IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GUARDS FOR PREVENTING THE ESCAPE OF SPARKS FROM LOCO- MOTIVE AND OTHER ENGINES
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Cornelius Moriarty, of Greenwich, in the County
of Kent, Wire Worker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF GUARDS FOR PREVENTING THE ESCAPE OF SPARKS FROM LOCO-
MOTIVE AND OTHER ENGINES."
Sealed the 3rd March 1865, and dated the 10th September 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Cornelius Moriarty at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th September 1864.
I, CORNELIUS MORIARTY, of of Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Wire
Worker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GUARDS FOR PREVENTING THE ESCAPE OF SPARKS
FROM LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER ENGINES," to be as follows:-
i
I manufacture spark catchers of strong wire, which I work round a series
of stretcher rods in a peculiar manner, instead of interlacing as usual.
For this purpose I take a series of stretcher rods of iron, and dispose them
at intervals of three or four inches throughout the area of the spark catcher,
and at the edge or boundary theroof, which may be in the form of a frame; 1
then apply parallel wires to form the surface of the catcher; and I prefer such

page_text: size of wire as that three close coils of it on the stretcher rods will leave a space
between two adjoining wires suitablo for the passage spaces of the spark
catcher, such space being in breadth equal to two coils; thus the end of a wire
is coiled round the marginal rod or frame three times; it is carried from this
rod to the nearest parallel rod, around which it is coiled three times in like
manner; it is carried thence to a third rod, and coiled thereon as before, and so
on across the breadth, and to the opposite side of the spark catcher a second
and parallel wire is applied in liko manner, and so on a succession of wires are
applied to form the surface of the spark catcher. In this way the whole of
the wires prosent a uniform surface on the one side, with the tie rods pro-
jecting on the other, the wires constituting such surfaco being all in tho samo
plane. By these means great uniformity in the meshes is produced, and cach
mesh in itself is of uniform width from end to end. Instead of threo coils
of the wire on each stretcher rod, a thicker wire may be used and two
only applied, the width of the mesh being then equal to the diameter of tho
wire, or a greater number of coils may be applied with smaller wire or for au
enlarged mesh; I find, however, that for a locomotive engine spark catcher a
wiro in which three coils produces a separation of the wires and a mesh
equal to the width of two coils is preferable, as it permits of the use of a
strong wire, which in the form presented insures great endurance or length
of wear, and at same time a surfaco having meshes which provide great area
of passage for the draught passing up the chimney consistent with tho effectual
stoppage or catching of the sparks or incandescent materials.
.
In the foregoing I have supposed the spark catcher to bo a flat surface or
diaphragm stretched across tho upper part of the smoke box or passage leading
to the chimney, in some cases in locomotives they are of a truncated, inverted,
conical form, the lower end surrounding the blast pipe and the upper end fitting
into the chimney. I form theso spark catchers in same manner, that is to
say, I dispose a number of vertical stretcher rods (as before), but in the form
of the cover desired, I then apply the mesh wires to such strotcher rods in
manner before described, leading the wire round to form the surface of the
conc. Instead of the stretcher rods being upright they may be horizontal, and
in the form of rings of different diameters disposed at suitable distances apart.
The mesh wires in this case lead up and down and produco a mesh, the
length of which is up and down, the breadth being equal to one, two, three, or
more separating coils adapted as before described.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Cornelius Moriarty in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 10th March 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CORNELIUS
MORIARTY, of Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Wire Worker, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Cornelius Moriarty, Her special licence that I, the said Cornelius Moriarty,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as 1, the said Cornelius
Moriarty, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during tho 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 THE MANUFACTURE OF
GUARDS FOR PREVENTING THE ESCAPE OF SPARKS FROM LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER
ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Cornelius
Moriarty, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 I, the said Cornelius Moriarty, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the follow-
ing statement, reference being had to the Sheet of Drawings hereunto
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
I manufacture spark catchers of strong wire, which I work round a series
of stretcher rods in a peculiar manner, instead of interlacing as usual.
For this purpose I take a series of stretcher rods of iron and dispose them
at intervals of three, four, or more inches throughout the area of the spark
catcher, and also at the edge or boundary thereof, which may be in the form
of a frame; I then apply parallel wires to form the surface of the catcher, and
I prefer such size of wire as that two close coils of it on the stretcher rods

page_text: will leave a space between two adjoining wires suitable as the area of passage
spaces of the spark catcher; such spaces are each in breadth equal to two coils.
In this arrangement the end of the wire is coiled round the marginal rod or
frame three times; from this rod it is carried to the nearest parallel rod, around
which it is cuiled twice in like manner; it is carried thence to the third rod
and coiled thereon as before, and so on across the breadth, and to the oppo-
sito side of the spark catcher, a second and parallel wire is applied in like
manner; and so on a succession of wires are applied to form the surface of
the spark catcher. In this way the whole of the wires present a uniform or
level surface on the one side with the ends projecting on the other, the wires
constituting such surface being all in the same plane. By this means great
uniformity in the meshes is produced, and each mesh in itself is of uniform
width from end to end. Instead of two coils of the wire or round iron on
ench stretcher rod a thicker wire may be used and one only applied, the
width of the mesh being then equal to the diameter of the wire, or a greater
number of coils may be applied with smaller wire or for an enlarged mesh.
] find, however, that for a locomotive engine spark arrestor or catcher that
a wire in which the coils producing a separation of the wires and a mesh
equal to the width of two coils is preferable; it permits the use of a strong
wire, which in the form presented insures great endurance or length of wear,
and at same time a surface having meshes which permit the greatest area
of passage for the draught passing up the chimney consistent with the effectual
stoppage or catching of the sparks or incandescent materials.
In the foregoing I have supposed the spark catcher to be a flat surface or
diaphragm stretched across the upper part of the smoke box or passago
leading to the chimney; in some cases in locomotives they are of a truncated
conical form inverted, the lower end surrounding the blast pipo and the upper
end fitting into the chimney; 1 form theso spark catchers in same manner,
that is to say, I dispose a number of vertical stretcher rods as before (but in
the conical form described). I then apply the mesh wires to such stretcher
rods in manner before described, leading the wire round to form the surface
of the catcher. Instead of the stretcher rods being upright they may be
preferably borizontal, and in the form of rings of different diameters disposed
at suitable distances apart. The mesh wires in this case lead up and down
and produce meshes, the length of which are up and down between the rings
and the breadth accordingly as one, two, three, or more separating coils may
be adopted as before described.
Instead of using wire in the manufacture of spark arresters or catchers,

page_text: round or even square or other form of rod iron or wire may be used,
according to the strength of the fabric desired to be produced.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 represents a lateral vertical section of the smoke box of a loco-
motive engine, furnished with a spark catcher of the flat form, constructed
according to my Invention, which is also in vertical section; Fig. 2 is a plan
of the same.
a, a, is the external or boundary frame of the spark catcher of round rod
iron, and b, b, intermediate rods of the framing, disposed at equal and suitable
distances to receive the wires c, or rod metal of which the general surface of
the spark catcher is composed. It will be observed that the wires c, c, are
turned or coiled round the extremes of the frames one, two, or more times,
and then proceed to tho intermediate wires or rods b, b, round which they are
similarly coiled, and so on across the general surface of the spark catcher.
The coils formned on the several stretchers or rods a and b keep the contiguous
and parallel wires c, c, at suitable and uniform distances apart, while they aro
at same time all kept in the same plane, and the openings or meshes thus
produced uniform in size throughout the surface of the spark catcher. Each
individual mesh is made of equal and uniform width from end to end, the
greatest amount of passage is thus produced for the smoke, &c., while the
meshes are kept of the largest possible dimensions consistent with the duc
arresting of tho sparks or incandescent particles that are impelled by the
blast. In the one half of this spark arrester, Fig. 2, I have shown the wires
c, c, as cach coiled once on each of the wires a, b, to produce the separation
of the adjoining wires, while in the other half two coils are adopted, which
produces a greater separation of the wires, as will be readily understood.
Fig. 3 shows a section of smoke box, with blast pipe of a locomotive, fitted
with a conical spark arrester, shown in elevation; while Fig. 4 is a plan of
the latter separate. In this case the frame rods or wires a, b, consist of a
series of rings, with which the wires c, c, forming the surface of the arrester,
are connected as before described, by coiling on each ring and keeping the
wires c, c, in. the same level, or so as to produce a uniform conical surface.
The wires c, c, may be coiled more or less times on the frame rods a and b, as
before described.
It will be observed that the lower end of the conical spark catcher fits on
the blast pipe, while the upper and larger end fits the chimney and forms an
openwork diaphragm, through which the smoke and products of combustion
that are to escape must pass.

page_text: Having described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, I declare that what I claim as the Invention to bo protected by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the manner of combining the
parts a, b, and c, herein-above referred to, and shown in the Drawings annexed,
as and for the purposes herein-beforo described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Cornelius Moriarty, have hereunto sel
my hand and seal, this Ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
W. CLARK,
Patent Agent,
53, Chancery Lane,
London.
CORNELIUS MORIARTY. (Ls.)