Improvements in Internal Combustion Motors.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Nov., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Aug., 1900-Accepted, 3rd Nov., 1900
Date of Application, 2200 NOV., 1030
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Aug., 1900-Accepted, 3rd Nov., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Internal Combustion Motors.
I, WILLIAM JOIN CROSSLEY, of Crossley Brothers Limited, Openshaw, Man-
chester, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention is for the purpose of obtaining more regular turning with in-
ternal combustion motors, by varying the power given by successive impulses to
(so far as may be desireable) the amount required to drive the load for the time
being, thus giving constant regulated impulses in place of full power impulses
with some of them entirely cut out as is usually the case with motors of this
description.
I am aware that numerous arrangements have been made for this purpose but
hitherto they have introduced objectionable features, my object is to attain this
result in a more satisfactory manner.
"
I will describe an arrangement of my invention as applied to an internal com-
bustion motor having three cylinders working on the
Otto"
or four stroke
cycle, with three equidistant crank pins, thus giving three regulated impulses
for every two revolutions and being specially suitable for driving electric
generators or other purposes requiring very regular turning. It is to be under-
stood however that it is equally applicable to single cylinder or to other arrange-
ments of motors.
As applied to the three cylinder motor a cut off shaft is driven by gearing, or
otherwise, so as to revolve three times for each two revolutions of the crank shaft.
This shaft passes through a suitable enclosed chamber hereinafter called the cut
off chamber. The cut off chamber is provided with a gas inlet, an air inlet;
and a mixture outlet, this mixture outlet being connected to a pipe which leads
to an admission valve on each cylinder. These admission valves may be auto-
matic in their action, being opened by the partial vacuum caused by the pistons
when making suction strokes, or they may be operated mechanically. Fixed on
the cut off shaft is a thin disc having a through port or two through ports placed
one outside the other and extending over some 120° of its surface, with the
exception of sufficient laps or covers at the outer and inner edges, and to divide
the two ports should there be two ports. As this cut off disc revolves its port or
ports uncover two corresponding ports in a fixed plate, one being connected to
the air inlet and the other to the gas inlet of the cut off chamber, these ports also
extend circumferentially some 120° consequently as the cut off disc revolves
its ports open to the gas and air ports in the fixed plate for some 240° of the
revolutions of the cut off shaft, this 240° of the cut off shaft corresponds to 180°
of the crankshaft and is made to coincide with a suction stroke of one of the
pistons. As the cut off shaft revolves three times to two revolutions of the
crankshaft, port openings will thus coincide with the three suction strokes of the
three pistons.
In addition to the fixed plate above mentioned I employ a second plate herein-
after called the governor plate having a similar port or ports through it, the cut

page_text: off disc revolving between them. The governor plate may be turned round the
cut off shaft as a centre through an arc of some 120° and its position is defined
and decided by a suitable governor. It will be seen that if the port in the
governor plate is opposite to the ports in the fixed plate the suction may con-
tinue throughout the whole of a suction stroke of one of the pistons,
if however the governor plate is moved round a little against the
direction of motion of the cut off plate the cut off plate will have
its port or ports closed carlier than otherwise. The ports being thus
closed before the termination of the suction stroke the piston will not be able to
draw in a cylinder full of mixture, but a reduced charge only, such reduced
charge on compression and ignition giving a reduced impulse. The extent to
which the successive impulses are reduced is dependent upon the position of the
governor plate and this position is decided by the governor.
In the above arrangement the governor-plate is described as being close to or
in contact with the cut off disc, it may however be desirable to introduce an addi-
tional fixed plate to separate them and prevent any frictional effect due to the
revolutions of the cut off disc affecting the position of the governor plate.
As the governor plate has to be moved through a considerable range I prefer
to move it by means of frictional gear, the rise of the governor moving it in
one direction and the fall of the governor moving it in the other, the normal
position leaving it at rest until a change of load requires a new position.
Instead of arranging the air and gas ports on one side only of the fixed plate
they may be arranged on opposite sides, the air being on one side and the gas on
the other, the cut off disc and governor plate in this case would have also two
ports opposite and similar to each other the cut off shaft revolving at half the
speed making one and one-half revolutions for each two revolutions of the crank
shaft.
In a modified arrangement I may employ a light revolving cylinder having
suitable ports in it opening and closing suitable air and gas ports in the fixed
casing in which it revolves. The ports may have inclined cut off edges and the
point of cut off defined by the endwise movement of the revolving cylinder under
control of the governor.
The arrangement of parts above described may be modified to suit varying
circumstances but I wish it to be clearly understood that in all instances the
cut off disc or cylinder is continuously revolved at a constant uniform speed being
so arranged in connection with a governor that there is a variable cut off sharply
defined in all instances where reduced charges are required with a free admission
up to the point of cut off. Should full charges be required this cut off does
not take place till the suction stroke is completed.
Dated this 21st day of November 1899
Improvements in Internal Combustion Motors.
I, WILLIAM JOIN CROSSLEY, of Crossley Brothers, Limited, Openshaw, Man-
chester, Engineer, 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:-
This invention is for the purpose of obtaining more regular turning with in-
ternal combustion motors, by varying the power given by successive impulses to
(so far as may be desirable), the amount required to drive the load for the time
:

page_text: being, thus giving constant regulated impulses in place of full power impulses
with some of them entirely cut out as is usually the case with motors of this
description.
I am aware that numerous arrangements have been made for this purpose but
hitherto they have introduced objectionable features, my object is to attain this
result in a more satisfactory manner.
I will describe an arrangement of my invention as applied to an internal com-
bustion motor having three cylinders working on the "Otto" or four stroke
cycle, with three equidistant crank pins, thus giving three regulated impulses
for every two revolutions, and being specially suitable for driving electric
generators or other purposes requiring very regular turning. It is to be under-
stood however that it is equally applicable to single cylinder or to other arrange-
ments of motors.
To enable this invention to be clearly understood I append three sheets of
drawings in which Fig. 1 Sheet 1 is an end view in elevation of a three
cylinder motor, Fig. 2 Sheet 1 is a longitudinal elevation, Fig. 3 Sheet 2 is a
horizontal section through the governing arrangement, Fig. 4 Sheet 2 is a
vertical section of the same, Fig. 5 Sheet 2 is a detailed view of the governor
plate, Fig. 6 Sheet 2 is a detailed view of the revolving cut off plate, and Fig. 7
Sheet 2 is a detailed view of the fixed intermediate plate, Fig. 8 Sheet 3 is a
horizontal section of an alternative arrangement, Fig. 9 Sheet. 3 being a vertical
elevation in section of the same.
As applied to the three cylinder motor a cut off shaft is driven by gearing, or
otherwise, so as to revolve three times for each two revolutions of the crank shaft.
This shaft passes through a suitable enclosed chamber a hereinafter called the
cut off chamber. The cut off chamber a is provided with a gas inlet b an air
inlet c and a mixture outlet d, this mixture outlet d being connected to a pipe
which leads to an admission valve e on each cylinder. The gas inlet b is in
communication with the gas port in the cut off plate f and the air inlet c in
communication with the air port in the cut off plate f. These admission valves
may be automatic in their action as shown, being opened by the partial vacuum
caused by the pistons when making suction strokes, or they may be operated
mechanically. Fixed on the cut off shaft is the cut off plate f being a thin disc
having a through port or two (two k and being shown) through ports placed
-one -outside-the-other and extending over -some 120°- of its surface, with -the-
exception of sufficient laps or covers at the outer and inner edges and to divide
the two ports. As this cut off plate revolves its ports uncover two corresponding
ports in a fixed plate g, one being connected intermittently to the air inlet b and
the other to the gas inlet of the cut off chamber a through the cut off plate fr
these ports also extend circumferentially some 120°, consequently as the cut off
plate revolves its ports open to the gas and air ports in the fixed plate
some 240° of the revolutions of the cut off shaft, this 240° of the cut off shaft
corresponds to 180° of the crankshaft and is made to coincide with a suction
stroke of one of the pistons. As the cut off shaft revolves three times to two
revolutions of the crankshaft, port openings will thus coincide with the three
suction strokes of the three pistons.
for
In addition to the cut off and fixed plates above mentioned I employ a plate h
hereinafter called the governor plate having similar ports through. it. The
governor plate may be turned round the cut off shaft as a centre through an
arc of some 120° and its position is defined and decided by a suitable governor i
by means of any convenient connections, a toothed rack and two small pinions
being shown in the drawings. It will be seen that if the ports in the governor
plate are opposite to the ports in the fixed plate the suction may continue
throughout the whole of a suction stroke of one of the pistons, if however the
governor plate h is moved round a little against the direction of motion of the
cut off plate f, the cut off plate will have its ports closed earlier than otherwise.
The ports being thus closed before the termination of the suction stroke, the

page_text: piston will not be able to draw in a cylinder full of mixture, but a reduced
charge only, such reduced charge on compression and ignition giving a reduced
impulse. The extent to which the successive impulses are reduced is dependent
upon the position of the governor plate, and this position is decided by the
governor i.
As the governor plate has to be moved through a considerable range I prefer
to move it by means of frictional gear, the rise of the governor causing the small
friction wheel m to press against the wheel n moving the governor plate h in
one direction so as to cause an earlier cut off and the wheel o moving it in the
other direction so as to delay the cut off, the normal position leaving it at rest
until a change of load requires a new position.
Instead of arranging the air and gas ports on one side only of the fixed plate
they may be arranged on opposite sides, the air being on one side and the gas
on the other, the cut off disc and governor plate in this case would have also two
ports opposite and similar to each other, the cut off shaft revolving at half the
speed making one and a half revolutions for each two revolutions of the crank-
shaft, and the ports extending over some 60° of the plates instead of 120°.
In a modified arrangement I may employ a light revolving cylinder instead of a
disc and this modification is shown in Figs. 8 and 9 Sheet 3. In these views p
is the light revolving cylinder having openings q through it for air admission
and openings for gas admission, being the air inlet, w the gas inlet, and
the mixture outlet. The cylinder is revolved by the side shaft s making one
revolution for two revolutions of the three cylindered motor and having three
ports circumferentially there being three circumferential ports in the casing t
to correspond, thus providing for a suction for each of the three cylinders during
one revolution of the shaft s. The cylinder revolves in the direction shown by
the arrow and the inclined edges of the ports in the cylinder and in the casing
are thus the cutting off edges. To vary the point of cut off the cylinder p may
be moved endwise under control of a governor through the lever u or any suit-
able connection and thus change the timing of the cut off whilst retaining a con-
stant opening.
As
To decrease the extent of endwise movement necessary to give the varied cut
off desired, the ports may be reduced in size and increased in number being
placed in as many different planes as may be desired. As shown in Figs. 8
and 9 the air ports q are arranged in two planes and the gas ports in one.
the volume of gas, when town's gas is used, requires to be very much less than
the volume of air necessary for its combustion the ports r required to be very much
smaller than the ports q; as however the length should be the same and the
inclination of the cutting off edges also the same the reduced area may be satis-
factorily obtained by sloping the lower edges as shown. To vary the relative
area of the ports q and r the portion of the casing surounding the gas ports r
may be separate from the rest of the casing and have an independent endwise
adjustment by means of studs or screws z.
These arrangements of parts may be modified to suit varying circumstances
and they may be designed for one or any number of cylinders. I wish it to be
clearly understood however that in all instances the cut off disc or cylinder is
continuously revolved at a constant uniform speed, being so arranged in con-
nection with a governor as to give a variable cut off sharply defined in all in-
stances where reduced charges are required with a free admission up to the
point of cut off. Should full charges be required this cut off does not take place
till the suction strokes are completed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed. I declare that what
I claim is
1. In an internal combustion motor the construction and use of a revolving.
out off plate driven at a constant uniform enood to mother with athan

page_text: plate) having ports formed in them and so operated in combination with a suit-
able governor as to give a variably timed, definite, sharp cut off, at any desired
portion of the suction strokes, with a view to giving working strokes of varying
power, substantially as described and illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
Sheets 1 and 2.
2. In an internal combustion motor the construction and use of a revolving
cylinder, driven at a constant uniform speed inside a suitable casing having
ports formed in them and so operated in combination with a suitable governor
as to give a variably timed, definite, sharp cut off at any desired portion of
the suction strokes, with a view to giving working strokes of varying power,
substantially as described and illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9 Sheet 3.
3. The general arrangement and construction of variable cut off gear for
internal combustion motors, substantially as described and illustrated.
Dated this 21st day of August 1900.