A New or Improved Motive Power Engine.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Mar., 1892-Accepted, 2nd July, 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Motive Power Engine.
I, PIERRE LAMENA, of 15 Boulevard Saint Denis, Paris, in the Republic of
France, Notary, 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:-
This invention relates to a new or improved motive power engine wherein the
atmospheric pressure and compressed air are utilized as well as the clasticity of the
air or of any other suitable gas in order to produce, with the aid of hydraulic
pressure, a certain amount of motive power.
And in order that my invention may be more fully understood I have caused to
be appended hereunto one sheet of drawings representing a sectional elevation of
the chief component parts of my improved motive power engines.
This improved engine comprises four cylinders having suitable pistons arranged
two by two above one another and actuating the two unequal arms of a beam or
lever A. The pistons P & P of the two upper cylinders are always connected
with the two opposite extremities of the beam A by means of Watt's parallel
motion or by connecting rods sliding within suitable guides; the application of these
two different guiding methods is fully illustrated in the drawings."
As the left arm of the lever A descends the piston P compresses, under the
successive action of the three other pistons, the air or gas below which is contained
in the cylinder and whose elasticity is subsequently utilized for the purpose of
bringing back the other parts of the engine into their position and thus producing
motive power.
The piston P consists of a heavy solid body forming a double piston having
unequal surfaces and the diameter of the largest of which is double the length of
the other; below the annular space thus formed a vacuum is created on starting
and is maintained during the motion of the engine by means of a special small
pump which may likewise be used to keep up a vacuum, formed in a similar manner
above the two other pistons P¹ & P", the diameters of these pistons being equal to
the smallest part of the piston P as well as to that of the piston P when the latter
is intended to compress air.
The strokes of the pistons P & P are obviously equal one to the other those
of the pistons P & P are proportionate to the arms of the lever to which they
are connected, but the length of the cylinder of the piston P should be calculated
or rather fixed by experiments by means of a variable filling in such a manner that
when the said piston P has reached the bottom of its stroke the air should be
compressed at the required tension within the spaces left below.
The lower surfaces of the two pistons P & P rest upon the upper surfaces of the
water contained in a large tube or in a pan forming such a communication between
these two cylinders that when not operated upon, the piston P transmits its pressure
to the piston P₁ thus raising the latter.
The connection between the pistons P & P is effected by reason of the lower
extension of the rod of the former piston entering with its thickened extremity
into a sheath or casing arranged on the top of the piston P in such a manner that
the piston P may accomplish its descending stroke without acting upon the large
piston P, yet may not re-ascend when both have reached the end of their downward
stroke without taking the latter with it. The same result may be obtained by
means of a chain arranged to be slackened and stretched at the required time.
The descending rod of the piston P¹ slides freely within a sheath of the piston P¹,
but as soon as it issues from this sheath, the eccentric rod E¹ or any equivalent
device causes the pawl E to slide underneath, so as to rigidly connect the two

page_text: pistons during the ascending stroke, the pawl abutting at the end of this stroke
against a fixed stop piece in order to allow the piston rod P" to subsequently return
into the said sheath.
This improved motive power engine operates in the following manner: Assuming
that the two left hand side pistons have reached their uppermost position and that
hence the two right hand side pistons have reached their lowermost position, the
large piston P will be held in its uppermost position until the piston P has accom-
plished a determined part of its stroke by reason of the atmospheric pressure acting
under the piston P. Any suitable mechanism operated by the engine may be used
for this purpose such as a slide valve or a stopcock G preventing the water enclosed
in the cylinder from running out as shown in the drawings. The piston P on the
contrary which is free to ascend under the action of atmospheric pressure moves
accordingly upwards and cause the piston P to compress air in its cylinder until
these two pressures, counterbalance each other in a ratio depending upon the
relative proportion of the arms of the beam. This pressure may be calculated
according to Mariotte's law, abstraction being made for the time being of the heat
developed by the compression. The first part of the compression is thus concluded.
At this moment the rod of the piston P, which protrudes entirely out of its sheath,
is keyed by the pawl E upon the rod of the piston P, while at the same time the
engine disconnects the large piston P, by opening the stopcock G, whereupon this
large piston descends by gravity as well as under the action of the atmospheric
pressure, due to the vacuum formed below its annular part, and transmits through
the conduit B an equal pressure to the piston P" thus completing the compression
of the air enclosed in the cylinder P, this pressure being added to that of the
atmosphere acting under the piston P", and the two added pressures being
multiplied by the number or figure representing the relative proportion of the lever
arins. When the two pistons P & P have reached the end of their ascending
stroke they are disconnected, owing to the pawl E abutting against a stop piece or
through any other equivalent device, so that the piston P, the weight of which is
calculated accordingly, may return to its original position. The compression of the
air thus effected produces a certain amount of motive power while at the same time
it brings back the pistons P & P into their original position.
When the beam has returned to its original position, the stopcock G is closed in
any suitable manner by motion received from the engine when all the parts are in
their initial positions and as the same cycle of operations is constantly repeated a
continuous motion will be produced. Notice must now he taken of the heat
produced in the cylinder Pu during the compression of the air and of the cold due
to its expansion. I may, in order to prevent this heat from being lost by radiation,
surround the cylinder with an outer casing or lagging, which must be a bad
conductor of the heat, and place between this outer casing and the cylinder a
substance capable of absorbing all the heat produced during compression in order
to subsequently yield the same during the period of expansion. For the purpose
of taking into account an unavoidable loss of heat I may inject between the casing
and the cylinder a certain quantity of steam when the piston is about to ascend;
during compression on the contrary it would be advantageous to cool the air down
to even below its normal temperature on condition however of restoring all the heat
absorbed which could be effected by the steam jacket; the cooling being brought
about by forcing into the casing a small quantity of strongly compressed air
supplied by the engine, this air cooling as it expands.
All the fixed parts of the engine may be mounted on a suitable bed or foundation
plate.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim, is-
1st. The new or improved motive power engine, the characteristic features of

page_text: arranged two by two above one another, the pistons P P being connected by
rods or by a parallel motion to a beam or lever A having arms of different length,
the shortest of which causes the piston P to compress the air or gas in its
cylinder, whilst its rod slides in the casing or sheath of the large piston P which
rests upon the surface of the water contained in the tube B, substantially as herein
described and shown.
2nd. In the motive power engine specified in the preceding claim, the piston Pu
which, as it ascends in its cylinder under the action of atmospheric pressure, raises
the longest arm of the beam or lever A, whilst compressing the air under the
piston P until an equilibrium is produced; the rod of the piston P" sliding
within a sheath or casing formed with the piston P and keyed by a pawl E upon
the rod of the piston P", substantially as herein described and shown.
3rd. In motive power engines specified in the preceding claims, the rod E¹ fixed
to an eccentric mounted on the fly wheel shaft and the spring pawl E fixed to the
sheath of the piston P', serving to rigidly connect the two pistons P¹ & P
together during their ascending stroke, substantially as herein described and set
forth.
4th. In the motive power engine specified in the preceding claims, the rod fixed
to an eccentric and designed to open and close at a given time the slide valve or
stopcock G in order to allow the water expelled by the piston P to enter the
cylinder of the piston P', substantially as herein described and shown.
5th. In the motive power engine specified in the preceding claims, the arrange-
ment around the cylinder of the piston P of a casing allowing the heat generated
during the compression to be collected and surrendered during the period of
expansion added by an extra amount of heat for compensating unavoidable losses,
substantially as herein described and shoirn.
6th. The improved motive power engine arranged, constructed and operating
substantially as herein described and shown in the accompanying drawing and for
the purpose set forth.
Dated this 10th day of AL. 1900
F. BOSSHARDT & Co.,
4, Corporation Street, Manchester, Agents to Applicant.