Improvements in Automatic Overflow Cut-offs.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Sept., 1892-Accepted, 29th Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Automatic Overflow Cut-offs.
I, ANDREW WRIGHT KNOX, of 56 Grand Street, in the City, County and State
of New York, United States of America, Printer, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to that class of automatic devices employed to arrest the
flow of a liquid into a receptacle after the liquid therein has reached a predeter-
mined level; and the object of my invention is to prevent the overflow of a
receptacle, such as a sink, for example.
It is a matter of common experience that the waste-outlet of a sink will
sometimes become clogged, or will from some cause be unable to carry off all the
water running into it from the faucet, and under these conditions if the water be
left turned on an overflow will ensue and serious damage result. My cut-off
automatically arrests the flow of water from the faucet as soon as the water in the
sink shall have risen to a predetermined level, but without in any way actuating
the faucet or interfering therewith.
I preferably place my automatic cut-off at the back of the faucet, interposed
between the faucet and the point where the service-pipe enters the room.
The tubular body of the cut-off, has or may have substantially the form of a
short section of pipe. In this body is formed a valve-chamber, in which is a
somewhat conical plug-valve provided with a stem which passes out through an
aperture in the removable cover of the valve-chamber. This valve when depressed
closes the passage through the body and cuts off the flow of water therethrough,
and when raised a lesser valve formed on the stem or on the back of the valve,
finds a seat in the cover of the valve-chamber and effectually prevents the escape
of water around the stem. The purpose of this upwardly-seating lesser valve is
to avoid the necessity of packing the valve-stem, which would create friction.
The upper extremity of the valve-stem is coupled to one arm of a rocking lever
which has a fulcrum on the body, and to the other extremity of said lever is
coupled a rod or suspender to the lower end of which is secured a weight. This
weight acts through the lever to keep the valve elevated normally and the lesser
valve seated.
A cup is attached to a suspender, and this suspender is coupled through the
medium of a yoke with the extremity of the lever at the point where the valve-
stem is coupled thereto. From the sink an overflow spout leads out over the cup,
and when the water rises in the sink to the level of said spout the water will flow
into the cup, and when the weight of water in the cup is sufficient to overcome the
weight and the other opposing clements said cup will descend and depress the
valve firmly to its scat and cut off the water flowing through the service-pipe.
The weight must suffice to lift the empty cup, its suspender, and the valve, and in
order that it may have the proper weight to do this without undue surplus I prefer
to make it in the form of a hollow ball, adapted to be screwed onto its suspender,
and to put a sufficient amount or quantity of lead shot into it to give it the proper
weight and no more. The stem suspending the weight passes through and plays
in a tube, which passes transversely through an enlarged part of the bore in the
body and is fixed permanently in said body. In order that the cup may be
conveniently emptied after an overflow, it is provided at its bottom with a
controlled outlet, preferably closed automatically. This emptying-outlet may be
provided with a cock. Such cocks are a common article of trade and will require

page_text: no special description. The purpose in employing an automatically-closing cock
or valve is to avoid the liability of said valve or cock being left open through the
carelessness of the person whose duty it is to empty the cup.
The water may be drawn off from the cup into any convenient vessel, or a
receiving-pipe may be placed under the cock to receive the water and lead it into
the waste-pipe of the sink. If such a receiving-pipe is employed, however, it will
be well to arrange it so as to discharge into the waste-pipe below the sink-trap
therein and to trap the pipe. The latter should discharge below any obstruction
likely to exist in the waste-pipe and should be trapped to cut off gases from
the sewer.
The weight and cup may have any suitable form.
I am aware that it is not new in devices for conducting rain-water to cisterns to
provide a slide adapted to open a passage either to a waste-outlet or to the cistern and
to actuate such slide so as to automatically close the waste-outlet and open the outlet
to the cistern through the medium of a close-topped vessel, which descends when
filled and moves the slide. This device, however, is not designed to cut off the
flow of water, but merely to divide it, and its construction necessitates the employ-
ment of a closed weight-vessel, into which the feed-pipe enters through a packed
aperture. My apparatus, on the contrary, is designed to cut off the flow of water
entirely after the latter has reached the overflow-level in the sink or receiver, and
as the water is wholly cut off I am enabled to employ a simple open cup to receive
the overflow, the cup being entirely independent of the overflow-spout.
Dated this 30th day of Navamhan 1001
F. W. BARKER.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Automatic Overflow Cut-offs.
I, ANDREW WRIGHT KNOX of 56 Grand Street, in the City, County and
State of New York, United States of America, Printer, 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:-
My invention relates to that class of automatic devices employed to arrest the
flow of a liquid into a receptacle after the liquid therein has reached a
predetermined level; and the object of my invention is to prevent the overflow
of a receptacle, such as a sink, for example.
It is a matter of common experience that the waste outlet of a sink will
sometimes become clogged, or will from some cause be unable to carry 'off all the
water running into it from the faucet, and under these conditions if the water be
left turned on an overflow will ensue and serious damage restilt. My cut-off
automatically arrests the flow of water from the faucet as soon as the water in the
sink shall have risen to a predetermined level, but without in any way actuating
the faucet or interfering therewith.
My invention will be fully described hereinafter, and its novel features
carefully defined in the claim.
In the accompanying drawings, which serve to illustrate my invention,
Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of my improved cut-off device, showing
it applied in practice.
Fig. 2 is a cross section of the same in the plane of the line 2 2 in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a horizontal axial section of the cut-off.
represents the service pipe for supplying water 'to a sink or other receptacle y,
and is the faucet, which normally controls the flow of water into the sink.
Back of the faucet; by preferénce, and interposed between it and the point where
the service pipe enters the room, is situated my automatic cut-off, which I will now
describe.
T

page_text: a is the tubular body of the cut-off, which has or may have substantially the
form of a short section of pipe. In this body is formed a valve chamber a³, in
which is a somewhat conical plug-valve, provided with a stem, which passes
out through an aperture in the removable cover of the valve chamber. This
valve when depressed closes the passage through the body a and cuts off the flow
of water therethrough, and when raised a lesser valve 2, formed on the stem b' or
on the back of the valve b, finds a scat 63 in the cover of the valve chamber and
effectually prevents the escape of water around the stem. The purpose of this
upwardly seating lesser valve is to avoid the necessity of packing the valve stem b¹,
which would create friction.
The upper extremity of the valve stem is coupled to one arm of a rocking lever c,
which has a fulcrum a' on the body 4, and to the other extremity of said lever is
coupled a rod or suspender d, to the lower end of which is secured a weight e..
This weight acts through the lever c to keep the valve b elevated normally and the
valve seated.
g is a cup attached to a suspender g', and this suspender is coupled through the
medium of a yoke 2 with the extremity of the levere at the point where the
valve stem is coupled thereto. From the sink y an overflow spouty leads out
over the cup g, and when the water rises in the sink to the level of said spout the
water will flow into the cup, and when the weight of water in the cup is sufficient
to overcome the weight e and the other opposing elements said cup will descend
and depress the valve firmly to its seat and cut off the water flowing through the
service pipe. The weight e must suffice to lift the empty cup g, its suspender, and
the valve b, and in order that it may have the proper weight to do this without
undue surplus I prefer to make it in the form of a hollow ball, adapted to be
screwed onto its suspender, and to put a sufficient amount or quantity of lead shot
into it to give it the proper weight and no more. The stem suspending the weight is
represented as passing through and playing in a tube a³, which passes transversely
through an enlarged part of the bore in the body a and is fixed permanently in
said body. In order that the cup g may be conveniently emptied after an overflow,
it is provided at its bottom with a controlled outlet, preferably closed automatically.
In the drawings 1 have shown this emptying outlet provided with a cock h.
Such cocks are a common article of trade and will require no special description.
The purpose in employing an automatically closing cock or valve is to avoid the
liability of said valve or cock being left open through the carelessness of the person
whose duty it is to empty the cup.
The water may be drawn off from the cup into any convenient vessel, or, as
herein shown, a receiving pipe i may be placed under the cock to receive the water
and lead it into the waste pipe of the sink. If such a receiving pipe is
employed, however, it will be well to arrange it so as to discharge into the waste
pipe below the sink trap therein and to trap the pipe i. The latter should
discharge below any obstruction likely to exist in the waste pipe and should be
trapped to cut off gases from the sewer.
The weight e and cup g may have any suitable form.
I am aware that it is not new in devices for conducting rain water to cisterns to
provide a slide adapted to open a passage either to a waste outlet or to the cistern
and to actuate such slide so as to automatically close the waste outlet and open the
outlet to the cistern through the medium of a close topped vessel, which descends
when filled and moves the slide. This device, however, is not designed to cut off
the flow of water, but merely to divide it, and its construction necessitates the
employment of a closed weight vessel, into which the feed pipe enters through a
packed aperture. My apparatus on the contrary, is designed to cut off the flow of
water entirely after the latter has reached the overflow level in the sink or
receiver, and as the water is wholly cut off I am enabled to employ a simple open
cup to receive the overflow, the cup being entirely independent of the over-
flow spout.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The combination, with a liquid receptacle y, having an overflow spout y¹, a
service pipe, leading to said receptacle and adapted to supply it, a cock or 5
faucet i in said pipe and controlling the flow of liquid through the same, a body a,
forming a part or continuation of said service pipe, said body having a passage
through it for the flow of the liquid, a normally open valve in said body and
adapted to close the liquid passage through the same, a weight and lever which
hold said valve off its seat normally, and an open cup suspended from the lever 1
and arranged under the overflow-spout y¹, said cup being adapted to close said
valve and stop the flow when it fills and descends substantially as set forth.
Dated this 23rd day of September 1892.
F. W. BARKER,
Applicant's Agent.