Improvements in or connected with the Pistons of Fluid Pressure Engines.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Apr., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 29th Dec., 1899-Accepted, 24th Feb., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with the Pistons of Fluid Pressure
Engines.
I, WILLIAM CHARLES MUMFORD, 35, Boundary Road, East Ham, Essex,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows;.
The object of my invention is to make the pistons of fluid pressure engines
steam gas or fluid tight whilst working by means of mechanism arranged outside
the cylinder or casing covers but especially applicable to the piston valves of steam
engines.
In carrying my invention into operation I form on the end of the slide spindle
or tail-rod a long screw over which fits a sleeve extending through a stuffing
box in the cylinder cover or slide casing as the case may be.
The sleeve is
formed with a long feather-way or groove which works over a feather or key
contained in a loose bush carried by a suitable bracket fixed to the cylinder or
casing cover. The object of the bush is to rotate and compress the junk rings or
their equivalents on to the packing ring or rings of the piston or piston valves.
The junk rings are cones and fit similar cones on the packing rings so that by
a slight rotation of the bush the sleeve is screwed further on the tail-rod and
the packing rings are forced to the cylinder walls to produce the tightness
required.
The bush is operated by a hand wheel or by a ratchet and pawl and, afterwards
secured to the bracket by a set or clamping screw when the expansion of the
packing rings have been adjusted. To secure a tight packing ring at the point
where it is usually cut I fit a specially formed tongue piece fitted to the cone of
the junk ring and formed with an angular extension through the packing ring
to the cylinder walls, the object being to produce the tight continuity of the
packing ring through any reasonable amount of expansion maintained by the
angular tongue of the packing piece.
I may form a square on the end of tail-rod for operating sleeve for expanding
packing ring if desired. The object being to make the piston or pistons tight
with its cylinder without slowing down or stopping the engine.
Dated this First day of April 1899.
WILLIAM CHARLES MUMFORD,
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with the Pistons of Fluid Pressure
Engines.
I, WILLIAM CHARLES MUMFORD, of No. 35, Boundary Road, East Ham, in the
County of Essex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
I Prine 8d1

page_text: what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement: —
The object of my said invention is to make the pistons of fluid pressure engines
steam, gas or fluid tight whilst working by means of mechanism arranged outside
the cylinder or casing covers, but my invention is especially applicable to the
piston valves of steam engines.
In carrying my invention into operation I form on the end of the slide spindle
or tail rod a-long screw, over which fits a sleeve extending through a stuffing
box in the cylinder cover or slide casing, as the case may be. The sleeve is
formed with a long feather way. or groove which works over a feather or key
contained in a loose bush carried by a suitable bracket fixed to the cylinder or
casing cover. The object of the bush is. to rotate and compress the junk rings or
their equivalents on to the packing ring or rings of the piston or piston valves.
The junk rings are coned and fit similar cones on the packing rings so that by
a slight rotation of the bush the sleeve is screwed further on the tail rod and
the packing rings are forced to the cylinder walls to produce the tightness
required.
The bush is operated by a hand wheel or by a ratchet and pawl and afterwards
screwed to the bracket by a set or clamping screw when the expansion of the
packing rings has been adjusted. To secure a tight packing ring at the point
where it is usually cut I fit a specially formed tongue piece fitted to the cone of
the junk ring and formed with an angular extension through the packing ring
to the cylinder walls, the object being to produce the tight continuity of the
packing ring through any reasonable amount of expansion maintained by. the
angular tongue of the packing piece.
I may form a square on the end of the tail rod for operating sleeve for
expanding packing ring, if desired, the object being to make the piston or pistons
tight with the cylinder without slowing down or stopping the engine.
And, in order that the said invention may be more clearly understood and readily
carried into effect, I will proceed, aided by the accompanying drawings, more
fully to describe the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1, is a longitudinal section of a piston valve constructed according to the
present invention.
Figure 2, is an end view thereof partly in section and with the hand wheel
removed.
Figure 3, is an end view of one of the packing rings separately.
Figure 4, is a longitudinal section thereof taken on the line 1-1 of Figure 3.
Figure 5, is a longitudinal section of the end of a valve chest representing a
modification, and,
Figure 6, is a longitudinal section of a steam engine illustrating the application
of the invention to the piston of the working cylinder.
In the several figures in which like parts are indicated by similar letters of
reference, Figures 3, and 4, are drawn to an increased scale and Figure 6, is
drawn to a reduced and different scale, with respect to Figures 1, 2 and 5.
Referring to Figures 1, to 4, a, represents the valve chest which is provided
with the usual ports a¹, represents one of the end covers of the chest and b,
represents the rod or spindle of the piston valve.
Upon the valve or piston rod b, is loosely mounted a sleeve c, upon the ends of
which are formed junk rings cl, or discs provided with coned faces and also loosely
mounted upon the valve rod b, and facing the others are arranged other but
independent junk rings c¹, the faces of which are similarly coned.
Between each pair of junk rings c¹, is arranged a split packing ring d, the
edges of which are bevelled to correspond with the conical junk rings c¹, and
these packing rings are adapted to be expanded at the times desired in order to

page_text: tighten up the packing by the act of forcing together the junk rings c', as herein-
after described. 1...
MISTON.
W
In order to ensure a tight packing at the point, where the packing ring,
is cut the ring d, is formed with a slot, crossing said cut d', and this slot is
formed with inclined walls and communicates with a segmental recess d³, formed
in the interior of the packing ring d, and fitting the recess d³ is a segmental
tongue piece d', which on its edge is coned or bevelled in a similar manner to
the packing ring so that it will be similarly, acted upon by the adjacent. junk
ring c, and this tongue or segmental piece d, is formed with an angular exten-
sion d, which passes through the slot, to the surface of the packing ring d,
and thus preserves the tight continuity of the packing ring through any reasonable
degree of expansion.
The compression of the junk rings c¹, is effected in the folowing manner..
Upon the valve rod b, beyond one set of junk rings is formed a collar or
abutment 6', and beyond the other set or thereabout is formed upon said rod a
screw thread 63, upon which works a correspondingly threaded sleeve e, which
bears against the outer one of the junk rings c¹.
The sleeve e, is prolonged in the form of a rod e¹, which passes through a
gland or stuffing box a², in the cover a', of the chest a, and it thence passes
through a loose bush f', mounted with capability of turning in a bearing a*,
formed in a bracket a³, fixed with the cover a, of the chest a.
The bush f; is provided with a hand wheel f, or a hand lever and ratchet and
pawl might be substituted therefor by the aid of which it may be turned at
the times desired and said bush has fixed therewith a feather or key f, which
engages a long keyway or groove e, formed in the rod e¹ of the sleeve e, by which
arrangement the sleeve e, may be rotated at any point in the traverse of the
valve rod b, without interfering with the longitudinal movement thereof and
the packing rings d, thereby expanded in the required manner whilst in order
to prevent the working back of the parts a set screw a³, is provided which screws
through a tapped hole in the bearing a, of the bush f', and compresses upon the
latter a washer or wearing piece a6, thereby fixing the parts in the position to
which they have been set.
By the means herein before described, the packing rings d, may be expanded
or adjusted in the manner desired and thus set without the necessity for stopping
the engine as heretofore
In the example given at Figure 5, the stuffing box a², which might be con-
sidered more or less troublesome is dispensed with and in lieu thereof the bush f,
is elongated and extends through the cover a', of the valve chest and on the
inner side thereof said bush is formed with a conical enlargement 1*, which acts
in conjunction with a corresponding seat al*, on the cover a¹, to form the
necessary tight joint whilst in order to hold the cone fi*, to its seat a nut g, is
provided which works upon a thread fi**, formed on the exterior of the bush f, and
is furnished with a V-shaped annular rib g', which bears upon the cover a¹, and
thus modifies the friction of the meeting surfaces.
The bush f, in this example is formed with a square bore f³ for part of its
length and the sleeve rod e¹, is formed of corresponding shape for its entire length
or the key and keyway arrangement heretofore described with respect to the
previous example might be adopted here also if desired and the upper end of the
bush f. is furnished with a hand wheel, (not shown) or is squared to receive a
key by the aid of which it may be turned but instead of the sleeve rod e¹, passing.
right through the bush f', as in the previous arrangement the bush f¹, is formed
closed at its end and thus constitutes a dome like cover to the sleeve rod e¹, and in
conjunction with the cone fi* effectually precludes the possibility of steam
escaping around said rod and that with little or no trouble to the operator.
In the example given at Figure 6, which represents the application of the
invention to the working piston of an engine, the piston rod proper b, passes
through the piston and has formed or fixed thereon a collar or flange 61, which

page_text: serves the purpose of the collar 6', in Figure 1, and the details of construction
are substantially the same as those hereinbefore described with respect to
Figures 1 to 4.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. A means of regulating the packing of a piston or piston valve of a fluid
pressure engine comprising a rod, two or more loose junk rings or discs arranged
in pairs upon said rod and coned on their opposite faces, a correspondingly coned
split packing ring arranged between each pair of junk rings, a collar or stop
upon the rod at one side of the junk rings, a screw thread upon said rod at the
other side thereof, a sleeve screwing upon the screw thread and extending through
the cover of the cylinder or valve chest and means for rotating the sleeve whilst
permitting of its reciprocation so that the junk rings may be compressed and the
packing ring or rings expanded during the working of the engine, substantially
as herein shown and described.
2. A means of regulating the packing of a piston or piston valve of a fluid
pressure engine comprising a rod, two or more loose junk rings or discs arranged
upon said rod and coned on their opposite faces, a correspondingly coned split
packing ring arranged between each pair of junk rings, a collar or stop upon the
rod at one side of the junk rings, a screw thread upon said rod at the other
side thereof, a sleeve screwing upon the screw thread and extending through the
cover of the cylinder or valve chest, a bracket carried by said cover, a bush
mounted in a bearing in the bracket and embracing the sleeve, a groove in the
sleeve and a co-acting feather or key upon the bush and a hand wheel or other
means for rotating the bush and consequently the sleeve whilst permitting of the
rotation of the latter so that the junk rings may be compressed and the packing
ring or rings expanded during the working of the engine, substantially as herein
shown and described.
3. A means of regulating the packing of a piston or piston valve of a fluid
pressure engine comprising a rod, two or more loose iunk rings or discs arranged
in pairs upon said rod and coned on their opposite faces, a correspondingly split
packing ring, arranged between each pair of junk rings, an angular slot arranged
transversely of the slit, a recess on the interior of the packing ring communicating
with the slot, a coned segmental tongue occupying said recess and carrying an
angular projection filling the slot a collar or stop upon the rod at one side of the
junk rings, a screw upon said rod at the other side thereof, a sleeve screwing
upon the screw thread and extending through the cover of the cylinder or
valve chest and means for rotating the sleeve whilst permitting of its recipro-
cation so that the junk rings may be compressed and the packing ring or rings
expanded during the working of the engine, substantially as herein shown and
described and for the purpose stated.
Hated this 20th day of December 1899
VAUGHAN & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.