Improvements in or connected with Gas Burners of the kind known as Self Lighting Burners.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Sept., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 1st June, 1896-Accepted, 11th July, 1896
Improvements in or connected with Gas Burners of the kind
known as Self Lighting Burners.
I, HENRY ANDREW KENT, of The Limes Brownlow Road, Bowes Park, in the
County of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to
be as follows:-
This invention has for its object to provide an efficient and durable means in
connection with gas burners in which the gas is lighted without the use of matches
or the like. It is known that platinum-black or platinum in a fine state of division
when subjected to the action of illuminating or heating gas and air will become
heated to such a degree that by means of a platinum wire it will cause the gas
issuing from the burner to be ignited but hitherto considerable difficulties have
arisen in its practical application the principal being that the platinum being
subjected to the action of the flame of the main burner has soon been converted
into a carbide and is then unfitted for its purpose. It has been proposed to
overcome this difficulty by providing a bye-pass for the gas to be first ignited and
then to be diverted from the bye pass to the main supply to be ignited but this
necessitates the provision of special taps and extra pipes or passages and is
therefore expensive and difficult to apply to ordinary gas fittings whereas a
device according to this invention can be readily applied to ordinary gas fittings.
This invention consists in first causing a small supply of gas to pass in contact
with the platinum and to become ignited thereby the heat of the flame so produced
being caused to act upon a device which, under the influence of this heat, is caused
to effect the closing of the supply of gas to the platinum and to open the supply
of gas to the main burner the flame first kindled at the platinum after igniting
the gas issuing from the main burner being extinguished and the platinum thus
protected from the injurious effect of a continued subjection to the action of a
Aame.
:
The platinum-black and platinum wire are preferably enclosed in a tube or
chamber to prevent injury or displacement of the same.
The device which is acted upon by the heat of the flame of the small jet first
iguited may cousist of any arrangement which can be caused to alter its dimensions
or position under the influence of heat sufficiently to close the supply of gas to the
small jet first ignited and open the supply of gas to the main burner. The said
device preferably consists of a corrugated box or case which may contain air gas
or liquid the said box or case when it expands under the action of heat by acting
for instance on levers or the like closing the gas outlet to the flame ignited
by the platinum and opening the valve which admits the supply of gas to the
main burner.
The corrugated box or case may be contained in a container through which the
gas passes on its way from the gas supply pipe to the platinum igniter and to
the main burner and this container can have in it the orifices leading to the said
igniter and burner respectively. Inside this container levers may be so mounted

page_text: that when they are acted upon by the expansion of the corrugated box or case or
equivalent device, valves secured to them, or actuated by them, close the orifice
for gas to the igniter and open the orifice for gas to the main burner.
The gas may be admitted to the apparatus by a simple and ordinary gas cock
in the gas supply pipe.
Dated this 26th day of September 1895.
"
-Improvements in or 'connected with Gas Burners of the kind'
known as Self Lighting Burners.
I, HENRY ANDREW KENT, of The Limes, Brownlow Road, Bowes Park, in
the County of Middlesex, 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 :-
This invention has for its object to provide an efficient, and durable, means for
ignition in connection with gas burners in which the gas is lighted (without the
use of matches, or the like) by means of platinum-black, or platinum in a fiue
state of division, or iridium, rhodium, paladium or alloys thereof (in conjunction
with a wire or wires) which under the action of illuminating, or heating, gas anil
air, will become heated to such a degree that, by means of a platinum wire, it will
cause the gas issuing from the burner to be ignited. Hitherto considerabl
difficulties have arisen in the practical application of this mode of ignition th
principal difficulty being that igniting medium when subjected to the action of the
flame of the main burner, has soon been converted into a carbide, and is then unfitted
for its purpose. It has been proposed to overcome this difficulty by providing a bye-
pass for the gas to be first ignited, and then to be diverted from the bye-pass to the
main supply to be ignited, but this necessitates the provision of special taps, and
extra pipes, or passages, and is therefore expensive, and difficult to apply to
ordinary gas fittings, whereas a device according to this invention can be readily
applied to ordinary gas fittings.
This invention consists in first causing a small supply of gas to pass with air in
contact with the igniting material used, and to become ignited thereby, the heat
of the flame, so produced, being caused to act upon a device which, under the
influence of this heat, is caused to open the supply of gas to the main burner and
then to effect the closing of the supply of gas to the igniter, the flame first kindled
at the igniter after igniting the gas issuing from the main burner being therefore
extinguished, and the igniting material thus protected from the injurious effect of
a continued subjection to the action of a flame.
:
The platinum black and platinum wire or the like are preferably enclosed in a
tube, or chamber, to prevent injury, or displacement, of the same.
The device which is acted upon by the heat of the flame of the small jet first
ignited may consist of any arrangement which can be caused to alter its
dimensions, or position, under the influence of heat sufficiently to effect the
opening of the supply of gas to the main burner, and afterwards to effect the
closing of the supply of gas to the small jet first ignited.
The accompanying drawings illustrate arrangements according to my invention.
Figure 1 is a vertical section, and Figure 2 a plan of the chamber C with the
upper parts removed.

page_text: Figures 3 and 4 are a front elevation, and a vertical section, of the arrangement.
pplied to what is known as an incandescent gas burner and
Figure 5 is a vertical section of the arrangement applied to an Argand burner.
A is the main burner and B the igniting device. Cis a chamber into which the-
as is admitted, it passing from this chamber to the igniting device by the small
D is a corrugated box, or
erforation band to the main burner by the passage a
ase, which may contain air, gas, or liquid, the said box, or case, when it expands.
nder the action of heat, by acting, for instance, on the levers E and F, or the
ike, effecting the closing of the perforation for the passage of gas to the flame
gnited by the igniting material having previously effected the opening of the-
valve a which admits the supply of gas to the main burner through the
passage a.
The corrugated box or case D may be contained in the chamber C through
which chamber the gas passes as indicated by the arrow on its way from the gas
supply pipe, controlled by a tap as usual, to the igniter B and to the main.
burner A through the perforation 6 and passage a respectively. The levers E.
and F are secured at one end to the inside of the chamber C, so that when they
are acted upon by the expansion of the corrugated box or case D they cause the
valve secured to one of them to close the perforation 6 for gas to the igniter B.
after they have caused the valve a' controlling the passage a to be opened to allow
gas to pass to the main burner A, and thus the main supply of gas is ignited and
then the igniter flame is extinguished, the levers so operating that the gas is
When the
admitted by the passage a, before it is cut off from the perforation b.
supply of gas to the main burner is turned off the apparatus cools and the parts.
return to the positions ready to act to ignite the gas when it is again turned on
when the operations described are repeated. His a sheath which encloses the
platinum and wire or the like of the igniter to protect them from injury or
displacement. The arrangements shewn in Figures 3, 4 and 5 differ from that.
shewn in Figures 1 and 2 in the positions of the parts to adapt them for use with
the particular burners shown and the parts are marked with the same letters as.
In Figures 3 and 4
those used to indicate corresponding parts in Figures 1 and 2.
the position of the igniter B and chamber C near the mantle X of the incan--
descent gas burner necessitates the use of the pipes y and as shewn to conduct
the gas to and from the chamber C. In Figure 5 the chamber C is provided with
a compartment c at top communicating with the burner and separated from the
main body of the chamber by a diaphragm o in which is the passage a controlled
by the valve for admission of gas to the main burner A and the perforation b for
the passage of gas to the igniter the gas passing to the igniter by the pipe band
from which the small orifice & opens. The invention may be applied to gas.
burners generally for illuminating, or heating, purposes.
box
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 :-
1. In gas burners of the kind herein before mentioned, the combination of two.
gas passages, one leading to the main burner and the other to the igniter, and
valves, or devices, controlling the said passages, so that when the gas is turned on
it passes first to the igniter, and is ignited thereby, and afterwards the heating
effect of the flame operates to effect the opening of the gas supply to the main
burner, and the closing of the supply of gas to the igniter, substantially as
bereinbefore described.
2. In gas burners of the kind hereinbefore described a chamber through which.
the gas passes and passages leading therefrom respectively to the main burner and
to the igniter and a device which moves under the influence of heat and valves
operated by the said device to first open the passage to the main burner, and then.
close that to the igniter, substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated by
the accompanying drawings.

page_text: 3. The several arrangements and combinations of parts constituting self lighting
burners as herein before described and illustrated respectively in Figures 1 and 2,
3 and 4, and 5, of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 1st day of June 1896.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,.
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.