IMPROVEMENTS IN MOTIVE ENGINES WORKED BY WATER, STEAM, OR OTHER MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1863

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Christopher Brakell, William
Hoehl, and William Günther, at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 5th October 1863.-Partly a com-
munication from abroad by Albert Westfield, of Para Bonary, Asia Minor.
We, CHRISTOPHER BRAKELL, WILLIAM HOEHL, and WILLIAM GÜNTHER, of
the North Moor Foundry Company, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MOTIVE
ENGINES WORKED BY WATER, STEAM, OR OTHER MOTIVE POWER," part of the same
has been communicated to us from abroad by Albert Westfield, of Para
Bonary, Asia Minor, and the other part is our Invention, to be as follows:-
First, this Invention relates to improvements on Schiele's turbines, and
consists in opening and closing the supply to the water ports by means of
slides, instead of the ordinary throttle valve, and working the slides by an
inclined slot and ring, forming part of the rim of a toothed wheel, which is
caused to revolve by a pinion and handle, or motion given to it from the
governor of the engine. As many of the ports as desired are provided each
with a slide connected to a rod having at the top a collar or projection so
placed that the slot can pass over it, and the top or bottom of the ring be in
contact with it. When the toothed wheel, slot, and ring are turned a short
distance one way the slot raises the collar, rod, and slide, and the collar is
supported upon the ring so that the slide shall be maintained in its raised
position and the port open; when the wheel, slot, and ring are turned still
farther another slido is raised and supported, and so on for as many slides as
required. For closing the ports, reverse motion is given to the wheel, slot,

page_text: and ring, so that the slot acts upon the collars or projections one after the
other as required, and lowers the slides and maintains them steady by the
collars being in contact with the under side of the ring. It is evident that
instead of an entire toothed wheel and ring, segments of them may be
employed according to the number of slides required to be put in operation.
Secondly, this Invention relates to improved arrangements for governing or
regulating the action of the expansion valves of steam engines for the purpose
of admitting or cutting off the supply of steam according to the work to be
performed by the engine. To the ordinary rocking shaft, which is put in
motion by a crank or eccentric on the crank shaft in the usual manner, we
fix a slotted lever, in the slot of which there is a block jointed to one end of
a connecting rod, the other end of which is jointed to the lever or levers
which work the valve. To the block is connected a link or double strap,
which passes over the rocking shaft, and has a rack fixed to one side. The
teeth of the said rack gear into a toothed wheel or segment fixed to an arm
or lever, which works loose on the rocking shaft, and is connected at or near
its end by a rod to the governor of the engine. When the speed of the
engine is increased the arm or lever on the rocking shaft is raised and so
turns the toothed wheel or segment as to raise the rack which gears in it, and
thus causes the block to be raised to a longer radius in the slotted lever and
give a greater movement to the lever or levers which work the expansion
valve. When the speed of the engine is diminished the operation is reversed,
the arm or lever on the rocking shaft being lowered, and also the rack, which
causes the block to be in a lesser radius in the slotted lever, and thereby
give diminished motion to the lever or levers which work the expansion valve.
It is evident these operations may be reversed according to the description
of expansion valve, that is, the longer radius of the block in the slotted lever
may give diminished action to the lever or levers which work the expansion
valve, and vice versa.