An Improved Faucet.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Nov, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 21st Aug., 1895-Accepted, 12th Oct.,
1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Faucet.
I, PERCY RICHARD JULIUS WILLIS, of 55 Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad by Frank H. Burrill, Milo B. Stearns,
and Francis C. Ring, all of Concord, Middlesex County, Mass., U.S.A.,
Gentlemen,) to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to provide a faucet constructed with an auxiliary
valve which can be used should the main valve become leaky.
The invention comprises a casting formed with the usual water passages, a seat
for the valve, and an upper screw-threaded part to accommodate the screw-threaded
valve-spindle, which is capable of being raised and lowered therein by turning the
same to right or left in the usual and well known manner.
The
The valve consists preferably of a flexible washer secured to the enlarged end of
the valve-spindle and adapted to be screwed down thereby upon its seat.
valve is centrally perforated, and its spindle is hollow and accommodates a stem
having at its lower end an auxiliary valve adapted to be forced upon an auxiliary
valve-seat, located heneath the main valve-seat, by means of a screw-threaded
depending projection thereon which engages a screw-threaded aperture forming the
central water passage through the auxiliary valve-seat.
A suitable handle fits over the auxiliary valve-stem and engages a shoulder upon
the main valve spindle thereby causing both spindle and stem to rotate and move
vertically in unison.
By this arrangement, should the main valve become defective, the auxiliary valve
may be closed and the main valve be repaired without the necessity of turning
off the water at the main.
Dated this 21st day of November 1894.
PERCY R. J. WILLIS.
An Improved Faucet.
I, PERCY RICHARD JULIUS WILLIS, of 55 Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communica-
tion to me from abroad by Frank Henry Burrill, Milo Benjamin Stearns,
and Francis Clarence Ring, both of Concord, Mass. U.S.A. Gentlemen) and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to cocks or faucets provided with an auxiliary valve for
the purpose of shutting off the supply of fluid from the main valve when desired,
to obviate the necessity of turning off the supply from the main when access to the
valve or its seat is necessary for the purpose of making repairs or otherwise, and
my invention has for its object the production of a more efficient and durable cock
or faucet of the class referred to simple in construction and cheap to manufacture
and without an opening in the lower portion of the main casing or shell.

page_text: In accordance therewith my invention consists, in a cock or faucet, of a main
valve provided with a hollow spindle, a seat for said valve, an auxiliary valve
provided with a stem extended through the spindle, a seat for the auxiliary valve,
and detachable connections between said spindle and stem to retain the auxiliary
valve away from its seat, whereby the spindle and stem are normally rotated and
moved longitudinally in unison, substantially as will be described.
Other features of my invention will be hereinafter described, and particularly
pointed out in the claims.
Fig. 1 is a side view, and for the greater part in section, of a cock or faucet
embodying my invention, the main and auxiliary valves heing shown in normal
condition.
Fig. 2 is a similar view of the cock or faucet with the main and auxiliary valves
disconnected, and the latter seated to stop the flow of fluid therethrough.
Fig. 3 is a detached view of the main valve and its hollow spindle, and
Fig. 4 is a similar view of the auxiliary valve and its stem.
Referring to Fig. 1 the main valve D is shown as resting on its seat D², and
preventing the passage of the fluid through the cock or faucet. The valve is
provided with a hollow spindle D', having an enlargement D³ herein shown as
threaded to engage the internally threaded hub G, the spindle projecting through
a cap or closure G' for the hub, and shouldered or stepped at d, Figs. 1 to 3, for a
purpose to be described.
An auxiliary valve E, threaded at F, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 4 is adapted to
be screwed into or away from its seat B, the said seat being shaped to receive the
shouldered valve E when it is seated, making the valve tight.
The auxiliary valve seat B is located below the main valve seat D³, and
interposed between the latter and the inlet portion of the cock or faucet, the
passage of the fluid being indicated by the arrows in Figs. 1 and 2.
A stem A is secured to or forms part of the auxiliary valve E, of such diameter
that it will easily pass through the hollow spindle D', and projecting beyond
the upper end thereof as shown.
The handle C has a hollow shouldered hub C¹ to fit over the projecting
portion of the stem A, as shown in Fig. 1, the shouldered portions of the hub
and the spindle D₁ being in engagement, whereby rotation of the handle C in
one or the other direction will cause similar rotation of the spindle, and move-
ment of the main valve D toward or from its seat, to shut off or turn on the
fluid.
A screw H is passed through a washer H' on the handle and into the end of the
stem A, drawing the shoulder of the auxiliary valve E up against the under side
of the main valve D, and under normal conditions retaining it in such position the
screw H and the handle C forming a detachable connection for the main and
auxiliary valves.
From an inspection of Fig. 1 it will be obvious that the auxiliary valve E is
always unseated, when connected to the main valve, whether the latter is raised or
lowered, and when the main valve is moved away from its seat to turn on the fluid
the auxiliary valve is moved in unison therewith and out of the passage way, so that
the latter is practically unobstructed.
The valve D is recessed at I, shown in dotted lines, to receive a suitable washer,
which is kept firmly in place by the shouldered portion of the valve E, the stem A
passing through a hole in the washer, so that it effectually prevents the escape of
any fluid through the hollow spindle D', between it and the stem A.
By the construction described the objectionable features attendant upon the use
of a screw for securing the washer are obviated entirely.
When, for any reason, it is desired to remove or to have access to the main valve,
or to the interior of the cock or faucet, without cutting off the fluid at a distant
point in the system of piping, the screw H is removed, disconnecting the main and
auxiliary valves, and the handle C is reversed, as shown in Fig. 2, and placed on
the reduced portion A' of the stem A, which is made square or polygonal, the

page_text: handle having a correspondingly shaped recess therein, so that it may be used as a
wrench.
Rotation of the handle C will cause the auxiliary valve E to move toward its
seat B, completely closing it, without moving the main valve D, so that the fluid is
shut off at the cock or faucet, and back of the main valve as shown in Fig. 2. The
cap G can thereafter be removed and the main valve D and its hollow spindle D'
be removed, and the interior cleaned, or the valve itself may be repaired.
When
If a new washer is to be inserted, it is slipped down on the stem A until it rests
on the top of the auxiliary valve E, and the main valve and stem replaced.
seated and the cap G¹ in place, the auxiliary valve E can be raised into the position
shown in Fig. 1 and the handle C reversed. The valves are then again connected
by inserting the screw H and the faucet is ready for use.
No skilled labor is required to perform the described operations, and the parts are
o few and simple that they cannot get out of order.
By locating the auxiliary valve and its seat as herein described, it is unnecessary
to make openings in the faucet shell or casing, for the admission or withdrawal of
the auxiliary valve and this is a most important feature of my invention, for there
is no liability to freeze or to leak in a cock or faucet embodying my invention while
in one having such an opening there is always more or less trouble experienced from
leakage, or by freezing in cold weather.
While I have herein shown my invention as embodied in an ordinary cock or
faucet, it is obvious that its use is not restricted thereto, for my invention may be
employed in other ways and with other forms of apparatus wherein a valve is used,
by adding an auxiliary valve, its seat and devices, to detachably connect the main
and auxiliary valves.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
(1.) In a cock or faucet, a main valve provided with a hollow spindle, a seat for
said valve, an auxiliary valve provided with a stem extended through the spindle,
a seat for the auxiliary valve, and detachable connections between said spindle and
stem, to retain the auxiliary valve away from its seat whereby the spindle and
stem are normally rotated and moved longitudinally in unison substantially as
described.
(2.) In a cock or faucet, a main and an auxiliary valve seat, a main valve, an
auxiliary valve detachably connected therewith and located below the main valve
and between it and the auxiliary valve seat, and means to normally maintain said
auxiliary valve adjacent to the under side of and movable with the main valve,
substantially as described.
(3.) In a cock or faucet, a main valve provided with a hollow spindle having a
shouldered end, an auxiliary valve provided with a stem extended through said
spindle, a washer interposed between said valves and retained in place by the
auxiliary valve, a handle adapted to fit onto the stem and to engage the shouldered
end of the spindle, and a screw to detachably secure the handle to the stem and
maintain it in engagement with the shouldered spindle, substantially as described.
Dated this 21st day of August 1895.
PERCY R. J. WILLIS.