Improvements in Rotary Engines, Pumps, or Meters.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 4th Jan., 1893-Accepted, 4th Feb., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rotary Engines, Pumps, or Meters.
We, SHOLTO DOUGLAS, of 23 Adelphi Place. Salford, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, and HARRY WELFITT NICHOLLS, of Cooper Street,
Manchester, in the said County, Solicitor, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to improvements in rotary engines which may be used
for motive power or as pumps for raising and forcing liquids or as meters for
measuring fluids and our improvements consist chiefly in a novel combination and
arrangement of parts.
In carrying our improvements into effect we employ a pair of rotary pistons
fitted on separate shafts in a double cylinder or casing the two chambers of which
open into one another. Each piston is preferably slightly eccentric to its cylinder
and has two (or more) slide blocks each fitted in a recess in the piston block and
by means of a spring maintained with its outer face in sliding contact with the
interior of the cylinder. There is a fluid inlet controlled by a slide or other suitable
form of valve with a double port to admit steam or other fluid under pressure to
each chamber of the double cylinder and on the opposite side or in other con-
venient place are the exhaust ports.
In operation when steam or other fluid under pressure is admitted to the double
cylinder it enters the space behind a slide block on each piston and so drives the
latter forward thereby rotating the shafts upon which said pistons are secured. Steam
or other fluid is then shut off while the second slide blocks are passing the inlet
ports and while the steam behind the first pair of slide blocks is exhausting, then
steam or other fluid is again admitted and the second pair of slide blocks thereby
forced forward, and so on.
The parts are preferably so arranged and the inlet valve so set that each
piston slide block has little or no steam or other Huid pressure upon it during
the quarter revolution or thereabouts in which it is being forced back into its
recess in the piston block by the eccentricity of the cylinder and also during
the next quarter revolution when it is being pressed outward again by the action of
its spring.
Dated this 3rd day of March 1892.
H. B. BARLOW,
Agent for Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rotary Engines, Pumps, or Meters.
We, SHOLTO DOUGLAS, of 23 Adelphi Place, Salford, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, and HARRY WELFITT NICHOLLS, of 1 Cooper Street,
Manchester, in the said County, Solicitor, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
Our invention relates to improvements in rotary engines which may be used for
motive power or as pumps for raising and forcing liquids or as meters for measuring
fluids and our improvements consist chiefly in a novel combination and arrangement
of parts.
And in order that our invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
effect we will describe the accompanying sheet of drawings reference being had to
the figures and letters marked thereon.

page_text: .
Figure 1 is an elevation with the valve box removed. Fig. 2 a part plan in
section and Figs. 3 and 3 are sectional elevations taken through the cylinder and
valve box respectively of our improved rotary engine pump or meter.
In these views, a a denote a pair of rotary pistons fitted on separate shafts bb
in a double cylinder or casing the two chambers dd of which open into one
another. Each piston a is preferably slightly eccentric to its cylinder and has two
(or more) in the example given three slide blocks e cach fitted in a recess in its
piston block and by means of springs maintained with its outer face in sliding
contact with the interior of the cylinder.
Fig. 3 shows the valve chest to which steam is admitted through the inlet g'
and in the valve chest y is the valve spindle upon which are mounted the two
slide valves. The slide valve i is shown covering the port leading to the
exhaust pipe while the steam admission port to the cylinders d d is left open;
but the valve is shown covering both ports and so as to form an exhaust
passage from the cylinders d d through the port under the slide valve through
the port and around the casing c to the exhaust pipe
In operation with the valves set as shown in Fig. 3 steam or other Huid
under pressure flows from the inlet through the port into the cylinders d d
where it enters the space behind a slide block e on each piston a, and so drives the
latter forward thereby rotating the shafts upon which said pistons are secured,
and this motion will continue until the fluid pressure is shut off by closing a
tap or valve controlling the inlet'', or until by means of a lever, not shown,
the positions of the valves are reversed so as to cause fluid under pressure to
to the cylinders d d on the other side of the slide
be admitted through the port
blocks e.
In some cases it may be advantageous to operate the slide valves by automatic
gear so as to shut off the fluid pressure while the second slide blocks are passing
the inlet ports and while the steam or other fluid behind the first pair of slide
blocks e is exhausting, then the fluid under pressure is again admitted and the
second pair of slide blocks e thereby forced forward and so on. With an automatic
cut off the parts are preferably so arranged and the inlet valve so set that cach
piston slide block e has little or no steam or other fluid pressure upon it during the
quarter revolution or thereabouts in which it is being forced back into its recess in
the piston block by the eccentricity of the cylinder and also during the next
quarter revolution when it is being pressed outward again by the action of its
springs f.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
The general arrangement and combination of parts embodying our improvements
in rotary engines pumps and meters substantially as herein described and as
illustrated by the drawings annexed.
Dated this 3rd day of January 1893.
H. B. BARLOW & GILLETT,
17, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for Applicants.