Improvements in Apparatus for Automatically Causing a Flow of Water or other Fluid by the Fusion of a suitable Joint or Con- nection for Fire Extinguishing and like Purposes.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Aug., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 15th May, 1899-Accepted, 15th July, 1899
FIUVIDIONAL DEMOLITION
Improvements in Apparatus for Automatically Causing a Flow of
Water or other Fluid by the Fusion of a suitable Joint or Con-
nection for Fire Extinguishing and like Purposes.
I, HANDEL BEECH, of Victoria Villas, Heaton Park, Prestwich, in the County
of Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
This invention relates to that class of apparatus for which Letters Patent
No. 20,725 were applied for by myself on the 9th day of September 1897, the
object being to simplify and cheapen the construction of such apparatus and
to improve the same by allowing little or no surface of the separate parts to
remain in contact when the apparatus is set ready for action, as such contact
may cause adhesion in the presence of corrosive gases or moisture and thus
retard or even prevent the separation of the parts when released by the melting of
the fusible holdfast or joint.
The invention consists in the use of two separable parts only the one here-
after called a lever supporting the valve against its seating by a knife edge
and notch as described in the Specification of the aforesaid Letters Patent or
otherwise and the other hereafter called a prop supporting that first named
by a knife edge which may be on either part.
These two parts are secured together preferably at or near their lower ends
by a fusible grip or joint similar to that described by the aforesaid Specification,
and the knife edges are so placed with regard to each other that the lower end
of the lever will always be forced outwards and away from the supporting part
or prop by the force of the water acting on the valve when the heldfast or joint
is destroyed.
The prop may be supported by an adjustable support or a fixed one according
to the form of valve used as described in the aforesaid specification.
In order to reduce to a minimum the surface contact of the part when set
together ready for action I propose in some cases to form the lever somewhat
Tshaped with a downwardly depending limb and an upper cross piece the
latter being formed with a knife edge at the top to support the valve, and a
similar edge at the lower part engaging with a broad angular notch in the
upper part of the prop (or vice versa the notch may be in the lower surface of
the shaped part of the lever and a knife edge on the prop).
The prop may be made in the form of a U that is it may have a deep vertical
cut or slot commencing at the top and reaching nearly to the bottom, and this
cut or slot is long and wide enough to allow the depending limb of the lever
to pass freely through the same.
The hold fast consists of arms so made or provided with a head that their

page_text: free ends can pass through the slot or cut in the prop on either side of the lower
limb of the lever and grip a transverse tube or bar to which they are soldered
but they can not escape altogether through the said prop.
The prop may be formed with a strengthening plate at the back or it may be
Ushaped or angular in horizontal section; or it may present a knife edge along
the said lever, or it may even be made say semicircular in horizontal section
with a flat surface near the depending lever parallel therewith or gradually
decreasing in width and the lever may also be semicircular in section; and in
some cases the lever may be simply cranked at the top to support the valve
and be supported by the prop, and bent or thickened at the bottom to assist in
securing the holdfast, and if desirable to keep the two parts apart.
In some cases I may provide a small spring on one part bearing against the
other and tending to separate them.
Dated this 13th day of August 1898
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
Agents for the Applicant, 4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester.
Improvements in Apparatus for Automatically Causing a Flow of
Water or other Fluid by the Fusion of a suitable Joint or Con-
nection for Fire Extinguishing and like Purposes.
I, HANDEL BEECH, formerly of Victoria Villas, Heaton Park, Prestwich, now
of 235, Windsor Road, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention relates to that class of apparatus for which Letters Patent
No. 20,725 were granted to me dated the 9th day of September 1897, the object
being to simplify and cheapen the construction of such apparatus and to improve
the same by allowing little or no surface of the separate parts to remain in con-
tact when the apparatus is set ready for action, as such contact may cause adhesion
in the presence of corrosive gases or moisture and thus retard or even prevent
the separation of the parts when released by the melting of the fusible holdfast
or joint.
The invention consists in the use of two principal separable parts, the one
hereafter called a "lever" supporting the valve against its seating by a knife edge
and notch as described in the Specification of the aforesaid Letters Patent, or
otherwise, and the other hereafter called a
prop" supporting the first named
by a knife edge which may be on either part. Or the props may support the valve
and be supported by the lever on a knife edge, as hereafter described.
*
These two parts are secured together preferably at or near their lower ends by
a fusible grip or joint similar to that described by the aforesaid Specification, and
the knife edges are so placed with regard to each other that the lower end of the
lever will always be forced outwards and away from the supporting part or prop
by the force of the water acting on the valve when the holdfast or joint is destroyed.
The prop may be supported by an adjustable support or a fixed one, according
to the form of valve used as described in the aforesaid Specification.
Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4 on the annexed drawings are front elevations shewing my
invention applied in various ways.

page_text: Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are vertical sections taken through the line A-A, B-B,
C-C, D-D on the above figs.
Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the line E-E on Fig. 3.
Figs. 8 and 9 are front and side views of the lever shewn on Figs. 1 and 5.
Figs. 10 and 11 are similar views of the prop. Fig. 10 is a plan of Fig. 10.
Figs. 9 and 11 illustrate another form of lever and prop hereafter referred to.
Figs. 5 and 6 are transverse sections through the lever and prop seen at Figs. 5
and 6 respectively,
Fig. 5 is a detached plan view of the holdfast thereof.
Fig. 5 shews a transverse holdfast connecting the lever and prop.
Fig. 12 is a front view of a modified form of lever and prop. Fig. 13 is a
front view showing the prop supported by the lever and supporting the valve.
Fig. 14 is a side view of this arrangement.
Fig. 6º, 6º, 6, 6" are horizontal sections showing various forms of prop having
no point of contact with the lever other than knife edges or rounded edges.
Figs. 15, 16 and 17 show in side elevation and front view and horizontal
section another form of lever and prop.
On all the figs. a is the valve casing and support for the parts, a¹ is the water
spreader at the bottom thereof the support for the bottom of the prop is shewn
as a screw a² at Figs. 5 and 7 or a fixed edge a³ at Figs. 6 and 8, these latter
figs. shewing the valve seating at in the form of a flexible diaphragm forced
down on the valve by the pressure of water.
b is the lever, c the prop, d the holdfast arms soldered by readily fusible
solder to the tube d and thus normally keeping the parts b and c together. -
In order to reduce to a minimum the surface contact of the parts when set
together ready for action I propose in some cases to form the lever somewhat
T-shaped (see Figs. 8 and 9) with a downwardly depending limb b and an upper
cross piece 6 the latter being formed with a knife edge at the top to support
the valve, and a similar edge at the lower part engaging with a broad angular
notch in the upper part of the prope (or vice versa) the notch may be in the lower
surface of the T shaped part of the lever and a knife edge on the prop (see
Figs. 9 and 11^).
The prop c may be made somewhat in the form of a U, see detached views
Figs. 10 and 11, that is it may have a deep vertical cut or slot commencing at
the top and reaching nearly to the bottom, and this cut or slot is long, and wide
enough to allow the depending limb of the lever to pass freely through or into
the same, without touching at the sides.
The hold fast consists of arms d so connected to the prop (see Figs. 5* and 6^)
that their free ends can pass through the slot or cut in the prop on either
side of the lower limb of the lever, and grip a vertical or transverse tube or
bar d to which they are soldered, but they can not escape altogether through
the said prop c.
The prop may be formed with a strengthening plate at the back see Fig. 6° or
it may be shaped see Fig. 6", or angular in horizontal section see Fig. 6*; or
it may present a knife edge see Fig. 6.along the said lever b, or it may be made
say semicircular in horizontal section see Fig. 6.
"In some cases in addition to the parts b and c I employ a flat strip e (see
Figs. 3, 3, 4, 7 and 8) hooked at e¹ to the prop c and held by the holdfast d
which in this case is connected to the lever b as shewn, the end of the lever i
forced against the strip e near its hook or fulcrum e¹, but the holdfast d d¹ nor-
mally prevents the end of the stripe from being forced out beyond a certain
angle by the lever until the solder is melted.
In some cases the lever b may be made in the form of an inverted V with
cross bar b¹ (see Fig. 12) and the prop work between the depending arms thereof.
Or the prop c may be inverted and support the valve being supported on the
inverted shaped lever 6 61 as seen at Figs. 13 and 14.
In this case when an adjustable supporting screw a² is used the lower knife

page_text: edge of the cross bar b¹ is carried by a head or shoe a in the shank of which
the end of the screw a² can revolve for adjustment.
It will be seen on reference to Figs. 6º, 6º, 6, 6, 6", that the form of recess
in the prop c is such that the free end 6 of the lever can not be forced acci-
dentally back in the wrong direction and on reference to Figs. 5, 5, 6, 6* 7
3 and 8 it will be seen that the inclined projection cat the bottom of the
U shaped prop will serve this purpose also as well as forming a point of attach-
ment or resistance for the holdfast to resist the outward motion of the said
free end of the lever.
Thus the knife edges can not be so set that the pressure of the water will
not tend to force the said end of the lever outwards; in other words the point
or edge which is the fulcrum of the lever must be outside the line of pressure
between the points or edges 2 and c².
In some cases (see Figs. 15 and 16) the lever may be simply cranked at the
top to carry the cross piece b₁ to support the valve v and be supported by the
prope which in this case is only recessed sufficiently for the insertion of
the cranked upper end of the lever l.
The holdfast may be applied either as seen at Figs. 5 and 6 or as seen at
Figs. 7 and 8.
I would remark that the parts liable to corrosion may be covered with any
suitable vitreous glaze, or glass may be used in some cases.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is;-
1. The combination with a valve capable of falling away from its seating of
a lever and a prop suitably supported on knife edges, the said lever having a
tendency under pressure to fly apart from the prop, but these two parts being
normally held in place by a fusible holdfast, one part being made with a recess
in which the other part can rest without touching the same, so that no plane
surfaces on the two parts are in contact when set under pressure ready for action
substantially as herein before described.
2. The combination of valve, T shaped lever, knife edge, and prop with sup-
port, for the latter, and fusible holdfast connecting the said lever and prop,
substantially as hereinbefore described.
3. The combination of valve, T shaped lever, knife edges and prop, with
support for the latter, and locking piece held by fusible holdfast attached to the
lever to retain the lever and prop in place substantially as hereinbefore described.
4. The combination of valve, T shaped lever, knife edges, and prop, with
support for the latter and fusible holdfast, connecting the said lever and prop
the latter being so formed as to prevent the lever from being pushed too far
back substantially as hereinbefore described.
Thated the 10th
1000
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
Agents for the Applicant, 4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester.