IMPROVE- MENTS IN CENTRIFUGAL PUMPS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Anderson, of Southwark Street, in the
Borough of Southwark, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN CENTRIFUGAL PUMPS."
Scaled the 29th June 1875, and dated the 31st December 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Anderson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 31st December 1874.
I, WILLIAM ANDERSON, of Southwark Street; in the Borough of
Southwark, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said, Inven-
tion for “IMPROVEMENTS IN CENTrifugal Pumps,” to be as follows :—
In centrifugal pumps as at present constructed the supply of water is
admitted to the wheel at the opposite sides thereof, and when this wheel
is mounted on a vertical spindle the water discharged upwards finds an
obstruction in the inlet pipe which supplies water to the upper side of
the wheel. To remove this inconvenience and also to simplyfy the con-
struction of the pump, and facilitate the readjustment of the wheel to
compensate for the wear of the parts subjected to friction, I fit at the
bottom of the pump immediately over the supply pipe an inverted

page_text: conical shield with a concave profile, and connect it by radial arms to
the pipe. This shield will carry the bearing for the vertical spindle of
the wheel, and the wheel I so construct that it will surround the fixed
shield. The involute blades of this wheel are set in an annular casing
and this casing is connected by screws to a pierced disc keyed to the
vertical spindle. This piercing of the disc allows of water entering
between it and the upper side of the conical shield, and thereby
balancing the wheel which is adjusted to run as close as may be to the
top of the shield, and also to the bottom of the pump barrel. In this
arrangement the fixed shield will take the downward pressure of the 1
water as well as serving to guide it upwards to the blades of the rotating
wheel.
When the wheel requires readjustment to compensate for wear, all
that is needed is to lower it slightly with its spindle, the bearings for
which latter must be arranged to allow of such slight vertical adjust- 1
ment.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Anderson in the Great Seal Patent
Office ou the 30th June 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ANDERSON, of Southwark Street, in the Borough of Southwark,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in tho ?
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said William Anderson, Her
special licence that I, the said William Anderson, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Anderson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any 3
time agree with, and no others, from time to timo 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 In-
vention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN CENTRIFUGAL PUMPS," upon the condition 3

page_text: (amongst others) that I, the said William Anderson, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or ono
of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the
naturo of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Scal Patent Office
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Anderson, 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 Drawing here-
unto annexed and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say) :-
=
In appold centrifugal pumps as at present constructed the supply of
water is admitted to the wheel at the opposite sides thereof, and when
this wheel is mounted on a vertical spindle, the water discharged
upwards finds an obstruction in the inlet pipe, which supplies water to
the upper side of the wheel. To remove this inconvenience and also to
simplify the construction of the pump, and facilitate the readjustment of
the wheel to compensate for the wear of the parts subjected to friction,
and also to carry a part of the downward pressure of the water
independently of the pump spindle, I fit at the bottom of the pump
immediately over the supply pipe an inverted conical shield with a con-
cave profile, and connect it by radial arms to the pipe. This shield will
carry the bearing for the vertical spindle of the wheel, and the wheel I
so construct that it will surround the fixed shield. The blades of this
wheel are set in an annular casing, and this casing is connected by
screws to a pierced disc keyed to the vertical spindle.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 shews in sectional elevation a
centrifugal pump constructed according to my Invention, and Fig. 2 is
a sectional plan taken in the line 1, 2, of Fig. 1.
A, A, is the bottom of the pump case, and A¹ the water supply pipe.
Fitted to the bottom of the case and immediately over the supply pipe is
the conical shield B, which is cast with radial wings for securing it in
place, and with a bearing for receiving the end of the vertical spindle C.
Secured to this spindle near its foot is a concave disc D which overlies
the conical shield B, and serves to carry an annular wheel E which com-

page_text: pletely occupies the opening between the fixed cone B and the casing.
This wheel is secured to the disc D by screws or otherwise and when put
in rapid rotation, water supplied to the pump will pass upwards between
the blades of the wheel as indicated by the arrows. The disc D I pierce
as shown to allow of water entering between it and the upper side of the
conical shield, and thereby balancing the wheel which is adjusted to run
as close as may be to the top of the shield and also to the bottom of the
pump barrel. In this arrangement the fixed shield will take the down-
ward pressure of the water, as well as serving to guide it upwards to the
blades of the rotating wheel.
When the wheel requires readjustment to compensate for wear all
that is needed is to lower it slightly with its spindle, the bearings for
which latter must be arranged to allow of such slight vertical readjust-
mont.
In order to apply the momentum of the water forced up into the case
to facilitate the rise and discharge of the same from the pump, I fit into
the case immediately above the wheel fixed guide plates as shewn at F',
which are arranged radially in the case and are curved at their lower
ends to meet the upward current as it leaves the periphery of the wheel.
These guide plates are shewn connected together at their inner edges by
means of metal straps or stay pieces.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improvemonts
in Centrifugal Pumps," and explained the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in-part recited
Lotters Patent I claim the means above described for balancing tho
pressure of the water for facilitating the adjustment of the wheels of
centrifugal pumps (to compensate for the wear of the parts subjected to
friction), and for facilitating the delivery of the water from the pump.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Anderson, have here-
unto set my hand and scal, the Thirticth day of June, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five