US1214192A - Hydraulic ram - Google Patents

Description

J. E. LESTER.

HYDRAULIC RAM.

ARPL'ICATION FILED SEPT-13,,I9l5.

1,214,192. I Patented Jan.30,1917.

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JOHN E. LESTER, OF TACOMA, WASHINGTON.

HYDRAULIC RAM.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JoHN EMERY Lns'rnn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Tacoma, in thecounty of Pierce and State of IVashin'gton, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hy draulicRams, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to hydraulic rams, and it is the object thereof to provide a simple, efficient and durable ram mechanism, particularly adapted for operation under low driving heads, and for elevating large volumes of water to moderate elevations, as for irrigation purposes.

My invention relates particularly to the valve structure of the ram, and provides a waste-valve adapted to close' a horizontal passage, and at closed position to deflect the moving current of water toward the delivery-valve with aminimum loss of velocity.

A further object of my invention is to provide means for adjusting the mechanism to vary the rate of operation thereof, and means for cushioning. the movement of the valve counterweight at the end of the sudden closing movement.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a mechanism embodying my invention, Fig. 2 is a partial rear end viewthereof, portions being in transv'erse vertical section, Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken through the air-chamber, Fig. 4 is a detail transverse vertical section on the plane of the line mm of Fig. 1, Fig. 5 is a detail end view of the cushioned counterweight, and Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are diagrammatic longitudinal sectional views illustrating the operation of the mechanism.

In the illustrated embodiment of my invention I provide a rectangular valve-casing formed by side-plates 1, a bottom-plate 2 and a top-plate 3, preferably secured together along the corners by connecting angle-bars 4 and 5 riveted thereto, as shown. At the front end of the casing a flanged plate 6 is secured thereto, the same having at its lower edge laterally projecting foot-lugs 7 for attachment to a suitable base or foundation for the ram. The drive-pipe or supply pipe 8, through which water is supplied to the valve-chamber, is connected with the plate 6 by suitable bolts, the diameter of the pipe and of the opening through the plate being the same as the width of the valve- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 30, 1917.

Application filed September 13, 1915. Serial No. 50,486.

cross-section and made of suitable yieldable material. Said channel-ring surrounds an opening in the plate 3, through which water enters the air-chamber from the valvechamher, the opening being normally closed by the delivery-valvelt. The deliveryvalve co1nprises a circular plate having beveled edges which rest normally upon the seat-ring 13. On the upper side of the valve plate 14, at the center thereof, are a pair of standards 15, and a similar pair of standards 16 are mounted on the plate 3 behind the channelring 12. A double pair of parallel vertically-spaced arms 17 have their ends pivotally connected with the standards 15 and 16, and said arms by swinging about their pivots on the standards 16, permit" the valve 14: to raise freely off its seat, but hold it constantly in a horizontal position, as will appear from the positionsthereof indicated in Fig. 1.

Adjacent to the rearward edge of the delivery-valve opening through the plate 3, a shaft 18 extends transversely through the casing, the ends-of the shaft being supported bythe side-plates 1. Said shaft 18 forms a pivotal support for the waste-valve, which comprises a flat rectangular plate 19 of which one edge-portion 20 is curled around the shaft 18, and the opposite edge is bent to form a transversely-extending angular lip 21. On the side-plates 1 are secured angularly-extending plates 22, and on the bottom-plate 2 is secured a transverse bar 23, said plates and bar forming abutments for the edges of the waste-valve when the same is in closed position. An anglebar 2% extends transversely beneath the plate 3 behind the valve-shaft 18, contacting with the curled cylindrical portion 20 and forming a joint therewith. To the lower side of the valve-plate 19 is secured the end of an arm 25 which extends rearwardly therefrom and carries a counterweight which is adjustable longitudinally of the arm. The counterweight comprises a T-shaped body 26 which fits slidably on the bar and is held in variable relations thereto by a set-screw 27, and a main body 28 which rests normally on top of the T-shaped bodyl Studs 29 extend down from the body 28 through the lateral flanges of the T-body, and springs 30 are disposed around the studs between the heads thereof and the flanges, so that by compression of the springs the body 28 may be raised relatively to the body 26. The counterweight is so arranged that it 'will tend to swing the valve about the axis of the shaft 18 to a horizontal raised or open position, such as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. At this position the'mov'ement is limited by a stopscrew 31 carried by a plate 32 which is secured to the base or foundation on which the ram is mounted. The open or raised position of the valve may be varied by suitable adjustments of the stop-screw, so that the lip 21 of the valve will extend down more or less below the upper edge of the opening to the valve-chamber from the drive-pipe 8.

In the operation of the ram, when the waste-valve is in open position the Water from the pipe 8 flows freely through the valve-chamber, being only very slightly retarded by impinging on the inclined lip 21 at the front edge of the valve. The counterweight is so adjusted, however, that when the current reaches a certain velocity the force of the water striking the lip '21 will be suflicient to start a downward swinging movement of the valve toward the closed position thereof. After the begin ning of the movement of the valve toward closed position it will pass to said position at substantially the same velocity as that of the watercurrent flowing through the casing, since the valve will intercept a greater part of the current and will be more powerfully actuated thereby the nearer it approaches the closed position, as will be apparent from Fig. 6 of the drawings, wherein the valve is shown at an intermediate position assumed during the closing movement. As the waste-valve reaches the closed position shown in Fig. 7, the current is deflected upwardly thereby against the delivery-valve 14:, and the fam'iliar ram effect of the moving mass of water in the supply pipe 8 produces a pressure sufiicient to open the delivery-valve so that a part of the water will pass up into the air-chamber, thence flowing through the pipe 11. to any desired place. As the water in the pipe 8 comes to rest the deliveryvalve closes, and a reaction occurs during which the counterweight descends and the waste-valve swings up to the open position.

By adjusting the screw 31 to vary the open position of the valve, the rate of operation of themechanism is controlled, since the farther the lip 21 projects down into the path of the water current the less velocity of, flow will be required to start the closing movement of the valve.

During the closing of the waste-valve, and especially toward-the end of the movement, the counterweight is moved upward quite rapidly, and "at'the end of the closing movement, when the valve strikes the abut nients formed by the parts 22 and 23, this movement o'f the counterweight is suddenly checked. At this time the springs 30, by permitting a slight additional movement of the main body of the counterweight, have a cushioning effect and serve to prevent undue stress upon the arm 25, which might result in bending or breaking the same.

From the foregoing it will be seen that my invention provides a simple, positive and durable ram mechanism, adapted to operate under a very low head of water, and capable of working with a maximum efiiciency owing to the completely unrestricted flow permitted when the waste-valve is open, and the very slight retardation of flow to the delivery-valve when the wastevalve is closed.

Now, having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a hydraulic ram, a supply pipe, a casing connected therewith and having a direct horizontal passage alined with the supply pipe, a waste-valve pivotally mounted in the casing and swingable from an open position substantially parallel with thehorizontal passage to a closed position extending angularly across said passage, a delivery-valve controlling a lateral outlet from the horizontal passage adjacent to that edge of the waste-valve which is farthest from the supply pipe, and means connected with the waste-valve and tending to swing the same toward the open position thereof.

2. In a hydraulic ram, a waste-valve pivoted on a horizontal axis and swingable from a horizontal open position to an in clined closed position, a counterweight connected with the valve and tending to swing the same toward the horizontal open posi tion, the valve at the closed position intercepting angularly a horizontal passage, and a part integral with the swinging edge of the valve and projecting partially into said passage when the valve is open, whereby a current through the passage will tend to close the valve.

3. In a hydraulic ram, a casing, a supply pipe connected therewith, a waste-valve pivotally mounted in the casing and adapted to close an outlet therefrom, a counterweight connected with the valve and tending to swing the same from the closed position toward the supply pipe to an open position, a lip on the valve adapted to extend partially in front of the supply pipe opening when the valve is in open position, and means for adjusting the open position of the valve to vary the extent to which said lip may intercept the flow of water from the supply pipe.

4. In a hydraulic ram, a valve-casing having a horizontal substantially unobstructed passage through the same, a supply pipe connected with the casing at one end of the horizontal passage, the casing having a valved delivery-passage opening laterally from the horizontal passage, a waste-valve pivotally mounted on an axis extending near the edge of the delivery-passage remote from the supply pipe, means normally holding said valve in an open position substantially parallel with the horizontal passage, a lip on the valve adapted for engagement by a water-current flowing through the horizontal passage to swing the valve from the open position to a position intercepting the passage, and abutments on the casing for stopping the valve at a closed position adapted to deflect the water-current copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the from the supply pipe toward the delivery passage.

5. In a hydraulic ram, a valve-casing having a horizontal substantially unobstructed passage through the same and a valved delivery-passage opening from the upper side of the horizontal passage, a supply pipe connected-with the casing at one end of the horizontal passage, a waste-valve pivoted on a transverse horizontal aXis near the edge of the delivery-passage remote from the supply pipe, said valve being swingable about said axis from an inclined closed position at which it intercepts the horizontal passage to a. horizontal open position ad joining the delivery-passage, a counterweigllt connected ,with the valve and adapted to move the same from closed to open position, the valve having an angular lipportion projecting near the end of the supply pipe when the valve is in open position, and a variable stop for adjusting the open position of the valve to increase and decrease the extent to which the lip projects into the path of a water-current from the supply pipe.

J. E. LESTER.

Commissioner of ilatentl,

Washington, D. G.

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