IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS AND ENGINES
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Beckett Johnson, of Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, Manager for Messieurs Ormerod and Son, Engi-
neers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS AND ENGINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Beckett Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 9th February 1855.
I
I, the said WILLIAM BECKETT JOHNSON, of Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Manager for Mess" Ormerod and Son, Engineers, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS AND
ENGINES to be as follows:-
The first part of my improvements relates to the admission of air to the
furnaces or combustion chambers of boilers, and consists, firstly, in providing
for its entrance at the upper part of the flame or gases, so as to impart
a downward tendency to it. Thus, for instance, I place a tube or tubes in a
vertical direction through the boiler, the lower ends of such tubes being open
to the furnace, and the upper to the atmosphere. These tubes are also a novel
feature of my Invention, employed as stays for strengthening the boiler.
My next improvement consists in a method of regulating the flow of air to
furnaces or combustion chambers; for this purpose I employ a chamber partly
filled with water, in which is placed an inverted vessel after the manner of a
gasometer. This vessel is connected by suitable means to the door of the
furnace, by which door the vessel becomes raised above the level of the water,

page_text: and on again descending will be buoyed up by the enclosed air; its downward
motion is, however, permitted by an aperture capable of being enlarged or
contracted by a valve or cock; the vessel may therefore be made to descend at
any required speed, and I apply this motion to the purpose of opening the
passage for the admission of air.
My next improvement refers to the air pump valves of engines, and consists,
firstly, in mounting them upon a stationary spindle which is carried by
supports not obstructing the opening, and upon which spindle the valves slide;
and, secondly, in the employment of two valves of conical form, the concave
side of one corresponding to the convex side of the other, so that when one is
drawn from its seat it shall pass into contact with the other, and drive the air
from between them, the one acting as a stop for determining the heat of the
other..
My next improvement relates to portable steam engines with horizontal
tubes or flues in the boiler, and consists, firstly, in forming a channel through
the boiler at about the centre thereof, for the admission of the crank shaft;
and, secondly, in forming the furnace with a rounded top, but with parallel
sides projecting downward, so that the firo bars may be placed much lower
than is practicable with a circular furnace.
The next part of my Invention refers to the coupling of the piston rod with
the connecting rod; to effect this, I cotter the piston rod in a mounting which
carries the brasses; the fork of the connecting rod is then placed upon tho
mounting, and the centre pin then passed through and secured fast to the
connecting rod by keys, or otherwise. The brasses are held from revolving by
a projecting pin.
Another improvement relating to the piston rod consists in forming that
part which is adapted to the mounting thicker than the other portion, and
in order to provide means for its being passed through the gland of the stuffing
box, I place a bush therein divided into two or more parts, so as to admit of
their being slipped in after the piston rod is through.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by tho said William Beckett Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 9th August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
BECKETT JOHNSON, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Manager for
Mossieurs Ormerod and Son, Engineers, sond groeting..

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of February, One thousand eight hundred
and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her
heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Beckett
Johnson, Her especial license that I, the said William Beckett Johnson,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Beckett Johnson, 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN STEAM BOILERS AND ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said William Beckett Johnson, by an instrument in writing under
my hand and scal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
my said Invention, and in what manner the same is 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 William Beckett Johnson; do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement and accompanying Drawings, that is to say:-
My first improvement is shewn in the two partial sectional views of a steam
boiler, constructed upon that plan for which Letters Patent were granted to
me, bearing date February Ninth, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
I desire it, however, to be understood, that such construction is employed as an
example only, and that this part of my improvements may be equally adapted to
boilers of other arrangements. The shell of the boiler is shewn at a, between the
upper part of which and that which encloses the furnace is a tube b, open to
the atmosphere at top, so as to allow a current of air to pass downward towards
the bridge at the back of the fire bars, in the course of which passage it is
compelled to mingle with the products of combustion and assist their ignition.
I have shewn a single tube only thus adapted, but there may, if desired, be
two or more so applied, and their orifices may be provided with perforated
plates or other such apparatus, for the purpose of dividing and spreading the
current. In the Figures above referred to, the furnace or combustion chamber
is shewn with a flat top, and the tube a is consequently a stay; this is another
feature of this part of my improvements, but if it be employed for that
purpose only, it may of course be closed at its ends by the shell of the boiler.

page_text: My next improvement is shewn at Figs. 3, 4, and 5, which represent the
apparatus in different positions of operation. A vessel a is fixed in any position
according to convenience, and on the upper part of this is a framework b,
through a guide formed in which a tube c freely passes. This tube at its
lower end is attached to an inverted vessel d, situate in Figure 1, within a
column of water contained in the vessel a. The upper part of the tube c is
provided with a cock e, capable of being turned, so as to allow air at pleasure
to pass from the vessel d, and it is also furnished with a rod f, jointed to a
lever g, the axis of which carries a throttle valve h situate within a pipe i, one
end thereof being open to the atmosphere, and the other to any part of the
furnace to which it may be desired to admit air. The joint by which the rod f
is connected to the tubes e is furnished with a projecting pin which extends
over a leverk, turning upon a fixed centre at 7, and upon which centre is
another lever m connected to a rod n, in communication with the fire door of
the furnace. The operation of this arrangement is as follows:-Suppose the
parts situate as in Figure 3, and the furnace to require firing, the act of opening
the door will, through the rod n and lever m, cause the lever & to act against
the projecting pin extending from the rod f, whereby the vessel & will be raised
into the position shewn at Fig. 4, thereby turning the lever g upon its centre,
and causing the valve h again to close the pipe i, by a new position; atmo-
spheric air will still, therefore, be prevented from passing through the said pipe,
for as the furnace door is now open a supply from that source is not required,
but the fuel having been deposited and the furnace door closed, the lever k
(now in the position of Fig. 4) will be withdrawn from the pin attached to the
rod f, and the vessel d, being no longer supported thereby, will be free to fall
by its own gravity, but as this motion is impeded by the air contained in the
upper part of the vessel d on the surface of the water, its downward motion
will be in proportion to the orifice allowed to exist in the cock c, and it is
therefore evident that by opening the same more or less, the valve h may be
caused to close more or less quickly, and therefore permit the vessel & to
descend at a retarded or accelerated velocity, and communicate a like rate of
motion to the valve h. In the Fig. 5 this change of position has taken place
to the extent of opening the pipe i to the full, and the greatest amount of air
is therefore allowed to pass, but the further descent of the vessel d. permitted
by the escape of air through the cock c, will cause it to fall still further, so as
again to assume the position shewn at Fig. 3, by which time it is presumed
that the furnace is no longer in need of the admission of air, excepting through
the ordinary channel of the ash-pit, and in this disposition the several parts
will remain until the fire door is again opened for the supply of fuel.

page_text: My next improvements are shewn in the sectional view, Fig. 6, in which a
represents the cylinder of the air pump, supposed in this case to be a solid
piston without valves; the condenser is shewn at b, to the lower part of which
and to the cover of a passage i, is attached a rod c, passing through a chamber
d, in communication with the air pump a; this chamber is provided with two
seats e, f, to which are adapted valves g, h, capable of moving freely upon the
fixed rod c, by which arrangement it will be perceived that the said valves are
carried by apparatus which does not afford any obstruction to the openings.
The valves, according to another part of my improvements, are conical in form,
as shewn in the Drawing, the convexity of the upper corresponding to the
concavity of the lower; as the air pump piston moves backward, the lower
valve will rise from its seat and exhaust the condenser b, the determination
of its beat being the upper valve g, and upon the advance of the said piston
the valve g will be lifted, and the air expelled through the passago i, which
operation will be assisted by the convex and concave form of the valves shewn
and described.
3
My next improvement relates to portable steam engines with horizontal
tubes or flues in the boiler, and is shewn in the longitudinal section, Fig. 7;
the shell of the boiler is at a, about the centre part of which is formed a
channel b, within which I adapt the crank shaft of the engine. The cylinder
may be placed in any convenient position, as, for instance, in that indicated by
the dotted lines at c.
Another part of my improvements, and referring also to portable boilers,
with horizontal flues or tubes, is shewn at Fig. 8, in which a is the shell of the
boiler, and b, that part which encloses the tubes; this portion of the boiler has
a rounded top, but parallel sides, by which means I am enabled to place the
fire bars c much lower than is practicable with a circular furnace.
My next improvement is shown in two views at Figs. 9 and 10, in which a
is a mounting containing brasses b, against which the piston rod c is keyed, as
shewn in the Drawing; the fork of the connecting rod d is then applied, the
centre pine passed through and secured to it by means of keys f. The
brasses are prevented from revolving by means of pins g.
My last improvement is also shewn in the said Figs. 9 and 10: the piston
rod c is of enlarged diameter at the part c*, which may be adapted to the con-
necting rod d, as already described, or in any ordinary manner.
In order to
provide for the passage of this enlarged part of the piston rod through the
gland of the stuffing box h, I place a bush i therein, divided into two or more
parts; the portions of this bush are applied to the rod after it is passed through
and secured in their place by the ordinary cap.

page_text: Having thus described and ascertained the naturo of my said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I desire it to be under-
stood, that I claim as secured to me under the above in part recited Letters
Patent,-
Firstly, the admission of air to furnaces by means of a tube or tubes, pass-
ing vertically or nearly so through the boiler, and above the furnace or
combustion chamber.
Secondly, the use of tubes as stays for connecting the flat parts of furnaces,
combustion chambers or flues to the outer shell of the boiler.
Thirdly, the use of the air vessel d, and cock or valve e, in Figs. 3, 4, and 5,
for the purpose above set forth.
Fourthly, as applied to air pump valves of engines, I claim the method of
mounting such valves, whereby the openings are not obstructed by the parts
which support them, also the employment of two valves of conical form, the
convexity of the one corresponding to the concavity of the other.
Fifthly, as applied to portable engines with horizontal tubes or flues, I claim
the use of a channel through the boiler at or about the centre thereof, for the
admission of the crank shaft; also in such engine boilers forming the furnace,
with a rounded top and parallel sides projecting downward.
Sixthly, in reference to Figs. 9 and 10, 1 claim placing the brasses within
the mounting, and also tightening them up by the same cottar which secures
the piston rod to the mounting.
And, seventhly, forming that part of the piston rod which is adapted to the
mounting thicker than the other portion thereof.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Beckett Johnson, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Eighth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
TALLATSON