IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR RECORDING THE PERFORMANCE OF A STEAM-ENGINE OR OTHER MOTOR
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Brown Moscrop, of Stretford, in the County of
Lancaster, for an Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR RECORDING
THE PERFORMANCE OF A STEAM-ENGINE OR OTHER MOTOR,"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Brown Moscrop at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 24th March 1881.
JOHN BROWN MOSCROP, of Stretford, in the County of Lancaster. " IMPROVED
APPARATUS FOR RECORDING THE PERFORMANCE OF A STEAM ENGINE OR OTHER
MOTOR."
This Invention relates to an arrangement of mechanism for continuously
indicating and recording automatically upon a continuous ribbon of paper, the
instantaneous or momentary rate of speed of a steam engine or other motor or
shafting, as well as the exact time of starting and stopping the same.
In carrying out my Invention I employ a continuous ribbon of paper mounted
upon a creel or roller, which paper is perforated at regular distances along its edges
to correspond with pins or projections upon a small drum driven by clock-work,
round which the paper ribbon passes on its way from the creel to the receiving
roller; to this receiving roller a constant tendency to wind on the paper is given
either by a weight suspended from a cord wrapped round the spindle, or by other
suitable means. The paper is thus kept tight and the projections on the drum
falling into the perforations, the paper is thereby carried forward at a uniform
rate of speed; consequently a definite length of the ribbon corresponds to a definite
length of time. The ribbon has transverse lines to represent suitable divisions
of time, these are so arranged as to indicate the time at which they pass a particular
line, viz., the path of the pencil to be hereafter described. After leaving the drum,
the paper is taken up by the receiving roller on to which it is wound. The paper
being thus carried forward forms a means of recording to the greatest nicety the
movements of the engine or motor, and which is effected as follows:-
An upright spindle is driven by the shaft whose performance is to be recorded

page_text: on this spindle is a crosshead to which a pair of weighted levers are attached,
these weighted levers expand more or less according to the speed at which they
are driven. On the upper extremities of these levers wings or ears of a particular
form are attached, resting on these ears is a cap or hollow cone concentric with the
spindle and free to rise and fall by the action of the ears, but not free to revolve.
This hollow cone therefore rises or falls as the speed to be recorded varies, and
owing to the particular form of the ears it rises or falls in direct or arithmetical
proportion with the speed to be recorded. By a simple arrangement this motion is
transferred to a pencil or marker resting upon the paper, the pencil being made to
move in a straight line at right angles to the direction in which the paper moves.
The pencil will therefore assume a definite position on the paper for a definite
speed of the motor. The paper has also longitudinal lines corresponding to the speed
of the engine, and it will readily be seen that the point at which the mark of the
pencil crosses any particular transverse line leaves a permanent record of the rate
of speed of the engine at the time represented by such particular transverse line,
and may be referred to and identified at any future time however distant, and in
fact forms a remarkable characteristic diagram shewing the balance of the engine,
the relative truth of the valve setting the speed, and the starts and stops as
aforesaid. This diagram may be rolled up on the receiving roller for an indefinite
period, or it may be removed periodically and placed in a book for reference.
The paper ribbon may be any width; it is, however, preferably made only wide
enough to allow the recording of the variations in speed that are likely to occur,
and means are provided for preventing the pencil coming in contact with the pius
on the drum when the speed passes out of this range; this is done by means of
inclines on the rod carrying the pencil.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said John Brown Moscrop in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
24th September 1881.
JOHN BROWN MOSCROP, of Stretford, in the County of Lancaster. "IMPROVED
APPARATUS FOR RECORDING THE PERFORMANCE OF A STEAM ENGINE OR OTHER
MOTOR."
.
This Invention relates to an arrangement of mechanism for continuously
indicating and recording automatically upon a continuous ribbon of paper, the
instantaneous or momentary rate of speed of a steam engine or other motor or
shafting, as well as the exact time of starting and stopping of the same. And in order
that this my said Invention may be the more readily understood and carried into
practical effect, I have hereunto annexed a Sheet of Drawings illustrative of my
improved recording apparatus, and will now proceed to describe the same by the
assistance of the several Figures and letters of reference marked thereon. .Fig. 1 is
a front, and Fig. 2 a side exterior view of my improved recording apparatus drawn
to a small scale; Figs. 3 and 4 are partial front and complete side sectional views
respectively of the same drawn to scale of about 3/8 of an inch to the foot.
In all the views A is an ordinary clock movement controlled in the usual manner
by a pendulum B and anchor escapement C. To any convenient part of this clock
mechanism, but by preference to the spindle D which gives motion to the minute
hand of the clock, I gear the small drun E by the spur wheels D¹ so as to impart
a third of a revolution to such drum for every complete revolution of the minute
hand. This drum is provided with three sets of pins or projections E¹ which are
designed to take into corresponding holes F formed in the edges of a continuous
strip or riband of paper G which is rolled upon a creel or roller H. This
paper riband as it is thus drawn off is received upon a receiving roller I, to
which a constant tendency to wind on the paper is given by the weight J. This
weight is suspended from the cord J' wrapped round the creel spindle H', then
The paper
passed over the roller K and secured at its other end as illustrated.
riband is thus kept tight and the projections E on the drum falling into the perfo-
rations F carry forward the paper at a uniform rate of speed, consequently a
definite length of the paper ribbon G corresponds to a definite length of time. It
will thus be apparent that it is only necessary to mark suitable divisions or
transverse lines upon the paper to indicate the time at which they pass a particular
line, viz., the path of the pencil or marker to be hereafter described. After leaving
the drum the paper G is taken up by the receiving roller I on to which it is wound.
The paper thus carried forward as aforesaid forms a means of recording to the
greatest nicety the movements of a steam engine or other motor, and which is
effected as follows:-
L is a vertical spindle mounted in suitable bearings, and provided at its lower
end with a strap pulley L', by means of which such spindle is capable of being
driven by an endless strap from the shaft of the engine or other motor whose
performance is to be recorded. On this spindle L is a cross head L* to which a
pair of weighted levers L³ are attached, these weighted levers expand more or less
by centrifugal force according to the speed at which the spindle revolves. On the
upper extremities of these weighted levers wings or ears M are attached and resting
on these ears is a cross head N secured at the lower extremity of a sleeve N' which
surrounds the spindle L and is free to rise and fall by the action of the ears, the
ears entering into notches N' formed in the cross head for this purpose. This
sleeve N¹ therefore rises or falls as the speed to be recorded varies, and owing to

page_text: the particular curve or paraboloid form of the ears M it rises or falls in direct or
arithmetical proportion with the speed to be recorded.
This motion has now to be transferred to the pencil or marker resting upon the
surface of the paper ribbon, and is effected as follows:-
O is a bell cranked lever mounted upon centres or pivots 0¹, the shorter arm of
which is forked at its extremity and provided with a pair of pins 0³ which project
beneath a flange P formed at the top of the sleeve N₁, and which are constantly
pressed up against such flange by the action of the extension spring P¹. The
longer arm of this lever is also forked and connected adjustably to the rod Q,
which carries at its front extremity the pencil or marker. This marker consists
by preference of a thin roller or disc R (seen also in plan, Fig. 4a), which rests by
its own weight upon the paper riband G as it passes over the roller E, and is
capable of revolving by frictional contact with the paper in one direction, but is
prevented turning in the other direction by the action of a pair of cams R¹ resting
upon the bosses of such roller, these cams permitting such roller to revolve freely
in one direction, but owing to their eccentric form locking themselves in and thus
preventing such roller turning in the other direction. This roller R revolves
beneath and in contact with a pad of textile material S saturated with aniline ink
kept moist by an admixture of glycerine, and thus such roller by the rising and
falling of the sleeve as aforesaid being caused to move across the paper riband G
in a straight line (at right angles to the direction in which such paper moves) so
assumes a definite position on such paper for a definite speed of the motor and
marks the paper accordingly. In addition to the transverse lines representing the
time the paper riband G is marked with longitudinal lines corresponding to the
speed of the engine, and it will readily be seen that the point at which the mark
of the pencil or marker crosses any particular transverse line leaves a permanent
record of the rate of speed of the engine at the time represented by such particular
transverse line and may be referred to and identified at any future time however
distant, and in fact forms a remarkably characteristic diagram shewing the balance
of the engine, the relative truth of the valve setting the speed, and the starts and
stops, as aforesaid. This diagram may be rolled up on the receiving roller for an
indefinite period, or it may be removed periodically and placed in a book for
reference.
The paper ribbon may be any width; it is, however, preferably made only wide
enough to allow the recording of the variations in speed that are likely to occur,
and inclines T are provided for preventing the pencil or roller R coming in contact
with the pins E on the drum, when the speed passes out of this range and in which
case the roller R runs up these inclines. In Fig. 5 I illustrate a full size view or
diagram of the performance of a steam engine as recorded by my improved
apparatus upon a continuous riband of paper perforated along its edges and marked
transversley and longitudinally in accordance with my Invention. The record here
shews that the engine commenced running at one minute past six and ran regularly
till 7 minutes past. This indicates that the machimery was irregularly started.
At ten minutes past it had fairly settled down to its work and ran 30, strokes
moderately well till seven o'clock. The diagram after seven o'clock shews the
effect of bad packing in the throttle valve it will be seen that the speed still was
30%, strokes and that the irregularities did not vary above 1/2 stroke; no one,
however, could possibly discover that the engine was not running as well as usual,
but the record proves that it must have been running irregularly. It will then
be seen that the engine was stopped at 7.35, the packing was eased, and
the engine re-started at 7.40 and continued till 8 o'clock, and so on.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of this my said
Invention, together with the best methods with which I am acquainted for
carrying the same into practical effect, I wish it to be distinctly understood that I
do not confine myself to the precise details, relative proportions or dimensions of
my improved recording apparatus, as hereinbefore described and illustrated on the

page_text: accompanying Sheet of Drawings, as the same may be considerably varied without
departing from the Invention, but what I claim is,-
1st. The general combination and arrangement of mechanism for recording the
performance of a steam engine or other motor, substantially as hereinbefore described
and illustrated on the accompanying Drawing.
2nd. In a speed recording apparatus, the peculiar construction of weighted
levers when fitted with wings or ears so formed as to operate a pencil or marker
in direct or arithmetical proportions with the speed to be recorded, substantially
as hereinbefore described and illustrated on the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Brown Moscrop, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this 23rd day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty one.