Improvements in Valves and Valve Gearing of Steam or Air Engines.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Nov., 1886
Complete Left, 30th Sept., 1887
Complete Accepted, 1st Nov., 1887
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Valves and Valve Gearing of Steam or Air
Engines.
I JOHN WILLIAM HARTLEY Engineer of California Engineering Works Fenton
Stoke upon Trent Staffordshire do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
At each end of the cylinder of a Steam Engine I employ a hollow circular Slide
Valve with central spindle passing thro packed gland to the outside and having an
exhaust port and steam opening therein of the usual kind. These valves are arranged
with their axes crosswise of the bore of the cylinder and I rock them by levers keyed
upon the central spindles in the manner of valves of ordinary Corliss type. I couple
the ends of the rocking levers of these two valves by rod on the outside so that they
move simultaneously and connect this rod to an eccentric rod driven by eccentric or
crank from main shaft. These valves admit and exhaust the steam in the same way
as an ordinary slide valve. I effect a rapid and variable cut off by a gridiron cut off
valve upon the back of each circular valve and curved on the under side to fit
periphery of said valve. These valves rest on backs of circular valves but are
prevented from rocking with them by suitable guides or by cranks which fit into
apertures in said gridiron valves; said circular valves have on opposite sides of
peripheries to steam and exhaust ports corresponding gridiron valve ports to those
of cut off valves. I key said cranks upon each end of a rocking shaft the axis of
which I place at right angles to axis of valves and I pass said rocking shaft thro
packed glands into steam chests at each end of cylinder. I key upon said rocking
shaft a lever which I will call a trip lever, this trip lever when vibrated rocks the
shaft and by means of said cranks opens or closes the cut off valves, the outer end of
this trip lever rests upon a cam which I key firmly upon a rocking shaft. This shaft
is driven from the Fly Shaft by means of bevel wheels or in other convenient manner.
I revolve this shaft which I will call the cam shaft in this instance so as to make two
complete revolutions, whilst the Fly Shaft makes one complete revolution. This cam
already named which I will call my revolving cam raises the trip lever at each
revolution of the cam shaft to a certain defined distance and opens the cut off ports

page_text: to the full extent just before the crank reaches the dead centre at each end of the
pistons stroke. In order to ensure the cut off valve remaining fully open until the
period at which it is desired to cut off steam I use a vibrating pillar or prop having a
projecting lip which engages with a suitable projection attached to the trip lever and
which maintains the trip lever in a perfectly stationary position holding wide open
the ports of the gridiron valve for the admission of steam to one or other end of the
cylinder. Alongside the revolving cam just described I revolve another cam which I
will call my trip cam, this cam revolves with the shaft and is so arranged that at one
portion of its revolution it is brought into contact with the vibrating pillar and by
moving the pillar slightly disengages the trip lever which instantly falls being no
longer held in position by the vibrating pillar and imparts a twist to the valve spindle
thus instantaneously cutting off the steam as desired. I ensure the falling of the trip
lever by the attachment of either a spring or dead weight with piston closing into a
dash-pot of ordinary construction. In order to render the period of cut off
automatically variable so as to cut off steam at any desired point of the stroke,
impart a twist motion to the trip cam on its shaft whereby I cause it to revolve upon
its shaft about one complete revolution altho the said shaft may be at the time
stationary. Thus when the cam shaft revolves I can disengage the vibrating pillar at
an earlier or later stage according to the relative position of the trip cam and so cut
off the steam at any point of the pistons stroke from the commencement until the
revolving cam again lifts the trip lever towards the end of the stroke. I regulate
the position of the trip cam by means of a helical groove or slot in a bar which I
slide longitudinally along the central axis of the cam shaft a feather projecting from
the trip cam engages in said slot, said grooved bar being moved to and fro by the
action of the governor or other suitable regulator. By this trip gear I operate valves
of other descriptions than those herein described and obtain a fully open port in a
cut off valve even when steam is cut off at the earliest possible point of the stroke.
revolve my trip cam in some cases at same speed as the fly shaft and I then use a
double armed trip cam instead of a single armed cam as in example given in the latter
case I need only revolve it about one half a revolution on the trip cam shaft for
regulating the cut off at any desired point of the stroke.
Dated this 29th day of November 1886.
I

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Valves and Valve Gearing of Steam or
Air Engines.
I JOHN WILLIAM HARTLEY Engineer of California Engineering Works, Fenton,
Stoke on Trent Staffordshire, 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 :-
Referring to accompanying drawings Figs. 1 and 2 are elevations and Fig. 3 is
plan showing one application of my invention. At each end of the Cylinder of a
Steam Engine 1 employ a hollow circular slide valve A with central spindle B
passing through packed gland to the outside and having an exhaust port Cand steam
opening therein of the usual kind. These valves are arranged with their axes
crosswise of the bore of the cylinder and I rock them by levers keyed upon the
central spindles B in the manner of valves of ordinary Corliss type. I couple the
ends of the rocking levers of these two valves by rod on the outside so that they are
rocked simultaneously, and I connect this rod to an eccentric rod driven by eccentric
or crank from Fly Shaft in the usual manner. These valves admit and exhaust the
steam in a manner similar to that of an ordinary slide valve. I effect a rapid and
variable cut off by means of gridiron cut off valves Done upon the back of each
circular valve. I curve these valves on the under side to fit periphery of said
valves A. These valves rest on the backs of circular valves A, but are prevented
from rocking with them by suitable guides or by the cranks E which fit into suitable
recesses in said gridiron valves D. Circular Valves A have on opposite sides of
peripheries to steam and exhaust ports corresponding gridiron valve ports to those in
cut off valves. I actuate valves D so as to give a rapid cut off to the admission of
steam in the following manner. I key cranks E upon each end of a rocking shaft F.
the axis of which I place at right angles to axis of circular valves A and I pass
rocking shaft F thro packed glands in steam chests at each end of cylinder. I key
upon said rocking shaft F a lever L. This lever when vibrated rocks the shaft F and
by means of said cranks E moves the valves D and opens or closes gridiron openings
in valves A by sliding said valves D either backwards or forwards in the direction of
axes of said valves A. 1 connect the end of lever L to my trip lever G by a
connecting rod L². I lift trip lever G by means of a cam H which I key upon
shaft K. Shaft K is driven by suitable gearing from the Fly Shaft and makes two
revolutions in the direction of the arrow, to one of the Fly Shaft and is so arranged
that when the engine crank is on its dead centre at either end of the stroke the
cam has raised the trip lever G to its highest position and by means of the
connecting rod L2, shaft F and levers E has opened to the full extent the cut off
ports D as shewn in Fig. 2. In order to ensure the cut off valve remaining fully
open until the period at which it is desired to cut off steam I use a vibrating pillar or
prop J having a projecting lip M shewn in detail in Fig. 5. This lip M engages

page_text: under a suitable projection N attached to the lever G. The Pillar J maintains the
trip lever G in a perfectly stationary position holding wide open the ports of the
gridiron valve for the admission of steam to one or other end of the cylinder.
Alongside the revolving cam shaft K I revolve at half speed of shaft K a trip cam
shaft K, upon this shaft I place a trip cam O, and upon this cam O, I fix tappets O²
and 03 and these tappets as the cam O revolves I so arrange as to strike and move
slightly the vibrating Pillar J as the shaft K2 revolves. This slight movement of the
Pillar J disengages the trip lever G which instantly falls being no longer held in
position by the vibrating pillar and thus imparts a twist to the rocking spindle or
shaft F, closes the gridiron valve ports and thus instantaneously cuts off the steam
on the back of valves A as desired. I ensure the falling of the trip lever by the
attachment of either a spring or dead weight with piston into a dashpot of ordinary
construction P. In order to render the period of cut off automatically variable so as
to cut off steam at any desired point of the stroke, I impart by means of the
governor a twist motion to the trip cam O on its shaft whereby I cause it to revolve
upon the shaft K2 about half one complete revolution altho the said shaft. K² may
be at the time stationary. Thus I advance or retire the cam O and the tappets 0³
and 03 in the direction of their revolution around the shaft K2 whereby I disengage
the pillar J and so release the trip lever G and cut off steam at an earlier or later
stage as desired until the revolving cam H again lifts the trip lever G towards the
end of the Engines stroke. I revolve the trip cam O. on its shaft K by means of a
helical groove or slot Q. Fig. 4. in a bar R. I revolve the Bar R by feather
projecting from shaft K2 into parallel groove R2 in Shaft R or in other convenient
manner. I slide bar or spindle R longitudinally along the central axis of the cam
shaft K. I employ feather attached to and projecting from the trip cam O which
engages in slot Q. I move said grooved bar R to and fro in the direction of the axis
of shaft K², by the action of the governor or other suitable regulator and advance or
retire the tappets as described. By this trip gear I operate valves of other descriptions
than those herein described. Figs. 6 and 7 are elevations and Fig. 8 plan shewing
my invention applied to a horizontal engine of the ordinary description with steam
chest upon side of cylinder. Where the same letters occur in these Figs. they apply
to the corresponding parts already described in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive. The cut off
valve D1 employ in this example is a flat gridiron valve upon the back of a slide
valve A². Slide Valve A2 has openings in the back corresponding with the openings
in gridiron valve D). I move this valve D by levers with rocking shaft as already
described. In this case however I employ two levers with ends projecting into the
one valve and keyed at outer end to Rock Shaft F2. This shaft vibrates in a suitable
carrier S on steam chest cover as shewn or in other convenient support and works
thro a stuffing box, and I key upon the outer end of shaft F2 the trip lever G². I
construct the rock shaft carrier in two parts joining it so that the rock shaft. F2 and
levers EE may be removed without disturbing the steam chest covers S³. In this
example I operate the valve D directly without the intervention of levers L as shewn
in Figs. 1 and 2. I operate the main slide valve A2 by eccentric or in other suitable
manner, and I cut off the steam on the back of the slide valve by the gridiron valve D
which I operate as follows-I revolve the shaft K in the direction of arrow making
two revolutions to one of the crank shaft. The cam H is keyed upon shaft in such
position that just before the period when the main crank is upon its dead centre at
either end of stroke it has lifted the lever G to its highest position and opened the
gridiron valve ports to their full extent; the lever G2 is retained in its raised position
by the vibrating pillar J engaging the lever G at N the release of the lever is effected
as already described. The vibrating pillar being disengaged by the tappets 02 and 03
as already described. The lever G falls by the action of the dash-pot and closes the
ports D2 in the main valve. Fig. 9. shews detail of grooved Bar R by which I
advance and retire the tappets as already described and is nearly identical with
Fig. 4. I may revolve my trip cam in some cases at same speed as the Fly Shaft
and I then use a double armed trip cam instead of a single armed cam H as in
example given. I may use the cut off arrangement herein described for Engines

page_text: using Air or other elastic fluid as a motive power. When I operate the Bar R by
means of the governor I have an automatic expansion gear capable of cutting off the
steam or air at any point from the commencement to about three fourths of the stroke.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of iny said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is
1st. A Vibrating pillar engaging a trip lever which controls a cut off valve and
disengaging said pillar by revolving adjustable cam and tappets substantially as
described.
2nd. A rock shaft and levers carried in fixing on steam chest cover of an ordinary
steam engine operating a gridiron valve substantially as described.
3rd. The improved valve gearing constructed, arranged and operating as described
in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the drawings.