Improvements in Automatic Fire Alarms and Extinguishers.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Nov., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 25th July, 1895-Accepted, 5th Oct.,
1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Automatic Fire Alarms and Extinguishers.
I LOUIS JOSEPHI TIRARD, Chemist of 48 Rue d'Auge, Caen, in the Republic
of France, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object improvements and modifications in my invention
for which a Patent No. 10390 of 1893 was granted to me.
My apparatus has been hitherto simply a fire alarm.
The improvements effected in my automatic alarm consist in the starting of any
alarm and the simultaneous and antomatic extinction of the fire by means of
opening valves effecting a circulation of water under pressure which is distributed
either in jets or in rose sprays.
In the installation of my system of automatic alarm extinguisher as many
releasing and extinguishing apparatuses are fixed as are useful against one single
apparatus for distributing water and for the alarm.
A receptacle, counterbalanced by a weight, moving under the weight of the
liquid coming from a ball, disengages the rod of an oscillating counterweight which
rotates easily about its axis. This axis carries a vertical stud and a point in which
is regulated, by means of a screw thread, a pointer jointed to a valve rod. The
valve prevents under normal conditions any escape of water from the supply pipe
into the discharge pipe thus leaving the conductors leading to each releasing
apparatus empty. There is consequently no fear of the action being stopped by
the freezing of the water in the pipes. In the contrary case, that is to say if one
of the releasing apparatuses acts as described above and the counterweight moves,
it carries with it by means of a projection arranged at its lower part the before-
mentioned pin and the axis which disengages the point of the valve rod. The
constant pressure of the water on this latter causes it to descend and flow out
through piping towards the overheated release apparatus or apparatuses.
The current being established and arriving at a releasing apparatus exerts a
pressure on a valve similar to the foregoing. This pressure is repeated on two
thermometric tubes regulated to the temperature necessary for the establishment
which it is desired to protect and acting as supports to the valve. The said
thermometric tubes are supported at their base in two cup sockets fixed to a
support having a knife edge adjustable in height by a screw.
The prearranged heat making one of the two thermometric tubes expand allows
the valve to descend, thus permitting the flow of the water in the system of piping
terminated by the jet or rose spray.
Dated this 15th day of November 1894.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Automatic Fire Alarms and Extinguishers.
I, LOUIS JOSEPH TIRARD, Chemist of 48 Rue d'Auge, Caen in the Republic
of France, 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 has for its object improvements and modifications in my invention
for which a Patent No. 10390 of 1893 was granted to me.
My apparatus has been hitherto simply a fire alarm.
The improvements effected in my automatic alarm consist in the starting of any
alarm and in the simultaneous and automatic extinction of the fire by means of
opening valves effecting a circulation of water under pressure which is distributed
either in jets or in rose sprays.
In the installation of my system of automatic alarm extinguisher, as many
releasing and extinguishing apparatuses are fixed as are useful against one single
apparatus for distributing water and for the alarm.
In the accompanying sheet of illustrative drawings:
Figs. 1, 2 and 3 are front, side and back views respectively of the releasing
apparatus.
Figs. 4 and
apparatus.
are front and plan views respectively of the water distributing
Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the valve box in Figs. 4 and 5 and
Figs. 7 and 8 show in elevation and in plan, a jet of circular shape combined
with a rose spray.
As will be seen, this automatic alarm consists of two principal parts, the one
having for its object to open the water supply valve of the second part, and the
other or second part having for its object to effect by its release-
1st, the fall of the valve and consequently to establish the circulation of water
in the conduits and
2nd, to operate any suitable alarm.
The first part of this invention, shown in Figs. 1-3, is composed of a fixed
part A in which is supported an axis B¹ about which a counterweight A can
easily turn.
On each side of this counterweight are two shoulders C aud B which are bored
with holes, lined with cork, and in which are supported thermometric tubes E the
extremity of whose bulbs rest on a movable piece G which can oscillate about the
bolt I by which it is secured to the valve box F.
The counterweight A carries at the back a small knife lever J designed to
break in its fall, the closed end N of the air tube K, as will be hereinafter
explained. In order to obtain the breakage of this tube at a definite point, a
groove is made at the desired place to reduce its strength.
At the back of the fixed part A is attached a valve box F in which is placed
the valve F which stops the water supply and which is held in the closed position
by two thermometric tubes i regulated to the temperature necessary in the building
to be protected, and their bases rest in two sockets j fixed to a support fitted on
a knife edge which is adjustable in height by means of the screw 7. Besides the
water supply tube F¹, the valve box communicates with a second tube F on which
fits a jet or spray shown in Figs. 7 and 8 which will be bereinafter referred to.
The second part of the automatic alarm consists of an apparatus for the
distribution of water in the collecting conduits, from which branch out the tubes F¹
of the release apparatuses already described. This distributor is composed of a

page_text: box containing a valve f normally closing the water supply g' in direct com-
munication with any reservoir. The collector conduit opens into this valve box
at g².
At the base of the box g is fitted a loose axis e about which can oscillate a
counterweight d' carrying on its extension, a pin d; this counterweight carries
furthermore, on its back face and near the axis è a pin against which rests another
piu e fixed in the axis, and a pin / designed to carry with it the pin e' in the fall
of the counterweight, and to consequently rotate the loose axis e.
On the loose axis e there is a point stop on which rests a pointer a (Fig. 6)
jointed at to the rod of the valve f.
S..
The counterweight d' is held in its position armed with the pin d which rests on
another pint fixed in an oscillating lever t¹ with counterweight T₁; this lever
carries at its other extremity a cup T which contains a small quantity of suitable
liquid.
At a proper height, and against the support which carries the various parts of
this apparatus is held a tube forming two bulbs cand c¹ and the base of the instrument
dips into the liquid in the cup T and contains this same liquid up to the base of
the upper bulb c (Fig. 4). The air tube K passes through this column of liquid
and projects above the liquid in the upper bulb.
The action of the apparatus is as follows:-
In the event of a fire occurring the temperature of the atmosphere exceeds the
degree to which the tubes E and i are adjusted, and these latter burst and allow
the valve fitted in the box F to fall and at the same time they allow the counter-
weight A to describe an arc of a circle sufficient to cause the knife lever to break
the closed end of the air tube K.
The air penetrating into this tube enters the bulb c of the distributing
apparatus and only then permits the liquid contained in the tube to flow into the
cup T.
The cup T when sufficiently full overbalances the counterweight T¹ and
disengages the pin d of the counterweight d¹ which by means of the pin h turns the
loose axis e.
In its rotating movement the axis e has made the pointer a escape from its rest
point and has consequently disengaged the valve f which descends under the con-
stant action of the water under pressure which then passes into the conduit g² to
reach the release apparatuses branching from the collector conduit and from thence
into the system of tubes F2.
As above mentioned jets are adapted to these tubes and they may be of any
shape but are preferably arranged as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.
This jet forms by the combination of the two central jets, a jet of extinguishing
liquid of 6 to 10 metres according to position, and by the rose spray, fills the inner
surface of the jet above mentioned. This jet is composed of a tube k the base of
which is conical and for ns the discharge v; inside the conical part is made a
diaphragm deadening the force of pressure of the liquid.
At a distance of several millimetres, and exactly opposite, is arranged a discharge v₁
slightly larger than the first; the tube differs from the preceding one by the
adaptation with a hermetic joint, of a rose spray 1.
The two tubings are connected by two flat tubes / suitably curved.
Bells or horns, put into action by the fall of the cup which may be arranged to
make an electric contact, may be attached, or any other suitable alarm may be
used.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed declare that what I
claim is
1. In an automatic thermo-pneumatic fire alarm comprising a double action
release apparatus, allowing the fall of the valve and breaking the end of an air
tube, by the rupture of the thermometrical tubes substantially as described.

page_text: 2. In an automatic thermo-pneumatic fire alarm, a cup distributing apparatus
urning over under the weight of a liquid flowing from a receptacle, when the
air tube has been broken in the apparatus claimed under 1 substantially as
.described.
3. In an automatic thermo-pneumatic fire alarm, a circumferential double jet
spray, adapted to the release apparatuses substantially as described.
4. In an automatic thermo-pneumatic fire alarm, a bell or other form of alarm
started by the fall of the cup substantially as described.
5. The arrangement and construction of automatic thermo-pneumatic fire alarms
substantially as described and illustrated in the annexed drawings.
Dated this 25th day of July 1895.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.