Receptacles with Liquids under Pressure.
Year: 1887

page_text: Receptacles with Liquids under Pressure.
I LORENZ ADALBERT ENZINGER of Worms in the Grand Duchy of Hesse Empire of
Germany, manufacturer, 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 relates to apparatus for filling bottles barrels and the like with gaseous
liquids or liquids under pressure such as beer for example and the improvements
consist essentially in the employment of a special arrangement for introducing com-
pressed air into the bottle or other receptacle before admitting the liquid the
compression of the said air being produced by the action of the liquid itself. For
the purpose of enabling the operation to be rapidly performed when filling or
decanting liquids into bottles the apparatus is arranged to have a rotary motion.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood I will now proceed
more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to the several
figures on the annexed sheet of Drawings the same letters of reference indicating
corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents in vertical section a bottle filling
apparatus constructed according to this invention.
Figure 2 drawn to a larger scale shows likewise in section the most important parts
of the said apparatus.
Figures 3 and 4 represent respectively a general view and a detail likewise partly
in section of an apparatus arranged for filling casks.
The bottle filling apparatus figures 1 and 2 is constructed with a chamber or vessel a
mounted on a central hollow shaft or pillar b supported on a rotary table c and with a
suitable number say eight plates d for the reception of the bottles attached to
vertically sliding rods d¹ connected by links at their lower extremities to treadle or
foot levers e. The vessel a is provided with taps or cocks situated over the aforesaid
plates. Each cock is in communication with the lower part of the vessel through a
passage Figure 2 and is connected with the upper part of the vessel by a passage f",
à pipe and a passage gl. The plug h of each cock is provided with two angular
passages or perforations and h². The passage h¹ corresponds with the passage f

page_text: and the passage ² corresponds with the passage and a tube ³ extending downwards
from the passage through the central or axial limb of the passage forms a
prolongation of the said passage 12 and projects beyond the tubular lower part of the
plug h. The said passages or perforations in the plug h are so arranged that when the
plug is placed in a certain position the perforation h² and passage f only are placed in
communication and when the plug is placed in a certain other position both the
perforations and 2 are connected with the corresponding passages and f². A
ring or washer i of rubber or other suitable material is supported at the lower part of
the body or case of the cock by a nut or gland being hollowed out at its under side for
the reception of the mouth of the bottle which is prossed against the said ring or
washer by means of the foot lever e.
The cover of the vessel a is provided with a passage / leading to the exterior and in
the interior of the vessel there is a float k connected to a rod the upper extremity of
which forms a valve k which opens or closes the passage according as the liquid and
consequently the float rises or falls in the vessel a. The float is guided by a tube k²
in which the rod slides and which is provided with lateral orifices for the escape of air
from the vessel or chamber a. The lower part of this chamber is connected by the
hollow pillar with a pipe leading from the vessel containing the liquid to be bottled.
In order to enable the hollow pillar to turn with the table e to which it is fixed a
stuffing box connection is provided between the said pillar and this pipe n.
The sides
71
of the chamber a are preferably made of glass in order that the position of the liquid
therein may be seen.
C
The table c is supported upon a central hollow leg or pillar c' rising from the centre
of a frame or plate c² provided with rollers travelling upon a circular track or rail o
and turning upon a fixed pivot o' engaging with the lower end of the hollow leg c¹.
The table together with the chamber a and the mechanism for raising the bottles is by
this arrangement enabled to turn upon the pivot o¹ and vertical part of the pipe n.
Handles are provided for convenience in turning the table. In order to hold up
the bottles and retain them securely in the elevated position pawls p are employed
which by means of rubber springs are caused to engage with ratchet teeth in the sides
of the bars d¹ being provided with a pendent arm p by pushing which with his foot
the operator can disengage the pawl and release the bottles.
In order to start this apparatus all the cocks are closed and the pipe n is placed in
communication with the vessel containing the supply of liquid. The pressure of the
air or gas in this vessel forces the liquid up the pipe n and pillar 6 into the chamber a.
At first this has the effect of expelling air from the said chamber through the
passage but when the liquid has risen to a certain height in this chamber the float k
is elevated and causes the valve k' to close the outlet orifice. The air remaining in the
chamber is then compressed until its pressure balances that under which the liquid is
forced into the chamber. A bottle being then placed on one of the plates d and its
mouth forced up against the ring i of the corresponding tap or cock by means of the
foot levere the plug of the cock is turned (through one quarter of a revolution for
example) in such a manner that communication is made between the passage and
the perforation h² only. Compressed air then passes out of the upper part of the
chamber a through the passages g' gf perforation h² and tube h³ into the bottle until
the pressure in the latter is equal to the pressure in the chamber a. The handle of the
cock or tap being now manipulated so as to turn the plug further and place the
perforation in communication with the passage f¹, (without closing the communica-
tion between 2 and 2), the liquid in the chamber a immediately flows into the bottle
through and whilst the air contained in the latter re-ascends into the chamber a
through h³g and g¹. After filling the bottle the liquid rises in these air passages
until it stands at the same level in the pipe g as in the chamber a but the level of the
liquid is prevented from rising beyond a certain point in the neck of the bottle by
suitably arranging or adjusting the length of the tubes for the ingress of liquid and
egress of air in the said neck. The bottle being thus filled up to the required point in
the neck tho cock is closed and the bottle removed from the apparatus to be immediately
corked or stoppered.

page_text: When the compressed air flows out of the chamber a into the bottle the liquid rises
in the chamber and sinks on the other hand as the air returns during the filling of the
bottle. The volume of air thus passing into the chamber is made up of the volume
that was previously forced into the bottle and that which was already contained in the
bottle at the commencement of the operation. Consequently the liquid is caused to
sink in the chamber a to a greater extent as each bottle full of air enters the upper
part until a certain point is reached where the float k which naturally descends with
the liquid ceases to maintain the valve closed and thus allows the superfluous air to
escape until the valve is again closed by the rising of the liquid to its normal level.
Two persons are employed in working the machine one being occupied with putting
in the empty bottles opening the cocks and intermittently turning the table by the
handles whilst the other closes the cocks and removes and corks the filled bottles.
The essential parts of the apparatus for filling casks with gaseous fluids and
illustrated in figures 3 and are the same as in the bottling apparatus the foot levers
being of course omitted and the rotary arrangement dispensed with. The size of the
vessel or chamber a is duly proportioned to the dimensions of the casks to be filled
and is connected with the cocks f by two rubber or flexible tubes one of which
connects the bottom of the chamber with the passage f whilst the other connects the
pipe g leading to the upper part of the chamber with the passage f2. In this arrange-
ment the passage is placed above the passage and the horizontal part of the
perforation in the plug is placed above the corresponding part of the perforation h
in order to render it possible to connect the vertical part of the perforation h¹ with a
tube which conducts the liquid to the bottom of the cask. The body of the cock is
connected with a tube f³ which conducts the air from the cask to the perforation or
passage 2 in the plug and is provided with a ring or collar which fits into the bung
hole. The action of this apparatus being the same as that of the bottling machine
will be readily understood without further description. The vessel a is provided with
a gauge glass not shewn in the drawing for indicating the level of the liquid therein.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said Invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :-
1. In apparatus for filling bottles barrels or like receptacles with liquids under
pressure the employment of a vessel or chamber a into which the liquid is forced
from below by the pressure of gas or air in combination with cocks for other
equivalent arrangements whereby firstly and for the purpose of equalizing the
pressures in the chamber a and in the bottle or barrel to be filled a communication is
established between the latter and the upper part of the chamber and afterwards for
the purpose of introducing the liquid a communication is established between the
lower part of the said chamber and the said bottle or barrel and the employment of a
float k and a valve k¹ operated thereby which allows air to escape through a passage
when the liquid becomes too low in the chamber a all substantially as and for the
purpose hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
2. In apparatus for filling bottles with liquids under pressure as herein before
described and claimed the arrangement of the vessel or chamber a with the cocks f
having two passages or perforations, upon a revolving support or stand in combination
with mechanism for pressing the bottles against the orifices of the cocks and retaining
them in this position substantially as herein before described and illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.