IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Stephen Holman, of Laurence Pountney Lane,
in the City of London, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS.”
Sealed the 23rd April 1875, and dated the 26th October 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Stephen Holman at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 26th October 1874.
I, STEPHEN HOLMAN, of Laurence Pountney Lane, in the City of
London, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS," to be as
follows:-
The first part of my Invention consists in the application and use of
self-supporting bracketted cross bars for carrying the lids or doors of gas
retorts, and in providing eccentric hinge fastenings with supporting pins
the said cross bars and lids (or lids without cross bars as the
to carry

page_text: case may be), without the aid of screws or other means of tightening or
fastening the eccentric hinge joint pins so that the said joint pins may
be very casily and quickly taken out and replaced.
The second part of my Invention consists in the construction and
application of vibrating hinge joint lugs to carry the cross bars and lids &
above referred to, and in making the same interchangeable with
.vibrating catches.
The third part of my Invention consists in the construction and use of
my flat cast iron lids without rims, but with centre lugs on each side so
as to answer either as single or reversible retort lids, by turning the 1
periphery true (and by preference semicircular in form), so that either
side of the turned periphery may effect a sound sealing of the retort by
direct contact with a true bovil surface formed in the retort mouthpiece,
as described in Morton's Patent, No. 575, dated 24 February 1869.
The fourth part of my Invention consists in the construction of
mouthpieces for gas retorts, the said mouthpieces being provided with
recessed or other suitably shaped lugs to receive the vibrating hinge
joint lugs referred to in the second part of this Invention, so that the
said hinge joint lugs may be made interchangeable with vibrating
catches, thereby enabling the fastening lever to be placed at cither the
right or left side of the retort mouthpiece.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Stephen Holman in the Great Scal Patent Office
on the 26th April 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, STEPHEN 2
HOLMAN, of Laurence Pountney Lane, in the City of London, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the a
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-

page_text: cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Stephen Holman, Her special
license that I, the said Stephen Holman, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Stephen Holman, my
exccutors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during thọ
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 USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF Gas," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Stephen Holman, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and scal, should par-
ticularly 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 Stephen Holman, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings
and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
The first part of my said Invention consists in the application and use
of self-supporting bracketted cross bars for carrying the lids or doors of
gas retorts, and in providing eccentric hinge fastenings with supporting
pins to carry the said cross bars and lids, or lids without cross bars (as
the case may be) without the aid of screws or other means of tightening
or fastening the eccentric hinge joint pins, so as to admit of the said
joint pins being very readily and quickly taken out and replaced.
The second part of my said Invention consists in the construction and
application of vibrating hinged joint lugs to carry the cross bars and lids
above referred to, and in making the same interchangeable with vibrating
catches.
The third part of my said Invention consists in the construction and
use of flat cast-iron lids without rims, but with centre lugs on each side
so as to serve either as single or reversible retort lids, by turning the
periphery truc (and by preference semicircular in form), in such a
;

page_text: manner that either side of the turned periphery may effect a sound
sealing of the retort by direct contact with a true bevel surface formed
in the retort mouthpiece, as described in the Specification of Morton's
Patent, No. 575, dated Twenty-fourth February, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-nine.
5
The fourth part of my said Invention consists in the construction of
mouthpieces for gas retorts, the said mouthpieces being provided with
recessed or other suitably shaped lugs to receive the vibrating hinged
joint lugs referred to in the second part of my said Invention, so that the
said hinged joint lugs may be made interchangeable with vibrating 1
catches, thereby enabling the fastening lever to be placed at either the
right or left hand side of the retort mouthpiece.
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 on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the 18
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all tho
Figures.
Figure 1 of my Drawings represents å front elevation of a retort
mouthpiece with the improvements forming the first part of my said
Invention applied thereto; Figure 2 is a side sectional elevation of the 20
same; Figure 3 is a side elevation of the opposite side to that shewn by
Figure 2, and Figure 4 is a plan corresponding to Figure 1.
a is a self-sealing retort lid; b is the bracketted cross bar having the
bracket c by preference formed in one piece with it, which bracket may
however be rivetted or otherwise fitted thereto if desired. The bracket c 2
terminates with a boss d having a hole in it to receive a special eccentric
end of the joint or hinge pin g, which forms a continuation of the
lever e, as shewn in the Drawings. The end f of the hinge ping is thus
formed so as to work eccentrically with the part g, as it turns in the
hinge lug (which lug is cast on or otherwise attached to the mouth- 30
piece), the upper part of the joint or hinge pin 9 also works
eccentrically with the part g, in the end boss of the cross bar b, and
corresponds in its throw with the small eccentric f, so that when the
lever e is moved in the direction of the arrow & (Figure 4), the lid a
will be fastened against the mouthpiece, and when moved in the 36

page_text: direction of the arrow 7, the cross bar b, the left hand end of which is
shewn as held by a catch m (Figures 3 and 4), will be sufficiently
slackened to be easily released therefrom, and thus to permit the free
movement of the lid and cross bar in the direction of either k or lat
pleasure. The said lid and cross bar will at the same time be carried in
a parallel horizontal position by means of the bracket c, and in a parallel
vertical position by means of the small supporting eccentric f, which is
made to perform a precisely corresponding movement to the larger or
tightening and releasing eccentric i on the same pin when operated by
the lever e. A special advantage of this arrangement is that no screw or
other fastening is required to retain the hinge pin in its place, and a
loose and free action is ensured, which obviates the difficulty hitherto
experienced with screwed joint pins, which are liable to be set tight by
tar and other matter working in between the surfaces.
Figure 5 is a side elevation; Figure 6 is a plan; Figure 8 is a side
clevation of the opposite side to that shewn in Figure 5, and Figure 9 is
a front clevation of a retort mouthpiece shewing the application of the
improvements which form the subject of the second, third, and fourth
parts of my said Invention, and Figure 7 is a detail view illustrating the
third part of my said Invention. n is a vibrating hinged lug fitted to a
suitable lug o' of the mouthpiece P; the said hinged lug is made inter-
changeable with the catch m fitted to a corresponding lug o³, so as to
give the facility to place the hinge at cither the right or left hand side
of the mouthpiece, as may be found convenient or necessary, the
arrangement being applicable whether the lid be employed with or
without cross bars.
Figure 7 is a side elevation of a reversible disc retort lid without any
projecting rims on the periphery constructed according to the third part
of my said Invention, such lid having the periphery turned true and by
preference semicircular in form, so that either side of the turned
periphery will effect a sound sealing of the retort by direct contact with
a true bevel surface formed in the retort mouthpiece.
The lid is composed by preference of cast iron, but any other suitable
material may be employed if desired. r, r, are corresponding lugs
crossing each other on opposite sides of the disc lid, for attaching the lid
to the cross bar 6 by means of the eccentric bolts on either side as

page_text: required. The said disc lid is shewn in pôsition on the mouthpicce in
Figure 6, a portion of the metal being represented as removed for the
purpose of indicating the bevel at t.
-
It will be obvious that in fastening the lid in the bevel part of the
mouthpiece the lid is unable to movo laterally to correspond with the 5
action of the fastening eccentric, hence the vibrating lug n adapts itself
to the movement and action of the fastening eccentric i, which when
worked in the boss of the cross bar b, which in this arrangement is
unable to move laterally, will cause that portion of the hinge pin
marked to work eccentrically, and the hinged lug to vibrate according 10
to its movement.
In the side elevation Figure 8, the mouthpiece is shown with the disc
lid closed, the plain end of the fastening cross bar 6 being held by the
catch m.
16
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 to
be novel and original and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,—
3
.
-
First. The application and use to and with the mouthpieces of gas 20
retorts of self-supporting bracketted cross bars carried by eccentric
supporting pins, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before
described and as illustrated by my Drawings.
Second. The application and use of eccentric supporting pins
substantially as and for the purpose hercin-before. described and as 2
illustrated by my Drawings.
:
Third. The application and use of vibrating hinged joint lugs for
carrying the cross, bars and lids of gas retorts or lids without cross bars,
substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described and as
illustrated by my Drawings...
Fourth. The employment of plain reversible disc lids without pro-
jecting rims, substantially as and for the purpose hercin-before described
and as illustrated by my Drawings.
3
Fifth. The combination with the mouthpieces of gas retorts of hinge
lugs, so formed and arranged as to receive interchangeably vibrating 3

page_text: hinged joint lugs and catches, for the purpose of enabling the lids to be
hinged to either the right or left hand side of the mouthpieces,
substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by my Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stephen Holman, have to this
my Specification set my hand and seal, the Twenty-sixth day of
April, One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.