A POWER- FUL COMPOUND WHISTLE
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Smith, of 10, Salisbury Street, Adelphi, in
the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "A POWER-
FUL COMPOUND WHISTLE."-A communication from Moner Lethuillier Pinel,
of Rouen. in the Empire of France.
Sealed the 6th March 1857, and dated the 9th September 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Smith at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th September 1856.
I, WILLIAM SMITH, of 10, Salisbury Street, Adelphi, in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "A POWERFULL COMPOUND WHISTLE," (a communication from Mon" Lethuillier
Pinel, of Rouen, in the Empire of France,) to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, first, to the combination of several whistles upon the
same whistle pipe or steam tube, having dissimilar tones, or capable of pro-
ducing seperate and distinct sounds, any one of which may be used seperately,
or the whole together, by which a vastly increased volume and intensity of
sound can be produced, capable of being heard many times the distance at
which the ordinary kinds of whistles in use can be heard.
Secondly, in the peculiarity of the parts of sush whistles, as, instead of the
ordinary bell shape, the chamber is not cylindrical on the plan; but a portion of

page_text: the diameter is removed, and the tongue piece is flat on the plan, and of about
3rd the diameter of the cylinders, the shape of the tongue being either curved
or flat in vertical section, and the width of the opening for the escape of the
steam or air is made to vary with the pressure at which it escapes from the
boiler or vessel.
The Inventor prefers to use a combination of four whistles from one pipe, but
any other number may be combined; and the advantages found experimentally
to belong to this arrangement are,-
First, that a sound of four times the intensity, and which may be heard
four times the distance of that produced by the common whistle, is readily
attainable.
Second, the advantage of being able to govern the volume, shrillness, and
distance to which the sound may be transmitted by the instantaneous shutting
off, either entirely or partially, any one or more of the whistles, and also being
able to combine and produce changes in the tones of the sound or sounds
emitted.
Third, the ease by which either a clear shrill or harsh sound can be pro-
duced by varying the size of the whistle chamber and by adjusting the width
of the opening in the throat.
Fourth, the simplicity of construction and readiness with which the few
parts composing the whole can be adjusted and taken to pieces for cleaning or
rongiring
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Smith in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
9th March 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
SMITH, of 10, Salisbury Street, Adelphi, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Smith, Her special licence that I, the said William Smith, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Smith, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during

page_text: 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 "A POWERFULL COMPOUND WHISTLE,"
a communication from Mons Lethuillier Pinel, of Rouen, in the Empire of
France, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Smith,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Inven-
tion, 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 William Smith, 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 and accompanying Drawing.
This Invention relates, firstly, to the combination of several whistles upon
the same whistle pipe or steam tube, such whistles having dissimilar tones, and
being capable of producing seperate and distinct sounds; each whistle may be
used seperately, or when the whole are brought into action together a vastly
increased volume and intensity of sound can be produced, which may be heard
several times the distance at which the shrillest sounds emitted from the various
kinds of whistles in use can be heard.
Secondly, in the peculiarity of the parts of such whistles, as, instead of the
ordinary bell shape, the chamber is not cylindrical on the plan, but a por-
tion of the diameter is removed; the tongue piece is flat on the plan, and of
about 3rd the diameter of the cylinders, the shape of the tongue being either
curved or flat in vertical section, and the height of the opening for the escape
of the steam or air is made to vary with the pressure at which it escapes from
the boiler or vessel. By preference, a combination of four whistles is shewn in
the accompanying Drawing, and has been adopted in practice.
The advantages found by experiment to pertain to this Invention, are,-
First, that a sound of four times the intensity, and which may be beard
four times the distance of that produced by the common whistle, is readily
attainable.
Second, the advantage of being able to govern the volume, shrillness, and
distance to which the sound may be transmitted by the instantaneous shutting
off either entirely or partially, by means of the spring stops, herein-after
described, any one or more of the whistles, and also being able to combine and
produce changes in the tones of the sound or sounds emitted.

page_text: Third, the facility with which a clear, shrill, or harsh sound can be produced,
by varying the size of the whistle chamber, and by adjusting the width or the
height of the opening in the throat.
Fourth, the simplicity of construction and readiness with which the few
parts composing the whole can be adjusted and taken to pieces for cleaning and
repairing.
In the accompanying Drawing, a whistle according to this Invention is
shewn with four whistles mounted upon one steam pipe, the passage being
governed by a single-way cock, through which the steam is permitted to pass
into the steam chamber beneath the the throats or whistle chambers, and
between which communication is made by the slots or openings, as shewn
therein, the size of which vary according to the pressure of steam intended to
be used
Fig. 1 represents a vertical section of the whistle; Fig. 2, a sectional plan
on line A, B, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an elevation, and Fig. 4 is a plan; Figs. 5
& 6 are a front and edge view of the spring stops for the orifice from which
the steam escapes.
A is the steam pipe, which is attached to the boiler, and has at its upper end
a flange a, which is adjusted between the flange of the whistle B and the collar
or flange C by means of four screwed bolts c, c, &c.; B, the body of the whistle;
C, a flange or washer for to firmly secure the steam pipe A by aid of the
screwed bolts c, c, as before described; D is a screwed plug, to which is
attached a handle, for the purpose of opening or shutting the passage of the
steam; E is a circular chamber, into which the steam passes before entering
the four chambers F, F, &c.; F, F, &c. are four chambers, which are placed
above the circular steam chamber E, being adjusted by means of a socket f
and an iron screwed pin G, having a head 9 upon it provided with two studs
or stop pins g¹, g¹; II, an hexagonal nut and flange piece, which is screwed
tight against the top of the four chambers F, F, &c., and serves to retain the
iron pin G in its place; I, I, the openings made in each chamber F, F, &
at the bottom of each, and connecting the steam chamber E with the whistle
chambers F, F, &c.; i, i, is a small slot or groove, through which the steam
escapes and strikes the tongue piece n. In the chambers F, F, &c. are the
orifices i, i, which are seperately closed by spring covers L, which are shewn
in detail in Figs. 5 & 6, and by their elasticity admit of being disengaged
from the tongue piece n in front of the chambers F, F, &c.

page_text: In Figs. 5 & 6 the spring stop L is shewn in detail, 2 being the lower end
or stop, which is intended to fit into and entirely close the slot, groove, or
passage i, and at the top of the spring stop L a small lip m is shewn, in
which the tongue piece n is received, and the stop piece L is firmly held in its
place.
In Figs. 1 & 3 one of the spring stop pieces is shewn applied.
Having described this Invention as communicated to me, and illustrated the
same by the accompanying Drawing, I claim the construction of a powerful
compound whistle in the manner herein described; when there are two or
more whistles of the construction described combined upon the same steam
pipe.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Smith, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Ninth day March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
5
Witness,
JAMES E. HALL,
10, Salisbury Street, Adelphi.
WILLIAM SMITH. (L.S.)