Improvements in Valves for Hydraulic Machinery.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Oct., 1889
Complete Specification Left. 25th June, 1890-Accepted, 26th July, 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Valves for Hydraulic Machinery.
We, NETTLEFOLDS LIMITED of Broad Street Birmingham in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturers, and CHARLES ARTHUR JONES, of No. 83 Raglan Road
Smethwick in the County of Stafford Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The said invention relates principally to valves for opening and closing or partially
opening and closing the communication between a hydraulic accumulator or other
source of water under pressure and the machinery actuated by the said water under
pressure and also opening and closing communication with the exhaust or waste water
pipe.
The said invention is however applicable to valves for hydraulic purposes
generally. Valves made according to the said invention are manipulated easily and
quickly and without the concussion frequently attendant on the working of hydraulic
valves.
We will describe the said invention in connection with a hydraulic accumulator and
lift or hoist.
A strong metallic chamber preferably of cast iron is divided by a horizontal
diaphragm into two compartments. The upper compartment is divided by a vertica!
diaphragm into two equal compartments. The horizontal diaphragm has two central
holes opening respectively into the two upper compartments. Through stuffing boxes
in these holes the two hollow pistons constituting the valve proper work the upper
part of each of the said hollow pistons working in its own upper compartment and
the lower part of each of the said hollow pistons working in the lower compartment
common to both. The said pistons consist of vertical hollow cylinders closed at top.
Each piston is surmounted by a piston rod or stalk which passes through a stuffing
box at the top of its compartment. Each piston has openings near its top through
which the water in the upper compartment can pass into the piston. When the
pistons are in their lowest positions their open bottoms are seated on convex seats on
the bottom of the lower compartment or on seats of leather india rubber or other like
material. The ingress pipe opens into the upper compartment of one of the
pistons and the egress pipe conducting to the hoist opens into the lower com-
partment. The waste pipe opens into the upper compartment of the other piston.
We will call the first named piston the work piston and the other the waste
piston. When the work piston is raised from its seat (the waste piston being pressed
to its seat) water under pressure passes from the ingress pipe into the upper com-
partment of the work piston through the openings near its top down the interior of
the said piston into the lower compartment and from thence through the egress pipe
to the hoist. When the hoist has been raised to the required height and the work
piston depressed onto its seat the flow of water is stopped and the raised hoist is sup-
ported in the position to which it has been raised. In order to lower the hoist the
waste piston is raised when the water returns by the egress pipe into the lower com-
partment passes up the interior of the waste piston through the openings near its top
into its upper compartment and passes out by the waste pipe opening into that
compartment.
The pistons are operated as follows: The stalks or rods of the pistons work in
guides in the frame of the apparatus. In each of the said stalks is a vertical
slot having at top and bottom an anti fricton roller. Through these slots a flat bar
passes. This bar is straight at its middle but both ends curve downwards. We will
call this bar the cam bar. At each side of the frame and near its top a lever is
The short arms of
jointed the long arm of which in its normal position is horizontal.
these levers are turned down at right angles that is they are vertical in their normal
position and to the bottom ends of the short arms of these levers the cam bar is

page_text: jointed. By raising or lowering either of the long or working arms of the levers
the cam bar is made to slide in the slots in the stalks of the pistons the said bar as
the same time rising and falling with a parallel motion. When the cam bar is in its
normal or lowest position both pistons are pressed down and no water passes through
the valve. When by action on one of the working levers the cam bar is so moved
that its straight part advances in the slot of the stalk of the work piston the said
piston is raised and the waste piston is held down by the advance of the curved end
of the cam bar adjacent to the waste piston into the slot of the stalk of the said
waste piston. When the hoist has been raised to the required height the working
lever is moved in the opposite direction and the parts brought to their normal position.
No water passes the valve and the hoist is supported in its position. In order to
lower the hoist the working lever is moved from its normal position in a direction
contrary to that in which it was moved to raise the hoist. The straight part of the
cam bar now advances in the slot of the stalk of the waste piston and the said
piston rises.
At the same time that curved end of the cam bar adjacent to the
work piston entering the slot in the stalk of the piston it is held down. In this way
water under pressure is cut off and the water supplied to the hoist returns by the
egress pipe into the lower compartment up the waste piston into its upper compart-
ment and passes away by the waste pipe.
The stalks of the pistons are not continuous rods but each is made in two parts the
end of one part being capable of a slight sliding motion in the end of the other
part. A strong coiled spring connects the two parts together. A very limited
elasticity is thus given to the said stalks which prevents injury to the piston should
any solid particles lodge on the seats of the pistons.
As the water under pressure acts upon both the exterior and interior of the
hollow pistons the said pistons are balanced excepting with respect to an area equal
to the sectional area of their stalks. To complete the balancing of the piston the top
of each of the stalks of the pistons is loaded.
Dated this 12th day of October 1889
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Valves for Hydraulic Machinery.
We NETTLEFOLDS LIMITED of Broad Street Birminghain in the County of
Warwick Manufacturers and CHARLES ARTHUR JONES of No. 83 Raglan Road
Smethwick in the County of Stafford Mechanical Engineer do hereby declare the
nature of the said invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:—
The said invention relates principally to valves for opening and closing or par-
tially opening and closing the communication between a hydraulic accumulator or
other source of water under pressure and the machinery actuated by the said water
under pressure and also opening and closing communication with the exhaust or
waste water pipe. The said invention is however applicable to valves for hydraulic
purposes generally.
Valves made according to the said invention are manipulated easily and quickly
and without the concussion frequently attendant on the working of hydraulic
valves.
We will describe the said invention in connection with a hydraulic accumulator
and lift or hoist.
A strong metallic chamber preferably of cast iron is divided by a horizontal
diaphragm into two compatments. The upper compartment is divided by a vertical
diaphragm into two equal compartments. The horizontal diaphragm has two central
holes opening respectively into the two upper compartments. Through stuffing
boxes in these holes the two hollow pistons constituting the valve proper work the
upper part of each of the said hollow pistons working in its own upper compart-

page_text: inent and the lower part of each of the said hollow pistons working in the lower
compartment common to both. The said pistons consist of vertical hollow cylinders
ciosed at top. Each piston is surmounted by a piston rod or stalk which passes
through a stuffing box at the top of its compartment. Each piston has openings
near its top through which the water in the upper compartment can pass into the
piston. When the pistons are in their lowest positions their open bottoms are seated
on convex seats on the bottom of the lower compartment or on seats of leather,
india rubber or other like material. The ingress pipe opens into the upper compart-
ment of one of the pistons and the egress pipe conducting to the hoist opens into the
lower compartment. The waste pipe opens into the upper compartment of the other
piston. We will call the first named piston the work piston and the other the
waste piston. When the work piston is raised from its seat (the waste piston being
pressed to its seat) water under pressure passes from the ingress pipe into the upper
compartment of the work piston through the openings near its top down. the interior
of the said piston into the lower compartment and from thence through the egress
pipe to the hoist. When the hoist has been raised to the required height and the
work piston depressed on to its seat the flow of water or other liquid is stopped and
the raised hoist is supported in the position to which it has been raised. In order to
lower the hoist the waste piston is raised, the work piston being at the same time
pressed to its seat, when the water returns by the egress pipe into the lower com-
partment passes up the interior of the waste piston through the openings near its
top into its upper compartment and passes out by the waste pipe opening into that
compartment.
The pistons are operated as follows. The stalks or rods of the pistons work in
guides in the frame of the apparatus. In each of the said stalks is a vertical slot
having at top and bottom an anti-friction roller. Through these slots a flat bar
passes. This bar is straight at its middle but both ends curve downwards. We will
call this bar the can bar. At each side of the frame and near its top a lever is
jointed the long arm of which in its normal position is horizontal.
The short arms
of these levers are turned down at right angles that is they are vertical in their normal
position and to the bottom ends of the short arins of these levers the cam bar is
jointed.
By raising or lowering either of the long or working arms of the levers the
cam bar is inade to slide in the slots in the stalks of the pistons the said bar at
the same time rising or falling with a parallel motion.
When the cam bar is
in its normal or lowest position both pistons are pressed down and no water passes
through the valve. When by action on one of the working levers the cam bar is
so moved that its straight part advances in the slot of the stalk of the work piston
the said piston is raised and the waste piston is held down by the advance of the
curved end of the cain bar adjacent to the waste piston into the slot of the stalk of
the said waste piston. When the hoist has been raised to the required height the
working lever is moved in the opposite direction and the parts brought to their
normal position. No water passes the valve and the hoist is supported in its position.
In order to lower the hoist the working lever is moved from its normal position in a
direction contrary to that in which it was moved to raise the hoist.
The straight part
of the cam bar now advances in the slot of the stalk of the waste piston and the
said piston rises. At the same time that curved end of the cam bar adjacent to the
work piston entering the slot in the stalk of the piston it is held down. In this
way water under pressure is cut off and the water supplied to the hoist returns by
the egress pipe into the lower compartment up the waste piston into its upper com-
partment and passes away by the waste pipe.
We will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying drawings
the manner in which the said invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in front elevation partly in vertical section and Figure 2 in
end elevation a hydraulic valve constructed according to the said invention to be used
in connection with a hydraulic accumulator and the lift or hoist to be worked by

page_text: the water or other liquid under pressure contained in the said accumulator or for
other like purposes.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in both Figures.
a is the strong metallic chamber constituting the base of the valve to which are
bolted the uprights a², a² carrying the actuating mechanism of the valve and the
guide bar a³. The said strong metallic chamber a is divided by the horizontal
diaphragm into two compartments the lower compartment being marked c. The
upper compartment is divided by the vertical diaphragm d into two equal compart-
ments marked respectively e and f; g is the ingress pipe from the hydraulic accumu-
lator opening into the upper compartment e and h is the egress pipe in communication
with the lift or hoist opening into the lower compartment c; i is the waste pipe
opening into the upper compartment f.
Working through stuffing boxes k, k placed in holes in the horizontal diaphragm b
are two hollow pistons or valves b, m the work piston being marked and the waste
piston m. It will be seen by an examination of Figure 1 that the upper part of each
of the hollow pistons 1, m works in its own upper compartment e or f and that the
lower part of each hollow piston works in the lower compartment c common to both.
The said pistons and m are closed at top and open at bottom their open bottoms
being capable of being seated upon and raised from the convex seats 12, m² on the
bottom of the lower compartment as represented in Figure 1.
In place of the convex seats 12, m² the open bottoms of the pistons 1, m may seat
themselves upon seats of leather, india rubber or other like material. The upper part
of each hollow piston has side openings as represented the water or other liquid from
the upper compartment e passing through the said openings into the hollow piston
and water froin the lower compartment c passing up the hollow piston m and out by
its side openings into the other upper compartment f; 13 is the piston rod of the
hollow piston and m³ is the piston rod of the hollow piston m the said piston
rods (3, m³ passing through stuffing boxes at 14, m² and being guided by the cross
guide bar a³.
+
It will be seen by an examination of Figure 1 that the piston rods or stalks ³, m³
are made in two parts the end of one part being capable of a slight sliding motion in
the end of the other part, the two parts being connected together by the strong
coiled spring n. By this arrangement a limited elasticity is given to the piston rods
or stalks which prevents injury to the pistons should any solid particles lodge
on the seats of the said pistons. The tops of the piston rods are loaded with the
weights 15, m³.
As the water or other liquid under pressure acts upon both the exterior and interior
of the hollow pistons 1 m the said pistons are balanced excepting with respect to an
area equal to the sectional area of the stems or stalks. To complete the balancing the
loads 3, m³ at the tops of the said stems or stalks are employed.
The action of the hollow pistons or piston valves l, m is as follows:-When the
two pistons l, m are in the depressed positions represented and their open bottoms are
seated on the seats 12, m² the communication between the ingress pipe g from the
accumulator in the compartment e and the egress pipe h to the lift or hoist in the
lower compartment c is cut off. When the work piston is raised from its seat (2
the waste piston m being kept to its seat, water from the hydraulic accumulator passes
by the ingress pipe y into the upper compartment e of the said work piston and
through the openings near its top down the hollow piston into the lower compart-
ment and from thence through the egress pipe h 'to the hoist. The hoist. having
been lifted to the required height the work piston is depressed onto its seat and the
flow of water is cut off and the hoist is supported in the position to which it has
been raised. For the purpose of lowering the hoist the waste piston m is raised (the
work piston being kept in its lowered position) when the water from the boist
returns by the egress pipe h into the lower compartment c passes up the interior of the
waste piston m through the openings near its top into the upper compartment ƒ and
passes out by the waste pipe i opening into the said compartment f.

page_text: We will now describe the mechanism for operating the two pistons l, m. The upper
part of each of the stems or stalks 13, m³ is slotted at p and at the top and bottom of
each slot is an anti-friction roller q. Through these slots p, and between the pairs
of anti-friction rollers q, q the cam bar r, 3 passes and works the motion of the
said cam bar in one or other direction raising or lowering one of the pistons and
holding down the other piston as hereinafter described. The said cam bar has the
form represented, that is, its middle r is straight and its ends 2-3 curve downwards.
Jointed to each of the uprights a² a² of the fixed frame is a cranked hand lever
marked respectively s and t the short arms of the said levers being jointed to the ends
of the cam bar, Either lever sort may be used for operating the valve.
It will be seen that when the pistons Im are in their lowered positions the long
arms of the hand levers », t are horizontal and the short arms jointed to the cam bar
are vertical.
When the long or working arm of either hand lever is raised or lowered the cam
bar r,, is made to slide in the stalks or stems 13, m³ of the pistons the said cam
bar rising or falling with a parallel motion. When the cam bar is in its lowered
position as represented in Figure 1 the valve is out of action and in order to first
operate the hoist next cut off the water supply thereto and afterwards lower the hoist
the cam bar is worked in the following manner.
We will describe the working of the valve by the use of the hand lever s on the
right hand side of the apparatus.
By depressing the long arm of the said hand levers the cam bar 2, 3 is moved in
the direction of the arrow on the said bar and its straight part advanced in the slot
of the stalk 3 of the work piston the said cam bar taking the position indicated in
dotted lines. The work piston is thereby raised from its seat and the water from
the accumulator put into communication with the hoist as before described, the waste
piston being by the same motion of the cam bar held down by the advance of its
curved end into the slot p of the stalk m³ of the said waste piston m. The hoist
having been raised to the required height the hand levers is returned to the position
represented in the drawing thereby lowering the work piston to its seat and cutting
off. communication between the ingress and egress pipes g and h.
In order to lower the hoist the hand lever s is lifted.
The straight part of the cam bar now advances in the slot p of the stalk m³ of
the waste piston m lifting that piston and the curved end of the cam bar advancing
in the slot of the stalk of the work piston holds down that piston. Communication
is thus established between the egress pipe and the waste pipe i and the water from
the hoist escapes by the said pipes as before described.
By means of a connecting rod u the working lever s or t may be so connected
with the hoist that when the latter is raised to its highest position the said working
lever is so operated upon as to lower the work piston and shut off the water under
pressure.
Instead of employing the weights and m³ to effect the balance of the hollow
pistons the arrangement represented in vertical section partly in elevation in
Figure 3; side elevation in Figure 4 and plan in Figure 5 may be employed. In
this arrangement the piston rods or stalks 13, m³ are prolonged downwards in the axes
of the hollow pistons l, in respectively and pass out of the bottom of the lower
chamber c through the stuffing boxes l, m. The lower ends 17, 7 of the said pro-
longed rods or stalks bear respectively on the cross bars o, wo carried by the upper
cross bars v2, w² the said cross bars v, 2 and w; w² being connected by the vertical
connecting rods x, x. Or the cross bars wand v² we may be dispensed with and the
piston rods or stalks m³ may be connected directly with their lower ends and m
respectively; in which case the said rods will be secured to the valves laud m
through the tops of which they pass. By this arrangement the balance of the parts
is always preserved whatever be the pressure of the water employed.
The parts of the valve Figures 3.4 and 5 which we have not described are con-
structed and used as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 and
Corresponding parts are marked with the same letters of reference.

page_text: Although we have represented in Figures 1 and 2 convex valve seats and in
Figures 3. 4 and 5 conical valves yet flat valve seats may be employed for the
piston valves to seat themselves upon.
We have only represented and described the use of two hollow piston valves but
we wish it to be understood that the piston valves can be used singly as well as in
pairs in various kinds of hydraulic machinery. When a single piston valve is used
it is operated directly by means of a lever instead of by the cam bar and its appen-
dages described and represented.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and the manner in which the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim as the said invention of "Improvements in valves for hydraulic machinery":-
First. Constructing the said valves of hollow pistons closed at top and open at
bottom and baving side openings near their tops, two of the said hollow pistons
working in chambers or compartments in connection with the ingress and egress and
waste pipes of the hydraulic machinery the said hollow pistons being balanced either
by the use of weights on the tops of the piston rods or by prolonging downwards the
piston rods in the hollow pistons and combining with the projecting ends of the
piston rods the appliances herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Secondly. The use of a single hollow piston valve of the kind hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings for opening and closing
communication between the ingress and egress pipes of hydraulic machinery.
Thirdly. The construction and arrangement of the chambers or compartments
herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings to be used in
combination with the hollow piston valves referred to in claim 1.
Fourthly. The construction and combination of parts hereinbefore described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings for actuating the two hollow pistons of the
valve mechanism; that is to say, the employment of a cam bar having curved ends
working in slots in the piston rods of the hollow pistons the said cam bar preserving
its parallelism while rising and falling and operating upon the hollow pistons sub-
stantially as herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated the Eleventh day of June 1890.
NETTLEFOLDS LIMITED.
By Reginald Parker,
Secretary.
C. ARTHUR JONES.