CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
SMITH, of Bilston, in the County of Stafford, Brass Founder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by
Her Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of March,
in the fifteenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said John Smith, my exors, admors,
and assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that
I, the said John Smith, my exors, admñňors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said John Smith, my exors, admors, and assigns, should at any time agree
with and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of
years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and
in the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and also in all
Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES;" in which said Letters
Patent there is contained a proviso that I, the said John Smith, shall cause
a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under
my hand and seal, to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being
thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Smith, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had
to the several Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the diagrams, figures, and
letters represented or marked thereon respectively, that is to say:-
My said Invention consists of a new contrivance equally efficacious with, but
more simple in its construction, more economical, more easy of application, and
less likely to be deranged, than that hitherto used for the purpose of reversing
the action of a steam engine, by bringing simultaneously either the one side
of the piston into communication with the boiler, and the opposite side
into communication with the exhaust pipe, or contrarily at pleasure, and
also, by the same apparatus, of stopping the engine by cutting off the commu-
nication between the boiler and the cylinders. My said Invention comprises
a box formed internally as a cylinder, or in a form nearly cylindrical, having
both ends closed, and which, for the purpose of this description, it will be
convenient to term the cylindrical box. Within this box, and dividing it into
two steam-tight compartments, is a moveable partition or valve, made to work
steam-tight against the sides and ends of the box upon an axle, one end
of which is received into a hole sunk in the centre of one of the ends of the
box, and the other end of which passes through the centre of the opposite
end of the box through a stuffing box placed there to prevent leakage, and
being continued as a bar outside the cylindrical box terminates in a handle
(placed so that it may be conveniently worked), by turning which the valve
may be made to revolve in a corresponding direction within the box, for the
purpose of making the valve steam-tight in the box. I prefer to use metallic
packings. The cylindrical box communicates through an aperture in it with a
pipe through which steam is brought from the boiler into the cylindrical box,
and through another aperture with a pipe leading from the cylindrical box into
the steam condenser or steam escape pipe, and through two other apertures
with two pipes, each leading from the cylindrical box into the valve box of the
piston cylinder, through each of which two last-mentioned pipes steam may be
supplied from the boiler through the cylindrical box into the piston cylinder, or
suffered to escape from the piston cylinder through the cylindrical box into the
steam condenser or steam escape pipe at pleasure, as herein-after described.
The above-mentioned four apertures into the cylindrical box are so placed in
relation to each other, that, upon turning the aforesaid handle attached to the
valve in one direction, the aperture communicating with the steam supply pipe
from the boiler to the cylindrical box, and the aperture communicating with

page_text: Diagram No. 2, through which steam from the boiler is brought into the cylin-
drical box; and E, in the Diagram No. 1, represents the aperture in the
cylindrical box communicating with the pipe marked E, E, in the Diagram
No. 2, leading from the cylindrical box into the steam condenser or steam
escape pipe. And in the Diagram No. 1, F represents the aperture in the
cylindrical box communicating with the pipe F, F, leading from the cylindrical
box into the valve box of the cylinder H, I; and G, the aperture in the cylin-
drical box communicating with the pipe G, G, G, G, leading from the
cylindrical box into the valve box of the cylinder H, I. In Diagram No. 2
the dotted circle and dotted lines drawn from it indicate the position of the
apertures to the pipes F, F, and G, G, G, G, and their position, one being on
the side nearest the spectator, and the other on the opposite side. According
to the position of the valve C, as shewn in the Diagram No. 1, the steam
would be supplied from the boiler through the aperture D into the compart-
ment b, c, of the cylindrical box, and thence through the pipe F, F, into the
valve box of the piston cylinder H, I; and at the same time the steam would
be suffered to escape from the cylinder H, I, through the pipe G, G, G, G, into
the compartment a, d, of the cylindrical box, and thence through the aperture E
into the steam escape pipe E, E; consequently, until the valve in the valve box
worked by the eccentric varied the course of the steam, the supply steam from
the boiler would continue to press on one side of the piston in the cylinder H, I.
Let it be supposed to press on the under side of the piston in the cylinder H, I,
it will then be evident that if the handle L, M, in the Diagram No. 2, is turned
so as to bring the valve C into the position colored yellow in the Diagram
No. 1, the steam supply pipe F, F, will be converted into a steam escape pipe
by being brought into communication through the steam-tight compart-
ment a, b, of the cylindrical box with the steam escape pipe E; and the steam
escape pipe G, G, G, G, will be converted into a steam supply pipe by being
brought into communication through the steam-tight compartment c, d, of the
cylindrical box with the steam supply pipe D; and consequently, that the
position of the valve worked by the eccentric remaining in the same position
as before, the pressure of the supply steam from the boiler will immediately be
withdrawn from the under side of the piston in the cylinder H, I, and be
exerted against the upper side of the piston in the cylinder H, I, whereby, and
by the corresponding exhaustion of the steam on the under side of the said
piston, the action of the engine will thereupon be reversed. For admitting
steam on either side of the piston alternately, I prefer to use a valve similar to
the previously described valve, and such a one is shewn in the Diagram No. 1;
but any other description of valve that will not be deranged by the conver-

page_text: one of the pipes leading from the cylindrical box to the valve box of the piston
cylinder, shall be included respectively in one and the same steam-tight com-
partment, formed within the cylindrical box between one side of the valve and
a portion of the circumference of the cylindrical box, and the aperture communi-
cating with the pipe leading from the cylindrical box into the steam condenser
or steam escape pipe and the aperture communicating with the other pipe
leading from the cylindrical box to the valve box of the piston cylinder, shall
be included respectively in the other steam-tight compartment formed within
the cylindrical box, between the other side of the valve and the other portion
of the circumference of the cylindrical box; and upon turning the aforesaid
handle, attached to the valve, in the opposite direction to that already men-
tioned, the aperture communicating with the pipe from the cylindrical box to
the steam condenser or steam escape pipe, and the aperture communicating
with the first-mentioned one of the pipes leading from the cylindrical box to
the valve box of the piston cylinder, shall be included respectively in the first-
mentioned steam-tight compartment formed within the box between the
first-mentioned side of the valve and the first-mentioned portion of the circum-
ference of the cylindrical box; and the aperture communicating with the steam
supply pipe from the boiler to the cylindrical box, and the aperture communi-
cating with the secondly-mentioned pipe leading from the cylindrical box to the
valve box of the piston cylinder, shall be included respectively in the secondly
above-mentioned steam-tight conipartment formed within the cylindrical box,
between the said other side of the valve and the said other portion of the
circumference of the cylindrical box.
This description will be rendered more intelligible by a reference to the
Diagrams, numbered respectively 1 and 2, hereunto annexed, in which my
Invention is represented, by way of illustration of its action and effect (except
as to the method of stopping, which is shewn in Diagram No. 3), as applied to
a steam engine having only one piston cylinder. In the Diagram No. 1 the
front section of the cylindrical box is represented. In the Diagram No. 2 its
side section is represented. The size of the box and valve will depend upon
the diameter of the pipes communicating with it, as will appear by description
herein-after given. In both Diagrams A, B, represents the cylindrical box;
C, the moveable partition or valve; and C¹, that end of the axis of the valve
which is received into the hole sunk in the centre of one of the ends of the
box. In the Diagram No. 2 the other end of the axis of the valve is shewn,
which, after passing through the stuffing box k, is continued as a bar to L, and
there terminates in a handle M. In the Diagram No. 1 D represents the
aperture in the box communicating with the pipe marked D, D, in the

page_text: sion of the steam into the exhaust pipe, and vice versa, will answer the
purpose.
My said Invention is applicable as well to a steam engine having two or
more piston cylinders, as to a steam engine having only one piston cylinder,
and therefore is particularly applicable to a locomotive steam engine.
The application of my said Invention to a locomotive steam engine is shewn
in the Diagram No. 3, hereunto annexed, which represents the front or end
elevation of a locomotive engine, and the end section of the cylindrical box.
In the Diagram No. 3, A, B, represents the cylindrical box; C, the moveable
partition or valve; c, its axle; D, the steam supply pipe from the boiler to the
cylindrical box (the box is swelled out a little at the side to admit of more
room for the steam pipe); E, the steam escape pipe from the cylindrical box
to the chimney; F, F, a pipe, through which steam may at pleasure be
supplied to or withdrawn from the two piston cylinders H and I, through the
cylindrical box; G, G', a pipe, through which steam may at pleasure be with-
drawn from or supplied to the two piston cylinders H, I, through the cylindri-
cal box. The pipe G, G¹, divides into two branches at G¹, one of which K
communicates with the valve box of the cylinder I, and the other L commu-
nicates with the valve box of the cylinder H. The pipe F, F', passes down
either before or behind the valve box of the cylinder H, and divides into two
branches at N (where the circle represents the section of the pipe F, F¹), one
of which O communicates with the valve box of the cylinder H, and the
other P with the valve box of the cylinder I. To avoid confusion, the pipe
F, F, is not shewn from the point F to the point N. According to the posi-
tion of the valve C, in the Diagram No. 3, the steam would be supplied from
the boiler through the pipe D into the compartment b, c, of the cylindrical
box, and thence through the pipe F, F, into the two cylinders H, I; and at
the same time the steam would be suffered to escape from the two cylinders H
and I through the pipe G, G¹, into the compartment a, d, of the cylindrical
box, and thence into the chimney through the pipe E; consequently, until the
valve worked by the eccentric varied the course of the steam, the supply steam
would, if the eccentrics were properly adjusted for that purpose, press on one
side of the piston in the cylinder H, and on the opposite side of the piston
in the cylinder I. Let it be supposed to press on the side towards the front
of the piston in the cylinder H, and on the side towards the back of the piston
in the cylinder I, it will then be evident that if the valve C is turned so as to
come into the position colored yellow, the steam supply pipe F, F¹, will be
converted into a steam escape pipe, and the steam escape pipe G, G', will
be converted into a steam supply pipe, and consequently that the valves worked

page_text: by the eccentric remaining in the same position as before, the pressure of the
supply steam will immediately be withdrawn from the front side of the piston
in the cylinder H, and from the side. towards the back of the piston in
the cylinder I, and be exerted against the side towards the back of the
piston in the cylinder H and the front side of the piston in the cylinder I,
whereby, and by the corresponding exhaustion of the steam on the other sides
of the pistons, the action of the engine will thereupon be reversed. It is
obvious that by properly adjusting the eccentrics and valves for admitting
steam to each side of the pistons alternately, the pistons may be connected to
the axle at quarter strokes, or in any other way. The valve C being made
a little wider from the centre to the lower side than from the centre to the
upper side, by bringing it into the position shewn by the blue lines, it will stop
the engine by cutting off the communication between the steam supply pipe
and both of the two pipes F, F, and G, G¹, which communicate with the
cylinders.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I now proceed to state how
much thereof I claim as new, that is to say :-
I claim only the application, to a locomotive or other steam engine, of a
moveable valve, the same or similar in principle to the one above described,
by means of which the induction pipe may be converted into the eduction
pipe, or vice versa, at pleasure, and the action of the engine thereby reversed,
and by which the engine may be stopped, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Smith, have hereunto set my hand