Improvements in Engines Operated by Steam or other Motive Fluid.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Nov., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 8th Aug., 1892-Accepted, 10th Sept., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Engines Operated by Steam or other Motive Fluid.
1, JOSEPH WRIGHT of 16 Great George Street in the City of Westminster,
Mechanical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my invention to be as
follows:-
-:
My invention has more especial reference to steam engines but is applicable to
other engines as will be evident from the following description in which I presume
steam to be the motive fluid.
In the engines arranged according to my invention, to operate as multiple
expansion engines, I arrange the cylinders tandem with each other.
I will presume
that I employ four such tandem cylinders but I do not limit myself to that number.
I prefer to arrange all the cylinders one above the other in tandem with a piston
rod common to the pistons of all the cylinders and connected to one crank on a shaft
or cranked shaft beneath the cylinders. The steam is admitted to say the upper-
most cylinder and exhausts therefrom to the next cylinder below it, and so on
throughout the series. The passages or pipes by which the steam exhausts from
each cylinder are preferably made down each side of the valve casing the passages
at each side for the said exhausts being divided by a diagonal partition so as to
separate the exhaust of each cylinder. The valve casings of each cylinder I may
provide with a live steam inlet; which, when all the cylinders are at work, will
be closed except of course that to which the live steam is admitted; but, if it be
desired to work with a less number of cylinders, the live steam connection can be
made with either of the cylinders as desired. The springs, by which the slide
valves are pressed to the faces against which they slide, I prefer to arrange so that
they are carried by the slide valve itself by which means the springs are saved
from wear.
The governor may be arranged horizontally and may consist of a piece sliding
in another piece and moved in one direction by a spring the outer piece carrying a
number of cranked arms centred to it with weighted outer ends and inner ends
bearing on the said inner piece so as to move it against the opposed force of the
spring when the balls move outwards and this inner piece being connected to the
steam supply valve the supply of steam is regulated thereby as required.
I may arrange the crank-shaft in a tank, or vessel, which is provided with liquid-
tight openings for the passage of the shaft. In this tank 1 use oil, water, or other
liquid, in which the shaft may revolve so that it is kept cool. This tank may be
provided with liquid tight doors, or windows, by which access can be gained when
required.
The stuffing boxes in which the piston rod and the valve rod slide are preferably
made in one casting between each cylinder and valve casing. The connecting rod
end of the piston rod I prefer to connect to a slide block or tubular piece carrying
the pins by which the connecting rod to the crank is connected the said tubular
piece sliding upon a suitable bush or sleeve upon the outside of the lower stuffing
box from which the outer end of the piston rod protrudes.
To adjust the bushes and bearing parts which are subject to wear, and which
consequently require adjustment at intervals such for instance as the connecting rod
ends and the cam straps I employ bolts which pass through each side of the block,
strap, or the like carrying the bushes and through a screwed sleeve screwing
through one of the parts of the block, strap, or the like. The inner end of this
screwed sleeve bears upon a spherical or partly spherical part carried by, or formed
on, the bolt or surrounding it so that when the parts are adjusted by screwing this
screwed sleeve up, or down, the spherical part, on which it bears, allows for any

page_text: deviation laterally. By screwing up the nuts on the bolts, the parts when thus
adjusted, are held firmly in position.
I may make the crank shaft with any desired number of cranks, each operated
by an arrangement of cylinders such as I have described.
Dated this 28th day of November 1891.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Engines Operated by Steam or other Motive Fluid.
I, JOSEPH WRIGHT of 16 Great George Street in the City of Westminster,
Mechanical 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 :----
My invention has more especial reference to steam engines, but it is applicable
to other engines operated by motive fluid, as will be evident from the following
description in which I presume steam to be the motive fluid.
In the engines arranged according to my invention to operate as multiple
expansion engines I arrange the cylinders tandem with each other.
may use for
instance four such tandem cylinders but I do not limit myself to that number, and
in the example illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and hereinafter described
I have shewn three cylinders to simplify illustration. I prefer to arrange all the
cylinders one above the other or one before the other in tandem, with a piston
rod common to the pistons of all the cylinders, and connected to one crank on a
shaft or cranked shaft. The steam is admitted to say the first or uppermost
cylinder, and exhausts therefrom to the next cylinder, and so on throughout the
series. The passages by which the steam exhausts from each cylinder are preferably
made down or along each side of the valve casing the passages at each side for the
said exhausts being divided as hereinafter more fully explained so as to separate
the exhaust of each cylinder. I may provide the valve casings of each or any
cylinder with a live steam inlet, which when all the cylinders are at work, will be
closed; except of course that to which the live steam is continuously admitted, but,
if it be desired to work with a less number of cylinders the live steam connection
can be made with either of the cylinders as desired. The springs, by which the slide
valves are pressed to the faces against which they slide, I prefer to arrange so
that they are carried by the slide valve itself by which means the springs are saved
from wear.
The governor may be arranged horizontally and may consist of a
piece sliding in another piece and moved in one direction by a spring the outer
piece carrying a number of cranked arms centered to it with weighted outer ends
and inner ends bearing on the said inner piece so as to move it against the opposed
force of the spring when the balls move outwards and this inner piece being
connected to the steam supply valve the supply of steam is regulated thereby as
required. I may arrange the crank shaft in a tank, or vessel, which is provided
with liquid tight openings for the passage of the shaft. In this tank I use oil,
water, or other liquid, in which the shaft may revolve so that it is kept cool. This
tank may be provided with liquid tight doors, or windows, by which access can
be gained when required.
The connecting rod end of the piston rod I prefer to connect to a slide block, or
tubular piece, to which the connecting rod is connected at one end its other end
being connected to the crank the said slide block or tubular piece, sliding upon a
bush, or sleeve upon the outside of the lower stuffing box from which the outer end
of 'the piston rod protrudes.
To adjust the bushes and bearing parts which are subject to wear, and which
consequently require adjustment at intervals, such for instance as the plummer
blocks connecting rod ends and the cam straps I employ bolts which pass through

page_text: each side of the block, strap, or the like, carrying the bushes, and through a screwed
sleeve screwing through one of the parts of the block strap or the like. The inner
end of this screwed sleeve bears upon a spherical or partly spherical part carried
by or formed on the bolt or surrounding it so that when the parts are adjusted by
screwing this screwed sleeve up or down, the spherical part, on which it bears allows
for any deviation laterally. By screwing up the nuts on the bolts the parts, when
thus adjusted, are held firmly in position.
I may make the crank shaft with any desired number of cranks, each operated
by an arrangement of cylinders such as I have described.
And in order that my said invention may be fully understood I shall now proceed
more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to the
several figures of the annexed drawings the same letters of reference indicating
corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figures 1 and 2 are vertical sections at right angles to each other of an engine
arranged according to my invention. The arrangement illustrated shews two sets
of cylinders of three each, the cylinders in each set being arranged one above the
other, but I do not limit myself to this, as there may be one, two, or more, sets of
cylinders with two, three, or more cylinders in a set.
In Figure 1 one of the sets of cylinders is shewn in elevation and it will only be
necessary for me to describe one set as the other set is arranged in the same manner
and I have marked such of the parts as are seen in it with the same letters of
reference.
Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6 are views given to shew the passages for steam from cylinder
to cylinder more clearly Figure 3 being a section taken centrally Figure 4.
being a section on the line 1. 2 Figure 3, Figure 5 a section on the line 3. 4,
Figure 3 and Figure 6 a section on the line 5. 6 Figure 3.
Figures 7 to 10 are details drawn to a larger scale Figure 7 being a section
through the valve casing shewing the spring carried by the valve. Figure 8 is a
back view of the same the valve-casing cover, or side being removed. Figure 9 is
a horizontal section through the line 7. 8 of Figure 7 and Figure 10 shews in section
the arrangement of an adjustable bearing as herein before described.
A A A³ (Figures 1 and 2) are the cylinders arranged in tandem with a piston
rod B common to the pistons a¹ a² as of the said cylinders and connected to the
crank con the crank shaft C. The passages d by which the steam exhausts from
the several cylinders are made down the sides of the valve casings D' D' D' (sec
Figures 3 to 6) the said passages being divided by the partitions which separate
the exhaust of each cylinder. These partitions are shewn as being only partly
diagonal but they may be completely diagonal as I consider that the best form.
but they may be arranged in any suitable way. f is the live steam inlet to the
first cylinder and f* and are the openings by which the exhaust steam from the
cylinders A and A leaves the valve casings to pass into the next cylinders A²
and A respectively by the inlets f³.
When the three cylinders are at work the steam enters the live steam inlet at /
and passes by the inlets f3f3 into the valve chest of the first cylinder from which it
exhausts into the central passage from whence it passes into the first side
passages by the openings f' and through the second set of inlets ³ ³ into the
cylinder A whence it exhausts by the central passage and passes by the
openings down the second passages d and by the third set of openings ³ ³ to
the third cylinder from which it exhausts by the central passage fs and openings f
into the condenser or the atmosphere. 10 are the openings for the valve rod.
On the valves I have shewn the improvements in the arrangement of the
springs (g) which press the valves onto the port face the said springs being carried
by the valves themselves so that they move with the valves and so are saved from
a considerable amount of wear. This arrangement is shewn more clearly in
Figures 7, 8 and 9. The valve G is formed with a slot between horns g² g³ through
which the valve rod g³ passes and the valve is secured by the nuts * to the said
rod. The spring g at its mid-part presses on the rod g and its ends bear upon the

page_text: back of the valve G. The valves are shewn as being made with a bearing face in
the arc of a circle struck from the centre of the rod and bearing on a port face
of the same shape so that either valve can be removed by slacking the nuts and
turning the valve through half a rotation.
The governor may be of any suitable description such as for instance as that
hereinbefore described. In the drawing however I have shewn at X a governor con-
sisting of a number of spring straps carrying weights which springs are connected at
one end to a disc fixed to a spindle and at the other end to a disc sliding on a spindle
which latter disc is connected to the throttle valve so that, as the weights move
outwards, as the speed increases, the springs bow outwards and move the last named
disc to lessen the supply of steam to the engine.
H is a tank, crank chamber, or vessel, through which the crank shaft passes so
that the cranks and their connections are contained in oil, or other liquid, in the
said tank, or vessel, which is provided with packed liquid tight stuffing boxes h for
the shaft C to pass through- are sliding doors capable of being closed liquid-
tight so that by opening or removing these, access can be obtained to the parts
contained in the said tank, crank chamber, or vessel. The stuffing boxes in which
the piston rod and the valve rod slide may be situated in one casting between each
two cylinders and valve casings; or the stuffing box portions, cylinder, and valve-
casing, may be cast together as shewn. The port faces in the valve chests may be
made out of line (the valves being of varying depth as shewn) or they may be
brought into line, in either case the one rod operating all the valves. The
connecting rod end of the piston rod and its connection with the crank are shewn
arranged in the improved manner hereinbefore described. The piston rod B is
connected to a slide block or tubular piece K carrying the pins to which the
bifurcated end of the connecting rod L is secured so that it oscillates thereon the
other end being connected to the crank as usual. The said tubular piece K slides
upon a bush or sleeve M upon the outside of the lower stuffing box from which the
outer end of the piston rod protrudes.
The bushes and bearing parts which are subject to wear as aforesaid may be
arranged as follows:-referring especially to Figure 10. Bolts n pass through
each side of the block, or other part carrying the bushes, and through a screwed
sleeve a screwed into a hole through one of the parts of the block or the like.
The inner end of the sleeve n² bears upon a partly spherical part surrounding the
bolt n.
By screwing the sleeve up or down, the spherical part p allows for
lateral deviation. When the adjustment is made the sleeves and the nuts being
screwed up secure the parts firmly in position. This arrangement prevents knocking
noises in the bearings.
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 :-
First. The arrangement and combination of parts constituting the motive power
engine substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Second. In compound steam engines, cylinders arranged tandem as described with
a piston rod common to all the pistons of the said cylinders and with valve casings
with exhaust and inlet passages arranged as described and so that the valves are all
operated by the same rod substantially as hereinbefore described.
Third. In compound steam engines the arrangement of the passages for motive
fluid from cylinder to cylinder as herein before described and shewn more particularly
in Figures 3 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.
Fourth. In steam or other Huid pressure engines the combination of the spring
(by which the valve is pressed to the face against which it slides) with the moving
valve itself substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn more especially in
Figures 7, 8 and 9 of the accompanying drawings.
Fifth. The arrangement for connecting the piston rod with the crank and for

page_text: guiding the piston rod in its movements by means of a tubular piece sliding upon a
bush or sleeve upon the lower stuffing box substantially as hereinbefore described.
Sixth. The arrangement for adjusting the bushes and bearing parts and
preventing knocking noises in fluid pressure engines substantially as herein before
described and shewn more especially in Figure 10 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 8th day of August 1892.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
Agents.