IMPROVED SELF-ACTING APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WATER TO STEAM BOILERS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Flint, of the City of Manchester,
Engineer, and Robert Harlow, of Heaton Norris, in the County of
Lancaster, Brassfounder, for the Invention of "IMPROVED SELF-ACTING
APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WATER TO STEAM BOILERS.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Fint and
Robert Harlow at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 27th September 1875.
We, EDWARD FLINT, of the City of Manchester, Engineer, and
ROBERT HARLOW, of Heaton Norris, in the County of Lancaster, Brass-
founder, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of
“IMPROVED SELF-ACTING APPARATUS FOR FEEDING Water to SteAM BOILERS," to
be as follows :—
The object of this Invention is to construct an apparatus which shall
feed the necessary quantity of water to steam boilers self-actingly, and
yet be capable of adjustment to the greatest nicety. Now this Inven,
tion consists of an equilibrium valve mounted in a suitable chamber,

page_text: and from the bottom of which valve a connecting rod depends, which
connects such valve with a counterbalance lover and weight situated
inside the boiler. A stone or other suitable float at one extremity of
this lover floats in the water, and thus as the water line rises and falls
such float is rendered more or less buoyant, and accordingly exerts a
greater or less pressure upon the equilibrium valve and thus adjusts
the feed water supply according to the requirements of the boiler.
In order to adjust the maximum opening of the equilibrium valve
and to entirely close such valve when requisito, I apply a screwed
spindle to its upper end.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Edward Flint and Robert Harlow in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 27th March 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, EDWARD
FLINT, of the City of Manchester, Engineer, and ROBERT HARLOW, of
Heaton Norris, in the County of Lancaster, Brassfounder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in
the thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto us, the said Edward Flint and Robert
Harlow, Her special licence that we, the said Edward Flint and
Robert Harlow, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said Edward Flint and Robert Harlow, 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 " IMPROVED SELF-
ACTING APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WATER TO STEAM BOILERS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said Edward Flint and Robert
Harlow, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under our, or their, or one of their hands and scals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what

page_text: 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 we, the said Edward Flint and Robert
Harlow, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of this Invention is to construct an apparatus which shall
feed the necessary quantity of water to steam boilers self-actingly, and
yet be capable of adjustment to the greatest nicety. Now this Inven-
tion consists of an equilibrium valve mounted in a suitable chamber,
and from the bottom of which valve a connecting rod depends, which
connects such valve with a counterbalanco lover and weight situated
inside the boiler. A stone or other suitable float at one extremity of
this lever floats in the water, and thus as the water line rises and falls
such float is rendered more or less buoyant, and accordingly excrts
a greater or less pressure upon the equilibrium valve, and thus adjusts
tho feed water supply according to the requirements of the boiler.
In order to adjust the maximum opening of the equilibrium valve
and to entirely close such valve when requisite, I apply a screwed
spindle to its upper end.
And in order that this our said Invention may be more readily seen
and understood, we have hereunto annexed a Drawing illustrative of
our improved self-acting feed water apparatus drawn to a scale of about
3 one inch and a half to the foot.
A is the steam boiler in which B is the working water line, whilst C
may be considered the low water line, beneath which the level of the
water should never be allowed to descend. D is a cast-iron chamber
secured by the rivets D¹ to the top of the boiler, and which extends
down a suitable distance into the boiler, and there forms a fixing for
the bracket E, in which is mounted the lever F. The lower extremity
of the chamber D is in communication with the pipe G which extends
downwards into the water, and serves to convey the feed water below
the working water line. The inside of the chamber D is fitted with an
equilibrium valve H which closes the communication with the back
pressure valve I and supply pipo J. The lower extremity of the cqui-
librium valve is connected by means of a ball joint K with a connecting

page_text: rod L, which joints such valve to the lever F, whilst the upper extremity
of the equilibrium valve is connected to a screwed spindle M passing
through the stuffing box M' to the outside, where it is provided with a
hand wheel N. O is a stone or other suitable float suspended at one
extremity of the lever F, and resting upon the surface of the water,
and which is counterbalanced at the other extremity of such lover by
the weight O'; P is a steam whistle, the spindle Q of which is con-
nected to a stirrup R which embraces the lever F, but permits it to have
free play for a certain distance.
The action of this apparatus may be described as follows:-Tho
Drawing represents the boiler with the water at the proper working
level, and consequent with the equilibrium valve H closed. Now in
case of the level of the water becoming too low it will be readily seen
that the float O will descend, causing the lever F to assume the position
indicated by dotted lines; the equilibrium valve will thus open and
permit the feed water to enter through the back pressure valve I, and to
descend into the boiler through the chamber D and pipe G. If the
supply is then not sufficient, or for any other cause the float O descends
sufficiently far, the lever F will rest upon the bottom of the stirrup R,
and by exercising sufficient pressure thereupon will so open the whistle
and sound an alarm, so giving a sonorous indication that the feed water
supply is failing.
By means of the hand wheel N the feed water supply may be entirely
closed, or the opening of the equilibrium valvo II may be regulated to
the greatest nicety. It is prefered to have such hand wheel provided
with a lock S, whereby it may be locked in any required position.
We would hero remark that this apparatus is constructed to bo solf-
acting and to work independent of any change of pressure, that, having
no stuffing boxes and all the parts being enclosed within the boiler, there
is consequently no tending to stick fast or to get out of order, and at the
same time provision is made for controlling the apparatus by hand from
outside.
Having thus particularly described the nature of this our said Inven-
tion together with the best method with which we are acquainted for
carrying the same into practical effect, we wish it to be understood that ;
we claim, the use and application of an equilibrium valve in conjunction
with a counterbalanced float when mounted, controlled, and operating,

page_text: substantially has and for the purposes herein-before described and illus-
trated in the accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Harlow, for and on behalf
of myself and the said Edward Flint, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of March, in the year of
our Lord Ono thousand eight hundred and sovent-six.