IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BURNING PETROLEUM
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Oliver Sweeney, of Philadelphia, in the State
of Pennsylvania, United States of America, but at present of
15, Water Street, Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BURNING PETROLEUM AND
Scaled the 3rd November 1874, and dated the 8th May 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Oliver Sweeney at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the.
8th May 1874.
I, OLIVER SWEENEY, of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania,
United States of America, but at present of 15, Water Street, Liver-
pool, in the County of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BURNING PETROLEUM
AND OTHER VOLATILE OILS AND SPIRITS," to be as follows:-
An apparatus constructed according to this Invention consists of a
cylindrical vessel or reservoir of suitable size. This vessel or reservoir
is fitted with a piston or plunger working therein and kept tight with

page_text: The
suitable packing. The piston or plunger is fitted with non-return valves
on its under surface, or a piston or plunger may be formed of a leather
inverted cup, so arranged that it will act as a non-return valve.
top of the vessel is fitted with a suitable cover having a suitable packing
gland, through which passes a rod in connexion with the piston or
plunger. Between the piston or plunger there is fitted a spiral or other
suitable spring, and the piston rod is fitted with a handle or other
suitable means for compressing and actuating same, or the piston or
plunger may be provided with a weight or weights in lieu of the spring.
The cover of the reservoir is fitted with a suitable provision for supplying
oil or spirit to the reservoir. The bottom of the reservoir may be
provided with a pipe for conveying the oil or spirit to any suitable
atmospheric or other burners, such burners as "Dyott's" being suitable
for use with this apparatus.
In some cases the piston rod may be made hollow and project slightly
through the piston or plunger, the top of the rod being fitted with or
leading to a suitable burner.
In operation the reservoir is supplied with oil or spirit through the
provision on the cover, which is then closed, and the piston or plunger
raised by means of the handle or other means on the rod. The spiral
spring is thus compressed, or the weight or weights lifted and the oil or
spirit forced through the non-return valves in the piston or plunger to
the bottom of the reservoir. It will thus be seen that the spring or
weights exert a pressure upon the piston which presses the oil or spirit
and drives it through the pipe at the bottom of the reservoir to the
burner or burners, or through the hollow piston rod to the burner or
burners. This apparatus may be used as a self-contained lamp fitted
with suitable burners, and may be applied to most kinds of lamps now
in use, or it may be used for conveying oil or spirit through pipes for
lighting buildings, ships, railway carriages, and other structures. The
reservoir being separate and distinct from the burners ensures perfect
safety from explosion or ignition, and the oil or spirit is always kept
cold and is perfectly safe.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Oliver Sweeney in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 7th November 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, OLIVER
SWEENEY, of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, United States
of America, but at present of 15, Water Street, Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, send greeting.
.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent. Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-seventh
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Oliver Sweeney, Her special licence
that I, the said Oliver Sweeney, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Oliver Sweeney, my executors,
administrators, and 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
APPARATUS FOR BURNING PETROLEUM AND OTHER VOLATILE OILS AND SPIRITS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Oliver Sweeney, my exe-
cutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, 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 within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Oliver Sweeney, 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:―
An apparatus constructed according to this Invention consists of a
cylindrical vessel or reservoir of suitable size. This vessel or reservoir
is fitted with a piston or plunger working therein and kept tight with
suitable packing. The piston or plunger is fitted with non-return valves
on its under surface, or a piston or plunger may be formed of a leather

page_text: inverted cup, so arranged that it will act as a non-return valve. The
top of the vessel is fitted with a suitable cover, having a suitable packing
gland through which passes a rod in connexion with the piston or
plunger. Between the piston or plunger and the cover there is fitted a
spiral or other suitable spring, and the piston rod is fitted with a handle
or other suitable means for compressing and actuating same, or the
piston or plunger may be provided with a weight or weights in lieu of
the spring. The cover of the reservoir is fitted with a suitable provision
for supplying oil or spirit to the reservoir. The bottom of the reservoir
'may be provided with a pipe for conveying the oil or spirit to any
'suitable atmospheric or other burners, such burners as Dyott's being
suitable for use with this apparatus..
:
In some cases the piston rod may be made hollow and project slightly
through the piston or plunger, the top of the rod being fitted with or
leading to a suitable burner.
In operation the reservoir is supplied with oil or spirit through the
provision on the cover, which is then closed, and the piston or plunger
raised by means of the handle or other means on the rod. The spiral
spring is thus compressed or the weight or weights lifted, and the oil or
spirit forced through the non-return valves in the piston or plunger to
the bottom of the reservoir. It will thus be seen that the spring or
weights exert a pressure on the piston which presses the oil or spirit and
drives it through the pipe at the bottom of the reservoir to the burner or
burners, or through the hollow piston rod to the burner or burners.
This apparatus may be used as a self-contained lamp fitted with suitable
burners, and may be applied to most kinds of lamps now in use, or it
may be used for conveying oil or spirit through pipes for lighting
buildings, ships, railway carriages, and other structures. The reservoir
being separate and distinct from the burners ensures perfect safety from
explosion or ignition, and the oil or spirit is always kept cold and is
perfectly safe.
The beforegoing being the nature, object, and purposes of this my
Invention, I will now proceed to describe more in detail how the same
may be carried out into practical effect, and for that purpose I have
hereunto attached a Sheet of Drawings marked with letters and figures
of reference corresponding with those in the following explanation.
Like letters and figures denote similar parts...

page_text: Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a lamp constructed according to
my Invention, with the pipe for conveying the oil or spirit to the burner
taken up through the centre of the reservoir.
Figure 2 is an outside elevation of a lamp constructed according to
my Invention, with the pipe for conveying the oil or spirit to the burner
or burners leading up from the bottom of the reservoir and on the
outside thereof.
5
Figures 3 and 4 show burners on Dyott's principle suitable for use
with this Invention.
Figure 5 is an outside elevation of an arrangement for supplying the
pressure by weights to a lamp constructed according to my Invention.
Upon reference to the Drawings it will be seen that an apparatus
constructed according to my Invention consists of a cylindrical vessel or
reservoir A, which may be of size suitable to contain any desired
quantity of oil or spirit. The vessel A is fitted with a piston or plunger
B, which works therein. The piston or plunger may be kept tight by
suitable packing, and fitted with non-return valves on its under sidė, or
the piston or plunger may be formed of a leather inverted cup, as shown
at Figure 1, so arranged that it will act as a non-return valve by allowing
the oil or spirit to pass at b, Figure 1, when the piston or plunger is
raised. The top of the vessel is fitted with a cover D having a packing
gland E, through which passes a rod F in connexion with the piston or
plunger B. Between the piston or plunger B and the cover D there is
fitted a spiral or other suitable spring C. The piston rod F.may be fitted
with a handle for compressing the spring C, as shown at G, Figure 2.
In some instances the spring may be dispensed with and weights sub-
stituted acting either by direct pressure on the piston rod or as shown at
H, Figure 5, raising the vessel on a fixed piston rod, which rod may be
The cover D of the
attached to a ceiling or otherwise supported.
reservoir A is provided with a suitable provision for supplying oil or
spirit, as at I, Figure 1. K, Figure 1, is a shut-off cock; L, an air vessel;
and M, an atmospheric burner.
In operation the lamp, as shown at Figure 1, is supplied with oil or
spirit through the provision I. The piston B is raised and the spring
5 compressed, and the oil or spirit finds its way to the bottom of the
reservoir. The downward pressure of the spring C on the piston B

page_text: forces the oil or spirit through the hollow piston rod F, and thence to
the burner M, where it is consumed as gas, as is known,
Figure 2 shows a pipe N leading from the bottom of the reservoir A
to supply oil to any suitable number of burners. In like manner the
pipes O, P, Figure 5, lead to suitable burners, as will be understood.
The atmospheric burner M, as shown in the Drawings, is especially
adapted for use with this Invention, or the burners known as Dyott's
Patent, as shown at Figures 3 and 4, may be used, or an argand burner
may be used with a good result.
The advantages attendant upon this my Invention are that a safe and
portable lamp for burning. volatile oils and spirit is obtained as the space
in the reservoir above the piston is rendered air-tight, and the inflam-
mable vapours from the oil or spirit cannot escape.
· Having now fully described the nature, object, and purposes of this
my Invention, and shown how the same may be carried out into 1
practical effect, I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself
to any particular size or dimensions of apparatus constructed according
to my Invention, as the same may be made a variety of sizes, and made
to supply volatile oil or spirit to one, two, or any number of burners as
may be required, and I would have it understood that I do not confine 2
myself or claim the use of any particular burner, with a lamp constructed
according to my Invention, as any suitable burner may be used, but
what I claim as my Invention is,—
Firstly. An apparatus for burning volatile oils and spirits; sub-
stantially as shown at Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings, and 2
described in the beforegoing Specification.
Secondly. An apparatus for burning volatile oils and spirits, sub-
stantially as shown at Figure 2 of the accompanying Drawings, and
described in the beforegoing Specification.
Thirdly. An apparatus for burning volatile oils. and spirits, sub- 3
stantially as shown at Figure 5 of the accompanying Drawings, and
described in the beforegoing Specification.
Fourthly. In a lamp having a coiled spring bearing down on a valve
piston, and a burner communicating with the oil space under the piston,

page_text: the combination of the air-tight reservoir, piston rod, and packing box,
as and for the purpose described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Oliver Sweeney, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this Fifth day of November, in the year
of our Lord, 1874. .