Improvements in Apparatus for Supplying Locomotive Tenders with Water.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 6th June, 1893-Accepted, 8th July, 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Supplying Locomotive Tenders
with Water.
I JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincoln's Inn Fields in the County of
Middlesex Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this invention (which has
been communicated to me from abroad by The Automatic Water Tank Company
a corporation organized under the laws of the State of New Jersey of Masonic
Temple Building No. 411 to 417 Market Street Camden New Jersey in the
United States of America) and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of this invention is to relieve the locomotive engineer of the duty of
attending to the steam supply pipe of a steam actuated water elevator which
receives its steam from the locomotive.
Heretofore in this class of elevators the steam pipe of the tank has been
connected directly with the locomotive a considerable distance away from the
water supply pipe or goose-neck which discharged into the tender of the locomotive,
consequently the engineer attended to the steam connection while the fireman
moved the water pipe or goose-neck of the water elevator in position over the
opening in the tender, thus very little time was left for the engineer to oil and
examine the engine.
This invention overcomes this difficulty, the engineer being relieved so that his
entire available time may be occupied in oiling and examining the parts inaccessible
while the locomotive is in motion.
Referring to the drawing :-
Figure 1 is a side view in dotted lines of sufficient of a locomotive and tender to
illustrate this invention.
Figure 2 is a rear view of the tender of a locomotive with the goose-neck of the
water elevator projecting over it, the steam pipe being uncoupled; and part of the
tender tank being broken away.
Figure 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of Figure 2 shewing the steam pipes
coupled;
Figure 4 is a view looking in the direction of the arrow Figure 3 the portion of
the tender tank shewn being in section and
Figure 5 is a view showing a steam vacuum tank, steam inlet pipe and water
inlets and outlets.
The locomotive and tender shewn in the accompanying drawing is of the
American type but it will be understood that the invention can also be applied to
other types of locomotives and tenders.
A is the locomotive, B the tender having the usual water tank B' coupled to the
boiler of the locomotive.
Extending from the steam dome a of the locomotive, in the present instance, is a
steam supply pipe D which is connected to a steam supply pipe D' on the tender
by a flexible coupling d. The supply pipe D' extends to a point in close proximity
to the inlet opening or openings of the tender tank, as shewn more clearly in
Figures 1 and 4, and is provided with a suitable coupling e and valve d¹ which
regulates the flow of steam through the pipe.
In the pipe D preferably adjacent to the steam dome of the locomotive, is a
valved by which the steam supply may be cut off so that the long line of pipe to
the tender will not contain steam which would otherwise condense and form a water
block and would have to be blown out before the pipe could be coupled to the
steam pipe of the water elevator, but by the arrangement of the two valves the
fireman can first turn on the valve from the cab and then proceed to the tender and
direct the goose neck of the water elevator in position over the inlet of the tank

page_text: make the coupling and turn on the valve at the inlet so as to form steam
communication between the locomotive boiler and the water elevator.
As shewn in Figure 5 the water elevator is of the steam actuated type and is
placed either below the surface of the ground, as shewn, or above the ground and
has a discharge pipe H connected by a flexible coupling h to the goose-neck H',
the nozzle of which can be directed over the inlet opening of the tender tank, as
shewn in the drawings. This discharge pipe H is connected in the present instance,
to the base of the vacuum tank E.
F is a water inlet pipe to the tank and I is a steam inlet pipe to the tank
extending from the goose-neck, to the upper portion of the tank. This pipe in the
present instance has an upright section I connected by a flexible coupling i
(Figure 2) to a section which is attached to a flexible section ¹ to which is
attached the counterpart e¹ of the coupling e carried by the pipe D¹.
The flexible section i¹ is so arranged upon the goose-neck that it can be readily
connected to the coupling at either side of the goose-neck as shewn in Figure 3.
By mounting the steam supply pipe on the goose-neck it will always be in position
to be coupled to the pipe D' of the tender as soon as the locomotive is stopped.
It will be understood that any of the ordinary forms of flexible tubing may be
used, either leather, rubber or sectional metallic tubing and it will be understood
that while I have shewn a steam vacuum water elevator using steam supplied by
the locomotive, a compressed air tank may be coupled in the same manner or gas
may be used and in fact an ordinary steam pump may be mounted over the well
and coupled by extending the steam supply pipes as described the object of the
invention being to relieve the engineer of the duty of attending the steam supply
pipe of a water elevator by placing the elevator in close promity to the water
discharge pipe, so that the fireman can attend readily to both the water supply and
the steam pipes.
The operation of the apparatus arranged according to this invention is as follows,
when coupled to a steam vacuum water tank.
The vacuum tank is charged with water the engine is stopped so that the opening
in the tender will be opposite the goose-neck the fireman turns the valve d² on the
locomotive then proceeds to the inlet opening of the tender tank adjusts the
goose-neck over the said opening, then couples the steam pipe D' to the steam
pipe I and turns the valve d; the steam will then pass through the pipe, I into the
upper portion of the vacuum tank E forcing the water out of the tank through the
discharge pipe H and goose neck H' into the tender tank.
As soon as the water is discharged from the vacuum tank E the steam is cut off,
the pipes uncoupled and the locomotive proceeds, the steam in the vacuum tank, in
the meantime, condensing, creates a partial vacuum in the tank and draws water
through the pipe F causing the tank to again fill with water ready to charge a
succeeding locomotive tender.
It will be understood that the steam supply pipe I may simply rest on the
goose-neck H and be jointed to the upright portion as in Figure 5, the object
being to allow the steam supply pipe to move with the goose-neck.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is.―
1. The combination of the fluid actuated water elevator, the water discharge pipe
extending from the elevator to the tender, a fluid supply pipe for the elevator
carried by the said water discharge pipe, with a fluid supply pipe on the tender
adjacent to the inlet opening thereof and adapted to be coupled to the fluid supply
pipe of the elevator, substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. The combination of the locomotive and tender, and a water inlet for the
tender tank, with a steam pipe extending from the steam space of the boiler to a
point adjacent to the water inlet of the tender tank, and a valve to regulate the
flow of steam through the said pipe substantially as hereinbefore described.

page_text: 3. The combination of the locomotive and tender, a water inlet for the tender
tank, a steam pipe on the locomotive extending from the steam space of the boiler,
a valve in the said steam pipe near the steam space of the boiler, a steam pipe on
the tender coupled to the steam pipe on the locomotive the said steam pipe
extending to a point adjacent to the water tank inlet, a valve at this point, and a
coupling at the end of the pipe substantially as hereinbefore described.
4. The combination of the fluid actuated water elevator, the water pipe extending
from the elevator to the tender with a fluid supply pipe for the elevator carried by
the said water pipe substantially as hereinbefore described.
5. The combination of the water elevator, the water pipe the goose-neck a steam
supply pipe carried by the said goose-neck and extending to the elevator, with a
tender, a water inlet opening, a steam supply pipe carried by the tender and having
a coupling adapted to a coupling carried by the elevator steam pipe, and a valve to
regulate the flow of steam through the pipes substantially as hereinbefore
described.
6. The combination of the goose-neck of a water elevator with a steam pipe
attached to or supported by the said goose-neck with a flexible section attached to
the said pipe and having a coupling adapted to couple with a counterpart on either
side of the goose-neck substantially as hereinbefore described
Dated this 6th day of June 1893.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, Agents.