Year: 1896

page_text: I, ROBERT DUE KNIGHT of Vinita, Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory,
United States of America, Builder, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
This invention relates to steam engines and more particularly locomotive engines
and has for its principal object to give the engineer or driver control over the admis-
sion of steam to the cylinder supplementary to that afforded by the ordinary slide
valves.
The invention consists principally in the employment of plug cocks mounted
in the steam passages of the cylinder adapted to admit steam at one end of the
cylinder only and to connect the other end of the cylinder with the exhaust.
The plugs are formed with cutaway portions to conform to the shape of the
steam passages so that the plugs can be turned to fully open the passage and
permit steam to pass into the ends of the cylinder from the steam chest when the
port is uncovered by the slide valve, the plugs being however capable of being
turned so as to close the passages and connect them with the exhaust.
The outer ends of the plugs carry arms connected by a link and provided with
a rod which in the case of a locomotive extends to the cab so as to permit the
driver to change the position of the plugs whenever desired singly or collectively,
the said plugs being so arranged relatively to one another that when one plug
closes the other plug opens if desired to the exhaust.
Dated this 10th day of March 1896.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.
I, ROBERT DUE KNIGHT of Vinita, Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory,
United States of America, Builder, 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 :-
This invention relates to steam engines and more particularly locomotive engines
and has for its principal object to give the engineer or driver control over the
admission of steam to the cylinder supplementary to that afforded by the ordinary
slide valves.
The invention consists principally in the employment of plug cocks mounted in
the steam passages of the cylinder adapted to admit steam at one end of the
cylinder only and to connect the other end of the cylinder with the exhaust.
The invention also consists of certain parts and details and combinations of

page_text: the same, as will be fully described hereinafter and then pointed out in the
claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in both the figures.
Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the improvement; and
Figure 2 is a sectional plan view of the same, on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.
The improved engine is provided with a cylinder A, in which reciprocates the
piston B connected by the piston rod C, with the usual driving mechanism. The
cylinder A is connected by the usual ports a and b with a steam chest D, in which
operates the slide valve E, connected by a valve stem F with the eccentrics or
other mechanism, to impart the necessary motion to the said slide valve, to
alternately open and close the said ports a and b to the steam chest D in the usual
manner.
In the ports a and b are arranged the plugs G, G₁, formed with cut out
portions G and G³ to conform to the shape of the said ports, so that the plugs
can be turned to fully open the ports a and b and permit steam to enter the ends of
the cylinder from the steam chest D, whenever the valve E is in a corresponding
position. The plugs G and G, can, however, be turned so as to close the ports a
and b to the steam chest D, and to connect the said ports by additional ports d and e
respectively, with the exhaust c, as is plainly indicated in Figure 1.
The outer ends of the plugs G and G³¹ are provided with arms H and H'
respectively, connected with each other by a link H2, and connected by a rod I
with the cab of the locomotive, so arranged as to permit the driver to change the
position of the plugs whenever desired, it being understood that the said plugs
are so arranged relatively to one another, that when one plug closes its port the
other plug opens its port, when desired, and connects it with the exhaust, as
previously described.
When the several parts are in the position illustrated in Figure 1, the plug G
closes the port a to the steam chest D and connects the port a with the port d and
the exhaust c. The other port b is closed to the port e, but is open to the steam
chest D, so that the motive agent can pass from the steam chest through the
port 6 into the right hand end of the cylinder A, and drive the piston B therein
forward in the direction of the arrow a¹."
The admission of steam to the port is governed in the usual manner by the
slide valve E, so that a forward impulse is given to the piston B, that is, during
the time the wrist pin of the driving wheel passes forward or backward, while
during the return stroke of the piston B, that is, while the wrist pin passes
between the axle and rail, the cylinder runs empty. The air in the front of the
piston B is expelled through the ports a, d and c, so that there is no back pressure
in the cylinder, and on the return stroke of the piston, air is again drawn into
the cylinder through the said ports.
When the locomotive is to run backward, the driver by manipulating the rod I,
shifts the position of the plugs G and G¹, so as to open the port a to the steam
chest D, and to close the port 6 by the plug G₁ to the steam chest, and at the
same time connect the ports 6 and e with each other to permit air to pass freely
in or out of the cylinder. By the arrangement described, the steam is only used
in one end of the cylinder during either the forward or backward run of the
locomotive, and consequently the steam thus employed is utilized to the fullest
advantage and no steam is wasted during the return stroke of the piston by
full backward pressure on the driving wheels.
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-
1. An engine, provided with plugs mounted in the cylinder ports, to open or
close the latter at the will of the driver to admit steem to one end of the

page_text: cylinder only and to connect the other cylinder end with the open air, substantially
as shown and described.
2. An engine, comprising a cylinder connected by ports with the steam chest, a
piston in the cylinder, a slide valve in the said steam chest for controlling the said
perts, and plugs mounted to turn in the said ports and adapted to open or close
the latter and to connect the same by auxiliary ports with the exhaust, substantially
as shown and described.
3. An engine, comprising a cylinder connected by ports with the steam chest, a
piston in the cylinder, a slide valve in the said steam chest for controlling the said
ports, plugs mounted to turn in the said ports, and adapted to open or close the
latter and to connect the same by auxiliary ports with the exhaust, and means,
substantially as described for shifting the position of the said plugs from the cab.
of the locomotive, as set forth.
Dated this 10th day of December 1896.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
53 Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
53 Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.