IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Albert Marcius Silber, of Wood Street, Cheap-
side, in the City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN LAMPS."
Sealed the 6th December 1875, and dated the 31st August 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Albert Marcius Silber
at, the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 31st August 1875.
I, ALBERT MARCIUS SILBER, of Wood Street, Cheapside, in the City
of London, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS," to be as follows:-
:―
My Invention relates to the construction of lamps, particularly such
as are exposed to gusts of wind, like street and signal lamps, or to wind
and waves like ship lamps, and it has for its objects the preservation
of the wick so that it will last without replacing or trimming during
a considerable period of burning, and the protection of the flame from
gusts of wind, or from access of water, whilst sufficient air is admitted

page_text: to support combustion and to keep cool the interior of the lamp so
as to avoid the risk of fracturing glasses by sudden changes of tem-
perature.
In constructing lamps to attain these objects I employ various forms
and designs to suit the particular conditions under which they are to be
placed.
One form, such as is suitable for being placed on a stand or pedestal,
is of the following kind -A metal ring at the bottom presenting a
large annular opening for admission of air round a centre piece which
may be screwed or otherwise attached to a stand or pedestal, supports
an external glass of basin form, and within it a metal casing open at
the bottom, and having numerous holes through its sides and cover.
Within this casing is the oil reservoir, there being an air space between
its exterior and the interior of the casing, so that air entering the latter
by its open bottom before issuing from.it by the holes above mentioned
circulates over and around the oil reservoir and keeps it cool. The
wick projects from the upper part of the oil reservoir, and over it is a
deflecting cone or conoidal shell which is mounted on the casing above
* mentioned, and has a projecting rim whereon, the chimney glass rests,
this glass being of the pear-shaped kind, bulging around the flame and
narrowing towards the top. Outside of the chimney glass there is an
external glass which spreads out at the base and rests on the margin
of the lower glass basin already mentioned, and between this external
glass and the chimney glass there is an annular space by which air
can pass upwards, keeping the chimney and external glass cool.
The external glass is surmounted by a crown perforated at the periphery,
and having within it a conical shell projecting inwards, and over it an
inverted cone leaving a passage between it and the upper lip of the
shell, by which passage the products of combustion and heated air
from the chimney and the space around it pass into the crown, whence
they issue by the perforations in the periphery.
The lamp which I employ for signalling or for ship lights is also
susceptible of various forms. I will describe a form suitable for ship
lights, the lantern having two flat sides forming an angle with one
another, and a curved side fitted with a lens or glass.
Within one
of the flat sides I form a chamber in which stands a tube open at the
bottom to the atmosphere, and covered with wire gauze or perforated

page_text: metal at the top, which is about midway in the height of the chamber.
By this tube air enters the chamber, whence it passes by a side opening
into a perforated casing like that which I have already described,
enclosing within it the oil reservoir. The wick projects upwards from
the oil chamber, and over it is the deflecting cone or conoidal shell
mounted on the air casing, so that a portion of the air supplied to the
casing is deflected on to the exterior of the flame, whilst other portions
issue by the holes in the casing into the interior of the lantern to keep
it cool. At some distance above the flame there is a chimney which,
preferably without any intervening lamp glass, receives the products
of combustion from the flame and conducts them upwards to the crown
of the lantern. There is also round this chimney an annular passage
for the passage of heated air from the interior of the lantern into the
crown. The crown consists of an outer casing within which is an
annular trough of conical form; the chimney is covered by a cap
having a deep lip projecting downwards into this annular trough, and
having perforations through the upper part of the lip for the issue of
the products of combustion and heated air. At the bottom of the
trough, and at the lower part of the exterior casing of the crown,
there are numerous holes for the escape of water that may be dashed
in through the openings above, such water being caught in the annular
trough and prevented by it from entering the lantern.
When such lamps, as I have described are made with argand burners
I provide a tube within the wick for supply of air from the casing of the
oil reservoir to the interior of the flame.
In order to secure greater durability in the argand wick I arrange it
so that its upper part next the flame is quite clear of the metal walls
of the annular space in which it stands. I effect this by making the
outer wick tube larger than the exterior of the wick, and the inner
tube smaller than its interior, and on the lower part of the inner tube
I provide a collar or swell on which the wick is stretched, all the upper
portion of the wick being thus made to stand clear from the metal walls
of the wick chamber. The overheating of the wick being thus avoided
it serves for a long time without charring or burning down, and thus
frequent trimming or replacement of wicks is rendered unnecessary.

page_text: .
.
t
In pursuance of the conditions or
_filed by the-said--Albert Marcius Silber in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 26th February 1876..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL. COME, I, ALBERT
"MARCIUS SILBER, of Wood Street, Cheapside, in the City of London,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in
the thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto me, the said Albert Marcius Silber,
Her special license that I, the said Albert Marcius Silber, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Albert Marcius Silber, my executors, administrators, and 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
clawfully 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 LAMPS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Albert Marcius Silber, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or
one of their hands and seals, 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 I, the said Albert Marcius Silber, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by, the following statement thereof, reference being had to the
accompanying Sheet of Drawings, and to the figures and letters marked
thereon, that is to say :-
:
My Invention relates to the construction of lamps, particularly such
as are exposed to wind and waves, like ship lamps, and it has for its
objects the preservation of the wick so that it will last without replacing
or trimming during a considerable period of burning, and the protection

page_text: of the flame from gusts of wind or from access of water, whilst sufficient
air is admitted to support combustion and to keep cool the interior of
the lamp so as to avoid the risk of fracturing glasses by sudden changes
of temperature.
In constructing lamps to attain these objects I employ various forms
and designs to suit the particular conditions under which they are to be
placed.
I will describe a form suitable for ship lights. Within one side I form
a chamber in which stand tubes open at the bottom to the atmosphere,
and covered with wire gauze or perforated metal at the top, which is
about midway in the height of the chamber. By the tubes air enters
the chamber, whence it passes by side openings into a perforated casing
enclosing within it the oil reservoir. The wick projects upwards from
the oil chamber, and over it is the deflecting cone or conoidal shell
mounted on the air casing, so that a portion of the air supplied to the
casing is deflected on to the exterior of the flame, whilst other portions
issue by the holes in the casing. into the interior of the lantern to keep
it cool. At some distance above the flame there is a chimney which,
preferably without any intervening lamp glass, receives the products
of combustion from the flame and conducts them upwards to the crown
of the lantern. There is also round this chimney an annular passage
for the passage of heated air from the interior of the lantern into the
crown. The crown consists of an outer casing within which is an.
annular trough of conical form; the chimney is covered by a cap
having a lip projecting downwards into this annular trough. At the
bottom of the trough, and at the lower part of the exterior casing of
the crown, there are numerous holes for the escape of water that may
be dashed in through the openings above, such water being caught
in the annular trough and prevented by it from entering the lantern.
.
When such lamps as I have described are made with argand burners
I provide a tube within the wick for supply of air from the casing of the
oil reservoir to the interior of the flame.
In order to secure greater durability in the argand wick I arrange it
so that its upper part next the flame is quite clear of the metal walls
of the annular space in which it stands. I effect this by making the
outer wick tube larger than the exterior of the wick, and the inner
tube smaller than its, interior, and on the lower part of the inner tube

page_text: I provide a collar or swell on which the wick is stretched, all the upper
portion of the wick being thus made to stand clear from the metal walls-
of the wick chamber. The overheating of the wick being thus avoided,
it serves for a long time without charring or burning down, and thus
frequent trimming or replacement of wicks is rendered unnecessary.
Fig. 1 represents a vertical section, and Fig. 2 a sectional plan on
the line Z, Z, of a ship's lamp constructed according to my Invention.
: A is the glass, and B the flat metallic side. Within this side is
formed a chamber C which is supplied with air by two pipes D
opening at bottom to the outer air, and rising about midway up in
the chamber C. The lower and upper mouths of the pipes D arc
covered with finely perforated metal or wire gauze. From the chamber
C there is a passage through its front wall into a casing E which
encloses the oil reservoir F. The upper part of the casing E is per-
forated by small holes e through which air can issue into the body of
the lamp, keeping it cool, and so avoiding fracture of the glass or lenses.
Also air passes from the casing by the tube G to the centre of the flame,
and also into the conical shell H which deflects it upon the exterior
of the flame. The wick K is stretched upon a swell or enlarged part
at the bottom of the wick tube, and is enclosed in an outer tube of
larger diameter than the wick itself, so that the upper part of the wick
stands clear of both the inner and the outer tubes for the purpose
above mentioned. Above the flame is the chimney L which opens
above into the cavity of the crown. Around the chimney L is an
annular passage by which heated air from the body of the lamp passes
upwards to the crown. The whole is surrounded by an annular trough
N into which a lip n projects downwards from the crown.
bottom of the trough N are holes O by which can issue any such water
or spray as may find its way into the trough, and I prefer to provide a
wind guard o to protect the openings O.
At the
It will be readily understood that this construction of lamp. may
be applied to signal, street, and other descriptions of lamps or lanterns.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I claim, the construction of a ship
or other lamp wherein a side chamber supplied with air by pipes rising

page_text: from the bottom about midway in the chamber, communicates by side
openings with a perforated casing enclosing the oil reservoir, sub-
stantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Albert Marcius Silber, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of February,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
six.
Witness,
JNO. P. M. MILLARD.
A. M. SILBER. (L.S.)