US1179571A - Gas-regulator. - Google Patents

Description

1. F. SPERBER.

GAS REGULATOR.

APPucATloN FILED luLY 25,1914.

1, 179,57 l. Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

INVENTOR THE-COLUMNA PL'ANOGRAPH ca., WASHINGTON/17.1.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT orricE.

JOHN E. sPERBER', or NEW YORK, N. Y., AssIeNoR, BY

DIRECT AND MESNE" ASSIGN- MENTS, TIO AMERICAN eras` GOVERNOR WORKS, ING., or NEW YORK, N. Y., A

CORPORATION 0E NEWYORK-.f f

GAS-REGULATOR.

Specviilcatio'nv of Lettersl Patent. Patented Apr, 18, 1916.

Appiieamnsmed July 25, 1914. serial No. 853,208.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN F. SRERBER", av citizen of the United States of An'ieri'c'a,1 iesiding in the borough of Manhattan, clty, county, and State of New York, have' 1nvented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Regulators, of which thefollowing is a specification. i

My invention relates to ay regulator or governor for maintaining a uniform' and unvarying pressure upon` gas at the burners, notwithstanding luctuations in pressure'in the supply pipe, andv notwithstanding'vari'- ations in pressure in the service pipe, due to varying consumption at the burners, or to other causes. K

The object of my invention is to provide a gas pressure regulator which` shall be Sextremely sensitive in action and which may be readily adjusted to deliver gas at any desired'y pressure.

My invention consists in the provision ofv means for maintaining a uniform pressure in the service pipes notwithstanding fluctuations in pressure in the supply. Byl my invention also, upon a sudden drop in ypres'- sure in the service pipes, due to an increase in consumption, the volume of gas supplied through the meter is-increased withoutv any increase in the pressure.

A further object of my invention is to provide an improved construction of regu-` lator wherein the parts may be'ea'sily 'taken apart for the purpose of cleaning" the same;

Further objects of the invention will `appear as the description proceeds.

A desirable form in which my invention .may be embodied is illustrated in'y the ac'- companyingl drawing', wherein,-

Figure l is a central vertical section`r on the line 1-1, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a plan view partly in section thereof on the line 2 2 in Fig. l. y l l l The apparatus illustrated in theflaccompanying drawing comprises a base A having on the inlet or high pressure side, inlet pipes D, D leading to the inner or high pressure chamber a. A plurality of inlet pipes isc provided: to facilitate the connection tothe supply pipes. The outlet pipe E leadsfrom the-outer or low pressure chamber a". These chambers are .separated byv a partition I icarrying the valve seat z', which receives the main inlet valve Gr'.

y Above the base A is a sealing chamber which comprises a reservoir B adapted to receive the sealing liquid T, for which purpose mercury is usually employed. This is provided with a cover C, and to prevent the leakage -of the sealing liquid during the handling of the device, I prefer to provide the reservoir and cover with shoulders b, c forming a` species of tongue-and-groove connectiony between the two. y The said cover is then secured to the reservoir by bolts passing through flanges in each of the parts, as illustrated. Reservoir B has a dome b" formed therein, whereby outer and inner channels t, t are formed, and these receive the outer and inner floats J, K. A passage b2 is provided between the said channels for the purpose of permitting the insertion of the sealing liquid therein. I have illustrated the outer and inner floats as being concentrically arranged, which is my preferred construction, and these are supported upon they stem Ffof the main valve G, whereon they are held in adjusted position by locknuts j, k. A hood U is supported upon this stem and carries the usual weights L, of which any number may be provided, according to the pressure desired. These are inserted through an. opening in the cover C, which is closed by a screw-cap R, this being made removable for the purpose of changing the said weights as desired, and preferably being held in place by suitable means such as thepad-lock r, whereby interference with the device is prevented.

To prevent the'loss of the mercury in handlingthe regulator, the usual vent hole S is provided with an inwardly extending tubular sleeve S1', so that upon inversion of the apparatus the mercury will not flow out of the vent, but will be prevented by the said` is provided between the ini should cease, the increase in pressure will"- cause the float J to be lifted, causing the `main valve G to close or substantially so,

and at the Sametime anauxiliary valve' H1 which is adjustably held in place upon the the outer float J.- The said passage comprises a tube M, part yof which may bemain' valve stem Fby lock-nuts h1, 7L? will likewiselbe raised'and ,willsubstantially close the inner passage, wherebyvblowing out of the mercury in the sealing chamber will be prevented. A corresponding outer-'pase sage-M leads from the outer chamber a1 to formed integral with the mercury holder B,

and which will haveits upper end above the normal level of mercury in the said mercury holder, and part `of which may be formed asan extension of the said tube and threaded into the base A. Y

`An important feature of my invention consists in the provision of means whereby the pressure may be maintained Constantin the service pipes, whether or not thereis ak sudden increase in the supply pipe pressure ora sudden drop in pressure inthe service pipes, due to an increase in consumption at the burners. This feature of my invention' l is accomplished by the provision ofvmeans vkso lwhereby a sudden inflow of gas is prevented,

from affecting the pressure in the outer oat J. The said means as illustrated, comprises v an auxiliary valve H which may be formed,

- valve H, and is there `provided duced bearing 0K1. Thereby, as the valve stem F falls upon a sudden drop of pressure, the main valve G opens, 'and at the sametimevthe auxiliary valve H is rai'sedto its` working position substantially as shown in Fig. l, in which closes the bottom of the tube M and protects it from the flow of the increased volume of gas coming in, and prevents any substantial` increase of pressure in the outer float J. I prefer to provide means for guiding the said auxiliary valve H, and such means as illustrated comprisea stem extension H2 upon the said auxiliary valve H which is received in a short guiding tube P that is mounted in the said base plate V. A set screw Q is threaded in tube P and provides an adjustable stop for stem H2. A lock-nut Q maintains the said screw Q in adjusted position. ,p A second auxiliary valve H is mounted so as to close the inner passage N upon a sudden increase 1n pressure, and` as illusment l of the lock-nuts `likev'vise,'provided for adjusting the lmain withl a reposition it substantially trated, such valve is supported directly upon the main valve stem F, and is capable of being adjusted in position thereon and held in such adjusted position by suitable adjustb, 71,2;w Means 'are valve G in position and for holding it in position, comprising the nut g.

wAn important feature of my invention is t the provision of the auxiliary valve H or some lequivalent means for checking the increase in pressure inthe outer float J upon the increase in flow of gas through the regulator, and by means of this apparatus the pressure of gas is maintainedat a substantially uniform point, irrespective of variations in the consumption. In actual prac tice the invention has been found to maintain-substantially unvarying pressure in gas inthe service ing demand.

In the operation of myv inventionr the gas enters the inlet or high pressure chamber a through either inlet indicated in the vdrawings as D or D, and passes upwardzthrough the passage N into the inner float K, and at the same time through the main valve G, and` fills the service pipes ready for consumption. The surplus gas then passes upward through the auxiliary valve H into the outside float. This causes both floats to rise and move the main valve toward the closing position, and with it the auxiliary valve H which is maintained rigidly on the main valvespindle. By this action the balance bar O is released and the auxiliary valve H drops byits weight into its guiding socket P where it rests upon the adjustable screw Q and the entra-nce tothe outer passage M is fully open and both the floats are a-vailable to regulate the pressure. During the operation of the device the lower edge of the inner and outer floats will be at all times immersed in the mercury in the sealing chambers .25, z5. If the pressure of the incoming gas upon the floats exceeds the weight vof the floats together with the adjusting weights L, both floats will be raised suiiiciently to restrict the opening in the main valve seatl Vso as to allow only a proper flow of gas pipe in the presencey of a vary-i therethrough. The number and sizes of the adjusting weights L may be varied as re-' quired.` The gas from the outer gas chamber a will pass up through the outer tube Minto'the outer float J, and act upon the said float, thereby controlling the pressure unvaryingly at all times, witheconomy. If the system is working under a normal demand and the inlet valve is adjusted. to meet thisdemand and there should follow a sudden and large increase in consumption of gas, requiring a largely increased volume'of supply, this will causea sudden release of pressure in the service pipes and in the regu- A later, which` will cause the vfloats to drop,

' apparatus were not provided with the auX- iliary valve H, would befto 'cause an increasein pressure in both the` inner and outer floats, which would tend to raise thev said floats and partially closey the main valve, which would produce a-'fluct'uating pressure and irregular operation at the burners. By the provision', however, of the auxiliary valve H, I cause the tube leading toA the outer float to be partially closed when the main valve'G opens, and thereby the inrush of gask causedby the said opening of the main valve will be deflected away from the bottom of the outer tube M, and will not affect the pressure in theouter float J, which will be less than that in the inner float K.V This will cause the floats to be maintained at a lower level and will consequently increase the supply of gas entering into the main valve. At the Ysame time the weights L will maintain the uniform and desired pressure in the service pipes. It will therefore be seen that broadly speaking,l my invention contemplates the provision of means whereby at desired times oneor the other of the floats will be relieved of the pressure of gas, so that while the pressure upon the gasin the' servicey pipes is maintained at a uniforml and desired amount, the volume of gas entering through the inlet will be much larger, owing tothe fact that but one of the floats receives the pressure of the incoming gas.

By supply pipes I refer to the pipes on the supply side of the regulator, and by service pipes I refer to the pipes on the consumption side of the regulator. The inner float is that on' the supply side, and accordingly I have termed the corresponding chamber in the regulator as the inner chamber, and the passage connecting the two as' the inner passage. The corresponding float, chamber andv passage on the consumption side, I have termed the outer members.

A valuable feature of my invention is that whenever gas is used under forced draft (air pressure), the air in the air supply pipes which frequently backs into the gas supply pipes 4will cause the floats to rise and close the main valvetight, thus preventing'a breakr of the gas meter and anl explosion which consequently would follow. Another important feature of my inventio-n and a valuable safeguard is that an impulsive extremely high pressure on the inlet side of the regulator will immediately close both the main` valve and the auxiliary valve H, thus preventing the mercury sealfrom being forced out of the channels of the floatholder B, thereby unsealing the regulator.

Although I have illustrated a plurality of inlet passages DQ'D, these are ,provided for" the purpose of convenience and.l to enablerthe mechanic to easily make connections in the most convenient manner, and it is not desiredy to vemploy more than one of the said passages, and the other one will be sealedup.

I have illustrated' in they accompanying drawings, and have described in the fo-regoing description, the preferred manner of constructing myga's regulator, which is the best nowknown` to me, but it is' within the skill ofthe gasengineer to modify the same and employrequivalent constructions without departingy from the real scope of my invention within the limits of the appended claims.

' What I claiml is:

` l. fluidi pressure regulator comprising an inlet pipe, a partition therein dividing thesame into high and low pressure chambers, sai/d partition havingv an inlet port, a main valve adapted to close said port, a sealing chamber communicating with said high pressure y chamber, and a sealing chamber communicating with said low pressure chamber, and a lvalve adapted to restrict said last named communication adapted to operate oppositely to saidmain valve.

'2. Ingav gas regulator, a gas supply pipe, a main ,valveY therein, aL sealing chamber', floats therein 'connected to said valve; passages connecting said floats and the,outlet and inlet sides ofthev supply pipe respectively, and an auxiliary valve adapted toA restrict the passage to the outlet float, and means for closing same as the main valve opens.

3. In a gas regulator, a gas supply pipe, a main valve therein, a sealing chamber, floats therein connected to said valve; passages connecting said floats and the outlet and inlet sides of the supply pipe respectively, and an auxiliary valve adaptedl to restrict the passage to the outlet float operated by the main valve and adapted to restrict said passage as the mainvalve opens.

LA fluid pressure regulator having a high pressure chamber communicating with the supply pipe, and a low pressure chamber communicating with the service pipe, av sealing chamber containing passages connecting one float to the high pressure chamber and the other float to the' low pressure chamber: a main valve controlling a passage between said chambers and operated by said floats, and an `auxiliary valve controlling the passage to the outer float, and means whereby said auxiliary valve isadapted to` restrict said passage as the mainv valve opens.

5,.y A fluid pressure regulator having a high pressure chamber communicating with the supply pipe, andl a low pressure chamber communicating with the service pipe, a sealing 'chamber' containing outer and inner floats, passages connecting vthe inner float to the high .pressure` chamber and the outer ,float tothe lowvpressure chamber.; a ,mam

' valve controlling a passage between said .floats, inner and outer passages between Said chambers and operated by said floats, and

` an auxiliary valve controlling the passage to the outer float, anda second auxiliary valve adapted to restrict the passage vtothe inner y.float as themain valve closes. l

6. A gas regulator provided with highv and vlow pressure Achambers communicating respectively with the supply and serviceV pipes, a main valve controllingan inlet passage betweensaid chambers, asealing cham,

ber, inner and outer floats therein, and passages connecting said high andlow pressure chambers with ,saidv inner and outer `floats respectively; means whereby upon a sudden release in pressure in the low pressure chamber, the main valve 1s opened and the passage connecting `the outer float tothe lowV pressure chamber is restricted.

7. A gas regulator provided with high and low pressure chambers communicating respectively with ythe supply and service pipes, a main valve controlling an 'inlet passage between lsaid chambers, a sealing chamber, inner and outer floats therein, 'and passages connecting said high and low pressure chambers with saidkinner and outer floats respectively; a device for restricting the passage from the low pressure chamberto the outer float adapted for operation upon an opening of the main valve,"whereby upon a sudden drop in pressure inthe low pressure side, the main valve is opened to increase the supply, and means whereby the outer fioat is shielded from the increased pressure due to such increased supply and the volume is increasedy while the pressure is maintained. l

8. A gas regulator, comprising inner and outer chambers, a main Valve separating said chambers, a sealing. chamberhaving inner and outer floats, means whereby said main valve is controlled by the movement of said inner and outer chambers and the corresponding iioats respectively, an auxiliary valve on said valve stem adapted to restrict the inner passage as the pressure in the inner chamber rises, and an auxiliary valve adapted to restrict the outer passage as the pressure in theouter chamber drops. y

9. In a gas regulator, a main gas inlet jvalve, a float having separate gas receiving receptacles controlling the same, and passages leading to each receptacle,` a device adapted to operate in vopposition to the main valve, said device adapted to restrict one of said passages as the main valve opens, Whereby upon a drop in pressure in the service side of the regulator and a consequent opening of the main valve and increase in the volume of gas admitted, a passage leading to one of the floats will'be restricted and a portion of the float will be shielded from an increase in pressure from the increased flo-w,

whereby the controlling v@,Jlfect of thefloat will be diminished. c .y 10,r gas regulator, having inner and outer chambers, a sealing chamber, inner and outer floats therein, i'nner'nand outer passages connecting said respective inner and outer chambers and iioats,jamain valve controlling an inlet/passage between said inner and `outer chambers, a stem therefor supporting said floats, a sealing liquidfor said lloats, an auxiliary valve adapted to restrict the outer passage as the floats dro-p, and an auxiliaryv valve adapted to restrict the inner passage as the oatsrise.

. 11.` A a gas regulator having inner and outer chambers, a sealing chamber containing inner and outer floats therein, inner and outer passages connecting said respectiveinnery and outercchambers and floats, a' main valve controlling an inlet passage between said inner and outer chambers, a stem therefor supporting said floats, a sealing liquid for said floats, an auxiliary valve ladapted to restrict the outer passage as the floats drop, and means for operating said valve lcomprising a pivoted'bar interposed between said main valve and said auxiliary valve,

and adapted to move said valve toward its closing position as the mainvalveopens.

12. A gas regulator having inner and outer chambers, a sealing chamber, inner and outer i floats therein', a tube connecting said outer float to said outer chamber, a connection be-` tween the inner chamberand inner float, a main valve controlling an inlet passage between said inner and vouter. chambers, ka stem therefor supporting said floats, a sealing liquid for 'said.floats, an auxiliary valve of' cup shape underlying said tube and adapted tomove toward they same and tending to close the entrance `to said tube as the floats rise, and means for operating said valve comprising a bar pivotally mountedY in saidv regulator, one 'end of which' is adjacent to the vmain valve or itsy parts, and the other end "is 'adjacent to said auxiliary valve.

valve controlling a port leading from one to the other of said chambers, a sealing chamber communicating with the high `pressure chambenvand a sealing chamber communihigh and lowv pressure chambers, a mam c eating with the low pressure chamber, and signed my name in the presence of two suba valve adapted. to restrict said last named serbing witnesses.

communication said valve adapted to be operated n co-njuncton with, but in opposi- JOHN F' SPERBER' tion to, the main valve, whereby said Valve Wltnesses.:

is closed as the main valve opens. THOMAS F. WALLACE,

In witness whereof, I have hereunto FRED WHITE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

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