Improvements in Automatic Fire Extinguishing Sprinklers and in Alarm Apparatus Used in Conjunction therewith.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Jan., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 4th May, 1889
Complete Specification Accepted, 8th June, 1889
Improvements in Automatic Fire Extinguishing Sprinklers and in
Alarm Apparatus Used in Conjunction therewith.
We WILLIAM MAYALL of Bottoms Mill, Mossley, in the County of Lancaster,
Cotton Spinner and THOMAS THOMASSON of 57 Egmont Street, in the same place
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of our said invention to be as follows:-
The first part of our invention relates to improvements upon an automatic fire
extinguishing sprinkler for which we obtained Letters Patent No. 15019 and dated
4th November 1887 and has for its object the complete isolation of the annular expan-
sion ring or chamber from the valve or valve seating of the sprinkler and so as to
prevent the possibility of any motion or movement of the one being communicated
to the other. We find in practise that the application of our improved expansion
ring or chamber affords in itself the necessary provision required in the interior of the
apparatus to obviate the constantly recurring and pulsating or knocking action of a
pump and in order to keep the valve tight under all pressures and hence we secure
the outlet end of the expansion ring rigidly in position with regard to the inlet end
and so that any expansion of the apparatus taking place between these two points is
neither communicated to the valve nor its seating as aforesaid.
In performing our present invention instead of employing an adjustable nozzle or
connecting piece we secure this nozzle or its equivalent rigidly to the yoke or framing
of the apparatus depending from cross arms upon the other or inlet end of the
automatic sprinkler either by arms branching from the nozzle itself and riveted,
soldered or otherwise secured at its extremities to cach side of the yoke or by inter-
posing a cap or canopy (between the nozzle and the valve) which is similarly and
rigidly secured in position or by having snugs or brackets projecting from each side
of the yoke itself we thus effectually support and prevent any downward movement
of the nozzle or cap as aforesaid.
Instead of employing an annular expansion ring or chamber we sometimes substitute
therefor a corrugated length of piping constructed of thin copper or other suitable
metal and which is sufficiently yielding to obviate the effects of the pulsating or
knocking action of a pump as aforesaid without communicating any motion to the
valve or its seating.

page_text: And in order to relieve the pulsations in the supply pipes of automatic sprinklers
and in particular where a number of sprinklers are supplied by a range or upright
length of piping, we apply a modification of our improved expansion ring-practically
forming an enclosed expansion chamber by preference upon the flanged extremity of
the last or endmost length of pipe. This expansion chamber is constructed of thin
sheet metal and with a single orifice only for the admission of the water-and being
capable of sufficient expansion its effect is to relieve the pipes and sprinkler of pulsation
as aforesaid. A cap and spring being applied on the outside to prevent the chamber
going out of shape.
Secondly, our invention relates to the arrangement and construction of an improved
alarm valve to be used in conjunction with our improved fire extinguishing sprinkler
but which is equally available for use with any other construction of automatic fire
extinguishing apparatus. This part of our invention consists of a valve box or
chamber to be affixed upon the line of water pipes for supplying the sprinklers. In
this box or chamber a valve is mounted upon a suitable seating and in order that the
lifting of this valve may simultaneously communicate a sonorous alarm or indication
of the sprinklers coming into action or of any leakage taking place we provide
one or more orifices in the valve seating communicating with a passage leading
down through a suitable branch pipe to a motor for working a gong or through
another passage and branch pipe to an improved arrangement of steam whistle.
This improved steam whistle consists of a cylinder in which a piston is fitted with
a rod passing through the cover to the outer atmosphere. This rod is linked to an
arm upon the spindle of a disc valve which being turned to a fraction of a revolution
permits steam to pass through suitable orifices to a steam whistle.
It will now be apparent that if the water is permitted to obtain access from the
alarm apparatus to the under side of the piston that the piston. will be raised and that
in so rising it will at the same time operate the disc valve and thus sound the steam
whistle and give the required sonorous alarm. To provide for any variation in
pressure which may occur in the water supply pipes-we provide a small hole
through the valve of the alarm apparatus and thus we ensure a constant and equal
pressure upon both sides of such valve and this without the intervension of any so called
compensating valve or other apparatus liable to derangement.
Instead of forming the orifices in the valve seating-we sometimes substitute a
cross bar through the box or casing and which being formed hollow may lead in
one direction to the gong and in the other..to the whistle as aforesaid. In the centre
of this cross bar' is formed a seating for a valve formed upon the lower extremity
of the spindle of the main valve and thus as the latter rises it simultaneously
opens a communication through the hollow cross bar with, thergong and, steam
whistle.
We sometimes interpose an expansion ring at the junction of the hollow cross. bar
with the spindle of the main valves in order that the valvular.extremity, of such spindle
may by pressing upon the top side of the expansion ring so effect a perfectly. tight
joint and which only becomes tighter with increasing pressure.
JOHN G. WILSON;'
Patent Office;
55, Market Street, Manchester;
Agent for the Applicants:..

page_text: Alarm Apparatus Used in Conjunction therewith.
We WILLIAM MAYALL of Bottoms Mill, Mossley, in the County of Lancaster,
Cotton Spinner and THOMAS THOMASSON of 57 Egmont Street, in the same place,
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of our said invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
The first part of our invention relates to improvements upon an automatic fire
extinguishing sprinkler for which we obtained Letters Patent No. 15049 and dated
4th November 1887 and has for its object the complete isolation of the annular
expansion ring or chamber from the valve or valve seating of the sprinkler and so
as to prevent the possibility of any motion or movement of the one being communi-
cated to the other. We find in practice that the application of our improved expansion
ring or chamber affords in itself the necessary provision required in the interior of
the apparatus to obviate the constantly recurring and pulsating or knocking action
of a pump and in order to keep the valve tight under all pressures and hence we
secure the outlet end of the expansion ring rigidly in position with regard to the
inlet end and so that any expansion of the apparatus taking place between these two
points is neither communicated to the valve nor its seating as aforesaid.
On the accompanying drawing Figs. 1 and 2 are sectional and exterior views of our'
improved sprinkler in both of which a is the inlet end of the nozzle screwed as
illustrated for connecting the sprinkler with the water supply pipe and having a pair
of arms projecting one on each side, these arms being arranged to support the
yoke c which is rivetted thereto in the ordinary manner. d is our improved annular
chamber or expansion ring formed of thin copper or other suitable metal and brazed
in position to the inlet passage a as illustrated. The outlet end of this chamber dis
similarly brazed to the outlet end of the nozzle e the mouth of which forms the
seating of the valve f. This valve occupies the central part of the dispersing
plate which is held up and in contact with valve seat el by a lever which is
soldered to the bottom of the yoke by a solder capable of melting say at a tem-
perature of about 155° Farenheit. Upon the outside of the outlet end of the
nozzle e is screwed the cap or canopy 9. in accordance with this invention this
extremity of the nozzle is secured rigidly in position either as illustrated in Fig. 1
by rivetting, soldering or otherwise fastening the cap g at each side of the yoke c―
or by having arms e projecting from the nozzle e riveted, soldered or otherwise
secured at their extremities to each side of the yoke c as seen in Fig. 2 or by having
snugs or brackets projecting from each side of the yoke itself as seen in Fig. 3.
and whereby in each case we rigidly support and prevent any downward moveinent
of the nozzle or cap gas and for the purposes aforesaid.
Instead of employing an annular chamber or expansion ring we sometimes sub-
stitute therefor as illustrated in Fig. 3 a corrugated length of thin metal tubing h
and which is sufficiently yielding to obviate the effects of the pulsating or knocking
action of a pump as aforesaid without communicating any motion to the valve or its
seating.

page_text: And in order to relieve the pulsations in the supply pipes of automatic sprinklers
and in particular where a number of sprinklers are supplied by a range or upright
length of piping, we apply a modification of our improved expansion ring-practically
forming an enclosed expansion chamber by preference upon the flanged extremity
of the last or end most length of the pipe. These expansion chambers one of which
is seen in sectional view Fig. 4 as applied to the flanged extremity of a length of
piping and indicated by the letter is constructed of thin sheet metal and with a
single orifice only for admission of the water-and being capable of sufficient
expansion its effect is to relieve the pipes and sprinklers of pulsation as aforesaid.
A cap and spring k may be applied on the outside to prevent the chamber going
out of place. Or the same effect can be obtained by using a chamber in the form of
a cylinder as indicated in Fig. 4° sliding through a stuffing box i³.
Secondly, our invention relates to the arrangement and construction of an improved
alarm valve to be used in conjunction with our improved fire extinguishing sprinkler
but which is equally available for use with any other construction of automatic fire
extinguishing apparatus. This part of our invention as illustrated by sectional view
Fig. 5 and plan view Fig. 5" consists of a valve box or chamber to be affixed upon
the line of water pipes for supplying the sprinklers. In this box or chamber a valve m
is mounted upon a suitable seating n and in order that the lifting of this valve may
simultaneously communicate a sonorous alarm or indication of the sprinklers coming
into action or of any leakage taking place we provide one or more orifices o in the valve
seating communicating with a passage leading down through a suitable branch
pipe to a motor for working a gong or through another passage i and branch pipe i
to our improved arrangement of steam-whistle-apparatus. This improved steam-
whistle-apparatus is illustrated by sectional view Fig. 6 and consists of a cylinder s
in which a piston t is fitted witli a rod- passing through the cover to the outer
atmosphere. The rod is linked to an arm w upon the spindle of a disc valve a which
being turned to a fraction of a revolution permits steam to pass through suitable
orifices y to a pipe or passage a leading to a steam whistle.
The action of this combined apparatus is as follows:-
It will be apparent that if the water is permitted to obtain access from the alarm
apparatus through the pipe to the under side of the piston t that the piston will be raised
and that in so rising it will at the same time operate the disc valve and thus sound the
steam whistle and give the required sonorous alarm. Instead of employing the
cylinders and piston t as the operating media the arm could be counterbalanced
and provided with a cup to catch the water issuing from the pipe and thus when
such cup became full and overbalanced the weight the disc valve would turn
upon its axis and open the communication with the steam whistle: To provide for
-we form a
any variation in pressure which may occur in the water supply pipes-
small hole or nick through the valve m (or through its seating) of the alarm
apparatus and thus we ensure a constant and equal pressure upon both sides of such
valve and without the intervention of any so called compensating valve or other
apparatus liable to derangement.
Instead of forming the orifices o in the valve seating we sometimes as illustrated in
sectional view Fig. 7 and plan view Fig. 7" (taken on line a-b in Fig. 7)-substitute.
a cross bar A through the box or casing Band which being formed hollow may lead
in one direction to the gong and in the other to the whistle as aforesaid. In the
centre of this cross-bar is formed a seating U for a valve D formed upon the
lower extremity of the spindle E¹ of the main valve E and thus as the latter rises it
simultaneously opens a communication through the hollow cross-bar A with the gong
and steam whistle.
We sometimes interpose an expansion ring at the junction of the hollow cross-bar
with the spindle of the main valve in order that the valvular extremity of such
spindle may by pressing upon the top side of the expansion ring so effect a perfectly
tight joint and which only becomes tighter with increasing pressure.
To provide against any tampering with the water supply pipes of an installation
of sprinklers and to give a sonorous alarm in case of the water being turned off we

page_text: employ the arrangement illustrated by sectional view Fig. 8 which represents a sluice
or stop valve designed to be applied upon the length of the water supply pipe and
on the pressure side of the alarm apparatus. It consists of a small valve G opening
inwards and capaple of opening a communication with the steam whistle or gong of
the alarm apparatus through the pipe H. This valve is fitted with a lever I the
longer arm of which fits into a recess formed to receive it in the side of the shutter
or slide J of the sluice valve or is operated by a snug or ear on the shutter and so
that in case of such shutter being closed and so cutting off the water supply from
the sprinklers the small valve G is immediately opened and by permitting the pressure
of water to pass through the pipe H to the whistle or gong so giving the desired
sonorous indication of the supply being interfered with.
We wish it to be distinctly understood that we make no claim herein to the employ-
ment of an annular chamber or expansion ring in the construction of automatic
sprinklers save and except when completely isolated from the valve or valve seating
as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of this our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is :-
1st. In an automatic sprinkler the combination of the annular chamber or expansion
ring with the outlet nozzle (carrying the valve seating) secured rigidly in position
substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
2nd. In the construction of automatic sprinklers the employment of a length
of corrugated metal tubing substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
described.
3rd. The use and application to the water supply pipes of automatic sprinklers
"expansion chamber" substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
of an
described.
4th. In the construction of alarm valves to he used in conjunction with automatic
sprinklers or other fire extinguishing apparatus the employment of orifices in the
valve seating and of a hole in the valve or its seating substantially as and for the
purposes hereinbefore described.
5th. The improved construction and arrangement of alarm valves substantially as
and for the purposes hereinbefore described and illustrated in Fig. 7 and 7ª of the
accompanying drawing.
6th. The improved steam whistle apparatus operated by a disc valve substantially as
and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
7th. The use and application to sluice or stop valves employed in conjunction with
an installation of automatic sprinklers of an alarm valve mounted and operated
substantially as and for the purposes herein before described.
Dated this 1st day of May 1889
JOHN G. WILSON,
Patent Office,
55, Market Street, Manchester,
Agent for the Applicants.