Self-acting Stop Motions Applied to Speed Regulators for Steam Engines.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 9th May, 1888
Complete Specification Left, 9th Feb., 1889
Complete Specification Accepted, 16th Mar., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Self-acting Stop Motions Applied to Speed Regulators for Steam
Engines.
I, EDGAR CONISTON MILLS of No. 49, Victoria Buildings, Manchester, in the county
of Lancaster, Mechanical Consulting Engineer, do hereby déclare the nature of this
invention to be as follows :-
My invention consists of appliances for providing against the racing or running
away of Steam Engines in case of accident or sudden decrease of load and is appli-
cable to Speed Regulators or Compensators or Supplementary Governor motions which
operate by varying the relative positions of Governors and throttle or cut-off valves
or by varying the timing of Corliss or other trip-motion valves relatively to the
Governors in accordance with the variations of load or steam pressure.
"
Where such regulators are used it may sometimes occur that if a break-down or
sudden decrease of load takes place at a time when the said relative positions are such
as to give "full steam or more than normal steam, that is when the valve is more
than half open, the immediately available traverse of the Governors is not sufficient to
close the valve or valves promptly and the Engine may run away before the Regu-
lator has time to vary the connections so as to complete the closing of the valve or
valves.
In order to provide for this and prevent such running away I supply a motive force
which may consist of a weight ready to fall or a spiral or coil spring in tension or a
pressure diaphragm or a motion more rapid than that of the ordinary action of the
Regulator may be taken from the Engine itself.
Such force shall be released by the action of the Governors when the speed of the
Engine exceeds a given speed and shall so operate as to immediately close the valve
or valves through the medium of the Regulator.
This action may be accomplished by a variety of mechanical devices and I will
proceed to describe a suitable arrangement.

page_text: In connection with the Governor rod or with the controlling lever or rod of the
Regulator I attach a releasing piece which moves in accordance with the Governor
Sleeve and against which abuts a suitable tumbler or catch which by its position sus-
tains a weight from falling or a spring from relaxing or other motive force from
operating.
A fixed amount of motion of the said releasing piece releases the tumbler and allows
the weight to fall or other force to operate. In the case of a weight it comes in con-
tact with a washer depending from a chain which may pass through a central hole in
the said weight. The chain is wound round a drum which is rigidly fixed on the
shaft of the Regulator and in the ordinary working of the Regulator the chain winds
and unwinds freely on the said drum. But when the weight drops the Regulator is
rapidly revolved by the tension of the chain in the desired direction. In Regulators
operated by ratchet motions the "on steam" catch will at this time be out of gear
owing to the position of the Governors and therefore there is nothing to prevent the said
rotation. In order, however to secure that the valve shall not begin to open again when
the speed diminishes I cause either the falling of the weight or operation of correspond-
ing force or the motion of the releasing lever or tumbler to interpose a guard between the
on steam "catch and its ratchet wheel or to lock the controlling levers of-the Regu-
lator in the position in which the "off steam" catch is in gear or in the normal or
central position. In Regulators operated by friction discs I lock the moveable disc or
discs in its or their central position so that neither frictional surfaces can come in con-
tact and thus the weight or other force can freely revolve the Regulator and close the
"
valve.
I also provide for this purpose in all Regulators to which my invention is applied
that the traverse capable of being given to the valve by the Regulator shall be about
one and a half times that which the Governors alone can give and that the weight and
unwinding chain or whatever motive force is provided shall be capable when released
of operating the Regulator to this extent.
The action is as follows:-
Case I. A breakdown occurs when running at normal speed with full steam on.
a. The Governors fly to top position
and simultaneously the valve traverses one half stroke towards closed position.
b. On reaching top position catch is released and weight falls
and simultaneously Valve completes second half of stroke by unwinding of
chain and closes, coming to its seating if of the equilibrium or similar type of
valve and thus arresting motion of weight.
c. The Governors gradually drop through their whole traverse till the Engine
stops,
and simultaneously the continued unwinding of the weight keeps the valve
to its seat as the pressure is released by the dropping of the Governors which
action continues till the Governors reach bottom position and Engine stops.
In cases of cut-off motions or sleeve throttle valves I may provide for the purposes
of applying my invention a suitable abutment to answer to the abutment provided by
the seatings of an equilibrium valve or I may allow the complete requisite traverse of
the Regulator to be made at the first action in cases where there is no external
objection thereto.
Case II-A break-down occurs when running at normal speed with normal steam
(say valve half open).
a. The Governors fly to top
and simultaneously the valve traverses one-half towards closed position and
closes, coming to its seating and thus arresting motion of weight.
b. On Governors reaching top position the catch is released and weight falls
but can only press valve more firmly to its seat.
c. The Governors gradually drop through their whole traverse till Engine stops
and simultaneously the unwinding action of the weight keeps valve to its
seat as the pressure is released by dropping of the Governors and this con-
tinues as before till the Engine stops.

page_text: In this case the traverse utilised of the Regulator is only equal to one traverse of
the Governors.
Case III. A break down occurs when running normal speed with less amount of
steam on than normal (say valve one quarter open).
In this case no runaway can occur because the valve is closed before the Governors
can get to top position. If however they should come to top position by any
means my appliance will come into operation and keep the valve closed till the Engine
stops.

page_text: Self-acting Stop-motions Applied to Speed Regulators for Steam
Engines.
I, EDGAR CONISTON MILLS of No 49, Victoria Buildings, Manchester, in the county
of Lancaster, Mechanical Consulting 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 :-
My invention consists of appliances for providing against the racing or running
away of Steam Engines in case of accident or sudden decrease of load and is applicable
to Speed Regulators or Compensators or Supplementary Governor motions which
operate by varying the relative positions of Governors and Throttle or cut-off Valves
or by varying the timing of Corliss or other trip-motion valves relatively to the
Governors in accordance with the variations of load or steam pressure.
"
Where such Regulators are used it may sometimes occur that if a break-down or
sudden decrease of load takes place at a time when the said relative positions are such
as to give "full steam or more than normal steam, that is when the Valve is more
than half open the immediately available traverse of the Governors is not sufficient to
close the Valve or Valves promptly and the Engine may run away before the Regu-
lator has time to vary the connections so as to complete the closing of the Valve or
Valves.
In order to provide for this, and prevent such running away I supply a motive force
which may consist of a weight ready to fall or a spiral or coil spring in tension or a
pressure diaphragm or a motion more rapid than that of the ordinary action of the
Regulator may be taken from the Engine itself.
Such force shall be released by the action of the Governors when the speed of the
Engine exceeds a given speed and shall so operate as to immediately close the Valve or
Valves through the medium of the Regulator.
This action may be accomplished by a variety of mechanical devices involving a
sliding abutment of adjustable length to control and determine the point of excess or
diminution of speed at which the release shall take place and the apparatus come into
action. Such devices also include a guard or safety catch to ensure free movement
of the apparatus without furthur interference by the Governors, some sufficient means
of maintaining the said guard or safety catch in position, the provision of a proper
limit to the action of the apparatus where such does not already exist, and the pro-
vision of a sufficiency of such action to meet the case of a breakdown or runaway
occuring at the time when by the action of the Regulator or supplementary governing
appliance the controlling valves are in "full steam" position.
And in order that my invention may be better understood I refer to the accompany-
ing Drawings in which I show a typical apparatus as applied to a Speed Regulator
of the class for which Letters Patent were granted to Richard Wilby and numbered
14431 of the year 1886, and also as applied to supplementary governing appliances
of the class for which Letters Patent No. 784 of the year 1883 were granted to
W. Knowles.
Fig. I is a front elevation, Fig. II. a side elevation, Fig. III. a plan view and

page_text: my invention as applied to Speed Regulators of the class first hereinbefore
referred to.
The Regulator itself need not be further described than to say that a represents
the ordinary rod conveying motion from the Governor sleeve to the throttle or other
controlling valve. b is the shaft of the Regulator and c, c¹ its catches which under
ordinary circumstances operate the opposing ratchet wheels d, d' as required by the
controlling needle e.
Upon the shaft 6 or a continuation of it I mount a drum or it may be a chain or
spur wheelf. Round this is wound or passes the chain or cord g and to its end is
attached a stop washer and spring i. The chain passes through a hole in weight k,
which is sustained by fingers 1 l.
A shaft m, mounted on the frame of the Regulator has attached to it at one end the
fingers 1, 1, and at the other the lever m¹. The weight of k tends to move m¹
upwards and it is prevented from so moving by the peg n projecting from the short
arm of the bell crank or safety catch lever o centred at o' upon the Regulator frame.
The bellcrank o is retained in position by the peg o" attached to it and which is
pressed against the projecting feather p. The latter is carried by the vertical sliding
needle 9, which being attached by bracket r¹ to the Governor rod a moves with it in
exact accordance with the variations of the Governors. The feather P is adjusted to
such a length that one end of it shall clear the peg o" when excess of speed takes
place and the other end when any previously determined diminution of speed occurs
or its length may be so arranged that the peg o" shall only be cleared and released in
one of these cases. When it is so released it is obvious that owing to the upward
pressure of m¹ against n, the lever o will move to the right and as the points of m¹
and n describe receeding arcs m¹ is immediately released and the fingers 7, dropping
into a vertical position the weight k falls and coming into contact with h puts a
tension upon g and so winds the drum f and shaft b in that direction which, by means
of the right and left handed screw-threads on a and a¹, closes the steam throttle or
other valves of the Engine.
Upon the arm of bellcrank o the jaw or fork o¹¹ is formed which when it springs
forward embraces the lever r, of the Regulator as shewn in Fig. IV.
This is one of the levers by which the controlling action of the needle e is conveyed
to the catches d, d' and the fork o¹11 being formed with a bell mouth forces r into a
fixed position determined by the inner portion of the fork and this position is that in
which both catches d and d¹ are out of gear with their ratchet wheels. When the
arm m' is clear of the peg n there is no longer any pressure upon o, tending to force
the fork o towards r, and to provide for this I use the wedges which is drawn to
the right by spring t. The wedge is provided with a square corner s¹ so that it shall
not exert any turning force upon o until the latter has been released by feather p and
started by lever m¹.
In cases where there is not sufficient space for the fall of the weight k, the staples
or eyes k¹ or one of them may be attached to the end of a cord or chain passing over
suitable guide pulleys to a convenient position and the chain g may be similarly
carried or the weight k may be increased and f diminished or any suitable mechanical
device adopted for the purpose. And in place of the falling weight I may use a
coiled or other spring, a pressure diaphragni or piston or the weight or spring may be
used to throw into gear a friction clutch by which rotary motion, obtained from the
Engine itself shall be caused to give rotation to the shaft b.
Fig. V shews in elevation and Fig. VI in plan an illustration of my method of
applying my invention to supplementary governing appliances of the second class
referred to.
A, is the pair of supplementary Governors controlling the position of friction
disc u. The shaft B obtains its motion from the Engine. Upon the sleeve of the
Governors A I mount a disc or collar v which is embraced by the fork o¹ when it is
released by the excessive upward or downward motion of feather p as before. The
weight k, in this case acts by means of chain 9 upon drum f and so rotates the
111239

page_text: ermediate shaft w, the upper and lower discs u¹ and u being free to rotate owing
u being held in central position by fork o'" embracing disc v. Thus the nut x is
tated by band y and the steam valve or valves closed as before.
In this application I sometimes dispense with the drum fand by means either of
ain g or through the medium of the levers m¹ and o I cause the fork o¹¹¹ when
leased to force the disc in the direction which shall cause the disc u to press
ainst and actuate that one of the two discs u¹ or ull whose rotation causes the steam
Ive or valves to close. But I prefer the application of the exterior force represented
the weight k actuating the drum f, as being more rapid in its action.
In all cases I provide that the traverse capable of being given to the valve or valves
my herein described apparatus shall be about one and a half times that which the
overnors alone usually give.
The action is as follows:-
Case I-A breakdown occurs when running at normal speed with full steam on.
a. The Governors fly to top position, and simultaneously the valve traverses one
half stroke towards closed position.
b. On reaching top position catch is released and weight falls,
and simultaneously-valve completes second half of stroke by unwinding
of chain and closes, coming to its seating if of the equilibrium or similar type
of valve and thus arresting motion of weight.
c. The Governors gradually drop through their whole traverse till the Engine
stops,
and simultaneously-the continued unwinding of the weight keeps the valve
to its seat as the pressure is released by the dropping of the Governors which
action continues till the Governors reach bottom position and Engine stops.
Case II: A breakdown occurs when running at normal speed with normal steam
ay valve half open.)
a. The Governors fly to top position,
and simultaneously-the valve traverses one half towards closed position and
closes, coming to its seating and thus arresting motion of weight.
b. On Governors reaching top position the catch is released and weight falls but
can only press valve more firmly to its seat.
c. The Governors gradually drop through their whole traverse till Engine stops,
and simultaneously-the unwinding action of the weight keeps valve to its
seat as the pressure is released by dropping of the Governors and this continues
as before till the Engine stops.
Case III: A breakdown occurs when running at normal speed with less amount
steam on than normal (say valve one quarter open.)
In this case no runaway can occur because the valve is closed before Governors can
et to top position.
If however they should come to top position by any means my appliance will come
to operation and keep the valve closed till Engine stops.
In cases in which the Regulator or supplementary Governing mechanism acts upon
he "cut off" valves, or in cases where there is no abutment to limit the traverse of
he throttle valve I may provide such abutment by any convenient internal or external
eans or I limit the operation of my herein before described stored up source of
ower by allowing the weight to come to. rest or by limiting the unwinding of the
pring or by any suitable and well known mechanical device.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
avention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
claim is:-
I. Automatic stop-motions for Steam Engines operating by the release or application
f a stored up or other force such force stopping or checking the supply of Steam to
he Engine through the medium of the mechanism of Speed Regulators or supple-
hentary governing appliances substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
escribed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

page_text: II. The sliding abutment of adjustable length with releasing piece or tumbler in
contact and causing release at desired excess of speed or at desired diminution of
speed or at both substantially as and for the purposes herein-before described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
III. The guard or safety catch, fork or lever for the purpose of ensuring free
revolution or motion of the mechanism at and after the time of release substantially
as and for the purposes herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
IV. The wedge or spring to maintain the safety catch in position substantially as
and for the purposes herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
V. The provision of an abutment or limit to travel of valves without seatings
substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
VI. The provision of an extra length of traverse or action of the stop-motion to
meet the case of excess of speed at the time when owing to previous action of the
Regulator or supplementary appliance, the ordinary action of the Governors is
insufficient to shut off the steam, substantially as and for the purposes herein before
described.
Dated thin oth
1000