AN IMPROVED EXPANSIVE. CONDENSING, AND ROTARY STEAM ENGINE
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS
PATENT to Antoine Julien Deblon of Fives-les-Lille,
Department of the Nord. France. Manufacturer, for the Invention
of "AN IMPROVED EXPANSIVE. CONDENSING, AND ROTARY STEAM ENGINE."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Antoine Julien Deblon
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 13th November 1868.
1, ANTOINE JULIEN DEBLON, of Fives-les-Lille. Department of the
Nord, France, Manufacturer. do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVED EXPANSIVE. CONDENSING, AND ROTARY STEAM
ENGINE," to be as follows:-
The principal features of novelty in this Invention may be enumerated
in the following order, viz:-
1st. The steam cylinder, or cylinder receiving the steam from the
boiler, is divided into a variabic number of compartments in which move
[Price 8d.]

page_text: a number of flyers or wings which together form the piston of the
machine.
2nd. The employment of
of a hollow or drum cylinder with steam
escapes which receives its motion from the driving shaft either by
means of gear wheels mounted on the said shaft or by any other or
more convenient method: the crown of this cylinder is notched in as
many places as there are wings to the piston and corresponding with
them.
3rd. The disposition of a steam chest for directing the steam to the
right and left of the wings of the piston.
4". The employment of
of a
circular slide valve which admits of
getting rid of the steam which would have a tendency to produce a
counter pressure.
5. The arrangement of two steam chambers
principal cylinder fed by the steam chest
distributing the steam from right to left on the
of the course of the wings of the piston by the
slide valves.
at each end of the
before
before mentioned and
or or other fraction
rotation of two circular
6. The arrangement of a segment of lid of the escape cylinder, and
to which is adapted a condensing pump for receiving the steam after
working and conducting it to the condenser by means of a tube.
The whole machine is covered with a general casing furnished with
valves for regulating the pressure of the steam introduced into the
case for heating the organs of the machine. The arrangement of the
several parts mentioned as forming this new species of machine may
vary without affecting the principle, and it may be worked by steam
froni water, alcohol, sulphuric ether or ammonia, carbonic acid, or
petroleum.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
first year of Her reign, did, for Herself. Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Antoine Julien Deblon, Her special licence
that I, the said Antoine Julien Deblon, my executors, administrators.
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Antoine Julien Deblon, my
executors. administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others. from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "AN IMPROVED
EXPANSIVE CONDENSING, AND ROTARY ENGINE." upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Antoine Julien Deblon, my executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their
hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Antoine Julien Deblon, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement and accompanying Drawings. that is to
say:-
The rotary engine forming the subject of the present Invention is
expansive and condensing and is characterized by the following features,
namely,
The steam cylinder (or cylinder receiving the steam from the boiler)
is divided into a variable number of compartments in which move
a number of flyers or wings which together form the piston of the
machine.
The employment of a hollow or drum cylinder provided with steam
escapes and which receives motion from the driving shaft either by
means of gear wheels mounted on the said shaft or any more convenient
method; the crown of this cylinder is notched in as many places as
there are wings to the piston and corresponding with each of them,

page_text: The disposition of a steam chest for directing the steam to the right
or left of the wings of the piston.
The employment of a circular slide valve which admits of getting rid
of the steam which would have a tendency to produce a counter pressure.
The arrangement of two steam chambers at each end of the principal
cylinder fed by the steam chest before mentioned and distributing the
steam from right to left on the one-third or one-quarter or other fraction
of the course of the wings of the piston by the rotation of two circular
slide valves.
The arrangement of a segment of lid or casing to the escape cylinder
and to which is adapted a condensing pump for receiving the steam after
working and conducting it to the condensor by means of a tube.
The whole machine is covered with a general casing furnished with
valves for regulating the pressure of the steam introduced into the
case for heating the parts of the machine.
The above description will be more readily understood on reference
to the accompanying Drawings and following explanation thereof.
Fig. 1 is a transverse section of one of these machines; Fig. 2 is a
longitudinal view; Fig. 3. a part plan; and Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 7 are
details of different pieces.
In a cylinder a divided into compartments (four for example) is a
central or driving shaft. b. on the axis of which and in each compartment
of the cylinder a muffle is fixed, to which a flyer or wing d is adapted,
the flyers d, d. d, d, being so disposed as to divide the circumference
of the cylinder into four equal parts; they are of the same width as the
compartments, and their length from the axis b is equal to the radius
of the cylinder. This principal cylinder a is closed at its ends, but is
open at the upper part, the opening being in the form of an arc of the
same radius as the hollow or drum cylinder, which is placed above
it and is supported both by its own axis e and the pedestals or
brackets g. 9. of the cylinder a. The drum cylinder joins the
cylinder a the whole length of the arched opening to the ends of and
on each partition of the chambers or compartments; in the remaining
space the joint is formed on the head of the cylinder a, the cylinder
shuts off all issue of steam by aid of the muffles c, the amount of their
respective radii representing the distance of the centres. The cylinder

page_text: (see Figs. and 4) which is animated by the same rotary motion as
the shaft by means of two gear wheels A. A', keyed to the axes b
and e is notched out. on its circumference with four apertures corre-
sponding in position with the four flyers or
wise that the steam' acting on the latter
wings d, d, d, d, in such
causes them
to revolve in
conjunction with the shaft b and cylinder f at the same time that the
flyers enter the cylinder by the openings the
steam leaves the
cylinder a to distribute itself in that of f. to be thence conveyed to the
condensor by any convenient arrangement.
chambers of the cylinder is
of
its distribution by means
At the side of the machine
with the
The introduction of steam into the
regulated by a special arrangement for
circular slide valves herein-after described.
is placed a distributing box h into which the steam of the boiler enters
by a piping a disc permits the steam to pass cither through the
orifices K or K' according as it is desired to turn the machine whether
to the right or left. Fig. 5 shows a bottom view of this disc, the
The slide valve is notched
openings K being marked by dotted lines.
so as to cause either the openings and Kori and K' to communicate
according as it is desired to work the engine; it is grooved or hollowed
underneath for a certain length so that when the openings i and K are
thereby put in communication the orifice K' corresponds
the other hand the steam
opening K of the escapement, whilst on
entering by the opening K¹ the opening K is put in communication
with the opening K thus the steam being distributed by one or other
of the openings K and K' passes by pipes arranged at each end of the
cylinder into two boxes m and n, in the box m for the right movement,
a slide valve (keyed to the shaft b) cut so as to distribute the steam
by two orifices m' and m" (see Fig. 8, which is a section following the
line a-b), the one m communicating directly from the box m
the first compartment of the cylinder a, and the other orifice m" con-
the second compartment.
ducting the steam by means of a pipe to
The slide valve therefore distributes the steam in the first and second
for the right movement; it may be
compartments of the cylinder a
as to prevent the admission of
notched more or less (see Fig. 6) so
steam into the compartments till it has made the fourth part or less
Whilst the
of a turn, the openings m' and m succeeding one another.
first compartment receives the steam full-pressure the second is covered,
to

page_text: when uncovered the first is closed, and the steam in the corresponding
compartment acts by expansion during the remaining three-fourths of
the revolution. At the end of a quarter of a turn of admission of steam
into the orifice m, the opening of the second compartment of the
other corresponding distributing box arranged at the other end of the
cylinder a will be uncovered by the valve and the steam will act in
the third compartment at full-pressure whilst it acts by expansion in
the first and second compartments. In another quarter turn the valve
of the steam chamber uncovers the orifice of the fourth compartment
and closes that of the third, thus the steam acts by full-pressure on
the piston whilst it operates by expansion in the three preceding
chambers. After having passed over the remaining quarter of the
circumference the wings d return to their starting point and the same
effects are reproduced. It will therefore be seen that in a complete turn
of the driving shaft (for the right movement) the steam always acts
at full-pressure successively and without interruption on the four wings
constituting the piston, and by expansion during the remaining three-
fourths of the course of the wings.
The steam chambers n, n, are fed by the orifice K' of the box h for
the left movement; the slide valve distributes the steam in a precisely
similar manner to the foregoing, but on the other side of the axis of
the cylinder a.
Fig. 7, which is a section following the line c-d, shows the orifice n'
which communicates directly with the first compartment in crossing
the steam chest m and the orifice n" which corresponds by a tube with
the second compartments.
Whatever then may be the movement of the machine the steam acts
by full-pressure during the whole of a complete turn, and by expansion
for the same period. The machine is condensing, for instance, the
steam after having acted on the wings d passes into the cylinder by
the notches for the reception of the wings.
In order to close the openings of the cylinder f outside the
a segment of casing o bolted to the
cylinder a they are incased in
cylinder a; to one end of this segment a cast-iron piece p is attached,
to which is fixed a conduit communicating with
placed in any convenient position.
the condensor,

page_text: shaft
The piston of the air pump of the condensor attached to a
receives its ascending and descending motion from an eccentric fixed
on the driving shaft b. The condensor can readily be placed above
or at the side of the segment covering the drum cylinder f. and any
suitable means of transmitting movement to the air pump may be
employed. On considering the distribution of the steam in each of
the compartments it may be conceived that perhaps the steam in
passing to the cylinder f may have a tendency (if the machine turns
to the right) to introduce itself in the pipes for the left working of the
machine, and vice versa for the left movement, but to avoid this counter
pressure an escapement opening K" is arranged at the bottom of the
box h, where the steam is conducted by the pipes. This aperture conducts
the steam in any desired channel: it may be employed in heating all
the parts of the machine, if the latter is enclosed in a general casing B;
and for working the machine the shaft of the slide valve is arranged
outside and worked by means of the crank handle q, thus utilizing
the steam which by the action of the air pump does not reach the
condensor to heat the machine. It may perhaps chance that the pressure
in the outer casing is sufficient to interfere with the working of the
several parts, so in order not to exceed a certain temperature a valve s
with lever r and counterbalance P is arranged on the case B. In cases
where it is not desired to beat the interior of the case the steam is
allowed to escape by a butterfly valve u arranged in the upper part.
It has already been mentioned that the cylinder receives motion
from the driving shaft by means of two gear wheels A, A', but as in
large machines the noise thus occasioned may be too great, it is easy
to substitute any other mechanical arrangement, such as represented
by Figs. 9 and 10, which consist of two discs and C' keyed to the
axes band e. On these discs two cranks D and D' are fixed, their
ends being connected by means of two shafts F and G, the result
of which is that the discs C and C¹ thus connected by a parallelo-
gram, two sides of which D and D' are fixed and the two others F
and G movable, have a regular movement and motion, is transmitted
without noise.
Having thus described my Invention. what I claim and desire to
secure by Letters Patent is, the machine herein described and illustrated
by the accompanying Drawings, reserving to myself the right of varying

page_text: or modifying the several parts, which may be effected without departing
from the principle. The machine may be driven by any suitable steam,
whether produced from water, alcohol, sulphuric ether, ammonia. car-
bonic acid, or petroleum.
In witness whereof the said Antoine Julien Deblon. have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of April, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
nine.
JULIEN DEBLON. (L.S.)