IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MEANS OR MACHINERY FOR WORKING OR ACTUATING THE SLIDE
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Withinshaw, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Mechanical Engineer, and John Edward Baker, of Birming-
ham aforesaid, Mechanical Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MEANS OR MACHINERY FOR WORKING OR ACTUATING THE SLIDE
"
Sealed the 24th March 1868, and dated the 11th October 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Withinshaw and
John Edward Baker at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 11th October 1867.
We, JOHN WITHINSHAW, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Mechanical Engineer, and JOHN EDWARD BAKER, of Birmingham aforesaid,
Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OR MACHINERY FOR WORKING OR ACTUATING THE
SLIDE VALVES OF STEAM PUMPS AND BLOWING ENGINES," to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in
working or actuating the slide valves of steam pumps and blowing engines,
whereby economy of construction and simplicity of the parts are secured,
combined with efficiency of action.

page_text: Slide valves of steam pumps and blowing engines are ordinarily worked or
actuated by an excentric on a rotating shaft. Our Invention consists in working
or actuating the said slide valves by means of a lever worked from the piston
rod of the pump or blowing engine as herein-after explained.
We will describe our Invention in connection with a double-steam pump.
Between the pump cylinders we place a lever, the said lever being of such a
length that the ends respectively of its arms are in a line with the piston rod
and slide valve rod of the pump. On the piston rod of the pump two collars
are fixed, the distance between the said collars nearly corresponding to the
length of the stroke of the pump, and on the slide valve rod two collars are
also fixed. The end of the slide valve rod above the collars described works
in guides. The end of the long arm of the lever works between the collars
on the slide valve rod, the said collars embracing the said arm, and the end
of the other and short arm of the lever is so situated that on the pump pistons
making their reciprocating motion the said arm is alternately struck by one
or other of the collars on the piston rod. By the striking of the collars on the
piston rod against the short arm of the lever the said lever is turned on its
centre, and the opposite arm embraced by the collars on the slide valve rod is
made at the proper times to work the said slide valve rod, and thereby actuate
the slide valve. We work the slide valves of blowing engines in the manner
described with respect to steam pumps.
Our improvements are applicable to single steam pumps as well as to double
steam pumps and pumps for steam fire engines, and to steam pumps of various
constructions.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Withinshaw and John Edward Baker in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 3rd April 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
WITHINSHAW, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Mechanical Engi-
neer, and Jonn: EDWARD BAKER, of Birmingham aforesaid, Mechanical
Engineer, send greeting."
WHEREAS Her inost Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors. give and grant unto us,

page_text: the said John Withinshaw and John Edward Baker, Her special licence that
we, the said John Withinshaw and John Edward Baker, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John Withinshaw
and John Edward Baker, our 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 "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OR MACHINERY FOR WORKING OR ACTUATING THE SLIDE
VALVES OF STEAM PUMPS AND BLOWING ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said John Withinshaw and John Edward Baker, our
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our or their
hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us or them, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, 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 1, the said John Withinshaw, on behalf of myself
and the said John Edward Baker, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is
to say :-
Our Invention consists of the improvements in the means or machinery
herein-after described for working or actuating the slide valves of steam pumps
and blowing engines, whereby economy of construction and siinplicity of the
parts are secured, combined with efficiency of action.
Slide valves of steam pumps and blowing engines are ordinarily worked or
actuated by an excentric on a rotating shaft. Our Invention consists in
working or actuating the said slide valves by means of a lever worked from
the piston rod of the pump or blowing engine, as herein-after explained.
We will describe our Invention in connection with a double-acting steam
pump.
Between the steam and pump cylinders we place a lever, the said lever.
being of such a length that the ends respectively of its arms are in a line with
the piston rod and slide valve rod of the pump. On the piston rod of the pump.
two collars are fixed, the distance between the said collars nearly corresponding:
to the length of the stroke of the pump, and on the slide valve rod two collars.
are also fixed. The end of the slide valve rod in advance of the collars
described works in a guide. The end of the long arm of the lever works

page_text: between the collars on the slide valve rod, the said collars embracing the said
arm, and the end of the other and short arm of the lever is so situated that on
the pump piston making its reciprocating motion the said arm is alternately
struck by one or other of the collars on the piston rod. By the striking of
the collars on the piston rod against the short arm of the lever the said lever is
turned on its centre, and the opposite arm embraced by the collars on the slide
valve rod is made at the proper times to work the said slide valve rod, and
thereby actuate the slide valve. The position of the lever and the arrange-
ment for working the said lever from the piston rod may be varied without
departing from the nature of our Invention. We work the slide valves of
blowing engines in the manner described with respect to steam pumps.
Having explained the nature of our Invention, we will proceed to describe
with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in which the same
is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in longitudinal vertical section a double-acting pump
containing one arrangement of our Invention. a is the steam cylinder, and
6 the piston of the same; c is the pump cylinder, and d the piston of the
said pump cylinder; e is the piston rod of the said pistons b, d; f is the slide
valve of the steam cylinder a; and g is the slide valve rod. Between the two
cylinders a, c, is a lever h, h³, having motion in a vertical plane upon the
centre h³, the ends respectively of the arms h, h³, of the said lever projecting
over or being in a line with the valve rod and piston rod e, as represented.
On the piston rod e the collars i, k, are fixed, the distance between them nearly
corresponding to the length of the stroke of the pump, and on the slide valve
rod g two collars l, m, are fixed, between which collars l, m, the long arm hof
the lever works. The slide valve rod 9 works in a guide n. On the axis of
the lever h, h³, a handle is placed for starting the pump. In the Drawing the
slide valve f is represented closing both the steam ports of the cylinder. The
pump being started by means of the handle described on the lever h, h², the
pistons b, d, make their reciprocating motion, the short arm h³ of the lever h, h³,
being alternately struck by one or other of the collars i, k, on the piston rod e.
The lever h, h, is thereby turned on its axis, and the longer arm h, working
between the collars l, m, is made to give a reciprocating motion at the proper
times to the slide valve rod g and slide valve f, and thereby alternately open
and close the steam ports of the steam cylinder a. Instead of two collars i, k,
on the piston rod one only may be employed; in this case the single collar is
in such a position on the piston rode that on the reciprocating motion of the
said rod the said collar is alternately made to strike on opposite sides of the

page_text: short arm h of the lever, and escape from the said arin of the lever, and
thereby cause the slide valve to be actuated.
Figure 2 represents in side elevation, Figure 3 in plan, and Figure 4 in
vertical section a double-acting steam pump containing another arrangement
of our Invention for working the slide valve of the steam cylinder of the said
pump; Figure 5 represents a horizontal section of a portion of the same.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in Figures 2, 3, 4, and 5.
In this arrangement of our Invention we use one collar only on the piston rod.
a is the steam cylinder; c, the pump cylinder; e, the piston rod; and 9. the
slide valve rod; h, h³, is the lever (best seen in the vertical section, Figure 4,)
turning in a vertical plane on the centre h³, carried by the uprights k. The
upper arm h of the lever, to which the forked end gs of the valve rod g is jointed,
constitutes a handle by which the pump is started; i is the collar on the
piston rode (see Figure 5). To the lower forked arm h³ of the lever h, h², a
tube is fixed by the snugs in the manner best seen in Figure 4. The ends
of the said tube l are closed by the caps or collars P, P. The piston rod e
works through the ends of the tube 7, and the collar i on the said piston rod
works within the said tube, as seen in Figure 5. The length of the tube
nearly corresponds to the length of the stroke of the pump.
On the piston
rod e making its reciprocating motion the collar i alternately strikes the collars
or caps 1, 1, of the tube . The lower forked end h of the lever h, h², is
thereby alternately moved in one or other direction, and the required recipro-
cating motion is at the proper times transmitted through the upper arm h of
the said lever to the slide valve rod 9, 9, and the slide valve thereby worked
or actuated, as will be understood by an examination of the several Figures of
the Drawing.
Our improvements are applicable to single-acting steam pumps as well as
to double-acting steam pumps and punips for steam fire-engines, and to steam
pumps of various constructions. In working the slide valves of blowing
engines we employ the arrangements of parts herein-before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, such changes in detail only being
made as will fit the said arrangements to the said blowing engines.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit
ourselves to the precise details herein described, as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of our Invention; but we claim as our
Invention the improvements in the means or machinery for working or actuating
the slide valves of steam pumps and blowing engines herein-before described

page_text: and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, that is to say, working or
actuating the said slide valves by means of a lever worked from the piston rod
of the pump or blowing engine, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Withinshaw, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this First day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
JOHN WITHINSHAW. (L.S.)