Improvements in Oil Lighted Beacons and Buoys.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Dec., 1886.
Specification Accepted, 28th Jan., 1887.
Improvements in Oil Lighted Beacons and Buoys.
I, JOHN MELVILLE FOSTER of No. 1 Broadway New York in the State of New
York, United States of America, Mechanical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of
this invention and in what manner the same is to he performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My Invention relates to a buoy or beacon having an oil or vapour burner the object
of my Invention being to provide for the continuous and uniform feeding of oil to
the burner by mechanism of a simple character the operation of which is not likely
to be affected or interrupted by the movements of the buoy.
The accompanying drawings show a buoy or beacon constructed in accordance with
my invention
Figure 1 being a vertical section partly in elevation
Figure 2 a sectional view partly in elevation and on a larger scale, of the lantern
which forms part of the buoy.
Figure 3 a sectional plan, partly in elevation on the line 1-2. Figure 2.
Figure 4 a sectional plan on the line 3-4 Figure 2.
Figure
an enlarged section of the regulating device of the burner.
Figure 6 a plan view of the same partly in section, and
Figures 7, 8 and 9 views illustrating modifications of the invention.
Lighted buoys and beacons are now extensively used, the ordinary method of
lighting such buoys or beacons, being to store illuminating gas under heavy pressure
in a chamber or reservoir forming part of the buoy or beacon, this gas supplying the
burner in the lantern which surmounts the beacon.
The main objection to a buoy of this character, is that it necessitates the maintenance
of an expensive gas making plant on the tender having charge of the buoy, or else the
gas must be manufactured on shore and stored under pressure in reserviors to be
carried to the buoy by the tender.
It has been proposed to overcome these objections by utilizing the motion of the
waves to cause a current of air to pass through hydrocarbon contained in a reservoir
in the buoy, the air thus carburetted providing a gas for the burner, and it has also been
proposed to use a vapor burner, to which oil was supplied from a reservoir in the buoy,
a regulated air pressure being relied upon to raise the oil to the burner.

page_text: Both of these devices, however, are irregular and uncertain in their action, and are
therefore objectionable.
In carrying out my Invention I construct an oil lighted buoy or beacon in the
manner which I will now proceed to describe.
In Figure 1, A represents the body of a buoy which, in the present instance, is in
the form of the usual can buoy, having upper and lower water tight compartments,
although it should be understood that the construction of the body of the buoy forms
no part of my Invention, and may be modified in any manner which circumstances may
suggest.
Forming part of the buoy, is a vessel B, which in the present instance, is in the
form of a cylinder, and projects downward below the body. The shape and character
of this vessel may also be modified however, without departing from the essential
feature of my invention.
Communicating with the vessel B are two pipes a, b, both of these pipes extending
above the body of the buoy, and the pipe a being furnished with a suitable stop or
check valve d, while the pipe extends up into a lantern D, supported above the
body of the buoy upon suitable stanchions e.
The pipe a preferably terminates a short distance below the top of the vessel B but
the pipe extends almost to the bottom of the said vessel, so that all that is necessary
in order to charge the buoy is to pump the oil into the vessel B through the pipe a the
oil rising in said vessel, and compressing the air in the upper portion of the same this
compressed air acting upon the volume of oil in the vessel, and tending to force said oil
up through the pipe to the lantern.
An ordinary pump on the craft serving as a buoy tender is therefore sufficient to
effect the proper charging of the buoy, the oil being pumped directly from the
barrel or other reservoir into the vessel B, and being stored therein under pressure by
the compression of the air in the upper portion of said vessel.
In the lantern D, I use a vapour burner of any desired construction, that preferred
being one in which the supply pipe has at the top a casing with needle pointed valve
for regulating the discharge of the oil or vapour, the escaping flame striking a curved
spreader plate which becomes intensely heated, and serves to properly vaporize the oil
as it rises through the supply tube w to the valve casing.
The pressure maintained in the vessel B, however is much too great to permit
the direct flow of oil therefrom to the burner, hence, I use in connection with the
supply pipe and burner F a regulating device whereby the pressure of oil delivered
to the burner is reduced to an extent sufficient to insure the proper action of the latter.
The pipe communicates with a chamber f in the lower portion of a casing G
(Fig. 5) in which is an upper chamber g separated from the chamber f, by a
partition h, and to a valve seat i, carried by the latter, is adapted a valve m, hung by
means of links to arms n on a rock shaft H adapted to bearing in the casing G.
The upper chamber g of the casing G communicates through a pipe p with a vessel J,
in which is a float K having a guided stems the upper end of which has a slotted
yokes for the reception of a pin t, at the outer end of an arm M which is secured to
the rock shaft H.
The vessel J communicates through a pipe w with the burner F, so that the pressure
of oil at the latter is dependent upon the level of the oil in said vessel J, and this is
governed by the float K the rise of which causes such an operation of the rock shaft H,
as will close the valve m and cut off the flow of oil into the vessel J until the lever
therein is lowered, and the float K falls sufficiently to again open the valve.
It will be evident, therefore, that by properly constructing the valve and float, any
desired level of oil and any desired pressure at the burner can be readily maintained,
irrespective of the pressure in the vessel B.
The pipes b and w are provided with suitable stop valves & and the lantern is
provided at the base with perforated partitions and deflectors so constructed as to
permit the ready access of air to the lantern, without the admission of water or spray,
the products of combustion being permitted to escape through a chimney P which has
at the top a perforated hood and deflectors likewise constructed to prevent the ingress

page_text: of water or spray but offering no obstacle to the ready escape of the products of
combustion.
The regulating devices are contained in a box S, which is mounted on the top
plate S' of the lantern at one side of the chimney P, the base of the box being elevated
slightly, so that air can have free access to all parts of the outside of the box. Air
also has access to the inside of the box through openings T in the sides and bottom of
the same, so that all parts of the regulating device are kept cool, there being hence
no vaporization of the oil in the vessel J, and no interference with the operation of
the regulating device, due to heat from the lantern.
For the purpose of keeping the pipes band to as cool as possible, said pipes are
carried through the burner chamber of the lantern in close proximity to bars V of the
lens frame, as shown in Figure 4.
Although as before remarked, the vessel B may be constructed in any suitable
manner and disposed in any desired relation to the body of the buoy, I perfer to
construct it in the form of a projecting cylinder as shown, in order that the weight of
oil contained in it may aid in ballasting the buoy, and tend to maintain it in a vertical
position.
It should be understood that the buoy is anchored in the usual manner, the anchor
chain being connected by a shackle to a loop or other attachment on the buoy. (Sec
dotted lines Figure 1.)
Although I prefer to use a regulating valve operated by a float in the manner
shewn in the drawing, this is not absolutely necessary to the proper carrying out of
my invention. For instance in Figure 7, I have shown a burner F combined with
a feed vessel J below the burner, this feed vessel communicating directly with the
upper end of the pipe band the communication being controlled by a valve, which
is acted upon by a diaphragm K' contained in the feed vessel, the pressure of oil in
the latter tends to raise this diaphram and close the valve, while a spring above the
diaphragm tends to depress the same and open the valve. In this case, the pressure
of oil in the feed vessel is dependant upon the stiffness of the spring, for as soon as the
pressure of the oil is greater than the pressure of the spring, the diaphragm is forced
upward and the valve is closed so as to prevent the entrance of a further supply of
oil into the feed vessel.
The use of a vapour burner is not absolutely necessary in carrying out my Invention
as in place of the same, I may use an ordinary oil lamp having an asbestos or other
indestructible wick so that it will not require frequent attention for trimming.
In this case I should prefer to use a float in the fountain or reservior of the lamp,
this float controlling a valve in the supply pipe, so as to prevent the rise of the oil in
the fount above a certain desired level. (See Figure 8.)
The use of seperate inlet and outlet pipes a and b can be dispensed with by
providing the pipes b with a short valved inlet branch a as shown in Figure 9.
The valve m is preferably provided with a washer of cork, or other non-oxidizable
material as shown.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is :-
First An oil lighted buoy or beacon, having a body with hermetically closed oil
reservoir, a valved supply pipe therefor, a burner surmounting the body, a feed vessel
for said burner, a pipe for conveying oil from the reservoir to said feed vessel, a valve
in said pipe, and a float, or equivalent device, as described, connected to said valve and
contained in the feed vessel, and acted upon by the oil therein whereby the supply of
oil to the feed vessel is automatically regulated, all substantially as specified.
Second An oil lighted buoy or beacon, having a body with hermetically closed oil
reservoir, a valved supply pipe therefor, a vapour burner surmounting said body, a
feed vessel above said burner, pipes through which oil can pass from the reservoir to
said feed vessel, and from the latter to the burner, a valve controlling the flow from
the reservior to the feed vessel, and a float contained in the feed vessel and connected
to said controlling valve, all substantially as specified.

page_text: Third An oil lighted buoy or beacon, having a body with hermetically closed oil
reservoir, a vapour burner surmounting said body, a feed vessel above said burner,
a float contained in said vessel, a casing G having two chambers, a valve controlling
the passage between said chambers, a pipe forming a communication between one of
said chambers and the reservoir, a pipe forming a communication between the other
chamber and the feed vessel, and a rock shaft having arms connected to the valve and
float, all substantially as specified.
Fourth-An oil lighted buoy, having a body with oil reservoir, a lantern surmounting
the body, and pressure regulating devices contained in a casing supported above the
lantern at one side of the chimney so that the air circulates freely around said casing
and keeps it cool, as set forth.
Fifth The combination of the body of the buoy or beacon and the lantern
surmounting the same, with the hermetically closed reservoir B centrally located in
respect to the body of the buoy and projecting below the same, so as to aid in ballasting
it, all substantially as specified.