AN IMPROVED WATER METER APPLICABLE FOR OTHER LIQUIDS AND ALSO AS A DISTRIBUTOR IN STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I WILLIAM EDWARD GEDGE, of N° 11 Wellington Street, Strand, London, in the
County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of my invention
for AN IMPROVED WATER METER APPLICABLE FOR OTHER LIQUIDS AND ALSO AS
A DISTRIBUTOR IN STEAM ENGINES (Communicated to ime from abroad by Pierre
Berthon and Auguste Debenoih, Mechanicians, chez Mons Delorme, 14, Rue
St Louis, St Etienne (Loire) France, to be as follows:-
The mechanism of this Water Meter is contained in a metal box hermetically
closed, into which the water enters on one side, and issues on the other, and which
is surmounted by an ordinary indicating apparatus with dials.
This mechanism is composed of a pump barrel or cylinder with piston, placed
horizontally, and of a fore part, which is termed the distributing box, contiguous to
this cylinder, and beneath the level of the piston rod, which may thus produce its
reciprocating motion above it.
The water which fills the casing box enters, in order to set the apparatus
working, into the key or plug of a cock placed across the aforesaid distributing
box,
This distributing key or plug is hollow in the latter half of its length, and
possesses an escape orifice which by the rotation of this plug or key, may be put
alternately into coincidence with one or other of the two rectangular orifices of two
sheaths placed the one below the other in this distribution box, sheaths which
terminate in two coincident orifices of the cylinder or pump barrel.
If the key or plug is in the position which brings communication of its escape
orifice with that of the lower. sheath, the water will enter into the pump barrel
beneath the piston, and flush behind it in passing through an orifice existing at the
end of this sheath, which extends under the entire length of the cylinder. In this
case, the piston advances, and its rod will be outside of the cylinder a length
equivalent to that of the distributing-box; if the distributing key or plug turns at
this moment; its escape orifice will place itself in communication with that of the
upper sheath, which brings the water directly into the cylinder upon the anterior
face of the piston. The movement of the piston in the two directions will thus be
understood, and also the driving of the water by this piston if I add that at the
side of the two access sheaths, and upon the same lino with them are two other
sheaths, termed of escapement, similarly arranged to the first, and which each have
an orifice which may place itself in communication with the one or the other of
the two holes existing in the second solid part of the distributing key or plug.

page_text: This key or plug therefore in turning brings the liquid into the cylinder,
alternately, behind and before the piston, at the same time that it opens the outlet
for the liquid driven alternately, by the on or the other of the faces of the piston,
which liquid goes into an elbow pipe forming common outlet, placed behind the
cock or distributing key.
The piston rod carries at its head a small vertical rod which acts upon the dial
apparatus, and each stroke of the piston will cause the indexes of these dials to
travel to the desired extent to indicate the quantity of liquid delivered by each
stroke of the piston.
The mechanism actuating the distributing key or plug, is driven by the piston
rod itself in the following manner.
At the head of this rod is fixed a piece, bent in such a manner that this piece, of
equal length with the rod, is parallel to it and accompanies its movement on the
outside of the cylinder--at the end of this piece is the axis of a lever, also of a
length equal to that of the piston rod, and the head of which, having the form of a
Bomewhat heavy pointed hammer, rests by its point upon a rocking piece on tho
outside of the key or plug of the distributing cock.
When the piston acts, the hond of the lever follows the incline of the rocking
piece the weight of this head suffices to bring about the fall of this rocking piece
the axis of which is that of the key itself. The result is therefore that the to and
fro motion of the piston brings about, alternately, the fall of the rocking piece in
one direction and the other, and that consequently the orifices, either inlet, or or
outlet, are opened or closed, in accordance with the working of the piston and the
forcing of the water towards the ontlet.
It is to be observed that the water running out by other orifices than the
entering ones, and that the cylinder having thus four orifices instead of two "ram-
strokes," or interruptions of the continuous jet, are avoided.
Should it happen that the delivery or flow from the apparatus is not in
accordance with the volume supplied, (which may be easily ascertained by the
dials, which are regulated for a certain volume) it becomes necessary to be able to
modify the length of the stroke of the piston, and for that purpose a small lever,
termed the regulating lever, has been placed vertically upon a fixed piece upon the
distributing box, in front of the rocking piece of the distributing key.
This small lever oscillates, actuated by the head of the distributing lever, with
which its end is in contact, and accordingly as this small lever, which slides or is
slotted, and the length of which may consequently be regulated, is arranged or set,
it escapes more or less quickly the contact of the distributing lever, the fall of
which it permits at a fixed point, to turn the key of the cock at the desired
moment, to place in accord the volume of liquid entering the apparatus, with that
which issues from it; for, this small regulating lever upholds in oscillating the hend
of the distributing lever during its passage above the arm of the lever of the
rocking piece which must lower.
To sum up the mechanical principle upon which this invention rests is this:-
the introduction and the exit of the liquid from the pump barrel by four orifices,
two for inlet two for outlet, by the nid of a distributing key or plug by which the
water penetrates into the apparatus as well as the working of this key by two
levers, the one terined the distributing lever the other the regulating lever of the
movement of the first, which is brought about by the movement of the piston
itself;
in such wise that this piston governs, by the aid of these levers, its own
alternate reciprocating movement, determining the volume of water flowing out at
each stroke.
The apparatus above described, having steam for agent instead of water may
serve as an excellent distributor in Steam Engines.

page_text: similarly to the first, and tormed of escapement, each having an orifice which may
place itself in communication with the one or the other of the two spaces
determined at R2, existing in the second part of the distributing key or plug,
which proserves at this point only a solid triangular section 7.
This key or plug therefore in turning brings the liquid into the cylinder
alternately behind and before the piston, at the same time that it opens the outlet
for the liquid driven alternately by the one, then by the other of the faces of the
piston which liquid goes into a common outlet conduit D', placed behind the
cock.
i
Figure 1 represents, by the two sections of the distributing box (made, the one,
on the part of the key or plug introducing the water; the other on the part where
the water issues) the position of the plug permitting, as shown by the arrows, on
the one side the entrance at s¹ S, and on the other the exit of the water at t¹. This
position is that which the plug has in the Fig 1. If this plug should turn, the closed
orifices t, u, will be opened, instead of those first mentioned.
The piston rod carries at its head at M a small vertical rod J¹ which acts upon
the dial apparatus, and each stroke of the piston will cause the indexes of these
dials to travel to the desired extent to indicate the quantity of liquid delivered
or forced out by each stroke of the piston.
The mechanism actuating the distributing koy or plug, is driven by the piston
rod itself in the following manner.
At the head M of this rod is fixed a piece J bent in such a manner that this
piece, of equal length with the rod, is parallel to it, and accompanies its movement
on the outside of the cylinder.
At the end of this piece is the axle K of a lever L, also of a length equal to that
of the piston rod, and the head L' of which, having the form of a somewhat heavy
pointed hammer, rests, by its point, upon a rocking piece R¹ forming exteriorly
part of the key or plug of the cock R.
On the side of the distributing box D, is fixed a firm piece N, in the form of a
triangle, which is intended to receive the shocks of the lever L, in its two changes
of position; the upper angular part of this piece being level with the rocking piece
of the plug, in the two positions which this latter may take.
To this piece N is attached, by an axle, the lever E which may oscillate actuated
by the head of the lever L. This lever E permits regulating the travel of the
piston, and consequently the delivery of the liquid, as it is composed (sce Fig 7) of
a parto which may approach or recede from the axle i, in sliding on the piece q,
and which is fixed at the desired point by the aid of the screw p.
The point o¹ of this regulating lever E rests in a groove (i) made in the head
L' of the lever L, and keeps this latter raised, until the calculated escapement
determined by the lengthening or shortening of the lever E has taken place when
the two oscillating together have passed beyond the axis of the rocking piece of the
plug of the cock the forward movement of the piston rod out of the cylinder is
produced, or the return movement takes place. The play of this lover E is
arrested, right and left by the small stops n n¹.
The forward movement of the piston rod (see Figure 1) causes that of the
lever L, which being loose upon its axlo K is compelled to rise following the
incline XY, of the rocking piece of the plug, carrying with it the regulating
lever E, and causing it to take the position X' Y¹; but in this common movement
of the two levers, as soon as the point o³ of the head of the lever L escapes from
that o' of the lever E, this lever L falls sharply on to the rocking piece of the
distributing plug, and this plug is forced to turn, interverting the access to the
orifices, which brings back the piston, the lever L and the lever E into their first
position, these two latter baving produced the same play, in inverse direction, as
before; the result is therefore that the head of the lever L acts in a like manner
upon the one and the other of the arms of the rocking piece R¹, by falling alter-
nately upon them from the height determined by the length of the lever E, which
is regulated; as aforesaid, to bring about the fall of this lever L, more or less

page_text: rapidly, thus modifying the journey of the piston and thereby putting the delivery
in harmony with the entrance of the water which preserves as it issues from the
meter the same pressure as on entering it.
According to circumstances (when, for example, the pressure of the water is very,
great) I modify the apparatus as shown by the two drawings of Fig 10.
1° By doing away with the fore part, or distributing box D, the distributing
plug or key being placed under the cylinder; tlie lever L being placed inversely
to the arrangement above described, its axis existing at m, and the triangular
piece v contiguous to the head L' coming in contact with the point of the lever E.
The working of the apparatus remains the same; the inlet and outlet conduits,
elbowing at U S¹.
2° By regulating the apparatus no longer by the aid of the lever E the length
of which remains in variable (the piston having always to make the same stroke)
but by regulating the apparatus of the dials C, which is then placed on one of the
sides of the casing. For this purpose, the head of the piston rod carries on its
cross piece M an upright M' having a slot in which may move a slide or tongue c
uniting this upright with a lever e also slotted, the pivot of which is at e¹. On
the axle of this pivot is a toothed sector d which works the dial apparatus.
Accordingly as the slide e' is fixed at one height or another, to unite the two
pieces M' and c, the toothed sector d, will describo during the travel of the piston,
a more or less lengthened movement, and consequently the measure of the liquid
will be regulated upon the dial apparatus by the position in which the slide e¹
is fixed.
3°. By doing away with the water outlet tube (D¹) and leaving this water to
escape into the box in the direction indicated by the arrow r¹, to issue at the top-
of this box at 6 after having entered at a-so that the box fills with water which
has passed through the cylinder and not with water arriving in it.
This arrangement permits stopping the outlet orifice b if the apparatus should
get out of order; the piston going to the extreme end on one side or the other of
the cylinder and there remaining.
For this purpose a slide following the movement of the piston rod carries two
tappets g and g' the one or the other of which actuate a levor h intercepting the
outlet orifice b and thus the water cannot issue freely from the apparatus without
being measured.
The apparatus above described having for agent Steam under pressure instead
of water may, by the aid of the regulating lever E distribute the steam in a fixed
and regulated measure and thus serve as an excellent distributor in Steam
Engines.
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 arrangement of the distributing box D with its four orifices, coincident
with those of the pump barrel G and arranged substantially as hereinbeforo
described; the inlet orifices at being the one under the other, and the outlet
orifices u,
also the one under the other; the liquid having contact with tho
front and the back of the piston, either to drive this latter, or to be driven by it,
by the play of the key or plug of the cock R, arranged substantially as above
described, in two parts:-the one by which the water is introduced into the
apparatus; the other by which it escapes, at the same stroke.
2° The arrangement which governs the play of the cock, and which consists,
in the lever L, combined with the piston rod, the head L' of which falls alternately
upon the one and the other of the arms of the rocking piece R' to cause this cock
to turn; in the lever termed the regulating lever E, which, as above described,
oscillates pushed by the head of the lever L and (by escapement at the desired
moment according to the setting or regulating of the lover E) actuatos this lever L,
operating its fall.

page_text: 3º The arrangement of the meter, represented Figure 10-coinprising-the cock
placed beneath the pump barrel; the combination which regulates tho working of
the dial apparatus by the pieces M¹ and e; the arrangement for closing the water
outlet orifice, in case of the apparatus getting out of order, by the aid of the slide f
with tappets g, g¹ and the obturation lever h.
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