Improvements in Steam Traps.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Feb., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 29th Oct., 1897-Accepted, 11th Dec., 1897
Improvements in Steam Traps.
We, JOHN CHARLES RAYMOND OKES, The Limes, Brondesbury Park, Middlesex,
Engineer, and ALFRED STUBBS, 8 St Paul's Road, Canonbury, Middlesex, Engineer
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object improvements in that class of Steam Traps Known
as Expansion Traps, and more especially to those in which the wet steam is contained
in a tube or tubes having a high coefficient of expansion, or a combination of tubes
or tube and rod or stay, or tubes and rods or stays having different coefficients of
expansion.
Means are employed to multiply the action of the expansion (or contraction as the
case may be) in reference to the valve lift for the discharge of the condensed water.
and so render the trap more efficient and quicker in its action.
To effect this we employ some mechanisin, preferably a lever, arranged in such a
manner that the expansion acts on both valve box and valve in opposite directions→
that is to say as the tube or tubes expand the valve box and valve advance to meet
each other..
By these means the lift of the valve is considerably increased (more especially if
the lever has unequal members) and great rapidity of action is obtained.
JOHN. C. R. OKES.
ALFRED STUBBS,
Improvements in Steam Traps.
We, JOHN CHARLES RAYMOND OKES, The Limes, Brondesbury Park, Middlesex,
Engineer, and ALFRED STUBBS, 8 St Paul's Road Canonbury, Middlesex, Engineer 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:-
This invention has for its object improvements in Steam Traps wherein the
principle of the expansion and contraction of metals is employed for the purpose of
actuating a valve. By our improvements the effect of such expansion and contraction
is intensified or multiplied by the use of mechanism or levers herein described.
The arrangement of levers we prefer is of a compound nature wherein the expansion
and contraction of a tube or tubes, caused by the difference in temperature of the
steam and the water of condensation, is multiplied by the first lever and again
multiplied by the second, and so on according to the number of levers used. The
resultant of this is that it causes the valve to open and close to a much greater extent

page_text: than when a simple lever, such as made use of in the Letters Patent granted to us A.D.
1896 and numbered 11,110, is employed. Moreover by the use of a lever having an
opening in it as hereinafter described, the valve box, by the expansion of the tube
or tubes, is made to infringe upon it concentrically, thereby obviating all tendency to
bending of the said tube or tubes.
In order to fully explain our invention we append hereto sheets of drawigns marked
with letters of reference.
Sheet I Fig. I is a side elevation of trap, partly in section.
On Sheet II, Fig. II shows the inside view of end cover with levers attached.
Fig. III is an end view of trap with cover and levers removed, partly in section.
Similar parts in the various views are indicated by similar letters.
A is a rigid frame, B is a tube having a high coefficient of expansion, C is the
valve box, D the valve and valve spindle, Ẹ the end cover fixed to frame A upon
which are attached the levers, F is the first motion lever with opening in it (to allow
valve spindle to pass through) and having two knife edges or projections f and f¹ G
is the second motion lever fitted with an adjusting screw J, H and H¹ are pins
forming the fulcrum of each lever, K is the inlet to, trap, L is a bend or swivel joint
connecting the valve box to outlet of trap, M is the outlet, N.is the point at which
the tube B is attached to the frime A.
The action is as follows: On steam being admitted, the tube B, which is rigidly
attached to the frame A at point N, expands, carrying forward the valve box C; this
impinges upon the first motion lever F which, in its turn, acts upon the second
lever G, causing the adjusting screw J to come into contact with the valve spindle D,
which moves to meet the valve seat and thus closes the valve-On the accumulation
of water the tube B contracts, releasing the levers, and the valve opens.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
I. In steam traps, wherein the action is derived from the expansion and contraction
of a tube or tubes, the use of compound levers as herein defined, or their equivalents,
operating upon each other in such a manner that the movement of the escape valve
is materially increased.
II. In expansion steam traps, the use of compound levers, or their equivalent
whereby the expansion of a tube or tubes is made to act both on the valve box and
valve spindle (or valve) in such a manner that when expansion takes place the valve
is moved towards the valve seat whilst the valve box is approaching the valve, and
when contraction occurs a larger opening for the escape of the water is ensured.
III. In steam traps, wherein the valve box is moved by the expansion or contraction
of a tube or tubes, the use of a bend or swivel joint or flexible tube, for connecting
the valve box to the outlet pipe of said trap, whereby the latter may be fixed and
the valve box free to move.
IV. The combination, in automatic steam traps, of a metal tube having a high
coefficient of expansion, firmly secured at one end to a fixed base, the valve box and
valve attached to said tube, the compound levers F and G, the bend or swivel joint L
-all substantially as arranged and shewn as and for the purpose set forth.
Dated this 29th day of October 1897