IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTARY VALVES AND REVERSING GEAR FOR STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Josiah Charles Willoughby, of the Firm of
Josiah Charles Willoughby and Robert Skevington Radford, both
of the Town and County of the Town of Nottingham, Machinists,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTARY VALVES AND REVERSING
GEAR FOR STEAM ENGINES.”
Sealed the 14th March 1876, and dated the 28th September 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Josiah Charles
Willoughby at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
his Petition, on the 28th September 1875.
I, JOSIAH CHARLES WILLOUGHBY, of the Firm of Josiah Charles
Willoughby and Robert Skevington Radford, both of the Town and
County of the Town of Nottingham, Machinists, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTARY VALVES AND
Reversing Gear for Steam Engines,” to be as follows :—
At each end of a steam chest I place hollow caps provided with
stuffing boxes through which is passed an axle carrying a disk at or near
each end, the said disks lie and revolve between the ends of the steam
chest and the caps; cach disk has a portion cut away between its centre
and its circumference, through the orifices formed by the portions being

page_text: cut away steam passes to the inlet ports and from the outlet ports. The
axle carries a toothed bevil wheel which gears into a similar wheel on
the crank shaft or other part of the engine, the boss of the toothed
bevil wheel on the axle is slotted to receive two pins, which are secured
in and carried by a second boss; the slots in the wheel boss are of such
length that the pins can be turned one quartor or other portion of a
circle in them; such movement being obtained by a hand lever reverses
the action of the rotating valve.
Instead of employing pins working in slots as above described, I may
sometimes prefer to slot the axle of the valves, and twist such slot one
quarter round a pin in the wheel taking into such slot; the valves will be
reversed upon moving the wheel boss one quarter round by a hand
lever.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Josiah Charles Willoughby in the Great Seal 1
Patent Office on the 28th March 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSIAH
CHARLES WILLOUGHBY, of the Firm of Josiab Charles Willoughby and
Robert Skevington Radford, both of the Town and County of the Town
of Nottingham, Machinists, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth 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 me, the said Josiah Charles Willoughby, 2
Her special licence that I, the said Josiah Charles Willoughby, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Josiah Charles Willoughby, 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 ROTARY VALVES AND REVERSING
GEAR FOR STEAM ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Josiah Charles Willoughby, my exccutors or administrators, §

page_text: by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their
hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the 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 Charles Willoughby, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being had to
the accompanying Drawing forming part of this Specification.
At each end of a steam chest I place hollow caps provided with
stuffing boxes through which is passed an axle carrying a disc at or near
each end; the said discs lie and revolve between the ends of the steam
chest and the caps; each disc has a portion cut away between its centre
and its circumference; through the orifices formed by the portions being
cut away steam passes to the inlet ports, and from the outlet ports the
axle carries a toothed bevil wheel which gears into a similar wheel on the
crank shaft or other part of the engine; the boss of the toothed bevil
wheel on the axle is slotted to receive two pins, which are secured in and
carried by a second boss; the slots in the wheel boss are of such length
that the pins can be turned one quarter or other portion of a circle in
them; such movement being obtained by a hand lever reverses the action
of the rotating valves.
Instead of employing pins working in slots as above described I may
sometimes prefer to slot the axle of the valves, and twist such slot onc
quarter round, a pin in the wheel boss taking into such slot; the valves
will be reversed upon moving the wheel boss one quarter round by a
hand lever.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a sectional plan of my improved rotary valves and
reversing gear as applied to a pair of steam cylinders.
Figures 2 to 13 inclusive represent separate parts of the same severally
referred to hereafter.
At Figure 1, A, A, are two cylinders which are cast together with a
feed chamber B and an exhaust chamber C between the cylinders; tho
relative position of the cylinders and chambers are shown in the end

page_text: view of the same at Figure 5. Each end of the cylinders are closed by
a cover D, one of which is cast with stuffing boxes to receive caps D',
through which the piston rods D³ pass; the caps have a thin facing on
their inner sides to fit in the recesses at the cylinder ends. The outer
central portion of each cover is raised to form a facing for a valve E to
work upon; in this facing are three port holes, the two marked E¹
straight on to the piston of each cylinder, the central one C' for the
exhaust and for the passage of a partly squared valve spindle E³, the
remaining seven spaces of this facing are recessed to a depth of about
one quarter the thickness of the metal so as to reduce the friction; :
instead of the facing above described a recess may be formed in
the cover plate to receive a facing plate secured in it by screws, as
shewn at Figure 6, thereby readily admitting a renewal of the facing
when worn by use; the slot B' in the cover corresponds to the feed
chamber B of the cylinders; an outer view of one such plate is shewn ]
at Figure 5. The valve spindle is shown broken in three parts in
Figure 1, its length varying according to the throw of the engine; the
spindle is supported by two bearings E' between the cylinders and the
crank shaft, the spindle also revolves in a stuffing box F" in each of the
valve covers F, an outer view and a vertical sectional view of one such :
cover being shown respectively at Figures 10 and 11.
An outer view, inner view, and a vertical section of one of the rotary
valves are shewn respectively at Figures 7, 8, and 9, each valve has a
pieco cut away at E to feed cach cylinder as it passed over the port
holes E'; the inner side of the valve is recessed at B*; through this 2
recess the exhaust steam passes as the valve revolves into the exhaust
chamber C and so escapes; the valves are held to the fixed or removable
facings above described by the pressure of the steam in the valve covers;
each valve has a stuffing box, the stuffing in which is pressed upon by a
washer backed by a spiral spring E³ held by a second washer secured by 8
a cotter pin passed through the valve spindle, thus preventing any
steam passing through the square hole in the valve; the bearing E³ next
the valve cover lies between two collars formed on the valvo spindle to
prevent any to-and-fro movement; the end of the spindle nearest the
crank shaft G runs loose in the boss of a toothed bevil wheel E'; 8
the boss has a groove cut in it to prevent endwise movement in the
bearing E; there is also a clutch E³ cast on this boss which takes
into a similar clutch Eº, thus forming a clutch box; the half clutch E‘
is grooved at one end to receive the forked end of a hand lever E', shewn

page_text: in side and end views at Figures 2, by means of which it can be moved
to or from the crank shaft; this half clutch carries a key twisted to fit
into and pass through a twisted slot Es in the valve shaft, so that when
the half clutch is moved backwards or forwards by the hand lever the
key working in the twisted slot in the valve spindle reverses the valves,
and for the purpose of readily adjusting the valves the bevil wheel on
the crank shaft G which drives the valve spindle is cut in two, and each
half is slotted to accomodate a set screw, as shewn by dotted lines in
Figure 1. The cylinders and the bearings E' and bearings for the crank
shaft and a standard to carry an axle pin for the hand lever E' may all
be bolted to a base plate or other suitable foundation.
Instead of the clutch box above described I may prefer to employ a
Blotted boss E³ forming part of the boss of the bevil wheel E'; there are
two beviled slots opposite each other, and in each slot slides a friction
piece E, in each of which is a slot to receive the projecting ends of the
twisted key passed through the twisted slot in the valve spindle. When
the key and friction pieces are in place they are held secure by a grooved
collar E being slipped over the slotted boss, each friction piece being
secured to the collar by two screws as shewn in plan and section at
Figures 12 and 13.
Instead of the hand lever E' for reversing the valves a screw moved
by a hand wheel at one end and a clip to embrace either of the collars Es
may be employed to indicate the cut off, such apparatus is shewn in sido
view at Figure 3 and end view at Figure 4.
In witness whereof, I, the said Josiah Charles Willoughby, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of
March, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy-six.
80 Witness,
JOSIAH CHARLES WILLOUGHBY. (L.S.)
H. W. GOUGH, O.E.,
Patent Agent,
Nottingham.