AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR MEASURING AND
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Sweeney, of Boston, in the County of
Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts, United States of America,
for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED MACHINE FOR MEASURING AND
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Thomas Sweeney at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 31st May 1871, pursuant to the 9th Section
of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
SWEENEY, of Boston, in the County of Suffolk, and State of Massa-
chusetts, United States of America, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention of "AN IMPROVED MACHINE
FOR MEASURING AND REGISTERING A FLOWING LIQUID, TERMED A FLUID METER,"
and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto me, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the same,

page_text: and have made solemn Declaration that I am the true and first Inventor
of said Invention.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Thomas Sweeney, do hereby declare
the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal, fully
describes and ascertains the nature of said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the accompanying Drawing.
My improvements relate to the construction of the main piston and
the arrangements of its parts, to the arrangements of passages sur-
rounding the inner piston located within the main piston, to the con-
struction and arrangement of a convex valve for the inner piston, to
the construction and arrangement of a concave valve for the main
piston, to the arrangement of a valve rod for giving motion to the
concave valve, to other details, and to the mechanism for actuating the
indicator.
In the Drawing before alluded to Figure 1 is a perspective view of
my improved meter, one of the heads being partly broken away to
show the head of the inclosed main piston; Figure 2, a perspective view
of the main piston detached; Figure 3, a perspective view of the small
inner piston, one end of which is shown in place in Fig. 2, the head
of the main piston being partially broken away for this purpose;
Figure 4 is a longitudinal vertical section of the whole apparatus ;
Figure 5 is a cross section on lines X, X, of Fig. 4; Figure 6 is a cross
section on line y, y, of Fig. 4; Figure 7 is a central horizontal section
through the main piston; and Figure 8 is a view of the under side of
the valve in the inner piston.
A is the outer shell or cylindrical case cast or formed integral with
an inlet tube or passage B at one side, and which passes down the out-
side of the cylinder, and communicates with the inside of the case by
a port C in its bottom in a direction at right angles to the line at which
the water enters. At the side directly opposite the inlet is the outlet
port D leading to the exhaust pipe. These ports and passages are
cast integral with the cylinder, as is also the tubular chamber E for
the reception of the rock shaft F and the piston head or collar G which
imparts the movements to the dial indicator not necessary to be shown.
H is the main piston, which with the exception of its head and inner
walls is cast integral including its chambers and ports or passages.
There are four chambers I, I, I", I", the top one of which contains

page_text: the sliding concave valve J, and also communicates by four passages
Ic, k, with the bottom chamber I", two of these passages being at one
end and two at the other end of said top and bottom chambers; the
two chambers I', I", are at the sides and communicate with passages 2,
Fig. 2. This main piston is lined centrally with a short metal tube L
having openings therein communicating with the various passages or
ports, and also with the exit, and between it and the inner side of the
piston are spaces 1, 1, and 2, 2, left in the casting. The concave valve J
is held to position by the rod j which gives it its movements, said rod
being composed of pieces connected together by screw threads and
sockets as shown, and the sockets forming heads to hold the valve firmly
and also to come into contact with and actuate the rock shaft connected
with the indicator. The ends of the rod play snugly through per-
forations made for the purpose in the heads of the main piston to allow
of its reciprocations. The inner or smaller piston O is made as shown
in Fig. 3, with two upright walls, open top, and valve, the latter shown
inverted in Fig. 8; R is the space between the heads of the inner
piston O. The main piston H has a slot at M to receive a pin pro-
jecting through the shell, to allow the piston to reciprocate length-
wise without turning, and the inner or smaller piston has a longitudinal
slot N to guide it in its reciprocations and prevent its turning.
The operation is as follows:-Water enters under pressure, the in-
duction pipe P passes downward therein beneath the outer case or shell,
enters said shell through the opening C, which thus admits it to the
bottom chamber I¹¹¹ of the main piston H, from which chamber it passes
through four passages k, k, upward to and into the top or valve
chamber I, going round both sides of the piston in its ascent. The water
thus arriving at the top chamber finds one of the ports of the top valve J
open, and therefore enters such open port and descends to and behind,
that is at one end of the small piston O, which carries the convex valve P,
this course of the water being shown by the arrows in the Figures. The
pressure of the water between the heads of the pistons H and O next
operate to move to the left (see Fig. 4) the latter or smaller piston, and
thus to open one of the lower ports of the main cylinder or piston H.
The inner piston is always full of water and open to its current. The
water now passes through such open port to and between the heads of
the two pistons and forces the main piston H to the left (Fig. 4) carrying
with it of course its valve and rod J, j, thus causing the left hand end of

page_text: the rod to strike or abut against the left hand head of the shell or case A.
This last action opens the upper port, previously closed, of valve J and
also drives the water which was contained in the space 2 at the left
hand end of the case into the exit or exhaust pipe, it being of course
understood that such action and discharge take place whenever the stop-
cock in any part of the building, or elsewhere, is opened to draw water,
such opening destroying the equilibrium and allowing the force of the
incoming water to actuate the parts. The four ports, two of which
are shown in dotted lines in Figure 4 at 5, 5, open from the inner lining
or facing of the main piston H, and they are always open to admit water
to supply and keep full the small inner piston. There are two sets of
these ports on each side of said lining. The upper or rod valve must
of course be the first thing shifted before water can enter behind the
smaller piston O in order to move it so as to open its valve and admit
water between the end of the casing and the adjacent end of the large
piston. This first shifting of the slide is effected thus:-The entering
water passes through the four passages K, K, thence to the top valve
chamber, bears against the inner end of the case, and its first stroke
presses back against and forces the slide to the left (see Fig. 4), assuming
the main piston to be then at the right hand end of the case, as seen in
the same Figure. To make exit the water goes down the exit or exhaust
passage of the apparatus, then up upon the outside of the sheet metal
lining of the main portion to the discharge or outlet pipe (see right hand

page_text: effect a one tooth movement of the wheel, and consequently of the
spindle and pinion, and actuates to such an extent the indicating
mechanism the relation of which to the traverse of the piston has been
previously determined. The lower end of the spindle a¹ extends into
the channel c¹, and by this means serves to ensure the correct position of
the latter and prevent its rotation during its reciprocations, and in order
that the spindle and with it the pinion may not be accidentally revolved
to a greater or less degree by infringing against the walls of the channel
I pivot a roller g¹ to the said lower end of the spindle, as shown in
Figure 10 above named. The spindle a¹ and wheel d¹ in connection with
the channel thus made constitute not only a durable and accurate positive
mechanical movement to operate the indicator but also as before stated
to ensure the proper position of the piston during its traverses.
THOMAS SWEENEY. (L.S.)
1st May 1871.