Improvements in Gas or Oil Motor Engines.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Mar., 1889
Complete Specification Left. 15th Oct., 1889-Accepted, 23rd Nov., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Gas or Oil Motor Engines.
I, JOSEPH SOUTHALL, of the Firm of Hardy and Padmore, of Worcester Foundry,
in the County of Worcester, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My invention relates to the construction and mode of working gas or oil motor
engines in such a manner as to effect economy of the combustible by giving the gaseons
products of combustion a larger range of expansion than is usual in such engines.
For this purpose, I provide for the working cylinder a reservoir of considerably greater
capacity than the charge space of the cylinder. This reservoir communicates with the
cylinder by a valve worked by the engine so as to operate in the following manner.
When the piston makes its compressing instroke, the valve is for a time open, so that
a portion of the contents of the cylinder is forced into the reservoir raising the pressure
therein to a small extent. The valve being then closed, the piston during the rest of
its instroke compresses the portion of charge remaining in the cylinder. This being
fired causes the piston to make its working outstroke.
The piston, returning, expels most of the products of combustion by the exhaust
valve which is then open.
On the exhaust valve being closed and the reservoir valve being opened a portion of
the contents of the reservoir passes into the cylinder, and, as the piston makes its
charging out stroke, the remainder of the charge is drawn in through suitable valves,
opening either directly into the cylinder, or into the reservoir.
By opening the valve from the reservoir to the cylinder before the exhaust valve is
closed, residuary products of combustion can be expelled by the portion of fresh charge
entering the cylinder from the reservoir.
The cycle above described is then repeated. In the case of a twin engine, the
reservoir for supplying the one cylinder may be charged from the other cylinder.
In the case of an engine in which there are two double acting cylinders as described
in my Specifications No. 12424 of 1885, No. 15472 of 1886 and No. 7934 of 1888
giving four cylinder spaces, each of these spaces may be arranged to operate as the
reservoir for another of them.
Dated this 23rd day of March 1889.
"
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Gas or Oil Motor Engines.
I, JOSEPH SOUTHALL of the Firm of Hardy and Padmore of Worcester Foundry
in the County of Worcester, Engineer, 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:—
My invention relates to the construction and mode of working gas or oil motor
engines in such a manner as to effect economy of the combustible by giving the
gaseous products of combustion a larger range of expansion than is usual in such
engines. For this purpose, I provide for the working cylinder a reservoir of con-
siderably greater capacity than the charge space of the cylinder. This reservoir
communicates with the cylinder by a valve worked by the engine, so as to operate in
the following manner.
When the piston makes its compressing instroke, the valve is for a time open, so
that a portion of the contents of the cylinder is forced into the reservoir raising the

page_text: pressure therein to a small extent. The valve being then closed, the piston during the
rest of its instroke compresses the portion of charge remaining in the cylinder. This
being fired causes the piston to make its working, outstroke. The piston returning
expels most of the products of combustion by the exhaust valve which is then open.
On the exhaust valve being closed and the reservoir valve being opened a portion of
the contents of the reservoir passes into the cylinder and as the piston makes its
charging outstroke, the remainder of the charge is drawn in through suitable valves,
opening either directly into the cylinder or into the reservoir.
By opening the valve from the reservoir to the cylinder before the exhaust valve is
:closed, residuary products of combustion can be expelled by the portion of fresh charge
entering the cylinder from the reservoir.
The cycle above described is then repeated. In case of a twin engine, the reservoir
for supplying the one cylinder may be charged from the other cylinder.
In the case of an engine in which there are two double acting cylinders as
-described in my Specifications No. 12,424 of 1885 No. 15,472 of 1886 and No. 7934
of 1888 giving four cylinder spaces, each of those spaces may be arranged to operate
as the reservoir for another of them."
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a longitudinal section of the cylinder of a
single acting gas motor engine with reservoir beneath according to my invention.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line Z Z of Fig. 1. R is a reservoir such as is
above referred to, of capacity greater than the space occupied by the compressed
charge in the cylinder.
This reservoir communicates with the cylinder C by a passage B provided with
a valve V which is kept closed by a spring except when it is opened for a time
by the push of a lever L worked by a cam on the valve shaft of the engine. In
the reservoir R is situated the supply valve S which is closed by a spring on its
perforated seating. Air from without can enter by a passage A to the interior of
the valve box and gas regulated by a cock or valve G can enter the annular space
around the seating and pass by the perforations of the seating along with the air
into the reservoir R. When the piston P begins its compressing instroke, the
valve V is for a time held open so that a portion of the charge contained in the
cylinder is forced into the reservoir R increasing the pressure therein.
The valve V then being closed the piston during the rest of its instroke compresses
the charge in the cylinder which charge is then fired propelling the piston. During the
next instroke of the piston the exhaust valve (which is not shown) is held open
and most of the products of combustion are expelled from the cylinder. The
valve V being then opened a portion of the contents of the reservoir R, which
are at a pressure above that of the exhaust, pass into the cylinder C, and if the
opening of V be timed to occur a little before the closing of the exhaust valve,
the residuary products of combustion will be expelled. The exhaust valve being
then closed while the valve V remains open, the piston P in making its charging
outstroke draws from the reservoir R which is supplied with mixed air and gas
entering by the open valve S. The piston P having completed its charging out-
stroke the cycle of operation described is repeated. When the engine is double
-acting, the reservoir R may be arranged as shewn in the part longitudinal section 4
Fig. 3 as a passage extending along the side of the cylinder with a valve V
governing a passage to each end of the cylinder. In this case a single supply
valve S with its inlets A and G for air and gas respectively serves for charging
.both ends of the cylinder. For a twin engine having two cylinders C C arranged
.side by side, the reservoir R and valves
transverse section Fig. 4, in the space between the two cylinders the exhaust valves E
V may be arranged, as shewn in the 5
being arranged on the outer sides of the cylinders.
And in like manner, when the engine has two double acting cylinders giving four
spaces as described in the Specification above referred to, as shewn in the sectional
plan Fig. 5, the reservoir R may occupy the space between the two cylinders com- 5
municating with the ends of both cylinders by the valves V, and supplied by air and
gas inlets A and G at one end. In this case Fig. 4 as well as in Fig. 5, the two

page_text: countershafts T revolving at half the speed of the crankshaft have on them cams which
work the levers for the reservoir valves V as well as for the exhaust valves E.
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
In combination with the cylinder of a gas motor engine a reservoir communicating
with the cylinder through a valve worked by the engine, so as to receive at the
beginning of each compressing stroke a portion of the charge undergoing compression
and at or about the end of each discharging stroke to return it to the cylinder, sub-
stantially as and for the purposes set forth.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.