AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF VALVE, APPLICABLE TO VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS OF ENGINES OR MACHINERY
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Davey, Mine Agent, Hugh Sims, Accountant,
John Mayne, Mine Agent, William Hodge, Smith, and John Gerrans,
Miner, all of the Parish of Gwennap, in the County of Cornwall, for the
Invention of "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF VALVE, APPLICABLE TO VARIOUS
DESCRIPTIONS OF ENGINES OR MACHINERY."
Sealed the 28th January 1859, and dated the 30th July 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Davey, Hugh Sims,
John Mayne, William Hodge, and John Gerrans at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 30th July 1858.
We, JOHN DAVEY, Mine Agent, HUGH SIMS, Accountant, JoHN MAYNE,
Mine Agent, WILLIAM HODGE, Smith, and JoшHN GERRANS, Miner, all of the
Parish of Gwennap, in the County of Cornwall, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF VALVE, APPLICABLE TO
VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS OF ENGINES OR MACHINERY," to be as follows:-.
Our Invention of "An Improved Construction of Valve, applicable to
various Descriptions of Engines or Machinery," relates to that description of
valve known as the clack valve or the butterfly valve, and consists in a novel
mode of constructing the lid and seat of the valve so as to render the same
more perfect or water-tight, more durable, and less liable to derangement than
valves of the ordinary construction. There will also be a great saving in
leather, and in the time required for changing and repairing the leather when

page_text: out of order. The improvement consists in making a dovetail circular groove
in the cover, and also in the seat of the valve, to receive a ring of wood and
leather or some other suitable yielding material; or, if preferred, a ring of
wood may be secured in one of the dovetailed grooves, and a ring of leather or
yielding material in the other.
This improved valve is particularly applicable for pumping machinery, and
may also be employed in fitting up the condensing work of steam engines, as,
for instance, in the air pump bucket, in which case, in consequence of the hot
water which will be brought into contact with the valve, it will be found
preferable to use canvas in place of leather as a packing.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Davey, Hugh Sims, John Mayne, William Hodge, and
John Gerrans in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 29th January
1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
DAVEY, Mine Agent, HUGH SIMS, Accountant, JOHN MAYNE, Mine Agent,
WILLIAM HODGE, Smith, and JOHN GERRANS, Miner, all of the Parish of
Gwennap, in the County of Cornwall, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-second year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
John Davey, Hugh Sims, John Mayne, William Hodge, and John Gerrans,
Her special license that we, the said John Davey, Hugh Sims, John Mayne,
William Hodge, and John Gerrans, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said John Davey, Hugh Sims, John Mayne,
William Hodge, and John Gerrans, our executors, administrators, or 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, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF VALVE, APPLICABLE TO VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS Or
ENGINES OR MACHINERY," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
John Davey, Hugh Sims, John Mayne, William Hodge, and John Gerrans,
by an instrument in writing under our hands and seals, or under the hand and
seal of some or one of us, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature

page_text: 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 Hugh Sims and John Mayne, on
behalf of ourselves and of the said John Davey, William Hodge, and John
Gerrans, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawings
hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is
to say):
Our Invention of "An Improved Construction of Valve, applicable to
various Descriptions of Engines or Machinery," relates more particularly to
that description of valve known as the clack valve or the butterfly valve, and
consists in a novel mode of constructing the lid and seat of the valve, so as to
render the same more perfect or water-tight, more durable, and less liable to
derangement than valves of the ordinary construction. There will also be a
great saving in leather and in the time required for changing and repairing the
leather when out of order. The improvement consists in making a circular
groove in the cover or lid of the valve; and also, if desired, in the seat of the
valve. In this groove is placed a ring of wood covered with leather or some
other suitable yielding material. It is preferred that the circular grooves
should be of a dovetail form, in section, that is, the bottom of the groove should
be wider than the top; this will prevent the wooden ring from becoming
displaced.
A modification of the plan above described may be made by securing a ring
of wood in one of the circular grooves, say, the groove formed in the seat or
fixed part of the valve, while a ring of leather or yielding material is secured
in the groove that is made in the cover of the valve, so that when the parts of
the valve are brought into contact, the wooden ring of the seat will bear
against the leather ring of the cover, and form a tight joint. Valves con-
structed and packed in this manner will be found particularly applicable for
pumping machinery, and may also be employed in fitting up the condensing
work of steam engines, as, for instance, in the air pump bucket, in which case,
in consequence of the hot water which will be brought into contact with the
valve, it will be found preferable to use canvas in place of leather as a
packing.
In the accompanying Drawings we have shewn views of different modes of
carrying out our Invention. Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a clack valve closed;
Fig. 2 is a plan view of the valve open, or with the lid or cover thrown back

page_text: from the seat, so as to expose to view the circular groove in the cover, and the
wooden and leather packing secured therein, a portion of the ring of leather
packing being removed in order to shew the segmental blocks beneath. a, a,
is the valve seat; b, b, the lid or cover, which turns on pins in vertical
guides c, c, attached to or forming part of the fixed portion of the valve; cross
pins c, c, are passed through holes in the vertical guides for the purpose of
preventing the centre pins of the valve cover from rising out of the guides;
d, d, d, are segmental pieces of wood, which are placed in the dovetailed groove
made in the lid or cover of the valve, and forming (when the groove is filled)
a ring of wood. The segmental pieces are put into the groove from an
opening at the back, and when all the pieces are put in their place, this
opening is closed by a block of wood e, which is secured by means of a screw f
The segmental pieces or wooden ring having been properly secured in their
groove, a ring of leather, or segmental pieces of leather d¹ to form a ring, are
nailed on to the wood, as shewn in Fig. 2. This leather will form a soft
packing or cushion, which rests upon the circular projecting edge of the seat,
as seen in the sectional view, Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a plan view, and Fig. 4 a sectional view of a rising valve con-
structed according to our improvements. a is the seat; b, the lid or cover,
through which passes a rod g, which is fixed in the cross-piece h, and acts as a
guide to the cover b when it rises or falls.
It will be seen that by the above-described mode of constructing the valve a
very considerable saving in leather or other packing material will be effected.
Fig. 5 is a sectional view, and Fig. 6 is a view of the under side of the lid or
cover of a valve which is a modification of that shewn in the former Figures.
In this instance, instead of nailing or attaching the leather or other packing to
segmental pieces of wood forming a continuous ring in a circular groove, the
packing is nailed or otherwise attached to wooden pegs d*, d*, which are
driven into holes cast or made in the groove in the under side of the cover or
lid of the valve.
It will also be seen, on referring to Fig. 5, that a circular groove is cut in
the top edge of the seat, and a ring of wood is inserted therein, against which
the leather or other packing-of-the-lid-or cover is made to bear, and thereby
form a water-tight joint. All the valves shewn in the Drawings are intended
to be employed more particularly in pumping machinery, but it is evident that
a similar construction of valve is equally applicable for other purposes where
clack, butterfly, or rising valves are employed, and therefore we reserve to
ourselves the right to apply to such purposes valves constructed according to
our improvements.

page_text: Having now described our Invention of "An Improved Construction of
Valve, applicable to various Descriptions of Engines or Machinery," and having
explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, we would observe that,
although we have in the above Specification of our Invention described the
manner of constructing valves according to our improvement, which we have
found by experience to be the most convenient, yet we do not mean or intend
to confine ourselves rigidly thereto, as the construction or arrangement of the
parts may doubtless be varied in some particulars without departing from the
nature and object of our Invention. In conclusion, we claim the mode herein
shewn and described, or any mere modification thereof, of constructing the
valves of engines or machinery.
In witness whereof, we, the said Hugh Sims and John Mayne, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, the Twenty-eighth day of January, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
HUGH SIMS.
L.S.)
JOHN MAYNE. (L.S.)
HUGH SIMS. (L.S.)
JOHN MAYNE. (L.S.)