so as to Ensure one Uniform Speed.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Nov., 1886.
Complete Left, 2nd Aug., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 30th Aug., 1887.
RESERV
so as to Ensure one Uniform Speed.
I, RICHARD WILBY, of Britannia Terrace, Mirfield, Yorkshire, Mill Manager, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
The object of my invention is to control and regulate the speed of steam engines so
as to keep them at one uniform or nearly one uniform speed when working under
variations of load and pressure of steam, and this I effect by and through the variations
in the speed of the governors which I cause to operate pawls or catch clicks working
in connection with ratchet wheels which operate ordinary mechanism for opening and
closing the steam valves.
In carrying out my Invention I make use of the upward and downward motion of
the governors caused by their irregular speed.
These governors I connect by any suitable arrangement of mechanism to pawls or
catch clicks, which are operated thereby in such manner as to slightly move the
ratchet wheel, which in turn operate toothed wheels, one of, which is attached to or
forms part of the nut on the ordinary valve rod, the screwing of which either up or
down lengthens or shortens the said valve rod and opens and closes the valve
thereby.
By this means the engine is regulated self actingly by the irregular action of the
governors, and this mechanism can easily be applied at a small cost to existing
engines.
TASKER & CROSSLEY,
Halifax, Agents.

page_text: so as to Ensure one Uniform Speed.
I, RICHARD WILBY, of Britannia Terrace, Mirfield, Yorkshire, Mill Manager, do
hereby declare the nature of this 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 my invention is to control and regulate the speed of steam engines, so
as to keep them at one uniform or nearly one uniform speed when working under
variations of load and pressure of steam; and this I effect by and through the
variations in the speed of the governors, which I cause to operate pawls or catch clicks
working in connection with ratchet wheels which operate ordinary mechanism for
opening and closing the steam valves.
In carrying out my invention I make use of the upward and downward motion of
the governors caused by their irregular speed. These governors I connect by any
suitable arrangement of mechanism to pawls or catch clicks, which are operated
thereby in such manner as to slightly move the ratchet wheels, which in turn operate
toothed wheels, one of which is attached to or forms part of the nut on the ordinary
valve rod, the screwing of which either up or down lengthens or shortens the said
valve rod and opens and closes the valve thereby.
By this means the engine is regulated self actingly by the irregular action of the
governors, and this mechanism can easily be applied at a small cost to existing
engines.
In order that my invention may be better understood, I herein give reference to the
accompanying sheets of Drawings illustrative thereof, wherein Fig. 1 is one end view
of my improved apparatus, Fig. 2 plan view of same, and Figs. 3 and 4 sections
thereof taken through the line A B in Fig. 2. In the accompanying Drawings
1 represents the ordinary expansion or throttle valve rod with a right and left handed
screwed thread regulating nut 2, carrying a pinion wheel 3, which is made long as the
Drawing shews for the purpose of allowing the said valve rod to move up and down
as required by the irregular motion of the governors, without any danger of throwing
the said pinion out of gear with the crown wheel 4, gearing with the said pinion. I
employ a bracket 5 for the purpose of steadying the valve rod 1 and also for ensuring
that the pinion 3 shall be in proper gear with the teeth of the crown wheel 4, which
crown wheel 4 is keyed or otherwise fastened onto the end of a horizontal axis or
shaft 6, supported at each end by brackets 7. Onto the horizontal axis 6 are fixed
two ratchet wheels 8 and 9, the teeth of which are cut in opposite directions, as the
drawing illustrates. The horizontal shaft 6 carries loosely an oscillating frame 10, the

page_text: free end of which is attached to a cord or wire connected to any convenient
reciprocatory part of the engine, for the purpose of continuously rocking the said
frame for purposes hereinafter explained. The oscillating frame 10 also carries a rod
or shaft 11 upon which are placed two pawls or catch clicks 12 and 13, both of which
catches are placed loosely on the said rod, and when required are capable of engaging
with the two ratchet wheels 8 and 9, the upper pawl 13 descends by its own weight,
but the bottom pawl 12 is lifted upwards into gear with its ratchet wheel 8 by a
counterbalance weight 14, or by means of a spring. Onto the horizontal rod 11 I fix
by screw or other means what I choose to term the pawl reliever 15 placed in such
position that its upper and lower points are arranged to lie between the upper and
lower pawls 12 and 13, and this pawl reliever 15 is used for the purpose of removing
the pawls clear or out of gear with their respective ratchet wheels. Onto the
horizontal rod 11 I also fix a crank 16, the free end of which loosely carries one end
of a lever 17 working on a fulerum or stud 18 projecting from the oscillating frame 10,
whilst the opposite end of lever 17 carries a short horizontal pin 19, so placed and
arranged that when the oscillating frame 10 is in a horizontal position, the centre of
the short pin 19 is vertically over the centre of the ratchet wheel shaft 6. The arm 20
projecting from the bracket 7 carries a lever arm 21, the free end of which lever arm
is curved to a suitable radius and rests upon the short pin 19, projecting from lever 17,
which curvature in lever 21 is employed for the purpose of preventing any aberration
or irregularity in the motions of the pawls which would necessarily be produced when
the short horizontal pin 19 is not in the line of centre of ratchet wheel shaft. The
radius of the curve made on the underside of lever arm 21 must be made from the
centre of the ratchet wheel axle 6 to the top of the short pin 19 when said pin is
pressed down half way. Near to the free end of the lever arm 21 is a hole
through which the vertical needle 22 passes, and immediately underneath such
hole is a short bracket 23, also made with a hole through which the said needle also
passes, which said bracket 23 is employed for the purpose of guiding or steadying the
said needle. This needle 22 carries a fixed collar 24 placed at a suitable position
thereon, whilst the upper portion of said needle is screwed to receive locknuts 25,
which determine the distance between the collar 24 and the nuts. Upon the valve
rod 1 at a suitable position above the regulating nut 2 I fix an adjustable bracket 26,
through the projecting arm of which the upper end of the needle 22 passes. Onto this
needle 22 I place a spiral spring 27 between the collar and bracket 26, which spring is
employed to give a certain amount of pressure between the collar and bracket for
purposes hereinafter explained.
On the ratchet wheel shaft 6 is a worm 28, the thread of which is a left hand one,
which worm engages with a toothed pinion wheel 29, on the shaft of which pinion
wheel is a finger 30, which when the ratchet wheels have turned a certain number of
revolutions this said finger 30 will raise the top pawl 13 out of gear with its ratchet
wheel, and thus prevent the ratchet wheels from making any further revolutions in
that direction.
Instead of the crank 16 and levers 17 occupying positions shewn in the Drawings, they
may be placed on the offside of the apparatus as shewn in Fig. 5, and by placing the
levers and vertical needle in such position I could get the said pin 19 in the line of
centre of ratchet wheel shaft 6 and thereby render unnecessary the curved surface on
the underside of the lever 21, but as this construction would make the mechanisın a
little more bulky with no corresponding advantage, I prefer to place the series
of crank lever and vertical needle in the positions shewn in the first illustrations.
When my improved automatic regulating apparatus is applied to a steam engine
where the expansion or throttle valve rod is in a horizontal position instead of a
vertical position as shewn in Fig. 6, the bracket 7 must have an upright arm 33 with
a hole near the top thereof to receive the needle 22, and the lever 21 must be made
with a vertical projection 32 to receive the needle, but the remaining portions of the
apparatus, and the manner of operation, will be similar to those already described.
The modus operandi is as follows:-
When the machine is first put in motion, the bracket 26 on the expansion or valve

page_text: rod 1 is fixed at a suitable height, so that the collar 24 on the lower part of the
needle 22 presses the lever arm 21 downwards, acting upon levers 17 and crank 16,
and slightly oscillating rod 11 so as to keep both pawls or clicks 12 and 13 clear of
their respective ratchet wheels; and the parts remain in this position so long as the
engine runs at its normal speed, but if the speed of the engine slackens through extra
weight of machinery or diminished pressure of steam, the governors of the engine
would lower, thereby causing the valve, rod 1 to rise, carrying with it the bracket 26
and needle 22, the effect of which would be to relieve the pressure of the collar 24
from the free end of the lever arm 21, also releasing crank 16 and lever 17, allowing
the two pawls to lower, whereby the upper pawl 13 is allowed to engage with its
ratchet wheel 9. The oscillating frame 10, which is attached by a cord or wire to
some reciprocatory part of the engine will now cause the engaged pawl 13 to turn the
ratchet wheel 9 a few teeth, at cach upward movement of the oscillating frame, which
motion of the ratchet wheel is communicated by the crown wheel 4 to the long pinion
wheel 3, causing it to partially rotate, taking with it the nut 2 attached to such pinion
wheel, the screwing of which will shorten the rod 1, thereby opening the throttle valve
for the admission of more steam, or retarding the cut off, in which case the engine
would regain in speed and the governors assume their normal position again, the effect
of which would be that the valve rod 1 with its bracket 26 and needle 22 will also be
brought back to their normal position, removing the pawls or clicks clear of their
respective ratchet wheels, and so long as the engine continues to run at the proper
speed, the clicks will remain inoperative.
If the engine runs faster than its normal speed either through increased pressure of
steam or through diminished weight of the machinery, the governors would immediately
rise to a higher altitude, causing the expansion or valve rod 1, with its bracket 26,
needle 22, and collar 24 thereon to lower, thereby pressing down the forward end of
lever 21 so as to oscillate the lever 17 and crank 16, also causing a slight rocking
motion of the shaft 11 in such manner as to lift the pawl reliever 15, allowing the
lower pawl 12 through the medium of the counterbalance weight 14 to rise and engage
with the teeth of the ratchet wheel 8, and as the rocking frame 10 continues to he
oscillated by the moving part of the engine, such pawl 12 will turn or push forward
the ratchet wheel a few teeth at each downward movement of the frame 10 in the
opposite direction to that mentioned in the previous illustration, in which case the
crown wheel would operate the long pinion and nut 2 for the purpose of
lengthening the valve rod, thereby lessening the admission of steam or accelerating
the cut off as the case may be, which will bring the speed of the engine back again to
its normal rate, and also the governors to their proper altitude or plane, insuring the
release of the pawls from their ratchet wheels, all of which parts will remain in that
position, inoperative, until the speed of the engine is again varied.
The peculiar function of the worm 28 and wheel 29, together with their connections,
is, in case of steam pressure falling below that which is necessary to turn the engine
at full speed, to prevent the mechanism from operating the regulating nut 2 to the
extreme end of the threads formed on the valve rod 1, which if this took place, would
lock the parts. It will be understood that the finger 13 must be so set that the
regulating nut 2 will be turned a given number of revolutions, at which point the
finger 30 rises and moves the upper pawl 13 from its ratchet wheel, thereby preventing
the apparatus from turning any further in that direction, but when the steam pressure
has again risen sufficiently high to turn the engine at its normal speed, the mechanism
at once automatically commences to control the speed as previously explained.
The function of the spiral spring 27 on needle 22 is to prevent any interference with
the free action of the governors when the acceleration in speed causes the governors
to move the valve rod 1 downwards more than the needle 22 can move, in such cases
the bracket 26 simply compresses the feeble spring 27.
By the employment of the mechanism herein described and illustrated, any
variations in steam pressure and load are compensated for automatically, and as
the lever 17 multiplies the motion of the valve rod 1, the apparatus is very sensitive to
the least variations in the speed of the engine.

page_text: Having now described the nature and particulars of my invention, together with
the manner and means of putting the same into practical operation, I would have it
understood that I do not restrict myself to all the exact form of mechanism herein
illustrated, but what I believe to be now and therefore claim as my invention is:
Firstly. In mechanism for controlling the speed of steam engines where ratchet
wheels are employed, the combination therewith of the lever 17, for the purpose of
increasing the stroke of the valve rod and making the mechanisin sensitive to small
changes in the speed of the engine substantially as set forth.
Secondly. The use of the curved ond of lever arm 21 or any similar curved devico
in combination with ratchet wheels and clicks for the purpose of preventing the
irregular motion of the pawls which would be produced by imparting motion to such
pawls elsewhere than in the line of action of ratchet wheels substantially as set forth.
Thirdly. In mechanism for controlling the speed of steam engines by lengthening
and shortening the connections between the governors and the valve rod, the
combination therewith of the needle 22 with its spiral spring 27 employed for the
purpose of preventing any interference with the freo action of the governors.
Fourthly. In mechanism for controlling the speed of steam engines by automatically
lengthening and shortening the connections between the valves and the governors, the
combination therewith of the worm 28 and wheel 29 employed for the purpose of
lifting the upper pawl out of gear with its ratchet wheel when the mechanism has
opened the throttle valve or altered the cut off sufficiently, substantially as set forth.
Fifthly. In mechanism for controlling the speed of steam engines where pawls and
ratchet whools are employed, the combination therewith of the pawl relieving arm 15
substantially as set forth.
Lastly. The general arrangement, construction, and combination of parts,
substantially as herein set forth and illustrated by the drawings, of mechanism
for automatically controlling the speed of steam engines by the varied altitude of
the governors.