Improvements in Oil or Hydrocarbon Engines.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Aug., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 10th June, 1895-Accepted, 10th Aug., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Oil or Hydrocarbon Engines.
JAMES EDWARDES WEYMAN Engineer of The Church Acre Iron Works,
Guildford, Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention has for its object the regulating the heat of vaporizers of oil or
hydro carbon engines and particularly relates to those vaporizers which are kept
heated by the combustion of the charges in, or from the exhaust gases from, the
engines. Through the vaporizer I have a passage or tube, in which may be
projections or vanes; through this passage or tube I pass water either by connecting
to the water circulation or otherwise; or I have a cone or projection inside the
passage or tube upon which I cause water to drop which, evaporating, cools the
vaporizer and which also causes an induced current of cold air, in either case
I have cocks or valves to regulate the quantity of water and this I do automatically
by means of a column of mercury or by a metal rod placed in or connected to the
vaporizer the expansion or contraction of which is made to open or close the cock
or valve, and by this means I am able to regulate the temperature of the vaporizer
automatically.
Dated this Eighth day of August. 1894.
Improvements in Oil or Hydrocarbon Engines.
I, JAMES EDWARDES WEYMAN, formerly of The Church Acre Iron Works,
Guildford, Surrey but now of The Trusty Engine Works, Cheltenham, in the
County of Gloucester, 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 :-
My invention has for its object to provide improved means for regulating the
heat of vaporizers of oil or hydrocarbon engines and particularly relates to those
vaporizers which are kept heated by the combustion of the charges in the engine
cylinder or by the exhaust gases passing from such cylinder.
For this purpose the vaporizer is provided with a passage or tube in which may
be projections or vanes and through which I pass water either by connecting it to
the water circulation chamber or passages of the engine cylinder or otherwise.
Or a cone or projection may be provided inside the passage or tube upon which
I cause water to drop, which, by evaporating, cools the vaporizer, and also causes
an induced current of cold air to flow through the passage or tube. In either case
I provide a cock or valve to regulate the quantity of water and this I do auto-
matically by means of a column of mercury or by a metal rod placed in or
connected to the vaporizer and the expansion or contraction of which is made to
open or close the cock or valve. By this means I am able to regulate the
temperature of the vaporizer automatically.
In the accompanying drawings,
Fig. 1 shows partly in longitudinal vertical section and partly in side elevation;

page_text: Fig. 2 partly in horizontal section and partly in plan; and Fig. 3 in side elevation,
the rear portion of a hydrocarbon motor cylinder with vaporizer provided with
means according to this invention for automatically regulating the temperature of
the vaporizer.
1 is a vaporizer attached to the rear end of the motor cylinder 2.
It is constructed with a cavity or recess 3 that forms an extension of the
combustion space 4 of the motor cylinder so that the explosions taking place within
such combustion space will cause the walls of the circuitous passage 5 in the
vaporizer, to which liquid hydrocarbon is supplied in any known or suitable
manner, to become heated and so convert such liquid hydrocarbon into vapour
which, together with air, passes at the required times into the said combustion
chamber through a port 6 controlled by a valve 6" as well understood.
To control the temperature of the vaporizer thus heated, the vaporizer is formed
with a vertical open tubular passage 7 over the inner surface of which a regulated
quantity of water is permitted to flow from the lower portion of the water jacket
of the motor cylinder 2, such water flowing through pipes 9 and 9* between which
is interposed a controlling valve 10. The stem 10" of the valve proper is connected
to the free end of a lever 11 that is pivoted at 12 to the vaporizer and jointed at 13
to the upper free end of a rod 14 that is formed of material say brass, that has a
higher co-efficient of expansion when heated than that say iron, of which the
vaporizer is formed. The said rod is fitted in a hole in the vaporizer to which its
lower end is fixed, so that longitudinal expansion or contraction of the rod will act
to move the valve lever to open or close the valve to a greater or less extent
and so increase or diminish the supply of water to the passage 7 according as the
temperature of the vaporizer rises above or falls below that determined as most
suitable for the proper volatilization of the particular kind of liquid hydrocarbon
being supplied to the engine. Thus in some cases the water may be supplied in
drops and in other cases in the form of a stream. To increase the cooling surface
the passage 7 may be provided with one or more conical projections as shown in
dotted lines at 7 in Fig. 1 or with walls or divisions as shown at 7b in Fig. 2.
15 is a pipe by which water not evaporated in the passage 7 can be led away to
any suitable place.
To enable the valve 10 to be properly set or adjusted for the required working
temperature, its spindle 10 may extend loosely through the lever 11 and be
provided with nuts 10 at points above and below the lever end. To enable
the temperature of the hydrocarbon vapour passing through any desired
part of the passage 5 to be readily determined at any time, a thermometer 16
may be partly introduced through the wall of the vaporizer into the required part
of the said passage. In this way it can be seen at a glance whether the hydro-
carbon vapour is being heated to the proper temperature to obtain the best results,
and if not, the normal extent of opening of the valve 10 can be then readily
re-adjusted to permit of the working temperature of the vaporizer being altered to
the required extent.
By my invention, the vaporizer can be practically maintained at any required
working temperature with the result that liquid hydrocarbons of various qualities
can be economically used under the best conditions in each particular case.
As will be obvious, the vaporizer, and the hydrocarbon and water passages therein
can be constructed in various forms, and that instead of taking the cooling water
from the jacket of the motor cylinder, it could be taken from some other source,
though I prefer that shown as being more convenient. Also the lower portion of
the rod 14 might be replaced by a column of mercury, the upper portion of the
rod then acting as a piston or plunger that will operate the regulating valve 10
through the lever 11 by expansion or contraction of the mercury.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that I do not
claim the particular construction of vaporizer shown and described for which I

page_text: contemplate obtaining separate Letters Patent, nor do I claim broadly the use of
water as a cooling medium for maintaining the temperature of the vaporizer
approximately constant, but what I do claim is :-
1. In an oil or hydrocarbon engine, the combination with a vaporizer having a
passage or tube therein for cooling water, an engine cylinder to which the vaporizer
is attached, and a water supply, of a cock or valve adapted to regulate the flow of
cooling water to the said passage, and means such as a column of mercury or a
metal rod subject to the heat of the vaporizer and adapted by expansion or
contraction, due to changes in temperature of the vaporizer to open or close the
said cock or valve and thus automatically regulate the temperature of the vaporizer,
substantially as herein described.
2. In an oil or hydrocarbon engine the combination with the water jacketted
engine cylinder and a vaporizer, of the means shown in and described with reference
to the drawings annexed for permitting a regulated quantity of cooling water to
flow from the jacket of the said engine cylinder to the cooling passage in the
veporizer, as set forth.
Dated this 10th day of June 1895.
For the Applicant,
W. LLOYD WISE,
46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.