AN IMPROVED ENGINE FOR OBTAINING MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Harthan and Ezra Harthan, both of Timbers-
brook, neat Congleton in the County of Chester. Silkmen, for the
PROVISIONAL
CIFT
Harthan at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 26th January 1858.
We, JOHN HARTHAN and EZRA HARTHAN, both of Timbersbrook, near
Congleton, in the County of Ghester, Silkien, do hereby declare the nature
of our said Invention for "AN IMPROVED ENGINE FOR OBTAINING MOTIVE POWER,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a mode of obtaining niolive power by the aid of
a rotatory engine to be worked either by steam or air, whereby the expansive
The
and reactive force of the propelling medium is brought into play.
engine which we propose to employ consists of a wheel fitted at its periphery
with a uniber of peculiarly constructed mouths or passages, somewhat similar
to the buckets of an over-shot water-wheel. Each mouth is divided from its
neighbour by a thin metallic plate, which is curved and inclined a little towards
the centre of the wheel, being placed nearly parallel to each other. Each plate
extends slightly beyond the other, and the bottom or lower part of each space
is made curved or semicircular, the curve commencing immediately at the
opening of the mouth, and terminating in the same lateral line. A jet of
[Price 8d:]

page_text: steam or air is brought to play into their spaces, entering therein nearly at a
tangent to the periphery of the wheel. The steam or air on issuing from the
jet enters the spaces on one side, passes round the curve or semicircle, and
issues out on the other side of the space in an opposite direction, thus imparting
its force to the wheel by pressure and reaction, and causing it to revolve.
The size of jet is regulated by the size of the spaces round the wheel, and the
mouth of the jet is curved and bevelled to conform to the periphery of the
wheel. The velocity of the wheel should be so adjusted that it will never
exceed the half of the velocity of the jet of steam or air. The discharge
pipe is placed parallel to the jet, and extends over three or four of the spaces
for the purpose of carrying off the steam or air as it issues from the wheel;
the mouth of this pipe is curved to fit the periphery of the wheel. The speed
of the wheel may be brought down by the aid of gearing or pullies of any
kind. A cast-iron frame encloses the wheel, and is made concentric therewith
over three parts of its circumference, the remaining portion being left square
to afford space for the feed and discharge pipes. The spindle of the wheel
works through stufling boxes in the sides of the casing, and a small pipe is
fitted to the bottom of the latter to carry off condensed steam when steam is
employed. The spaces or passages in the wheel may be varied in their
position, for example, they may commence at the periphery and turn inwards
towards the centre, and may terminate at any intermediate point between the
circumference and the centre, but the discharge pipe must always be cor-
respondingly adjusted so as to receive the issuing steam or air. The jet may
also, if found desirable, be placed at an intermediate point between the centre
and the periphery of the wheel.
Engines of this description may be worked either vertically, horizontally, or
obliquely, and may be worked singly or in combination with others under the
ordinary atmospheric pressure or in vacuum, by enclosing each one in a separate
air-tight compartment, the jet from the first communicating to the second, and
thence to the third, and so on for any number of compartments.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Harthan and Ezra Harthan in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 26th July 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
HARTHAN and EZRA HARTHAN, both of Timbersbrook, near Congleton, in the
County of Chester, Silkmen, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of January. in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight. in the twenty-first year of
Her reign, did, for Herself. Her heirs and successors. give and grant unto
115..
the said John Harthan and Ezra Harthan. Her special license that we.
the said John Harthan and Ezra Harthan. our executors, administrators.
and assigns, or such others as we. the said John Harthan and Ezra
Harthan, our executors, administrators, or 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 "AN IMPROVED ENGINE
FOR OBTAINING. MOTIVE POWER," upon the condition (amongst others) that we.
the said John Harthan and Ezra Harthan by an instrument in writing
under our 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 John Harthan and Ezra Harthan
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed. to he particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement. reference being had in the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:-
Our said Invention relates to a system or mode of obtaining motive power
by the aid of a rotatory engine of a peculiar construction, which may he
worked either by steam or compressed air. whereby the direct pressure in
conjunction with the reactive force of the propelling medium is made
available.
The engine which we propose to employ consists essentially of a plate
wheel made as light as possible consistent with the power to be exerted by
the engine, and fitted or formed at or near its periphery with a number of
peculiarly constructed projections forming chambers somewhat similar to the
buckets of an overshot water wheel. Each chamber is divided from its
neighbour by a thin metallic plate, which is curved and inclined a little
towards the centre of the wheel, such plates being placed nearly parallel to
each other. Each plate slightly overlaps the other, and the bottom or lower
[part of each chamber is made of a curved or nearly semicircular form, the
curve commencing immediately at one side of the mouth, and terminating in

page_text: the same lateral line, so as to extend from side to side of the chamber or in
the direction of the axis of the wheel. Care should be taken to balance the
wheel accurately on its axis. A jet or jets of steam or air is or are brought
to play into these spaces or chambers entering therein nearly at a tangent to-
the periphery of the wheel or the jet or jets may be so directed as to enter
the chambers at the sides, but in a direction nearly tangential to the circle of
chambers. The chambers in this latter case are closed at their circumference
and open only at their sides. The steam or air on issuing from the jet enters
the spaces or chambers on one side, impinges against and passes over surfaces
of the curved bottoms thereof, and issues out on the other side. of the spaces
nearly in an opposite direction to that at which it entered, thus imparting its
force to the wheel by pressure and reaction, and causing it to revolve. The
power of these engines is regulated by the size of the jet pipe, and the size of
the chambers is regulated by that of the jet. The mouth of the jet pipe is
curved and bevelled to conform to the periphery of the wheel, when the
openings of the chambers are made in the periphery. The velocity of the
wheel should be so adjusted that the chambers will never attain the half of
the velocity of the jet or jets of steam or air, and a discharge pipe should
be so placed that its mouth may be at the opposite side of the chambers, and
the mouth of this discharge pipe should extend over three or four of the
spaces or chambers for the purpose of more readily carrying off the steam or
air after impinging on the interior of the chambers. The mouth of the dis-
charge pipe may be curved and expanded to fit the periphery or the side of
the wheel according to the arrangement of the chambers. The speed of the
wheel may be brought down by the aid of gearing or friction pullies of any
suitable description. An iron frame or casing incloses the wheel, and is made
concentric therewith over the whole or a portion of its circumference, and the
supply and discharge pipes are made to pass through this casing. The spindle
of the wheel may work through stuffing boxes in the sides of the casing of
the wheel, and a small pipe or cock should be fitted to the bottom of such
casing to carry off condensed steam where steam is employed. The spaces or
chambers in the periphery of the wheel may be varied in their position, as,
for example, they may commence at the periphery, and turn inwards towards
the centre, and may terminate at any intermediate point between the cir-
cumference and the centre, but the discharge pipe must always be corre-
spondingly adjusted so as to receive the issuing steam or air. The jet pipe
may also, if found desirable, be placed at an intermediate point between the
centre and the periphery of the wheel, but in all cases the bottoms of the
chambers are curved from side to side. Engines of this description may be

page_text: worked either vertically, horizontally, or obliquely, and may be worked singly
or in combination with others under the ordinary atmospheric pressure or in
vacio, by enclosing each wheel or engine in a separate air-tight casing. in
which casing the steam or air may be made to pass by means of a suitable
pipe from one wheel to the next. According to this arrangement the area of
each succeeding jet must increase as the density of the fluid diminishes.
And in order that our said Invention may be fully understood, we shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose we
shall refer to the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts throughout all the
Figures.
Figure 1 of the annexed Sheet of Drawings represents a transverse vertical
section of one modification of our improved engine taken along the line 1-2.
in Figure 2 and Figure 2 is a corresponding side elevation of the same.
partly in section: Figures 3 and 4 represent other modifications which we
shall herein-after fully describe and refer to. A. A. are two cast-iron
standards. which may be bolted or not to a bed plate B: these standards
serve to carry the several parts of the engine and gearing connected therewith.
The engine itself consists of a plate wheel, or disc C mounted upon a shaft D.
which works in ordinary plummer blocks E. E. on the main standards A.
The periphery of this wheel is fitted or formed with series of spaces or
chambers c. shewn in dotted lines. and partly in section in Figure 1. These
chambers in this arrangement present somewhat the appearance of the
buckets of an ordinary overshot water wheel, but in place of the bottoms of
the chambers being fat, they are curved from one side of the chamber to the
other in the direction of the axis of the wheel, as shewn at c. c. in Figures 3
and 4. The propelling medium, which may be either a jet of jets of steam
or air. is brought to bear successively upon the several chambers of the
wheel by means of the jet pipe F. This pipe is inserted into the casing G
(surrounding the wheel C and supported by the plates G'), and is extended
inside the casing for the purpose of bringing the jet orifice into close proximity
to the mouths of the chambers c'in the periphery of the wheel, but without
actually touching them; this jet pipe is placed near one side or edge of the
periphery of the wheel, the opposite side or edge having an exhaust or escape
pipe H placed in close proximity thereto, as will be clearly understood on
referring to Figure 2 of our Drawings.
"L
The steam or air may be supplied from any suitable generator or reservoir,
with which the jet pipe F should be in direct communication, and this pipe
should be fitted with the ordinary stop valve and throttle valve or regulator

page_text: used for steam engines, whereby the engine may be readily stopped, started.
and controlled in its movements, any convenient governor being used for that
purpose. The jet of steam or air impinges when the stop valve is opened on
the curved bottom of one or more of the chambers c, and imparts a rotatory
motion to the wheel C, thereby bringing the next chamber under the influ-
ence of the jet, and so on throughout the entire series. The wheel will con-
sequently continue to rotate so long as the jet is in action. When the steam
or air has struck one side of the bottom of the chamber, the curve will divert
it in the direction of the discharge pipe H placed at the other side of the series
of chambers. The mouth of this discharge pipe is expanded, so as to embrace
four or more of the chambers, and should be placed as nearly as possible in
the direction in which the steam or air issues from the chambers, the more
readily to allow of the free escape thereof from such chambers. By this
arrangement we turn to account not only the first pressure of the jet, but also
the reactive force which it exerts on its leaving the chambers. If found
desirable, the engine may he worked with low-pressure steam in a vacuum, in
which case the shaft D may work through stuffing boxes I. T. fitted into the
casing G. as shown in the Drawing. The stuffing boxes and their glands
should be made in two halves, to admit their. being readily fitted on to the
shaft. A small discharge cock K should also be fitted into the bottom of the
casing, for the purpose of drawing off any condensed steam which may collect
therein. The speed of the engine may be brought down by proper gearing.
and for this purpose we propose to key a small spur wheel or pinion L on to
each extremity of the engine shaft. which wheels or pinions severally gear into
the large spur wheels M fast on the second motion shaft N. This shaft is
carried in bearings O, O, in the lower or other convenient portion of the main
standards, and may be continued or extended on either side of the engine, as
shewn in the Drawings, for the purpose of driving any machinery required.
Figure 3 represents a front elevation and partial section of another modifi-
cation of the wheel C detached: Figure 4 is a detail side elevation of a
portion of the wheel: and Figure 5 is a corresponding section of the same.
taken along the axis of the wheel. According to this arrangement the cham-
bers c. c. in place of being open at the periphery of the wheel. are open at the
sides. The bottoms of the chambers are. however. still made of a curved
form, but as they are open at the sides only the jet pipe F must be so disposed
as to direct the jet laterally into the chambers, and as nearly as possible in a
direction tangential to the motion of the wheel. In this modification the
month of the jet should be so constructed' as to be rather less than the width
of the openings of the chambers taken in the direction of the radius of the

page_text: A
wheel. It is obvious that the action and reaction of the jet in this second
modification will be identical with that of the first described arrangement.
projecting rim f on the side of the wheel next to the jet pipe serves to direct
into the chambers any steam which may escape from the jet pipe along the
side of the wheel.
Figure 6 represents a detail of a third modification, wherein we propose to
employ 'two wheels C, C', each precisely similar to the wheel in the last-described
arrangement, both of such wheels being fast on one shaft D. A space is left
between the contiguous faces of these wheels for the reception of four or more
returning chambers d, d, the bottoms of which are curved in a direction opposite
to that of the bottoms of the chambers c, c, in the wheels. These chambers in
other respects are precisely similar to those in the wheels, and are fitted to a rim
which is bolted or otherwise secured to the interior of the casing G. The jet
and discharge pipes are disposed in a similar manner to those in Figure 3,
namely, at the sides of the wheels, the jet pipe F being at the side of one wheel,
and the discharge pipe H on the opposite side of the second wheel.
The jet on being first introduced impinges against the curved bottoms of the
chambers in the wheel C', and is thence diverted against the fixed chambers
d, d, whence it is again diverted on to the curved bottoms of the chambers in
the second wheel' C, and finally passes off by the escape pipe H in the manner
previously described.
Care should be taken in working the engine that the speed of the wheel or
wheels in the various modifications which we have described be so adjusted or
regulated by the governor that the velocity of the revolving chambers shall
never attain the half of the velocity of the actuating jet, as by this mode of
working the engine the greatest economy of fuel will be obtained. We prefer
to so regulate the velocity of the chambers that it shall be about one-third
to four-tenths of that of the steam or air as it issues from the jet pipe. The
form of jet pipe which we prefer to use is a pipe, the mouth of which is con-
tracted from the greatest to the smallest diameter by an inward curve, as
shewn in our Drawings.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of our suid
Invention, and in what manuer the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, we may observe that we are aware that rotatory engines consisting of
wheels having a number of projections formed or fitted upon their peripheries,
and actuated by the impingement of steam or air against such peripheral pro-
jections or chambers, have long been known in this country, and therefore we
lay no claim to the principle of such arrangement; we may also observe that
we do not confine or restrict ourselves to the precise details or arrangements

page_text: which we have had occasion to describe or refer to, as variations may be
made therefrom without deviating from the principles or main features of our
said Invention; but what we consider to be novel and original, and therefore
claim as the Invention secured to us by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is,-
Firstly, the system or mode of obtaining motive power by causing steam or
air to impinge. upon a series of chambers with curved bottoms arranged round
a wheel, at or near the periphery thereof, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the general constructions and arrangements of machinery or
apparatus for obtaining motive power, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Harthan and Ezra Harthan, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Second day of July, One thou-
sand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
JOHN HARTHAN. (L.S.)
EZRA HARTHAN. (L.s.)