IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Lawrence, of Honley, near Huddersfield,
in the County of York, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN STEAM ENGINES."
Sealed the 26th October 1858, and dated the 29th April 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Lawrence at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th
April 1858.
I, CHARLES LAWRENCE,' of Honley, near Huddersfield, in the County of York,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN STEAM ENGINES," to be as follows:-
The improvements relate to adaptations and combinations of parts as applied
to steam engines, in which at each operation of the steam, whilst motion is
given to the piston in one direction, motion is also given to the cylinder in the
opposite direction. The cylinder is supported so as to be capable of sliding in
suitable guides, and is connected by rods to cranks formed on the main shaft,
on which, but bent in the opposite direction, is also a crank connected by a
suitable rod to the piston. In place of these cranks, the two rods from the
cylinder may be connected to separate pins in toothed wheels geared into a
toothed wheel of the same size on the main shaft, and in which is fixed a pin
for the connecting rod of the piston. The eccentric or cam for actuating the
valves is affixed to a collar capable of sliding freely on, yet controlled to

page_text: rotate with, a shaft, to which rotary motion is given from the crank or other
main shaft, this collar being caused to slide on such shaft at the same time
and speed with the motion of the cylinder.
When desired to work the steam expansively, I do so either by changing
the valves to reduce the passage to the extent desired, or by the substitution
of tappet or cam motion for an eccentric to operate the lever moving the
valves, or by an equilibrium valve capable of being regulated to the amount
of steam required, or a combination of valves, or other suitable arrangement
for this purpose.
In order to use the engine as a condenser for high or low-pressure steam,
I connect the cylinder in its motion with leverage acting upon the air pump,
and I cause the discharge pipe from the cylinder to pass through suitable
packing into a chamber, in which it may slide freely to the extent desired in
connection with the condenser. A governor regulates the supply to the speed,
as in ordinary engines.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Lawrence in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
28th October 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
LAWRENCE, of Honley, near Huddersfield, in the County of York, Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Charles Lawrence, Her special licence that I, the said Charles Lawrence,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
Lawrence, 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 of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles Lawrence, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain

page_text: the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Lawrence, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
The improvements relate to adaptations and combinations of parts as
applied to steam engines, in which, at each operation of the steam, whilst
motion is given to the piston in one direction, motion is also given to the
cylinder in the opposite direction. The cylinder is supported so as to be
capable of sliding in suitable guides, and is connected by rods to cranks
formed on the main shaft, on which, but bent in the opposite direction; is also
a crank, connected by a suitable rod to the piston. In place of these cranks,
the two rods from the cylinder may be connected to separate pins in toothed
wheels, geared into a toothed wheel of the same size on the main shaft, and in
which is fixed a pin for the connecting rod of the piston.
The excentric or cam for actuating the valves is affixed to a collar capable
of sliding freely on, yet controlled to rotate with a shaft, to which rotary
motion is given from the crank or other main shaft, this collar being caused to
slide on such shaft at the same time and speed with the motion of the cylinder.
When desired to work the steam expansively, I do so either by changing the
valves to reduce the passage to the extent desired, or by the substitution of
tappet or cam motion for an excentric to operate the lever moving the valves,
or by an equilibrium valve, capable of being regulated to the amount of steam
desired, or a combination of valves, or other suitable arrangement for this
purpose.
In order to use the engine as a condenser for high or low-pressure steam,
I connect the cylinder in its motion with leverage acting upon the air pump,
and I cause the discharge pipe from the cylinder to pass through suitable
packing into a chamber in which it may slide freely to the extent desired in
connection with the condenser. A governor regulates the supply to the speed,
as in ordinary engines.
But that my improvements may be better understood, and readily carried
into effect, I will proceed to describe the means pursued by me, aided by the
accompanying Drawings, in the description of which the same letters are used
to indicate like parts wherever they occur.

page_text: a is the
Figure 1 shews a sectional side view, Figure 2 a plan, and Figure 3 an
end view of a steam engine arranged according to my Invention.
cylinder, 6 the piston therein, and 6' the piston rod; c, c, the steam ways, and
D the valve for regulating the inlet and outlet of steam to the cylinder, as is
well understood.
"
The cylinder in place of being a fixture is formed with necks a', a', to receive
the ends of rods a², a², suspended from the pins a³, carried by the upper ends
of arms d, e, affixed respectively to the axes d¹, e¹, by which, as will presently
be more clearly seen, a correct parallel to-and-fro motion is preserved to the
cylinder a. The cylinder a is formed at one end with ears or lugs a² to receive
a pin a³, by which it is connected to one end of the link f, the other end of
which is by pin joint connected to one end of the lever g, affixed to the axis
9', which is capable of turning freely in bearings carried by the main framing.
The upper end of this lever g is by pin joint g2 connected to one end of the
connecting rod h, the other end of which is connected to the crank i¹ of the
axis i, upon which is also formed another crank ³, which is embraced by one
end of the rod j, the other end of which is by pin joint connected to the upper
end of the lever k affixed to the axis k³, and which at its lower end is by the
link connected to the cross head m, the centre of which is formed to receive
the end of the piston rod 6, the ends m¹ thereof are formed to embrace the
guide rods n, n, to preserve a parallel motion thereto. Thus whilst the steam
is acting upon the piston to give motion thereto, as is well understood, it is
also acting upon the cylinder to cause it to move in the opposite direction, and
these motions are controlled by the levers g and k. To give rotary motion to
of the link o¹, the other
the axis i, a pin o from the lever g receives one end
end of which is by pin joint connected to the one end of the arm d affixed to
the axis d', to control the motion thereof, and thereby govern the parallelismi
of the cylinder a by the links a², a². p is the steam pipe from the boiler, the
end p', of which passes through a stuffing box p³, affixed to the pipe p³, con-
nected to the valve chamber, by which steam may pass freely to the valve
chamber during the to-and-fro motions of the cylinder a.
The valve D is governed in the following manner-Upon the axis i is
affixed the bevilled pinion 9, which in its rotation gives motion to the pinion
g' affixed upon the axis q², upon which is fixed the pinion q³, which takes into
and drives the pinion q affixed upon the axis q, upon which is affixed the
bevilled pinion 26, which takes into the teeth of, and drives the bevilled pinion

page_text: 9 upon the axis q³, to give motion thereto. This axis o³ is supported by the
stationary bearings q, and is formed square to receive the hollow axis r,
forming the boss of the excentric r¹, in such manner that whilst that boss is
controlled to rotate with the axis 98, in the bearing a affixed to the cylinder a,
it may yet move to and fro with those bearings as they move with the
cylinder a. The excentric thence by the link gives motion to one end of the
lever, which turns upon the centre r', and at its other end is connected by
the link to the rod of the slide valve D.
Figure 4 represents a side view, and Figure 5 a plan of a modification of the
improvements adapted as a condenser engine. In this case the piston rod b¹
is by the link connected directly to the crank 3 of the axis i, whilst the
cylinder is by the rods f connected to the cranks to give motion thereto in
opposite directions, the cylinder being supported with capability of sliding on
the guide rods n; s is the exhaust pipe of the engine, which passes through
with capability of sliding in the stuffing box s¹ of that part of the pipe s con-
nected to the condenser, the pump of which is by the link t connected to the
lever t', which turns upon the fixed axis of motion t2, and is at its other end
by the link connected to the parts of the cylinder, in the movement of which
the pump has motion given to it.
Figure 6 shows a modification of parts, in which the connecting rod to the
piston and the links of the cylinder are connected to pins from toothed wheels,
which are geared into each other,
Figures 7 and 8 show two views of a modification of my improvements
adapted to working the steam expansively, as also high or low-pressure. In
this case the cylinder a is by means of the links of connected to the T lever v,
one end of which is by the link v³ connected to the crank on the main axis
i, whilst another end of the lever vis by the link v2 connected to one end of
the L lever w, whose other end is by a link w¹ connected to the piston rod b'.
The cylinder is guided by projections a' therefrom, embracing the rods n, n.
The valve D is worked by the links a from the lever a³, which turns upon
the axis a, and by the link a is connected to the adjustable pin a' in the
plate affixed to the main crank of the axis i. The length of the lever a¹
from its axis of motion a to its connection with the links x is shorter than
that from the axis x to the pin x, connecting it with the link ³, by which a
slight traverse motion will be obtained to the valve D, and by varying the
position of the pins a and b, the amount of cut-off will be varied; governors
may be used to regulate the supply, as in other engines.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and various means

page_text: which I adopt in carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood
that I do not confine myself to the precise details. shown and described;
but what I do claim is, the modes of arranging and combining steam engines,
whereby, whilst by the action of the steam motion is given to the piston in
one direction, motion is also given to the cylinder in the opposite direction,
substantially as explained.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Lawrence, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
Witness,
EDWARD LAWRENCE,
Honley.
CHARLES LAWRENCE. (L.S.)