Year: 1886

page_text: I, HENRI MAUS of Brussels, Belgium, Directeur General honoraire des ponts et
Chaussées et des Mines do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:
My invention relates to improved apparatus for feeding furnaces with fuel
without at the same time admitting air, as is the case when the fuel is fed in
through ordinary furnace doors, so as to avoid the detrimental cooling of the
furnace and the production of smoke which result from the ordinary mode of
firing.
My invention consists mainly in the employment of a box or receptacle for the
fuel, closed by a lid, and which is either slid over a feeding opening in the furnace
so as to discharge its contents into the same, or it is provided with a sliding
bottom which is slid outwards for discharging the contents of the box. In the
first described arrangement which is more particularly applicable to reverberatory
furnaces for burning ceramic articles and the like, having a vertical feeding passage,
there is provided at the upper opening of this passage a slide, by preference formed
of a slab of fireclay surrounded by an angle iron frame, to one end of which is
fixed the above mentioned fuel box, resting with its open bottom upon the plate
on which the slide moves: To the slide or to the box are connected rods the other
end of which are connected to arms on a shaft mounted in bearings and having at
its end a crank handle. When the slide closes the feed opening, the fuel box is
situated on the plate at the side thereof. In this position the box is charged with
fuel, and the lid being then closed down; the shaft is turned by the crank handle
so as to draw the slide off the charging opening and bring the box over it, where-
upon the fuel will fall into the furnace. The slide is then at once moved back
into its original position.
For properly spreading the fuel over the firegrate, a long narrow opening is
formed in the front wall of the furnace, at a sufficient height from the firegrate,
which is closed by two slides, so that on opening one of these more or leas, a
stoking tool can be introduced without admitting a material quantity of air.
Another narrow opening is formed on a level with the grate, closed by a number
of firebrick blocks, through which a tool can be introduced for clearing the grate
from ashes and clinkers:

page_text: In the second above described arrangement, more particularly applicable to
boiler furnaces and the like, where there are no means for providing a vertical
feed passage; I close the front of the furnace above the grate by means of a plate,
against the front of which is fixed the before-mentioned fuel box. The bottom of
the box is open as before, but at a slight distance above the same is a curved slide
passing through a slit in the front, and carried by arms passing up at the sides of
a box to a shaft carried in bearings on the front plate. When the box is charged
with fuel and its cover closed, the slide is drawn out by a handle, whereupon the
fuel will fall on to a plate below the box. The narrow space between the bottom
of the box and the plate is closed by slides, on opening one or other of which a
stoking tool is introduced for spreading the fuel over the fire. The space between
the underside of the plate and the apron in front of the firegrate is closed by
removeable blocks, on removing which a tool can be introduced for clearing away
the ashes and clinkers.

page_text: at the same Time Admitting Air.
I, HENRI MAUS of Brussels, Belgium, Directeur General honoraire des ponts et
chaussées et des mines 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 relates to improved apparatus for feeding furnaces with fuel
without at the same time admitting air, as is the case when the fuel is fed in
through ordinary furnace doors, the object of the invention being to avoid the
detrimental cooling of the furnace and the production of smoke which result from
the ordinary mode of firing.
The
My invention consists mainly in the employment of a box or receptacle for the
fuel, closed by a lid, and which is either slid over a feeding opening in the furnace
so as to discharge its contents into the same, or is provided with a sliding bottom
which is slid outwards for discharging the contents of the box. The first described
arrangement which is more particularly applicable to reverberatory furnaces for
burning ceramic articles and the like, having a vertical feeding passage, is shewn
in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings, Fig. being a front view,
Fig. 2 a part section on line A B Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 a part plan of the fire place
with my invention applied thereto. At the upper opening of the vertical feed
passage b is fitted a slide d by preference formed of a slab of fireclay surrounded
by an angle iron frame; at the side of the slide d is fixed the fuel box c which is
open at the bottom and rests upon the plate a on which the slide & moves.
box is linked by rods e to arms f of a rocking shaft g mounted in bearings and
having at its end a crank handle h. When the parts are in the position shewn,
the slide & closing the feed opening b, the lid c¹ of the fuel box is opened by the
handle c² and the box is charged with fuel. The lid c¹-being, then closed down,
the shaft g is partly turned by the crankhandle h so as to draw the slide d off the
opening b, and to bring the box cover it, whereupon the fuel falls into the furnace.
The slide d can then be moved back into its original position against the stops i.
For properly spreading the fuel over the fire grate, a long narrow opening k is
formed in the front wall of the furnace, at a sufficient height from the firegrate,
and is closed by two slides so that on opening one or both of these more or less
by their handles l' a stoking tool or rake can be introduced through the opening k
without admitting much air. Another narrow opening m is formed on a level
with the grate, and is closed by firebricks n, which can be removed for the intro-
duction of a tool to clear the grate from ashes and clinkers.
An arrangement more particularly applicable to boiler furnaces and the like,
where there are no means for providing a vertical feed passage is shewn in front
view by Fig. 4 and in vertical section on A B by Fig. 5. I close the front of the
furnace above the grate by means of a plate p, against the front of which is fixed
the box c provided with hinged lid c¹. The bottom of the box c is open as before,
but is fitted with a curved slider carried by arms s which pass up at the ends of
the box to a shaft g mounted in brackets projecting from the plate p. When the

page_text: box c is charged with fuel and its cover c¹ closed, the slider is drawn out by its
handle t, and the fuel falls on to a plate q below. The narrow space between
the bottom of the box c and the plate q is closed by slides which can be opened
to admit a stoking tool for spreading the fuel over the fire. The space m between
the underside of plate q and the dead plate is closed by bricks n on removing
which a tool can be introduced for clearing away the ashes and clinkers.
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. In apparatus for feeding furnaces with fuel through a vertical opening, the
combination of the sliding cover d, the fuel box c open at the bottom and having
covers c¹, linked to the arms f of the rocking shaft g arranged and operating
substantially as described.
2. In apparatus for feeding furnaces with fuel through a front opening, the
combination of the fuel box c open at the bottom and having cover c¹, with the
slide carried by arms & from the rocking shaft g, arranged and operating
substantially as described.