Improvements in Means for Supporting Centrifugals and other High Speed Machines.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Sept., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 20th June, 1893-Accepted, 16th Sept., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Supporting Centrifugals and other High
Speed Machines.
I, JOHN MCCLURE CALDWELL PATON of Bloomsgrove Works, Nottingham
in the County of Notts, Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to
be as follows:-
This invention consists in an improved method of or means for supporting
machines on their foundations and connecting them thereto and is more particularly
applicable to centrifugals for extracting liquids from or drying moist materials and
substances and for other purposes, but may also be applied to other high speed
machines, the object of this invention being to prevent or reduce the communication
of the vibrations of such machines, caused by the imperfect balancing of the
revolving load or moving parts thereof, to the foundations and the floor and walls
of the buildings containing said machines. I attain this object by securing the
pans or casings of centrifugals or the feet or frames of other machines to the
foundations or bed plates fixed thereto by means of volute spring supports, the feet
or their equivalents of the machines being supported by and attached to volute
springs at their centres and the springs fixed to the foundations or bed plates at
their outsides. In consequence of this arrangement the machines can move to
some extent in a lateral or radial direction and also to a small extent in a vertical
direction as the centrifugal force or inertia of the rotating or moving masses may
tend to shift the machine, and the elasticity of the springs tends to counteract said
movements and return the machine to its original position.
C
In order that my invention may be more readily understood and carried into
effect, I have hereunto appended a sheet of drawings, on which two arrangements
of volute spring supports are shewn in sectional elevation and plan respectively.
Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2, a is part of the pan or casing and a' a foot
thereof to which a stud bis fixed by a nut . The stud b enters the central turn
of a volute spring c which is placed into a cup or box d bolted to the foundation.
Three or more such supports will be arranged in the circumference of the pan.
The springs c are preferably made of such strength that when the cage of the
machine is charged with the material to be treated, the springs are compressed in a
vertical direction so that the top edges are level with each other and the spring c
of a flat shape. The springs will then be only slightly yielding in a vertical
direction, but their centres or the studs 6 can give or move horizontally in any
direction and thus the pan or casing a can move horizontally under the action of
the centrifugal force of the unbalanced rotating masses without transferring the
vibrations to the cups d except through the elastic spring connection, and the
machine can vibrate without shaking its surroundings. The elasticity of the springs
will oppose and gradually stop the motion of the pan or casing a, preventing the
vibration from becoming excessive, and tend to bring the feet of the machine back
to their original position when at rest.
The arrangement shewn by Fig. 3 and 4 differs from the one before described
only in the manner in which the spring c is connected to the bed plate. The end c¹
of the spring is straightened out and bolted by bolts e e to an angle bracket cast
on the bed plate f; the action of this arrangement being similar to that described
with reference to Figs. 1 and 2.
1000

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Supporting Centrifugals and other High
Speed Machines.
I, JOHN MCCLURE CALDWELL PATON, of Bloomsgrove Works, Nottingham,
in the County of Notts, 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 consists in an improved method of or means for supporting
machines on their foundations and connecting them thereto and is more particularly
applicable to centrifugals for extracting liquids from or drying moist materials and
substances and for other purposes, but may also be applied to other high speed
machines, the object of this invention being to prevent or reduce the communication
of the vibrations of such machines caused by the imperfect balancing of the
revolving load or moving parts thereof, to the foundations and the floor and walls
of the buildings containing said machines. I attain this object by securing the
pans or casings of centrifugals or the feet or frames of other machines to the
foundations or bed-plates fixed thereto by means of volute spring supports, the feet
or their equivalents of the machines being supported by and attached to yolute
springs at their centres and the springs fixed to the foundations or bed-plates at
their outsides. In consequence of this arrangement the machines can move to some
extent in a lateral or radial direction and also to a small extent in a vertical
direction as the centrifugal force or inertia of the rotating or moving masses may
tend to shift the machine, and the elasticity of the springs tend to counteract said
movements and return the machine to its original position.
On the sheet of drawings sent in with the Provisional Specification, two
arrangements of volute spring supports are shewn in sectional elevation and plan
respectively.
Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2, a is part of the pan or casing and a¹ a foot
thereof to which a stud b is fixed by a nut 61. The stud b enters the central turn
of a volute spring c which is placed into a cup or box d, bolted to the foundation.
Three or more such supports will be arranged in the circumference of the pan.
The springs c are preferably made of such strength that when the cage of the
machine is charged with the material to be treated, the springs are compressed in
a vertical direction so that the top edges are level with each other and the springs c
of a flat shape. The springs will then be only slightly yielding in a vertical
direction, but their centres or the studs b can give or move horizontally in any
direction and thus the pan or casing a can move horizontally under the action of
the centrifugal force of the unbalanced rotating masses without transferring the
vibrations to the cups except through the elastic spring connection, and the
machine can vibrate without shaking its surroundings. The elasticity of the springs
will oppose and gradually stop the motion of the pan or casing a, preventing the
vibration from becoming excessive and tend to bring the feet of the machine back
to their original position when at rest.
The arrangement shewn by Fig. 3 and 4, differs from the one before described
only in the manner in which the spring c is connected to the bed-plate. The end c¹
of the spring is straightened out and bolted by bolts ee to an angle bracket f', cast
on the bed-plate, the action of this arrangement being similar to that described
with reference to Figs. 1 and 2.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
The use or arrangement of volute springs for supporting the pans or casings of

page_text: centrifugals and the feet or frames of other high speed machines and connecting
them to the bed-plates or foundations substantially as hereinbefore described and
illustrated by the drawings and for the purpose set forth.
Dated this 19th day of June 1893.
R. J. URQUHART,
57, Barton Arcade, Manchester, and 5, Clayton Square, Liverpool,
Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent.