HYDRAULIC LUBRI- CATORS
Year: 1878

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by Nicholas Seibert at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 16th July 1878.
NICHOLAS SEIBERT, of Boston, in the County of Suffolk, and State of Massa-
chusetts, one of the United States of America, Engineer. "HYDRAULIC LUBRI-
CATORS,
"
My Invention relates to hydraulic lubricators for the purpose of lubricating
steam previous to its entering the steam cylinder, steam pipes, or valve chest, etc.,
of a steam engine, and this my Invention consist of a tank or closed chamber
containing the lubricant, which tank is provided in its lower end with a water pipe -
leading from any part of the feed water pipe between the pump, injector, or
inspirator and the cheek valve of the boiler; or said pipe may be connected
directly to the boiler below the water line therein, by which arrangement a portion
of the feed water or boiler water is forced into the lower part of said oil tank,
thereby increasing the pressure on the under side of the oil, causing it to rise
upwards and to be forced out through a pipe in the upper part of said oil tank
leading to the observer or sight chamber, where the flow of the oil can be seen and
regulated.
The pipe leading from the feed water pipe or boiler to the oil tank is provided
with a valve which is to be closed when the oil tank is to be filled, and the oil
tank is furthermore provided in its lower part with an outlet closed by a valve by
which the contents of the said tank can be withdrawn. The above-mentioned
observer is a transparent vessel, the upper part of which serves as an air chamber;
and the lower part serves as an oil receptacle for the oil previous to its being forced
into the steam pipe. The said transparent receptacle is secured air-tight to
metallic bottom that is provided with an inlet pipe, with a regulating valve leading
from the upper part of the oil tank, and an outlet pipe provided with a check valve
leading to the interior of the steam pipe in which the steam is to be lubricated.
A valve is further located on said delivery pipe for the purpose of preventing
the oil to flow out from the observer when the engine is at rest, which is accom-
plished by closing said valve.

page_text: In the metallic bottom plate of the observer is located a four-way cock, con-
taining the in and out let pipes in the following manner :-When the cock is
turned so that the horizontal hole therein is in a line with the in and out let
pipes, the oil that is forced from the oil tank will pass directly into the steam pipe
without passing into the transparent observer, as may be necessary in case of
accident or damage to the latter; when the cock is turned so that the aforesaid
direct hole is at a right angle to the in and out let pipes, the oil will pass into a
vertical hole in the cock connected to a small pipe rising upwards within the trans-
parent observer and to nearly the top thereof, where it is curved slightly down-
wards, so that the amount of oil that is forced from the oil tank to the steam pipe
may at all times be observed from without. The oil that flows from the upper
curved end of the aforesaid riser drops through the air space in the observer to the
oil chamber below, from which it escapes through an opening in the cock commu-
nicating with the outlet pipe to the steam pipe. It will thus be seen that the oil
is forced into the steam pipe by a hydraulic pressure of water, either direct from
the boiler or from the feed water pipe at any point between the feeding apparatus
and the check valve of the boiler, and a constant and automatic oil supply is thus
maintained from the oil tank to the steam pipe or other part of the steam engine
that is to be lubricated.
This hydraulic lubricator is equally useful for marine, stationary, and portable
engines, as well as locomotives and steam pumps, it only requiring a slight change in
its location and connection, according to the character of the engine or boiler for
which it is to be used; for instance, in applying it to a locomotive the water pipe
may be attached either to the feed water pipe, as described, or directly to the boiler
below the water line; but on all other engines the said water pipe should be con-
nected to the feed water pipe at any point between the feeding apparatus and the
check valve of the boiler, unless the water line of the boiler is higher than the place
where the oil is discharged in the steam pipe, in which case the water pipe may be
connected direct to the boiler below the water line.
On the accompanying Drawing,-
Figure 1 represents a plan view of my Invention, and Figure 2 represents a
central longitudinal section.
Figure 3 represents a plan view of the four-way cock in the bottom of the
observer, and Fig. 4 represents a vertical section of said cock, shown in a position
for feeding the lubricant direct from the tank to the steam pipe without passing
through the observer.
a is the water pipe leading from the feed water pipe of a boiler somewhere
between the feeding apparatus and the check valve of the boiler, or direct from the
boiler, as may be desired; b is a stop valve on the pipe a, and b' is another stop
valve leading from an outlet in the bottom of the oil tank c, by which arrangement
the water in the said oil tank can be withdrawn by opening the cock b and closing
the cock when the tank c is to be refilled with oil; d is the lubricant resting
above the water e in the said oil tank c.
Where there is danger of freezing the water in the oil tank c I provide the said
tank with internal, steam or hot water pipes, through which steam or hot water
will convey heat to the water space in said oil tank; fis a detachable screw plug
at the bottom of the oil tank c, that is to be removed when the tank c' is to be filled
with oil; g is the conducting pipe for the oil, leading from the top of the oil tank c
to the observer; g' is a check valve, and is a regulating valve on the oil pipe g
for the purpose set forth; i is the transparent observer secured air-tight to the
metallic bottom k by means of the housing 1, set screws m, m, and packings n, n,
as shown in Figure 2; o represents the oil in the lower part of said observer, and p
is the air space above it; g is the four-way cock located in the metallic bottom
plate k, which cock is provided with two vertical channels q' and q¹¹, communi-
cating respectively with the inlet pipe g and outlet pipe r leading to the steam
pipe s. To the opening 'q' on the said cock is attached an upright pipet that
projects up within the observer i, and near the top of which it is provided with a

page_text: curve t', as shown, by which arrangement the oil as it is forced from the oil tank c
by the hydraulic pressure therein is made to rise to the upper part of the trans-
parent observer, where it drops or flows downwards through the air space p to the
oil chamber o, from which the oil is forced out by the elastic force of the air space p
in the observer through the opening q" and piper to the steam pipe where the
steam is to be lubricated.
In case the observer i should get damaged or broken the oil can be forced directly
through the cock q and its horizontal way q¹¹ simply by turning said cock one-
fourth of a revolution to the position shown in Figure 4; r is a check valve, and u
is a stop valve on the pipe r. The valve u is to be shut when the engine is at rest,
so as to prevent the oil from escaping from the observer by the expansive force of
the air therein; v, v, represent stops to prevent the four-way cock q from being
turned more than one quarter of a revolution in either direction. The end of the
piper terminates within the steam pipe S, as shown in Figure 2. In this manner
a constant flow of the oil from the oil tank c is effected by the hydraulic pressure
in the latter from the feed water or from the water space in the boiler, as described,
and as the pressure of the feed water previous to its entering the boiler is some-
what greater than the steam pressure in the steam pipe, a constant flow of the oil
is effected from the oil tank c to the steam pipe S.
A glass indicator may be used in connection with the oil tank c so as to ascertain
the height of the oil therein; but this is not essential, as it can be seen through
the observer whether oil or water passes out from the upper end of the pipe t, and
if the latter is the case it will at once show to the person in charge that the oil
tank c needs refilling.
What I wish to secure by Letters Patent and claim is,—
1st. A lubricator, in which a hydraulic pressure of water is employed for the
displacement of the lubricant and thereby forcing it to the steam to be lubricated,
as herein set forth and described.
2nd. In combination with the oil tank c and its connecting pipe a, the pipe g
and transparent observer i located between the oil tank cand the place to be lubri-
cated, as and for the purpose set forth.
3rd. In combination with the transparent observer i and its bottom plate k of
the four-way cock q, with its openings q, ql, & q¹¹¹, and the riser t, t, and in
and out let pipes g and with their valves, as and for the purpose set forth and
described.
4th. The herein-described manner of passing the lubricant through an air_space_
within the transparent observer i previous to its entering the place to be lubricated,
substantially as set forth and shown.
In witness whereof, I, the said Nicholas Seibert, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of June, 1878, A.D., at Boston, Massa-
chusetts, in the United States of America.
NICHOLAS
שתתתזז
NICHOLA SEIDENT.
(L.D.)