IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTATORY ENGINES AND PUMPS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Austin and William Kerr Austin, both of
Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain, for the Invention
T
Daman and AND DIS"
Sealed the 18th December 1868, and dated the 22nd June 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Austin and
William Kerr Austin at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 22nd June 1868.
We, ROBERT AUSTIN and WILLIAM KERR AUSTIN, both of Glasgow, in
the County of Lanark, North Britain, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTATORY ENGINES AND PUMPS," to be
as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention relates to an improved rotatory engine to be actuated
by steam or other motive fluid, and which may be used as a pump. The
improved engine comprises a cylindrical drum fixed on a tubular shaft
having two or more equidistant wings or pistons fixed on it and working
concentrically in a cylindrical casing. There are twice as many stops
as pistons, and these are arranged to retire from contact with the drum
into recesses in the casing when the pistons have to pass them. The
steam or other motive fluid enters by one end of the tubular sliaft and

page_text: has access to the spaces in the casing by passages in the drum opening
immediately behind each piston, whilst openings in front of each piston
allow the exhaust fluid to pass off by the other end of the shaft. The
stops are actuated by means of rods passing out through stuffing boxes
and acted on by cams on the shaft, there being by preference a cam on
cach side acting on crossheads on the rods so as to avoid oblique strain.
The cam wheels may be toothed circumferentially and be used for giving
off the power of the engine to other gearing or for communicating the
driving power to the apparatus if used as a pump. With these arrange-
ments all the parts are balanced in all positions; a uniform pressure is
continuously maintained on the pistons, except when the steam is cut off
for expansive working, for which purpose a cut-off valve may be applied
in the steam passage. When the engine is required to be reversible
passages communicating by stuffing boxes with the opposite ends of the
tubular shaft are brought together to ports in a face covered by a sliding
or rotating valve, which valve is shifted for reversing the engine. The
pistons are packed by means of separate metallic pieces pressed outward
by means of wedge-shaped pieces acted on by springs or by the steam
pressure. Packing rings set in grooves in the casing are applied to the
ends of the drum and have gasket or other compressible material applied
behind them and pressed by means of an outer ring acted on by springs
and screws. It is preferred to have the end of the casing open within
these packing rings so that any leakage may be easily seen and rectified.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Robert Austin and William Kerr Austin in the 2
Great Seal Patent Office on the 21st December 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ROBERT
AUSTIN and WILLIAM KERR AUSTIN, both of Glasgow, in the County of
Lanark, North Britain, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her 3
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Robert Austin and William Kerr
Austin, Her special licence that we, the said Robert Austin and 3

page_text: William Kerr Austin, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said Robert Austin and William Kerr Austin,
our executors, administrators, 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
ROTATORY ENGINES AND PUMPS," upon the condition (amongst others) that
we, the said Robert Austin and William Kerr Austin, our executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, 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 we, the said Robert Austin and William
Kerr Austin, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement in
writing, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, that is to
say:-
Our said Invention relates to an improved rotatory engine to be
actuated by steam or other motive fluid, and which may be used as a
pump; and in order that our Invention and the manner of performing
the same may be properly understood we have hereunto appended a
Sheet of explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to and
representing a steam engine as constructed with our improvements.
Figure 1 is a vertical section through the axis of the engine; and
Figure 2 is a vertical section at right angles to the axis; Figure 3 is a
section through the axis as at an inclination of 45 degrees; and Figure 4
is a face view of one of two cam wheels 1 which actuate parts of the
engine.
Our improved engine comprises a hollow cylindrical drum 2 formed
or fixed on a tubular shaft 3, 4, and having two equidistant wings or
pistons 5, 6, fixed on it and working concentrically in a cylindrical
casing 7; there may be more than two pistons if preferred. There are
twice as many stops 8, 9, as pistons, or four in the modification
delineated, and these stops are arranged to retire from contact with
.

page_text: the drum 2 into recesses 10 in the casing when the pistons have to pass
them. The steam or motive fluid enters by one end 3 of the tubular
shaft and has access to the spaces between the drum 2 and casing 7 by
a passage or space 11 in the drum communicating by ports 13 opening
immediately behind each piston, whilst ports 14 in front of cach piston
allow the exhaust fluid to pass off by a space 12 in the drum and by the
other end 4 of the tubular shaft. The stops 8, 9, are actuated by means
of rods 15 passing out through stuffing boxes and fixed to external
crossheads 16, which have rods 17 fixed to their outer ends carrying
rollers, and are acted upon by the grooved cam wheels 1 fast on the
shaft 3, 4. Rubber washers or other suitable springs are introduced
between the rods 15 and the crossheads 16 to diminish concussion; and
in order to prevent the stops 8, 9, from striking the drum surface the
parts of that surface which are under them on their moving inwards are
slightly hollowed, as are also those parts which are under the stops on
their beginning to move outwards, this last provision equalising the
pressure on both sides of each stop just before it has to move. The cam
wheels 1 may be formed with drums 18, as shown, or they may be
toothed circumferentially and be used for giving off the power of the
engine to other gearing or for communicating the driving power to the
apparatus if used as a pump.
With the arrangements shown on the Drawing and herein-before
described all the parts are balanced in all positions; a uniform pressure
is continuously maintained on the pistons 8, 9, except when the steam
is cut off for expansive working, for which purpose a cut-off valve may
be applied in the steam passage. The pistons 8, 9, may be packed by
means of separate metallic pieces pressed outwards by means of wedge-
shaped pieces acted on by springs or by the steam pressure, as in plans
of rotatory engines proposed previously to the date of the herein-before
in part recited Letters Patent; or they may be made without packing,
as shown, but with their contact surfaces accurately fitted and of as
great extent as can be conveniently managed, with which arrangement
very little steam will pass the pistons, particularly if the engine is
allowed to run at a considerable speed, whilst the consequent diminution
of friction will to a great extent compensate for the slight leakage of
steam. We apply packing rings 19 to the ends of the drum 2, these
rings being set in grooves in the end covers 20 of the casing, and gasket
or other compressible material is applied behind them and is compressed

page_text: by means of an outer ring acted on by springs and screws. The end
covers 20 are formed with openings within the packing rings 19, so
that any leakage may be easily seen and rectified. When the engine
is required to be reversible pipes or passages communicating by stuffing
boxes with the opposite ends of the tubular shaft 3, 4, are brought
together to ports in a face covered by a sliding or rotating valve, which
valve is shifted for reversing the engine.
Having thus particularly described our said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, we have to state that
we do not restrict ourselves to the precise details herein described or
delineated, but that what we believe to be novel and original, and claim
as the Invention secured to us by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is, the constructing of rotatory engines or pumps with
two or more equidistant pistons on a revolving drum, with inlet and
outlet passages in the drum and shaft, and with twice as many stops as
pistons working in recesses in the casings, substantially as herein-before
described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Robert Austin and William Kerr
Austin, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Nineteenth
day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-eight.
5
Witness,
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
Glasgow.
(L.S.)
ROBERT AUSTIN.
WILLIAM K. AUSTIN. (L.S.)