IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINE MAINLY APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES
Year: 1884

page_text: I, ISAIAH VERNON, of Tipton, in the County of Stafford, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINE
MAINLY APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES" to be as follows:-
These my improvements are directed, to the utilization of waste steam from high
pressure engines, more particularly locomotive engines; and to the arrangement
and construction of locomotive engines to effect said object.
By this my Invention, the waste steam from high pressure engines is utilized so
that from fifty to one hundred per cent of the original power is reproduced without
either boiler or extra fuel, thereby effecting a very great saving of fuel and working
expenses. A small extra boiler may, however, be fitted upon locomotives, for
removing the said locomotives short distances, such as from one part of a station to
another, but under no other circumstances is an extra boiler requisite.
I convey, by means of pipes, the waste steam aforesaid, from the high pressure
engines direct to auxiliary cylinders which I provide for the purposes of this
invention; the steam after supplying the auxiliary cylinders aforesaid is conveyed
to the condenser in the ordinary manner.
I give a longer stroke to the piston of my auxiliary engine, than in the engines
from which the steam is conveyed, so as to give greater velocity to the piston which
is, of course, a very great advantage. To accomplish this lengthen the cylinder,
rods, and the throw in crank axle.
The Cylinders I fix on the centre-line of the locomotive, one cylinder at or near
each end. Each cylinder is fixed at an angle between a horizontal and a vertical
position and has its piston in connection, by means of rods, with a one throw crank
shaft which is placed at the centre of locomotive.
The steam cylinders aforesaid may be made as fixed cylinders or as oscillating
cylinders as desired.

page_text: I, ISAIAH VERNON of Tipton, in the County of Stafford, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES
MAINLY APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES" and in what manner the same is
to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
These my Improvements are mainly directed to the utilization of the exhaust
and waste steam from high pressure engines, more particularly Locomotive engines,
and to the arrangement and construction of locomotive engines to carry out the said
object.
By this my Invention, the waste or exhaust steam from high pressure engines is
utilized so that from fifty to one hundred per cent of the original power is repro-
duced without the aid of a boiler or extra fuel, thereby effecting a very great saving
of fuel and working expences. A small extra boiler may however be fitted upon
locomotives for moving the said locomotives short distances when required, such as
from one part of a station to another, but under no other circumstance is an extra
boiler requisite. By means of pipes I convey the exhaust or waste steam from the
high pressure engines direct to auxiliary cylinders, which I provide for the purpose
of this Invention, the steam after doing duty in the auxiliary cylinders aforesaid is
conveyed to the condenser in the ordinary way. I prefer to give a longer stroke
to the piston of my auxiliary Engine than the stroke of the high pressure Engine
on Engines from whence the steam is taken or conveyed, so as to give a greater
velocity to the pistons of the said auxiliary Engines which is a great advantage, to
accomplish which I lengthen the cylinder, connecting rods, and the throw of the
crank axle. The cylinders of the said auxiliary engine may be fixed or made to
oscillate on the centre line of the Locomotive, one cylinder being at or near each
end, at an angle between a vertical and a horizontal position, its piston being
attached by means of connecting rods to a one throw crank-shaft placed in the
centre of the Locomotive. The said connecting rods are of two kinds the head of
one at the crank axle end being fork shaped, the other being of the ordinary kind,
and fitting between the jaws of the former where they come together on the same
one throw crank axle before mentioned, being fitted thereto by means of brasses
and straps, the aforesaid single throw crank axle is formed on the main axle of
a driving wheel of a Locomotive, which is usually placed midway in the length of
A centrifugal fan or blowing cylinder may be used when required for
the purpose of creating a draught in the furnace of the boiler to raise steam quicker
to take the place of the exhaust steam from the high pressure engine cylinders,
which is utilized in my auxiliary engines.
the same.

page_text: the centrifugal fan or blowing cylinder, also that of the pumps for returning the
condensed exhaust steam from my auxiliary engine to the tank of the Locomotive
for re-use.
Fig 2 is a plan of the same shewing the manner in which the heads of the
connecting rods fit into one another, where they come together on the crank axle
before mentioned, also a plan view of the pumps. The exhaust or waste steam
after leaving the high pressure engine cylinders is conducted by means of suitable
pipes a to the cylinders 6 of my auxiliary engine which transmits the power
remaining in the exhaust steam on to a crank c connected to the piston d by the
connecting rods e, the exhaust steam from the auxiliary engine cylinders b is
consequently of a very low pressure and is conducted to a condenser, which said
condenser is placed in any suitable position, the condensed steam being returned to
the tank of the locomotive by means of pumps fand are driven from the respective
axles of the leading and trailing wheels of a locomotive, and, in the case of other
engines, they are driven in the ordinary way.
In conclusion I may state from actual experience I have succeeded in obtaining
from fifty to a hundred per cent. more power from the steam exhausted from a high
pressure horizontal engine, to which my improvements have been applied, without
any extra fuel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
The general arrangement and disposition of the cylinders and other parts of my
auxiliary engines, for utilizing the exhaust or waste steam from high pressure
cylinder engines as hereinbefore described, set forth and Illustrated in the Drawings
annexed.