AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF ROTARY ENGINE
Year: 1882

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by James Bowie, Daniel Dossett, and
Thomas Wrigley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
9th March 1882.
JAMES BOWIE of President Street in the County of Middlesex-DANIEL DOSSETT
of Burchall Road Leyton in the County of Essex and THOMAS WRIGLEY of
Myddelton Square in the County of Middlesex Engineers "AN IMPROVED
CONSTRUCTION OF ROTARY ENGINE"
The object of this Invention is the production of a Motive power Rotary Engine
which with simplicity of parts in its construction, combines all the advantages when
working which are now derived from the best known make of Cylinder Engine
which give Rotary motion through the medium of piston connecting rods and
crank.
In carrying our invention into practice we proceed as follows.
We secure to a base plate a cylinder the end covers of which are provided with
journals supporting the central axis, this axis or central driving shaft in the interior
of the Cylinder and equi-distant between the two inner surfaces of the covers is
divided so that one portion of the said shaft can revolve free and independently of
the other The portions of the central axis between the covers of the Cylinder are
enlarged, and provided upon their periphery with ratchet like indentations the
inclines of which are placed in opposite directions, each indentation or ratchet like
recess is provided with a hardened steel pin and the whole of the pins and enlarged
portions of the axis are embraced or surrounded by a boss the inner periphery of
which is accurately bored to fit the enlarged portions of the separated or divided
axle or driving shaft and the steel pins The boss bereinafter called the piston
boss surrounding the divided axle extends from cover to cover of the cylinder and
the annular space formed between the outer surface and the inner surface of the
cylinder is that portion of the capacity of such Cylinder into which Steam is admitted
for driving in manner as bereinafter described.
A portion of this space is filled in with a fixed block or abutment the sides of
which are inclined surfaces radiating from the centre of the Cylinder; through one
of the Cylinder covers on each side of the said block or abutment ports or thorough-
fures for the entrance and exit of Steam are provided and a third or intermediate
CD 277

page_text: hole is also made as an exhaust thoroughfare which has a passage direct through the
fixed block into the exhaust pipe. Outside the Cylinder cover in which these
thoroughfares are formed is a Steam Chest containing a circular valve connected
with and actuated by a spindle which by preference passes through the exhaust
thoroughfare in the fixed block out through the opposite cylinder cover where it
receives a wheel which gears with another wheel keyed or otherwise secured on the
axle or driving shaft. The said circular valve is provided with suitable thoroughfares
for the passage of Steam to the Cylinder and also for the exit of Steam therefrom
and the steam chest containing the said valve is connected by a pipe direct with
the boiler the said pipe being provided as is usual with a throttle valve
It will thus be seen that the entrance and exit of Steam to and from the Cylinder
is governed or regulated exactly as is usual with Engines of rectilinear type with
this difference that the valve moves or turns on its spindle in a circular direction on
the face of the Steam ports.
In order to get effective motive power from the action of the steam the piston boss
is provided with a projection in form something similar to the abutment projection
secured to and forming part of the Cylinder, the frictional surfaces of which are
provided with metallic springs or other suitable packing and the axles or driving
shaft on either side the outer covers of the cylinder are provided with gearing which
give uniform motion to a driving shaft which may be placed parallel to or in a line
with the central axis of the cylinder.
The Action of the Engine will now be understood by the following description.
When steam is admitted by the circular valve to the cylinder on one side of the
fixed abutment it forces the piston boss round to the opposite surface of the said
fixed abutment the Valve in the meantime through the medium of its aforesaid
driving gear being turned on its facing so as to cut the high pressure steam off at
about one third or half the circular traverse of the piston so as to affect the remaining
portion of the stroke by expansion the exhaust and re entrance of Steam being
governed through the medium of the valve as usual. It will thus be seen that as
the piston is forced from side to side of the abutment block the boss encircling the
central axis receives a reciprocating action this action gives positive motion to the
central axis alternatively, that is when being forced round in one direction the inner
bore of the piston boss bites or nips the steel pins between the inclined surface of
the aforesaid ratchet recesses and the axle and so gives a positive one half revolution
to such axis when returning the one axis positively driven is left free whilst the
other is taken up in like manner and driven in the opposite direction. The alternate
positive driving of the divided axle embraced by the piston boss is communicated
by suitable gearing to a main driving shaft which receives thereby a uniform
revolution.