Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Feb., 1887.
Complete Left, 14th Apr., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 17th May, 1887.
[Communicated from abroad by Messieurs LEBRUN and CORMERAIS, of 48, rue de
Bondy, Paris, in the Republic of France, Engineers.]
1 JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincolns Inn Fields in the County of Middlesex
Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improvements in gauges or water level indicators for
steam generators and it consists in providing means as hereinafter described for
automatically intercepting the communication between the generator and the gauge
glass in the event of the latter being broken.
In carrying out this Invention the gauge glass is connected with the Boiler either
directly or through an intermediate chamber or case provided with the requisite
connections of any ordinary or suitable form by means of two tubes provided with
stop cocks and communicating with the water space and with the steam space
respectively in the usual manner. The upper or the lower end of the gauge glass also
communicates with the interior of the Generator through a suitable tube or passage in
which there is interposed a piston a valve a flexible diaphragm or other equivalent
moveable obturator connected by a rod or in any suitable manner with levers attached
to the plugs of the stop cocks between the generator and the gauge glass. With this
arrangement under normal conditions the piston or its equivalent is in equilibrium
being exposed on both sides to the pressure in the generator and the stop cocks can be
set open or closed by hand as required but directly the gauge glass breaks, the
pressure on one side of the piston or its equivalent is removed whereupon the said
piston or its equivalent is constrained by the unopposed pressure acting on the opposite
side to move in such a manner as to act on the levers attached to the plugs of the stop
cocks and cause these plugs to be turned sufficiently to cut off the communication
[Price 8d.1

page_text: between the interior of the generator and the broken gauge glass. The piston may be
so arranged that it closes at the same time the passage connecting the Cylinder
in which it works with the glass and for additional security a stop cock may be
provided between the said Cylinder and the glass which stop cock can be closed
after the piston has done its duty so as to prevent any escape of Steam or water that
might leak past the piston and interfere with the insertion of a new glass. The
broken glass having been removed and a new one inserted in its place it is simply
necessary to reopen the communications by hand in order to restore the conditions
previously existing and obviate all risk of any serious accident resulting from the
breakage of the gauge glass.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC,
Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Gauges or Water Level Indicators for Steam
Generators.
I, JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincolns Inn Fields in the County of Middlesex
Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this Invention which has been
communicated to me from abroad by Messieurs Lebrun and Cormerais of 48 rue
de Bondy, Paris in the republic of France, Engineers and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:
This Invention relates to improvements in gauges or water level indicators for
steam generators and it consists in providing means as hereinafter described for
automatically intercepting the communication between the generator and the gauge
glass in the event of the latter being broken.
In carrying out this Invention the gauge glass is connected with the boiler either
directly or through an intermediate chamber or case provided with the requisite
connections of any ordinary or suitable form by means of two tubes provided with stop
cocks and communicating with the water space and with the steam space respectively in
the usual manner. The upper or the lower end of the gauge glass also communicates
with the interior of the generator through a suitable tube or passage in which
there is interposed a piston, a valve, a flexible diaphragm or other, equivalent
moveable obturator connected by a rod or in any suitable manner with levers
attached to the plugs of the stop cocks between the generator and the gauge
glass. With this arrangement, under normal conditions the piston or its equivalent
is in equilibrium being exposed on both sides to the pressure in the generator
and the stop cocks can be set open or closed by hand as required but directly
the gauge glass breaks the pressure on one side of the piston or its equivalent is
removed whereupon the said piston or its equivalent is constrained by the unopposed
pressure acting on the opposite side to move in such a manner as to act on the
levers attached to the plugs of the stop cocks and cause these plugs to be turned
sufficiently to cut off the communication between the interior of the generator
and the broken gauge glass. The piston may be so arranged that it closes at
the same time the passage connecting the cylinder in which it works with
the glass and for additional security a stop cock may be provided between the said.
cylinder and the glass, which stop cock can be closed after the piston has done its
duty so as to prevent any escape of steam or water that might leak past the piston
and interfere with the insertion of a new glass. The broken glass having been
removed and a new one inserted in its place it is simply necessary to reopen the
communications by hand in order to restore the conditions previously existing and
obviate all risk of any serious accident resulting from the breakage of the gauge glass.
The accompanying drawing represents in elevation and partly in section an
apparatus constructed according to this Invention. This apparatus is provided with
an intermediate vessel or bottle A having 4 flanged unions a bed. The union a
communicates directly with the steam space in the generator and the union e similarly
communicates with the water space. The two unions and d communicate

page_text: respectively with cocks d¹ controlling the communication with a gauge glass B.
A piston E is capable of moving freely in a cylinder D attached to the top of the
vessel A and the rod G of, this piston is connected with levers working the
plugs of the cocks by means of studs or pins on the said levers engaging with
slots in the piston rod as indicated in the drawing.
One side of the piston E is acted on by the pressure in the boiler communicated to
the cylinder Data and the space on the other side of the said piston is connected
with the glass by a pipe f provided with a stop cock F.
at
In some cases the intermediate vessel. or chamber. A may be dispensed with and
the cocks placed in direct communication with the steam and water spaces in
the generator.
When the piston is at the lower end of the cylinder the cocks are open and admit
steam and water respectively to the glass B. Under these conditions the pressure in
the boiler entering the cylinder D at a is counterbalanced by the pressure from the
boiler passing through the glass and entering the cylinder at 12 and the piston
remains stationary the friction of the piston rod and cocks assisting in retaining it in
this position, the cock F being of course open.
In case the glass breaks under these, conditions one side of the piston E (being the
upper side in the example illustrated) is immediately placed in communication with
the atmosphere through the pipe fand the broken glass and the equilibrium being
thus destroyed the unopposed pressure acting on the other side of the piston forces it
upwards from E to E' and the resulting motion of the rod G immediately closes the
stop cocks 1 d. At the same time the piston itself closes the opening b² so that there
can be no escape of steam or water.
The broken glass can then be readily replaced after closing the cock F to intercept
any steam that might leak past the piston. When the new glass has been adjusted
the piston is returned by hand to its original position by means of a handle shown in
dotted lines at P the cock F is opened and the apparatus is again in working order.
The apparatus may be provided with a whistles indicated by dotted lines in the
drawing being so arranged as to sound whenever the cocks bd are closed by accident
or negligence. For this purpose the ping of the cock for example is provided with a
groove or channel which admits steam to the whistle when the cock is closed. This
communication is closed and the whistle silenced whenever the cocks are open. An
audible signal is thus given directly the cocks are closed under any circumstances
and in case of an accident the person in charge of the boiler is compelled to replace
the glass immediately as there are no other means of silencing the whistle.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said Invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :—
First. In a gauge or water level indicator for steam generators a piston, or its
equivalent, connected to the cocks. controlling the communication between the gauge
glass and the boiler and arranged in such a manner that in case of breakage of the
said Glass the said cocks are automatically closed substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
Second. The improved arrangements and combinations of parts constituting an
improved gauge or water level indicator for steam generators substantially as
hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.