Year: 1888

page_text: I, CHARLES JAMES Fox, of Hemingford Terrace, Birkenhead, in the County of
Chester, Master Mariner do hereby declare the nature of my said invention to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to those kinds of oil, or spirit lamps which are employed for
illuminating purposes and it is intended to be applicable to what are krown as table,
bracket, hand, pendant, lantern and other kinds of lamps.
A lamp-say for example an ordinary oil table lamp-with improvements according
to my Invention applied thereto would consist chiefly of three parts, namely (a) an oil
chamber, (b) a burner, or burner portion, and (c) a pedestal for supporting and holding
such oil chamber and burner. These three parts are preferably so constructed that
they can be connected together no one part being loose, or unattached; but two of
such parts may be connected directly together and the other loose if so desired. For
instance the burner portion and pedestal may be provided with means by which they
may be and are when in use connected together, the oil chamber being placed within
the pedestal and held by these two portions. In such a case the oil chamber is placed
within a socket formed on the pedestal and the burner portion is suitably attached to
the socket and hold the oil chamber in position.
One of the chief features of this Invention is the oil chamber. It is constructed in
such a manner that when full of oil such oil will not escape, or leak from either its
wick or air apertures whatever position it may be placed, or turned. This effect is
most advantageous under the conditions hereinafter specified. The construction by
which the above effects may be obtained are as follows: The wick is placed in a tube
within the chamber and its upper end is flush, or substantially so with the root of the
chamber and is held in this position, so that it will not readily shift (this wick operates
in connection with the burner as hereinafter explained). The meaus by which the oi
is prevented from leaking, or escaping from the air apertures when the lamp is placed,
or turned into any position consists of a valve which controls each of the air apertures,
such valves being operated by pendant weights, or floaters so arranged in connection

page_text: with the valves that whenever the oil chamber is placed, or lies in any other than its
proper, or normal position the valves will close such apertures. Or in lieu of valves
bent tubes may be used.
When a separate wick in the burner is used it may be of any suitable kind, such for
instance as earthenware, stone, glass, or a metallic, or equivalent wick and it is so
arranged that its lower end bears upon, or becomes inserted into the wick of the oil
chamber when the burner is secured to the pedestal, or the oil chamber as the case
may be
The burner of course is provided with a suitable means whereby the light of
the lamp may be controlled and adjusted.
One effect of the construction of lamp above described is that the oil chamber can be
carried about and conveyed by road, or rail when full without danger of the oil
escaping or leaking and provided it be made of suitable metal and shape, this
Invention would render it possible-that is by the safety specified afforded-to have
the oil chambers filled and sold, by shop, or store proprietors to the consumer as a
package, or article of merchandise and transmitted safely by rail, or road. And that
when the oil of a chamber is burnt the empty chamber could be returned to the store,
or shop for refilling. Hence instead of the consumer having to purchase oil for his
lamps in the usual way and fill his own lamp, he could buy and have one, or more of
his lamp oil chambers sent to the store, or shop, be refilled and sent back with perfect
safety.
The oil chambers are constructed of any desired shape and material, but preferably
of such that will enable them to be well and safely packed so as to render them well
fitted for withstanding the ordinary severities of railway and other carriage.
It must be understood that I do not confine my rights under this application for
Patent to the precise construction and arrangement of parts herein specified as such
parts may be constructed, combined and arranged in various ways and forms without
departing from the scope of this Invention.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or Connected with Oil or Spirit Lamps.
I, CHARLES JAMES Fox, of Hemingford Terrace, Birkenhead, in the County of
Chester, Master Mariner, do hereby declare the nature of my said 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 relates to those kinds of oil or spirit lamps which are employed for
illuminating purposes, and it is intended to be applicable to what are known as table,
bracket, hand, pendant, lantern and other kinds of lamps.
A lamp say for example an ordinary oil table lamp-with improvements according
to my invention applied thereto, would consist chiefly of three parts, namely, (a) an
oil chamber, (b) a burner, or burner portion, and (c) a pedestal for supporting and
holding such oil chamber and burner. These three parts are preferably so
constructed that they can be connected together, no one part being loose, or un-
attached; but two of such parts may be connected directly together with the other
loose if so desired. For instance the burner portion and pedestal may be provided
with means by which they may be, and are when in use, connected together, the oil
chamber being placed within the pedestal, and held by these two portions. In such a
case the oil-chamber is placed within a socket formed on the pedestal and the burner
portion is suitably attached to the socket, and the pedestal holds the oil chamber in
position.
One of the chief features of this invention, is the oil chamber. It is constructed in
such a manner that when full of oil, such oil will not escape or leak from either its wick
or air apertures, whatever position it may be placed or formed. This effect is most
advantageous under the conditions hereinafter specified. The construction by which
the above effects may be obtained are as follows:--The wick is placed in a tube within
the chamber and its upper end is flush, or substantially so with the tube holder,
and near the roof of the chamber, and it is held in this position, so that it will
not readily shift: this wick operates in connection with the burner as hereinafter
explained. The means by which the oil is prevented from leaking or escaping
from the air and charging apertures, when the lamp is placed or turned into any
position, consists of a stopper or cap screwing into the neck of the chamber, or
equivalently secured into or upon the wick aperture, so as to be flush or nearly so for
convenience in packing for carriage.
I may
however use a valve or valves in
conjunction with the cap or cover.
When a separate wick in the burner is used it may be of any suitable kind, such for
instance as asbestos, porous stone, metallic or equivalent known kind of wick, and it is
so arranged that its lower end bears upon or becomes connected with the wick of the
oil chamber, when the burner is so secured to the pedestal or the oil chamber, as the case
may be. The burner of course is provided with a suitable means whereby the light of
the lamp may be controlled and adjusted.
One effect of the construction of lamp above described is, that the oil chamber can
be carried about and conveyed by road or rail, when full, without danger of the oil

page_text: Air is supplied to the interior of the chamber A when in use through the small
aperture e.
The chamber A and parts connected with it, as illustrated in Figure 1, shows it in
the condition in which it exists when filled, stored, or ready for being stored, or
carried by rail or other means of conveyance, whether be full or empty; that is, the
condition shown, is that in which it would or should exist when not in actual use as
or with a lamp, but inerely as a receptacle for oil, adapted to be used as and for the
purposes herein described. In this condition the cap a¹ is firmly screwed into the
neck a², (especially after filling), the washer c in connection with it, and the wick tube
plate 6' forming an oil tight joint: the wick tubes when constructed as described, are
arranged to touch the bottom of the chamber and constitute a stay or strut so that the
flat surfaces or plates of the chamber are afforded a means of resistance against any
stresses to which they may be put.
In my Provisional Specification I mentioned the use of valves and weights, or
special forin of bent tubes for preventing the escapo of oil through the air apertures of
the lamp, when turned upside down, or otherwise than with its neck side uppermost.
These devices I have found unnecessary as the cap a and washer c are sufficient to
prevent the escape or leakage of oil in carriage, nevertheless if desired a valve may be
used to prevent the oil spilling through the air hole e. This valve is illustrated in
Figure 7, hereinafter described.
Figure 6 shows the chamber A with its stopper or cap al removed, and a burner
containing wicks of the "incombustible" kind heretofore referred to, placed in
position and ready for use. In this Figure, outside the chamber A is shown the
case F of a lamp, and into the roof of which the burner G (which is of the ordinary
type) is secured by an ordinary thread joint at g'; H are the "incombustible" wicks,
adapted to bear upon the wick tube ends, at their lower extremities, (or by means of
another piece of cotton or like wick), and supported by the sleeves h¹ of the burner G.
The wicks H are held in position by pins passed through them and the sleeves /';
and space for the circulation of air is provided between the wicks and the inner surface
of the sleeves. In the present instance this space is obtained by providing distance
pieces 3 between the wicks and the sleeves h¹."
In Figure 7 a round wick tube is shown applied to a receptacle A, the wick being
placed in the annular space between the outer and inner wick tubes B and B'. The
inner tube B¹ is stopped by a plate in which the air hole e is provided. Below this
air hole the valve p is placed. This valve consists of a dished disc as shown, mounted
on the pin pl. When the vessel A is canted the valve p slides from its central position
on the end of the pin p' towards the edge thereof, until it bears against the under
surface of the plate 6.
The lamp illustrated in Figure 8 consists, mainly, of a pedestal I, chamber A, case F
and burner G. The chamber A in this case rests in a saucer, forming the upper part
of the pedestal, and the case F slides over and rests upon the chamber A (as in
Figure 6).
In the lamp illustrated in Figure 9 the chamber A is placed within the case F,
formed upon, or forming a part of, the pedestal I, and the roof F¹ of the case,
containing the burner G, is hinged at f¹ to the body of the case, forming a horizontal
cover.
Figure 10 shows an arrangement of parts constituting a hand lamp. In this case
the chamber A is inserted in the case F by sliding it in through the doorway of the
door F2, between the bottom I and two projecting ledges ; and the cover F-to
which the burner G is attached as above described-rests upon the ledges; the
wicks H of the burner of course bearing upon the wick in the ends of the wick tubes,
as in Figure 7.
In the lamp shown in Figure 11, the chamber A is inserted into the case F at the
side, by the door F1, and the joint of the "indestructible" and soft wicks H and d, is
made by raising the chamber A up to the lower extremities of the wick H by means of
the springs K.
It will be obvious to those skilled in or connected with the manufacture or sale of

page_text: oil wick lamps, that the forms of lamps embodying my invention may be varied
indefinetly, and that they may be applied to various sorts of lamps including hand,
table, lanterns, or other house lamps, Railway and other carriage lamps.
The disconnected wick arrangement may also be applied to lamps arranged after the
manner of the ordinary pendant "gasaliers," having a plurality of burners. In this
instance the receptacle A might be placed in a case in the centre of the lamp below:
the wicks, in this case, might be led from the burner down a pipe or tube, and
connected with the wick of the chamber A. A drawing of such arrangement is given
in Figures 11 and 11 in which F is the case containing the oil reservoir, the burner
being placed at H. A soft wick located in the tubes H₁ conveys oil from the wick of
the chamber in the case F to the burner.
With reference to Figures 12, 13 and 14, the arrangement and construction of
chamber, and parts connected therewith, shown in these Figures, is such, that a
continuous instead of a disconnected wick is employed. For instance in Figure 12 the
wick tubes B, are made of telescopic form the inner set of tubes B¹ being arranged to
be raised out of the lower ones as illustrated. A burner such as G would of course be
used in connection with the wick in this case, as well as the others above described, or
those hereinafter described with reference to Figures 13 and 14.
In the modification shown in Figure 13 the wick tubes are telescopic, as in
Figure 12, but they are of cylindrical form; the inner tubes B¹ may in this case be
constructed so as to slide directly in and out of the lower or fixed tube B, as shown;
or they may be provided with male and female threads, so that the elevation or
depression of the inner one may be effected by turning it round. In these examples
the wick may be drawn up and adjusted through the wick tubes in any suitable
manner as burnt, and trimmed in the ordinary way.
In the example illustrated in Figure 14, the upper wick tubes H' are hinged over
the ends of the mouths of the tubes B, and are so arranged that they are capable of being
turned into a horizontal position, as shown, or turned to a vertical position as shown in
dotted lines. When in the horizontal position the cap a' can be screwed into the neck
of the chamber A for the purposes herein before stated, and as shown in the figure.
Figures 15 and 16 illustrate devices designed to control the size of flame of "in-
combustible wicks of the kind herein specified. That shown in Figure 15 consists
of duplex shutters K hinged at K¹. The two corresponding shutters of the two wicks
are connected together by racks I, which gear with a toothed wheel 1, controlled by a
milled head 2, which is mounted in the burner in the manner usually employed in
ordinary wick lamps. If the milled head be turned one way or the other, the
shutters K will be caused to recede from one another and so opened, or vice versa.
22
In the arrangement illustrated in Figure 16 the shutters K are hinged at K¹ to the
upper part of the wick sleeve ', and are connected to a second sleeve K³, which is
adapted to slide on the sleeve ', and is connected thereto by bars K². The tooth
wheels in this instance gear with the racks 1, mounted on the sliding sleeve K³. If
the sleeve K³ be caused to rise on the wick sleeve h', the shutters K will approach each
other, thereby diminishing the flame, or putting it out if brought completely together.
If, on the other hand, the sleeve K³ be lowered the shutters K recede from each
other.
In Figure 17 is shown a burner adapted to hold a considerable length of soft wick,
instead of the indestructible kind, the upper end of which may be adjusted as in an
ordinary lamp, by the ordinary form of adjusting wheel, whilst the other end is so
arranged as to make contact with the wicks in the ends of the tubes B, when the
chamber A is placed in position in the lamp. The upper or burner wick is contained
in an enlarged chamber h³ constituting a wick reservoir, and if the lower end of the
wick be secured in the lower end of its wick tube, and arranged in such a manner that
when placed in this position, in which it is used, it bears upon the upper ends of the
wicks d of the tubes B (as shown in the figure), and if a considerable length of such
wick be provided in said reservoir, it may be made to serve and give light for a
considerable period of time, without the necessity of renewing it, the portion burned
away being adjusted and trimmed as an ordinary wick

page_text: The chambers or vessels A may be made of any suitable form and material, and of
any suitable thickness. For instance they may be made of cylindrical form, and of
tin plate, block tin, brass or other metal such as is used in the construction of metal
lamps, but the thickness and strength must be such as will enable them to withstand
the uses or wear to which they may be put, or the stresses to which they will be
subjected.
It will be evident that this invention may be applied to lamps employing either flat,
round or other known forms of wicks,
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature, object and purposes
of my invention, and in what manner the same is to he performed, I would state in
conclusion, that although I have described certain special constructions and arrange-
ments of parts, involving my invention, I do not intend to limit my Patent to these
constructions forms or arrangements, nor do I confine or restrict it to the particular
kinds of materials herein specified, since various mere modifications of these may be
made and equivalents used without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention;
and I declare that what I claim in respect of the herein described invention is :-
1. A chamber or vessel constructed and adapted to serve or be used as a closed
receptacle for containing and storing oil for use in oil lamps, and also in or in
connection with such lamps as the oil reservoir thereof, substantially as herein set
forth.
2. A chamber capable of being used as an oil reservoir for a wick lamp, constructed
or adapted to serve or be used as a vessel or chamber for containing and storing oil for
use in such lamps, consisting of a closed vessel composed mainly of a shell or case and a
tight fitting cap or stopper, such as described, or its equivalent.
3. As an article adapted to serve or be used as an oil reservoir of a wick lamp, a
chamber or vessel (such as A) provided with wick and wick tubes (such as d, B),
arranged as or substantially as set forth.
4. In an oil wick lamp, an oil reservoir having a wick and wick tube-or a plurality
of same-and a burner having a wick or wicks, said reservoir and burner wicks being
adapted to be either disconnected from or connected with each other, substantially in
the manner set forth.
5. In an oil wick lamp, the combination of an "incombustible" wick, of the type herein
specified, and a cotton wick or wicks of other equivalent material, said wicks being
adapted to be connected to and disconnected from each other.
6. The oil chamber or reservoir set forth with reference to Figure 1, comprising a
vessel A, wick tube or tubes B, and wick d, wick tube plate 61, cap a¹, and washer c.
7. In an oil reservoir for an oil wick lamp, a wick tube or tubes (such as B)
provided with a wick or wicks d, said wick or wicks being arranged in the tube or
tubes substantially as set forth.
8. In an oil reservoir for an oil wick lamp the combination with a wick tube or
tubes such as B, of a plate b' and a washer c; substantially as set forth.
9. An oil wick lamp comprising a pedestal or stand (such as 1), an oil vessel or
reservoir (such as A) provided with a wick or wicks (such as d), and a burner provided
with a wick or wicks (such as H).
10. The oil wick lamps consisting mainly of a pedestal or stand (such as I), an
oil vessel or reservoir (such as A) provided with a wick or wicks (such as d), and a
burner provided with a wick or wicks (such as H), substantially as set forth with
reference to Figures 8. 9. 10 and 11 respectively.
11. An oil reservoir or vessel for use in or in connection with an oil wick lamp,
provided with a wick tube or tubes capable of being raised out of or lowered into the
said reservoir or vessel, for the purposes set forth.
12. The oil reservoir or vessel for use in or in connection with an oil wick lamp,
provided with a telescopic or moveable wick tube or tubes (such as B¹), substantially
as set forth with reference to Figures 12 and 13 respectively.
13. An oil reservoir or vessel for use in or in connection with an oil wick lamp,
provided with a wick tube or tubes (such as B) containing a wick or wicks d, and a

page_text: wick or wicks H of "incombustible" type herein specified, hinged to said wick tube or
tubes, and adapted to be used substantially as set forth.
14. In an oil wick lamp in which a burner provided with a wick or wicks of the
"incombustible" type, as specified, are employed in the manner described, a flame
regulator or extinguisher consisting mainly of shutters adapted to close and open our
said wicks, substantially in the manner set forth.
15. In an oil wick lamp in which a burner provided with a wick or wicks of the
"incombustible" type, as specified, are employed in the manner described, the flame
regulators or extinguishing devices consisting of shutters k, racks l, toothed pinion or
pinions, and operating device such as 13, substantially as set forth with reference to
Figures 15 and 16 respectively.
16. In an oil wick lamp in which a burner wick and oil reservoir wick are employed
and adapted to be connected with or disconnected from each other in the manner
specified, the combination of a cotton or other like wick & contained in said reservoir,
and a cotton or other like wick contained in said burner, said latter wick being
arranged in a chamber, in such a manner, that it can be adjusted in the burner without
being disconnected from said reservoir wick, substantially as set forth.
17. The wicks H constructed and arranged in the burner G substantially as set
forth with reference to Figure 7 of the Drawings.
Dated this 22nd day of November 1888.
CHARLES JAMES FOX.
By Cheesbrough & Royston,
15, Water Street, Liverpool,
Patent Agents.