WASTE PREVENTING VALVES
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Oct., 1886.
Complete Left, 29th June, 1887.
Complete Accepted, 13th Sept., 1887.
1, JOHN EARSDON, Engineer of 5 Grafton Mews Prince of Wales Road Kentish
Town in the County of Middlesex do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for
WASTE PREVENTING VALVES to be as follows:-
The object of present improvements is to obtain a certain shuting off action in valves
which are required to automatically close themselves after a given quantity of fluid has
been delivered.
This valve consists of a cylinder into which the inlet pipe opens and at the end of
the cylinder there is formed another cylinder of larger capacity in the same axial line
each cylinder has a piston fitted on one piston rod common to both, on the end of the
piston rod there is fitted a plug which opens or closes a nozzle formed in the end of
the cylinder, or in some cases the piston rod may be supplied with two plugs which
will close the nozzl at end of the stroke either way.
Outside the cylinder there is a valve provided with a key to be moved by hand,
which said valve is provided with parts so formed as to admit fluid under pressure to
the larger piston or to release the same.
By means of the above described arrangement when the valve is turned by hand for
the purpose of allowing a supply of fluid to run out, the pressure on the large
piston forces the plug slowly towards the nozzle and keeps it closed untill the
key is turned back and the exhaust at the large cylinder is opened, when the
pressure on the small piston forces the plug back ready to repeat the operation.
Dated this 13th day of October 1886.

page_text: Improvements in Waste-preventing Valves.
I JOHN EARSDON, Engineer, of No. 5 Grafton Mews, Prince of Wales Road,
Kentish Town, in the County of Middlesex, 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 :-
The object of my invention is to obtain a certain shutting-off action in valves
which are required to automatically close themselves after a given quantity of water
has been delivered.
This valve consists of a cylinder into which the inlet pipe opens and at the end of
the cylinder there is formed another cylinder of larger capacity in the same axial line;
each cylinder has a piston fixed on one piston rod common to both, and at the end
of the piston rod there is fitted a plug which opens or closes a nozzle formed in the
end of the cylinder and which will close the nozzle at the end of the stroke either
way. Outside the cylinder or body of the valve there is a lever provided with
a key or handle to be worked by hand, which said valve is provided with parts
so arranged as to admit water under pressure to the large piston or to release the
same.
I will now proceed to particularly describe my invention by the aid of drawings,
and the best means with which I am acquainted for carrying the same into effect. In
Sheet Fig. 1 is shewn a sectional elevation of my valve suitable for fixing under the
seat of a water closet. The water enters at A and flows round the space B. C is a
plug the upper part of which fits freely in the small cylinder and is provided with a
cup leather and a washer of india rubber at the lower part to close the seating;
between the cup leather and india rubber washer there is a block of metal sufficiently
heavy to cause the plug to fall by its own gravity. D is the piston rod to which are
fixed the two pistons E and F, and the lower end of D is bored up to allow the spindle
of the plug to work freely within it. J is a passage formed in the side of the
cylinder and forms a communication between the space B and H the space between
the two pistons E and F. At S there is a small passage drilled across J into the
space G and provided with a regulating screw L which screw is smaller in diameter
than J so as not to stop the passage. Above the screw L there is another regulating
screw M. which must be large enough in diameter to completely close the passage J.
N is a ball valve which will close, and O and P are ball valves which will open on the
upstroke of the piston.
The action is as follows:- -On pulling up the lever a vacuum is formed in the space G
and space H, the plug will be forced up by atmospheric pressure and will allow the
water to flow out through the seating, the ball P will be lifted and fill the space H,
while the water in the space I will be expelled through valve O and down the passage R
into the supply pipe; the plug C will then gradually descend by gravitation and the
time it takes to come down and close the seating will be regulated by the flow of
water allowed to enter the space G through the channel S controlled by the screw L.
On letting go the handle the weight on the end of the lever will then cause the piston

page_text: rod to descend, the valves O and P will close and a vacuum will be formed at the top
of the large piston in the space I, and as the displacement of the large piston is
greater than that of the small one, the plug C will again be forced up by atmospheric
pressure to meet the end of the piston rod D, and the water contained in the space G
will ascend into the passage K past the valve N into the space I, and as the piston rod
continues to come down it forces the plug C onto its seat and arrests the flow of
the water. Any partial vacuum that may remain in the space I after the piston rod
has come down and closed the seating will be destroyed by the water continuing to
flow in through the channel S and up the passage K into the space I, when the plug C
will then be firmly held onto its seat by means of the weight on the lever.
It will be obvious that, as the channel S is always open to allow a flow of water into
the space G and up through K into the space 1, if the piston rod D comes down too
slowly no vacuum will be formed in the space I, consequently the plug C will not lift;
and if it comes down too quickly, it will close the plug C before allowing a sufficient
quantity of water to flow out to trap the closet pan; therefore the descent of the
piston rod D must be regulated which is effected as follows:-on the downstroke the
water contained in space H can only escape through channel J by regulating
the screw M; the time taken to accomplish the descent is adjusted to suit the quantity
of after flush water required. It will also be obvious that other means may be used
for regulating the descent of the pistons.
I would here remark that I find by experience the areas of the pistons E and F
should be in the proportion of about three to one.
I will now proceed to describe another modification of my invention shewn in
Sheet 2 Figs. 1 and 2 in which similar letters denote similar parts. It will be observed
that in this case the piston rod D does not come down on to plug C sufficiently low to
close the seating but is arrested by the feet T coming in contact with the body of the
valve. The action of this arrangement is very similar to the last; but to make it
perfectly clear I will describe it in detail. On drawing up the piston D the vacuum
formed in space G allows the plug C to rise, the water in space I is forced back past
the cup leathers in piston E into the space H, and as there is a free passage between
space H and space B, any water out of space I which space H cannot contain will be
expelled down channel J back into the supply pipe the plug C will then gently
descend in consequence of the water admitted through S regulated by the screw L.
On letting go the lever which is sufficiently weighted to go down smartly, the
displacement in space I will allow atmospheric pressure to force up the plug which
will remain up until the vacuum in the top is destroyed by the flow of water up J,
and through S, and up K, past the ball valve N, into the top, when C will gently
descend and close the seating. Instead of allowing the water in the top to be forced
back past the cup leather, the piston may be fitted with a little valve to open on the
upstroke and to close itself on the downstroke.
It will be obvious that if the areas of the pistons E and F are in the proportions of
two to one, and if the screw L is adjusted to deliver say one gallon on the upstroke, it
will deliver about one gallon on the downstroke, provided the lever returns at a
sufficiently quick speed; and should the after flush be found too great for the capacity
of the pan, by setting in the screw M and throttling the channel K the water contained
in space G will not be able to ascend so rapidly into the top, when the rise of the plug C
will be retarded, and the after flush will be lessened.
It will also be o vious that by proportioning the pistons to the proportions which
the after flush is required to bear to the first flush, the screw M may be dispensed with
altogether.
I wish it to be distinctly understood that I do not bind myself to the precise
arrangement of detail here shewn, as in place of constructing the valve with pistons I
may use flexible diaphragins, or a combination of pistons and diaphragms; for instance,
in place of using the plug C I may use a diaphragm, or C and F might both be
diaphragms, and E a piston, and it will be easily seen that in the latter case the
piston need not necessarily be of greater diameter than the diaphragms because with
the same stroke the displacement of the piston would be greater than the diaphragms.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
In a waste preventing valve the differential pistons or their mechanical equivalent
substantially as and for the purpose described.
The combination of the differential pistons and the bottom valve.
In a waste preventing valve giving distinct flush and after flush, lifting the same
valve on the downstroke that lifts on the upstroke, substantially as set forth.
In a waste preventing valve giving distinct flush and after flush, keeping closed the
valve that gives the first flush and the valve that gives the after flush by means of the
weight on the lever.
The combination of the differential pistons and the bottom valve with the means of
regulating the speed of the descent of the pistons by confining the water in the space
between the pistons.