Compound or Complex Bodies.
Year: 1885

page_text: Compound or Complex Bodies.
I, JAMES GRIEVE LORRAIN, of 3 Vernon Chambers, Southampton Row, in the
County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my
invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN THE COMPOSITION AND DECOMPOSITION OF
COMPOUND OR COMPLEX BODIES to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to means for effecting the composition or decomposition of
compound or complex bodies whereby automaticity of action and other advantages
are obtained: and it consists in automatically calling into action such composition
or decomposition and automatically regulating or controlling its continuance or the
operations or processes by which such composition or decomposition are carried on.
To effect such I may employ motors which may be electric, pneumatic, hydraulic,
caloric or otherwise.
These motors may be either primary or secondary and may act directly or
indirectly. A primary motor may control a secondary motor.
The motors may be called into action and otherwise controlled by what I may
call for the purposes of this specification "actuators,"
The actuators may be electric contact makers, such for example as the various
forms of contact referred to in the specification of my letters patent No. 339 of the
year 1885 or otherwise, or they may be other bodies, mechanisms or objects which
under chemical, physical or mechanical influences may move, or alter their form,
weight, size, position or structure, or their physical, mechanical or chemical
properties, or capabilities of action.
The point or period at which the actuator acts, actuates or comes into play may
be deterinined or governed by the amount of motion or movement or alteration of
form or weight or size or position or structure or physical, mechanical or chemical
power or property: and these may be determined, limited, defined or controlled by
suitable devices.
These actuators may be of simplex, duplex or multiplex form, construction or
composition.

page_text: The motors may operate, for the ends in view, valves, taps, carriers, conveyors,
switches, pistons, propellers, collectors, stirrers, agitators, gearing, transmitting
wrappings, jeta, separators, septa, strainers, sieves, extractors, condensers, accu-
mulators or convertors or transformers of energy, tools, apparatus for producing
stress or the like.
The composition or decomposition of a compound or complex body may be
incidental to and not necessarily the main object of the operation. An example of
this would be the formation of a compound body for the purpose of separating and
obtaining a simple body.
Alarms or indicators may be combined with the apparatus to call attention to or
show the operation going on.
'

page_text: Compound or Complex Bodies.
I, JAMES GRIEVE LORRAIN of Norfolk House, Victoria Embankment,
London W.C., formerly of 3 Vernon Chambers, Southampton Row, in the County
of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention
for IMPROVEMENTS IN THE COMPOSITION AND DECOMPOSITION OF COMPOUND OR
COMPLEX BODIES and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
My invention relates to automatic means for effecting the composition or
decomposition of compound or complex bodies: and it consists in automatically
calling into action such composition or decomposition and automatically regulating
or controlling its continuance or the operations or processes by which such compo-
sition or decomposition are carried on.
In carrying my invention into effect I employ electromotors which may be of
any convenient type, such for example as those referred to in the complete
specification accompanying my Letters Patent No. 339 of the year 1885.
In the Provisional Specification preceding the present Final Specification I
referred to other forms of motor, but I desire it to be understood that my present
invention has reference to no other motors than electromotors, and that I do not
limit myself to any particular form of electromotor.
The electromotors are called into action and otherwise controlled by automatic
electric gravity contact makers hereinafter referred to "gravity contacts." These
may be of any convenient type, such for example as those referred to in the
complete specification accompanying my Letters Patent No. 339 of the year 1885,
or as hereinafter specified. In the Provisional Specification preceding my present
Final Specification I referred under the general name of "actuators" to other
devices than automatic electric gravity contact makers, designed to serve the same
end, but I desire it to be understood that my present invention has reference to no
other actuators than gravity contacts, and that I do not limit myself to any
particular form of gravity contact.
The electromotors serve to operate valves, conveyors, propellers, or other similar
or equivalent devices.
The composition or decomposition of a compound or complex body in some cases
is incidental to and not the main object of the operation. For example the formation
of a compound body may be an incidental operation for the purpose of separating
and obtaining a simple body; and conversely the decomposition of a compound or
complex body may be an incidental operation for the purpose of obtaining an
element or simple body in a separate state ready for combination with another
body to form a compound. The electromotor and gravity contact are used in
circuit with a battery, dynamo or other convenient source or reservoir of electrical
energy.
The action is a follows:-
When a condition has been arrived at such as will cause the gravity contact to
close the circuit from the source or reservoir of electrical energy a current of
electricity will flow through the electromotor, which latter will operate the valve,
conveyor, propeller, or other device hereinbefore referred to, as the case may be,

page_text: and produce the action desired. When this condition ceases to exist the electric
circuit will be opened the current cease to flow through the electromotor and the
operation be terminated.
In order that my invention may be better understood I shall now proceed briefly
to describe a few illustrative cases, reference being made to the figures on the
accompanying sheets of drawings. I desire it to be understood that these figures
are purely diagrammatic, and prepared for the purpose of this specification only,
and that they are not illustrative of actual apparatus.
Figure 1 diagrammatically represents a form of gravity contact supplementary
to those set forth in the complete specification accompanying my Letters Patent
No. 339 of the year 1885.
It represents a type of gravity contact, and consists of a tube T hermetically
sealed, its two ends moving through guides G G as shown. The upper end of the
tube has a light spring contact piece S which makes contact with the conducting
pieces c, c¹, c, as the tube rises. The whole is attached to a float F. When this
device is placed in a liquid the float keeps it at the surface of the liquid so that
the extent of the immersion of the tube itself is not affected by the rise or fall of
the liquid. The device is simply a floating hydrometer, the tube rising or falling
relatively to the conducting pieces c, c¹, c¹ as the specific gravity of the liquid
changes. This form of contact may be simplex duplex or multiplex as will be
readily understood.
In the majority of the figures in the accompanying drawings which I shall now
proceed to describe the gravity contact is symbollically represented by the letter C
within a circle, the electromotor by the letter E within a circle, and the source or
reservoir of electrical energy by the letter G within a circle.
Figure 2 diagrammatically represents an installation in which a valve is operated
by an electromotor controlled by a gravity contact. In this case the electromotor
consists of a compound solenoid or sucking magnet and core and the contact of a
hydrometer contact of the kind illustrated in figure 1. Let us assume that A is a
mixing tank containing a compound or complex liquid formed by mixing two
bodies whose specific gravities differ. We will assume that the heavier of the two
bodies is being supplied to the mixing tank by a device not shown in the figure,
and that the lighter of the two bodies is supplied to the mixing tank by the pipe B.
If now the specific gravity of the liquid becomes too high through too much of the
heavier body being admitted to the mixing tank the hydrometer tube will rise and
contact will be made between S and c¹. This will complete the electric circuit
through the coil e¹ of the electromotor, causing the core e to be pulled down, the
valve V opened a little, and some of the lighter body added to the mixing tank so
as to restore the liquid to its normal condition. If however the extent to which
the valve V is opened is not sufficient to allow the lighter body to enter the mixing
tank fast enough to counteract the rate at which the heavier body enters the
mixing tank then the hydrometer tube will rise still higher, and contact between
S and c will be established. This will complete the circuit through the coil e³ of
the electromotor, e' will be further sucked in, V will be further opened, and a
larger amount of the lighter body will pass through B into the mixing tank, so as
to bring the liquid therein to its normal specific gravity. A still greater increase
of the specific gravity of the liquid in the mixing tank will in the same way cause
a still greater opening of the valve V, and a still greater quantity of the lighter
body to enter the mixing tank. It is obvious that similar apparatus may control
the passage of the heavier body into the mixing tank, in which case of course the
contact would be multiplex in the opposite direction to that in the contact shown
in the figure.
An installation such as that shown in this figure is very useful for supplying
water to a solution in order to compensate for loss by evaporation.
Figure 3 represents a mixing tank furnished with three gravity contacts. The
pipes B B whose valves V₁ V are operated by the electromotors E¹ E³ controlled
by the contacts C¹ C³ supply bodies to the mixing tank A after the manner

page_text: described with reference to figure 2. C is a contact so set or adjusted as to
make contact only when the mixture has the specific gravity required. When
this is the case it completes the electric circuit through E which opens the valve V³
and allows the mixture to flow away through B³ from the mixing tank A to any
vessel designed for its reception.
Figure 4 represents a case where a solid soluble body is being supplied to a
mixing tank. Contact C in the solution in the mixing tank A controls the electro-
motor E operating the conveyor (in this case consisting of a worm D) which
conveys the solid substance, preferably in a fine state of division, from the hopper H
to the mixing tank. The action in this case will be readily understood from the
description of the two previous figures. The electromotor instead of operating
valve in a pipe operates a worm. In this case the electromotor is shown as a
rotary one.
8
Other forms of conveyor," whether for solids or liquids, will readily suggest
themselves; for example I may cite a travelling band, an archimedian screw, a
bucket elevator, and a syphon.
Figure 5 represents a case where the electromotor actuates a propeller, in this
case a rotary pump. The action will be readily understood from what has pre-
ceeded. The electromotor instead of operating a valve as in figure 2 operates the
rotary pump K which propels a liquid body from a supply tank L to the mixing
tank A. Instead of operating a rotary pump the electromotor might of course
operate a reciprocating pump.
Figure 6 represents diagrammatically a mixing chamber for gases. A is the
mixing chamber itself. M and N are inlet pipes through which the gases enter
the chamber. The contacts C¹ C and C³, which may be of the barometric or other
gravity form suitable for gases, control the electromotors E², E, E³ operating the
valves VV Vs. The action which in this case is for gases is similar to the action
in the case illustrated in figure 3 which latter applies more readily to liquids. Pis
the receiving vessel to which the gases are passed, when of the required specific
gravity, through the outlet pipe O.
In the drawings I wish it to be understood that the positions occupied by the
diagrammatic symbols for contact, electromotor, or generator are not necessarily the
positions which these would occupy in practice. In practice the positions which
these would occupy would vary to a great extent with individual cases. In other
cases the proper position would be obvious. In practice one or several electro-
motors may operate one or several devices, and one or several contacts may control
one or several electromoters. Also one or several generators may feed one or
several electromotora.
It will be noted that in figures 4 and 5 rotary electromotors are employed. In
these and in other cases where I employ rotary electromotors I may vary the rate
of supply to or removal from a mixing tank or chamber by varying the speed of
the rotary electromotor by any of the methods referred to in the Complete Speci-
fication accompanying my Letters Patent No. 15464 of the year 1884.
It is obvious that a single duplex contact might be substituted for the two
contacts and C' in figures 3 and 6.
It is obvious that propellers and conveyors may not only supply bodies to a
mixing tank or chamber but may remove bodies from such mixing tank or
chamber.
By a compound body I mean a chemical compound and by a complex body
I mean a mixture either of chemical elements or of chemical compounds.
It will of course be understood that a body or bodies may be supplied to a
mixing tank or chamber for purposes of decomposition as well as of composition.
By a mixing tank or chamber I mean any space or vessel wherein bodies are
brought in contact.
It will be seen that the contact controls the electromotor by calling it into
action causing or allowing such action to cease when no longer required and
regulating its action whilst it lasts.

page_text: It will be seen that the electromotor operates a valve conveyor or propeller by
calling it into action causing or allowing such action to cease when no longer
required and regulating (or varying according to requirements) its action whilst
it lasts.
It will be understood that the valves, conveyors, propellers, or other similar
or equivalent devices, may regulate or control or cause the passage of bodies whether
liquid, solid or gaseous.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. The combination of a gravity contact, an electromotor and a valve sub-
stantially as and for the purposes set forth.
2. The combination of a gravity contact, an electromotor and a conveyor
substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
3. The combination of a gravity contact, an electromotor and a propeller
substantially as and for the purposes set forth.