Improvements, in Apparatus, for Charging and. Discharging Gas Retorts.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application,. 3rd. Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left; 3rd Dec., 1892-Accepted, 14th Jan., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION:
Improvements, in Apparatus, for Charging and. Discharging
Gas Retorts.
We, JOHN WOODWARD of 4 St. Ann's Square Manchester in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer; and. FRANCIS WILLIAM CROSSLEY of Openshaw near
Manchester in the County of Lancaster, Engineer,. do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to apparatus especially arranged to save manual labour in
charging gas retorts with coal, and in discharging the coke from them. For each of
those purposes we provide a frame mounted on wheels so that it can be run along
the floor of the stoking house and brought to a position in front of any set of the
retorts. On this frame is fixed a gas motor engine which can be supplied with gas
by flexible pipes or by a gas holder carried on the frame, or it may be by a pipe
that, can travel along a trough with. water seal similar to that described in
F. W. Crossley's Specification No. 2227 of 1881 but simplified in construction.
From this trough water may be supplied to the cylinder jacket for cooling the
engine whence it may be pumped back to the trough. The gas motor engine in
the one case, that of the charging apparatus, by means of suitable reversing gear
raises or lowers a semicylindrical scoop to the level of any one of the retorts,
moves it forwards when charged with coal. into the retort, turns it over so as to
empty the coal in the retort, and draws it back and turns it mouth. upwards to be
filled again with coal from a hopper situated above it. This hopper is of such
length that when the scoop is under it, the whole length of the scoop is filled at
once, the measuring out and descent of the coals from the hopper being effected by
the revolution of a bladed roller at the lower mouth of the hopper. When the
scoop is at a considerable distance below the liopper to suit the level of the low
retorts,, we prefer to introduce between the scoop and the hopper a crooked spout
which retards the coals in descending through it. Also, to guide the coals into the
scoop at various other levels, telescopically sliding shoots are employed. In the
case of the discharging or raking out apparatus the gas motor engine works by
suitable gear a rake which has a rocking and a to and fro movement and cau be
raised and lowered to suit the level of the particular retort for which it is adjusted.
In making its forward stroke its front end is raised so that its raking blade passes
over, the coke in the retort, the blade then having descended at the far end of the
retort, the rake makes its back stroke dragging out the coke. These movements
are controlled by, one handle. It is preferred to keep. the front part of the rake
cool by water supplied to it by a jointed pipe from a tank carried on the travelling
frame. The charging and discharging apparatus may be moved' to their operating
positions by suitable gear worked by the gas engine.
M 1000
ABEL. & IMRAY,.
Agents for the Applicants.

page_text: 17
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Charging and Discharging
Gas Retorts.
We, JOHN WOODWARD of 4 St. Ann's Square. Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, and FRANCIS WILLIAM CROSSLEY of Openshaw, near
Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, 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 :-
This invention relates to apparatus especially arranged to save manual labour in
charging gas retorts with coal, and in discharging the coke from them. For these
purposes, we employ apparatus which we shall describe, referring to the accom-
panying drawings, in the several figures of which like letters are employed as far
as possible to designate corresponding parts.
Figs. 1 and 2 are respectively end and side views of the apparatus for charging
the retorts.
Figs. 3 and 4 are corresponding views of the apparatus for discharging them.
Fig. 5 is a side view, Fig. 6 is a plan, Fig. 7 is a transverse section and
Fig. 8 is an end view of the scoop and its guide.
Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, a frame a is mounted on wheels a¹ so that it can be
run along the floor of the stoking house and brought to a position in front of any
set of the retorts. On this frame is fixed a gas motor engine which can be
supplied with gas by flexible pipes, or by a gas-holder carried on the frame, or it
may be by a pipe that can travel along a trough with water seals, similar to that
described in F. W. Crossley's Specification No. 2227 of 1881. From this trough
water may be supplied to the cylinder jacket for cooling the engine, whence it may
be pumped back to the trough. The gas motor engine by means of suitable
reversing gear, preferably arranged with friction clutches, raises or lowers a semi-
cylindrical scoop c¹ to the level of one of the retorts, moves it forwards charged
with coal into the retort, turns it over so as to empty the coal in the retort, then
draws it back and turns it again with its mouth upwards to be filled again with
coal from a hopper & situated above it.
-
The movements of the scoop are effected by the arrangements shewn in Figs. 5,
6, 7 and 8. The scoop c is attached to a cylindrical barrel A which can revolve
in two bearings A1 A2; the front end of the scoop is supported on a horn plate A³.
The bearings A¹ A can travel along the carriage way A', thus carrying the scoop
into the mouth of the retort. At the end of the forward motion of the scoop the
bearings AA are close together when the bearing A is stopped by the horn
plate A³.
All these motions are obtained from the chain drum B which receives
its motion by the bevel gearing e¹ and e² and belt e as shewn in Figs. 1 and 2. On
the chain drum B are fixed two chains. The top chain B¹ passes over the guide
pulley B², fixed on the carriage way A, and returns by the guide pulley B³ on the
bearing A where it winds round the end of the barrel A so as to tend to revolve
the barrel and scoop in the direction of the pull of the chain. To prevent the
scoop from turning over until required a square bar C¹ is fixed in the carriage
way A on which is a double pawl C2 moving with the bearing A2 and engaged in a
notch of a flange on the end of the barrel A. The square bar C₁ can be turned
by a handle C. The chain from the drum B, when it is rotated in the direction of
the arrow, pulls the scoop along until it is well inside the retort. The handle C³ is
then moved so as to disengage the pawl C2 whereupon the barrel and scoop are
turned over until the pawl 2 engages in another notch of the flange preventing
the scoop from turning back again while it is moved by the second chain passing
from the chain drum B over the guide pulleys B B and B to the barrel, this
second chain being pulled when the drum is turned in the direction opposite to the
arrow. The barrel with the scoop upside down is thus pulled back until the scoop
is quite out of the retort, when the handle C³ is turned back to its first position

page_text: releasing the pawl, the chain then pulling round the barrel and scoop to its first
position, ready to be filled for supplying another retort. A scoop operating in this
manner and suitable gear for giving it the several movements described having
been already used, we make no claim to it except in combination with the rest of
the charging apparatus which we proceed to describe. The hopper d is of such
length that when the scoop is under it, the whole length of the scoop is filled at
once, the measuring out and descent of the coals from the hopper being effected
by the revolution of a bladed roller at the lower mouth of the hopper. When
the scoop is at a considerable distance below the hopper to suit the level of the
low retorts, we prefer to introduce between the scoop and the hopper a crooked
spout, which retards the coal in descending through it; also, to guide the coals
into the scoop at various other levels, shoots g, h, are employed. The crooked
shoot is suspended by links actuated by suitable hand gear ³, so that when
the scoop is to be brought in line with retorts above the lowest, the shoot f is
drawn aside, the coals then being guided by the shoots h and g, these shoots being
tapered and of such size that when the scoop c' is in its highest position, h is
engaged within g.
In the discharging apparatus shewn in Figs. 3 and 4 the gas motor engine b, by
means of gearing similar to that employed for the charging scoop c¹ works a rake i,
which has a rocking and a to and fro movement, and can be raised, and lowered,
by means of the friction cones n and worm gear p to suit the level of the parti-
cular retort for which it is adjusted. In making its forward stroke, its front end
is raised, so that its raking blade passes over the coke in the retort; the blade then
having descended at the far end of the retort, the rake makes its back stroke
dragging out the coke. These movements, given by straight and crossed straps,
are controlled by one handle k and the regulating rod y. It is preferred to cool
the front part of the rake i; for this purpose water is discharged upon it from a
jointed pipe leading from a tank m carried upon the framing a. Both the
charging and the discharging apparatus may be moved to their operating positions
by communicating rotation to the axle of a pair of the wheels a' from frictional
reversing gear » worked from the gas engine."
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. In an apparatus for charging gas retorts by means of a scoop that can be
raised, lowered, moved to and fro and inverted, the combination of a framing with
travelling wheels, a gas motor engine mounted thereon with gear for working the
shoot and a coal hopper with guide shoots for supplying coals to the scoop along
its whole length substantially as described.
2. In an apparatus for discharging gas retorts by means of a rake that can be
raised, lowered, rocked and moved to and fro, the combination of a framing with
travelling wheels, a gas motor engine mounted thereon with gear for working the
rake, and a water tank and jointed pipes for cooling the rake, substantially as
described.
3. In the charging apparatus referred to in the first claim, the use of a crooked
shoot to break the fall of coals from the hopper to the scoop when it is in low
position.
4. In both the charging and discharging apparatus referred to in the first and
second claims, connections through reversing clutch gear from the gas engine to an
axle of the travelling wheels for the purpose of moving the apparatus along the
stoking house.
Dated thie 3rd day of Decembar 1892
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.