IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER METERS, AND IN REGULATING, INDICATING, AND ASCERTAINING THE SUPPLY OF WATER AND LIQUIDS
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
MEDHURST, of Clerkenwell, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, 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 at Westminster, the Twenty-seventh day of
September, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in the sixteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Henry Medhurst, my exors, admors, and assigns, Her especial license,
full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Henry Medhurst, my
exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Henry Medhurst, my
exors, adiňors, or 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, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER
METERS, AND IN REGULATING, INDICATING, AND ASCERTAINING THE SUPPLY OF WATER
AND LIQUIDS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said
Henry Medhurst, 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 inrolled in Her 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
Henry Medhurst, hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the present Specification thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed; that is to say :-
My Invention consists,―
Firstly, in a mode or modes of constructing water meters, wherein the
quantity of water passing through the same is ascertained and indicated by its
pressure against flexible diaphragms placed between chambers, into which the
water is admitted alternately, and which diaphragms yield consequently
alternately in opposite directions, displacing at every movement from the
one chamber a quantity of water equal to that admitted into the other
chamber, and thus are caused to give motion to axes or spindles from which the
necessary motion is communicated to the slides of the inlet and outlet of
the water and to the registering and indicating apparatus.
And secondly, in regulating, indicating, and ascertaining the supply of water
and liquids by means of an arrangement of air-tight cylinders or vessels of
given capacity enclosed in an air-tight casing and worked in conjunction, so as
alternately to receive and discharge the water or fluid to be measured. Figures
1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Drawings hereunto annexed are differents views of a
water meter constructed according to the first part of my Invention, Figure 1
being a plan of the same with part of the cover removed to shew the slides, &c.,
Figure 2 a vertical section on the line a, b, of Figure 1, Figure 3 a vertical
section taken at right angles to Figure 2, and Figure 4 a sectional plan. A, A,
is a strong cylindrical metal casing closed at the ends by the hemispherical
covers A¹, A³, and divided horizontally by the partition B, in which are formed
the apertures for the inflow and outflow of the water to be measured. The
portion of the casing devoted to the measuring arrangements is divided into
two compartments of the vertical division plate B', and each of these com-
partments is again divided into two chambers by the metal frames C, C, the
body of the meter thus being divided into four chambers 1, 2, 3, 4. The
frames C, C, are fitted with flexible diaphragms or bags D, D, which are com-
posed of vulcanized sheet india rubber, india-rubber cloth, leather, or any
other waterproof and sufficiently flexible material. The manner in which the
flexible diaphragms or bags are fitted to their frames is as follows:-The dia-
phragms are cut from a sheet of either of the above-named materials, of a size
and form adapted to the capacity of the meter; they are then secured to the
centre of the frames, from which a portion of the metal has been previously
cut out, leaving an orifice of dimensions suited to those of the diaphragm by

page_text: placing their edges between the two thicknesses of metal plate composing the
frames so as to cover the orifice therein, and then rivetting the plates together.
On each side of, and partially covering the flexible diaphragms, there is then
attached a plate of metal cut to a size that will pass freely through the orifice
in the frame, when the diaphragms are moved in either direction by the action
of the water against them. A metal tongue is secured to one side of each
of the diaphragms and the ends of these tongues are attached to rocking
spindles or shafts E, E, which by the motion of the diaphragms are caused
to receive a vibratory or reciprocating action, and thus in connection with
the arrangements next to be described to produce the necessary motion for
actuating the slides and registering apparatus. F, F, are stuffing boxes in the
partition plate B, through which the ends of the shafts E, E, pass; these
shafts carry levers G, G, at right angles to each other, which levers drive the
crank H on the axis I, by means of the connecting rods g, g. On the axis I
are also fixed two other cranks J, J', which, by means of the connecting rods
,, give motion to the slides or valves for the inlet and outlet of water to and
from the different chambers of the meter. K, K', are the slides or valves, the
construction and operation of which are precisely similar to those of the slide
valve of a steam engine. L is the inflow pipe which supplies the water to be
measured, and M the outflow pipe which communicates with all the chambers of
the meter by means of the passages m, m. n, n, are the induction passages, by
which water is admitted to the chambers 1, 2, 3, 4, on opposite sides of the
diaphragms alternately. N is a worm on the axis I which gears into and
drives a worm wheel N¹ on the shaft O, the opposite end of which passes
through a stuffing box in the side of the end cover A', and gives motion to the
train of wheels of the registering apparatus which may be of any approved
construction. The action of the meter is as follows:-On the admission of
water or other liquid into either of the chambers 1 or 2, the flexible diaphragm
will be caused to pass by means of the pressure thus exerted against it into
the adjoining chamber, and the rocking shaft with which the diaphragm is con-
nected will be caused to vibrate in its bearings; a similar action will at the same
time be going on in the chambers 3 and 4, and the vibratory motion of the
rocking shafts E, E, will, through the intervention of the levers G, G, and con-
necting rods g, g, produce the rotation of the crank axis I, which by means of the
cranks J, J¹, and connecting rods j, j, will give motion to the slides K, K', and
by this motion the supply of water to the chambers 1 and 3 will be cut off, and
the water admitted to the chambers 2 and 4, that is, on the opposite sides of
the diaphragms. At the same time the eduction ports from the chamber> 1
and 3 will be opened, and the water contained in them will be discharged

page_text: through the outflow pipe M by the pressure of the water on the opposite sides
of the diaphragms, the motion of the slides will then be reversed, and the
water readmitted to the chambers 1 and 3, and that contained in the chambers
2 and 4 discharged, when the preceding action will be repeated. The number
of revolutions of the shaft I, and consequently the quantity of water passed
through the meter, will be shown by the registering apparatus, which, as before
mentioned, is driven from the shaft I by means of the shaft O. The arrange-
ment of the train of wheel work of the registering apparatus will of course
vary with the capacity of the diaphragms when distended, and the number of
revolutions of the crank axis I required to indicate the passage of a given
quantity of fluid through the meter. Figure 5 is a vertical section, and
Figure 6 another vertical section at right angles to Figure 5, of an apparatus
constructed according to the second part of my Invention for regulating, indi-
cating, and ascertaining the supply of liquids. A, A, is an external casing,
composed of metal or other material, of an oval or other suitable form, in
which are fixed the measuring vessels B, B, and into which the liquid to
be measured is supplied previous to its entering the measuring vessels.
These may be of any desired capacity adapted to the particular use for which
the apparatus is designed. C, C, are slides fitted to the top and bottom of the
vessels B, B, for the introduction and emission of liquid into and from the
same. D, D, are the inlet ports, and E, E, the outlet ports, over which the
slides work when actuated by the arrangement of levers presently to be
described. F is a space underneath the measuring vessels into which the
liquid discharged from them flows previous to its being drawn off by the tap
or cock Q. This space is separated from the portion of the casing A which
communicates with the inlet pipe by the partition K. G is the outlet pipe
from the space F to which the tap Q is attached. I is the inlet or conveyance
pipe by which the casing and measuring vessels are supplied with the liquid to
be measured. Air pipes similar to that shown at i, Figure 6, are fitted to the
measuring vessels, and furnished with valves and floats for closing the same
when the vessels are filled. The manner in which the slides are worked comes
next to be described, it being understood that each measuring vessel is fitted
with a similar arrangement of parts to that which is shewn in Figure 6.
HI, H, are knuckle joints by which the slide rods L, L, are connected to the
slides C, C, the lower slide rod of each measuring vessel passing through a
stuffing box in its side. The opposite ends of the rods L, L, are connected by
joints to a vertical lever N, which is centred in the standard joint M, attached
to the exterior of the measuring vessel, between which and the interior of the
casing A a sufficient space for the purpose will have been left. O is a con-

page_text: necting rod which passes through a stuffing box R in the external casing A,
the inner end being jointed to the lower end of the lever N, and the outer end
to one extremity of the cross arm P, which is fixed to the key of the cock Q
below the usual cross handle, as shewn in the detached view Figure 7. The
opposite extremity of the cross arm is similarly connected with the slides of
the other measuring vessel. The operation of the apparatus is as follows:
Supposing it to be connected with a cask or vessel containing spirits or otlier
liquid, and that it is desired to draw off a portion of the same, both the
measuring vessels being empty the handle of the tap is turned in either.
direction, and by this means the rods O connected to the cross arm Pare
moved, the one (say the right-hand rod), in an inward, and the other (or left-
hand rod), in an outward direction. This motion will, through the intervention
of the lever N and slide rods L, L, cause the passage covered by the upper
slide of the right-hand vessel to be opened, and liquid will consequently be
admitted from the casing A so as to fill the vessel, the lower slide meanwhile
keeping its passage still closed. During this time there will be no admission,
of fluid to the left-hand vessel, the upper slides being made with such an
amount of lap on the outer side as to keep their passages closed, except when
moved outward. On turning the tap in the reverse direction the upper slide.
of the right-hand vessel will be closed and the supply of liquid thereby cut off,
while the lower slide will be moved so as to open its passage, and permit the
liquid contained in the vessel to flow out through the tap Q. Simultaneously
with this action the slides of the left-hand vessel will have been moved in the
same manner as has just been described with reference to those of the right-
hand vessel, and the supply of liquid to the casing A being constant it will
consequently flow into and fill it, when on again turning the tap the series of
actions before described will be repeated, the vessels receiving and discharging
the liquid alternately, and the one filling whilst the contents of the other are
being drawn off. The index by which the quantity of liquid passing through
the apparatus is ascertained may be worked, from either or both ends of the
cross arm P, or from either or both of the rods of the upper slides, by con-
necting it therewith in the manner adopted in fixing the indexes of gas
meters, and the construction of the index may be the same as or similar to
that employed for gas meters.
Although in describing the different heads of my Invention I have shown
arrangements of apparatus which I have found to answer well in practice, I
do not confine myself strictly thereto, as the construction of the same may be
varied, so long as the peculiar modes of operation of the parts herein-before.
described are retained.

page_text: And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim in respect
thereof is,--
First, the construction of water meters with flexible diaphragms arranged
and operating as represented in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Drawings, and
herein before described.
Second, the construction of apparatus for regulating, indicating, and ascer-
taining the supply of liquids, as represented in Figures 5, 6, and 7 of the
Drawings, and herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Medhurst, have hereunto set my 1
hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.