IMPROVEMENTS IN LUBRICATORS follows
Year: 1884

page_text: I GEORGE FREDERICK REDFERN, of the General Patent Office, No. 4, South
Street, Finsbury, in the county of Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare
13 to be as
the nature of the said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LUBRICATORS
follows:-
This invention relates to lubricators for locomotive, marine, and other steam
engines in which the oil is supplied by the pressure of the steam, and is fed in
a fine stream, or drop by drop, by its passage through a fluid medium of different
specific gravity to it within a glass or glazed chamber, which admits of the amount
of supply being seen and readily controlled as required.
The invention consists in an improvement upon such method of working
a lubricator by delivering the oil from a cup or reservoir through a fluid of greater
specific gravity than water, preferably an acidulous one, within a glass or glazed
chamber, and discharging the same through a suitable outlet, whereby the trans-
parency of the glass chamber is preserved and other advantages are obtained.
It also consists in certain combinations of parts in a lubricator of the description
here referred to, whereby the operation is rendered more perfect and readily
discernible.
In carrying out the invention a cup is employed having a perforated diaphragm,
with a solid centre, near the bottom, by which a general pressure on the oil may be
obtained without any condensing-tube in the cup, as described in the specification
of Letters Patent granted to James Cassels as a communication from Peter Barclay
dated the twenty-ninth day of December one thousand eight hundred and seventy-
nine N° 5309. Attached to the cup are a filling-cap, a cup drain, a lower pipe-drain
cock or valve, a check valve in the branch or pipe by which steam is admitted from
the boiler, a hand valve for regulating the supply of steam to the cup, a pipe for
supplying oil from the cup to the indicator or receiver through a small discharge
pipe, a cap on the top of said receiver, a band regulating valve, and a check valve
in the pipe which conveys the oil to the engine. This construction of the self-
feeding oil cup may be more or less varied, but the same will suffice to explain the
nature or character of the invention. Heretofore in such construction, when the
steam is up, the pipe-drain cock or valve is opened till steam comes, then closed,
FD C027

page_text: the filling cap removed to fill the oil cup, the cap on the top of the receiver removed
to fill the indicator (made of glass) with water, and the steam valve carefully
opened to give the cup the necessary pressure. After this the regulating valve is
very carefully opened, which puts the lubricator in operation, the arrangement
admitting of the engineer working the cup, say, one drop in two minutes and
upward. In such method of working or supplying the oil drop by drop, visible
from the exterior of or through the transparent indicator it has been found that by
supplying a liquid therein of greater specific gravity than water, preferably an
acidulous liquid-such as vinegar, citric acid, acetic acid, and sulphuric acid-not
only is the same denser than pure water and the feed of the oil in drops there-
through more perfect, but that the glass of the indicator retains its transparency
for a much longer period than can be obtained with water, the oil not settling on
the glass to the same extent when an acidulous or other liquid of greater specific
gravity than water-such as is before mentioned-is used. Consequently there is
less necessity for frequent cleaning the glass of the indicator. Furthermore, instead
of thus supplying the glass or glazed indicator direct with the fluid medium of
greater specific gravity than the oil, within said indicator is arranged a glass or
transparent tube of about two thirds (more or less) in height of the outer glass
tube of the indicator, and the said inner tube is filled with the acidulous or other
denser fluid medium, the small oil discharge pipe entering through the bottom or
closed end of the inner glass tube or receptacle which is of suitable area to leave an
oil space around it within the outer glass or glazed tube of the indicator. By this
arrangement the outer glass or glazed tube of the indicator will simply contain oil,
while the inner smaller transparent tube will contain the acidulous or other denser
fluid medium, and a good working capacity for the oil is obtained without inter-
fering with the transparency of the indicator or its ability to expose the feed of the
oil, drop by drop, from any or every side of the indicator, the inner glass tube
keeping the supply of oil central, or thereabout, within the indicator, and by its
transparency admitting of a ready inspection.

page_text: I, GEORGE FREDERICK REDFERN of the General Patent Office, No 4, South
Street, Finsbury, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent do hereby declare the
nature of the said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LUBRICATORS" 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 lubricators for locomotive, marine, and other steam
engines in which the oil is supplied by the pressure of the steam and is fed in a
fine stream, or drop by drop, by its passage through a fluid medium of different
specific gravity to it within a glass or glazed chamber, which admits of the amount
of supply being seen and readily controlled as required.
The invention consists in an improvement upon such method of working a
lubricator by delivering the oil from a cup or reservoir through a fluid of greater
specific gravity than water, preferably an acidulous one, within a glass or glazed
chamber, and discharging the same through a suitable outlet, whereby the
transparency of the glass chamber is preserved and other advantages are obtained.
It also consists in certain combinations of parts in a lubricator of the description
here referred to, whereby the operation is rendered more perfect and readily
discernible.
In order to enable the invention to be fully understood I will describe the same
by reference to the accompanying drawing which represents a vertical section of a
lubricator constructed according to this invention.
In carrying out the invention a cup A is employed having a perforated dia-
phragm a with a solid centre near the bottom by which a general pressure on the
oil may be obtained without any condensing tube in the cup, as described in the
Specification of Letters Patent granted to James Cassels as a communication from
Peter Barclay dated the twenty ninth day of December one thousand eight
hundred and seventy nine. N° 5309. Attached to the cup A are a filling cap B &
cup drain C a lower pipe drain cock or valve D a check valve E in the branch or
pipe by which steam is admitted from the boiler, a hand valve F for regulating the
supply of steam to the cup, a pipe G for supplying oil from the cup to the indicator
or receiver H through a small discharge pipe b, a cap I on the top of the said
receiver, a hand regulating valve J and a check valve K in the pipe c, which conveys
the oil to the Engine. This construction of the self feeding oil cup may be more or
less varied, but the same will suffice to explain the nature or character of the
invention. Heretofore in such construction when the steam is up, the pipe drain
cock or valve D is opened till steam comes, then closed, the filling cap B removed
to fill the oil cup, the cap I on the top of the receiver removed to fill the indicator H
(made of glass) with water, and the steam valve F carefully opened to give the
cup the necessary pressure. After this the regulating valve J is very carefully
opened, which puts the lubricator in operation, the arrangement admitting of the
Engineer working the cup, say, one drop in two minutes and upwards. In such
method of working or supplying the oil drop by drop, visible from the exterior of
or through the transparent indicator H it has been found that by supplying a liquid

page_text: therein of greater specific gravity than water, preferably an acidulous liquid-such
as vinegar, citric acid, acetic acid, and sulphuric acid,-not only is the same denser
than pure water and the feed of the Oil in drops there-through more perfect, but
that the glass of the indicator retains its transparency for a much longer period
than can be obtained with water, the oil not settling on the glass to the same
extent when an acidulous or other liquid of greater specific gravity than water-
such as is before mentioned is used. Consequently there is less necessity for
frequent cleaning the glass of the indicator. Furthermore instead of thus supplying
the glass or glazed indicator H direct with the fluid medium of greater specific
gravity than the oil, within the said indicator H is arranged a glass or transparent
tube M of about two thirds (more or less) in height of the outer glass tube of the
indicator, and the said inner tube M is filled with the acidulous or other denser
fluid medium, the small oil discharge pipe b, entering through the bottom or closed
end of the inner glass tube, or receptacle M which is of suitable area to leave an
oil space around it within the outer glass or glazed tube of the indicator-By this
arrangement the outer glass or glazed tube of the indicator H will simply contain
Oil, while the inner smaller transparent tube M will contain the acidulous or other
denser fluid medium and a good working capacity_ for the oil is obtained without
interfering with the transparency of the indicator or its ability to expose the feed
of the Oil, drop by drop, from any or every side of the indicator, the inner glass
tube M keeping the supply of oil central or thereabouts within the indicator, and by
its transparency admitting of a ready inspection.
Having now described the nature of my invention and in what manner the same
is to be performed I declare that what I claim is
1. The method substantially as herein described of feeding oil, consisting in
passing it through a fluid medium of different specific gravity than said Oil,
delivering the oil from a cup or reservoir through a body of acidulous or other
liquid of greater specific gravity than water within a glass or glazed chamber, and
discharging the same through a suitable outlet to the part or parts to be lubricated,
.essentially, as herein setforth.
2. In a lubricator in which the Oil is fed by passing it through a fluid medium
of greater specific gravity than said oil, the combination with an outer glass or
glazed indicator tube, forming a receptacle for the water, of an inner transparent
tube, arranged to project up within said outer tube, and serving to contain within
it the denser fluid medium, also to receive the oil in small or detached quantities up
through it, substantially as specified.
3. In a lubricator constructed to operate by drop-feed, substantially as described,
the combination of the inner transparent acidulous liquid tube M, the oil discharge
pipe b, and the outer transparent or glazed tube of the indicator H, essentially as
and for the purpose herein described.
4. The improved lubricator herein before described and represented in the
accompanying drawing.