IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR MEASURING THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY. OF LIQUIDS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Fulleck Hearsey, of Park Place, Church
Street, Brompton, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the
Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR MEASURING THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY.
OF LIQUIDS." A communication from abroad by Edward Payne, of
Montreal, Canada.
Sealed the 15th August 1865, and dated the 16th February 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Fulleck Hearsey
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
16th February 1865.
I, JOHN FULLECK HEARSEY, of Park Place, Church Street, Brompton, in
the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR MEASURING THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF
LIQUIDS," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to produce an instrument which will act as a
compensating hydrometer or saccharometer, and thus determine the specific
gravity of liquids with great accuracy. The nature of the Invention will be
clearly understood by the following explanation:-A dial graduated to the
strength of alcohol, from water to 70 over-proof, is mounted in a suitable case

page_text: which is set over and temporarily attached to the vessel containing the spirit
to be tested. Pendent from this case is a float adjusted to the gravity of
distilled water. The float is attached to a tube which is suspended in the
following manner:-A pair of links jointed to the head of the tube are jointed
at their other ends to bell-crank levers, which are furnished with knife-edges,
and work on centres affixed to the inner face of the dial case. A coiled spring
couples the two bell cranks together and serves to hold them in position.
The pendent links of these bell cranks receive the pressure of springs
attached to the sides of the case, and thus the descent of the float is regulated
so as to equalize the scale on the dial of indications. The movement of the
float is communicated to the index hand of the dial in the following manner :-
A compound strip, made by uniting two pieces of metal of different degrees of
expansibility firmly together by solder or otherwise, is attached to the float,
and its other end is connected with a rod carrying a rack at its upper end in
gear with a pinion on the axle of the index hand. The compound strip, to
which is attached the rack rod, acting on the pinion, when any increase or
diminution of temperature of the spirit or other liquid under test occurs, will
to an extent corresponding with the degrees on a thermometric scale advance
or retire the pointer on the dial independently of the gravity of the spirit or
other liquid being tested, and thus compensate for the fluctuating heats of
the liquid tested. The instrument may be arranged to act on liquids either
lighter or denser than water, and compensate for the different degrees of heat,
giving the strength or gravity of the liquid under trial on the dial without
the use of a thermometer or table of variations. Instead of the rack a
sector may be used to act on the index pinion, the sector being connected
by a radius arm to the rod in connection with the compound strip. The links
may also be acted on directly by the springs, that is, without the intervention
of the bell-crank levers.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Fulleck Hearsey in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 3
16th August 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
FULLECK HEARSEY, of Park Place, Church Street, Brompton, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord

page_text: One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Fulleck Hearsey, Her special license that I, the said John. Fülleck
Hearsey, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said John Fulleck Hearsey, my executors, 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
"IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR MEASURING THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF LIQUIDS," being
a communication to me from abroad by Edward Payne, of Montreal, Canada,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Fulleck Hearsey,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascer-
tain 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 date of the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Fulleck Hearsey, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The object of this Invention is to produce an instrument which will act as
a compensating hydrometer or saccharometer, and thus determine the specific
gravity of liquids with great accuracy.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 shews in front view the improved
instrument arranged as a bydrometer; Fig. 2 is a vertical section showing
the internal mechanism; Fig. 3 is a section taken at right angles thereto;
Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation of the dial case shewing a variation in some of
the working parts of the instrument; and Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view of
the same. The nature of the Invention will be clearly understood by the
following explanation.
a is a dial graduated to the strength of alcohol, from water to seventy over-
proof, and mounted in a suitable case, which is set over and temporarily
attached to a vessel 6, intended to receive the spirit to be tested. Pendent
from this case is a float c, which is adjusted to the gravity of distilled water.
The float c is attached to a tube g, which is 'suspended in the following
manner-Jointed to the head of the tube is a pair of links f, f, which are

page_text: severally connected by joint pins at their other ends to bell-crank levers d;
these levers d are furnished with knife-edges, and work in lugs d', affixed to
the inner face of the dial case. A coiled spring d³ couples the two bell cranks
together, and serves to hold them in position. The pendent limbs of these
bell cranks receive the pressure of springs e attached to the sides of the case,
and thus the descent of the float is regulated so as to equalize the scale on the
dial of indications. The movement of the float is communicated to the index
hand of the dial through a rack-and-pinion connection. Attached to the
float is a compound strip i, made by uniting two pieces of metal of different
degrees of expansibility firmly together by solder or otherwise. This compound
metallic strip i may be either straight, coiled, or of other suitable form, so
long as the difference of expansibility of the two metals of which it is composed
will produce the requisite compensation. The other end of the strip i is
secured to a rod k which carries a rack k' at its upper end; in gear with this
rack is a pinion h which is keyed to the axle of the index hand. The free
end of the compound strip i, which through the rack, rod, and pinion h works
the index hand on the axle of the pinion h, when any increase or diminution
of temperature of the spirit or other liquid under test occurs, will independently
of the action of the float advance or retire the index hand or pointer on the
dial to an extent corresponding with the change that would be indicated on
a thermometric scale, while at the same time it will transmit the motion due
to the movement of the float, which depends on the gravity of the spirit or
other liquid being tested. A compensation will thus be provided for the
fluctuating heats of the liquid tested, and an accurate test of the liquid will be
ensured. The instrument may be arranged to act on liquids either lighter or
lenser than water, and compensate for the different degrees of heat, giving
the strength or gravity of the liquid under trial on the dial without the use of
a thermometer or table of variations. Instead of the rack k¹ a sector may be
used to act on the index pinion, as shewn at Fig. 4. The sector n is connected
by a radius arm o to the top of the rod k, which, through its connection (as in
the first-described arrangement) with the free end of the compound strip, rises
and falls with the float. The links fare in this instance acted on directly by
the springs, that is, without the intervention of the bell-crank levers d of Fig. 2.
In this instance the links fare connected to the tube g of the float by a rod g',
and the links are jointed to springs m, m, which are secured to the sides of
the dial case. I would here remark that when the instrument is intended to
be used as a saccharometer it must have a suitably graduated dial, and be
properly adjusted to its work, as will be well understood by saccharometer
makers.

page_text: Having now set forth the nature of the improved apparatus for measuring
the specific gravity of liquids, and explained the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in part recited
Letters Patent I claim, the novel arrangement of parts above described,
constituting, as desired, either a compensating hydrometer or saccharometer.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Fulleck Hearsey, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Sixteenth day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
J. F. HEARSEY. (L.B.)