An Improved Turbine.
Year: 1896

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Turbine.
We, ELBRIDGE GERRY LIBBY, of Everott, and NATHAN CLEMSON, Mass., U.S.A.,
Iuventors, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to provide a turbine of improved construction and
possessing increased efficiency over those at present in use.
The main feature of our invention is the improved water-wheel which comprises
a hub, upon the turbine shaft, and having an outwardly flaring upper portion, and
a downwardly extending and ontwardly flaring lower crown-plate constituting the
floor or lower wall of the buckets. The upper crown-plato constitutes the upper
wall of the buckets, and are set on a straight line and substantially parallel with
the lower crown-plate. Upwardly flaring curved partitions extend from the upper
to the lower crown-plate, and constitute the sides of the buckets. The water
passage in each of the buckets describe an arc which is greater than one hundred
and eighty degrees, and the outlet of each bucket points at a downward and
outward angle and with its major portion at a point farther from the axis of the
water wheel than the inlet thereof.
Dated this 18th day of August 1896.
PERCY R. J. WILLIS,
Agent for Applicants..
An Improved Turbine.
We ELBRIDGK GERRY LIBBY, of Everett, and NATHAN CLEMSON, of Stoneham,
both of Mass., U.S.A., Inventors, 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 improved construction of turbines, and it has for its
principal object to discharge the water through the buckets in an absolutely straight
line, or in us nearly a straight line as the action of gravity will allow, said line
being in a downward and outward angle, and hence to produce a greater degree of
velocity and greater discharge of a solid body of water. In other words, it is
intended that the water should discharge through the rotating buckets in linos which
make no deflection or turn whatever other than the slight downward deflection
from a straight line produced by gravity as the force of the water becomes oxhausted.
The improvement also provides means for preventing the water from working up
from the wheel into the central chamber within the inner casing, and thereby
weighting the wheel and producing extra pressure upon the step which supports the
vertical shaft communicating the power.
The nature of the invention in detail is fully described below, and illustrated in
the accompanying drawings, in which-
Figure 1 is an elevation of a turbine embodying my invention.

page_text: Fig. 2 18 a central vertical section taken on line 2 Fig. 3.
Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3 Fig. 2.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.
A represents the outside casing, and B a cap or housing bolted at to said
casing.
C is the crown shoot or covering of the case, froin which extends downwards the
cylindrical inner case A', which is cast with or bolted to said crown sheet, and is
provided on its under edge with an annular groove A", for the purpose below
described. Extending downward from the outside casing A to the plate E are the
guides D, integral with said casing and set substantially tangentially, as shewn in
Fig. 8, said plate E being integral with said guides and constituting the lower
portion of the case. This plate, which is substantially circular in form, has bolted
to it at E a spider e, which supports centrally, and adjustably, by means of the
sockets e' and set screws e", the step F. This step F, which is preferably of wood
and not new in this invention, is convex on its upper surface and supports the
concave lower end of the sleeve or cup F', which receives and is rigidly secured to
the lower end of the vertical shaft II, which transmits the power. The upper portion
of this shaft has its bearings in the sleeve intermediate of said shaft and the
bub C', extending up from the crown sheet C.
K is the hub of the water wheel, keyed on the shaft H, and extending up into the
flared portion K', (constituting the upper portion of the buckets,) such portion K'
being provided with the upwardly extending annular flange L, which projects into
the annular groove A" in the under edge of the casing or cylinder A'. This arrange-
mont is for the purpose of preventing the water from working up into the chamber a
within said cylinder and thus pressing down upon the water wheel and hence
pressing the shaft H upon the step, thereby producing undue friction at that point
and consequently affecting injuriously the amount of power transmitted by the
shaft.
PP are the buckets, P' being, in each instance, the mouth or inlet. These buckets
consist of the upper crown plate S and the lower crown plate $', said plates extending
over and under, respectively, all the buckets, and constituting upper and lower walls
common to all, or partition walls S", curved as shewn in Fig. 8, and dividing the
buckets from each other and the upper portions K' above mentioned. By means
of the curvatures and inclinations of these side walls S", the curvature of the
portion K' and K, and the angle at which the parallel portions 8', S are set, the
passage through each bucket describes, when the bucket is at rest, an arc which is
much more than ninety degrees, and is, in fact nearly one hundred and eighty
degrees, that is to say nearly a half circle. Moreover, as the lower crown
plate S is smullor in diameter than the upper crown plate S, the lower portion
of each bucket is narrower than the upper portion thereof, by reason of the walls S"
approaching toward their lower ends. Heuce the major portion of the volume of
water discharged from the outor end of the bucket is above the centro thereof. The
result is that the water enters the mouth P of the bucket at a point nearer the
shaft, or nearer tho axis around which the bucket revolves, than the point at which
the water is discharged. In other words, supposing the centre of the volume of wator
discharged from each bucket to be, say, one third of the distance down from the
crown plato S, the centre of the discharge is at a greater distance from the axis of
the water wheel than the centre of the mouth or inlet of the bucket. The effect of
this and of the curvature described, and of the length of the are constituting the
vertical curvature of the bucket is that the water which is guided in to the buckets
by guides D discharges in absolutely straight lines as the buckets revolve, said lines
radiating at downward and outward angles and being deflected only by gravity when
the force of the water is exhausted. Thus the friction is reduced to a minimum,
and the results are a great velocity, a large amount of discharge, and a discharge
which is in a solid mass, that is to say, not disintegrated nor split nor spread into
spray.
R represents the annular gate for checking or regulating the flow of water into

page_text: the buckets. This gate slides vertically between the cylinder A' and the base of the
onter casing A, (see Fig. 2) and is operated by say, three screws extending at equi-
distant points through the correspondingly threaded flange R. One of these screws
is shown at T in Fig. 2, and extonds up above the cap B and is provided with a hand
wheel T. A gear wheel U is fast upon the plain portion of said screw and engages
with a gear wheel V, which is loose on the hub C. The other screws (which need
not extend above the cap) are provided with gear wheels, one of which is shown
at U, and which engage with the central or intermediate gear V. Thus rotating the
hand-wheel T' communicates rotation to all the sorows and lowers or raises the gate
as described.
The upper crown plate S fits and moves, as the wheel rotates, in the annular
groove E in the plate E.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we doclare that what we
claim is :-
(1.) In a turbine of the character described, the water wheel, comprising the
hub K; outwardly flaring upper portion K'; the downwardly extending and out-
wardly flaring lower crown plate S₁ constituting the floor or lower wall of the
buckets; the upper crown plate S constituting the top of the buckets and set.
substantially parallol with the lower crown plate, said plates S S' being set on straight
lines and with their outer ends even, that is to say, on a line at right angles with
the lines of direction of said plates, and upwardly flaring curved partitions Sil
extending from the upper to the lower crown plate and constituting the sides of the
buckets, whereby the body of water is held solid and its velocity proserved at its
dischargo, substantially as described.
(2.) In a turbine of the character described, the water-wheel, comprising the hub K;
outwardly flaring portion K'; theo downwardly extending and outwardly Haring lower
crown plate S constituting the floor or lower wall of the buckets; the upper crown
plate S constituting the upper wall of the buckets and set on a straight line and
Bubstantially parallel with the lower crown plate, and the upwardly flaring curved
partitions Sextending from the upper to the lower crown plate and constituting
the sides of the buckets, the water passage in each of said buckets produced by the
above named parts, describing an are which subtends an angle of about one hundred
and eighty degrees, and the outlet of each bucket pointing at a downward and
outward angle and with its major portion at a point farther from the axis of the water
wheel than the inlet thereof, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 24th day of November 1896.
PERCY R. J. WILLIS,
Agent for Applicants.