Improvements in or relating to Packings for Piston Roas, valve Rods, or the like.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Jan., 1895-Accepted, 16th Feb., 1895
Improvements in or relating to Packings for Piston Roas, valve
Rods, or the like.
A communication by CHARLES PITMAN HOFFMAN, of New Brighton, in the
County of Richmond and State of New York, United States of America,
Steam Engineer.
1, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester,
both in the County of Lancaster, 118 New Street, Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick and 31 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, 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:-
This invention relates to an apparatus for packing all classes of piston rods, and
particularly for packing that class of piston rods, which are hot and cannot readily
be handled, and which are to be packed with layers of ring packing of all kinds.
In the ordinary system of packing piston and other similar rods, the space to be
packed is arranged to be filled and stuffed with a variety of packing, as may be
found convenient. The packing is usually bent into a ring and placed around the
rod to be packed, cut off at a length sufficient to fill the space to be packed, and
then poked with the fingers into the space to be packed, by a suitable packing stick
or rod.
My correspondent has discovered that when a spring band is provided, of sufficient
dimensions to hold the packing rigidly in place around the piston rod at the mouth
of the orifice to be packed, and then an adjustable packer is provided, of such
dimensions as to readily pass up through the band and into the stuffing box, so that
by driving the lower end of the packer with a slight stroke of a hammer or other
implement or by pushing it up by the gland, the packing may be readily and easily
placed in position and driven home into the space to be packed, without the hands
of the operator coming in contact with the hot parts of the machinery, and without
twisting or disarrangement of the layer of packing itself.
The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying sheet of
drawings forming a part of this Specification, in which
Figure 1 is a vertical section of the space to be packed, showing the piston rod
in elevation and the band aud packer in cross section.
Figure 2 is a plan view of the band when closed, with a piece of packing of the
proper length, bent and put in place.
Figure 3 is a plan view of the band when open ;
Figure 4 is a sectional view of the packer on the line 4 4 of Figure 1 ;
Figure 5 a vertical secticu of the packer; and
Figures 6 and 7 detail views of the device for closing the band.
Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.
In the drawings, A represents a piston; B the stuffing box to be packed;
C the band; D D pieces of packing cut to the proper length, and of any suitable
character, and E the packer.
The band C is composed of a thin piece or strip of steel, bent as shown in
Figures 2 and 3. It inay be closed and held closed, by any convenient form of

page_text: spring clamp without reference to its particular construction, provided it is capable
of being adjusted to fit around any desired size of rod, or to take in any desired
size of packing. In the particular device shown in the drawings, c is a lever,
-containing a cut e, fitting over a stud d on one end of the band C. This lever is
connected with a flat link of steel el at one end by a pivot d'. The link contains
any convenient number of holes o o'. The other end of e' is attached by a hook f
to a stud d² on the other end of the band C. When the band is open, the levers
take the position shown in Figures 3 and 7; when the band is closed the lever c is
caused to rotate downward on the stud d. This pulls the link el forward, and draws
the parts of the band together, and on turning up the end of the lever c to the
position shown in Figure 6, the band is held tightly closed. The diameter of the
band, when closed, varies according to which of the holes oo¹ etcetera the extremity
of the hook fis caused to engage with.
с
The packer P consists of a series of cylindrical cr flattened rods t t of convenient
length and diameter. Each rod is provided with flat staple at top and bottom, 1
through which pass two circular spring pieces SS, (Figures 4 and 5) which hold
the whole together. The rods are held in position by the staples on the spring.
pieces S S, and the packer is thus so arranged as to encircle a piston of any desired
size, by removing or inserting one or more of the rods t t, as may be necessary. In
each case the tension of the springs S S will be such that the rods composing the
pusher, will be firmly held together in the manner shown in Figure 4. The spring
is slightly turned in at one end, to prevent the removal of the rods tt, but at the
other end it is flat, as shown in Figure 4, so that the rods t t can readily be
slipped on and off, upon their staples. In practice, if desired, a single spring placed
in the centre can be substituted for the two shown in the view. By distending the
packer it can be made to pass over and encircle any size of piston rod.
The method of operation is as follows:-
When it is desired to pack the space B with packing, the band C is set so as to
be of the proper diameter when closed, by shifting the hook f into the proper one
of the holes o o', so as to permit the interior diameter of the band when closed, to
be substantially the same as that of the space to be packed. A piece of packing is
then cut and bent so as to go into the band. The ends of the packing, are
preferably placed at the points where the two ends of the band come together, so
as to permit ready removal. It is then placed around the piston rod, the band
opened, passed around the rod and packing, and the latter closed and slid up upon
the rod to the mouth of the orifice to be packed. The disposition shown in
Figure 2 is the result. The band and the packing then surround the piston rod, as
shown in Figure 1, and the diameter of the packer is then so regulated, that the
ends of the rods t t will just enter snugly within the band, as shown in Figure 1.
The band is then firmly held in the hand, and a slight upward pressure exerted
upon the lower extremity of the rods t t, either by shoving up the gland, or
otherwise, which will force the packing out of the band into the space to be packed
and as far up into the same as may be necessary. As soon as one piece of packing
is pushed home in this way, the packer is slipped down, the band removed and a
new piece inserted, and the operation repeated in the same manner. This is
repeated from time to time until the whole space is packed. In this way perfect
control of the packing and perfect regularity in packing is assured.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The combination substantially as herein before described of an adjustable band
arranged to be passed around a piston rod and held firmly around the piston rod at
the mouth or the orifice of the space to be packed, and an adjustable packing
device arranged to fit around any size of piston, pressing equally upon all parts of
the packing, which, on being forced into the band, pushes out the packing into the
space to be packed.

page_text: 2. The combination substantially as hereinbefore described, of a rigid band
containing rings or layers of packing held at the orifice of the space to be packed
with an adjustable packing device adapted to fit around different sizes of rods,
whereby the layers are ejected into the space to be packed.
3. The combination substantially as herein set forth, with the band containing
the layers of packing, of an adjustable packing device, adapted to fit around
different sizes of rods, substantially as described and for the purposes set forth.
4. The combination, with a ring packing, of a spring band arranged to open and
shut, and to be adjusted to fit any size of piston rod, and on being closed, to hold
the packing horizontally around the piston rod, and means for closing the band
after adjustment, substantially as described.
5. The combination of the spring band C, of the link c, provided with the
openings o o, and the hook f and the lever c, turning on the stud d, for closing
the same.
6. A packer composed of a series of removable rods t t, each provided at top and
bottom with the staples and the springs S S passing through the staples, whereby
the same can be adjusted to any size of piston rod.
Dated this 14th day of January 1895.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents.