Improvements in Steam Engine Governors.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 27th May, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 27th Feb., 1894-Accepted, 31st Mar., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam Engine Governors.
I, WILLIAM SISSON of Quay Street Iron Works, Gloucester in the County of
Gloucester, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention has reference to automatic expansion governors of the class in
which weights are carried by levers pivoted to a fly wheel or disc and controlled by
springs.
Such a governor according to my invention is so constructed that the distance of
each weight from the axis or fulcrum of its carrying lever and thereby also its
distance from the centre of rotation of the governor can be adjusted whilst the
governor is in motion so as to alter the centrifugal force and leverage of the weights
without changing the tension of the springs connected therewith and thereby adapt
the governor to varying requirements whilst in action.
For this purpose each governor weight is arranged to move along its carrying
lever and is connected by suitable mechanism to a hand operated device such as a
screw or hand wheel, located outside the governor and capable of being operated
whilst the governor is in motion.
In one arrangement, each weight is connected to one arm of a bell crank lever
carried by the lever upon which the corresponding weight is mounted and the other
arm of which engages with a sleeve that is mounted to slide upon a pin or spindle
the axis of which may coincide or nearly so with the centre of oscillation of the
lever carrying the weight. The two sleeves corresponding to the two weights are
arranged to be simultaneously operated by a movable cross bar connected to a screw
threaded rod mounted to slide in a bearing carried by the fly wheel or disc upon
which the governor is mounted and actuated by a hand wheel acting as a nut and
arranged at the centre of the governor, a second hand wheel being provided to
prevent the screw-threaded rod rotating whilst the adjustment of the weights is
being effected by the first mentioned hand wheel.
In a modified construction the said screw-threaded rod is arranged to slide in a
bearing carried by a fixed bracket and is prevented from rotating by a feather or
equivalent device, the adjustment of the said rod in an end wise direction for
adjusting the position of the weights being effected as before by a hand wheel
acting as a nut. In each arrangement the hand wheel for actuating the screw
threaded rod is prevented by suitable means from moving endways.
As will be evident apparatus to operate on the principle of my invention as above
set forth may be constructed in various forms.
Dated this 27th Jo. of 1000
W. LLOYD WISE,
Per F. J. Brougham,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam Engine Governors.
I, WILLIAM SISSON, of Quay Street Iron Works, Gloucester, in the County of
Gloucester, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in whit
manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement :-
My invention has reference to automatic expansion governors of the class. in

page_text: which weights are carried by levers pivoted to a fly wheel or disc and controlled by
springs.
Such a governor according to my invention is so constructed that the distance of
each weight from the axis or fulcrum of its carrying lever and thereby also its
distance from the centre of rotation of the governor, can be adjusted whilst the
governor is in motion, so as to alter the centrifugal force and leverage of the
weights without changing the tension of the springs connected therewith, and
thereby adapt the governor to varying requirements whilst in action.
For this purpose each governor weight is arranged to move along its carrying
lever and is connected by suitable mechanism to a hand operated device such as a
screw or hand wheel, located outside the governor and capable of being operated
whilst the governor is in motion.
As will be evident apparatus to operate on the principle of my invention as above
set forth may be constructed in various forms.
Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings show respectively in sectional front,
side and plan views an arrangement wherein each weight a is connected by a link a
to one arm of a bell crank lever carried by the lever c upon which the corre
sponding weight a is mounted, and the other arm of which engages with a
sleeved that is mounted to slide upon a pin or spindle e the axis of which coincides
with the centre of oscillation of the lever c carrying the weight. The two sleeves d
corresponding to the two weights a are arranged to be simultaneously operated by
a movable cross bar fjournalled upon a screw threaded rod f' mounted to slide in a
bearing g carried by a bridge piece gl secured to the fly wheel or disc h upon which
the governor is mounted, and actuated by a hand wheel i acting as a nut and
arranged at the centre of the governor, a second hand wheel k being provided to
prevent the screw-threaded rod frotating whilst the adjustment of the weights is
being effected by the first mentioned hand wheel.
For this purpose the hand wheel k is fixed to the bearing which is a bush free
to rotate in the bridge piece g', but not to move end ways therein and connected to
the screw-threaded rod f¹ by a key or feather f so that the said rod cannot rotate
independently of the hand wheel k and bush g but is free to move endways
therethrough when the hand wheel is turned. The hand wheel is fixed upon a
sleeve that is screwed on the rod f' and connected to the hand wheel as shown
so that it is free to rotate but not to move endways in such hand wheel.
By this arrangement it will be seen that if the hand wheel & be arrested whilst
the governor is in action, the cross bar f and the governor will turn about the
rod which will then be held stationary, and that if the hand wheel i be then
turned, the rod f1 will be moved end ways, and by imparting a corresponding movement
to the cross bar f and sleeves d, will actuate the bell crank levers bb and thus move
the weights a inward or outward on the lever arms c according to the direction in
which the hand wheel i is turned.
The centrifugal force of each weight a tending to move the lever c outwards on
its axis e*, may be controlled by a coiled spring that bears at one end against a
fixed stop m on the fly wheel or disc hand at the other end against a stop n on one
end of a rod o the other end of which is jointed to the short arm c¹ of the lever c,
or in any well-known or convenient way.
Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are similar views to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 respectively, showing a
modification in which the sleeves d are dispensed with, and each lever arm b¹ is
caused to press preferably through an antifriction roller journalled thereto,
against the cross bar f by the action of centrifugal force assisted by the pressure
of a coiled spring p which is compressed between the corresponding weight a and
the bracket or extension c* of the lever c to which the bell crank lever bb is
pivotted. Each spring encircles the link a¹ connecting the said lever and weight
between which it is arranged, and serves to keep the corresponding lever arm b, or
the roller carried thereby, in contact with the cross barf when the engine to which
the governor is fitted is running slowly. In this case, the weights a will be
moved outwardly on their levers c by the springs p when the cross bar fis moved

page_text: towards the fly wheel or disc by the hand wheel i, the inward movement of the
weights being effected as before by moving the cross bar away from the said fly
wheel or disc.
Fig. 7 shews a modified construction in which the screw-threaded rod f' is
arranged to slide in a bearing carried by a fixed bracket and is prevented from
rotating by a feather or equivalent device, the adjustment of the said rod in an
endwise direction for adjusting the position of the weights being effected as
before by a hand wheel i acting as a nut, which, as in the other arrangement is
prevented from moving endways, for which purpose the enlarged inner end of
the sleeve is fitted to turn in a corresponding recessed plater fixed to the
bracket .
The rocking motion of the pins or spindles e* produced by the turning movement
of the levers c c under the action of centrifugal force can be utilized in any well
known or convenient manner to effect the adjustment of an eccentric or other device
to regulate the speed of the engine to which the governor is applied.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. An automatic expansion governor having weights that are carried by levers
pivoted to a fly wheel or disc and are controlled by springs and which is so
constructed that the distance of each weight from the axis or fulcrum of its
carrying lever and consequently also its distance from the centre of rotation of the
governor can be adjusted whilst the governor is in motion so as to alter the
centrifugal force and leverage of the weights without altering the tension of
the controlling springs connected therewith and to adapt the governor to varying
requirements whilst in action.
2. An automatic expansion governor of the kind referred to in which each
weight is connected to one arm of a bell crank lever carried by the lever upon
which the corresponding weight is mounted, and in which the bell crank levers
connected to two weights are arranged to be simultaneously operated through
sleeves or directly by a movable cross bar connected to a screw-threaded rod
mounted to slide in a bearing carried by the fly wheel or disc upon which the
governor is mounted and actuated by a hand wheel acting as a nut and arranged
at the centre of the governor, a second hand wheel being provided to prevent the
screw-threaded rod rotating whilst the adjustment of the weights is being affected
by the first mentioned hand wheel, as described with reference to the arrangement
illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive or the modification illustrated in Figs. 4 to 6
inclusive of the drawings.
3. The modified construction wherein the screw-threaded rod is arranged to slide
in a bearing carried by a fixed bracket and is prevented from rotating and the
adjustment of the said rod in an endwise direction for adjusting the position of
the weights is effected by a hand wheel acting as a nut substantially as described
with reference to Fig. 7 of the drawings.
D7h day of Who 1801