Improvements in Locomotive Engines for Working on Railways, Tramways, and on Common Roads.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Aug., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 3rd May, 1894-Accepted, 4th Aug., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Locomotive Engines for Working on Railways,
Tramways, and on Common Roads.
I, ADAM MILLAR of 45 Montrose Street in the City of Glasgow, Manufacturer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The improvements relate to engines employing mineral oil or other liquid fuel
burned along with common air in the form of an explosive gaseous mixture.
Under the invention the explosive combustion is produced in a closed chamber
communicating by means of suitable valves with a receiver or accumulator in which
the heated gases produced by the explosion are stored.
A sufficiently high pressure is maintained in the accumulator by repeatedly
charging and exploding the contents of the combustion chamber.
The accumulator is furnished with pipes through which the highly compressed
air or gases are led to the cylinders of the engine, which are of a similar con-
struction to those in use in locomotives working by steam, having valves controlled
by hand levers for regulating the speed and for reversing the direction of the
motion.
A special feature of the improvements consists in augmenting the volume of hot
air obtained by the explosive combustion of the fuel, by injecting common air into
the combustion chamber after each explosion and so utilising the heat absorbed by
the sides of the chamber.
To prevent loss of beat by radiation from the outer surfaces of the combustion
chamber it is encased in a non-conducting jacket of fire-clay or other non-conducting
materials.
To allow of the cold air being heated rapidly, a lining of perforated sheet metal
or of wire gauze is placed in the inside of the combustion chamber. The large
surfaces so presented will be quickly heated by the heat generated at the instant
of the explosion and will likewise impart the heat quickly to the cold air injected.
A jet of water may be employed in place of air or along with air for the same
object, the water being instantly converted into high pressure steam.
The heated air and also the high pressure steam pass into the accumulator and
mix with the products of the explosive combustion.
The charging of the combustion chamber with the liquid fuel, air, and when so
used, with water is effected by suitable pumps operated by levers and cams. The
cams are fixed upon a revolving shaft.
The motive power for the shaft is or may be obtained from the compressed air
in the accumulator acting upon a piston working in a small supplemental cylinder
and geared to a crank fixed on one end of the shaft.
The shaft also carries a small fly wheel to give steadiness to its motion.
The explosive mixture of oil vapour and common air may be fixed by an electric
spark or by an incandescent tube or other convenient method.
Dated this 3rd day of August 1893.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents,

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Locomotive Engines for Working on Railways,
Tramways, and on Common Roads.
I, ADAM MILLAR, of 45 Montrose Street, in the City of Glasgow, Manufacturer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
The improvements relate to engines employing mineral oil or other liquid fuel
burned along with common air in the form of an explosive gaseous mixture.
Under the invention the explosive combustion is produced in a closed chamber
communicating by means of suitable valves with a receiver or accumulator in which
the heated gases produced by the explosion are stored. A sufficiently high
pressure is maintained in the accumulator by repeatedly charging and exploding
the contents of the combustion chamber.
The accumulator is furnished with pipes through which the highly compressed
air or gases are led to the cylinders of the engine, which are of a similar construction
to those in use in locomotives working by steam, having valves controlled by hand
levers for regulating the speed and for reversing the direction of the motion.
The charging of the combustion chamber with the liquid fuel and air is effected
by suitable punips operated by levers and cams. The cams are fixed upon a
revolving shaft.
The motive power for the shaft is obtained from the explosive combustion of the
oil vapour and air acting upon a piston working in a cylinder and geared to a crank
shaft.
The shaft also carries a small fly wheel to give steadiness to its motion.
The explosive mixture of oil vapour and common air may be fired by an electric
spark or by an incandescent tube or other convenient method.
The accompanying drawing shews the preferred mode of carrying out the
invention.
A is a receiver or accumulator furnished with pressure gauge and safety valve
and communicating by a pipe A¹ with an apparatus which serves as a combustion
chamber. The combustion chamber consists of a cylinder B having a working
piston B and connecting rod B2 attached to a disc or fly wheel B³ keyed on the
crank shaft B. The cylinder which is provided with a water jacket to prevent
overheating is open at one end, and at the closed end two large valves C and D
are fitted. C is an inlet valve communicating with a vessel C' in which successive
charges of mineral oil are vaporised by means of the flame of a lamp C² placed
beneath the vessel.
On the fly wheel B³ being turned the piston advances towards the open end of
the cylinder B, and the partial vacuum so formed causes the atmospheric air to
rush through a light valve C³ formed in the vessel C¹ into the cylinder by a valve C*
and in its passage it carries the vaporised oil with it and so fills the space between
the piston and the bottom of the cylinder with an explosive mixture. When the
piston has made two-thirds or three-fourths of its stroke the inlet valve C₁ is
closed by the depression of the valve spindle C and at the same instant a slide E
is depressed so as to bring an opening E' in the slide opposite to a small firing
port E which leads into the interior of the cylinder. The valve spindle C³ and
slide E are both depressed by means of a horizontal rod worked by a cam on the
crank shaft. A lamp E³ is placed so that its flame is opposite to the firing port E
and the continued movement of the piston outwards causes the flame of the lamp to
be drawn into the cylinder and so ignites the explosive mixture. By the pressure
generated at the instant of explosion a valve D' situated between the cylinder and
the pipe A is opened through which the hot compressed gases pass to the
receiver A. At the same time the piston receives an impulse which drives it to

page_text: the end of its stroke, and communicates sufficient momentum to the fly wheel as to
produce an inward or return movement of the piston which thus drives out the
remaining products of combustion by the exhaust valve F, which valve is made
to open by a cam acting on suitable rods or levers. The momentum of the fly
wheel carries the piston through its next outward movement until a succeeding
explosion takes place.
Oil-fuel is injected into the vaporising vessel C¹ by a small pump G acted upon
by the slide E, the pump being fed by a small pipe H leading to an oil tank.
The compressor may be constructed with a double acting cylinder, that is to say,
closed at each end, aud furnished with the proper valves and firing slides at
each end.
A pipe A leads from the receiver to a pair of working cylinders, having pistons
geared to the wheels of the tramway car, the arrangements being similar to those
adopted in locomotive engines, or locomotive carriages where the motive power is
steam generated in a steam boiler.
The speed of the locomotive and the direction in which it travels are controlled
by suitable levers, in a manner similar to those in ordinary use in steam
locomotives.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what [
claim is-
1. As means for working locomotive vehicles the employment of a reservoir
charged with compressed air or gases by the explosive combustion of oil vapour and
common air, substantially as described.
2. As means for charging a reservoir used for working locomotive vehicles a
combustion chamber or compressor composed of a cylinder with reciprocating piston
and valves arranged to operate substantially as described.
3. The combination of an oil vapour generator, compressor or combustion chamber
and reservoir arranged and operating, substantially as described.
Dated this 2nd day of May 1894.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.