Improvements in Wet Gas Meters.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Dec., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 26th Sept, 1895-Accepted, 30th Nov., 1895
Improvements in Wet Gas Meters.
We, WILLIAM JOHN WARNER, of 3 Wellington Terrace, South Shields in the
County of Durham, Gas Engineer, and WILLIAM COWAN of Buccleuch Street
Works, Edinburgh, in the County of Midlothian, North Britain, Gas Meter
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows-
This invention relates to improvements in wet gas meters and forms modifications
of, or additional improvements in, the form of meters described in the Specifications
of our prior Patent No. 1698 of 13th May 1874, and our application for Patent
No. 4504 of 3rd March 1894, and our present invention has for its object to still
further improve the said class of meters.
The latter invention was for improvements in the construction of the chambers
for the abstracting or withdrawing of the excess of volume by the enlarging of the
chambers of the "wheel," "drum" o "cylinder" through the lowering of the
water level and returning the gas to the unmeasured gas.
Our further improvements in accordance with the present invention consist in the
combining of these improved abstracting chambers or channels to form a wheel for
abstracting or withdrawing the excess of volume passed by the ordinary wheel and
returning the quantity to the common inlet. The wheel so formed to be coupled
to the ordinary wheel by toothed gearing and to work either at the same or at a
greater speed than the common wheel, and for this purpose it is much better
adapted than the old form so employed, and known as the "uner wheel" which
18 shewn as thus coupled in our said Specification of Patent No. 1698 of 13th May
1874.
A further improvement consists in constructing the meter with this improved
wheel as a new "6 inuer wheel." The inner wheel so constructed is to be formed of
two suitably shaped segmental chambers or channels which are so arranged and
constructed that each of the said chambers or channels is in communication with
an alternate chamber of the common fom chambered wheel
The novelty of the present invention is in the form of "inner wheel" and its
communication with alternate chambers for abstracting the excess of volume, the
greater freedom in water way in the centre of the abstracting wheel and the
uniform, or nearly so, sectional area through the entire action of each chamber or
channel; and thus the volume of gas is abstracted or withdrawn without affecting
the action of the meter, and further utility in the simple form of construction,
by which material and labour are saved.
Dated this 28th day of December 1894.

page_text: Improvements in Wet Gas Meters.
We, WILLIAM JOHN WARNER, of 3 Wellington Terince, South Shields, in the
County of Durham, Gas Engineer, and WILLIAM COWAN of Buccleuch Street
Works, Edinburgh, in the County of Midlothian, North Britain, Gas Meter
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertamed in and
hy the following statement
-
This mvention relates to improvements in wet gas meters and forms inodifications
of, or additional improvements in, the form of meters described in the Specifications
of our prior Patent No. 1698 of 13th May 1874, and our application for Patent
No 4504 of 31d March 1894, and ou present invention has for its object to still
turther improve the said class of meters.
The Patent, No. 4504 of the 3rd of March 1894 was granted for improvements
in the construction of the chambers for the abstracting or withdrawing of the
excess of volume by the enlarging of the chambers of the "wheel" "drum
or "Cylinde of a wet gas meter, through the lowering of the water level and
retuning such abstracted gas to that measured
The objects of that invention were the simplification of the abstracting of
withdrawing chambers and then formation-a uniform, or approximately 80, cros--
sectional area through the whole of the action, other than that by the variation
of the water level.
In place of the "ner wheel" (Patent No 1698 of the 13th May 1874)
constructed in the manner as shewn in that Specification, ordinauly made with
four chambers and overlapping inlets and outlets ("hoods") and therefore with
varying capacity in each chamber through its entire action-plain segments of a
cylinder are employed for the abstracting or withdrawing of the excess of volume
that would otherwise be passed by the meter through the lowering of the water
level. Such chambers may be placed in various relative positions and concentric
with or obliquely to the shaft of the wheel.
Our futher improvements in accordance with the present invention consists in
the combining or these improved abstracting chambers to form a wheel for
abstracting or withdrawing the excess of volume, that would otherwise be passed
by the ordinary wheel, and returning the excess to the common inlet. The wheel
so formed to be coupled though the shaft to the ordinary meter wheel by toothed
gearing in a similar manner to that shewn in om Specification of Patent No. 1698
of the 13th May 1874. The speed of such wheel to be determined by its relative
capacity to the variable portion of the "wheel" "drum or "cylinder," to which
it may be attached for the regulation of its volunie. By the freedom of action of
this improved form of wheel it may be driven faster than the "major wheel" and
therefore may be of less relative capacity than the varying portion of the major
wheel-there being less resistance to its passage through the water. Equal or
lone speeds, however, may be employed with proportioned relative capacities.
11
But in order that our present invention may be more readily understood and
easily carried into effect we will proceed to describe the same with reference to
the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is an elevation and Figure 2 a side elevation of one form of on
Improvements.
Figure 3 18 a side elevation of a modification.
Figure 4 is a similar view of another modification.
Figures 5 and 6 are detail views of the partitions.
And Figures 7 and 8 are elevation and side elevation of a combined wheel
constructed in accordance with our present invention.

page_text: The most simple combination of these segmentul chambers, or the one most
easily understood, is that of two chembers A, A', as shewn in Figures 1 and 2,
each rather less than a half cylinder, placed immediately over each other, thus
forming a cylinder with spaces B between the two halves. and the opposite sides
of the cylinder connected by inclined portions or partitions C, similar to a
partition of an ordinary wheel, and the spaces of the run of the wheel being
eutirely closed.
When driven, as shown by the arrow, the gas will be taken in at the back of the
wheel at D discharged into the hollow covei E at D', and so of the chamber A',
the gas being taken in at the back of the wheel and delivered into the "hollow
cover" E, thence conveyed back to the inlet gas by the spout F. The axis of this
cylinder is, of course concentric with the shaft
As a modification and as 13 shown in Figure 3, we may construct the abstracting
wheel by combining the segmental chambers or channels A. A', across each other
with then axes placed diagonally across the shinft or rather they would be if each
were an entire half cylinder. The form however, of each chamber may be better
descubed as being a half cylinder with a portion of each opposite end cut away
diagonally and the sides then being made good so as to form the chambers and the
inlets o intakes D and outlets D', the said chambers A. A' being separated from
each other by the triangular partitions G, G, G, and G G G₁ the two inlets or
intakes D being open to the exterior of this wheel and the outlets D' discharging
into the hollow cover E from which the gas is conveyed to the common inlet a
already described.
As a further modification and as is shewn in Figure 4 we may construct the
chambers or channels in a spiral form. That is to say, we employ a cylinder M
within which we firmly solder two spirally shaped partitions, shown in detail
Figures 5 and 6 in such a manner as to form a wheel with two chambers of
channels II, II', the inteke ends C, C of which are arranged at the back of the
wheel, while the outlet ends F, Fare open to the "
"hollow cover En already
described.
"
In this form the number of abstracting channels or chambers may be more
conveniently and neatly varied than in any other: Thus the two chambers ate
combined so as to form au "inner wheel," that is to say, the said wheel is formed
as a cylinder having two spirally shaped partitions, or it may be provided or founmed
with four partitions, thus forming by the two additional partitions, placed inter-
mediately between the other two partitions, in "inner wheel" with fom spally
formed chambers. We may therefore form these abstincting wheels with either
two or four chambers. Further in the construction of a three chambered combined
wheel the abstracting channels o1 chambers of the "inner wheel" may be arranged
in the same manner,
that is to say, as the cylinder with two chambers having the
partitions arranged for taking in the gas, as already described, form alternate
Chambers and the variation by alternate forming fom chambers, so in like manner
may a three chambered wheel have an abstracting aangement of three chambers,
formed by three partitions arranged at equal distances around the inner side of the
cylinder, like manner to those with two and four chambers
In thus varying
the number of partitions and channels the arc of each abstracting chamber must be
such as to ensure the sealing of each chamber at the "low-water-line" and the
abstracting and delivering of the compensating volumes as already described
A hollow cover" and "spout" being necessary in every case to separate the inlet
and outlet gas, though the hollow cover may be used either as the inlet or outlet
to the ends of the chambers which it covers. If the end of the abstracting wheel
opposite to the hollow cover" be open to the case of the common meter then the
gas will be abstracted through the open end and delivered into the "hollow cover
the ends of the chambers entering the water as the inlets and the opposite ends
rising from the water as the outlets within the hollow cover, into which the gas 18
discharged as the inlet end enters the water Hence the absti acting wheel may be
airauged with its chambers discharging to the left ci the night of the shaft looking
*
"

page_text: "
at the hollow cover or with the spirals as a right or left handed screw as may
be most convenient in the arrangement of the ordinary meter and the abstracting
wheel-the end of the chambeis entering the water boing always the lets or
intakes, the other ends being the outlets or discharge ends. The abstracting wheel
may therefore be diven with or in the opposite direction to the meter wheel
abstracting the gas directly from the meter case and returning the gas so abstracted
through the "hollow cover" to the common mlet, or by reveising the motion, the
gas may be abstracted through the "hollow covei and discharged into a case over
the abstracting wheel, and thence into the common inlet. The abstraction however,
may be made to take place always through the open end of the wheel or through
the hollow cover without changing the direction of the motion of the abstracting
wheel Thus C and C are the inlets or intakes, with the motion of the abstincting
wheel as shewn in Figme 7 if the direction of the notion be changed to the
opposite direction, theu F, F will be the inlets but by changing the relative
position of the inlets and outlets of the two chambers placing II in the position
oil and e-versa the intakes and deliveries will be reversed-the water line of
the abstracting wheel being that of the meter, any variation will equally in action
affect the two wheels-a volume varying with the varying capaens of the meter
wheel being abstracted and returned to the common inlet.
"
The second part of our invention relates to the constructing of a meter wheel
with the improved wheel us a new
"
inner wheel Que form of this application is
illustrated in Figures 7 and 8, the inlet and outlet gas being in every case separated
by the construction of the combined wheel, the hollow cover of the abstracting
wheel is, ut comse removed The relative positions of the
Junel and majoi
"
11
wheel may be manged as in the other at rangements of the combined wheels, that
Is to say the gas may be abstracted from the outer case (the common outlet) and
delivered to a filling chamber of the major wheel or the gas may be abstracted
from an emptying chamber and delivered into the hollow cover (the common inlet)
also the gas may be abstracted from an emptying chamber and delivered into a
filling one.
In the first case the abstracting wheel being placed at the back of tho
combined wheel, the inlets or intakes will be at the back of and outside of the
major wheel, the outlets or deliveries, being just through the rising partition of a
filling chamber, in the second case the abstracting wheel is placed at the front of
the combined wheel, and the deliveries take place in the "hollow cover
the inlets
of the abstracting wheel being open to the emptying chambers, of the myor wheel,
the gas is abstracted from them, in the third case the abstracting or inner wheel
is placed entirely within the major wheel, the gas being abstracted from an emptying
chamber and delivered into a filling one. The chambers of the abstracting wheel
uust be soldered perfectly sound to the partitions through which, they pass, to
below the low water line, and each chambei of the abstracting wheel must be also
perfectly sound, and only in communication with the chambers subject to its action.
The rules for setting out the relative proportions of the chambers of the abstracting
wheel have already been given in our Specification of 1894, No. 4504. The chord
of the are defining the segment is the low water line of the meter, and the range of
the float is dependent upon the encle of the cylinder from which the segment is
taken the points of intersection of the partitions by the encle being the high-
water line of the meter, which cannot be raised above the intersectious of the partitions
by the circle of the abstracting wheel without affecting the positive principle
that is to say, without making that portion of the chamber of the major wheel
varying, which should be unvarying in its capacity through the fixing of the
abstracting wheel in the major wheel. The regulation of the volume of gas passed
by the combined meter wheel is effected as in the previous Patents of 1874 and 1894
by the combined action of tho "passivo" and "active" punciple the " passive
the lessening of the varying portion of the major wheel by the external influence
of the inner wheel and the "active" by the abstracting action on the volume
passed That is to say we employ two segmental chambers or channels H, II', so
constructed and arranged us to have their intake ends C and C in two opposite
"
"

page_text: chambers, while their outlet ends F and F¹ are open to the common inlet chamber
o hollow cover G of the drum E In constructing the foregoing channels we
employ an open-ended cylinder M and we mount within the same two partitions
similar to those already described and shewn in detail in Figures 5 and 6, so as to
form an "inner wheel composed of two segmental chambers or channels H, 1¹
"
which will abstract the excess of volumes from the chambers and deliver the same
back into the inlet chamber of the drum E. By this arrangement a freer water-way
is provided in the centre of the inner wheel.
Any of the herein before mentioned forms of abstracting wheels may be used as
the anner wheels" of combined wheels Al-o the several arrangements of
channels or chambers shewn combined in the construction of the meter wheels with
the channels on chambers described in the Specification of our prior application
No. 4504 of 1894, may be so arranged and constructed as to be used as separate
abstracting wheels
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 18
1st. In wet gas meters the construction of an independent abstracting wheel with
abstracting channels or chambers, substantially as helenbefore described and
shewn in the accompanying drawings.
inner
2nd In wet gas meters, the employment of an abstracting wheel as AD
wheel" in communication with alternate chambers of the major wheel, substantially
as herembefore described and shewn in the accompanying drawings
3rd. In the "druins" "cylinders " or " wheels "of wet gas meters, the combination
therewith of two segmental chambers or channels arranged in the form of a wheel
to take the place of an ordinary four-chambered "inner wheel" and placed in
communication with the chambers of the main or "major wheel," and the case (the-
common outlet) or with the chambers of the "major wheel" and the hollow cover
(the common inlet) of the said wheel-substantially as herein before described and
shewn in Figures 7 and 8 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 24th day of September 1895.
JOIINSONS,
115 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Applicants' Agents.
JOHNSONS,
115 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Applicants' Agents.