IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Neill, junior, of Bold, near St. Helen's, in
the County of Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN STEAM ENGINES."
Sealed the 12th December 1863, and dated the 16th June 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Neill at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
16th June 1863.
I, WILLIAM NEILL, junior, of Bold, near St. Helen's in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES," to be as follows:-
My Invention is particularly applicable to those steam engines which are
used for pumping or otherwise forcing water, although it may be applied to
other cases in which motive power is required. The description of engine to
which my Invention refers is that in which a supplementary piston or pistons
are used for shifting the slide valve, and consists in causing the said shifting of
the valve to be effected by the direct action of the steam, that is, without the
intervention of any mechanical appliances. In carrying my Invention into
effect I employ two pistons, or one with a midway space, working in the main
cylinder, passing over apertures therein, so as to admit and shut off steam
from the box which contains the supplementary pistons. The steam is
exhausted from these pistons through the ordinary valve box, but in order to

page_text: provide for any leakage I form an aperture in the cylinder. The extent of
motion of the slide valve I regulate by means of set screws. The engine may
be made to work "expansively" by additional valves and pistons, or by giving
a quicker or slower motion to the supplementary pistons.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Neill in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
16th December 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
NEILL, junior, of Bold, near St. Helen's, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said William Niell, Her special license that I, the said William Neill,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Neill, my 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
STEAM ENGINES," upon the condition, amongst others, that I, the said William
Neill, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 William Neill, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, and accompanying Drawings, that is to say :-
My Invention is particularly applicable to those steam engines which are
used for pumping or otherwise forcing water, although it may be applied to
other cases in which motive power is required. The description of engine to
which my Invention refers is that in which a supplementary piston or pistons
are emploped for shifting the slide valves, and consists in causing the said

page_text: shifting of the valves to be effected by the direct action of the steam, that is
without the intervention of mechanical appliances. In the accompanying
Drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 exhibit one method by which my Invention may be
carried into effect. The working cylinder is at a, within which is a piston b,
the rod c being supposed to work a pump, or to perform any similar office at d;
fare the passages leading to and from the cylinder. At g, h, are two additional
exhaust passages, which extend upward and lead to chambers i, k, situate
within a valve box l. The box is cylindrical, and carries the steam pipe at n
and two exhaust pipes at o, and within it is another cylindrical box m.. Within
the cylindrical box m are the two pistons p, q, which are designed to give
motion to the slide valves in this arrangement, however they themselves act
as slide valves. They are formed upon a rod r which passes through a stuffing
box, and which also carries two other pistons s, t, acting as guides, and also, as
will be hereafter seen, as slide valves. The pistons s, t, are furnished with
perforations u, v, forming channels by which steam can pass through them from
the chambers i, k, so as to act against the pistons p, q. The cylindrical box m
is provided with holes w, x, and 1, 2, 3, communicating respectively with annular
chambers 4, 5, and 6, 7, 8, the said chambers being divided by partitions 9.
According to the positions of the several parts shewn in the Drawing the piston
b has commenced to move in the direction of the arrow, and I will explain the
operation of the engine by pointing out the movements that take place during
the stroke. Steam from the pipe at n is entering the annular chamber 7, from
thence it passes through the apertures 2 into the chamber 10, and flows through
the other apertures 3 to the annular space 8, and steam passage f and cylinder a..
The exhaust steam is passing from the cylinder through the passage d into the
annular space 6, and through the apertures 1 into the space between the two
pistons t, q. From thence it passes through the perforations v, in the piston t,
and escapes through the apertures a into the annular space 5 and exhau-t
pipe o. The orifice g¹ in the main cylinder is not yet closed, and exhaust steam
will therefore be at liberty to pass through it and along the passage g*, passing
out through the apertures x, annular chamber 5, and exhaust pipe o. Upon
the piston having arrived at nearly the aid of its stroke, it will have passed the
orifice h, which it had previously closed, and the steam will therefore be allowed
to pass through that orifice h, along the passage h*, and into the chamber i,
where it will pass through the perforations u, and exert its elastic force against
the piston p, driving it forward in the direction of the arrow. This movement
will convey the piston p forward so as to cause it to pass the series of apertures 3,
and the other piston q to pass through the series of apertures 1. Then the exhaust
steam from the cylinder will flow through the passage f into, the annular cham-.

page_text: ber 8, and through the apertures 3 into the space between the two pistons p, s,
from whence it passes through the perforations u in the piston s, and through the
apertures w to the annular chamber 4, which is in connexion with the exhaust
pipe at o. At the same time as the above-described movements are effected,
the pistons and t will have been thrust forward until the former has passed
the apertures 1 and the latter has closed the apertures x, thus the exhaust at
this side will be cut off, and steam from the annular chamber 7 will pass
through the apertures 2, and from thence by the apertures 1 and annular
chamber 6 to the passage d. The piston then moving back will open the
communication between the orifice g and piston q, by which the several parts
will again be brought to the positions shewn in the Drawing.
Figs. 3 and 4 represent my Invention applied in combination with a cut-off
apparatus, by which I am enabled to use the steam expansively. There are,
as before a series of apertures 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, formed in a cylindrical
box 16, which apertures communicate with annular chambers 17, 18, 19, 20,
21, and in this cylindrical box are pistons 22, 23, 24, 25, those shewn at
22, 25, being perforated in the direction of their axis, as formerly described.
To the rod 26 of the pistons 22, 23, 24, 25, is jointed a link 27, provided
with a slot, within which is a pin 32, carried by a lever 28, hung upon a
link 29 at its upper end, and jointed at 30 to the piston rod 31. According to
the position shewn in the Drawing the steam is cut off, the motion of the
piston in the direction of the arrow having caused the pin 32 to bear against
the link 27 so as to move the piston 24 over the apertures 14, and thus the
steam is prevented from passing through those apertures to the passage 33.
This has been preparatory to the final change of valves, which is to be offected
by the direct action of the steam, and which takes place as follows:-Upon
the piston 24 being pushed a slight distance further the apertures 14 will be
uncovered, and the steam from the cylinder will flow along the passage 33
through the said apertures 14, and through the perforations in the piston 25, so
as to occupy the chamber 34, where it will exert its elastic force upon the piston
24 and drive it onward, so as to completely open the apertures 14. At the
same time the piston 25 will be carried forward clear of the apertures 15, and
thus the exhaust steam will be allowed to flow through the perforations in the
piston 25, and from thence into the annular chamber 21 and exhaust pipe
at 35. The motion above described will have carried forward the pistons 22,
23, so as to allow the steam to flow from the steam pipe 36, annular space 19,
and apertures 13, 12, into the passage 37 and cylinder, after the manner
formerly described.
Figs. 5 and 6 represent another modification of my Invention. In this in-

page_text: stance the steam way is at 40, and a valve 41 is adapted similar to an ordinary
slide valve. Upon the spindle of this valve are two pistons 42, 43, capable of
closing or opening apertures 44, 45, leading to the steam passages 46, 47.
The expansion gear before described is adapted to this arrangement, but in
this case the pin 48 is mounted upon a collar which slides upon the link 49, and
arrives alternately in contact with stops 50, 51, which are adjustable so as to
admit of different degrees of cut-off. According to the position shewn in the
Drawing the steam is cut off and the pin 48 has moved the pistons 42, 43,
forward, and a slightly further motion will open the aperture 45, thereby
allowing the steam to pass into the space 52, where, by exerting its elastic
force it will drive the piston 42 further, and thus fully open the aperture 45,
after which the steam will be allowed to escape through the space 53 to the
exhaust pipe. This movement will have caused the valve 41 to open the
communication between the steam passages 40, 47, after the manner of an
ordinary slide valve, and when the main piston has arrived at the other end
of its stroke the piston 43 will have been acted on by the stop 50, and subse-
quently by the steam, precisely as above described.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner of carrying the same into effect, I desire it to be understood that I
claim, as secured to me under the above in part recited Letters Patent, the use
of the direct action of the steam derived from the steam cylinder, for the
purpose above set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Neill, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of
, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
WILLIAM NEILL, Ju". (L.S.)