IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FORCE PUMPS
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Josiah Stone, of Park Terrace, New Cross, in the
County of Kent, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
CONSTRUCTION OF FORCE PUMPS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Josiah Stone at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 1st.
November 1856.
I, JOSIAH STONE, of Park Terrace, New Cross, in the County of Kent,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FORCE PUMPS" to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the manufacture of a simple construction of force
pump, whereby certain kinds of ships' pumps, similar to those now in use,
may be so constructed that they may also be used as a fire engine, or merely
as bilge pumps when required, the valves and other parts being so arranged
and applied that may be readily got at in case they should become clogged
and out of order.
In applying my Invention to a ship's pump, in which the valves are
arranged upon the plan known as Wilkinson's, wherein the delivery valve
is set immediately above the supply valve, and is of such a diameter as to
admit of the latter being lifted through the seat of the former, I fit an air-

page_text: tight delivery or air chamber over the delivery valve or valves. In the top
of this chamber I fit a screw cap, which may be removed in case the discharge
valves become clogged, and I prefer that the said screw-cap be fitted with a
pendant tube, to form a guide for the valves beneath.
In applying my Invention to pumps in which the upper and lower valves,
although arranged above one another, do not admit of the latter being passed
up through the former, as in Wilkinson's pumps, I form the seat of the
lower or suction valves at or near the bottom of the valve chest, and at the
sides of this chest I make a manhole or opening for giving admission to
the interior of the chest, for the purpose of clearing away any obstructions
that may accumulate around the valves. This manhole or opening I cover
and close with a screw-cap or other analogous contrivance. For ships'
pumps I prefer to make the pump double-acting, and therefore I propose
to employ two pumping cylinders and two sets of valves, communicating with
one delivery chamber. The water from both cylinders will be thrown into
the delivery or air chamber above the valves, and discharged therefrom by
one or more outlets in a continuous stream.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Josial Stone in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 1st
May 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSIAH
STONE, of Park Terrace, New Cross, in the County of Kent, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Josiah Stone, Her special license that I, the said Josiah Stone, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Josiah
Stone, 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 THE CONSTRUCTION
OF FORCE PUMPS," upon the condition, amongst others, that I, the said Josiah
Stone, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly

page_text: describe and ascertain tho 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 Josiah Stone, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to
the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-
This Invention of "Improvements in the Construction of Force Pumps "
relates to the manufacture of a simple construction of force pump, whereby
certain kinds of ships' pumps, similar to those now in use, may be so con-
structed that they may also be used either as fire engines or merely as bilge
pumps when required, the valves and other parts being so arranged and
applied that they may be readily got at and repaired in case they should
become clogged and out of order.
In applying my Invention to a ship's pump in which the valves are
arranged upon the plan known as Wilkinson's, wherein the delivery valve
is set immediately above the supply valve, and is of such a diameter as to
admit of the latter being lifted; through the seat of the forme I fit an
air-tight delivery or air chamber over the delivery valve or valves. In the
top of this chamber I fit a screw-cap, which may be removed in case the
discharge valves become clogged, and I prefer that the said screw-cap be
fitted with a pendent tube, to receive the stem of and form a guide for the
valves beneath.
In applying my Invention to pumps in which the upper and lower valves.
although arranged above one another, do not admit of the latter being
passed up through the former, as is the case in Wilkinson's pumps, I form
the seat of the lower or suction valves at or near the bottom of the valve.
chest, and at the sides of this chest I make a manhole or opening for giving
admission to the interior of the chest, for the purpose of clearing away any
obstructions that may accumulate around the valves. This manhole or
opening I cover and close with a screw-cap or other analogous contrivance.
For ships pumps I prefer to make the pump double-acting, and therefore
I propose to employ two pumping cylinders and two sets of valves, com-
municating with one delivery chamber; the water from both cylinders will
be thrown into the delivery or air chamber above the valves, and be discharged
therefrom by one or more outlets in a continuous stream.
In the accompanying Drawings I have shewn my improvements applied

page_text: to a double cylinder ship's pump, with the valves arranged and constructed
upon Wilkinson's principle; I have also shewn my improvements as applied
to another kind of ship's pump, in which the valves are constructed and
arranged in a different manner.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a double-action Wilkinson's
ship's pump, converted into a force pump or fire engine according to my
improvements; Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the same.
a, a, are the
pumping cylinders or barrels provided with pistons, which are by means of
connecting rods worked by cranks on the main driving or crank shaft b, b.
This shaft is provided with a fly wheel, and also with winch handles at each
end, as shewn in the Drawing. c, c, is the delivery chamber, which is divided
into two compartments & and d* by a vertical partition d' (Fig. 2). The
compartment d communicates by an opening e at bottom with one of the
pumping cylinders a, and the other compartment d* with the other pumping
cylinder by means of the opening e". A hole or opening is made in the
bottom plate of each compartment d and d*, and a stand pipe f is bolted
down round the hole, and is provided with Wilkinson's arrangement of valves,
which it will not be necessary here to describe, as it is well known and
forms no part of the present Invention. Water is supplied to both the
compartments & and d from the common suction pipe 9, which communicates
with the respective compartments by means of the branch pipes g¹ and g³,
shewn by dots in Fig. 2. Immediately above the compartments d, d*, is
the air chamber h, in the bottom plate of which are placed the upper or
larger valves of Wilkinson's arrangement. The air chamber is covered in
and closed by the cap or cover i, i, which is bolted down to the air chamber
by its flanges, as shewn in the Drawing. In order that access may be
obtained with facility to the interior of the air chamber and the compartments
below, openings are made in the cover or cap i, i, immediately above the
valves, and these openings are closed by moveable plates j, j, which are
screwed into the openings in the cover or cap i, as shewn in Fig. 1. The
moveable plates j, j, aro provided with square heads or projecting pieces k, k,
or other contrivances, whereby they may be unscrewed when required. On
the under side of these moveable plates there are pendent tubes 1, 1, in which
the stems of the upper valves work, so as to keep the latter in their place.
The water is forced by the descent of the pistons in the pumping cylinders
up through the upper valve into the air chamber, and then rushes out
therefrom with considerable force through an opening in the side of the air
chamber, but not shewn in the Drawing.
Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section of part of another double-action

page_text: pump constructed according to my improvements; Fig. 4 is a sectional plan
view through the air chamber, and taken in the line A, B, of Fig. 3. In
the present instance I have dispensed with Wilkinson's arrangement of valves,
and have adopted a different one, which I have found to be much better.
The lower valves, or those which admit water from the suction pipe to the
compartments d and d*, are clack valves, and are of greater capacity than
the rising and falling valve shewn in Fig. 1; they are not therefore so
liable to choke. The construction of these valves does not admit of their
being withdrawn through the upper valve, which is the case with and is
alleged to be the peculiar advantage of the other valve shewn in Fig. 1.
In order, however, to be able to get at the lower or clack valves with facility
openings or manholes are made in the sides of the compartments & and d
of the delivery chamber, and these openings are closed by screwed caps or
covers m, m, which may be easily removed when required. The suction
plate n, n, with its rotating syphon o, is similar to that shewn in Fig. 1, and
being of the ordinary and well-known construction in use on board ships need
not be more minutely described.
The cover or cap i, i, which converts the air chamber into a close vessel,
is provided, as in the former instance, with moveable plates j, j, which aro
screwed into female screws, as shewn in the Drawing, and is the same in
every respect as that before described, similar letters of reference being
marked upon corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Having now described my Invention of "Improvements in the Construction
of Force Pumps," and the manner of carrying the same into effect, I would
observe that I do not mean or intend to confine myself rigidly to the precise
arrangement or construction of parts herein shewn and described, as they
may be varied in some particulars without departing from the nature and
object of my improvements; and I would further observe, in conclusion,
that what I consider to be new in the above-described pumping machinery,
and therefore wish to claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent
as aforesaid, is,―
First, the conversion of an ordinary Wilkinson's lift or ship's pump into
a force pump or engine for throwing water, by forming an air chamber on
the top of the delivery chamber, by covering the same with a cap or cover
provided with a moveable plate, which is capable of being removed with facility,
as above described, when it is required to get at the valves of the air chamber
or the compartments d and d".
I also claim the application to other constructions of lift pumps of the
cover i with its moveable plates j, j, for the like purposes.

page_text: And, further, the making of manholes or openings in the sides of the com-
partments & and d, for the purpose of gaining admission with facility to the
interior of the apparatus.
In witness whereof, I, the said Josiah Stone, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
JOSIAH STONE. (L.B.)