IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS FOR THE PURPOSES OF ILLUMINATION, AND IN APPARATUS USED WHEN TRANSMITTING AND MEASURING GAS OR OTHER FLUIDS
Year: 1843

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ALEXANDER
ANGUS CROLL, Superintendent of the Gas Works, Brick Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, and WILLIAM RICHARDS, of the same place, Mechanical
Inspector, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Sixteenth day of March, in the sixth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said Alexander
Angus Croll and William Richards, Her especial licence, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that we, the said Alexander Angus Croll and William
Richards, our exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
Alexander Angus Croll and William Richards, our exors, adñors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF GAS FOR THE PURPOSES OF ILLUMINATION, AND IN APPARATUS USED WHEN
TRANSMITTING AND MEASURING GAS OR OTHER FLUIDS;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso, that we, the said Alexander Angus Croll and
William Richards, or one of us, shall particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
and cause the same to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of

page_text: Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
-being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
Alexander Angus Croll and William Richards, do hereby declare that the
nature of our said Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be
performed, are fully described and ascertained in and by the following state-
ment thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto. annexed, and to
the figures and letters marked thereon (that is to say):-
Our Invention relates, first, to a mode of combining clay retorts and iron
retorts by setting them in separated compartments or otherwise, as herein-after
mentioned, and in such manner that the heat of the furnace or furnaces used
first acts on the clay retorts, and then passes to the iron retorts, as hereafter
explained.
Secondly, our Invention relates to improvements applicable to gas meters
working with flexible partitions in order to measure gas or other fluids when
being transmitted with more accuracy; and,
Thirdly, our Invention relates to the application of certain apparatus at the
junctions of gas pipes. where gas meters are fixed thereto, in order to prevent
persons consuming removing meters from the supply pipe, and then burning
gas in the absence of the meters, a practice which has become very injurious
to the rights of gas works... And in order that our Invention may be fully
understood, we will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto annexed..
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a transverse section through a set of clay retorts, and Figure 2
a plan in section of the same.. A, A, are the fireplaces or furnaces. B, B,
are small pieces of fire brick which, together with the brickwork C, C, and
the front wall D, D, support the retorts: 1 and 2. The retorts. 3 and 5. are
supported by the brickwork C, C, the front wall D, D, and, lumps or fire
bricks E, E, placed upon the crowns of the retorts 1 and 2, the, pier. F, F,
being carried up. between the furnaces A, A, to support the retort 4. The
retorts.6 and 7 rest upon and are supported by the retorts 3, 4, and.5... m, m
are guards formed of fire bricks to prevent the fire from cutting or striking
too.fiercely against the retorts 1 and 2. n, n, are..small-arches to. keep. the
guard bricks steady in their places. Figure 3 represents a set of iron retorts
partly in section, and Figure 4 a plan of the same in section, one half of
which is taken below. the retorts, the other half just above the retorts 5 and 6.
The retorts 1 and 2 rest upon the bed G, G, having a flue H running under
"

page_text: each from front to back, the purpose of which will be hereafter explained.
The retorts 3, 4, 5, and 6, are supported in the front by the wall J, J, at the
back by piers of fire bricks K, K; and midway by similar piers and the tiles
L, L. The retorts 7, 8, and 9, are supported by the front wall J, J, and
piers M, M, carried upon the piers K, K, and L, L, that support the retorts
3, 4, 5, and 6. Figure 5 is a front view or elevation of another set of clay
retorts; and it-will be seen that the compartments containing the clay retorts
are separated from the compartment which contains the iron retorts, the heat
from the furnace first acting on the clay retorts, and then passing off into the
compartment containing the iron retorts. Figure 6 is a general plan of a set
of clay retorts, the crown of the arch being removed. Figure 7 is a longitu-
dinal section through a set of clay retorts, and Figure 8 is a longitudinal
section through a set of iron retorts, the several parts in each being repre-
sented by the same letters respectively, as in the preceding Figures. Figure 9
is part of a clay retort to a larger scale, shewing the method of securing the
iron mouth-piece to the said retorts. The holes at the mouth end of the clay
retorts are made large enough to admit the heads of the bolts, the latter are
wedged in, and the remaining space filled with iron cement; the flange of the
iron mouth-piece is provided with holes to suit the bolts, between which flange
and the face of the retort mouth iron cement is placed; the two are then
screwed firmly together by the nuts upon the bolts, and a tight joint is effected.
DRAWING No. 2.
Represents another method of arranging the iron' and 'clay retorts. In this
case we propose setting the clay and iron retorts in the same arch for
the use of small establishments, in which Drawing Figure 10 is a trans-
verse section through the clay and iron retorts, Figure 11 a longitudinal
section through the iron, and Figure 12 a longitudinal section through the
clay retorts. Figure 13 is a plan shewing the beds of the iron retorts 1º, and
the clay retort 1, and Figure 14 is an elevation or front view of the said iron
and clay retorts; in which Figures (the same letters referring to similar parts
of each) A, A, is the fireplace or furnace, B, B, ȧre piers of fire bricks
placed at intervals to form 'nostrils or flues a, a, and the fire tiles b, b, resting
upon them in conjunction with the brickwork C, C, and the front wall D, D,
form the bed or support for the clay retort 1; the clay retort 2 is supported
by the brickwork C, C, the front wall D, D, and a lump or fire brick E placed
midway upon the crown of the retort 1. F, F, is a pier carried up between
the clay retorts 1 and 2, and the iron retorts 10 and 2º, a space being left
between the top of the said pier F and the under surface of the arch, to allow

page_text: the fire or heated air to pass freely from the clay to the iron retorts. G, G, is
the bed, and H, H, is the flue under the iron retort 1°. The retort 2°. is'
supported by the front wall D, D, and pieces or lumps J, J, placed at the back
and midway upon the crown of the retort 1°. K is a vertical flue connected
with the flue H, and forming a passage from thence into the stack or
chimney L. d is a damper to regulate the escape of the heated air. The
action of the heated air or fire upon the retorts will be similar to that in the
settings before described. The heat, passing from the furnace or fireplace A,
through the spaces a, a, e, e, between and around the clay retorts 1 and 2, over
the pier F, and descending between and around the iron retorts, will pass
down the spaces M, M, along the flue H, H, and escape by the vertical
flue K, K, into the stack or chimney L.
We would remark, that we are aware that the use of clay retorts has been
before combined with the use of iron retorts in the same stack, as was described
in the Specification of a Patent granted to Mr. George Lowe. And we are also
aware that it has been proposed to use clay retorts with iron retorts in the same
stack, the heat acting first on the clay retorts; but the clay retorts and iron
retorts were not in separate compartments, and the iron retorts were above
the clay retorts, which is prejudicial in working. Now the object of this part
of our Invention is, so to set clay retorts and iron retorts that the heat of
the fire may first heat the clay retorts and then heat the iron retorts, avoiding
placing the iron retorts above the clay retorts, and we prefer that the clay
retorts and the iron retorts should be in separate compartments; we do not
therefore claim the combining iron and clay retorts generally, but only when
so combined as herein described, whereby the clay retorts are first heated by
the fire or fires and then the iron retorts, those retorts become heated by what
would be called the waste heat of the clay retort, furnace, or furnaces. The
action of the fire upon the clay and iron retorts, as shewn in and described
in respect of Drawings No. 1, will be as follows:-When the fire is made in
the fireplaces or furnaces A, A, the fire or heated air will pass between and
among the clay retorts by means of the nostrils and spaces a, a, b, b, c, c, and
e, e, as indicated by the arrows, and out through the aperture f, f, in the crown
of the arch, thence along the flue g, g, entering the arch of the iron retorts
at h, and descending between and among the iron retorts will afterwards pass
down the openings i, i, near the front along the flues H and I under the
retorts 1 and 2, and escape by the vertical flues k, k, and the horizontal
flue into the main chimney or stack.
We will now describe the second part of our Invention, which relates to
improvements in gas and other fluid meters, which work with flexible partitions.

page_text: According to the above arrangement the flexible partitions would be liable
to be distended and injured by the pressure of gas acting thereon, and the
meter would be liable to measure more and niore incorrectly; and in order to
prevent such injury taking place, we apply supporting surfaces or frames n,.
which are to be made of the figure the flexible partitions are to take when
pressed on by the gas, and at the same time so to support the flexible partitions
that they will be caused each time to measure the same quantity of gas, the
measure being determined by the supports or frames n. These frames, as is
shewn in the Drawing, allow the gas to pass freely through them, so that each
chamber of the meter may become full of gas, the supporting surfaces or
frames n simply acting as a means of determining the movement of the flexible
partitions, and of preventing those partitions being irregularly distended by the
pressure of gas acting. thereon, all which will readily be understood on ex-
amining the Drawing; and in making such description of meters for measuring
other fluids, the workman will arrange the parts suitable, therefor, and apply
our improvements thereto.
We will now describe the third part of our Invention, which relates to a
mode of applying apparatus to the joints for fastening gas meters to the supply
pipes from the gas mains used for transmitting gas to consumers in order that
the
gas consumed by each person may be nieasured and recorded accurately,
the object being to prevent the meters being removed from the gas supply
pipes, and the gas consumed in the absence of the meters.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING No. 4.
Figure 1: represents; two parts, a, b, of a supply pipe connected together with
a suitable joint having apparatus applied thereto to prevent the meter being
removed without the knowledge of the gas company supplying gas. c is the
screw socket which connects the parts a and b together, but when once
screwed up tight the same is prevented being taken off unless the parts of the
apparatus applied thereto be set according to the order determined on by the
person fixing up the meter. On the outer surface of the socket c is a pin or
stud. which is received into a hole formed in part of the apparatus applied,
and that apparatus being retained from moving on the part 6 of the supply
pipe, the socket c cannot be turned round unless the stud c'be released by the
apparatus, and that can only be done by setting the parts of the apparatus in
order previously determined on as above mentioned. Figure 2 is a section of
Figure 1. Figure 3 is a plan thereof. Figure 4 shows the part of the
supply pipe separately. Figure 5 shows. a plan of Figure 4. Figure 6 shows
a transverse section of the parts, and the other views show the parts, and are
·e₂

page_text: marked with the same letters of reference. On the external surface of the
part of the supply pipe are formed grooves (1 (2 (3) the Drawing
showing three grooves; but this may be varied. To each groove is applied
a ring x-with internal teeth, and also a ring y, with one tooth, which passes
into any space between the teeth of its wheel a, and the inner end of the
tooth of each of the rings y passes into one of the grooves (1 (2. (3). And
the outer surface of each ring a has letters or other signs marked thereon, by
which means the tooth of each ring y may be introduced at any letter or other
sign when placing the ring on the part of the pipe b, there being a vertical
groove (4), and the whole of the parts are retained in their places by the
frame:f the nature of which is clearly shewn in the Drawing, and the parts
are put together in the following manner:-The parts a and b having been
joined together by the screw socket c in the ordinary manner, the parts x, y,
are to be placed into the frame f, and the frame f screwed together; the studs
on the rings y are all to be brought into the groove (4), and then the whole
slide on to the part b; the rings x, y, are then to be turned so as to carry the
studs out of the groove (4), after which the apparatus cannot be removed
without bringing the studs into one line by knowing the order of the letters or
signs to which the apparatus has been set.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention and the manner in which
the same is to be carried into effect, we would have it understood that what
we claim is,―
.
First, the mode of combining the use of clay retorts with iron retorts,
whereby the heat passing from the fires used first heats the clay retorts
and then the iron retorts, the iron retorts not being placed over the clay
retorts.
Secondly, we claim the mode of constructing gas and other fluid meters
working with flexible partitions by applying supporting frames or surfaces, as
above described. And we also claim the mode of giving motion to the valves
by means of the parts c, f, and g, as above described; and,
Thirdly, we claim the mode of applying apparatus to the joints or fastenings
used in affixing gas meters to supply pipes, as above explained.
In witness whereof, we, the said Alexander Angus Croll and William
Richards, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Sixteenth day
of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and forty-three.
A. ANGUS (L.S.) CROLL.
WILLIAM (L.S.) RICHARDS.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Sixteenth day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1843, the aforesaid Alexander Angus Croll &
William Richards came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery,
and acknowledged the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein
contained and specified, in form above written. And also the Specification
aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made for that
purpose.
Enrolled the Sixteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-three.