IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS FOR BURNING HEAVY OILS
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn
Fields, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS FOR BURNING HEAVY OILS."-A com-
munication from abroad by Robert Hitchcock, John Morton
Sigourney, and William Van Vranken Rosa, all of Watertown,
County of Jefferson, State of New York, United States of America.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition
and Declaration, on the 29th January 1873, pursuant to the 9th
Section of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for " IMPROVEMENTS
IN LAMPS FOR BURNING HEAVY OILS," and have petitioned Her Majesty
to grant unto me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Her

page_text: Royal Letters Patent for the same, and have made solemn Declaration
that the said Invention is communicated to me from abroad by Robert
Hitchcock, John Morton Sigourney, and William Van Vranken Rosa,
all of Watertown, County of Jefferson, State of New York, United
States of America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and
seal, fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings and to
the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :—
This Invention is directed to the burning of heavy oils in lamps in
such manner that a brilliant flame without smoke may be produced
without requiring the use of a chimney; to the accomplishment of this
object I have found the following instrumentalities requisite:- First,
passages or ducts through which air may be conducted both to the
exterior and interior of the flame; secondly, mechanism for impelling
currents of air through these passages to both the exterior and interior
of the flame; thirdly, a deflecting cap or cone placed over the wick
with an aperture for the passage of the flame and so shaped as to
direct the external impelled current of air to impinge upon the exterior
of the flame.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawing represents a vertical central
section of a lamp made in accordance with this Invention; and Figure 2
is a top view of the same with the cone removed.
The oil reservoir is shown at A of any suitable size and shape and
made preferably of metal, extending centrally up through it is the
central draught tube a, around which the wicking is placed; the top of
the tube is made oval in section, as shown in Figure 2, or approaching
the form of the ordinary flat wick tube; below its top the tube expands
or is made nearly cylindrical; to prevent refuse or charred wick from
falling upon and clogging the air impelling mechanism there is placed
below the bottom of the tube an ash box or shield provided with a
tubular tenon c fitting in the lower end of the tube a, both tube and
tenon being perforated to admit the passage of the impelled current up
through the central draught space; the lamp reservoir is fitted in a
socket or sleeve which forms a continuation of the case that contains the

page_text: fan d; this fan is driven by clockwork of any suitable kind, as shewn in
the Drawing, which is sorrounded by a base B, holes e, or other openings
being provided for the admission of air to the fan. The external air
current may be caused to pass to the flame either around the exterior of
or through the oil reservoir. The latter arrangement is shewn in
the Drawing.
On each side of the central tube a arc tubes or conduits f, which
extend up to or above the top of the oil reservoir and also down through
the bottom of the same, through the conduits as well as through the
central tube; the impelled current of air from the fan is discharged upon
the flame; to direct the external currents to properly impinge upon the
flame a deflector or conc g is employed having an oblong flame sloth,
and resting directly upon and in contact with the top of the reservoir, as
shown in Figure 1, so that all of its heat may be conducted through the
walls of the reservoir to the oil within.
To still further heat the oil and also to hold the wick in place, an
exterior tube or jacket k is placed around the tube a; this exterior
heating and supporting tube is removable, so that it may be taken out at
any time, and to it may be attached the wick raising wheels usually
employed, so that all these parts may whenever it is required to remove
the wick or to clean the lamp be lifted out together from the lamp. The
jacket is slit or perforated to admit oil through it to the wick. For the
purpose of quickly heating a sufficient portion of the oil to enable
the lamp to burn well until the main body of the oil has been raised to
the proper temperature, there is formed on the top of the reservoir and
in the immediate neighbourhood of the highly heated metallic portions
of the lamp an auriliary reservoir C which communicates with the
main reservoir.
When the lamp is lighted the small quantity of oil contained in the
reservoir becomes almost instantly heated and affords the necessary
supply of heated oil to the wick until the main body of the oil in the
reservoir below has been raised to the proper heat. In order to
render this reservoir available the lamp must be filled each time it
is used.
The exterior of the lamp reservoir may be surrounded if desired by a
suitable jacket or sheath of any material, and the lamp may have any
configuration desired. The clockwork is wound up by means of a key
as is usual in this class of lamps.

page_text: At Figures 3 and 4 of the Drawing there is represented a lamp
containing certain modifications and changes in the means for heating
the oil and supplying the air to the exterior of the flame, and also con-
taining a desirable arrangement of a wick raising mechanism; Figure 3
is a perspective view of the said lamp; Figure 4 is a vertical central 5
section of the saine.
Figure 5 is a side view and Figure 6 is a plan of a portion of the wick
raising devices herein-after referred to.
In this lamp the auxilliary reservoir shewn in the lamp in Figures 1
and 2 is dispensed with, and in licu thereof rods or wires are employed 1
arranged within the compass of the body of the lamp and designed to
carry off the heat from the deflector, outer shell of the lamp, and such
other parts of the lamp as are in the immediate vicinity of the flame, and
to conduct it into the body of the oil in the reservoir.
A number of rods one of which is shewn at a are secured in the top 1
of the oil reservoir or vessel A around the wick jacket B, and being
bent so as to be in contact or in close proximity with the jacket extend
along it down to or nearly to the bottom of the reservoir. Other
heaters shewn at are attached to the exterior jacket C at points
closely adjoining the base of the cone or deflector D which rests upon
the top of said jacket, these heaters extend through the inner oil shell A
and down into the body of the oil contained in the same, they absorb
and take up the heat received from the cone or deflector and transmit it
to the interior of the oil reservoir; the jacket C is so arranged that there
is a space on all sides between it and the oil tank which takes the
place of the exterior air tubes in the lamp shewn in Figures 1 and 2,
and serves as a passage for the impelled current of air to the exterior of
the flamic.
The wick raising mechanism is arranged and constructed as follows:-
c is a screw rod extending through the top of the lamp and supported
in bearings in an upright position alongside the wick jacket, which has a
slot formed in it throughout its length at the point where the screw
adjoins it; through this slot passes the neck of a coupling sleeve & which
is screw-threaded internally and fits on the screw rod c, the coupling
sleeve is jointed to a thimble which fits around and is capable of
sliding up and down on the inner wick tube E, the lower end of the
tubular wick is drawn over the upper part of the thimble e and is there

page_text: secured by a band or by thread wound around it; the wick is thus
attached to and caused to follow the movement of the thimble e which
can be made to rise or descend on the wick tube E by revolving the
shaft; the upper end of the rod projects up through a sleeve or bearing
in the top of the oil tank and is revolved by means of gearing, it is held
down by a pivoted button (see Figure 6) which can be turned so as
to bring it over the top of the rod, if it be desired to draw out the rod for
the purpose of either removing the old wick or putting in a new one,
the button can be turned away from the top of the screw shaft which
with the parts connected with it can then be lifted out. The devices for
rotating the screw shaft consist of a pinion g on the projecting end of
the rod which meshes with a pinion on the end of a rod i held in a
sleeve j which passes through the oil tank; the outer end of the rod i
which projects beyond the jacket C is provided with a milled head or
button by which it may be rotated in either direction at pleasure.
Below the central wick or draft tube E is placed an ash box or shield
F which is combined with an annular lower ash box G designed to
receive any
sediment or refuse matter that may chance to pass down
through the outer air passage between the oil tank and the jacket C,
and also to catch any drippings from the central shield F; the upper
box is provided with a curved and bent over flange k overhanging the
lower ash box and so formed as to deliver into the latter box any
drippings which might otherwise run down upon the blower; the outer
shell C is made detachable from the base of the lamp at a point most
convenient to permit the ash boxes to be emptied. Above the feed
gears and closing the top of the lamp around the wick in a perforated
plate or strainer, preferably made, removable, which catches and
retains all such pieces of charred wick or burned matches as would clog
the exterior air passage.
The space for the clockwork and fan is shown at p.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to
be novel and original and therefore claim as the Invention is,―
First. A lamp for burning heavy oils in which the wick tube or
holder and oil reservoir are combined with conduits or passages for
conducting air to both the exterior and interior of the flame, mechanism

page_text: for forcibly impelling air through said passages, and a deflector or cone,
substantially as set forth.
Secondly. The use of the auxiliary reservoir hercin shown, substantially
as and for the purpose set forth.
Thirdly. The arrangement of the ash boxes or shields between the air
impelling mechanism and the oil reservoir and air passages in or around
the same, as set forth.
Fourthly. The heat conducting rods extending into the oil reservoir
apart from the exterior jacket and apart from the top of the said
reservoir, substantially as set forth.
Fifthly. The wick raising mechanism arranged and operated substan-
tially as shown and set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to
this my Complete Specification set my hand and scal, the
Twenty-ninth day of January, Ono thousand cight hundred and
seventy-three.