IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM PUMPS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International Patent
Office," No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN STEAM PUMPS."-A communication from abroad by Oscar Theodore
Earle of Springfield Massachusetts United States o
Sealed the 21st December 1866, and dated the 25th September 1866.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 25th September 1866, pursuant to the 9th Section
of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STEAM PUMPS," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto me, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the
same, and have made solemn Declaration that it has been communicated to

page_text: me from abroad by Oscar Theodore Earle, of Springfield, Massachusetts,
United States of America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declare that the following Complete Specification under my hand and seal,
fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings forming part of
this Specification :-
The object of my Invention is to produce a steam pump which by the direct
action of steam shall start whenever steam is admitted into the cylinder, no
matter where the piston may be, without the aid of starting bars, cranks, fly
wheels, or any of the ordinary appliances for that purpose; also a water
cylinder, in which the ports shall be free, the valves and all the inner arrange-
ments easily accessible, and by the direct course of the water obviating
counter currents. I employ metallic water valves, having movable flexible
packing rings fitted into recesses therein.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of my improved direct-action steam pump;
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of the water cylinder, which is shown
provided with hinged valves.
A is the steam cylinder; B, the water cylinder; C, the piston rod; D and D',
the steam and water cylinder pistons; E, the valve cylinder; F, the steam
piston valve; G, the valve chest of the water cylinder; H, the tappet arm;
I and I', the tappets; J, the valve rod; K, the valve rod guide; Land L³, the
main steam ports; M and M', the main exhaust ports; N, the exhaust pipe
outlet; O, the steam pipe outlet; P, the space between the jacket Q and cylin-
der E; R, a port opening from space P into cylinder E; S, the suction inlet
to the water cylinder; T, the discharge outlet; U and U', the receiving and
discharging ports of the water cylinder; V, the air chamber; W and W¹, the
suction valves; X and X', the discharge valves; Y, Y¹, Y, and Y³, valve
stems; Z, Z, Z, and Z³, spiral conical springs; a, a, a, a, a, a, a, a, the
movable flexible packing rings; b, b, b, b, the valve seats; c, the steam space
in steam valve F; d and d', the exhaust spaces in valve F; e and e¹, two
small ports connecting steam cylinder A with valve cylinder E, within the
stroke of piston D; f and f', small ports passing through the end of valve F,
and communicating with grooves or ports g and g¹; h and h¹, small exhaust
ports communicating with main exhaust port M, within the stroke of piston

page_text: valve F; i and ³, bridges of piston valve F; jjjjj, are grooves around
the inner surface of valve cylinder E. The operation is as follows:-Steam
enters at O, fills space P and expanding cylinder E; enters cylinder E through
port R, between bridges and ¹; passing down through main port L, it
presses against the head of the piston D in cylinder A and moves it the length
of its stroke; port L' being in communication with exhaust port M', allowing
the steam on that side to escape. When piston D has almost reached the
end of its stroke, tappet arm His brought in contact with tappet I' on
valve rod J by the movement of piston rod C, and moves valve F forward
sufficiently to bring port e in communication with groove 9, having port f
opening into it through the end of valve F, thereby allowing the steam
contained in cylinder A to pass up. through port e into groove 9, around
valve F and through port f, and pressing against the end of piston valve F
the force of the steam thereby completes the stroke of the valve, which is
arrested in its motion and prevented from striking against the head of
cylinder E. by passing over and closing its own exhaust port h', thereby
forming a cushion; this brings valve F in position to let steam from space c
into port L', and permits the steam in cylinder A to escape through port L,
and space d, and exhaust port M, for the succeeding stroke. Piston rod C,
extending into water cylinder B, and having attached to it piston D', forces
the water as it moves out through port U₁ up through valve X¹, and out
through discharge outlet T, and the vacuum formed on the opposite side of
piston D¹ is supplied with water through suction pipe S and valve W through
port U. The valves X and X' and W and W', in Figure 1, are round
metallic valves having dovetailed grooves in their faces, into which grooves
are put flexible packing rings a, a, a, a, thereby securing great tightness and
preventing noise in their operation. They are durable and new packing
rings are readily supplied. In Figure 2 the valves are square hinged valves
with grooves a¹, a¹, a', in their faces, producing like action. Piston valve F
is a straight cylindrical valve having four heads or bridges i, i, i, i, of equal
areas, and fitting into straight cylindrical valve chest E, baving grooves j,j‚Ì‚Ì‚Ì‚
extending around the surface of cylinder E and across ports M, M, L, L',
and R.
Having thus described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondents, and shewn how the same may be conveniently and
advantageously carried into practice, I claim,-
First, operating the valves by steam taken directly from the working
cylinder in substantially the manner shown.

page_text: Second, balanced piston valve F, constructed and operating with grooved
cylinder E, substantially in the manner shown, so that the steam bears equally
upon all parts of the valve.
Third, the grooved metallic valves of the water cylinder, having movable
flexible packing rings, constructed and operating substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of September, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six..
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.S.)
Witness,
GEORGE HASELTINE,
8, Southampton Buildings, W.C.