Improvements in Hydraulic Pressure Accumulators or Regulators.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 21st June, 1892-Accepted, 1st Oct., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Hydraulic Pressure Accumulators or Regulators.
I. WILLIAM WILSON SUTCLIFFE, of 61 Camp Street, New Orleans, in the
State of Louisiana, United States of America, Gentleman, 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 :--
My invention relates to an improvement in hydraulic pressure accumulators or
regulators, the object being to provide means for automatically relieving the
accumulator at any desired point and especially from the exterior. A further
object is to provide positive bearings for the guide rods so as to. obviate all'
possibility of spring of the parts or of their getting out of level.
A further object is to so construct the accumulator and regulator that a small
number of joints will be employed whereby the liability of leakage will be
diminished.
A further object is to construct an accumulator in such manner that the plunger
shall be maintained at all times in perfect alignment and thus prevent undue
wearing of the parts and consequent leakage.
A further object is to produce a hydraulic accumulator which shall be of simple
construction, dispensing with all unnecessary fixtures for guiding the plunger and
connecting the accumulator with the hydraulic cylinder, thereby simplifying and
cheapening the construction and increasing its durability and effectiveness.
A further object is to so construct a hydraulic accumulator that the plunger
may be weighted both above and below.
With these objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of
construction and combinations and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter set forth
and pointed out in the claims.
In the accompanying drawings:-
Fig. 1 is an elevation of my improved hydraulic accumulator in connection with
a cane mill.
Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the accumulator cylinder.
Fig. 3 is a detail view of the upper guide-head.
Fig. 4 is a detail in section of relief valve.
Fig. 5 is a plan view showing the lower guide ways, auxiliary pump and
hydraulic ram connections.
Fig. 6 is a view of the lower guide rod plate.
The
upper
My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in connection with a
cane mill provided with three rollers, A A A arranged in triangular relation to
each other, the roller A being arranged above and between the rollers A¹ A³, said
rollers being supported by housings B in the usual manner.
roller A.
is provided with vertically-movable bearing blocks or caps C held in place upon
the upper side of the bearings at opposite ends of the roller and connected by
bolts D D', arranged vertically and extending below the bed-plate E of the frame
or housing.
The bolts D D' are connected at their lower ends by a cross head F with a
cylindrical plunger G adapted to fit in an opening in the head H of a hydraulic
cylinder Hand a packing effectually prevents leakage or escape of the liquid
from said cylinder. The cylinder H' is of sufficient capacity to hold the quantity
of liquid required to give the desired area of piston surface and length of move-
ment to the plunger to suit the pressure to which the roller is subjected and the
distance it is to be separated from the other rollers. A pipe I of much smaller
area than that of the cylinder H' connects said cylinder with an accumulator
cylinder J, the connection J' of said pipe I with the cylinder J being provided

page_text: with hydraulic packings J. In the top of the cylinder J, a screw-threaded
opening is made for the accommodation of a similarly threaded packing nut K
having a perforation Kin its centre through which a plunger L is adapted to pass,
hydraulic packing M being located in the opening in the top of the cylinder and
beneath the nut K.
The plunger Lis preferably extended somewhat and provided in proximity to
its upper end with a screw-threaded portion L' for the reception of a screw-
threaded boss of a guide-head M'. At or near the ends of the guide-head M¹,
perforations are made as shown in Fig. 3 through which guide-rods N are passed
and secured by means of nuts. The guide-rods N extend downwardly from the
guide-head M and pass loosely through perforated ears or lugs j, projecting from
the cylinder J at the top and bottom thereof. These form positive bearings which
are necessary in order to obviate all possibility of springing of the parts or of the
machine getting out of level or perpendicular position.
At their lower ends these guide-rods are connected by a plate or bark on which
a weight or series of weights are placed and projecting downwardly from the
plate or bar k, is a hook, to which a compensating weight such as a chain may be
attached. The stem m (which is merely an extension of the plunger rod as
previously stated) is provided with a disk or plate n, having a perforation and
adapted to screw upon said stem just above the boss of guide-head M.
On this disk or plate n, and encircling the stem m, a series of weights O¹ may be
placed and in the upper extremity of the stem a hook may be secured.
In proximity to the top of the cylinder J an inlet cock or valve P, is located,
whereby to charge the cylinder, and at the bottom of said cylinder an outlet cock pl
is located by means of which the contents of the cylinder may be emptied when
desired.
Secured to the exterior of the cylinder J and adapted to communicate therewith
is a pump P by means of which liquid may be forced into the cylinder J from any
convenient source to compensate for any leakage which might occur. Provision is
made for automatically relieving pressure upon the accumulator cylinder when
necessity demands it. This consists of a valvez located in one side of the cylinder
and extending into the interior of the cylinder. The stem of this valve is
provided on its outer end with a head z-preferably rounded or convex. This head
extends out normally in close proximity to one of the guide-rods and on the guide-
rod is mounted an adjustable sleeve w. This sleeve is double cone-shaped preferably
and held in place by set screw or other similar means, so that when the guide
rods rise to a certain height this sleeve by its contact against the valve stem forces
the latter inward, thus opening the valve so as to relieve the cylinder of pressure
which might otherwise be too great and cause the cylinder to burst. Hence
the sleeve may be placed at any convenient place on the guide rod according to the
stage in the operation when it is most desirable to relieve the pressure upon the
cylinder. As soon as the pressure is thus relieved the guide rods of course drop
from their own weight and the valve is again closed by virtue of the pressure from
within.
With the apparatus thus constructed, arranged and connected with the rolling
mill, should the centre roll be caused to rise due to irregularity in the quantity of
material being passed through the mill the bolts or rods D D' will also rise,
carrying with them the plate or bar F and the plunger G, whereupon liquid will
be forced through the connecting pipe I into the accumulator cylinder and displace
the plunger.
If sufficient pressure is reached, the sleeve strikes the valve and the pressure is
relieved. After the irregularity has passed out of the mill the weight O O¹ will
cause the accumulator plunger to be forced down and displace the liquid which has
been forced through the connecting pipe I back from whence it came and so the
work of regulation will be accomplished.
By constructing the accumulator as above set forth it will be seen that the
plunger of the accumulator cylinder will be always maintained in a vertical

page_text: position and in exact alignment with the bore of the cylinder, and that as there
are a small number of connections and wearing parts, the amount of leakage and
friction will be reduced to a minimum.
I am aware that pressure regulators have been constructed in which the guide
rods were permanently fixed and a cross-head was arranged to operate on them.
In my present invention the guide rods are movable and answer the double purpose
of regulating and guiding at once.
Slight changes might be made in the details of construction of my invention ;
for instance various forms of valve could be employed other than that shown.
A lever valve could be used or the stem could have a lever attached to it.
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 I
claim is :-
1. The combination with a hydraulic cylinder having a relief valve therein, of a
plunger, a weighted guide rod connected to said plunger and means on said guide
rod for operating the relief valve, substantially as set forth.
2. The combination with a hydraulic cylinder, piston and relief valve in the
cylinder, of guide rod carried by the piston and a sleeve adjustably secured on the
rod for operating the relief valve, substantially as set forth.
3. The combination with a cylinder having guides formed at opposite ends, a
piston or plunger and a relief valve located between the guides and in alignment
with two of said guides, of guide rods carried by the piston or plunger and passing
through the guides, and means on one of the rods for operating the valve,
substantially as set forth.
4. The combination with a hydraulic cylinder and plunger, of a relief valve in
the cylinder communicating with the interior, and operated from the exterior by
the displacement of the piston within the cylinder, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 21st day of June 1892.
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.