IMPROVEMENTS IN CERTAIN KINDS OF STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1834

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
MORGAN, of the Kent Road, in the County of Surrey, Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Thirteenth day of March, in the fourth year of His reign,
did, for ilimself, is heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Morgan, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said William Morgan, my exors, adññiors, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Morgan, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during
the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN CERTAIN KINDS OF STEAM ENGINES;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said William
Morgan, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be enrolled
in His said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent,
as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at.
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Morgan, do hereby declare the nature of iny said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-

page_text: tained in and by the following description thereof, reference being had to the
Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon,
that is to say-
My Invention relates only and is strictly confined to that kind of steam
engine in which the piston works with a pendulous motion within a steam 5
chamber, and my Invention consists,-first, in the application of main beams
to the axis of the piston of such engines, for the purpose of obtaining a
rotatory motion to the crank by the oscillation of the pendulous piston when
acted on by the steam, as will be hereafter fully described; secondly, in the
application of a peculiar arrangement of induction and eduction valves to the 1
particular kind of steam engine herein-before mentioned.
Having thus pointed out the object of my improvements, and at the same
time the description of engine to which such improvements are to be applied,
I will now proceed to describe the Drawing hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
1
Figure 1 is an elevation of the engine; Figure 2 is a longitudinal section,
and Figure 3 is a transverse section thereof. In each of these Figures the
same letters of reference indicate similar parts; A being the steam clamber;
B, the pendulous piston attached to and suspended from the axis C. The
construction of this axis C, and the nature of the bearings in which it turns,..
will be clearly seen in Figures 1 and 3, and the manner of rendering thoso
parts of the axis C steam tight (which pass through the steam chamber) is
clearly shown in Figure 3. D, D, the main beams, the application of which
to this particular kind of steam engine constitutes the first part of my Inven
tion. These main heams are affixed to the axis C by keys or otherwise; and 2
the beams D, D, arc, with the exception of the semicircular frames hereafter
mentioned, similar in construction to the ordinary beans of steam engines.
but by this arrangement they receive motion from the axis C, to which they
are keyed. E. E, the connecting rod from the cross head of the beams to the
cranks F, F, on the main shafts G, G. of the engine. a, a, are the two 3
steam admission or induction valves, one on each side of the piston. b, the
steam pipe from the boiler. cand c, the eduction valves of larger area then
the induction valves. The valves c, c, open into the eduction way and
condenser d. The four valves a', a², c', c², are opened and closed by means
of the four rods e¹, e, worked by the two levers f, to which levers the 3
excentrics on the main shaft communicate motion. The quantity of motion
required for the duc action of the several induction and eduction valves is
regulated by means of the nuts or nozzles screwed on to the lower ends of the

page_text: valve spindles, and by nuts having a right and left handed thread fitted to the
several rods e and e, which aro accordingly each made in two parts united
by the said nuts, marked p, p, on the rods, drawn on the elevation in Figure 1,
and by means of which the length of the said rods may be increased or
reduced. The rods and work on each sido of the steam chamber A,
one set being shown in line as in their due position, Figure 1, in connection.
with the bell crank levers f¹, and also with the short levers and turning on
axles or fulcrums, whilst the centre lines of the other set are also described
dotted in to mark their relative positions in the described state of the engine.
In the sectional elevation, Figure 2, the centre lines of tho said four rods,
together with those of their respective lovers 1, 1, 1, and r, are dotted in for
the purpose of demonstrating their action on the valves by means of the
forked levers shewn in connection or contact with the nozzles fixed on the
valve spindles at 2, v, y, a. By these, therefore, it will be seen that, if by the
action of its eccentric the upper end of the bell crank lever f¹ be raised,
a nearly horizontal motion towards the left hand will be communicated to its
lower point, which, being connected to one end of the upper rod el, will
bring the end of the contiguous slot or mortice into contact, and carry with
it the small lever n, and by this means depress the end of the forked lever,
which at embraces the nut or nozzle of the hollow spindle of the eduction
valve c', the said forked lever being fixed on the same axis with lever n.
By thus depressing the forked lever, the hollow spindle is drawn downwards
and the valve closed. In like manner one end of the other rod el, which is
dotted in, being acted upon by the small lever, also fixed on the same axle as
lever and vibrating below as does above, its centre is pushed in the
contrary direction to the upper rod e 1, in order to cause the axle of the
lever to elevate its forked lever embracing the spindle of the induction
valve a 2 at a, and thus to cause that valve to rise into its scat. The other
excentric will in like manner actuate the bell crank f, and in its upward motion
compel the extreme of the lower arm also to describe a nearly horizontal
movement, and to draw with it the upper rod e in a similar manner to the
left, by which the lever at q will, by coming in contact with the end of the
slot or mortice and moving with it, depress the forked lever fixed to the same
shaft or axle. This forked lever, by acting in turn on the nut of the spindle
of the induction valve a 1 at v, will open the passage for the admission of
steam to its side of the piston, whilst in like manner the lower rod e 2 will
be moved in the opposite direction to the former, and by the vibration of the
its lover move the forked lever at y upwards, and thus raise the
eduction valve c 2 by means of the nut or nozzle of the hollow spindle of the

page_text: said valve. It is scarcely necessary to remark that these excentric levers and
rods will reverse this action when the cranks are on their lower centre.
The axis of the air pump piston 4, having its levers m, m, fixed thereon,
is made to vibrate by the main beams D, D, by means of the connecting
rods o, o.
The weight of the cross head and connecting rods acting on the
driving ends of the beams D, D, may be counterposed or balanced at their
opposite ends by the duty of the air and other pumps, and by a counter-
balance weight. It will be seen that the ends of the axis C turn in bearings
on standards at each side of the engine, by which the stuffing boxes and
glands (at the points where the axis (c) comes through the steam chamber)
are relieved of the weight. The piston 13 is shown packed with metallic
packing, as is also the piston in the air pump, according to the arrangement
here shewn. The connecting rods o which work the air pump are attached
to the simicircular frames forming part of the main beams D; but it will be
evident that in some instances the connecting rod may be worked by other
parts of the beams, for instance, the opposite ends to those which actuate the
crank on the main shaft, but in such cases it will be necessary to aflix the
levers m in a proper direction to produce the requisite vibration, according to
the direction of motion communicated to the connecting rods o. The under
part of the steam chamber is covered with a non-conducting material, such as
wood, to prevent the injection water cooling the steam chamber (see the part
shown in section by red lines, Figure 2).
Inving thus described the arrangement of the parts, from which, and by
examination of the Drawing, an engineer will readily be able to construct an
engine, it will be desirable to remark that it will be evident that by the
application of the main beams D, D, direct to the axis C of the piston B, and
by the intervention of the usual connecting rod, a most effectual and advan-
tangeous means is obtained of communicating a direct rotatory motion to the
crank E, and it will also be evident that the length of beam and length of
crank may be varied to any desired length without reference to the length of
oscillation of the working piston. I will here remark, that the spindles which
work the valves a', a, pass through the spindles which work the valves c'. c, but
this will bo readily seen on inspecting Figure 2. The Drawing represents the
engine in the position it would be when the piston has made half its stroke in
the direction of the arrow. The induction valve a is open for the admission
of steam whilst the other induction valve a' is closed, and the education valve
is closed, whilst the other eduction valve c' is open to the condenser. By this
arrangement the steam is pressing on the eduction valve and tending to
keep it close to its seat, and this pressure on the valvo more than balances

page_text: the pressure of the steam acting on the valve a', owing to the difference of
area being in favor of the eduction valve c; and this is effected by the two
valves a', c, being acted on by the rods e, as above described, a like effect
being produced on the valves c' and a by the rods e..
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect. I would have it understood that I lay no claim
to any of the parts separately of which the same is composed, they being
for the most part separately well known and in use; nor do I claim them in
combination other than as hereafter particularly defined. I would, therefore,
have it understood that I do hereby confine my claim of Invention,-
First to the application of the main beams D, D, to the axis of a pendulous
piston working in a steam chamber for the purpose of obtaining a rotatory
motion to the crank, as above described.
Secondly, I claim the application of the peculiar arrangement of valves,
whereby the pressure of the steam acting on the education valve on one side
of the piston tends to close the induction valve on the other side of the piston,
when such arrangements of valves is applied to a steam engine having a pen-
dulous piston, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Morgan, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Tenth day of September, One thousand eight
hundred and thirty-four