IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING, Measuring, and REGISTERING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Lillic, of Manchester, in the County
of Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING, Measuring, and REGISTERING THE FLOW
OF LIQUIDS
"
Scaled the 1st June 1875, and dated the 13th April 1875.
PROVISIONAL' SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Lillic at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
18th April 1875.
I, JOSEPH LILLIE, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "Im-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING, MEASURING, AND REGISTERING THE
FLOW OF LIQUIDS," to be as follows:―
In public houses and shops where liquids are sold by measure it is
very desirable to keep a record of all the liquid that is drawn off,
so that the publicans or shopkeepers may have the means of ascertaining
whether the people in their employ make an honest return of the
liquid sold.

page_text: In describing my Invention I will refer to an apparatus suitable for
regulating, measuring, and registering the spirits or other liquids drawn
in a licensed victualler's or other establishment; the size and other
details of the apparatus may however be varied at pleasure. I divido
the apparatus for the sake of economy and convenience into three parts,
assuming that six different measures are to be drawn from them, the
first consists of a vessel to measure a pint or other definite quantity and
the half thereof, the second to measure a fourth and an eighth of the
same, and the third to measure smaller quantities. Each vessel is
provided with two open-ended tubes, one extending to about the centre,
and the other near the bottom; both tubes are screwed into the interior
of a plug, and by raising or lowering the tubes their height extending
into the liquid is determined, consequently the amount discharged can
be regulated. The plug fits into the body of the tap, communicating
with the supply and discharge ports, the plug is connected to a
recording dial by a spring catch actuating a ratchet wheel, and a
pinion gearing into a wheel which surrounds the body of the tap or
vessel. Each vessel is provided above with a float and valve for the
admission and emission of air. Whon the plug of the tap is turned to
discharge the contents or part of the contents of the vessel, it shuts the
supply port, and when turned back to shut the discharge it opens the
supply port to fill the vessel again. The plugs of the taps are so
arranged that by turning them partly round in one direction they
discharge the full quantity, and in the opposite direction they discharge
the half quantity.
Another part of my Invention consists in making the whole apparatus
complete with only one measuring vessel instead of dividing it into
three parts, as above described. In this case I employ a vessel capable
of containing a pint or other fixed quantity, and I draw from this one
vessel any proportion of the whole contents by means of taps connected
to any convenient number of separate and open tubes which are screwed
into the bottom of the vessel, or into the plugs of the taps, and rise up
to within certain fixed distances from the top of the vessel, cach tube
is connected to a tap, and by turning any of the taps partly round the
amount of liquid between the top of the tube and the top of the vessel
is drawn off.
The las of the tone on all
cocement to a control

page_text: when any quantity of the contents is drawn off the supply tap is
closed, and when the discharge tap is closed the supply tap is reopened.
When the contral wheel is fixed on the centre of the main vessel the
segments on the discharge taps open and close the supply port, as above
described. The taps may be placed horizontally or vertically.
Each tap is connected to a registering apparatus, consisting of a dial
with an internal or external wheel in which gears a pinion connected
to the tap. On turning the tap to discharge the liquid the register is
set in motion to record the quantity drawn off, and in turning the tap
back the spring catch comes in contact with the tooth of the ratchet
wheel, and yields in passing back to its original position ready to record
the next quantity drawn off
In addition to a recording dial for cach quantity of liquid drawn off
I employ a separate dial to record the total of all the different quantities,
and this separate dial is connected to all the taps of the apparatus, and
acts as a check upon the others.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Paient,
filed by the said Joseph Lillic in the Great Scal Patent Office on
the 13th October 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPH
LILLIE, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thurty-ninth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said Joseph Lille, Her special licence that I, the said
Joseph Lillie, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Joseph Lillie, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle

page_text: of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR REGULATING,
MEASURING, AND REGISTERING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Joseph Lillic, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and scals, 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
Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Joseph Lillic, 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
following statement:-
In public houses and shops where liquids are sold by measure it is
very desirable to keep a record of all the liquid that is drawn off,
so that the publicans or shopkeepers may have the means of ascertaining
whether the people in their employ make an honest return of the
liquid sold.
In describing my Invention I will refer to an apparatus suitable for
iegulating, measuring, and registering the spirits or other liquids drawn :
in a licensed victualler's or other establishment, the size and other
details of the apparatus may however be varied at pleasure I divide
the apparatus for the sake of economy and convenience into three parts,
assuming six different measures are to be drawn from them, the first
consists of a vessel to measure a pint or other definite quantity and
the half thereof, the second to measure a fourth and an eighth of the
same, and the third to measure smaller quantities Each vessel is
provided with two open-ended tubes, one extending to about the centre,
and the other near the bottom, both tubes are screwed into the interior
of a plug, and by raising or lowering the tubes, their height extending
into the liquid is determined, consequently the amount discharged, the
plug fits into the body of the tap, communicating with the supply and
discharge ports The plug is connected to a recording dial by a spring
catch actuating a ratchet wheel and a pinion gearing into a wheel which
surrounds the body of the tap or vessel. Each vessel is provided above
with a float and valve for the admission and emission of air. When the
plug of the tap is turned to discharge the contents or part of the contents

page_text: of the vessel it shuts the supply port, and when turned back to shut the
discharge it opens the supply port to fill the vessel again. The plugs
of the taps are so arranged that by turning them partially round in one
direction they discharge the full quantity, and in the opposite direction
the half quantity.
Another part of my Invention consists in making the whole apparatus
complete with only one measuring vessel instead of dividing it into
three parts as above described. In this case I employ a vessel capable
of containing a pint or other fixed quantity, and I draw from this one
vessel any proportion of the whole contents by means of taps connected
to any convenient number of separate and open tubes, which arc
screwed into the bottom of the vessel or into the plugs of the taps, and
rise up to within certain fixed distances from the top of the vessel.
Each tube is connected to a tap, and by turning any of the taps partly
round the amount of liquid between the top of the tube and the top of
the vessel is drawn off.
Each tap is connected to a registering apparatus consisting of a dial
with an external wheel, in which gears a pinion connected to the tap.
On turning the tap to discharge the liquid the register is set in motion
to record the quantity drawn off, and in turning the tap back the spring
catch comes in contact with the teeth of the ratchet wheel and yields in
passing back to its original position ready to record the next quantity
drawn off
And in order that this my said Invention may be the more readily
understood and carried into practical effect, I have hereunto annexed a
Drawing illustrating two modifications of my Invention.
Fig. 1 represents a side exterior view, and Fig. 2 a side sectional view
of the simplest form of my apparatus as arranged to measure two fixed
definite quantities of liquid, say half a pint, or the half thereof.
Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional plans of Figs. 1 and 2, and Fig. 5 is a front
sectional view of Fig 1, all drawn about full size.
In all the views the same letters of reference are used to indicate
similar parts
A is the measuring chamber (supported upon an annular chamber A¹
berein-after called the dial chamber) fitted at the top with an air inlet

page_text: and outlet valve B, which is raised to its seating B₁ by being attached
to the float B², which floats on the surface of the liquid as it fills the
apparatus, and so closes such air valve, whilst as the liquid is drawn off
such float and valve fall and remain suspended by the spindle BS This
measuring chamber is at the bottom fitted with a plug tap C, the body 5
of which has four passages formed in it, the passage.C¹ communicating
with the supply pipe D, which is connected to the barrel or other source,
from whence the liquid is derived. The passage C' communicates with
a tube E, which rises to the centre of the measuring chamber, and is
thus calculated to draw off half its contents The passage C³ com- 1
municates with the short tube F, which is designed to draw off the
whole contents of the measuring chamber, and the passage O' is open to
the outlet pipe G. The plug H of the tap C has three ports formed in
it at the same horizontal level all communicating together, and one
port at a higher level, which opens into the hollow part of the plug, 1
theso passages being so arranged that when either of the passages
C³ is open the supply passage C' is closed, and vice versa.
or lever secured to the lower extremity of the plug H, and by means of
which such plug is actuated A stud I' projects from the upper side
of this handle through a segmental slot in the bottom of the dial 2
chamber, where it carries a pair of spring pawls J designed to actuato
the recording mechanism, which I will now proceed to describe.
Cor
I is a handle
As there are two definite quantities to be drawn off, so there must of
necessity be two separate dials for indicating such distinct quantities,
and which dials are capable of revolving within the dial chamber, the
upper dial K being arranged to record the larger quantities and the
lower dial L the smaller or half quantities. Upon the edge or periphery
of these dials spur teeth are formed, which gear into the pinions M and M²
secured upon the spindles N and N¹, which are provided near their
lower extremities with ratchet wheels O and O³, whilst on the top of
these dials the recording figures and gradations may be placed so as to
be seen either through the cylindrical glass casing P, which surrounds
and encloses the dial chamber, or through a window formed in any
convenient part of the covering of the dial chamber.
The action of or method of using this apparatus may be thus
described: The measuring chamber A is always full of liquid which
enters it through the supply pipe D and passage O', when the lever
handle I is in the central position indicated in Fig. 3, and if it be

page_text: required to draw off half the contents of the measuring chamber, the
handle I is turned to the left, to the position indicated in Fig. 4, in
passing to which one of the spring pawls J has come in contact with
the ratchet wheel O and caused it to revolve a tenth of a revolution,
and the spindle N in its turn has communicated a proportionate motion
to the lower dial. At the same time the plug H of the tap has
assumed the position indicated in Fig. 4, opening a communication
between the tube E and the outlet passage or spout G, through which
the liquid is now drawn off. The handle I is then turned back to the
central position (seen in Fig. 3) until the next quantity is required,
when the measuring chamber becomes instantly refilled If now tho
whole contents of the measuring chamber are desired to be withdrawn,
the handle I is turned to the right, so actuating the other ratchet wheel O'
and dial K in a similar manner, and opening a communication between
the tube F and the outlet pipe or spout G.
It will be readily apparent that the spring pawls J yield in one direc-
tion, and therefore have no action upon the ratchet wheels O and O',
whilst the handle I is being turned back to the central position.
Fig. 6 represents a side exterior view, and Fig. 7 a side sectional view
of another modification of my Invention illustrating my method of
and apparatus for withdrawing four different quantities of liquid from
the same chamber and keeping a record of all the different quantities
so drawn off.
Figs. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 are sectional plans of the same appa-
ratus, showing the measuring chamber removed, the sections being taken
at various levels in order to illustrate the internal mechanism more
clearly.
Fig. 14 is a front sectional view of the measuring chamber. In
all the views of this modification a is the measuring chamber mounted
upon the framework 6 which rests upon the top of the annular dial
chamber c. This measuring chamber, as in the last modification,
is fitted with an air inlet and outlet valve d and float e, but instead
of having a single plug tap for withdrawing two quantities of liquid,
and for admitting the supply in this modification there is a distinct
tap severally marked ƒ, f¹,ƒ³, and f³, for each separate quantity to be
drawn off, and a separate supply tap 9 These taps surround the outside
of the measuring chamber and each plug, with the exception of the
supply tap, is fitted with a lever handle h and a segmental pinion i,

page_text: (see Fig 3,) which as such plug is turned gears into an annular spur
toothed ring mounted on the cylindrical exterior of the measuring
chamber. This ring 7 is in constant gear with a pinion k supply up
the supply tap plug g, and thus it is impossible to open one of the taps
without at the same time closing the supply tap 9, and vice vorsa.
Each of these draw-off taps communicates with its own separate tube
marked 1, 1, 1, and 1, extending upwards into the interior of the
measuring chamber according to the quantity required to bo drawn off,
whilst the supply tap g communicates with the inlet passage y' and the
lower extremity of cach of the plugs, as well as the plug of the supply
tap is fitted with a spring pawl m for actuating a ratchet wheel 12 and
pinion o gearing with a distinct revolving recording dial for each tap
marked severally p, p², p², p³, p², in a similar manner to that described
in reference to the last modification.
The action of this apparatus will be understood by describing the:
drawing off of one fixed quantity, say, that represented by the tube e' in
Figs. 7 and 14. For this purpose the measuring chamber being full of
liquid in virtue of the supply tap 9 being now open, as seen in Fig. 10,
and all the other taps being closed, it is only necessary to turn the plug
of the tap f¹ by its handle in the direction of the arrow, scc Fig 13,
when the segmental pinion & will instantly gear with the toothed ring ],
and by communicating a partial revolution to such ring will cause the
plug of the supply tap g to be turned partially round, and so to close the
same, which is no sooner done than the plug of the tap f¹ opens a
communication with the tube e¹, and so allows the liquid to be drawn off
through the spout q¹ down to the level of the top of that tube which is
the measure of the quantity required. In turning this plug however the
spring pawl m has come in contact with the ratchet wheel n, and by
giving it a tenth of a revolution has so imparted a proportionate
revolution to the revolving dial p², to which its pinion is geared, and
thus a record is obtained of the exact tap which has been opened. The
liquid having thus been withdrawn the tap f¹ is again closed by reversing
its handle, when the apparatus resumes the relative position seen in
Fig. 10, and the measuring chamber is instantly refilled. It will thus
be apparent that as there is an extra dial p¹ for recording the movements
of the supply tap g that an extra check is thus provided against fraud, as
the sum total of all the other dials should at all times equal and tally
with the record given by the supply dial. It will also be obvious that by

page_text: means of this Invention not only is the measuring of different quantities
of liquid performed with minute exactness by one and the same apparatus,
but that a record is obtained of all the different quantities so measured,
and thus fraud is effectually obviated.
Although I have only described my apparatus as applied to measuring
two and four quantities, it will be readily understood that the contents
of the measuring chamber may be subdivided into any desired quantities
or proportions of the whole by employing the requisite number of tubes
of the proper length, and that the adjustments of such tubes may bo
effected to the greatest nicety by screwing them into the bottom of the
measuring chamber more or less, or by having an adjustable piece
screwed on the upper extremitics of the measuring tubes, as seen in
Fig. 7, for the same purpose.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of this
my said Invention, together with the best methods with which I am
acquainted for carrying the same into practical effect, I wish it to be
understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details, relative
proportions, or dimensions of the various parts of the apparatus illus-
trated on the accompanying Drawing, and herein-before described, as the
same may be considerably varied without departing from the Invention;
for instance, instead of using vertical plug taps, I sometimes employ taps
with horizontal plugs, and with the outlet passing directly through the
plug, or the recording mechanism, instead of being below the measuring
chamber, may surround the same or be above such measuring chamber;
but I wish it to be understood that I claim, the use and application of a
measuring chamber fitted with internal tubes corresponding in height to
the various quantities to be withdrawn, and communicating with plug
taps and recording mechanism, substantially as and for the purpose
described.
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