IMPROVEMENTS IN FLUID METERS AND IN PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Conrad Van de Poel Ahrbecker and Hugo Emil
John Hamkens, both of No. 117, Stamford Street, Lambeth, in the County of
Surrey, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FLUID METERS AND IN
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Conrad Van de
Poel Ahrbecker and Hugo Emil John Hamkens at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 24th August 1881.
HENRY CONRAD VAN DE POEL AHRBECKER and HUGO EMIL JOHN HAMKENS,
" 'IMPROVE-
both of No. 117, Stamford Street, Lambeth, in the County of Surrey.
MENTS IN FLUID METERS AND IN BALL COCKS EMPLOYED IN COMBINATION
THEREWITH."
According to our present Invention we construct fluid meters as follows :-A
casing is formed with a lower chamber, having an inlet for the fluid supply and
closed at top by a cap, having on its underside an open recess leading from the
said chamber into lateral curved passages formed in the body of the cap; these
passages are made to taper from inlet openings of considerable width at the central
recess to narrow exit openings at the periphery of the cap, from which openings
the fluid issues in small oblique streams. On the top of the cap is a disc or wheel
on a recessed spindle running upon a pin fixed in the top of the cap, and passing
up through a boss on a partition in the upper part of the casing. The disc or
wheel is of larger diameter than the cap so as to project beyond the same, and on
the underside of such projecting part are fixed or formed oblique blades curved in
the opposite direction to the curvature of the passages in the cap, and extending
down in front of the outer openings of the said passages, so that the oblique jets
issuing from these are caused to impinge upon the blades of the wheel and thus
impart to it rotary motion, which is communicated by its spindle in any suitable
known manner to a counter or registering mechanism in the top of the casing. The
fluid after acting on the vanes of the wheel passes up through the compartment

page_text: in which it is situated to an escape opening at the upper part thereof. The contral
part of the upper side of the wheel is enclosed by a cylindrical shell fixed or
formed on the before mentioned upper partition, and on the part of the upper side
of the wheel beyond this shell are formed vanes, which in revolving in the fluid
passing through the meter serve to control the speed of the wheel.
.
The opening of the recess in the before mentioned cap is surrounded by a
cylindrical screen of wire gauze, whereby any solid matter passing in with the
fluid from the inlet is prevented from entering the curved passages.
In employing meters of the above described construction for the constant water
supply of dwellings we fix the meter in a tank or cistern that serves to supply the
water closets and the like, and on the discharge pipe of the meter we form a branch
to which is attached a ball cock, consisting of a horizontal cylindrical barrel closed
by a serew cap at one end, and having a spindle passing through its other end to
which spindle the ball lever is attached. This spindle has within the barrel a
finger taking into a notch on the back of a segmental shield or slide, made to
fit with its outer face accurately against the inner cylindrical surface of the
barrel.
The barrel has an outlet aperture in,its side, which when the cistern is full and
the ball lever raised is closed by the said slide, the latter being moved by the
finger of the ball spindle so as to open the outlet when the ball lever sinks on the
emptying of the cistern. The spindle of the ball lever has within the barrel a
coned collar, which is pressed by the fluid pressure with or without the aid of a
spring against a coned soat formed round the holo through which the spindle
passes, thereby preventing leakage of water without the use of an ordinary
stuffing box.
The supply pipe from the meter is carried from the discharge pipe of the meter
beyond the cistern to the other parts of the house where water supply is
required.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Henry Conrad Van de Poel Ahrbecker and Hugo Emil John
Hamkens in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd February 1882.
HENRY CONRAD VAN DE POEL AHRBECKER and HUGO EMIL JOHN HAMKENS,
both of No. 117, Stamford Street, Lambeth, in the County of Surrey. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN FLUID METERS AND IN BALL COCKS EMPLOYED IN COMBINATION
THEREWITH."
According to our present Invention we construct fluid meters as follows:-A
casing is formed with a lower chamber having an inlet for the fluid supply and closed
at top by a cap, having on its underside an open recess leading from the said
chamber into lateral curved passages formed in the body of the cap; these passages
are made to taper from inlet openings of considerable width at the central recess
to narrow exit openings at the periphery of the cap, from which openings the fluid
issues in small oblique streams. On the top of the cap is a disc or wheel on a
recessed spindle, running upon a pin fixed in the top of the cap and passing up
through a boss on a partition in the upper part of the casing. The disc or wheel
is of larger diameter than the cap, so as to project beyond the same; and on the
underside of such projecting part are fixed or formed oblique blades curved in the
opposite direction to the curvature of the passages in the cap, and extending down
in front of the outer openings of the said passages, so that the oblique jets issuing
from these are caused to impinge upon the blades of the wheel, and thus impart to
it rotary motion, which is communicated by its spindle in any suitable known
manner to a counter or registering mechanism in the top of the casing. The fluid
after acting on the vanes of the wheel passes up through the compartment in which
it is situated to an escape opening at the upper part thereof. The central part of
the upper side of the wheel is enclosed by a cylindrical shell fixed or formed on the
before-mentioned upper partition, and on the part of the upper side of the wheel
beyond the shell are formed vanes, which in revolving in the fluid passing through
the meter serve to control the speed of the wheel.
The opening of the recess in the before-mentioned cap is surrounded by a
cylindrical screen of wire gauze, whereby any solid matter passing in with the fluid
from the inlet is prevented from entering the curved passages.
In employing meters of the above described construction for the constant water
supply of dwellings we fix the meter in a tank or cistern that serves to supply the
water-closets and the like, and on the discharge pipe of the meter we form a
branch to which is attached a ball cock consisting of a horizontal cylindrical barrel
closed by a screw cap at one end and having a spindle passing through its other
end, to which spindle the ball lever is attached. This spindle has within the
barrel a finger taking into a notch on the back of a segmental shield or slide made
to fit with its outer face accurately against the inner cylindrical surface of the
barrel.
The barrel has an outlet aperture in its side which when the cistern is full and
the ball lever raised is closed by the said slide, the latter being moved by the
finger of the ball spindle so as to open the outlet when the ball lever sinks on the
emptying of the cistern. The spindle of the ball lever has within the barrel a
coned collar which is pressed by the fluid pressure with or without the aid of a
spring against a coned seat formed round the hole through which the spindle
passes, thereby preventing leakage of water without the use of an ordinary stuffing
box.
The supply pipe from the meter is carried from the discharge pipe of the meter
beyond the cistern. to the other parts of the house where water supply is required.

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a vertical section; Fig. 2, & side view; and Fig. 3 a sectional plan on
line X, X, of a water meter according to this Invention; Fig. 4 is a plan of the
wheel with its retarding blades shewn separately. The water enters by the opening
A, and passing through a porous screen B rises up the central passage C, whence
it flows along curved channels D and issues from them against the curved blades E
of the wheel F. Instead of four channels D, as shewn in Fig. 3, there may be a
number of such channels D¹, as shown in Fig. 5, separated by curved blades. On
the upper face of the wheel F are a few vanes G which control the speed of the
wheel. The water after passing the wheel escapes by the opening H; the wheel
F revolves freely on a central pivot K, and its spindle L extended upwards has on
it a screw thread which works a worm-wheel M, and thus moves the indices of a
counter accommodated in the upper part N of the casing, these indices being con-
nected by suitable gear to the worm-wheel M; Fig. 6 is a plan to a reduced scale.
shewing the meter O, having attached to its outlet H a ball-cock according to this
Invention, a section of which is shewn at Fig. 7. P is the lover which carries the
Boat ball, its spindle Q enters the casing of the cock, and has a projecting finger
engaging with a recess in the slide R, so that the outlet opening is closed or
opened by the slide according as the float ball rises or sinks in the cistern.
.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, we claim,-
First. The construction of fluid meter herein described with reference to Figs. 1
to 5 inclusive of the accompanying Drawings.
Second. The combination of a fluid meter such as is referred to in the preceding
claim, with a ball-cock constructed as herein described with reference to Figs. 5
and 6.
In witness wherent I the said Henry Conved Van da Daal