Improvements in Sight Feed Lubricators.
Year: 1889

page_text: * Date of Application, 5th Nov., 1889-Accepted, 19th Apr., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Sight Feed Lubricators.
1, CHARLES REGINALD WINN of 140 Granville Street Birmingham in the County
of Warwick Mechanical 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:-
In many sight feed lubricators as at present constructed there are certain incon-
veniences which it is the object of my present invention to avoid. One prominent
inconvenience is the difficulty of knowing the amount of oil contained in the oil
reservoir at any given moment, another is the difficulty of regulating the exact feed
from the lubricator to the steam cylinder or other object requiring the periodic
delivery of oil and a third difficulty is occasioned by the manner commonly adopted
of fastening the hand wheel made of wood or other nonconducting material to the
spindle of the regulating valve or to the spindle of the charging plug whereby these
wheels are very liable to be split or broken.
My invention relates to the manner in which I construct the details of sight feed
lubricators, and combine together their various parts in such fashion as to remedy
these inconveniences and so produce a more efficient and durable lubricator.
In order to meet the first difficulty to which I have referred, I apply to the
lubricator reservoir a tube gauge glass communicating top and bottom by passages
with the interior of the reservoir and made pressure tight by suitable glands and
packing and I attach to the bottom connecting piece a three way blow off or drain
cock. This cock is used as in an ordinary steam boiler to ensure that the connecting
passages are clear so as to allow the relative levels of water and oil to be correctly
indicated. In order that the lubricator shall work efficiently and the level indicated
in the gauge glass be a true guide to the amount of oil within the reservoir it is
essential that any air contained in the glass or connecting passages be discharged. To
provide for this in a simple way I drill a small air hole in the filling plug which is
placed in the highest part of the lubricator under the flange and cause it to commu-
nicate with the interior of the reservoir.
To discharge air it is only necessary to slacken the filling plug slightly when air is
at once expelled, and the plug is screwed down to enable the oil feed to be regulated
to greater nicety and to keep it acting steadily at the rate for which the valve is set.
I arrange the screw spindle controlling the outlet from the valve box above the sight
feed glass in combination with a check or non-return valve so that the oil once past
that valve cannot return again. This valve is separate from the usual regulating
screw spindle instead of forming part of it as is usual.
In attaching the wheels made of wood or other nonconducting material to the ends
of the various spindles required for regulating and other purposes, I form the end of
the spindles in the configuration of a square or other suitable section and mount upon
it a socket piece or plate which carries a central projection, and one or more pegs at
some distance from the centre. The central projection and the peg or pegs fit into
the hand' wheel which is secured to the spindle by means of a suitable nut or button
and screw. A similar method of attachment is adopted with the filling plug hand
wheel. Instead of forming the spindle with a separate plate to carry the peg or pegs,
I sometimes form it in one piece with the spindle and mount the hand wheel upon it.
By these constructions I obviate the tendency to split common to wood and other
nonconducting materials when mounted upon a square through which considerable
force is applied in screwing down the spindle. The pressure is applied to the spindle
by the peg or pegs at a point or points considerably removed from the centre so the
tendency to burst the hand wheel is avoided.

page_text: In order that my invention may be fully understood and readily carried into effect,
I append hereunto a sheet of explanatory drawings. which I shall now describe. The
lubricator illustrated being an eight pint or large size having two instead of one feed
as in the more usual or ordinary type.
Figure 1 is a vertical section of my improved large size sight feed lubricator
through the sight glasses and oil outlet, valve boxes.
Figure 2 is a plan and
Figure 3 is a half section shewing the gauge glass and connections..
In these drawings I have shewn all the points necessary to understand the essentials
of my invention but I have not shown the condenser but the connections between it
and the sight feed lubricator is shewn as the condenser is of ordinary construction.
The gauge glass A. Figure 3. communicates with the interior of the reservoir B by
the passages C and D and it is packed in any usual manner as shewn. The threeway
cock E serves to blow off from B to the drain pipe F to ensure that the passages are
clear and so the level of the oil and the water are correctly indicated as shewn in the
drawing. To ensure that the glass A and the passages C and D are clear of air, the
filling plug G is provided with a small hole H leading into a large one I within
the plug (Figure 1 and 3).
To expel air it is only necessary to loosen the screw G so that the flange rises
slightly from its bearing and then any air is at once expelled into the cup surrounding
the filling screw. When air bubbles cease to discharge and oil only comes the plug
is at onco screwed home.
The outlet valve boxes K K above the sight glasses contain check valves (Figure 1)
such as L the lift of which is regulated by the screw spindle M.
By separating the screw spindle and its valve each valve is enabled to control the
outlet of oil just as accurately as before but by the check or non-return action oil once
passed cannot return to the reservoir from any temporary cause and the adjustment
is rendered much more reliable. The hand wheels N are constructed of wood or other
suitable non-conducting material and the improved mode of securing to the spindle M
consists in the use of a peg or pegs such as O projecting from a plate such as P fitting
over the square end Q of the spindle M. The continuation R is screwed and a female
screwed button or nut S threaded on to it and when screwed home completes the
attachment. The spindle end Q may be of any convenient section to fit into the
plate P or it may be keyed to it. The hand wheel T of the filling plug G (Figure 1)
is mounted in any convenient manner, but in this case the plate P is part of the
plug G and the screw or button S is male instead of female.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what I
claim is.
I. In lubricator reservoirs the combination of a gauge glass such as A with a three-
way cock such as E for indicating the level of the oil within, substantially as and for
the purpose hereintobefore described, and ascertained in the accompanying drawings.
II. In sight feed lubricators the combination of a check or non-return valve such
as L together with but independant of a regulating spindle such as M substantially
as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
III. In spindles used for sight feed lubricators, the method of attaching the non-
conducting hand wheels to the spindles, by means of a projecting pin or pin such
as O, and plate such as P. separate from, or part of the spindles, substantially as
and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
IV. In lubricator filling plugs, the combination of filling plug and air vent sub-
stantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accom-
panying drawings.

page_text: V. The combination of parts forming a sight foed lubricator substantially as
and for the purposes herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Dated this 4th day of November 1889
MARKS & CLERK,
13, Temple Street, Birmingham, Agents for Applicant.