IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER SUPPLY APPARATUS FOR WATERCLOSETS, URINALS, AND WASHING AND SIMILAR APPARATUS
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Shanks, of Barrhead, in the County of
Renfrew, North Britain, Sanitary Engineer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER SUPPLY APPARATUS FOR WATERCLOSETS, URINALS,
AND WASHING AND SIMILAR APPARATUS."
Sealed the 4th February 1873, and dated the 14th December 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Shanks at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on *the
14th December 1872.
-
:
I, JOHN SHANKS, of Barrhead, in the County, of Renfrew, North
Britain, Sanitary Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said In-
vention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER SUPPLY Apparatus for WATERCLOSETS,
URINALS, AND WASHING AND SIMILAR APPARATUS," to be as follows, that is to

page_text: ratus, which whilst being contrived to prevent waste is economical in
first cost, simple and effective in use, and not liable to get out of order.
In one modification of the improved apparatus a chamber or box of a
size to contain the quantity of water that is to be discharged or drawn
off at each action is arranged at the bottom of an ordinary cistern, the
discharge aperture from the cistern being within it. A common conical
or a rubber-faced valve is used for closing the discharge aperture and is
connected to a rod which passes up a pipe fixed on the top of a chamber
and rising above the water level of the cistern. In the top of the
chamber and round the pipe there is a circle of inlet holes through
which the water has access into the chamber, and the rod carries an
annular valve for closing these holes when it is lifted. The rod is con-
nected to the lower or discharge valve by a slotted link which allows the
rod to rise a short distance before it begins to move the discharge valve,
so that it closes the upper annular valve before opening the discharge
valve. A helical or other suitable spring is interposed between the upper
valve and a collar on the rod, and this spring becomes compressed when
the rod, is drawn further up so as to open the discharge valve. Thus
before the contents of the chamber can be discharged a second time the
discharge valve must be closed to allow the upper valve to open.
In a second modification a tilting dish or pan set on journals inside
the chamber is substituted for the discharge valve and is tilted when a
discharge of water is wanted by a wire or rod passing up the pipe. The
water has access to the dish or pan in the chamber from the cistern or
directly from a supply pipe, through an aperture provided with a valve
which is closed by a float as the pan or dish fills, and the wire or rod
which tilts the pan is connected to this valve so as to close it when the
pan is being tilted. Part of the water entering by the inlet valve may
be led by a spout beyond the side of the pan so as to pass off by the
discharge pipe (for filling up a watercloset basin for example) after the
pan has been emptied and whilst it is being refilled.
In cases where there is a range of waterclosets or urinals the several
chambers or measuring boxes are by preference fitted in one long cistern
extending along the range so that the communications with each closet
or urinal may be as direct as possible, at the same time that a repetition
of cisterns is avoided. In one simple arrangement of this kind a long
rectangular trough or cistern is provided with a longitudinal vertical

page_text: partition near one side, and the broader space on one side of this partition
is divided by transverse partitions into the series of compartments or
measuring chambers, appertaining each to one of the closets, urinals, or
wash basins. The other side of the longitudinal partition forms the
cistern, and supply inlets are formed through this partition into each
compartment. The lever or rod for acting on the discharge valve of
each compartment is arranged with a slotted link and spring as in the
modification first herein-before described, which causes the inlet valve to
close before the discharge valve opens. In the case in which only two
compartments are required, as for a watercloset and a urinal, a separate
cistern space may be dispensed with and the float supply cock may be
fitted in the larger compartment, namely, that for the watercloset; and
in this modification a second nozzle or spout is led from the float cock
into the overflow pipe to fill up the closet basin after the main discharge
valve is shut.
For a range of urinals simple flushing apparatus is by this Invention
applied so as to act periodically. This apparatus comprises a dish or
pan set on centres or journals and continuously supplied with water at a
slow rate by an adjustable tap. The dish is shaped and weighted in such
a way as to turn and empty itself whenever it becomes filled, and it
delivers its contents into a series of gutters in a trough from which pipes
lead the water to the several urinals. An equal supply to each urinal
may be secured by making the tilting dish with compartments com-
municating with each other by small holes, and so that when the dish
tilts each compartment empties into a separate gutter or spout.