IM- PROVEMENTS IN GAS RETORT MOUTH-PIECES, LIDS, AND FASTENINGS
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Stephen Holman, of 10, Laurence Pountney
Lane, in the City of London, Engineer, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN GAS RETORT MOUTH-PIECES, LIDS, AND FASTENINGS:"
Sealed the 15th April 1873, and dated the 11th January 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Stephen Holman at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 11th January 1873.
I, STEPHEN HOLMAN, of 10, Laurence Pountney Lanc, in the City
of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN GAS RETORT MOUTH-PIECES, LIDS, AND FASTENINGS," to
be as follows :-
This Invention consists mainly in a novel method of securing lids
(whether of wrought or cast iron) to the mouth-pieces of gas retorts,
either with or without the aid of cross bars, and in grooving the bearing
surfaces of either the mouth-pieces or the lids, and making the lids
reversible (when round or oval in form).
In order to effect a sound scaling of the mouth-piece, the projecting

page_text: the projecting edges form receptacles for extraneous grit, tar, or other
substances that would otherwise prevent the sound sealing of the retort.
I make the lids of rigid cast iron, malleable cast iron, or other rigid
metal, hence the grooves (which may be cast or formed mechanically,) by
giving two or more bearing edges provide security against the escape of
gas in the event of any one of the edges being unsound either in make
or damaged by use.
The grooves formed in the bearing surfaces are applicable to any form
of mouth-piece, whether round, oval, D, or other shape.
I make the lids reversible (when used with cross bars) by means of
a moveable centre piece, which is so fitted as that it can readily be
applied to either side of the lids, and may form any determined
proportion of the disc of the lid. I make the lids with rims con-
siderably wider than the thickness of the disc, faced true on either side
with one or more grooves, except when the mouth-piece is grooved,
in which case the faced portions of the reversible lid may be faced.
plain.
I also make lids (either single or reversible) to be operated without
the aid or intervention of cross bars, by having jaws or lugs cast or
fitted on them in order to hinge them direct to the lugs of the mouth-
pieces on one side, and another lug cast or fitted on the lid for fastening
the same in a movable staple or catch on the other side of the mouth-
piece.
I make hinged staples or catches in order to reduce the friction and
power required to fasten the lid. The said hinged staples or catches
will yield readily to any lateral movement of the lid (or lid and cross bar
as the case may be). I make these hinged catches to work on eccentric
pins for either the adjustment of the catch or the fastening of the lid.
When used for fastening the lid, the lid may then work on an ordinary ·
joint merely rendered adjustable by a fixed eccentric pin, in which case
no lateral action would be given to the lid. On the other hand by
having both the catch pin and joint pin moveable the lid may be
tightened by a direct action against the mouth-piece only by means of
the catch eccentric pin, or by a combined direct and lateral action by
means of the eccentric action of the hinged join. I make the catches
self-acting by means of small tappet pieces, and it must be understood
that the hinged staple or catch possesses special value in this Invention.

page_text: by its adjustive yielding and combinative action in the process of
tightening the lid against the mouth-piece.
I also make double joints with outer jaws of the usual form to work
with eccentric action by fitting an enlarged pin in the middle portion
of the joint, and making a hole in it at any determined radius from its
centre to receive an ordinary hinge pin which also passes through the
outer jaws of the joint. It will be obvious that any movement given to
the enlarged pin in the middle of the joint will cause an eccentric
movement of what I term the ordinary (or smaller) hinge pin, and will
have a similar action (with the additional strength of a double jaw) to
the single end of the cross bar, in the Specification of my Patent No. 3,
dated 1st Jan. 1870, and which may therefore be either cast or
wrought iron.
Suitable plugs may be fitted in the bottoms of the lids to run off the
fluid tar collected in the mouth-pieces prior to opening the lids.
The means of fastening lids herein described are also applicable to
securing the lids described in the Specification of (Morton's Patent,
No. 575, A.D. 1869.
I further propose to have suitable lugs cast on the mouth-pieces,
instead of having wrought-iron lugs fitted in the ordinary way, such
mouth-pieces having lugs cast thereon specially adapted to the method
of fastening the lids herein described (whether grooved or otherwise),
forming a part of this Invention. It is practicable, however, to apply
my mode of fastening the lids to wrought-iron lugs fitted to the ordinary
kind of mouth-pieces.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Stephen Holman in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 10th July 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, STEPHEN
0 HOLMAN, of 10, Laurence Pountncy Lane, in the City of London,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three,

page_text: The lids are made reversible when used with cross bars by means of a
moveable centre piece, which is so fitted as that it can readily be applied
to either side of the lid, and may form any determined proportion of the
disc of the lid; or, centre pieces may be cast on or secured to both sides
of the reversible lid. The lids are also made with rims considerably.
wider than the thickness of the disc faced true on both sides and provided
with one or more grooves, except when the mouth-piece is grooved, in
which case the faced portions of the lid, whether reversible or otherwise,
may be faced plain.
I also make lids, either single or reversible, to be operated without
the aid or intervention of cross bars, by having jaws or lugs cast or fitted
on them in order to hinge them direct to the lugs of the mouth-pieces
on one side, and another lug cast or fitted on the lid for fastening
the same in a moveable staple or catch on the other side of the mouth-
piece.
I employ hinged staples or catches in order to reduce the friction and
power required to fasten the lid, as the said hinged staples or catches
will yield readily to any lateral movement of the lid. (or lid and
cross bar, as the case may be). I make these hinged catches to work on
cccentric pins for either the adjustment of the catch or the fastening of
the lid. When used for fastening the lid the lid may then work on an
ordinary joint, merely rendered adjustablo by a fixed eccentric pin, in
which case no lateral action would be given to the lid. On the other
hand, by having both the catch pin and joint pin moveable or adjustable
the lid may be tightened by a direct action against the mouth-piece only
by means of the catch eccentric pin, or by a combined direct and lateral
action by means of an eccentric action in the hinged joint, as herein-
after more fully explained. I make the catches self-acting by means of
small tappet pieces, and it must be understood that the hinged staple or
catch possesses a special value in this Invention by its adjustive yielding
and combinative action in the process of tightening the lid against the
mouth-picce.
I make the double joints with outer jaws to work with eccentric
action by fitting an enlarged pin in the middle portion or supporting lug
of the joint, and making a hole longitudinally in it at any determined
radius from its centre to receive an ordinary hinge pin, which alone
passes through the outer jaws of the joint. It will be obvious that any
movement given to the enlarged pin in the middle of the joint will cause

page_text: an eccentric movement of what I term the ordinary (or smaller) hinge
pin, and will have a similar action (with the additional strength of a
double jaw) to the single end of the cross bar, as described in the
Specification of my Patent No. 3, dated 1st January 1870, and which
may therefore be either cast or wrought iron.
Suitable plugs may be fitted in the bottoms of the lids to run off the
fluid tar collected in the mouth pieces prior to opening the lids.
The mode of fastening the lids herein described is also applicable to
securing the lids described in the Specification of Morton's Patent,
No. 575, A.D. 1869.
5
1
Suitable lugs are cast on the mouth-pieces, instead of having wrought
iron lugs fitted in the ordinary way thereon, such mouth-pieces having
lugs cast thereon specially adapted to the method of fastening the lids
herein described, whether grooved or otherwise, forming a part of this
Invention. It is practicable, however, to apply my mode of fastening 1
the lids to wrought-iron lugs fitted to the ordinary kind of mouth-
pieces.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood, I
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the corre
sponding Figures.
Figures 1, 2, and 3 represent respectively a front elevation, a
corresponding plan, and a vertical section of a mouth-piece, and one
arrangement of reversible lid in connection with a cross bar. A is the
mouth-piece, and B is the reversible lid which is cast with a central
projecting lug a, a¹, on both faces; C is the cross bar, to which either
lug, as the case may be, is secured by an ordinary pin or by an adjustablo
or tightening eccentric pin, as shewn at b. I may here obscrve,
however, that I make no claim separately to the cross bar and mode of
securing the same, shewn in these Figures. The rim c of the lid is
made to project from both sides of the disc alike, and is considerably
wider than the thickness of the disc, so that either edge of the rim shall
form a bearing against the mouth-picce. When reversing the lid the
bolt or pin b is removed, the lid reversed, and the pin again inserted into
the opposite central lug a¹, which may or may not be cast at right
angles, as shewn in my Drawings, to the lug a. A plug d is inserted
2

page_text: into the lower part of the lid to run off the fluid tar before opening
the lid.
Figure 4 is a sectional elevation of another arrangement of reversible
lid, shewing a portion only of the mouth-piece. In this case in lieu of
having central lugs cast on both sides of the lid I use a moveable
central piece e, which is pressed into a corresponding central opening in
the lid from either side thereof, and has a lug a formed thereon to
connect it with the cross bar. In this Figure I have shewn a groove ƒ
in the projecting edge of the lid on both sides, the edges of the groove
being faced true to form a perfect joint against the mouth-piece.
Figure 5 represents a sectional elevation of a modified form of
reversible lid attached to its mouth-piece. This form resembles Figure 4,
excepting that the groove fis formed in the mouth-piece in licu of in
the lid itself, which is here shown with plain surfaces on the thickened
rim. The contral piece e carrying the lug a is made square, and secured
by a nut e¹ to either face.
Figure 6 is a front elevation of a reversible lid having a double jawed
adjustable hinge joint on one side, and a catch lug on the opposite side,
so as to be applied without a cross bar; Figuro 7 is a plan of the samo
with the reversible lid in section.
Figure 8 is a side elevation of the lid and part of the mouth-piece,
showing the adjustable hinge joint on one side thereof in section, and
Figure 9 is a sectional clevation of the hinged catch and lug on the
opposite side. In this arrangement the cross bar is dispensed with, the
lid B having cast on one side thercof the double hinge jaw g, g, which
fits a lug cast or fitted on to the side of the mouth-piece. Within this
lug there is fitted an enlarged pin i having an ordinary hinge pin k
passing eccentrically through it, which hinge pin alone passes through
the two jaws g, g, of the lid. By turning the enlarged pin i by means
of the lever handle the lid may be tightened up on that side to any
desired extent against the mouth-piece. On the opposite side of the lid
a catch lug m is cast which engages into a notch in the hinged catch n
(shewn more clearly in sectional clevation at Figure. 9), which hinged
catch is pivotted on an eccentric adjustable bolto passed through a
lug p, cast or otherwise fitted on the side of the mouth-piece. By
the use of the eccentric bolt or pin o the position of the hinged catch
may be adjusted to compensate for wear, or for the refacing of the edgest

page_text: of the lid. The same adjustment for a like purpose is also allowed for
on the opposite or hinged side of the lid by attaching the lug to a
fixed lug q, and passing an eccentric bolt through it, as shewn in
Figure 8, an elongated hole being provided for the reception of the
second bolts (which may be of the ordinary form) to allow of the 5
adjustable lugh being drawn slightly inwards by the turning of the
eccentric bolt 1.
The double jaw hinged joint g and the catch lug m are both cast
centrally to the horizontal diameter line of the lid, so that the lid may
be reversed without changing the relative positions of the connecting 1
parts. The lid in this example is shewn with a plain rim on both sides,
but it may be grooved as shewn in Figure 4, or the mouth-piece may
be grooved instead, as shewn in Figure 5.
Figure 10 is a plan of a mouth-pieco and reversible lid, the latter
being shown in section and combined with a cross bar, which is tightened 1
up at both ends by eccentric action, as herein-after described.
Figure 11 is a front elevation of the cross bar and part of the lid,
showing the mode of tigthtening the same, and Figure 12 is a detail
elevation of the adjustable hinged staple catch. The lid B may be of
any of the forms herein-before described, and is attached by the lug a 2
in the centre to the cross bar C by an ordinary bolt. The cross bar is
made with a double jaw hinge g, g, at one end which fits over a lug h
cast on or otherwise fitted to the side of the mouth-piece A. Within
this lug there is fitted an enlarged pin, as described with reference to
Figures 6, 7, and 8, through which a hole is drilled eccentrically for the 2
reception of the ordinary hinge pin k (Figures 10 and 11), which enters
the two jaws g, g, of the cross bar C. A lever handle attached to or
formed on the enlarged pin serves to turn the same more or less, and
thereby draw the hinge pin k (when turned in the direction of the
arrow) towards the mouth-piece, so as to bring the lid tight up against 3
the face and form a perfect joint. The opposite end of the cross bar
enters a slot in the hinged staple catch n which works on an eccentric
part of the pin (o) fitted into the lug p, cast on or otherwise fitted to the
side of the mouth-piece. A lever handle & formed on the head of this
eccentric pin enables this end of the cross bar to be drawn inwards, and 3
the lid to be consequently tightened up by simply turning the pin of
more or less. The use of the hinged staples or catches n in contra-
distinction to the fixed catch or lug, shewn in Figures 1 and 2, tends to

page_text: ease the lateral sliding movement of the lid when the eccentrics are
turned to tighten or to release it, by obviating the rubbing friction
which would otherwise take place between the end of the cross bar C
and the fixed lug or catch at n¹ (Figures 1 and 2). The hinged catches
or staples may be made self-acting, so as to engage with the end of the
cross bar by the act of bringing the lid up to the mouth-piece by
forming a small tappet on the head of the staple n (Figure 10), against
which when the staple is turned fully back the cross bar or lug on
the lid, as the case may be, strikes, thereby causing the staple or other
hinged catch to, turn quickly forwards and engage with the end of the
cross bar or lug on the lid.
t
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to
be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First. The construction and use of reversible lids for gas retorts,
substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by the Drawings
annexed.
Second. The construction and use of reversible lids for gas retorts,
having a removeable centre piece with lug attached for connecting the
same to the cross bar, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated by Figures 4 and 5 of the Drawings annexed.
Third. The construction and use of lids for gas retorts having grooved
projecting rims formed round them on one or both faces alike, sub-
stantially as hercin-before described and illustrated by Figure 4 of the
Drawings annexed.
Fourth. The combination of a reversible lid for gas retorts having
plain bearing surfaces on both faces with a groove or grooves in the front
of the mouth-piece, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated
by Figure 5 of the Drawings annexed.
Fifth. The construction and use of lids for gas retorts having a double
jaw hinge cast on one side thereof, and a catch lug on the opposite side
for securing the same in position without the aid of a cross bar, sub-
stantially as hercin-before described and illustrated by Figures 6, 7, 8,
and 9 of the Drawings annexed.

page_text: Sixth. The use of hinged catches or staples for securing the lids of
gas retorts to their mouth-pieces, either in conjunction or not with a
cross bar, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described
and illustrated by Figures 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of the Drawings
annexed.
Seventh. The use of eccentric pins or bolts for adjusting the said
hinged catches or staples, and the hinged joints of the lids and cross
bars of gas retorts, so as to compensate for the wear of the lid and for
tightening up the same, as hercin-before described and illustrated by
Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of the Drawings annexed.
Eighth. The mounting the double jaw hinges of the lids of gas retorts,
or of the cross bars for the same upon hinge pins fitted eccentrically
within an enlarged pin rotating in a supporting lug on the side of the
mouth-picce for the purpose of tightening the lids against the front of
the same, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by
Figures 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 of the Drawings annexed.
Ninth. The application of a tappet to the heads of the before-
mentioned hinged catches or staples for the purpose of rendering them
self-acting, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by
Figure 10 of the Drawings annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stephen Holman, have to this my
Specification set my hand and seal, the Ninth day of July, One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.