IMPROVEMENTS IN ECONOMIZING FUEL IN THE LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Smith and William Kalthoff, of Gemünd,
near Cologne, in the Kingdom of Prussia, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
Sealed the 9th December 1856, and dated the 9th June 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Smith and
William Kalthoff at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 9th June 1856.
We, BENJAMIN SMITH and WILLIAM KALTHOFF, of Gemünd, near Cologne,
in the Kingdom of Prussia, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ECONOMIZING FUEL IN THE LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER STEAM
ENGINES."
These improvements consist in adapting to the fire box of locomotive
engines certain blowing apparatus, for the purpose of supporting combustion
of the fuel therein, by the use of which I am enabled to employ coals as the
fuel, instead of coke, as heretofore practised. The objection to the use of coal
as a fuel, particularly for locomotives employed on railways, is the smoke
resulting from imperfect combustion of the fuel, and arising mainly from the
These
improper construction of the furnace or fire box containing the same.

page_text: improvements are designed for the purpose of rendering combustion more
perfect, so as to enable coals to be used instead of coke, as heretofore practised
on railways. The means by which these improvements may be effected are as
follows: Supposing them, for example, to be applied to the fire box of a
locomotive engine, such as is commonly employed on railways. I form, at the
front part of the said fire box, and about six inches from the bottom thereof,
four or more openings, into each of which I insert loosely a taper pipe, called
a tue-iron, such as is commonly used in smiths' forges, said pipe being con-
nected to the under side of the footboard of the locomotive by hooks, to
enable it to be readily attached thereto and detached therefrom; the larger ends
of the aforesaid pipes are connected each, by a piece of elastic tubing, with a
box, in which are arranged certain flaps for opening and closing the aperture
through which the blast or current of atmospheric air passes, same being
produced by an ordinary blowing machine connected with the aforesaid box,
and worked by a band passed over a rigger on the axle of the tender, or
worked in any other convenient and suitable manner. In adapting these
improvements to locomotive engines, it is not actually necessary that fire bars
should be employed, as the bottom of the fire box might be used closed; but
for the sake of convenience of clearing out the same, I employ a narrow
hinged grating, and to the under side of said grating I hinge a flat plate of
iron, so as to completely close the bottom of the fire box, when necessary. The
draught from the blowing apparatus may be regulated by actuating certain
rods and levers in connection therewith, so placed as to be under the control of
the engine driver and stoker. In adapting these improvements to engines
other than locomotives, the tue-irons before mentioned may be fitted to the
front of the furnace of the steam boiler belonging thereto, or arranged in
any other suitable manner, so long as the principle of construction of these
improvements is retained.
SPECIFICATION filed in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent
and of an Order of the Lord Chancellor, by the said Benjamin Smith and
William Kalthoff in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 8th January
1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, BENJAMIN
SMITH and WILLIAM KALTHOFF, of Gemünd, near Cologne, in the Kingdom of
Prussia, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her beirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
Benjamin Smith and William Kalthoff, Her special licence that we, the
said Benjamin Smith and William Kalthoff, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Benjamin Smith and William
Kalthoff, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ECONOMIZING FUEL IN LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER STEAM ENGINES," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said Benjamin Smith and William
Kalthoff, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our or their bands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us
or them, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause
the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Benjamin Smith and William
Kalthoff, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
Our improvements consist in adapting to the fire boxes of locomotive
engines certain blowing apparatus, for the purpose of supporting combustion
of the fuel therein, and of regulating at discretion the degree of activity of such
said combustion, by which we are enabled to employ coals as the fuel, instead
of coke, as heretofore practised. The objections at present found to the use of
coal as a fuel for the furnaces of engines, and more especially locomotive
engines employed on railways, is the smoke arising from imperfect combustion
of the fuel, mainly attributable to the improper construction of the furnace or
fire box which contains the same. Our improvements are designed, therefore,
for obviating the above objections, by rendering combustion of the fuel more
perfect than heretofore, as above stated.
The means by which we propose to effect our said improvements are as
follows: Suppose, for example, it is required to adapt our said improvements
to a locomotive engine, such as is commonly employed on railways, we proceed

page_text: these Presents, and to the numeral figures and letters of reference marked
thereon respectively, as follows:-
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal and vertical section of a locomotive engine with
our improvements adapted thereto, and as they would appear if divided
through the line A, B, at Figure 2, which is a sectional plan view of the
several parts, supposing them to be divided on the line C, D, at Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a transverse and vertical section through the line E, F, at Figures
1 and 2, looking towards the inside of the fire doors. At each of the foregoing
Figures we employ similar letters of reference to denote corresponding parts,
in so far as such parts appear or can be seen at each of such said Figures
respectively.
A is the fire box, at the front part of which, and about six inches from the
bottom thereof, we form four or more openings, into each of which we fix a
socket B of copper or other suitable metal, which may be connected water-
tight to said fire box in any convenient manner. Into each of the sockets B,
we insert loosely a taper pipe or tuyère C, such as is commonly used in smiths'
forges, said pipes being each separately connected to and suspended from
the footboard D of the locomotive by hooks E, E, by which such said pipes
can be readily attached to and detached from the fire box, when necessary.
The larger ends of the aforesaid pipes C, C, are cach connected, by a piece of
elastic tubing G, with a box II, which allows for the play of the buffers or
other side or lateral movement of the tender or engine, said box being either
fixed to or formed upon the tender of the locomotive, when such said tender is
situated at the rear end of the locomotive, as commonly practised on railways.
The blowing apparatus which we employ, and have found to answer well in
practise, is composed of two flaps a, a, placed within the box II, and connected
thereto by a pin I, which is the fulcrum upon which they move for opening and
closing the same, by means of a system of lazy-tong levers K. L is a rod con-
nected to the levers K, and working through a guide M, said rod being at the
control of the engine-driver and fireman. By pulling the rod L, the flaps a, a,
will be closed against the shoulders 7, 1, and the blast shut off, and a reverse
movement of said rod will open the flaps, or they may be adjusted so as to leave
any desired extent of opening by which the blast can be regulated to a nicety.
The blast or current of atmospheric air may be produced by an ordinary blowing
machine or fan connected with the aforesaid box, and worked by a band passed

page_text: over a rigger on the axle of the tender; or said fan or blowing machine may
be worked in any other convenient and suitable manner.
We would here remark, that in adapting our said improvements to.loco-
motive and other engines, although we have represented the fire box as being
furnished with fire bars, it is not actually necessary that they should be
employed, as by our improved mode of supplying air to the fuel, the bottom of
the fire box might be entirely closed, and it is only for the sake of convenience
of clearing out the said fire box that we employ a narrow grating M, composed
of fire bars so constructed as that one end thereof has a rod m passed through
the same, serving as a hinge, whilst the other end of said bars are formed
hooked, as at n, and such booked parts rest upon a rod o, the ends whereof, as
also of the rod p, are fixed in and supported by brackets 2, of which only one
is shewn by the Drawing at Figure 1. By these means the fire bars M and
plate r, which encloses the said bars, are kept in proper position during the
working of the locomotive. It is desirable, however, upon first lighting the
furnace fire, and previous to starting the locomotive, to let down the plate r, to
allow atmospheric air to pass through the fire bars for kindling the fuel thereon,
after which the aforesaid plate may be closed, so that when the locomotive is
in action, the blowing apparatus will furnish the necessary quantity of atmo-
spheric air to the fuel in the fire box, as before stated; and in this manner, and
by these means, we economize the consumption of fuel in locomotive and other
steam engines, observing that for stationary steam engines the blowing appa-
ratus or fan blast may be driven by the engine; and further, as the arrange-
ment and disposition of the blowing machine or apparatus, tuyere pipes, fire
bars, &c., &c., will depend entirely upon local circumstances, it is impossible to
give any fixed mode of arranging the same, but we adopt such plans as are
most convenient and are in accordance with the peculiar character of our said
Invention.
Having now fully described the nature and object of our said Invention of
improvements in economizing fuel in locomotive and other steam engines,
together with the best means we are acquainted with for carrying the same
into practical effect, we hereby declare our Invention to consist in, and we
claim,―
Firstly, the entire closing up of the bottom of the fire box or furnace of
locomotive and other engines, except when it is desired to clear the same
out.
And, secondly, forcing a current of atmospheric air into and amongst the
fuel contained in a closed fire box or furnace, for the purpose of supporting

page_text: combustion of such said fuel, and of regulating at discretion the degree of
activity of such said combustion, by which we are enabled to burn coals instead
of coke, as above stated.
In witness whereof, we, the said Benjamin Smith and William Kalthoff,
have hercunto set ours hands and seals, this Sixteenth day of 5
December, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-six.
BENJAMIN SMITHI.
(L.S.)
WILHELM KEELTHOFF. (L.S.)
Witness,
FRIEDERICH WILHELM RUDOLPH,
Ober-Steuer-Controleur in
Gemünd.