Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Jan., 1889
Specification Accepted, 9th Mar.. 1889
Communicated to me from abroad by JOHN WILLIAM CHARLES COVEN SCHIRM,
Professor, of Breslau, in the Empire of Germany.
I, EDMUND EDWARDS, of the firm of Edwards and Co. Patent Agents and
Engineers, of 35 Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
This invention relates to improvements in spirit lamps for the rapid and perfect
combustion of magnesium powder for photographic purposes and it has for its objects,
first, the reduction of the quantity of Magnesium used, by perfect combustion to such
a minimum, that no inconvenience whatever from smoke or noxious vapours is
experienced even in the smallest room, without however in any way diminishing the
photographic power of the light below the quantity necessary for photographic
purposes, and second, the construction of the lamp so as to render its use perfectly
safe and to prevent all danger in case of accident, making its transport from one
place to another perfectly safe and easy.
The accompanying drawing is in illustration of the invention, Figure 1 repre-
senting a sectional side elevation of the improved lamp and Figure 2 a plan of the
same.
The lamp consists of a hollow metal or glass body a filled with compressed sponge
or spongy matter band having an opening c closed with wire gauze d. To the body
of the lamp is fixed by means of a pin fa small brass tube bent up rectangularly
and widened to a small conical receptacle at its end, and connected at its other end i
with a pneumatic ball k or other apparatus by means of an indiarubber tube m.
The sponge of the lamp being saturated with spirits of wine and the lamp ignited
at d, it will burn with a long blue flame using very little material, and on account of
there being only enough spirits of wine to saturate the sponge, the lamp will, if
knocked over by accident, go out immediately and in no case will any spirit of wine
ID 17

page_text: run out and cause any danger by ignition. By turning the small brass tube g round
its pin the funnel is brought out of the flame and a small quantity of magnesium
powder (about 2 centigrammes) is filled into it and then the whole is turned back
again into the flame.
At the moment in which by pressure on the pneumatic ball k or equivalent
apparatus air is sent through the brass tube g the magnesium powder is blown
through the axis of the flame and the latter itself is at the same time by the strong
current of air sent through its whole length greatly augmented and its heating
quality is at this instant so increased as to render the combustion of the Magnesium
powder complete and more perfect than in any other lamp, especially of the kind
having a circular wick and current of air through the centre, as in these lamps the
blowing through of more air than is necessary for the flame in order to increase its
heating quality, only diminishes it and so widens the opening in the circular flame
that a great part of the magnesium powder is blown through this opening without
being ignited.
On account of the combustion of the magnesium powder in the present lamp being
so perfect it is possible without decreasing the power of the light below the amount
necessary for photographic purposes, to diminish the quantity of magnesium powder
to such a minimum that no smoke is perceptible and no inconvenience whatever is
experienced from it even in the smallest room and after a number of flashes from two
or more lamps.
Thus all cumbersome apparatus for conveying away the smoke, necessary with
other lamps is avoided as also the danger generally accompanying spirit lamps,
thereby giving the possibility of taking photographs in any room and at any place
without the slightest inconvenience or danger.
Several lamps may be connected by indiarubber tubes to one and the same pneu-
matic ball, thus enabling the operator to produce the flash exactly at the same time
at two or more places and by suitable disposition of the lamps around the object to
produce a light equal in every respect to good daylight.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
An improved spirit lamp for the complete combustion of Magnesium powder
without perceptible smoke, the lamp being so constructed as to avoid all danger in
case it is accidentally upset, substantially as described and shewn in the drawing.
1000
EDWARDS & Co.,
35, Southampton Buildings, London,
Agents for the Applicant.
EDWARDS & Co.,
35, Southampton Buildings, London,
Agents for the Applicant.