IMPROVEMENTS IN LUBRICATING APPARATUS FOR SPINDLE AND OTHER BEARINGS
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Cunningham at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 13th February 1883.
WILLIAM CUNNINGHAM, of Dundee, in the County of Forfar, North Britain,
Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LUBRICATING APPARATUS FOR SPINDLE AND OTHER
BEARINGS
"
This Invention has for its object to improve the action, construction, and
arrangement of lubricating apparatus for spindle and other bearings; and the
improved apparatus is contrived so that the lubricating oil employed is not exposed
more than is absolutely unavoidable to the reception of dust or matters tending to
impair its lubricating properties.
.
The improved apparatus is designed for lubricating two or more bearings, and
generally for lubricating a number of bearings such as those of a row of spindles in
a spinning, or twisting or winding frame; it is however capable of modification or
adaptation to suit various arrangements of bearings where there are two or more
bearings working near together.
.
In a modification of the apparatus suitable for lubricating the neck bearings of a
row of vertical spindles there is a vessel or reservoir for containing the lubricating
oil and for serving the several bearings, this reservoir being filled through an inlet
at the top provided with a tightly fitting cover or stopper. The oil leaves the
reservoir through an outlet pipe at the bottom fitted with a stopcock, and dipping
into a closed pipe or long closed distributing channel or vessel from which the
several bearings are supplied. The reservoir is arranged to act like a bird fountain
so as to maintain a constant level of oil in the distributing pipe or vessel; and the
air for displacing the oil in the reservoir enters either by a dip pipe in the reservoir
or by a pipe connected to the distributing vessel in a manner to avoid the entrance
of dust with the air, there being otherwise no access for air or dust into the
distributing vessel. For each of the bearings there is provided a very small tube
to lead the oil from the distributing vessel and the delivery end of this tube is
partially closed so as to allow only of the passage of the oil outwards without
admitting air or dust into the tube. Or the tube end without being contracted
may be arranged in contact with the running spindle neck or rotating journal.
The delivery end of the tube is curved and inserted into a notch at the top of the
spindle neck bearing, and the other end is attached by screwing to the distributing
LD077

page_text: vessel. In one modification a small hollow block formed or fixed on the inner end
of the tube is screwed up into the underside of the distributing vessel, and is made
with a short tube projecting vertically up above the level of the oil in the distri-
buting vessel. A wick is provided to lead the oil into the internal vertical tube
and is by preference made to consist of a woollen or other fibrous thread combined
with and held by a small twisted wire which facilitates its insertion and adjustment.
In another modification the inner end blocks of the tubes are screwed into the
upper side of the distributing vessel with their short vertical tubes projecting
downwards inside but having small holes at the top to prevent siphonal action.
The bearings of a row of spindles are generally at about the same level; the
arrangement of a distributing vessel or pipe with a number of separate delivery
tubes is not however limited to a set of bearings at about the same level, but is
applicable to a number of bearings having different levels but of course none higher
than that of the distributing vessel, the delivery tubes being inclined or bended as
may be necessary, but care must be taken to avoid siphonal action in any of them.
The pipe for admitting air into the distributing vessel or bird-fountain reservoir
is by preference fitted with a stopcock which can be closed when the machinery is
not running. This will prevent the oil from dropping from the ends of the delivery
tubes but some oil-will accumulate in those tubes and when the machinery is
started again this accumulated oil will form temporary extra supplies for the
bearings which will be an advantage.