IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO PORTABLE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES TO FACILITATE THE BURNING OF STRAW, GRASSES, AND THE LIKE AS FUEL FOR MAKING STEAM
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Head and Thomas Common Brown, both of
Ipswich, in the County of Suffolk, Engineers, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO PORTABLE AND OTHER STEAM
ENGINES TO FACILITATE THE BURNING OF STRAW, GRASSES, AND THE LIKE AS
FUEL FOR MAKING STEAM."
Sealed the 17th December 1872, and dated the 28th October 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Head and
Thomas Common Brown at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 28th October 1872.
We, JOHN HEAD and THOMAS COMMON BROWN, both of Ipswich,
in the County of Suffolk, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO PORTABLE
AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES TO FACILITATE THE BURNING OF STRAW, GRASSES,
AND THE LIKE AS FUEL FOR MAKING STEAM," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus applicable
to portable and other steam engines to facilitate the burning of straw,

page_text: grasses, and the like as fuel for making steam. For this purpose we con-
struct the furnace with the bars wider apart than usual, and in the spaces
between the bars we cause the teeth of a rake to be moved by hand or
otherwise in such manner that all accumulation of slag formed by the
silica of the straw or other similar fuel shall be thereby broken up and
the passages for the admission of the air kept free. We give a lateral
as well as a longitudinal motion to the teeth of the rake, so that th
sides of the fire-bars and fire-box can be thereby scraped clean.
In some cases we employ an endless chain of rakes, the teeth of which
project between the fire-bars, and we cause the rakes to move backwards
and forwards automatically or to be moved by hand when required.
Beneath the fire-bars we fix a deep ash-pan with an opening on one
side for raking the ashes out and for the admission of the air, and in
order to prevent the danger which might arise from particles of glowing
ash being blown about by the wind when being raked out of the ash-pan
we fix across the opening of the ash-pan a pipe with a number of small
holes, and connect the pipe with the ordinary feed pump of the engine, so
that the attendant can cause a sufficient quantity of water to be thrown
on to the glowing ash to quench it before raking it out of the ash-pan.
The pipe may if preferred be connected with a reservoir and so be used
independently of the feed pump at pleasure.
The feed mouth of the furnace is fitted with an inclined trough to
receive the straw or other similar fuel, and across the opening into the
fire-box are placed a number of self-acting air valves which open as the
straw is pushed in by forks or other hand instruments, and close of
themselves as soon as the feeding stops.
In combination with the improvements just described we sometimes
employ some of the known methods of automatically feeding the straw
or other similar fuel into the furnace.
We also sometimes use an exhaust fan or blower in connection with
the smoke box and chimney to draw off the smoke and hasten the pro-
duction of steam.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Head and Thomas Common Brown in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 26th April 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
HEAD and THOMAS COMMON BROWN, both of Ipswich, in the County
of Suffolk, Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and grant unto us, the said John Head and Thomas Common
Brown, Her special license that we, the said John Head and Thomas
Common Brown, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said John Head and Thomas Common Brown, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, excrcise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO PORTABLE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES TO FACILITATE
THE BURNING OF STRAW, GRASSES, AND THE LIKE AS FUEL FOR MAKING STEAM,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John Head and
Thomas Common Brown, our executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was
to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said John Head and Thomas Common
Brown, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus applicable
to portable and other steam engines to facilitate the burning of straw,

page_text: grasses, and the like as fuel for making steam. For this purpose we
construct the furnace with the bars wider apart than usual, and in the
spaces between the bars we cause the teeth of a rake to be moved by
hand or otherwise, in such manner that all accumulation of slag formed
by the silica of the straw or other similar fuel shall be thereby broken
up, and the passages for the admission of the air kept free. We give
a lateral as well as a longitudinal motion to the teeth of the rake so that
the sides of the fire-bars and fire-box can be thereby scraped clean.
In some cases we employ an endless chain of rakes the teeth of which
project between the fire-bars, and we cause the rakes to move backwards
and forwards automatically or to be moved by hand when required.
Beneath the fire-bars we fix a deep ash-pan with an opening on one
side for raking the ashes out and for the admission of the air, and in
order to prevent the danger which might arise from particles of glowing
ash being blown about by the wind when being raked out of the ash-pan
we fix across the opening of the ash-pan a pipe with a number of small
holes, and connect the pipe with the ordinary feed pump of the engine,
so that the attendant can cause a sufficient quantity of water to be
thrown on to the glowing ash to quench it before raking it out of the
ash-pan. The pipe may if preferred be connected with a reservoir and
so be used independently of the feed pump at pleasure.
The feed mouth of the furnace is fitted with an inclined trough to
receive the straw or other similar fuel, and across the opening into the
fire-box are placed a number of self-acting air valves which open as
the straw is pushed in by forks or other hand instruments and close of
themselves as soon as the feeding stops.
In combination with the improvements just described we sometimes
employ some of the known methods of automatically feeding the straw
or other similar fuel into the furnace.
We also sometimes use an exhaust fan or blower in connection with
the smoke box and chimney to draw. off the smoke and hasten the pro-
duction of steam.
In order that our said Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, we will proceed to describe the Drawings
hereunto annexed.

page_text: Figure 1 is a plan; Figure 2 is a side view; and Figure 3 an end
view, all partly in section, of a portable engine adapted to burn straw
and grasses.
A is the fire-box; B, B, are the fire-bars; O is a rake the teeth a, a,
of which project upwards through the spaces between the fire-bars; the
head of the rake rests upon the supporting bars b, b, and the handle
projects through the ash-pan within convenient reach of the attendant.
In clearing the spaces between the bars the attendant draws the handle
out to the position C', and he moves it backward and forward, and may
also give a lateral movement to the rake as shewn by the dotted positions
of the teeth a', a¹, Figure 3, so as to cause the teeth a, a, to scrape the
sides of the fire-bars and fire-box. The backward and forward move-
ment of the rake is continued until the air spaces are cleared; D is the
ash-pan; E is the opening for raking out the ashes and for the admis-
sion of the air (it may be at either side of the engine as preferred); F
is the pipe connected with the feed pump or with a reservoir for
throwing jets of water c, c, upon the glowing ashes; G is a cock on the
pipe by which the attendant regulates the supply of water; H is the
feed mouth of the furnace; d, d, are self-acting air valves; I is a trough
for the reception of the straw; J is a convenient instrument for pushing
the straw past the air valves d, d, into the furnace A. On withdrawing
the instrument J the valves close of themselves and the draft of air
through the furnace goes on uninterruptedly.
The known methods we use of automatically feeding the fuel into the
fire-box in place of feeding by hand are such for instance as that for
which Letters Patent were granted to Casimir Schemioth, January 11th
1872, No. 94, or other suitable contrivances; but we make no claim to
such mechanical feeding apparatus.
When the fuel to be burned is damp or requires a larger supply of
air to promote its combustion than the natural draft would give, we
employ a fan or blower applied to the smoke box or chimney in such
manner as either to draw the air into the fire-box through the opening E
of the ash-pan by exhaust, or to force a strong current of air up the
chimney. In either case the fan or blower is constructed to be driven
by hand when first getting up steam, and to be driven by the engine at
pleasure when sufficient steam is formed.

page_text: Having now described the nature of our Invention and some of the
methods of performing the same, we would have it understood, that we
claim as our Invention the apparatus applicable to portable and other
steam engines to facilitate the burning of straw, grasses, and the like, as
fuel for making steam, substantially as described, or any mere modifi-
cation thereof.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Head and Thomas Common
Brown, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Seventeenth
day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and seventy-three.