IM- PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY POR OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER." PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY POR OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER.
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Elias Robison Handcock, of No. 23, Norfolk Street,
Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Esquire, for the Invention of " IM-
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY POR OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER."
PROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY POR OBTAINING AND APPLYING MOTIVE POWER.
"
Sealed the 3rd January 1862, and dated the 6th July 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Elias Robison Handcock
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th July 1861.
I, ELIAS ROBISON HANDCOCK, of No. 23, Norfolk Street, Strand, in the
County of Middlesex, Esquire, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR OBTAINING AND APPLYING
MOTIVE POWER," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in more effectually carrying out the principle of my
former Invention (for which Letters Patent were granted to me on the 8th
day of April 1859, No. 885) by the means of which the dead or neutral point
of the crank axle is overcome. This I propose to effect by employing two
cranks fixed on the axle while in the act of propelling the machinery, the con-
necting rod of one crank being furnished with a loose eccentric or other con-

page_text: venient arrangement, while that of the other is attached to a loose crank or
other convenient arrangement fixed to the crosshead or framework or part of
the engine so that one crank may be out of gear while the other is acting.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Elias Robison Handcock in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 6th January 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ELIAS
ROBISON HANDCOCK, of No. 23, Norfolk Street, Strand, in the County of
Middlesex, Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Elias Robison Handcock, Her special licence that I, the said
Elias Robison Handcock, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Elias Robison Handcock, my executors, administra-
tors, 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 MACHINERY POR OBTAINING AND APPLYING
MOTIVE POWER," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Elias
Robison Handcock, my executors or administrators, 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 Elias Robison Handcock, do hereby
declare the nature of said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement, and accompanying Drawings, that is to say :-
.
My improvements consist in a mechanical arrangement to obviate the dis-
advantages of the ordinary steam engine, which disadvantages consist in
requiring the auxiliary aid of a second engine or fly wheel, to enable the crank

page_text: axle to have a continuous rotary motion, and for this: purpose I employ the
following arrangement.
Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, exhibit different modifications of the improve-
ment as applied to a horizontal steam engine; Figures 7 and 8 shew the same
improvements applied to a "table" steam engine.
Similar letters of reference refer to similar parts in all the views.
A, in all the views describes one crank on the "centre"; B, B, a crank at
right angles to it; C, the connecting rod attached to the crank A, terminates
in the eccentric ring D which surrounds the eccentric E, said eccentric being
loose on the crosshead F, and free to revolve thereon, or it may be keyed fast,
on the crosshead which may be allowed to revolve. The centre of this eccen-
tric at the commencement of the outstroke, is between the centre of the cross-
head F and the crank. A, its use is to prevent the pressure of the piston from.
acting on the crank A till it is required to do so, as on the piston moving it.
slips round on the crosshead till its centre is between the centre of the cross-
head Fand the cylinder G, when it ceases to slip, at which time the pressure
of the piston will commence to act through the connecting rod C on the
crank A; H, H, are the connecting rods of the crank B, B. In the case of
Figures 1 and 2 the ends of these rods pass through suitable openings in the
ends of the crosshead F marked J, J. Through the centre of these openings,
pins K, K, are forced by springs L, L, or other suitable contrivance. These
pins pass through corresponding openings in the connecting rods H, H,
marked M, M, and fix the connecting rods H, H, to the crosshead F, so that
when the piston moves it at once acts on the crank B, B.
The mode of operation is as follows:-On the steam commencing to act on.
the piston, the eccentric E slips round the crosshead F and so prevents.
the pressure coming on the crank A, at the same time the connecting
rods H, H, being fixed by the pins K, K, to the crosshead F at once transniit.
the pressure to the crank B, B. On the crank B, B, arriving at the point 2
in the circle described by its pin, the crank A will arrive at the point 3,
described by the path of its pin, here the eccentric E having revolved on the
crosshead F as far as it can, the pressure of the piston is brought to bear on
the crank A simultaneously, with this the pins K, K, are forced back out of.
the openings in the connecting rods H, H, by the projections N, N, on the
crosshead guides O, O, which as the crosshead passes by them, compress the
springs L, L, and so withdraw the pins K, K. The crank A will now con-
tinue to be pressed forward till the termination of the stroke when it assumes a
position opposite to what it had at starting. The crank B, B, will at the

page_text: termination of the stroke also occupy a reverse position to that it had at start-
ing, the connecting rods H, H, having moved back through the openings J, J;
in the ends of the crosshead, which latter accommodates itself to the angles
assumed by the rods, this will result in bringing the holes M', M', opposite the
pins K, K, which will be forced into them by the springs L, L, or other
suitable arrangement. Thus on the commencement of the return stroke
the connecting rods H, H, will be prepared at once to transmit the pressure to
the crank B, B, and the eccentric E being again in the same relative position
with regard to the pressure, will prevent the crank A from being acted on, thus
the return stroke will be accomplished in the same manner. The method
adopted in Figures 3 and 4, to throw the connecting rods H, H, in or out of
geer, is as follows:-P, P, are double ended frames fixed rigidly on the ends.
of the crosshead F; Q, Q, are links, the lower ends of which are movable on
the centres R, R, at the extremities of the frames P, P. The back ends of
the connecting rods H, H, take hold of the upper ends of the links Q, Q;
S, S, are stops of the form shewn, and are movable on the centres T, T, at
the upper ends of the frames P, P, one end U, U, of these stops rests against
the upper eye of the link Q. The result of this arrangement is that the
back thrust of the connecting rods H, H, is borne by the centres R and T;
V, V, are springs one end of which rests on the top of the stops S, S, and
presses them down, while the other end is made fast to the crosshead
guides O, O. Now when the piston moves forward the springs V, V, continue
to press on the stops S, S, but when the centres T, T, pass under them, which
corresponds with the point where the connecting rods H, H, should cease to
act on the crank B, B, they will lift the ends U, U, of the stops S, S, and
will allow the connecting rod to thrust back the links Q, Q, under them, for
which reason the under side of the stops are curved as shewn. On the ter-
mination of the stroke the links Q, Q, and the stops S, S, will have assumed
the same relative positions with regard to one another, only the ends W, W,
of the stops S, S, will then rest against the side X, of the upper eye of the
links Q, Q.
In Figures 5 and 6, the mode adopted to gain the same object is as
follows: Here Y, Y, are two links, the eyes Z, Z, of which are attached to
the extremities of the cross head F and are free to turn thereon. The other
extremities a, a, are attached to the back ends of the connecting rods H, H.
Affixed to the said extremities a, a, also are slide blocks b, b, which rest on
extensions c, c, of the lower crosshead guides O, O, when the piston begins to
move the pressure is transmitted through the crosshead F and links Y, Y, to

page_text: the connecting rods H, H, and thence to the crank B, B. The back thrust
of the connecting rods press down the slide blocks b, b, on the guides c, c,
and prevent the ends a, a, of the links Y, Y, from rising. When the
crank B, B, arrives at the point 2 in its revolution, the slide blocks b, b, are
forced upwards to cause the, links Y, Y, to turn on the crosshead, and so
allow the connecting rods H, H, to go back, and accommodate themselves to
the action of the crank B, B, this is effected by the extremities d, d, of the
guides c, c, being curved upwards so that on the slide blocks b, b, reaching
them, they are forced upwards, carrying the links Y, Y, with them. By the
time the stroke is completed the links Y, Y, will have effected a semi-
revolution of the crosshead, and will occupy a similar position on the guides c, c,
to that they did at starting, only that they will be turned the reverse way.
During the return stroke the connecting rods H, H, will pull down the
blocks b, b, on the guides c, c, as they thrust them down on the out stroke,
thus preventing the links Y, Y, from turning on the crosshead till they are
required to do so.
Figures 7 and 8 exhibit this improvement as applies to the case of that
form of engine known as the "table" engine. The mode here adopted for
throwing the connecting rods H, H, in and out of geer is the same as in
Figures 1 and 2.
I beg to be understood that I do not confine myself to any particular length
of the crank, which may be denominated the auxiliary or starting crank, as
this may vary according to number of engines which may be affixed to the
same shaft.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not claim
any of the parts taken separately; but what I do claim as my Invention is
the general combination of parts as seen in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8,
in the accompanying Drawings, and having two cranks formed like tho
ordinary cranks of the common steam engine rigidly fixed to the shaft at right
angles or any convenient angle to each other, one crank only being in operation
at a time in propelling the machinery, the other at such time being thrown
out of geer, these two cranks being firmly fixed on the same shaft or axle, and
put in motion by a single piston. Where two or more engines are employed
each engine may have its two separate cranks. Thus in each case keeping
up a continuance rotary motion, and where only one engine is employed dispen-
sing with the auxiliary aid of a fly-wheel, and where two engines are employed
one engine not necessary to assist the others while the leverage is considerably
augmented, and the push and pull obviated.

page_text: I also claim the use of a loose excentric or excentrics as described in the
Drawings, either placed on the crosshead of the engine or on the crank pin for
the purpose of throwing one crank out of gear when the other is acting...
In witness whereof, I, the said Elias Robison Handcock, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Sixth day of January in the
year of 5
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
E. R. HANDCOCK. (L.S.)