Thompson Steam Engine Indicator Patent Model
date: label: date made
content: 1883
notes: label: Description
content: This indicator was made by the American Steam Gauge Co., of Boston. It is marked “J. W. Thompson Pat. August 31, ’75 Pat. June 26, 1883, N. 4302.”
label: Description
content: In this indicator the piston rod is hollow and serves only as a guide for the piston. The pencil mechanism is connected to the piston by a very light rod that passes through the piston rod and is attached to the piston with a swivel joint. This permits the use of a very simple and light parallel motion.
label: Description
content: The piston is a light cylindrical shell provided with three grooves that collect moisture and steam to lubricate and seal the piston. The inner wall of the cylinder is a liner separate from and secured to the inclosing cylinder only at one end so that it is free to expand and contract with temperature changes, thus avoiding distortion.*
label: Description
content: An engine indicator is an instrument for graphically recording the pressure versus piston displacement through an engine stroke cycle. Engineers use the resulting diagram to check the design and performance of the engine.
label: Description
content: A mechanical indicator consists of a piston, spring, stylus, and recording system. The gas pressure of the cylinder deflects the piston and pushes against the spring, creating a linear relationship between the gas pressure and the deflection of the piston against the spring. The deflection is recorded by the stylus on a rotating drum that is connected to the piston. Most indicators incorporate a mechanical linkage to amplify the movement of the piston to increase the scale of the record.
label: Description
content: When the ratio of the frequency of the pressure variation to the natural frequency of the system is small, then the dynamic deflection is equal to the static deflection. To design a system with a high natural frequency, the mass of the piston, spring, stylus, and mechanical linkage must be small, but the stiffness of the spring must be high. The indicator is subjected to high temperatures and pressures and rapid oscillations, imposing a limitation on the reduction in mass. Too stiff a spring will result in a small displacement of the indicator piston and a record too small to measure with accuracy. Multiplication of the displacement will introduce mechanical ad dynamic errors.
label: Description
content: The parameters of the problem for designing an accurate and trouble free recorder are such that there is no easy or simple solution. Studying the variety of indicators in the collection shows how different inventors made different compromises in their designs.
label: Description
content: *Reference:
label: Description
content: This description comes from the 1939 Catalog of the Mechanical Collections of the Division of Engineering United States Museum Bulletin 173 by Frank A. Taylor.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Ohio
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Mechanical and Civil Engineering
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content: Bulletin 173
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content: Engineering, Building, and Architecture
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content: Work
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content: Industry & Manufacturing
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content: Indicators
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Frank A. Taylor. Catalog of the Mechanical Collections of the Division of Engineering United States National Museum, Bulletin 173
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: GIft of Mr. N. C. Hunt, Salem, Ohio
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MC.309644
label: catalog number
content: 309644
label: accession number
content: 106567
label: patent number
content: 4,302
objectType: label: Object Name
content: indicator, steam engine
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (base material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 10 1/4 in x 7 1/8 in; 26.035 cm x 18.0975 cm