IMPROVEMENTS IN REGULATING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JoпN
WRIGHT TREEBY, of Elizabethan Villa, Saint John's Wood, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date
at Westminster, the Tenth day of September, in the sixteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Wright Treeby, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that I, the said John Wright Treeby, my exors, adiñiors, and
assigns, and such others as I, the said John Wright Treeby, my exors, adñiors;
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned, should and law-
fully might make, use, exercise and vend, within England, Wales, the Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and Plantations
abroad, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN REGULATING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS;" in which
said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso obliging me, the said John
Wright Treeby, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, parti-
cularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be
inrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
inonths next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited

page_text: Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will
more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Wright Treeby, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say):-
The main object of this Invention is to avoid the waste of water which
arises from the present mode of supplying water to the public, and at the same
time to admit of a constant supply being kept up in the cisterns or reservoirs
connected with dwellings, shops, and buildings generally, in all weathers. In
the accompanying Drawing, the manner in which I propose to attain this
object is shewn, Fig. 1 being a sectional elevation of one arrangement of
apparatus for regulating the flow of liquids, and Fig. 2 a sectional elevation of
another arrangement of which Fig. 3 is a face view. In Fig. 1 a is a valve
box inserted in a cistern or reservoir and connected to the supply pipe b by a
pipe c, which is in fact a continuation of the supply pipe. This valve box a
is fitted at its upper part with a stuffing box through which the valve rod d
passes, and at its lower end it carries a central step which receives the lower
end of the valve rod, and forms a guide for it in its vertical sliding movements,
which will be presently explained. Mounted loosely on the rod d is a dise
valve e, the position of which on its rod is determined by an adjustable nut f,
that bears against its upper face, and a spring 9 interposed between its under
face and a nut fi affixed to the valve rod. To the upper end of the valve
rod a float h, formed either of naturally buoyant material (or of a material
made artificially buoyant) is attached for the purpose of actuating the valve e,
and opening or cutting off (as the case be) a passage for the water from
the supply pipe to the cistern. This float should be made adjustable on its
rod for the purpose of setting it to the level of the water required in the
cistern. In the upper part of the valve box a an exit is provided for the
escape of the water into the cistern. The use of the spring 9 is to allow of
the valve yielding slightly when brought into contact with its seat, and thereby
to reduce the amount of concussion which would otherwise take place between
those parts. For this purpose a metal spring, as shewn in the Drawing, or a
tube or ring of vulcanized india rubber may be employed. The action of the
apparatus is as follows:-When the cistern is full the float will be borne up to
its highest elevation, and it will thereby keep the valve up to its seat, as shewn
in the Drawing, but when by the drawing off of water from the cistern the

page_text: level of the water is depressed the float will fall and carry down with it the
valve e, whereby a passage for the entrance of a fresh supply of water to the
cistern will be opened. As soon, however, as the water has attained a given
maximum height in the cistern the float which rises with the water level will
have lifted the valve into contact with its seat, and thereby cut off the supply.
By the use therefore of this construction of apparatus for regulating the flow
of liquids, cisterns or reservoirs may be kept constantly supplied without the
risk of overflowing, and indeed without overflow pipes being required. It
will be understood from the foregoing explanation, that valves of various
kinds may be employed for opening and closing the supply pipe. Thus, for
instance, in place of the disc valve, shewn at Fig. 1, a conical or a spherical
valve may be substituted if thought desirable, a corresponding change being
at the same time made in the valve seat, as will be well understood.
I also propose to work face or slide valves after the manner of the disc
valve just described. For this purpose I employ the arrangements shewn at
Figures 2 and 3.
a is a flat valve, ground and fitted into a valve box b, in a
manner similar to the cut-off valves of steam engines, and connected to a float c
by a rigid bent rod d. Attached to and forming part with the valve box is the
termination of the supply pipe e. Water or other liquid therefore, in passing
to the cistern or reservoir to which it is required to be supplied, will flow
through the valve box, and the amount of flow will be determined as before
explained by the height of the float in the cistern, and the consequent position
of the valve in the valve box. An important advantage consequent on the
application of this Invention is, that as the valve will when the apparatus is
conveniently fitted be immersed continuously in liquid there will be little
liability of its action being interfered with by frost.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood, that under the above
in part recited Letters Patent, I claim regulating the flow of liquids by mount-
ing cut-off valves in such manner that they may be closed and kept to their
seat by the joint action of the supply liquid, and that which has passed the
valves, and that by the action of the specific gravity of the valves and their
connections they may be opened on the decrease of the liquid level in the
cistern or reservoir to which they are applied.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Wright Treeby, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
JOHN WRIGHT (L.S.) TREEBY.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Tenth day of March, in the
year of our Lord 1853, the aforesaid John Wright Treeby came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.