IMPROVEMENTS IN WET GAS METERS
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Jones, of Old Street, St. Luke's, in the
County of Middlesex, and John Jones, of St. Paul's Street, New North
Road, in the County of Middlesex, Gas Meter Manufacturers, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WET GAS METERS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Jones and John
Jones at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition
on the 31st March 1860.
We, HENRY JONES, of Old Street, St. Luke's, in the County of Middlesex,
and JOHN JONES, of St. Paul's Street, New North Road, in the County of
Middlesex, Gas Meter Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WET GAS METERS," to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists, first, in doing away with the ordinary direct com-
munication which exists between the water in the body of the meter and the
water in the rectangular chamber that contains the float, (which communi-
cation is usually made by means of an aperture below the water line of the
meter,) and in placing the aperture for the admission of water from the body
to the said chamber at or above the level of the water line. By this arrange-
ment we are enabled to maintain the float at a uniform height, while the
meter is in action, and thereby to prevent any improper closing of the gas inlet
valve by any excess of pressure which may be brought upon it.
Our Invention consists, secondly, in leading the overflow pipe (which carries

page_text: off the superfluous water from the front rectangular chamber) to the back of
the meter, where it opens into the back strap at a level a little below that of
its front end; and in conducting the water from the back strap to the waste
water box in front of the meter, which is furnished with a screw plug as usual.
By these means we are enabled to prevent a fraudulent use of the meter by
tilting it, to which the ordinary meter is liable.
Our Invention consists, thirdly, in placing the drum in the body of the
meter, in a position the reverse of that ordinarily adopted, that is to say, we
place the uncovered end of it at the front, and the covered end at the back,
allowing the gas to enter the uncovered end of the drum directly, and leading
it out from the drum into the exit chamber by means of a tube resembling that
usually employed for admitting it to the drum. We prefer to convey the gas
from the rectangular chamber to the drum through a bent pipe, which dips
down so nearly to the water level in the said chamber that any tilting forward
of the meter would bring it beneath the surface of the water, and so stop the
passage of the gas. But we sometimes dispense with this pipe.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henry Jones and John Jones in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 29th September 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, HENRY
JONES, of Old Street, Saint Luke's, in the County of Middlesex, and Jonn
JONES, of Saint Paul's Street, New North Road, in the County of Middlesex,
Gas Meter Manufacturers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-third year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Henry Jones and John Jones, Her special licence that we, the said
Henry Jones and John Jones, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said Henry Jones and John Jones, our exe-
cutors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and
Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WET GAS METERS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Henry Jones and John Jones,

page_text: or one of us, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our, or their, or one of our or their hands and seals, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the late
of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Henry Jones and John Jones,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings here-
unto annexed, that is to say
Our Invention consists, first, in doing away with the ordinary direct commu-
nication which exists between the water in the body of the meter and the
water in the rectangular chamber that contains the float, (which communica-
tion is usually made by means of an aperture below the water line of the
meter,) and in placing the aperture for the admission of water from the body
to the said chamber at or above the level of the water line. By this arrange-
ment we are enabled to maintain the float at a uniform height while the meter
is in action, and thereby to prevent any improper closing of the gas inlet valve
by an excess of pressure which may be brought upon it.
Our Invention consists, secondly, in leading the overflow pipe (which carries
off the superfluous water from the front rectangular chamber) to the back of the
meter, where it opens into the back strap at a level a little below that of its
front end; and in conducting the water from the back strap to the waste water
box in front of the meter, which is furnished with a screwed plug as usual.
By these means we are enabled to prevent a fraudulent use of the meter by.
tilting it, to which the ordinary meter is liable; or we attain the same end by
the following modification of the preceding arrangement:-Instead of leading
the overflow pipe to the back of the meter, we allow the overflow water to
pass directly down into the waste water box, and apply a suspended valve to
the aperture, which admits water from the body of the meter to the rectangular
chamber, in such manner that while the meter remains upright the said
aperture will remain open; but on the meter being tilted the valve will
instantly close it.
Our Invention consists, thirdly, in placing the drum in the body of the meter
in a position the reverse of that ordinarily adopted, that is to say, we place the
uncovered end of it at the front, and the covered end at the back, allowing the
gas to enter the uncovered end of the drum directly, and leading it out from
the drum into the exit chamber by means of a bent tube.

page_text: In the Drawings hereunto annexed we have represented a wet gas meter
constructed according to our Invention.
Figure 1 is a front elevation, and Figure 2 a vertical longitudinal section of
the same.
a is the body of the meter; b, the rectangular chamber containing
the float c, and d, the aperture connecting the body a with the chamber b.
To this aperture d is shewn applied the suspended valve e, as employed in the
modified arrangement before described under the second head of our Invention.
This valve e is hung upon an axis f soldered to the meter, as shewn in Figure 2.
When the meter is upright the valve e is off the aperture d, through which
aperture the water is free to flow in one direction (viz. from the body to the
rectangular chamber), and gas in the other. It will be clearly seen from
Figure 2 that the drum g is placed in the body of the meter with the un-
covered end at the front, as described under the third head of our Invention.
The gas enters the uncovered end directly, and is led from the drum 9 into
the exit chamber h by the bent tube i.
In the Drawings we have shown the meter complete, but limit our descrip-
tion to the parts and arrangements which are included in our Invention.
And having now described the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, we declare that that we claim,-
First, the method of placing the aperture, by which communication is
established between the body of the meter and the front rectangular chamber,
at or above the level of the water line, in the manner and for the purpose
herein-before described and illustrated in the Drawings hereunto annexed.
Secondly, the methods of counteracting the effects of tilting the meter, by
the means and in the manner herein-before described under the second head
of our Invention.
Thirdly, the method of placing the drum in the body of the meter with its
uncovered end to the front, and of allowing the gas to enter and escape from
the drum, in the manner and for the purpose herein-before described and illus-
trated in the Drawings hereunto annexed.
In witness whereof, we, the said Henry Jones and John Jones, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-ninth day of September,
One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
HENRY JONES. (L.S.)
JOHN JONES.
(L.S.)