Improvements in Rotary Explosion Engines.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Dec., 1899-Accepted, 3rd Feb., 1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rotary Explosion Engines.
We, Joux STRASZER, Manufacturer, of Manchester, St. Louis County, Missouri,
U.S.A., DE WITT CLINTON TAYLOR, Attorney at Law, of Manchester, St. Louis
County, Missouri, U.S.A., and FREDERICK STOECKER, Manufacturer, of Manchester,
St. Louis County, Missouri, U.S.A. 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:―
Our invention has relation to improvements in rotary explosive engines and
consists in the novel arrangement and combination of parts more fully set forth
in the specification and pointed out in the claims.
In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the face-plate of the engine, the
outer piston-disk being removed, but the pockets thereof being shown dotted to
illustrate the position they occupy, relatively to the valves of the face-plate, at
the beginning of a revolution; Fig. is a similar view, showing the relative
position of one set of pockets for the second position of the piston-disk: Fig. 8
is a similar view showing the third and fourth positions of the same pockets;
Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the face-plate, the cover plate being removed; Fig. 5
is a rear elevation of the engine, with cover plate in place; Fig. 6 is a plan of
the inner face of the piston-disk, along which the pockets are disposed; Fig. 7
is a section of the assembled machine taken in planes indicated by the zig-zag line
on Fig. 1; Fig. 8 is a section on line 8-8 of Fig. 1 showing the construction
and manner of operation of one of the spring-controlled valves of the face-plate,
a portion of the pocket, however, being also illustrated, Fig. 9 is a sectional
detail showing the tapering end of any one of the pockets, the section being
indicated on line 9-9 of Fig. 6; Fig. 10 is a sectional detail showing the abrupt
end of one of the outer pockets of the piston-disk, the section being indicated on
line 10-10 of Fig. 6; and Fig. 11 is a detail of the outer end of the plug of the
gas-chamber, and parts adjacent thereto.
The object of our invention is to construct an explosive engine of the rotary
type, which shall be compact, one whose parts are readily accessible, and one
containing further and other advantages more apparent from a detailed de-
scription of the invention, which is as follows;
Referring to the drawings, 1 represents the stationary or face-plate of the
engine, 2 the rotating piston-disk and 3 the cover-plate, the outer edge of the
latter being bolted to a flange 5 formed along the adjacent edge of the circum-
scribing ledge or wall forming a part of the plate 1. Along the front of the
plate are disposed along concentric circles the various valves by which the
influx of gas into, and efflux of gas from the pockets of the piston-disk is con-
trolled, as will presently appear. The several valves are hinged, and open out-
wardly, that is to say away from the front face of the plate 1, and into the
respective pockets formed along the inner adjacent surface of the piston-disk,
the latter rotating with the several pockets against the face plate. "G" repre-
sents the gas valve, the same controlling a port 7 at the inner end of the gas
chamber 8. "W" represents the water-outlet valve, the same controlling a port 9
"

page_text: communicating with the rear water-chamber 10 iocated between the face plate 1
and cover plate 3. "E" represents the exhaust valve controlling the exhaust
port 11 at the inner end of the exhaust nozzle 12. "V" represents the valve
leading from the gas chamber 8, also located along the rear face of the plate 1,
said valve normally covering a port 14 leading from said chamber S. The
several valves mentioned, with the exception of the valve "V," are each forced to
an open position by a plunger 15 actuated by a coiled spring 16 confined within
a tubular casing 17 projecting from the rear of the face-plate, the outer end of
the spring abutting against a screw-plug 18 by which its tension is regulated.
The valve "V" is forced open by the explosion of the gas which takes place in
the gas-chamber 8. The drive-shaft 19 which carries the piston-disk passes
through the tubulár hub or bearing 20 of the face-plate, the outer end of the
hub terminating in two substantially semicircular (mathematically elliptical
however) bearing surfaces 21 the planes of which intersect one another, thus
forming offsets or shoulders 22. Mounted loosely on the shaft is a collar 23
having similar inclined bearing faces adapted to ride over the faces 21, the
opposite plane face of the collar being adapted to bear against a fixed collar 24
secured to the shaft. So that when the lever 25 carried by the collar 23 is
siezed and the latter turned in the direction shown by the arrow in Fig. 7 so as
to cause the inclined faces thereof to ride up the inclined faces 21 of the hub,
the effect will be to pull the shaft in a direction to draw the disk 2 firmly against
the face of the plate 1. When once properly adjusted the parts will remain in
position by reason of the friction between the surfaces 21, and the adjacent surfaces
of the collar 23, and by the weight of the lever. It is to be understood that
this longitudinal adjustment of the shaft is very slight and only sufficient to
effect a perfect and uniform contact between the piston-disk and the face-plate.
The cover-plate 3 is passed over the hub 20 and tubular casings 17 and bolted
directly to the flange 5 of the face-plate, the outer projecting ends of the
casings 17 being screw-threaded so as to receive a terminal nut 26 and washer 27
and ensure a water-tight joint at that point, it being understood, as subsequently
to be explained, that the space 10 between the rear of the face-plate and the cover
plate constitutes a water chamber for cooling the several parts of the engine.
The inner surface of the piston-disk, or that surface which is in direct contact
with the valve-supporting face of the face-plate, is provided with two series of
pockets g, w, c, and gw and e¹ arranged in concentric circles corresponding to those
along which the valves G, W, E, and V are disposed, the latter when forced open
under either the action of the plungers 15 or by the explosion of the gas in the
gas chamber, opening outward against the walls of their respective pockets as
best shown in section in Fig. 8, the valve being forced to a closed position by the
plane surface of the piston-disk as such surface comes opposite said valve during
the revolution of the disk (see Fig. 7). Formed in the face-plate in the path of
the circle, along which the pockets g g are described is an opening 13 com-
municating with the upper end of a conduit 28 disposed along the rear of the face-
plate, and passing through the lower wall of the water chamber, said conduit or
tube 28 being adapted to be coupled to a pipe (not shown) connecting with any
source of gas supply. Formed also in the face-plate in the path of the circle
along which the pockets are described is an opening 29 communicating with
the upper end of a conduit 30 leading through the bottom of the water chamber
for coupling to any water supply-pipe (not shown). Projecting from near the
base or lower edge of the cover plate is an overflow or water nozzle 31 to carry
off the water from the water-chamber as will more fully hereinafter appear.
Disposed also along the rear wall of the face-plate is an oil-supply tube or
conduit 32 closed at the bottom, but having openings 33 leading from along the
length thereof through the face-plate, the oil being supplied from an oil-cup 34
mounted at the upper end of the said tube on the outside of the wall 6. The
openings communicate with an oil groove 35 disposed along the inner face of the
piston-disk, the oil being, thus carried between the contacting surface of the

page_text: disk and face-plate, the drippings eventually finding their way through an open-
ing 36 located at the edge of a central depression 37 in the face-plate, into a drip
pipe or tube 38 in the rear of the face plate, said drip pipe passing through the
bottom of the water-chamber.
The operation of the engine is as follows:
22
is
The piston-disk, if viewed from the inside, rotates in the direction shown by the
arrow in Figure 6, but when viewed so that the observer looks toward the outer
face thereof, the disk revolves as shown by arrow in Figure 7; or as shown by
arrows in Figures 1, 2, 3, in which the pockets of the disk are shown dotted (the
disk itself being omitted) to illustrate the positions they occupy relatively to
the valves in the course of a single revolution. Let us follow the piston-disk
through a single revolution. Referring to Figure 1, the forward end of the
pocket "g" is open to the gas inlet or opening 13 allowing the gas to enter
said pocket, the valve "G" which is open under the circumstances, and whose
edge substantially conforms to the contour of the walls of the pocket, preventing
the escape of the gas in that direction. At the same time the pocket "w
open to the water-inlet opening 29, this pocket filling with water under the cir-
cumstances; the pocket c is removed from the exhaust valve "E" for this
initial position of the disk. As the latter rotates in the direction previously
indicated, the gas which becomes occluded in the pocket "g" will, for the
second position of the pocket, marked in Figure 2, escape through the port 7
into the gas-chamber 8, the pocket having in the meantime delivered its
water through the port 9 into the water-chamber in the rear of the face-plate,
and passed to the position as shown by in Figure 2 to take in more water
through the pipe 30. As the piston-disk continues its rotation the pocket e will
come opposite the valve "V" of the gas chamber as shown in e³ in Figure 3, the
-pocket will be in the position g³, and valve "G" closed, and pocket wat w³.
When the disk is in this third position the explosion which takes place at this
moment in the gas chamber (as presently to be described) forces the valve "V
open, the said valve serving as an abutment for the expanding gases, the said
gases expending their energy against the terminal flat or plane abutting wall 39
of the pocket c. The disk is thus impelled onward until the pocket e comes
opposite the exhaust valve "E" as shown in et in Figure 3, the valve "E" flying
open, and allowing the exhaust escape through the port 11 into the atmosphere.
By this time the pocket g has reached yt and w has reached wt. Thus the piston-
disk has been traced for a complete revolution. To avoid complication, only the
pockets y, w, and e, have been traced, but the same explanation applies to
pockets g, and e¹. In practice of course, it is not necessary that the pocket g
shall made a complete revolution before any gas is delivered into the gas-chamber
through the port 7 of the valve "G," for before such complete revolution is
made, the gas from pocket gl will have been delivered into the gas-chamber and
its force expended against the terminal wall of pocket el in driving the disk
forward; but it must be remembered that in the present description, we are trac-
ing the path of the gas from the beginning, that is, where both pocket g, g' are
empty. To avoid confusion, the intermediate positions of pockets g₁ w¹ and c¹
are omitted purposely from Figures 2 and 3.
There are two explosions for every complete revolution of the piston-disk, that
is to say, every time the pocket e and el comes opposite the gas-chamber
valve "V. These explosions are produced by the following mechanism;
Carried by the periphery of the piston-disk, at points adjacent to the abutting
wall 39 of each pocket e. el is a tripping arm 40, which, as the disk revolves
trips or tilts a "wiper" or wiping lever 41 forming one electrode of an electric
circuit, the inner free end of the wiper normally contacting with the inner end
of the opposite of fixed electrode 42. Both electrodes are mounted in an insulat-
ing plug 43 which covers the outer opening of the gas chamber, the wires (see
Fig. 7) being connected in any approved manner to the electrodes. The outer
end of the wiper carries a wedge-shaped head or knob 44 made of insulating

page_text: material, the arm 40 striking the incline of said knob, and tripping or tilting
the wiper out of contact with the electrode 42 (see dotted position Fig. 7) the
separation of the electrodes producing a spark and making the explosion of the
gas mixture in the gas-chamber. The wiper is returned to its closed position by
a spring 44. The opposite or retreating ends of the pockets e, el flare gradually
toward the inner surface of the disk (see Fig. 9), as also do the opposite ends of
the pockets g, g¹ to enable the tapering ends of the valves to pass readily out of
them, as they are gradually forced to a closed position by the plane surface of
the disk. The pockets w, w are formed similarly to pockets e, e¹. During the
rotation of the piston-disk both the gas and water are permitted to flow into
their respective pockets, the water being discharged through the valve-controlled
port 9 into the water chamber 10, whence it is discharged through the overflow
nozzle 31 at the base of the rear of said chamber (see Fig. 5), it being under-
stood that the object of the water is to cool the several parts.
We do not of course limit ourselves to the precise details herein shown and
described, for various changes might be made without departing from the spirit
of our invention.
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. In a rotary engine, a rotatable pistou-disk, pockets formed along one face
thereof and disposed along arcs of a series of concentric circles, a series of said
pockets gradually tapering at one end, and having an abrupt or plane wall at the
opposite end, a face-plate having a series of ports located in position to come
opposite said pockets, and valves controlling said ports, and adapted to bear
against the walls of the pockets during the rotation of the piston-disk, sub-
stantially as set forth.
2. In a rotary engine, a rotatable piston-disk having a plane inner face, pockets
formed on said face and disposed along arcs of a series of concentric circles, a
series of said pockets having each an abrupt or plane terminal wall at one end,
a face plate adjacent to said piston-disk, a series of ports disposed along the face
plate in position to come opposite said pockets, and valves controlling said ports
and adapted to bear against the walls of the pockets during the rotation of the
disk, substantially as set forth.
3. In a rotary engine, a stationary face plate having a gas inlet opening, a
valve-controlled port located at the same radial distance from the center thereof, a
gas-chamber located to the rear of the plate and communicating with the said
port, an outlet valve from said chamber located along the front face of the plate
at a greater radial distance than the port aforesaid, an exhaust valve located at a
point diametrically opposite the outlet valve and at the same radial distance
therewith from the center of the plate, a piston-disk having pockets formed
along the inner face thereof and distributed in the path of the respective ports
and valves of the face plate, means for exploding the gas mixture in the gas
chamber at the proper moment, during the rotation of the piston-disk, means for
opening and forcing the valves open and against the walls of the pockets in the
course of rotation of the piston-disk, the valves being forced to a closed position
by the inner face of the disk after the pocket has passed any valve, the parts
operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
4. In a rotary engine, a piston-disk having a series of pockets disposed along
arcs of concentric circles, and oil grooves located between the ends of the various
pockets, and disposed from the center, outwardly, a face plate, suitable valves on
said plate co-operating with said pockets of the piston-disk, and oil-supply:
openings co-operating with the oil-grooves, substantially as set forth.
5. In a rotary engine, a stationary face plate having a series of valves dis-
posed in the path of arcs of concentric circles, a gas inlet opening formed in the
plate in the path of the circle of the gas valve, a conduit leading from said open-

page_text: ing at the back of the face plate, a water-inlet opening formed in the plate in the
path of the circles of the water-valve, a conduit leading from said opening at
the back of the face plate, a gas explosive chamber communicating with the port
controlled by the gas valve, and located at the back of the face plate, a valve for
permitting the discharge of the exploded mixture located along the front face
of the face plate, exterior to the gas valve, an exhaust valve located diametrically
opposite the gas chamber discharge-valve, but disposed radially the same distance
therewith, an exhaust nozzle communicating with the port of the exhaust valve
on the back of the face plate, an oil conduit located in the back of the face plate
and communicating with the front face thereof through a series of openings
formed in the face plate, a tubular shaft-bearing projecting from the center of the
face plate rearwardly, a piston-disk rotating against the front of the face plate and
having pockets contiguous thereto and in the path of the several openings and
valves, a shaft passing through the tubular bearing of the face plate and ssecured
to the piston-disk, and means carried by the latter for exploding the gas within
the gas explosive chamber the latter being provided with electrodes to produce
electric discharges, substantially as set forth.
G. In a rotary engine, having a piston-disk, a series of pockets formed along one
face thereof, a series of said pockets gradually tapering at one end, and having an
abrupt or plane wall at the opposite end, and a face plate having a series of valve-
controlled ports co-operating with said pockets, substantially as set forth.
7. In a rotary engine, a face plate, a valve hinged along the front face thereof,
a tubular casing adjacent to the hinge line, a plunger mounted in the casing and
adapted to bear against the valve, an outer terminal screw-plug, a spring inter-
posed between said plug and plunger and a port formed in the face plate in
position to be controlled by said valve, substantially as set forth.
8. In a rotary engine, a face plate, a ledge or wall surrounding the same, a
cover plate secured to said wall thereby a water chamber is formed between said
cover plate and face plate, tubular outwardly screw-threaded valve-casings and a
tubular shaft-bearing or hub projecting from the rear of the face plate. the
cover plate having openings adapted to pass over said tubular casing and hub,
a nut and washer passed over the screw-threaded portion of each casing and
adapted to form a water-tight joint with the cover-plate, the latter being pro-
vided with an over-flow nozzle or pipe, substantially as set forth.
Dated this ~41 Je of Decombo 1900
MARKS & CLERK,
18, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
13, Temple Street, Birmingham, and
25, Cross Street, Manchester,
Agents.
MARKS & CLERK,
18, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
13, Temple Street, Birmingham, and
25, Cross Street, Manchester,
Agents.