IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Jabez James, of Broadwall, Lambeth, in the County
of Surrey, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING
AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER."
Sealed the 12th August 1859, and dated the 11th June 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Jabez James at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
11th June 1859.
I, JABEZ JAMES, of Broadwall, Lambeth, in the County of Surrey, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, firstly, to a peculiar construction and arrangement of
apparatus applicable to lifts or cranes, the raising of large clock weights,
grinding, pumping, or other purposes where water, steam, or air pressure is
available. According to one arrangement of my apparatus, I employ a cylinder
and piston, the rod of which is fitted with a cross head which works in suitable
guides between the two sides of an endless chain passed over two notched
pullies. This cross head is provided with two palls, which are set in reverse
directions, and gear alternately into the two sides of the chain, so that whether
the piston is forced outwards or inwards, one or other of the palls will always",
be acting upon the chain, thereby imparting a continuous travelling motion to
Price Sd]

page_text: it,and rotatingthe shafts orspindlescarrying thepulleys, from which motion may
be transmitted in any convenient manner. The spindle of the valve for regulating
the inlet and outlet of the water, when water pressure is used to and from the
cylinder, is worked by the cross head, so that on its arriving at or near the
end of its stroke in either direction, it will actuate the valve, and so reverse
the motion of the piston. When applied to the raising of large clock weights,
an annular cylinder may be used, or one or two ordinary cylinders may be
employed, the cylinder or cylinders with the cross head and palls being contained
within a suitable casing, which, being properly weighted, constitutes the clock
weight itself. The cross head in this case is provided with one pall, and the
cylinder or cylinders with another, the two palls both acting upon one side of
the chain. These palls act alternately, and so raise the weight up the chain.
The valves are brought into play on the weight having descended to a certain
distance, when the stop valve is opened by the aid of suitable tappets, and the
apparatus is then set in motion. Flexible pipes may be used for conveying
the water, steam, or air to and from the cylinders, or metal sliding pipes may
be employed working in ordinary stuffing boxes. The arrangement of my
apparatus last described, may be modified slightly, for the purpose of raising
weights, by substituting a fixed chain or rack for the endless travelling chain
last referred to, placed either vertically or horizontally, the apparatus in this
case travelling along the chain or rack, and having attached to it the rope
or chain employed in raising the goods.
The second portion of my Invention relates to an improved mode of
applying the reciprocating motion of the piston of a steam engine, and dis-
pensing with the crank. This I propose to accomplish by attaching the
ordinary connecting rod to an endless chain or chains passed over notched
pulleys carried by transverse shafts. By this means I obtain a high rota-
tory speed from a comparatively slow motion of the piston. This
arrangement of engine will be found particularly applicable to the driving
of paddle wheel or screw propeller shafts.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Jabez James in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 10th
December 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JABEZ
JAMES, of Broadwall, Lambeth, in the County of Surrey, Engineer,
send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Jabez James, Her special license that I, the said Jabez
James, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Jabez James, ny executors, administrators, or 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER, "upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Jabez James, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal,should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
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 1, the said Jabez James, do hereby declare the
nature of iny said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say: -
My said Invention relates, firstly, to a peculiar construction and arrange-
ment of apparatus applicable to the working of lifts or cranes, the raising of
clock weights, grinding, pumping, or other purposes where water, steam, or
air pressure is available. According to one arrangement of my apparatus, I
employ a cylinder and piston, the rod of which is fitted with a cross head,
which works in suitable guides between the two sides of an endless chain
passed over two notched pullies; this cross head is provided with two palls
which are set in reverse directions, and gear alternately into the two sides o
the chain, so that whether the piston is forced outwards or inwards, one or
other of the palls will always be acting upon the chain, thereby imparting a
continuous travelling motion to it, and rotating the shafts or spindles carrying
the pulleys, from which motion may be transmitted in any convenient manner.
The spindle of the valve for regulating the inlet and outlet of the water,
where water pressure is used to and from the cylinder, is worked by the cross
head, so that on its arriving at or near the end of its stroke in either direction,
it will actuate the valve, and so reverse the motion of the piston. When

page_text: applied to the raising of clock weights, an annular cylinder may be used, or one
or two ordinary cylinders may be employed, the cylinder or cylinders with the
cross head and pall being contained within a suitable casing, which being
properly weighted constitutes the clock weight itself. The cross head in this
case is provided with one pall, and the cylinder or cylinders with another, the
two palls, both acting upon one side of an endless chain carried by a pulley
on the main arbour of the clock; these palls act alternately, and so raise
the weights up the chain. The valves are brought into play on the weight
having descended to a certain distance, when the stop valve is opened by
the aid of suitable tappets, and the apparatus in then set in motion. Flexible
pipes may be used for conveying the water, steam, or air to and from the
cylinders, or metal sliding pipes may be used working in ordinary stuffing
boxes. The arrangement of my apparatus last described may be modified
slightly, for the purpose of raising weights, by substituting a fixed chain or
rack for the endless travelling chain last referred to, placed either vertically
or horizontally, the apparatus in this case travelling along the chain or rack,
and having attached to it the rope or chain employed in raising the goods.
The second portion of my Invention relates to an improved mode of
applying the reciprocating motion of the piston of a steam engine, and
.dispensing with the crank. This I propose to accomplish by connecting
the cross head of the piston rod to an endless chain or chains passed over
notched pulleys carried by transverse shafts. By this means I obtain a
high rotatory speed from a comparatively slow motion of the piston. This
arrangement of engine will be found particularly applicable to the driving
of paddle wheel or screw propeller shafts.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall
refer to the several Figures on the Sheets of Drawings hereunto annexed,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts throughout all
the corresponding Figures.
Figure 1 on Sheet 1 of my Drawings, represents a longitudinal vertical
.section of one form of my apparatus as applied to the raising of weights;
Figure 2, is a corresponding plan of the same; Figure 3, is a sectional
detail of the distributing valve; and Figure 4, is an elevational detail on a
smaller scale, of the tumbling lever, for imparting a sudden movement to
the valve at each change of position.
A is a cast-iron cylinder laid horizontally upon the bed, or sole plate B,and
bolted firmly thereto by bolts passing through the brackets C, C. Within
this cylinder works a piston D, which may be provided with cup leathers, as

page_text: shewn in the Drawing, or be packed in any other convenient manner, so as
to work steam or fluid tight within the cylinder. To the outer end of the
piston rod, which works through an ordinary stuffing box E, is fitted a cross
head F, which is provided with antifriction rollers f, f, running along ribs or
projecting rails, formed respectively on the under side of the guide bar G, and
on the face of the bed plate. This cross head is fitted with two palls g, g',
placed one on each end of the cross head, and disposed in contrary directions.
An endless chain of flat links H, is carried by the chain pullies I, J, the
pulley I, being keyed on the main driving shaft K, and the pulley J, fast on a
shaft or spindle L, working in bearings M, M, at the back end of the cylinder.
This endless chain is so arranged that the palls in the cross head may
alternately act upon the opposite sides of it and engage with the joint pins, as
will be clearly understood when I have described the working of the machine.
The valve motion which I prefer to use consists of a cylindrical valve
casing N (Figure 3), provided at one end with a stuffing line O, for the valve
spindle P to work through, and at the other end with an exhaust pipe Q,
the inlet pipe R opening into the side of the casing. Within this casing
works, steam or fluid tight, a hollow cylindrical valve S, formed with a
flange s, at each extremity so as to leave an annular space t all round it
between the valve and the interior of its casings. The flanges s, s, are made
of sufficient width to close the two ports T, T, leading respectively to the
front and back ends of the cylinder. The valve is connected loosely to the
valve spindle P, by the internal boss U, through which the spindle is free to
have a certain amount of longitudinal play, this play being limited by the
shoulder at u, and the nuts v, on the end of the spindle. The valve spindle
extends along the sides of the cross-head guides, and is supported and guided by
bearings at V, V; it is provided with two adjustable collars W, W', between
which and along the valve spindle traverses the forked arm X, attached to
one side of the cross head, so that on the arm striking either one or the other
of these collars, the valve spindle will be moved accordingly. These collars
are so adjusted with regard to the stroke or traverse of the cross head, that on
its approaching the end of its course in either direction, the arm X will come
in contact with one or other of the collars, and commence to move the spindle.
In connection, also, with the valve spindle, there is a weighted tumbling bob
or lever Y (Figure 4), which consists of a vertical lever weighted at its upper
end, and turning on a centre or pivot y, at its lower extremity. This lever
has a link Z, jointed to it, which link is bent at right angles so as to admit of
the passage therethrough of the valve spindle, and on either side of that
portion of the link through which the spindle passes there is fitted on the

page_text: spindle an adjustable collar a and b, provided or not with leather or other
elastic washers to prevent noise in working; the lever Y, works through a
guide piece c, bolted to the bed plate of the machine, whereby it is main-
tained in its proper position laterally, but has at the same time perfect freedom
to tip over either forward or backward to the position shewn by the red lines
in Figure 4. The main shaft K, is fitted with a fly wheel d, and ratchet
.wheel e; the latter, in conjunction with a detent h, secured to one of the
supports of the guide bar G, serving to support the weight and prevent further
accident in case of a breakage of the endless chain H. This shaft is also
.provided with a break wheel and friction break, not shewn in my Drawings,
for the purpose of regulating the descent or lowering of the weight. Motion is
transmitted to any convenient overhead winding gear from the main shaft, by
.means of the grooved pulley i and rope k, shewn in red lines in Figure 1.
The action of this apparatus is as follows:-Supposing the valve to be in
the position indicated by the red lines in Figure 3; steam or water, whichever
is most convenient, will then be admitted through the inlet pipe R and
annular space t to the port T leading to the back end of the cylinder.
The piston will then be impelled towards the front end of the cylinder, and
its cross head, through the intervention of the upper pall g in gear with the
chain, will draw the endless chain H along in the direction of the arrow.
Before reaching the end of its stroke the arm X on the cross head will come in
..contact with the collar W, and as it continues to move forward, will draw with
it the valve spindle, thereby bringing the bob lever into a vertical position, as
shewn in plan in Figure 2, but without moving the valve, the play of the
valve spindle within the valve allowing of such an action. By the time,
however, that the spindle has arrived at the limit of its free play, the bob lever
will be vertical, and on being tipped over will draw with it the valve spindle
and valve by the aid of the link Z, the sudden tipping of the weighted bob
lever effecting the instantaneous change of the valve to the required position
for the next stroke. The steam or water now escapes from the after end of
the cylinder back through the port T, and through the interior of the tubular
valve to the exhaust or escape pipe Q, whilst at the same time steam or water
.is admitted by the port T' to the opposite end of the cylinder, and forces the
piston back again. On the return stroke of the cross head the lower pall g
acts upon the pins in the lower half of the endless chain, thereby keeping up
a continuous motion of the chain in one direction, one pall being of necessity
out of action, whilst the other js operating upon the chain. Just before the
termination of the stroke the arm X strikes the collar W, when the bob lever
is again elevated, and the valve reversed as before. It will thus be obvious

page_text: that by these means a continuous rotatory motion will be imparted to the
main shaft K, which may be transmitted therefrom in any convenient
manner, either for working a hoist or lift, or driving any other piece
of mechanism or machinery.
I may here observe, that although I prefer to employ water pressure as
my prime moving agent when convenient, yet I also propose to work my
apparatus by means of steam, compressed air, or gases.
Figure 1 on Sheet 2 of my Drawings represents a side elevation of a steam
engine constructed according to the second portion of my Invention; and
Figure 2 is a corresponding plan of the same. According to this arrange-
ment, I employ two endless chains of flat links A. as a substitute for the
ordinary crank, whereby I am enabled to obtain a high rotatory speed from a
comparitively slow motion of the piston, whilst at the same time the length of
the stroke maybe considerably increased without the attendant inconvenience
of a large crank. A, A, are two endless flat linked chains carried by the
chain pullies B, B, and C, C. The pullies B work loosely upon stud centres,
carried by brackets 1), D, bolted to the cast-iron bed plate E, and the pullies C
are severally fitted into the inner ends of the two shafts F and G. The shaft
Fis a short shaft working in bearings in the plummer blocks H, II, bolted to
the bed plate, and provided with a spur pinion I, which gears with a spur.
wheel Kfast on the eccentric shaft L,also working in bearings in the plummer.
blocks M. The shaft G is the main shaft of the engine, and in the case of a
screw engine will be prolonged to form the propeller shaft. This shaft also
works in bearings in the plummer blocks H', H', corresponding to those H,H,
of the short shaft F, and is similarly provided with a spur pinion I' gearing
into the spur wheel K' on the eccentric shaft beneath. As the axes of the
several chain pullies do not protrude beyond the inner faces of these wheels,
there is a free space left between them for the working of the cross head N
on the end of the piston rod O. The cross head has a vertical slot P formed
in it, within which slot slides freely the brass slides Q. Through this slide is
passed a pin R, which extends from one chain to the other, and is connected
to each chain by having its ends turned down and passed through the links,
so as to form one of the series of joint pins in each chain, a nut on the outside
serving to maintain it securely in its place. The cross head is provided with
antifriction rollers, and is guided by suitable guide rails in the manner herein-
before described in reference to Sheet 1 of my Drawings. S is the eccentric
for working the valve gear, which consists of a short rocking shaft T carried
in a bearing U cast on the side of the cylinder V; this shaft is fitted with two
lever arms W and X, to the first of which is connected the eccentric rod Y,

page_text: whilst the latter actuates the spindles Z, Z, of the valves through the con-
necting link piece a. On the engine being started, the pin R will cause the
two endless chains to travel over their respective pairs of pullies, and on
arriving at the end of its stroke, this pin will travel with the chains round the
pullies, the slide Q ascending or descending (as the case may be) in its slot,
to allow for the upward or downward movement of the, pin in passing over
the chain pullies; bis a steam valve which regulates the supply of steam
from the steam pipe c to the cylinder; and d, d, are the exhaust pipes, one
to each of the steam chests e, e.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that what I consider to be novel
and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,-
First, the general constructions, arrangements, and combinations of
machinery or apparatus for obtaining and applying motive power, as herein-
before described.
Second, the combination of a cross head and reversed palls with an endless
chain, for the purpose of transforming the rectilinear reciprocating motion
of the piston of a prime mover into a rotatory motion, as herein-before
described.
Third, the application and use to and in the raising of clock weights of a
cylinder, cross head, and palls, travelling along an endless chain passed
over a pulley on the main arbour of the clock, as herein-before described.
Fourth, the application and use to and in the raising of weights of a
cylinder, cross head, and palls, travelling along a horizontal or vertical fixed
chain or rack, as herein before described.
Fifth, the system or mode of driving the main shaft of a steam engine
by means of endless chains in combination with a pin in a slotted cross
head, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jabez James, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Tenth day of December, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-nine....
"
JABEZ JAMES. (L.S.).