IM- PROVEMENTS IN HYDRAULIC AND OTHER ENGINES FOR CBTAINING MOTIVE POWER AND FOR PUMPING FLUIDS
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Ramsbottom, of Leeds and Bradford, in
the County of York, Hydraulic Engineer, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN HYDRAULIC AND OTHER ENGINES FOR CBTAINING MOTIVE
POWER AND FOR PUMPING FLUIDS."
Sealed the 22nd December 1871, and dated the 4th July 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said. John Ramsbottom at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 4th July 1871.
I, JOHN RAMSBOTTOM, of Leeds and Bradford, in the County of York,
Hydraulic Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN HYDRAULIC AND OTHER ENGINES FOR OBTAINING MOTIVE
POWER AND FOR PUMPING FLUIDS," to be as follows:-
--
This Invention relates to the construction of a triple ram engine,
chiefly intended as a water engine, but also available as a steam engine
and pump, and consists of triple cylinders with three rams working
therein through glands and attached to a triple crank at equidistant
centres to yield a continuous motion. The castings of the cylinders are

page_text: elongated beyond the travel of the rams, so as to admit of a hole being
bored in each at right angles to their length, and on the cylinders being
placed side by side with turned faces in contact there is passed through
their several orifices a long cylindrical valve divided into two com-
partments by a division plate or midfeather, communicating with the
inlet orifice, & the other with the exit orifice, the outer ends of this
valve being fixed or supported by the side framing of the engine. The
cylinder and rams oscillate on this valve, and through the act of
oscillation duly receive and discharge the fluid by which the engine is
worked as follows:-A slotted orifice is made at the bottom or end of
each cylinder extending into the bored part thereof, and previously
referred to, through which the fluid is supplied to and discharged from
each in succession, and on each side of that portion of the midfcather
in the valve, on which each of the cylinders oscillate, is also a corrc-
sponding orifice, so that there are six orifices in this valve, or two for
each cylinder, and as the cylinders oscillate by the motion of the crank
across this midfeather the hole in cach of the cylinders is successively
brought into connection with the feed and exit ways, leading to and
from the engine. The inlet and outlet pipes are connected with an
extended piece at the end of the engine framing.
The peculiar and great advantage obtained by this construction is
that the pressure of the fluid tends to maintain a water-tight simple and
durable valvular arrangement with copious port ways capable of ready
adaptation to any pressure, and the engine by yielding continuous
motion, together with its simplicity of construction, render it specially
applicable where skilful supervision is not at command.
$
The quantity of fluid used may be registered by any of the customary
modes of recording the number of revolutions made on the basis that a
given quantity is discharged per revolution.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, 30
filed by the said John Ramsbottom in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 1st January 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
RAMSBOTTOM, of Leeds and Bradford, in the County of York, Hydraulic
Engineer, send greeting.
35

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-onc, in the thirty-
fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said John Ramsbottom, Her special licence
that I, the said John Ramsbottom, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said John Ramsbottom, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter during the terin therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercisc, and vend,
within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN HYDRAULIC
AND OTHER ENGINES FOR OBTAINING MOTIVE POWER AND FOR PUMPING FLUIDS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Ramsbottom,
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
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 John Ramsbottom, 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 and accompanying Sheets of Drawings (that is to
say):
This Invention relates to the construction of a triple ram engine
chiefly intended as a water engine, but also available as a steam engine
and pump, and consists of triple cylinders with three rams working
therein through glands and attached to a triple crank at equidistant
> centres to yield a continuous motion. The castings of the cylinders.
are elongated beyond the travel of the rams, so as to admit of a hole
being bored in each at right angles to their length, and on the cylinders
being placed side by side with turned faces in contact there is passed
through their several orifices a long cylindrical valve divided into two
compartments by a division plate or midfeather communicating with
the inlet orifice and the other with the exit orifice. The outer ends of
this valve being fixed or supported by the side framing of the engine.
The cylinders and. rams oscillate on this valve, and through the act of

page_text: oscillation duly receive and discharge the fluid by which the engine is
worked as follows:-A slotted orifice is made at the bottom or end of cach
cylinder, extending to the bored part thereof and previously referred
to through which the fluid is supplied to and discharged from cach in
succession, and on each side of that portion of the midfeather in the
valve on which each of the cylinders oscillate is also a corresponding
orifice, so that there are six orifices in this valve or two for each cylinder,
and as the cylinders oscillate by the motion of the crank across this
midfeather, the hole in each of the cylinders is successively brought
into connection with the feed and exit ways leading to and from the
engine. The inlet and outlet pipes are connected with an extended
piece at the end of the engine framing. The peculiar and great advantage
obtained by this construction is, that the pressure of the fluid tends to
maintain a water-tight simple and durable valvular arrangement with
copious port ways capable of ready adaptation to any pressure, and the
engine by yielding continuous motion together with its simplicity of
construction render it specially applicable where skilful supervision is
not at command. The quantity of fluid used may be registered by any
of the customary modes of recording the number of revolutions made
on the basis that a given quantity is discharged per revolution.
Such being the nature and object of this my Invention I will now
proceed to describe the same in detail, and in order that the same may
be clearly understood I have hereunto annexed two Sheets of Drawings
and marked the same with figures and letters of reference.
Fig. 1 is a front clevation of an engine constructed according to this
my Invention. This general view shews engine either to give off
power when worked by water under pressure or to act as pump, only
in the latter case the pulley driven by strap sorves as a means of
actuating the crank and rams. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the
same. Fig. 3 is an end elevation, the dotted lines of which shew the
crank centres and the arc of oscillation of the cylinders. Fig. 4 is
section of a detached cylinder shewing are of oscillation thereof and
also cross section of valve with view of inlet and outlet ports a, b, and
divisional midfeather. Fig. 5 is a plan of the valve with its port ways
and shewing section of cylinders on line A, B, of Figure 1. A, A, is the
engine framing; B the crank shaft with its triple cranks B', B³, B³, at
equidistant centres; C, C, C, the cylinders supported by and working
or oscillating on the long cylindrical valve D; C', C, are the covers

page_text: of the cylinders, these as shewn also form the glands for tightening the
packing or cupped leathers as the case may be. This valve as shown
is supported or carried by the framing of the engine and is firmly
secured in a position parallel with the crank shaft B; E, E, E, are the
rams with caps F thercon; G and H are couplings for inlet and outlet
pipes His the indicating apparatus for measuring the amount of
water used, or flowing through the engine when performing duty either
as a meter only, or jointly as a meter and engine or pump. The worm I,
on the end of the crank shaft B, gives motion to the train of wheels
J, J, J, and counters as usually employed, and acting on the basis
that each revolution will discharge a similar quantity of fluid under
whatever variety of pressure or velocity of flow such discharge may
take place, so that if one gallon per revolution of the crank and worm
be displaced and the first wheel contains one hundred teeth, its counter
will indicate one hundred. gallons per revolution of such wheel. At
Figs. 6, 7, and 8, I have shewn the engine constructed so as to serve
the double object of steam engine and pumps combined, instead of
requiring to be driven by external means when employed for pumping
or forcing as referred to in description of Fig. 1. The middle cylinder
K is in this case supplied with a piston L, and works by pressure of
steam as a double acting engine or as receiving and exhausting its
steam above and beneath the piston alternately, and the ram or pump
cylinders M. are one on each side of the steam cylinder to which they
may be cast or attached as convenient, and of such proportionate size
as may be needed, the whole of the cylinders moving together on the
valve N which passes through the middle cylinder only. For this
purpose the valve is divided in such manner as to receive and supply
steam from one end thereof to the top and bottom of the steam
cylinder, and to transmit its exhaust steam to the feed passages leading
to the two rams or pump cylinders, in which passage it is condensed
in consequence of a communication or connection with this passage
and the water chamber P formed in the bed plate R. At Fig. 7 is
shown a plan partly in section of the valve and steam cylinder in which
the arrows shew the direction of the steam and water through the
valve as here modified, that is, the ports for the steam are less in size
than those for water and the valve midfeather is shewn as bent or curved
to disconnect the inlet steam from the water passage and to connect the
exhaust passage of steam with inlet passage to pump cylinders and
with the hollow bed plate R connected therewith. The motion and

page_text: action of the triple ram engine is as follows:-When the water is turned
on to the engine under pressure the fluid enters the inlet division of the
valve, and passing into the cylinders forces up the rams and cranks in
succession, and as there are three of such rams and cranks at equal parts
of the circle of revolution the rams that are being forced upwards
contribute in succession to force those which have passed over the top
of the circle of revolution or dead centre to descend and displace or
discharge their contents into the outlet portion of the valve, and thus the
motion is sustained. In the steam pump, however, the motion is
maintained by the use of a fly wheel, as in the latter case there is only
one piston and crank available to produce such motion.
Having thus fully described the nature and particulars of construction
and operation of this my Invention, together with the manner in which
the same is to be or may be performed or carried into practical effect,
I would have it distinctly understood that I claim the construction,
application, and use of the hydraulic and other engines for obtaining
motive power and for pumping fluids, as herein described and illustrated
in the accompanying Drawings or any mere modification thereof.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Ramsbottom, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of December,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
onc.
JOHN RAMSBOTTOM. (L.S.)
Witness,
WALTER BRIERLEY,
Tasker & Brierley,
Patent Agents,
Halifax & Bradford.