IMPROVEMENTS IN PUMPING ENGINES
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Andrew Barclay, of Kilmarnock, in the County of
Ayr, North Britain, Engineer, for the Invention of " IMPROVEMENTS IN
PUMPING ENGINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Andrew Barclay at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 22nd
February 1861.
I, ANDREW BARCLAY, of Kilmarnock, in the County of Ayr, North Britain,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PUMPING ENGINES," to be as follows, that is to say:-
This Invention relates to the arrangement and construction of steam
engines which are more particularly applicable to the raising of water from
mines and other similar places. Under one modification, the cylinder of the
engine is arranged at the side of the mouth of the shaft up which the water is
to be raised. The cylinder is bolted down to a suitable substructure or foun-
dation, and is placed upon this so as to stand quite clear of the mouth of
the shaft, or it may project to a small extent over it. The piston rod is con-
nected to an overhead beam; the connection to this beam is not made at the
centre, but at such a distance from the end as to allow of the front extremity.

page_text: overhanging the mouth of the contiguous shaft, and admit of the easy connec-
tion of the pump rods thereto; the other portion of the beam, which may be
about three parts of its length from the point of connection with the piston rod,
extends backwards away from the mouth of the shaft, the extremity of the
beam being jointed to a vertical rocking shaft, which serves to sustain the
overhanging end; the air pump is conveniently arranged between the cylinder
and the end rocking shaft, the pump rod being connected to the beam
overhead.
In engines arranged in this manner the pump rods are connected directly
to the overhanging portion of the beam, so that they are perfectly free from
any obstruction, and may be readily disconnected without interfering with any
part of the engine, which is wholly out of the way of the pumping gear. The
arrangement of these engines may also be modified so as to have the cylinder
fitted above the beam; in this case the beam is arranged in a cavity made
in the foundation or other convenient position, the fore end of the beam
projects over the mouth of the shaft, so as to be clear of the other parts of
the engine, and the other working details are arranged in any convenient
manner. In lieu of this mode, the cylinder may be placed on one side of the
shaft, and the beam arranged to extend across the shaft; the extremity of the
beam is connected to the piston, rod, and the pump rods are attached to the
beam at the part which is directly over the mouth of the shaft; these engines,
while they possess the advantages of the beam engine, are much more econo-
mical in prime cost, as the expense of a costly foundation and house is avoided,
at the same time all the parts are easy of access.
Another arrangement or modification of the pumping engine, and which is
more especially adapted for engines of considerable magnitude, in. which the
beam is of great weight, consists in placing the cylinder immediately at the
edge of the shaft and connecting it to the beam overhead, the beam being
carried in bearings fitted' on a pillar of masonry, or a wall' contiguous to the
cylinder. One extremity of the beam extends a little beyond the cylinder, and
to this overhanging part the pump rods are jointed and' äre carried down the
shaft immediately beneath. In places where water can be raised' from different
levels in a pit, it is convenient to connect a second set of pump rods to the free
extremity of the beam which extends out beyond the supporting pillar or wall.
In this way the water which may collect in the upper as well as the lower
levels of the pit or other place may be removed or prevented from accumu-
lating

page_text: SPECIFICATION filed in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
and of an Order of the Lord Chancellor by the said Andrew Barclay in
the Great Seal Patent Office on the 31st August 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ANDREW
BARCLAY, of Kilmarnock, in the County of Ayr, North Britain, Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fourth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Andrew Barclay, Her special license that I, the said Andrew Barclay, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Andrew
Barclay, my executors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PUMPING
ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Andrew Barclay,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, or under the hand and seal of one of them, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office on or before the Thirty-first day of August, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-one, and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Andrew Barclay, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained 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 :-
My said Invention relates to the arrangement and construction of steam
engines which are more particularly applicable to the raising of water from
mines and other similar places. Under one modification, the cylinder of the
engine is arranged at the side of the mouth of the shaft up which the water is
to be raised. The cylinder is bolted down to a suitable substructure or foun-
dation, and is placed upon this so as to stand quite clear of the mouth of the
shaft, or it may project to a small extent over it. The piston rod is connected
to an overhead beam; the connection to this beam is not made at the centre,

page_text: but at such a distance from the end as to allow of the front extremity over-
hanging the mouth of the contiguous shaft, and admit of the easy connection
of the pump rods thereto; the other portion of the beam, which may be about
three parts of its length from the point of connection with the piston rod,
extends backwards away from the mouth of the shaft, the extremity of the beam
being jointed to a vertical rocking shaft, which serves to sustain the overhang-
ing end, the air pump is conveniently arranged between the cylinder and the
end rocking shaft, the pump rod being connected to the beam overhead.
In engines arranged in this manner the pump rods are connected directly
to the overhanging portion of the beam, so that they are perfectly free from any
obstruction, and may be readily disconnected without interfering with any part
of the engine, which is wholly out of the way of the pumping gear. The arrange-
ment of these engines may also be modified so as to have the cylinder fitted
above the beam; in this case the beam is arranged in a cavity made in the
foundation or other convenient position; the fore end of the beam projects
over the mouth of the shaft so as to be clear of the other parts of the engine,
and the other working details are arranged in any convenient manner. In lieu
of this mode the cylinder may be placed on one side of the shaft, and the beam
arranged to extend across the shaft; the extremity of the beam is connected
to the piston rod, and the pump rods are attached to the beam at the part
which is directly over the mouth of the shaft. These engines, while they pos-
sess the advantages of the beam engine, are much more economical in prime
cost, as the expense of a costly foundation and house is avoided, at the same
time all the parts are easy of access..
Another arrangement or modification of the pumping engine, and which is
more especially adapted for engines of considerable magnitude in which the
beam is of great weight, consists in placing the cylinder immediately at the
edge of the shaft and connecting it to the beam overhead, the beam being
carried in bearings fitted on a pillar of masonry or wall contiguous. to the
cylinder. One extremity of the beam extends a little beyond the cylinder, and
to this overhanging part the pump rods are jointed and are carried down the
shaft immediately beneath. In places where water can be raised from different
levels in a pit, it is convenient to connect a second set of pump rods to the
free extremity of the beam which extends out beyond the supporting pillar or
wall. In this way the water which may collect in the upper as well as the
lower levels of the pit or other place may be removed or prevented from
accumulating.
And in order that my said Invention of improvements in pumping engines
may be properly understood, I shall now proceed to describe the illustrative

page_text: Figure on the accompanying Sheet of explanatory Drawings, which I have
hereunto appended for the purpose of showing certain modifications under
which my improvements may be judiciously carried out in practice; that is
to say:-
The Figure on the accompanying Sheet of Drawings is a partially sectional
elevation of one modification of my improved pumping engine. The engine is
arranged at the side of the shaft upon a foundation or substructure of masonry
A, on the outer edge of which the cylinder B is fixed. The upper end of the
piston rod C is connected to the duplex beam D, at a point about one-fourth
of its length from the outer extremity which overhangs to a small extent the
face of the masonry A. To this overhanging part is attached the pump rod E,
which descends directly down the shaft. The inner end of the beam D is sup-
ported by the upper end of the vertical shaft F, which is carried in a bearing
bolted to the masonry A, and rocks to and fro in accordance with the recipro-
catory motion of the beam. The cylinder cover G has cast in it a laterally
branching tubular passage which opens into the column H; this column is
arranged in a vertical position parallel to the cylinder. The column H is open
throughout its length, and it communicates at the lower part with the steam
passage I leading to the condenser J. This steam passage I extends across
the engine the full width of the column H, on the further side of which is fitted
a valve box, for the admission of the steam to the lower side of the piston. A
longitudinal section of this portion of the engine is shown in Figure 2, in
which the relative positions of the steam and exhaust valves are clearly shown.
The steam passes from the steam pipe K and through the valvular opening
which is controlled by the valve L to the passage M, communicating by the
steam port with the lower part of the cylinder B. After the steam has exerted
its pressure on the piston, the valve N is opened to the exhaust, and the steam
flows through the valvular opening down to the condenser J, in which the air
pump O is arranged. On the condenser cover are fitted two standards P,
which form a guide for the upper end of the air-pump bucket rod Q; the
extremity of this rod has keyed to it the connecting rod R. The upper end
of this rod works on a cross head passing through the duplex beam D; the
cross head has keyed to its projecting extremities the radius rods S, which are
centred on the upper ends of the standards T, bolted down to the cylinder
cover G.
The water of condensation which is raised by the air-pump bucket to the
upper part of the condenser, flows partly away by the opening U to the
cistern or other receptacle, and partly through the valve V to the pump W,
by means of which it is forced through the valve X to the boiler. The steam

page_text: and exhaust valves are operated from the cross head Y of the air-pump bucket
rod; to one extremity of the cross head is attached a pendent lever, which has
a stud or tappet projecting from it. The motion of the rod brings this tappet
in contact with a tail piece Z, pendent from the rocking shaft a, on which is
fitted the curved arm or cam b, which raises the lever c, to which the spindles
of the valves are connected; a counterweight is attached to the shaft a, which
brings it back to its normal position when liberated from the tappet on the air-
pump bracket rod; this causes the catch d to depress the lever c, and thus
reverse the motion of the valves. The lever c is arranged so as to be operated
by hand, when required, and it is connected by the link e to the cataract, by
means of which the speed of the engine is regulated. A corresponding arrange-
ment of the lever c and its connected parts is fitted on the opposite side of the
column H, and actuated in like manner. With this arrangement of the
engine the mouth of the shaft is kept entirely clear and free from any over-
hanging portion of the engine. In this way the pump rods are entirely free
from any obstruction whatever, which admits of their being connected and
disconnected in the readiest manner possible, as well as being at all times
accessible.
Another mode of arranging these engines is, to place the cylinder above the
beam and quite clear of the mouth of the shaft. The beam in this case is
arranged in a recess or cavity, which is formed for the purpose in the masonry
of the foundation. One extremity of the beam projects over the shaft, and to
this overhanging portion the pump rods are attached. The arrangement of
the other working parts of the engine does not essentially vary from that here-
in-before described and shown in the accompanying Drawings. Or this mode
of arranging the engine may be varied by placing the cylinder at one side of
the shaft, and causing the beam to extend across the shaft. One extremity of
the beam is supported by a rocking shaft, whilst the opposite end is connected
to the piston rod; the pump rods being connected to that portion of the beam
which extends across the shaft.
In engines of large size where the beam is of considerable weight, I prefer
to support it upon a pillar of masonry and arrange the cylinder between the
pillar and the edge of the pit. A small portion of the beam is allowed to over-
hang the mouth of the shaft, and to this part the pump rods are attached. If
required, a second set of pump rods are attached to the free extremity of the
beam, and are carried down a secondary shaft; this arrangement is useful
where it may be found advantageous to raise the water from different levels in
the mine. Or the beam may be a comparatively short one, its extremity
working in a pedestal bearing arranged on the pillar or wall, the pump rods

page_text: being connected to the outer end of the beam which overhangs the mouth of
the pit, just sufficient to keep the rods clear. The piston rod and the air-
pump bucket rod are connected to the beam at convenient points between the
pump rods and the main centre of motion of the beam, the parallelism of the
piston and air-pump rods being maintained by means of radius rods.
These several arrangements are equally applicable to double-acting engines
as well as to those of the single-acting class.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my 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 novel and
original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent, is, the system or mode of arranging and
constructing pumping engines in which the cylinder is placed clear of the
mouth of the pit, or nearly so, and between the pump rods and the main centre
of motion of the beam; also the extension of the beam beyond the cylinder, to
admit of the pump rods being attached to the overhanging portion, as herein-
before described and shown in the accompanying Drawings, or any mere modi-
fication of the said arrangement or combination of parts.
In witness whereof, I, the said Andrew Barclay, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of August, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-one.
ANDREW BARCLAY. (L.S.)
ANDREW BARCLAY.
(L.S.)