Improved Tipping Troughs for Distributing Sewage and other Foul Liquids on Filter Beds.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Aug., 1899-Accepted, 7th Oct., 1899
Improved Tipping Troughs for Distributing Sewage and other
Foul Liquids on Filter Beds.
I, WALTER MARDON DUCAT, of 13, Devonshire Terrace, Hyde Park, London, W.,
Colonel, late Royal Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention relates to tipping troughs for distributing sewage or other liquid
over the surface of a filter bed, the troughs being so constructed and mounted as to
become overbalanced by the weight of liquid when filled up to a certain level and so
be automatically oscillated from side to side periodically and in such manner as to
discharge the whole contents at each oscillation.
The trough is double, that is to say comprises two trough-like members
symmetrically arranged at opposite sides of a common longitudinal vertical plane,
and is poised upon a series of underneath supports together constituting the centre of
oscillation so that when empty the trough will be in a condition of unstable
equilibrium and will remain in the position in which it is left after being oscillated to
the one side or other. In this position, that one of the two trough-like members
which is uppermost is in position to receive liquid from a supply shoot and when
filled up to a certain height the weight of the contained liquid will cause that side to
preponderate and the double trough to oscillate over to the other side whereby the
whole of the contents of the member which was filled will be suddenly discharged
and the other member will be raised into position to be filled, whereupon the same
operation will be repeated in the opposite direction.
Each trough-like member is made of nearly symmetrical cross-section, that is to
say with a flat bottom and splayed sides, the one side being formed by a midfeather
common to both members and the whole being formed in one casting. The flat
bottoms of the two members therefore make a re-entering angle or central longitudinal
groove along the bottom of the double trough which rests at the apex of this groove
upon the upper ends of the underneath supports which together form the axis of
oscillation. Each such support may be formed by the pointed or knife-edged upper
end of a vertical post rising from a base plate provided with means of vertical
adjustment, but in order to prevent the displacement of the trough from the centres
by the shock caused by the sudden stoppage of the trough at each oscillation, it is
preferred to provide the posts with ball or cylindrical heads which are received in a
corresponding half-round groove countersunk beyond the apex of the angle made by
the bottoms of the two trough members, so as to make a secure pivotal connection.
The base plate of the post is supported upon a fixed sole plate upon which it is
guided in the longitudinal direction of the trough, the contacting surfaces of the
base and sole plates being at a slight inclination in that direction so as to enable the
supporting pillar to be accurately adjusted by a wedge-like action produced by sliding

page_text: the one in the other so that each pillar will support its proper proportion of the
weight.
#
In order to retain it in position after adjustment, the said contacting surfaces may
be serrated or other means may be provided for fixing it after adjustment. The
base plates are extended laterally and bevelled or otherwise adapted to form stops to
limit the oscillation of the trough.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.
Improved Tipping Troughs for Distributing Sewage and other
Foul Liquids on Filter Beds.
'I, WALTER MARDON DUCAT, of 13, Devonshire Terrace, Hyde Park, London, W.,
Colonel; late Royal Engineers, 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:
My invention relates to tipping troughs for distributing sewage or other liquid over
the surface of a filter bed, the troughs being so constructed and mounted as to become
'overbalanced by the weight of liquid when filled up to a certain level and so be
automatically oscillated from side to side periodically and in such manner as to
discharge the whole contents at each oscillation.
The trough is double, that is to say, comprises two trough-like members
symmetrically arranged at opposite sides of a common longitudinal vertical plane, and
is poised upon a series of underneath supports together constituting the centre of
'oscillation so that when empty the trough will be in a condition of unstable equilibrium
and will remain in the position in which it is left after being oscillated to the one side
or the other. In this position, that one of the two trough-like members which is
uppermost is in position to receive liquid from a supply shoot and when filled up to a
certain height the weight of the contained liquid will cause that side to preponderate
and the double trough to oscillate over to the other side whereby the whole of the
contents of the member which was filled will be suddenly discharged and the other
member will be raised into position to be filled, whereupon the same operation will be
repeated in the opposite direction and so on.continuously.
The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming part of this
Specification wherein Figure 1 represents a cross section of my improved tipping
trough and support, Figure 2 being a part side elevation of the saine partly in
section.
Each trough-like member A is made of nearly symmetrical cross-section, that is to
say with a flat bottom b, splayed outer sides c and a back d formed by a midfeather
common to both members A; the whole being formed in one casting.
The flat bottom 6 of each member A of the double trough has a downward
inclination with reference to the common back plate d and within and near the apex
of the re-entering angle thus formed by the bottoms b is a series of knife blades e
projecting downwardly at intervals in the plane of the midfeather & and bearing with
its edge upon the grooved upper surface of a standard g; the series of such knife
blades e and standards g constituting the equivalent of a continuous support for the
trough. The two members A of the double trough are formed and disposed
symmetrically on either side of the midfeather d which coincides with their median
plane, so that the trough as a whole is, when empty in unstable equilibrium and tends
to tip over and to remain inclined to the one side or the other whenever, by being canted

page_text: slightly in either direction, the weight of the midfeather & causes a preponderance of
that side of the trough towards which the canting movement takes place, the pre-
ponderance being however comparatively slight owing to the axis of oscillation f
closely or substantially coinciding with the centre of gravity of the double trough as
a whole. Consequently when that member A of the trough which happens to be
uppermost becomes filled with liquid from the continuous supply shoot, the trough as
a whole will preponderate on the filled side and,-tipping over towards that side with
a constantly accelerating motion until arrested by suitable stops, will discharge its
contents and will remain so inclined until the side previously empty has in turn
become filled with liquid when the tipping and discharging action will be auto-
matically repeated in the reverse direction, and so on in continuous alternation, the
inclination of the splayed outer side c of each member A of the trough being (as
shewn) such that the trough on reaching the limit of its oscillatory movement in
either direction, is completely evacuated of its contents.
Instead of the knife blade e being upon the trough as shewn, it might be upon the
summit of the standard g so as to engage by its edge with the central longitudinal
groove formed by the re-entering angle between the bottoms bb of the two members..
of the trough. With such an arrangement in order to prevent the displacement of
the trough from the centres by the shock caused by the sudden stoppage of the
trough at each oscillation, the posts may be provided with ball or cylindrical heads
which are received in a corresponding half-round groove countersunk beyond the apex
of the angle made by the bottoms of the two trough members, so as to make a secure
pivotal connection.
The base plate h of the standard g is supported upon a fixed sole plate i upon which
it is guided in the longitudinal direction of the trough, the contacting surfaces of
the base and sole plates being at a slight inclination in that direction as shewn at j
in Figure 2, in order to enable the supporting pillar to be accurately adjusted by a
wedge-like action produced by sliding the one in the other so that each standard shall
support its proper proportion of the weight. For the purpose of retaining the
standard in position after adjustment, the said contacting surfaces may be serrated
or other means may be provided for fixing it after adjustment. The base plates h
are extended laterally and bevelled as at k on both sides, or otherwise adapted to form
stops whereby to limit the oscillation of the trough.
The trough may conveniently be cast in sections with external flanges at both
ends, these flanges having holes m to receive bolts by which adjacent sections can be
fastened together to form a complete trough of any desired length, each end being
closed by a plate n Figure 2.
Any required number of troughs would be similarly arranged side by side above
the filter bed, at any suitable distance apart, each being supplied through a spout
from a supply channel common to all.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I wish it to be under-
stood that I am aware that it has previously been proposed to use in the treatment of
sewage double tipping troughs which are automatically oscillated for intermittently
discharging sewage over filters and I make no claim to such invention generally, but
I declare that what I claim is-
A tipping trough for distributing sewage and other foul liquids on filter beds
constructed and operating substantially as herein before described and illustrated in
the drawings.