Improvements in Steam-motors for Pumps.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Apr., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 28th Jan., 1891-Accepted. 28th Apr., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam-motors for Pumps.
1, WILLIAM WILSON HORN, of the firm of Horn & Son, of 151 Ştrand,
London, in the County of London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention, (a communication to me from abroad by Henry O. Beatty; of
Sacramento, County of Sacramento, State of California, U.S.A. Inventor) to be
as follows:-
My invention relates to that class of steam-actuating motors or engines exemplified
by Letters Patent, No. 19352, dated December 2nd 1889; and my invention
consists in the hereinafter described improvements in the construction of that
motor.
The object of these improvements is to simplify the construction of the motor.
As in my former Patent No. 19352, Dec. 2nd 1889 I employ a bed-plate, upon
which is mounted and bolted firmly a steam-chest, from the centre of which rises
the vertical main cylinder, the lower end of which is in open communication with
the central portion of the steam-chest. Within the cylinder is the piston, the rod
of which extends downwardly through the steam-chest and through the bed-plate
in a suitable stuffing-box, and has its lower end connected with the plunger-rod of
the pump.
The steam-chest is a three compartment one, comprising the central compart-
ment, the steam-inlet compartment, and the steam-exit compartment. The inlet-
compartiment communicates with the central compartment by an inlet-port, and
said central compartment communicates with the exit-compartment through an
opening.
A steam inlet pipe for admitting the steam to the inlet compartments is provided
and an exit-port through which the steam is exhausted from the exhaust-compart-
ment is also provided. In the top of the cylinder is an air-relief port.
Vertical tubular valve rods are provided which extend downwardly in suitable
stuffing boxes one through the inlet compartment of the steam-chest and the other
through the exit compartment of said steam-chest. Secured to the side of the
valve-rod which passes through the inlet-compartment is a valve for controlling the
inlet-port, and secured to the side of the valve-rod which passes down through
the exit-compartment is a valve, which controls the exit-port from said compart-
ment.
Within the tubular valve-rods are fitted collars, the stems of which pass down
through the tubular valve-rods and are connected at their lower ends with a cross
head of the pump plunger-rod.
Within the lower ends of the tubular valve-rods are mounted spiral springs which
encircle the stems. The lower ends of these spiral springs rest on caps screwed on
the lower ends of the valve-rods, said caps being perforated to permit the free
passage of the stems.
As far as heretofore explained, the mechanism is precisely the same as that
described in my Patent heretofore mentioned. In that Patent I showed supple-
mentary cylinders on each side of the top of the main cylinder, and communicating
by ports with said cylinder, and within these supplementary cylinders were pistons,
the rods of which were connected with and were adapted to operate the tubular
valve-rods, so that the rod on one side should close the inlet-port, while the rod on
the other side should open the exit-port.
In my present improvement I dispense wholly with the supplementary cylinders
and their pistons. Instead of this I carry up the tubular valve-rods on each side
to and immediately under a top stop-bar which corresponds with the bottom stop-

page_text: bar against which the lower ends of the valve-rods are adapted to come in contact
to limit their stroke. Within the upper ends of the valve-rods I scat springs,
corresponding to the springs in their lower ends, and I run up the stems of the
collars through said springs and through the upper ends of the valve-rods and
through the upper stop-bar so that said stems play freely up and down.
Dated this 26th day of April 1890.
HORN & SON,
Applicant's Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam-motors for Pumps.
I, WILLIAM WILSON HORN, of the firm of Horn & Son, of 151 Strand,
London, Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion, (a communication to me from Henry O. Beatty, of Sacramento, County of
Sacramento, State of California, United States of America, Inventor,) and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to that class of steam-actuating motors or engines exemplified
by Letters Patent dated December 2nd 1889, No. 19352; and my invention
consists in the hereinafter-described improvements in the construction of that
motor.
The object of these improvements is to simplify the construction of the motor.
Referring to the accompanying drawings for a more complete explanation of my
invention, the figure is a vertical section of my steam-motor.
A. is a bed-plate, upon which is mounted and bolted firmly a steam-chest B,
from the centre of which rises the vertical main cylinder C, the lower end of
which is in open communication with the central portion of the steam-chest.
Within the cylinder C is the piston D, the rod d of which extends downwardly
through the steam-chest and through the bed-plate in a suitable stuffing-box, and
has its lower end connected with the plunger-rod E of the pump.
The steam-chest B is a three-compartment one, the central compartment being
designated by b, the steam-inlet compartment by, and the steam-exit compartment
by 2. The inlet-compartment communicates with the central compartment by an
inlet-port F, and said central compartment communicates with the exit-compart-
ment through an opening G.
His the steam-inlet pipe for admitting the steam to the compartiment, and I is
an exit-port through which the steam is exhausted from the exhaust-compart-
ment b². In the top of the cylinder C, is an air-relief port c.
L are vertical tubular valve-rods, which extend downwardly in suitable stuffing-
boxes one through the inlet-compartment of the steam-chest and the other
through the exit-compartment of said steam-chest. Secured to the side of
the valve-rod L which passes through the inlet-compartment is a valve for con-
trolling the inlet-port F, and secured to the side of the valve-rod L which passes
down through the exit-compartment 2 is a valve i which controls the exit-port I
from said compartment.
Within the tubular valve rods L are fitted collars M, the stems m of which pass
down through the tubular valve-rods and are connected at their lower ends with a
cross-head of the pump plunger-rod E.
Within the lower ends of the tubular valve-rods L are mounted spiral springs N,
which encircle the stems m. The lower ends of these spiral springs rest on caps 1,
screwed on the lower ends of the valve-rods, said caps being perforated to permit
the free passage of the stems m.
As far as heretofore explained, the mechanism is precisely the same as that
described in my Patent heretofore mentioned. In that Patent I showed supple-
mentary cylinders on each side of the top of the main cylinder, and communicating

page_text: by ports with said cylinder, and within these supplementary cylinders were pistons
the rods of which were connected with and were adapted to operate the tubular
valve-rods L, so that the rod on one side should close the inlet-port, while the rod
on the other side should open the exit-port.
In my present improvement I dispense wholly with the supplementary cylinders
and their pistons. Instead of this I carry up the tubular valve-rods L on cach side
to and immediately under a top stop-bar Q', which corresponds with the bottom
stop-bar Q, against which the lower ends of the valve-rods are adapted to come in
contact to limit their stroke. Within the upper ends of the valve-rods L, I seat
springs N, corresponding to the springs N in their lower ends, and I run up the
stems m of the collars M through said springs and through the upper ends of the
valve-rods and through the upper stop-bar Q, so that said stems play freely up and
down.
The operation of the improved motor is as follows:-Steam is admitted through
the pipe H into the inlet-compartment & of the steam-chest, and thence passing
through the open port F into the central compartiment of said chest passes
upwardly into the main cylinder C and under the piston D therein. The piston is
thereby raised on its upward stroke, thus lifting the pump-plunger, the cross-head e
of which also lifts the stems m in the tubular valve-rods L. When the piston D
reaches nearly to the limit of the upward stroke the collars M in the tubular valve-
rods L come in contact with the springs N' in the upper ends of the valve-rods, and
thereby raise said rods to the top stop-bar Q', which operation has the effect of
closing the inlet-port F by means of the valve f and opening the exit-port I by
means of the valve i. The steam immediately exhausts through the port I from
the main cylinder, and the weight of all the parts of the pump-plunger and its rod
and the column of water causes the downward movement of the piston D, and also
the downward movement of the collars, M in the tubular valve-rods. When the
bottom of the stroke has been nearly reached, the collars M come in contact with
the top of the springs N and force the valve-rods down on the lower stop-bar Q,
thereby again opening port F and closing port I.
It is obvious that though the collars M might come in direct contact with the ends of
the valve-rods L, thereby effecting their vertical movement without the interposition
of the springs, said springs serve the more complete purpose of allowing the piston D
and the stems m to continue to the limits of their stroke without jar or danger of
breakage, as would be the tendency if these parts were suddenly arrested by the
positive limit to the movement of the valve-rods.
In this kind of motor it is impossible to accurately regulate the incoming steam
so as to arrest the motion of the piston at precisely the same point, and therefore it
is best to provide for a variation in the limits of the stems m without affecting the
limits of the valve-rods L, which have a stated movement, while the stems pass on
up or down, being cushioned by the springs N and N¹.
L
As the collars M are small, I prefer to regulate their contact with the springs
by the interposition of flanged washers n, fitted around the stems m and bearing on
the ends of the springs, and against these washers the collars come in contact.
As it would be inconvenient to have large valve-rods passing through the steam-
chest, I prefer to make their centre portions small and their ends enlarged, so as to
receive springs of the proper size.
The advantages gained by dispensing with the supplementary cylinders and their
pistons, which formed a feature of my Patent above referred to, and substituting
therefor the springs N', may be briefly stated as follows: economy in the manu-
facture: less necessity for nicety of workmanship, it requiring less skill to properly
adjust springs N than to get the supplementary cylinders and piston-rods into
proper alignment; avoiding the difficulty in keeping them in alignment; avoiding the
difficulty due to the condensing of the steam when first turned into the supplementary
cylinders, which results in their failure to operate the valves, and thereby requiring
the valves to be worked by hand to let the main piston down; the supplementary
cylinders being liable to fail in operating the valves, either on account of being cold

page_text: or for want of true alignment, the steam carries the main piston above the air-
relief port c, and if the pressure be greater than necessary to run the motor at
proper speed the impetus will carry the main piston into contact with the cylinder
head or cap and work injury. On the contrary, the spiral springs N' never fail to
properly operate the valves. The steam escapes at port I before the main piston
passes air-relief port c, and from the moment the lower valve is opened the upward
momentum of the piston is checked by gravity by the spiral springs and by the
compressed air between the piston and cylinder-head. With these checks
found by experience with the use of springs N¹ that the main piston never strikes
the cylinder head.
have
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
In a steam-motor for pumps, the combination of a main cylinder, a piston mounted
therein and having its rod connected with the pump-plunger, a steam-inlet port and
a steam-exit port at the lower end of the cylinder and communicating therewith,
vertically movable tubular valve-rods passing down through the steam-chest, fixed
stop-bars above and below said rods for limiting their movement, valves carried by
the rods for controlling the inlet and exit ports of the steam-chest, movable stems
passing completely through the tubular valve-rods and connected at their lower
ends with the pump-plunger, fixed collars upon the stems, and the springs N and N¹
within the lower and upper ends of the tubular valve-rods, with which the collars
of the movable stems come in contact to operate the valve-rods and their valves,
substantially as described.
Dated this 28th day of January 1891.
WILLIAM WILSON HORN.
By his Agents,
Horn & Son.