Improvements in Explosion Engines.
Year: 1895

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section II of the Patents, &c., Act, 1883), as required
by the decision of the Comptroller General of the 10th day of August 1896.
Date of Application, 4th Apr., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 6th Jan., 1896-Accepted, 22nd Feb., 1895
Improvements in Explosion Engines.
I, FREDERICK CHARLES SOUTHWELL, of Dudley House, Grantham, in the
County of Lincoln, Mechanical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this.
invention to be as follows:--
My invention relates to engines operated by the explosion of mixtures of hydro-
carbon vapour and air, and in which the ignition of such mixtures is effected
either with or without an ignition tube.
In most spontaneous combustion motors the heat attained by the vaporizer is
such as to necessitate a moderately low compression and therefore a low mean
pressure. To obviate this I employ a water-jacketted combustion chamber with
or without a contracted neck open to the cylinder, or, if desired, I may arrange
that the air for the explosive mixtures should be drawn through the jacket:
At a suitable angle to the combused chamber, preferentially at right angles, on
the one side I place a vaporizing tube or pocket with or without a contracted neck
and on the other side opposite to the said pocket a nozzle through which the oil
enters. I sometimes arrange in conjunction with this nozzle another nozzle through
which air can be forced to inject the oil, thereby allowing an oil pump to be
dispensed with.
In practice I make use of an air-pump arranged in conjunction with the engine
governor, the valve for controlling the admission of oil to the vaporizer being
also arranged in conjunction with the governor whereby 1 regulate the amount of
oil admitted, each cycle at the same time regulating the air.
In a suitable arrangement for carrying out this part of my invention I connect
the air-pump and oil valve to a lever common to both and in connection with the
this lever I arrange an eccentric moved by the governor, which eccentric enables
the governor to vary the position of the fulcrum of the said lever relatively with
an operating cam. Or instead of an eccentric I may use spur gearing.
If desired I can also regulate the supply of the oil and air by mechanism
operated by hand in addition to the mechanism operated by the governor.
To start the engine I heat the vaporizing tube with a lump which I may continue
to use during working.
Doted the 4th day of April 1895.

page_text: .
Improvements in Explosion Engines.
I, FREDERICK CHARLES SOUTHWELL, of Dudley House, Grantham, in the
County of Lincoln, 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 relates to engines operated by the explosion of mixtures of hydro-
carbon vapour and air, and in which the ignition of such mixtures is effected with
or without an ignition tube.
In most spontaneous combustion motors the heat attained by the vaporizer is
such as to necessitate a moderately low compression and therefore a low mean
pressure. To obviate this I employ a water-jacketted combustion chamber, with
or without a contracted neck, open to the cylinder, or, if desired, I may arrange
that the air for the explosive mixtures should be drawn through the jacket.
At a suitable angle to the combustion chamber, preferentially at right angles, on
the one side I place a vaporizing tube or pocket with or without a contracted neck
and on the other side opposite to the said pocket a nozzle through which the oil
enters. I sometimes arrange in conjunction with this nozzle another nozzle
through which air can be forced to inject the oil, thereby allowing an oil pump
to be dispensed with.
In practice I make use of an air-pump arranged in conjunction with the engine
governor, the valve for controlling the admission of oil to the vaporizer being also
arranged in conjunction with the governor whereby I regulate the amount of oil
admitted each cycle, at the same time regulating the air.
In a suitable arrangement for carrying out this part of my invention I connect
the air-pump and oil valve to a lever common to both and in connection with this
lever I arrange an eccentric moved by the governor, which eccentric enables the
governor to vary the position of the fulcrum of the said lever relatively with an
operating cam. Or instead of an eccentric I may use spur-gearing.
If desired I can also regulate the supply of the oil and air by mechanism
operated by hand in addition to the mechanism operated by the governor.
To start the engine I heat the vaporizing tube with a lamp which I may continue
to use during working.
To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Figure 1 is a plan; and,
Figure 2 a side elevation of so much of an explosion engine as is necessary to
illustrate my invention:
Figure 3 is an end view of the cylinder and the parts immediately connected
therewith; and,
Figure 4 is a sectional plan drawn to an enlarged scale of the oil regulating
mechanism.
Figures 5, 6 and 7, are detail views.
a is the engine cylinder which is jacketted in the usual manner, and is the
combustion chamber which is attached to the end of the cylinder and provided
with a water jacket b' in order to prevent it from becoming overheated.
c is the nozzle through which the oil is delivered into the vaporizing chamber,
and d the vaporizing tube or pocket immediately opposite to the said nozzle, and
adapted to have the oil injected directly into it, the said tube or pocket being
· heated by means of a lamp or (after preliminary heating) by the heat due to
successive explosions. e is the nozzle though which air is forced in order to
drive the oil across the combustion chamber into the pocket d. The arrangement

page_text: of the said nozzle e relatively with the nozzle c will be readily understood by
reference to Figure 4, in which figure it will be noticed that a valve fis arranged
between the nozzles e aud c, the said valve being so arranged that it will open.
under the pressure behind it but close against its seat by each explosion.
The oil to be driven forward by the air current enters the space g around the
nozzle e through the passage
from the chamber i, which chamber is connected by
a pipe with an oil reservoir arranged at a sufficient height to cause the oil to flow
by gravity into the said chamber.
k is a valve which normally prevents the oil from passing out of the chamber i,
the said valve being held against its seat by a spring . This valve k is operated
from the side shaft m of the engine through the medium of the cam n and the
lever o provided with the roller o*, the said lever being pivoted at o' and having
its upper end o³ projecting into a recess o³ in a stirrup of secured to the stem of
the valve k; the arrangement being such that, when the lever o is operated by
the cam n, the valve k will be drawn away from its seat and allow the oil to flow
from the reservoir through the pipej to the chamber i and thence through the
passage into the space g, whence it is driven by the air current past the valve f
and through the nozzle c into the pocket d where, owing to the heat of the said
pocket, it will be vaporized and ignited.
The arrangement for enabling the governor to control the movements of the
valve k to allow more or less oil to pass according to the duty of the engine is as
follows:-
The fulcrum o¹ of the lever o is carried at one end of a bar p adapted to slide
in a guide p¹ on the governor bracket, the other end of the said bar being
connected to the strap p³ of an eccentric which is adapted to be rotated more or
Jess upon its axis uuder the action of the governor through the medium of a lever p¹,
Figure 1, whereby the bar p and consequently also the fulcrum o' of the lever o
will be moved more or less as the case may be. For instance, when the engine is
running at the normal speed, the roller o* will run in contact with the whole of
the periphery of the cam n as indicated in Figure 5. If, however, the speed of
the engine increases the governor will move the fulcrum o¹ and consequently the
roller ox to a greater or less extent from the cylindrical part of the cam n as
indicated in Figures 6 and 7, whereby less or more of the projecting part of the
cam will come into contact with the roller ox and operate upon it. Figure 6
indicates the governor as having moved the fulcrum of the lever o¹ so that the
cam n can only operate upon the roller ox to deliver about half the normal.
quantity of oil while Figure 7 indicates that the governor has moved the said.
fulcrum so that the roller ox is out of range of the said cam and consequently no.
oil is delivered.
The end o of the lever o does not fit between the ends of the recess o³ but.
has a certain amount of play or freedom therein so that it will be obvious that.
if the end o is against the outer end of the said recess o³ it will impart a
greater amount of movement to the valve k than if the said lever has to make a
certain part of its movement before it comes into contact with the outer end of
the recess.
g is a set-screw which is introduced into the outer end of the recess o³ and
serves to regulate the amount of play or freedom of the end o of the lever o,
the said end o* striking the said set-screw when the lever is operated by the
cam 7.
The compressed air for injecting the oil into the cylinder may be obtained from
a reservoir, a valve being opened at the required time to allow the air to escape.
In practice, however, I prefer to make use of a small air pump driven by the engine
and arranged in conjunction with the air supply valve in such a manner that the
pump will only deliver a quantity of air suitable for the quantity of oil being
introduced. indicates the air pump which is of ordinary construction and the
plunger of which is connected by a link to the lever o in such a manner that,
when the said lever is operated by the cam n to admit a charge of oil into the

page_text: cylinder, the air pump will be similarly operated to produce the necessary amount
of compressed air for injecting the oil.
By connecting the air pump to the lever o the action of the governor is also
utilized for regulating the supply of compressed air proportionately to the supply
of oil.
s is the pipe through which the air is delivered from the pump to the nozzle e.
t is the air inlet valve to the cylinder, which valve opens automatically under the
action of the suction during the outstroke of the piston, and u is the pipe through
which the exhaust escapes, the exhaust valve in connection with the said pipe
being operated by a cam u¹ on the shaft m through the medium of a lever u in a
manner which will be readily understood. In order that the air which enters the
combustion chamber through the valve t shall be more or less warmed, I advan-
tageously arrange around the exhaust pipe u a casing or jacket open at one end
to the atmosphere and at the other end connected with the air inlet valve t so that
the air drawn through the said valve has first of all to come into contact with the
heated exhaust pipe u.
In order to provide for regulating the supply of oil to the combustion chamber
independently of the governor, 1 arrange in the passage h the valve w shewn most
clearly in Figure 4.
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. In an explosion engine having a jacketted combustion chamber with an
unjacketted tube or pocket into which the hydrocarbon to be vaporized is injected,
an oil injection nozzle through which the oil is forced by means of air pressure,
substantially as described.
2. In an explosion engine having a jacketted combustion chamber and a nozzle
through which the oil to be vaporized is injected by air pressure, the combination
with the said injection nozzle of a valve for regulating the supply of oil thereto
and an air-pump for compressing the air for injecting the oil, the said oil valve
and air pump being operated by a cam driven by the engine and controlled by the
governor in such a manner that the quantity of compressed air delivered is
proportionate to the quantity of oil, substantially as described.
3. In an engine operated by the explosion of mixtures of combustible vapour
and air and in which the oil for the formation of the explosive mixture is forced
into the combustion chamber by air pressure, a double lever arranged in con-
junction with the oil supply valve and with a pump for compressing the air for
forcing the oil into the combustion chamber or a valve. for admitting the supply of
compressed air, the said double lever having its fulcrum arranged in conjunction
with the engine governor in such a manner that the said governor will vary the
position of the said fulcrum according to the supply of oil required and so that the
supply of compressed air shall be proportionate to the supply of oil, substantially
as described.
4. In an engine operated by the explosion of mixtures of combustible vapour
and air, an oil supply valve or pump the movement of which is made variable by
operating it through the medium of a lever the fulcrum of which is in connection
with the engine governor, substantially as described.
Datel L 1
ст.
1000
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.