air in the cylinder, and the
latter by the outside pressure of the atmosphere.
At the same time as steam is being admitted to the steam cylinder D. immediately
before the return stroke of the piston, the pipes R. R' are charged with steam and
respectively conduct same to the opposite ends of auxiliary cylinders E. and E¹
and the pistons F. F. travelling in the opposite direction to the arrows, the action
of the valves K. and K' is operated in the opposite direction to that before described,
that is to say, the discharge valve K. at front end of cylinder A. and the inlet

page_text: valve Kat back end of said cylinder are positively closed, and the inlet valve K¹
at front end and discharge valve K. at back end of air cylinder are automatically
opened in a similar manner as those before described.
A modification of my improvement is shown by Fig. 2 in which case the valve
chest L. is dispensed with, and the auxiliary cylinders E. and E' are connected by
pipes P. and P¹ to the front and back ends respectively of the steam cylinder D.
and upon steam being admitted to the latter, a portion of same is simultaneously
conveyed by one of the pipes P. or Pl as the case may be, to the auxiliary
cylinders E. and E', the pistons F. F. of which will then operate the valves K.
and K' in a similar manner to that before described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
The method of and apparatus for positively closing and automatically opening
of inlet and discharge valves K. and K of an air compressor, pump, blowing engine
or the like, by auxiliary cylinders E. and E' supplied by steam through valve
chest L. or direct from the steam engine cylinder D, arranged substantially in the
manner as shewn and described.
Dated this 22nd day of September 1894.
JOHN WAUGH,
Agent.