IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS FOR BURNING VOLATILE OILS:
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Kennedy, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manager of Works, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS
FOR BURNING VOLATILE OILS:"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Kennedy at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 4th June 1880.
THOMAS KENNEDY, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manager of
Works. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS FOR BURNING VOLATILE OILS."
My Invention has reference to such lamps as are used for burning volatile oils,
such, for example, as the oils called paraffin oil and petroline or petroleum oil.
In the said lamps as ordinarily constructed a metallic mount is fixed to the open
top of the oil fount or reservoir by means of plaster of Paris. The said mount has
an internal screw thread, and the body of the burner has at its bottom a
corresponding external screw thread. The burner is fixed to the fount or reservoir
of the lamp by screwing the bottom of the burner into the mount on the reservoir,
and the burner ordinarily requires to be unscrewed from the mount each time the
fount or reservoir requires to be replenished with oil, and rescrewed thereon after
the fount or reservoir has been filled.
My improvements have for their object to simplify the construction and
manufacture of the parts concerned in connecting the burner with and disconnecting
it from the oil fount or reservoir, and at the same time to facilitate the removal
and replacement of the burner.
I dispense with the mount on the top of the fount or reservoir, and I make at
the top of the neck of the fount or reservoir a flange of somewhat larger diameter
than the neck. At two opposite points in the said flange I make notches or
depressions of such depth that at the parts of the flange where they are made the
diameter of the flange is reduced or nearly reduced to the diameter of the neck.
I make the body of the burner of the same general figure as that of an ordinary
burner, excepting that in place of the screw at the bottom of the body of the
burner I substitute a collar or short tube, baving nearly the figure of the ordinary
mount. I form at two opposite points within the said collar or short tube

page_text: projections of a size and shape suitable to take into the notches or depressions in
the flange on the fount or reservoir.
The
In fixing the burner to the fount or reservoir it is placed thereon in such a
position that the projections in the collar at the bottom of the body of the burner
are immediately over the notches in the flange on the fount or reservoir.
burner is depressed until the said projections have descended through the said
notches below the under surface of the flange. The burner is then turned through
an angle nearly equal to a semi-circle, when the burner is securely fixed to the
fount or reservoir. A ring of vulcanized india-rubber or other flexible packing
material is placed on the flange of the fount or reservoir, by which a tight joint
between the burner and reservoir is formed.
By turning the burner upon the fount or reservoir in a direction opposite to that
by which it was fixed its projections may be brought opposite the notches in the
flange of the fount or reservoir, when the burner can be lifted from the fount or
reservoir.
Instead of the two notches and projections described, one or more than two
notches or projections may be employed with nearly the same effect.
I prefer,
however, two of the said notches or projections.
The angular motion of the
burner on the fount or reservoir may be limited by a stop.
A burner having at its bottom a collar of the kind described may be fixed to the
fount or reservoir by plaster of Paris, in which case the notched flange described is
dispensed with. When the burner is thus fixed to the reservoir an opening
capable of being closed by a valve or otherwise is made in the interior of the burner
for the purpose of permitting of the filling of the reservoir.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Thomas Kennedy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 3rd December
1880.
THOMAS KENNEDY, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manager of
Works. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS FOR BURNING VOLATILE OILS."
My Invention has reference to such lamps as are used for burning volatile oils,
such, for example, as the oils called paraffin oil and petroline or petroleum oils.
In the said lamps as ordinarily constructed a metallic mount is fixed, such as that
shewn by A, Figure 1, in elevation, and by A, Figure 2, in section,
It is placed
over the open top of the oil fount or reservoir so as to leave a space a to be filled
up by plaster of Paris for fixing it in that position; this causes considerable
trouble, and there is no little difficulty experienced in removing the projecting
plaster from the interior part of the joint after it has set fast. The upper part of
this mount has an internal screw thread a', and the body of the burner B has
at its lower part an external screw thread b, and thus the burner or upper
part B is screwed to the lower part A, and the burner ordinarily requires to be
unscrewed from the mount each time the fount or reservoir requires to be
replenished with oil, and rescrewed thereon after the fount or reservoir has been
filled.
My improvements have for their object to simplify the construction and
manufacture of the parts concerned in connecting the burner with and disconnecting
it from the oil fount or reservoir, and at the same time to facilitate the removal
and replacement of the burner. To accomplish this I dispense with the old mount A.
on the top of the fount or reservoir, and I make at or near the top of the neck of
the fount or reservoir C a projection or flange c of somewhat larger diameter than
the neck. At two opposite points in the said flange I make notches or depressions c³,
of such depth that the flange at these parts is reduced to about the size of the neck,
as shown in plan, Figure 6, and in side elevation, Figure 5; indeed I have found
that two inclined projections c, as shown by Figure 5, or three or more of such
inclined projections, as shown by Figures 7 and 8, answer the purpose very well,
and they are easily manufactured in glass and other suitable materials.
important point, however, in successfully making these founts cheaply is the plain
part above the projections, which facilitates the process of manufacture very much
indeed. Of course, the plain part r may be afterwards ground down to any desired
length.
The most
I make the body D of my burner, which is shown in elevation, Figure 3, and in
section, Figure 4, in one piece, but of the same general figure as that of an ordinary
burner, except that in place of the screw at the bottom of the body of the burner I
form the metal out into a socket, collar, or short tube of the same general design or
outward appearance as those now used, or any new form may be produced with
equal facility by my Invention, and the perforations may be varied as desired. At
the base of my new body part D I form one, two, or more projections, such as, for
instance, d, suitable for dropping through the notches, drepessions, or openings c² in
the flange of the fount or reservoir.
In fixing the burner to the fount or reservoir it is placed thereon in such a
position that the projections & in the lower part of the body D of the burner are
immediately over the notches in the flange on the fount or reservoir. The
burner part D is then depressed on the washer d¹ until the projections d have
descended through the said notches below the undersurface of the said flange or
projections c. The burner or body part D is then turned through a greater or less
angle, according to the number or length of the projections, until it becomes
tightened by the contact of the projections d of the burner D under the flange or

page_text: projections c of the fount or reservoir C. It will be clearly understood that these
projections c are something like sections of two, three, or more threaded screws, and
that the form of these projections may be greatly varied and yet answer the desired
purpose of my Invention.
The washer or ring d may be made of any suitable flexible material, such as
leather, specially prepared vulcanized india rubber, or other pliable material, such,
for instance, as cork.
In some cases for the purpose of greater security I form recesses or corrugations e
in the neck of the reservoir or fount, either above or below the projections, as shown
in one position by Figure 10, with a suitable thumb nut catch and spring fitted at
the base of the body D for taking into these recesses or corrugations, whereby the
body is secured against any tendency there might be to become loose. These
corrugations are seen more clearly in sectional plan, Figure 11. Or the corrugations
may be formed under the inclines, as shown by e', Figure 9, when the thumb nut
would be modified accordingly when such was used, but in most cases the washer
would give sufficiently to allow the projections to pass over the corrugations, i.e., by
a slight downward pressure of the hand.
The angular motion of the burner or body part D in the fount or reservoir may
be limited by a stop e2, Figure 12, or as shown by the modification e³, Figure 13,
where the projection d of the body D would fall into the slight recess e³, thus
preventing the body turning back.
By turning the burner or body part D in the direction opposite to the one by
which it was fixed, the projections & may again be brought opposite to the
notches c, and so the body D may be removed for the purpose of replenishing the
supply of oil. In removing the body part D where a notch e³ is used or notches e¹
are used, the body would require to be slightly pressed downwards, thus slightly
compressing the washer d¹ to allow the projection or projections & to pass.
My improved body parts D may be fitted to the founts or reservoirs C by plaster
of Paris in the ordinary way, as illustrated by sectional, Figure 14, leaving the
space to be filled up by the plaster of Paris or other substance.
In this case
suitable provision is provided for filling the fount or reservoir with oil, such as the
pipe g and cover g¹, which lifts up and down for the purpose of covering the
opening. This cover g¹ is seen clearly in position in the plan, Figure 15. It will
thus be seen that even in this modification much complication and expense are
saved by my body D.
The mode of manufacturing these bodies is illustrated by Figures 16 and 17,
which I will now proceed to describe.
First. I take a disc plate of any convenient size and thickness, according to the
size and weight of the body part D to be produced therefrom, and I either raise or
stamp it into a form similar to that shown by D, Figure 16.
Second. I then cut or punch out the bottom h.
Third. I then place the roughly formed body D on the chuck H, which is fast to
the face plate J of a suitable lathe, when the back part K of this peculiar chuck is
brought forward into the mouth of the roughly formed body D, the tapered
projection of the back chuck K entering the recess of the front chuck H, thus
these two chucks though divided run together on the spindle L just as if they were
only one chuck. The projection / may be larger, as shown by dotted lines, and the
spindle L may pass right through the back part of the chuck, i.e., through K, and
the chuck may run loose upon L.
lc
Fourth. While the roughly formed body D is being revolved on the chuck in the
lathe, I bring up against its side one, two, or more "bowls' or friction rollers M
formed to any desired shape, which also revolve upon suitable centres carried by
levers or slides which bring them against the work (this depending upon the kind
of lathe used for the purpose). These bowls or rollers force out the metal at n
into the recess formed in or between the two chucks H and K, until by this rolling
process I have produced a metallic lamp body from one piece of metal thus
cheapening their production very much.

page_text: The bottom of the fount or reservoir P may also be connected to the foot or
stand, substantially in the same manner as explained regarding the body part D,
by the projections p, of which there may be one, two, or more.
The mode hereinbefore described and ascertained for connecting lamp bodies to
their founts or reservoirs, and the founts or reservoirs to their bases, is also
applicable to mounting the tops upon ink stands and other vessels, as also for the
caps of beer and other bottles.
Having now described my Invention, and some of the practical ways of carrying
the same into effect, I would have it clearly understood that I do not confine
myself to the precise details herein particularized, as they may be varied according
to the material and design, but what I do claim is,―
First. The manufacture of the body part of lamps in one instead of two pieces,
substantially as illustrated by Figures 3, 4, 14, 15, and 17.
Second. The construction of lamps with the body part connected to the fount or
reservoir by projections with the plain part above the projections, such as those
shown and described by Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, and 13.
Third. Constructing lamps and other articles, as illustrated by the Drawings and
as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, Thomas Kennedy, have hereunto set my hand and seal,
this First day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and eighty
Witness,
JOSEPH HENRY PEARSON,
Clerk to George Barker,
77, Colmore Row,
Birmingham.
THOS, KENNEDY. (L.S.)