Improvements in Valves and Valve Gear for Motive Power Engines.
Year: 1885

page_text: Improvements in Valves and Valve Gear for Motive Power
Engines.
We JAMES CLARKSON KAY, of Phoenix Foundry, Bury, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, and JAMES KAY, of 120, Spring Street, Bury aforesaid,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of said Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
VALVES AND VALVE GEAR FOR MOTIVE POWER ENGINES, to be as follows:-
Our invention consists chiefly in applying the ordinary well known system of
Corliss valve gear to work plate slide valves for admitting steam to the cylinder
and cutting off steam for expansion at any point of the stroke of the engine.
In performing our invention we employ a simple plate slide valve for admitting
and cutting off steam for expansion at each end of the cylinder or side pipes. The
Corliss gear is connected with the governor and to the spindles of the slidė valves
which valves work quite independently of one another; the outer end of each valve
spindle passes through a stuffing box into a dash pot, in which is a strong spiral
spring, which spring is compressed when the valve is opened to admit steam to the
cylinder, and when released the spring exerts its force to close the valve rapidly
and cut off steam.
We use plate slide exhaust valves which work independently of the steam valves
and are placed next the cylinder and are actuated by eccentric-rods and levers from
the flywheel shaft.
By the use of our invention the slide valves are opened and closed with very
great rapidity, consequently we are able to employ larger ports with proportionately
smaller valves than heretofore, and the traverse of the valves is reduced thereby
diminishing friction.

page_text: Engines.
We JAMES CLARKSON KAY, of Phoenix Foundry, Bury, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer and JAMES KAY, of 120 Spring Street, Bury aforesaid,
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of said invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
VALVES AND VALVE GEAR FOR MOTIVE POWER ENGINES and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
Our invention consists chiefly in applying the ordinary well known system of
Corliss valve gear to work plate slide valves for admitting steam to the cylinder
and for cutting off steam for expansion at any point of the stroke of the engine.
In performing our Invention we employ a simple plate slide valve for admitting
and cutting off steam for expansion at each end of the cylinder or side pipe. The
Corliss gear is connected with the governor and to the spindles of the slide valves
which valves work quite independently of one another; the outer end of each valve
spindle passes through a stuffing box into a dash pot in which is a strong spiral
spring which spring is compressed when the valve is opened to admit steam to the
cylinder and when released the spring exerts its force to close the valve rapidly
and cut off steam.
We use plate slide exhaust valves which work independently of the steam valves
and are placed next the cylinder and are actuated by eccentric rods and levers from
the fly wheel shaft.
And in order that our Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into effect we will describe the accompanying two sheets of Drawings, reference
being had to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Figs. 1 and 2 are a front view and plan respectively, the latter partly in section,
of one arrangement of our improved method of working plate slide expansion
valves in a steam engine with Corliss valve gear. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of one
of the dash pots. Fig. 4 is a plan and Fig. 5 a sectional view on an enlarged scale
showing the release connecting rod with trigger lever for one of the plate slide
valves and Fig. 6 is a front view of another arrangement of plate slide valves
actuated by Corliss valve gear according to our Invention.
In Figs. 1 and 2.-a is a portion of the frame of a steam engine; b the cylinder;
c the steam chest or side pipe with ports c¹ c leading into the cylinder b and
controlled by the plate slide valves d' d' secured to spindles à d³; the exhaust
valves ce¹, see Fig. 2, are placed between the ports ff in the chamber g and the
cylinder b.
The exhaust valves e e¹ are actuated independently of the steam valves by
eccentric rods and levers, one rod es being shown on Fig. 2. The mechanism for
actuating the plate slide valves d d and part of the connections to the governor are
shown in Figs. and 6. The valve rod h is worked from an eccentric on the fly
wheel shaft and is connected to a slotted lever i pivoted to the frame at ; the
lever i is connected by a rod k to a motion lever pivoted to the side pipe cat ;
the rod k can be adjusted in the slotted lever i to give more or less traverse to the
valves dd; the motion lever j is connected by a rod m to a similar motion lever
pivoted to the side pipe at ; the motion levers j and are connected by release
connecting rods j' and ' (one of which is shown full size, Figs. 4 and 5) to levers n
and o pivoted to the frame at n¹ and o¹ respectively; these levers n and o are also

page_text: connected to the valve spindles d d the outer ends of which project into dash
pots p p (see detailed view Fig. 3); each valve spindle is preferably connected as
shown to a piston p³ fitted and free to slide in the dash pot p which is provided
with an opening p³ at the back to allow air to escape as the piston p is forced back
and the spring p₁ is compressed on the opening of the slide valve. There is also an
air valve ps through which air escapes in front of the piston p² as the spring p*
closes the slide valve. The valve p is set and adjusted so as to obtain the desired
cushion.
The cylinder b, side pipe c, slide valves d d and exhaust valves e e¹ are shown
in section in Fig. 2; the mechanism for actuating the valves d d is all outside the
side pipe c which has covers d' d' opposite the valves.
In Fig. 6 a modification of our Invention is shown. The rod k is pivoted at one
end to the slotted lever i as before and at the other end to a motion disc u mounted
on the stud u; the release connecting rods vv are pivoted at one end to the
motion disc u and at the other end to the levers w w¹ which are keyed on short
shafts passing through stuffing boxes into the side pipe c; on the inner ends
of the shafts are levers (shown only in dotted lines but similar to w w¹)
coupled to the links on the valve spindles d² d³ the ends of which enter the dash
pots p p.
The release connecting rod and trigger for working the valves are shown in
section, full size in Fig. 5 and in plan Fig. 4. The release connecting rod vis
extended at and slides in a sleeve d' secured to the motion lever w connected to
the slide valve d; the rod v carries the spring clips to which are secured steel
bits yy; the trigger lever z is pivoted at t to the rod t which is connected by the
toothed quadrant lever q¹ to the governor rod q
The parts are shown in Fig. 5 in the positions they occupy when the clips
have just taken hold of (gripped) the sleeve and the valve begins to be opened;
at the proper time the trigger motion will open the clips thus allowing the full
force of the spring p' to act upon and rapidly close the valve.
The position of the fulcruin is affected by any movement of the governor
rod q so that the cut off is regulated automatically according to the varying load of
the engine.
By the use of our Invention plate slide valves are opened and closed with very
great rapidity, we are thus enabled to employ larger ports with proportionately
smaller valves than heretofore and the traverse of the valves is reduced thereby
diminishing friction.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is
1. The use and application of Corliss valve gear arranged to work plate slide
valves for regulating the cut off and expansion of steam in a motive power engine.
2. In a motive power engine, the arrangement of Corliss valve gear combined
with dash pots for working plate slide expansion valves, substantially in the
manner herein set forth, for the purposes specified.
3. The arrangement of Corliss valve gear for working plate slide expansion
valves with all the connections to the said valves placed outside the side pipe,
substantially as and for the purposes herein described and as illustrated by the
Drawings.