IMPROVEMENTS IN PUMPS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Leadbetter, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Brazier, and James Rhodes, of Armley, near Leeds, in the same
County, Water-rate Collector, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
PUMPS."
Sealed the 4th November 1859, and dated the 11th May 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Leadbetter and
James Rhodes at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 11th May 1859.
We, JAMES LEADBETTER, of Leeds, in the County of York, Brazier, and
JAMES RHODES, of Armley, near Leeds, in the same County, Water-rate
Collector, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PUMPS," to be as follows:-
Our Invention of improvements in pumps relates to certain novel arrange-
ments of the parts of pumps, whereby the labor or power required to lift a
given weight of water is reduced, and the operation of pumping considerably
facilitated.
One of our improvements consists in so constructing the piston and barrel
of pumps, that a portion of the water is caused to assist in carrying down the
piston for the second or following stroke. To this end the barrel or cylinder
of the pump is divided into two chambers, one placed concentrically within the
other, so that the inner or pumping cylinder is surrounded by an annular
chamber. A compound piston is also adapted to these chambers, the central
part of the piston alone being provided with clack valves as usual, and made.

page_text: to work in the central or pumping cylinder, while the annular part of the
piston is made to work in the annular space surrounding the pumping
cylinder. The rods connected with these two parts of the piston are united at
top in any convenient manner, and therefore they are made to work up and
down the cylinder or barrel together as a single piston.
The operation of the pump is as follows:-Upon the compound piston
descending, the clack valves of the central part will open and admit water into
the central chamber; and when the piston rises a portion only of this water
will be discharged from the pump, and the remainder will run back into the
annular space surrounding the pumping chamber; the weight of this water,
by pressing on the annular part of the piston, will cause it and the other part to
descend in the cylinder, and a second portion of water will enter the pumping
chamber through the clack valves of the piston, when the latter must be again
raised, and so on continuously as in ordinary pumps. It will of course be.
understood that two of these pumps may be connected together by suitable
rods and levers so as to be worked in unison, in order that the one may
counterbalance the other.
Another of our improvements relates to ship's pumps, and consists in
adapting two pistons to the same cylinder or barrel in such a manner that while
one piston is rising the other is falling or stationary, in order to cause the
water to pass through the clack valves of one of the pistons. Each of these
pistons is provided with a separate rod connected to a distinct beam or lever,
the motions of the two pistons being so timed as to form the requisite vacuum
to cause the water to rise in the barrels. It will be found convenient to
arrange a pair of pumps or barrels to work in connection with each other, and
the piston rods of the two pumps may be connected to the same beams; and
in order to ensure uniformity of working, these beams should be so connected
together by means of rods that the motions of the several pistons should be
properly timed to give the best possible result.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed 30
by the said James Leadbetter and James Rhodes in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 11th November 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
LEADBETTER, of Leeds, in the County of York, Brazier, and JAMES RHODES,
of Armley, near Leeds, in the same County, Water-rate Collector, send 35
greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said James Leadbetter and James Rhodes, Her special license that we, the
said James Leadbetter and James Rhodes, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said James Leadbetter and James Rhodes,
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 PUMPS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said James Leadbetter and James Rhodes.
by an instrument in writing under our hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us, 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 I, the said James Rhodes, on behalf of myself
and of the said James Leadbetter, do hereby declare the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be parti-
cularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement, reference
being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures
marked thereon (that is to say):-
:-
Our Invention of "Improvements in Pumps" relates to certain novel
arrangements of the parts of pumps, whereby the labor or power required to
lift a given weight of water is reduced, and the operation of pumping is
considerably facilitated.
In the accompanying Drawing we have shewn views of various arrange-
ments whereby the object of our Invention may be effected.
of
One of our improvements.consists in so constructing the piston and barrel
pumps that a portion of the water is caused to assist in carrying down the
piston for the second or following stroke. This arrangement is shewn in
vertical section at Fig. 1 of the Drawings, and in plan at Fig. 2. It will be
seen that the barrel or cylinder of the pump is divided into two chambers a
and a*, one placed concentrically within the other, so that the inner or pumping
cylinder a is surrounded by an annular chamber a*. A compound piston b
and 6 is also adapted to these chambers, the central part b.of the piston alone>

page_text: being provided with clack valves c, c, as usual. The part 6 of the piston is
made to work in the central or pumping cylinder a, while the annular part 6*
of the piston is made to work in the annular space a* surrounding the pumping
cylinder a. The rods d and d*, connected with these two parts of the piston,
are connected at top to a common cross head e, or they may be otherwise
united at top in any convenient manner, so that they may be made to work up
and down the cylinder or barrel together as a single piston.
The operation of the pump is as follows:-Upon the compound piston 6, 6*,
descending, the clack valve c of the central part 6 will open and admit water
into the central chamber a above the part 6 of the piston, and when the
compound piston rises, a portion only of this water will be discharged from the
pump, and the remainder will run back into the annular space a surrounding
the pumping chamber a. The weight of this water, by pressing on the annular
part of the piston, will cause it and the other part 6 to descend in the
cylinder, and a second portion of water will enter the pumping chamber a
through the clack valves c of the piston b, when the latter must be again
raised, and so on continuously as in ordinary pumps. It will of course be under-
stood that two of these pumps may be connected together by suitable rods
and levers, so as to be worked in combination, in order that the one may
counterbalance the other.
Another of our improvements relates to ships' pumps, and consists in
adapting two pistons to the same cylinder or barrel in such a manner that while
one piston is rising the other is falling or stationary, in order to cause the
water to pass through the clack valves of one of the pistons. This arrange-
ment is shewn in the sectional view, Fig. 3, and in plan at Fig. 4. a, α,
is a barrel or cylinder in which work both the pistons b' and 62. Each of these
pistons is provided with clack valves c, and is worked by separate rods d'
and d connected to distinct cross heads and beams or levers e² and e²; these
pistons work in opposite directions as indicated by the arrows; that is, one
piston is ascending while the other is descending, and vice versa, the motions
of the two pistons 61 and 62 being so timed as to form the requisite vacuums
in the barrel a to cause the water to rise therein.
It will be found convenient to arrange a pair of pumps or barrels to wok
in connection with each other, as shewn in the sectional elevation, Fig. 5, and
the piston rods d², d, and d², d², of the two pumps may be connected to the
same beams or levers f¹, f³, and in order to ensure uniformity of working,
these beams or levers should be so connected together, by means of rods g, g,
that the motions of the several pistons should be properly timed to give the
best possible result.

page_text: Figures 6 and 7 are modifications of Fig. 3, representing different arrange-
ments of head gearing for working the pistons. In Fig. 6, the piston rods d¹
and d of both pistons are connected, by means of suitable rods e¹ and e², to a
vibrating beam or lever f, which works on a centre pin or axle h; the beam or
leverf may be provided with handles, so that it may be worked by hand, or the
lever may be actuated by mechanical power. In Fig. 7 the piston rods d¹
and are connected, by means of the rods e¹, e, to the double-throw crank j
of the shaft k; and by communicating rotary motion to this latter the pistons
will be moved up and down in the barrel in opposite directions, as shewn in
Fig. 3.
Having now described our Invention of "Improvements in Pumps," and
having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, we claim, as
the Invention secured to us by Letters Patent, the mode or modes herein
shewn and described of constructing, arranging, and operating pumps. We
claim particularly, working two or more pistons in combination in such a
manner that they are made in a great measure to compensate or balance one
another.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Rhodes, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Ninth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
JAMES RHODES. (L.S.)