Improvements in Oil-engines.
Year: 1899

page_text: Improvements in Oil-engines.
I, HERBERT CHURCHILL CAPEL, of the Firm of Capel & Co., Gas Engine Manu-
facturers, 168, Dalston Lane, in the County of London, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements which are partly designed to simplify
the conversion of existing gas-engines into oil-engines. My said improvements
are, however, also applicable to oil-engines in the manufacture of the same.
An important feature of my said invention is the provision which I make for
the drawing of the requisite quantity of oil into the vaporizer by the suction pro
duced by the movement of the piston when drawing into the cylinder the air
required to mix with the oil-vapour.
My said invention, moreover, comprises improved means for supplying the oil
to the vaporizer and to the burner for heating the same.
And my said invention also comprises other improvements hereinafter mentioned
In carrying my said invention into practice, I employ a vaporizer which is
connected with the cylinder by means of a port provided with a suitable valve,
and through which air can be drawn into the said cylinder. I provide the said
vaporizer with a nozzle for the supply of oil thereto, which nozzle is combined
with an auxiliary oil-reservoir so connected with an oil-pump that the oil thereby
fed into it from the main reservoir will be constantly maintained at a level a
short distance below the orifice of the said nozzle. A baffle-plate or deflector
is preferably arranged in the vaporizer opposite the said nozzle in such a manner
that the oil impinges against it and is broken up into small particles, and a
diaphragm of wire-gauze or the like is arranged at a suitable distance below the
said nozzle.
By these means, while the oil cannot overflow into the vaporizer from the said
auxiliary reservoir, a suitable quantity of the oil will be drawn therefrom through
the said nozzle into the vaporizer by the suction produced by the movement of
the piston whenever the aforesaid valve is opened and air drawn through the
vaporizer. This air together with the oil spray or vapour will pass through the
said wire-gauze diaphragm and the air and oil-vapour will be intimately mixed
on their way to the cylinder.
The vaporizer is preferably made of annular or tubular form with vertical
ribs on its periphery, over which is placed a cap or casing so arranged that the
air drawn in must pass up between the ribs on one side and then down through
a mixing chamber at the other side before it can enter the aforesaid port leading
to the cylinder. The igniting tube is arranged in the space within the inner
wall of the said vaporizer and the heating burner extends into this space. I find
it advantageous to so arrange the said vaporizer, the supply-nozzle with its
auxiliary reservoir and the aforesaid valve that they can all be secured to the
cylinder by means of a single flange bolted thereto. They can, if desired, be
thus secured to one end of the cylinder of an existing gas-engine in place of the
usual igniting device.

page_text: The oil-pump which I employ comprises a plunger worked by a lever, actuated
by an eccentric on the usual cam-shaft, which lever is enclosed in a chamber or
casing. This plunger works in a cylinder or barrel extending from the said casing
and connected by a pipe with the main oil-reservoir and with another. pipe com-
municating with the burner for heating the vaporizer, so that it will draw oil
from the said reservoir and force it into the pipe communicating with the burner,
which pipe is provided with a suitable air-vessel. The said plunger is made
tubular and is provided with a valve at its lower end held upon its seat by an
adjustable spring, and with an overflow orifice at or near its upper end, preferably
at the point where the lever engages with it.
By these means, when the required pressure has been attained in the pipe
communicating with the burner, the spring-controlled valve in the said plunger
will be opened in each downstroke of the plunger and the surplus oil will flow
through the said plunger into the said chamber or casing, and in so doing will
lubricate the lever and plunger. The said chamber or casing is arranged on
about the same level as the aforesaid auxiliary reservoir and is in communication
therewith, and is provided with an overflow-pipe the orifice of which is so ar-
ranged that the oil will be maintained at the desired level in the said auxiliary
reservoir. This over-flow-pipe may conduct the surplus oil back to the main
reservoir.
This improved oil-pump is, if desired, so made that it can be secured upon an
existing gas-engine in place of the usual lubricator. In this case, I prefer to
combine with the said pump a lubricator comprising a rotary plug which is
arranged to be rotated intermittently by the pump-lever through the medium of
a ratchet and pawl; this being effected by forming the said rotary plug with
a small hole or chamber in its periphery, which chamber is filled with oil from
the reservoir of the lubricator when the plug is at the upper part of its travel
and empties itself, preferably into a cup provided with a discharge pipe or
passage whereby the oil is applied as required, when inverted by the rotation
of the said plug.
Dated this 9th day of June 1800
Dated this 9th day of June 1899
D. YOUNG & Co.,
11 & 12, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Oil-engines.
We, CLARA CAPEL, of 204, Amhurst Road, Hackney, in the County of London,
Widow, and JAMES ALEXANDER PEIRCE, of 168, Dalston Lane, in the County of
London, Engineer, Executors of the late Herbert Churchill Capel, of the Firm
of Capel & Co., Gas Engine Manufacturers, of 168, Dalston Lane aforesaid, 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:
This invention relates to improvements which are partly designed to simplify
the conversion of existing gas-engines into oil-engines, but which are also
applicable to oil-engines in the manufacture of the same.
An important feature of the said invention is the provision which is made for
the drawing of the requisite quantity of oil into the vaporizer by the suction pro-
duced by the movement of the piston when drawing into the cylinder the air
required to mix with the oil-vapour.
•

page_text: The said invention, moreover, comprises an improved construction of vaporizer,
improved means for supplying the oil to the vaporizer and to the burner for heat-
ing the same, and other improvements in detail as hereinafter described.
Referring to the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is an end view of an oil engine having the present improvements
applied thereto.
Figure 2 is a vertical central section of the vaporizer, drawn to an enlarged
scale.
Figure 3 is a vertical section of the vaporizer on the line a, a, Figure 2, and
Figure 4 is a horizontal section of the vaporizer on the line y, y, Figure 2.
Figure 5 is a vertical section of the lubricator, and of a chamber or casing into
which the oil is delivered before the same passes to the vaporizer.
Figure 6 is a section on the line z, z of Figure 5, and
Figure 7 is a vertical section of the main oil reservoir.
Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in the several figures.
A is the vaporizer which is secured on the end of the working cylinder B and
communicates therewith by means of a port a, provided with a suitable valve ut,
through which port, air and oil-vapour are drawn into the cylinder.
The vaporizer is formed with an inner tubular wall a having a number of
vertical ribs a³ on its periphery and an external flange at at its upper end, a
space being left between the said flange and the upper ends of the ribs. The
said tube a is enclosed by a cap or casing ", in which near the lower end are
formed a number of holes a leading into the channels between the ribs a the
whole being so arranged that the air drawn in through the holes a² passes up the
channels between the ribs a³ on one side of the vaporizer into the annular space
a, and then down through a mixing chamber as at the other side of the vaporizer
before it enters the aforesaid port a which communicates with said chamber.
We sometimes provide inlet holes in the inner wall so that instead of taking in
air from outside the casing they take in hot products of combustion, generated
by the heating lamp, from outside the casing, by which means the oil is more
readily vaporized and the rate of combustion of the charge in the cylinder is
retarded. The vaporizer is supplied with oil through a nozzle C which com-
municates with the mixing chamber 8 and which is combined with an auxiliary
oil-reservoir D in which the oil level is constantly maintained, by means here-
inafter described, a little below the mouth of the said nozzle. The oil-reservoir D
communicates with the nozzle by a channel d. e is a baffle-plate or deflector
secured in the vaporizer opposite the nozzle C so that the oil drawn into the
vaporizer will impinge against the said plate and be thereby broken up into
small particles. G is a diaphragm of wire-gauze or the like arranged in the
mixing chamber as at a suitable distance below the nozzle C.
By the above described means, while the oil cannot overflow into the vaporizer
from the auxiliary reservoir D, a suitable quantity of oil will be drawn from
said reservoir through the channel d and the nozzle C into the vaporizer by the
suction produced by the movement of the working piston whenever the aforesaid
valve is opened and air drawn through the vaporizer. This air together with
the oil spray or vapour will pass through the wire-gauze diaphragm G and the
air and oil-vapour will thus be intimately mixed on their way to the cylinder.
The igniting tube E is arranged in the space within the inner wall of the
vaporizer and the heating lamp or burner F is adjustably mounted on a stud f
and extends into this space. The lamp or burner is supplied with oil under
pressure as hereinafter described through the supply pipe f¹. The vaporizer
together with the supply-nozzle C and its auxiliary reservoir D, the valve a,
and the lamp F, are arranged to be secured to the cylinder by means of a single
flange A bolted to the cylinder. They can, if desired, be thus secured to the end
of the cylinder of an existing gas-engine in place of the usual igniting device.
The oil-pump which we employ comprises a plunger H Figure 6 worked by a
lever J fixed on a spindle J' which is actuated through a rod K and arm K by

page_text: an eccentric or cam L on the usual side-shaft L¹. The lever J is enclosed in a
chamber or casing M, and the plunger H works in a cylinder or barrel H' ex-
tending from said chamber or casing and connected by a pipe h with the main
oil-reservoir N. The communication between the pipe and the oil-reservoir N
is by a passage Figure 7 which is situated between a lower valve h² and an
upper valve both said valves being shown in the form of balls resting on suit-
able seatings in the outlet channel O. This channel communicates by a pipe P¹
with the interior of an air-vessel P, and also by the pipe f with the lamp or
burner F. The action of the pump is to draw oil from the reservoir N and to
force into the channel 0, which is furnished with a pressure gauge P2, and so
to the lamp F and air-vessel P. The plunger H is made tubular and is provided
with a valve h at its lower end held upon its seat by a spring h³ and with an
overflow orifice h at or near its upper end, preferably at the point where the
lever Jengages with it. h is a screw for adjusting the compression of the
spring to ensure the desired pressure in the air vessel P and pipe f¹ communi-
cating with the lamp. When the required pressure has been attained in the
pipe (which can be brought about at the start by disconnecting the rod K and
working the pump by hand) the further working of the pump causes the spring-
controlled valve h to lift during each down stroke of the plunger and the surplus
oil then Hows through the plunger into the chamber or casing M, and in so doing
will at the same time lubricate the lever and plunger. The said chamber or
casing M is arranged on or about the same level as the aforesaid auxiliary reser-
voir and is in communication therewith by a pipe Q. R is an overflow-pipe
which conducts the surplus oil back from the casing M to the main reservoir N.
This overflow pipe communicates with a vertically adjustable pipe r having an
orifice in its side which determines the level of the oil in the casing M. By
adjusting the height of the pipe r the level of the oil can be regulated as desired.
The above described improved oil-pump is, if desired, so made that it can be
secured upon an existing gas-engine in place of the usual lubricator. In this
case it is preferred to combine with the said pump a lubricator comprising a
rotary plug S which is arranged to be rotated intermittently by the pump-lever J
through the medium of a ratchet St connected to the plug, and pawl Scarried
by the pump lever. The said rotary plug. is provided with a small hole or
chambers in its periphery, which hole or chamber is filled with oil from the
reservoir S of the lubricator when the same is at the top or upper part of its
travel and which empties itself, preferably into a cup T provided with a dis-
charge pipe T or passage whereby the oil is applied as required, when the said
hole 8 is inverted by the rotation of the plug. Two or more holes s may be
provided if desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
-
1. The vaporizer constructed with an inner tubular wall furnished with ribs,
and enclosed by an outer casing which forms with the inner wall a mixing
chamber that communicates with a port leading to the cylinder, a baffle plate
and gauze diaphragm in said mixing chamber, and holes for admitting either
air or products of combustion to the said chamber, substantially as described.
2. The nozzle for admitting oil to the vaporizer in combination with an auxiliary
oil-reservoir, substantially as, and for the purpose, specified.
3. The combined vaporizer and nozzle with auxiliary oil-reservoir for supply-
ing oil thereto, constructed substantially as described with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
4. The oil pump comprising the pump proper with tubular plunger and ad-
justable spring-loaded valve in combination with a casing furnished with an
overflow to maintain a constant level of oil, and with a connection to the auxiliary
oil-reservoir claimed in Claim 2, substantially as described.

page_text: 5. The combination, with the oil pump, of a lubricator operated from the pump
lever, said lubricator comprising a rotary plug having a hole or holes in its
periphery adapted to carry oil from an oil cup and deliver same as required in
regulated quantities, substantially as described.
Dated this 8th day of Yo 1000
D. YOUNG & Co.,
11 & 12, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicants.