US2152501A - Gas fuel regulator - Google Patents

Description

March 28, 1939. c. L. ROBINSON 2,152,501

' GAS FUEL REGULATOR Filed Dec. 17, 1937 A lad/0 FUEL INVENTOR. 11L. HUBINEUN Patented Mar. 28, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GAS FUEL REGULATOR 8 Claims.

The principal object of my invention is to provide a gas fuel regulator for utilizing dry gas in an internal combustion motor that is timed and actuated by the crank shaft of the motor.

A further object of this invention is to provide a gas fuel regulator for use with butane-propane or like gas as fuel for internal combustion motors that prevents loss of the gas when the motor is not in operation.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a gas fuel regulator for use with tank gas under pressure that sprays oil into the gas flow for the lubrication of the engine or motor and which shuts off the supply of gas when the motor is stopped.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a gas fuel regulator that is economical in manufacture, durable and efficient in use.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims .and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. l is a side sectional view of my gas fuel regulator mounted on an internal combustion motor and ready for use.

Fig. 2 is a top sectional view of my gas fuel regulator taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a side sectional view of the throttle shut-off valve more fully illustrating its construction.

It is often desired to convert internal combustion motors in order that they may use as fuel a dry gas such as butane-propane instead of liquid fuel as their fuel sup-ply. This conversion requires the use of a regulator in order to admit a pre-determined amount of the dry gas under pressure to the dry gas carburetor of the internal combustion motor. 'Heretofore, this has been accomplished by the use of complicated diaphragm and vacuum pressure regulators. These regulators have several serious disadvantages in that they are not uniform in their delivery of fuel and need to be delicately balanced in order to deliver the required amount of fuel at specific intervals. This makes necessary, in multiple cylinder motors the. use of separate regulators for each cylinder, in order that the vacuum of the manifold and cylinder displacement be utilized for the admission .of gas to the motor. Furthermore, they are susceptible to leakage and due p to the delicate nature of their construction, must be frequently adjusted. I have overcome such disadvantages as will be appreciated and as hereinafter more fully set forth.

Referring to the drawing, I have used the numeral H) to designate an ordinary internal combustion motor having incorporated therein the ordinary dry gas carburetor II as shown in the drawing.

I have used the numeral l2 to designate the crank shaft of the internal combustion motor IQ having rigidly secured thereto a cam l3. It is to such an internal combustion motor combination that my device is adaptable and which I will now describe.

I have used the numeral I4 to designate the housing of my device having therein an intake chamber which is in communication through a pipe l5 with a suitable source of dry gas under pressure and which ordinarily is released into the pipe it through the common type of pressure governor. As is well known, the governor on these ordinary tanks can be pre-setrto deliver any amount of pressure desired through its outlet pipe. I have used the numeral I! to designate a secondary chamber. The numeral 58 designates a valve imposed between the inlet chamber l5 and the secondary chamber ll. This valve has integrally formed on itslower portion a sleeve I9. I have used the numeral 26 to designate a push rod slidably mounted through the lower portion of the housing l4 and having its upper end slidably mounted within the sleeve 19 of the valve 18. The numeral 2| indicates slot openings in the sleeve !9. I have used the numeral 22 to designate a pin extending through the upper end of the push rod 20 and projecting through the slots 2| of the sleeve l9 as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing. This pin 22 is for the purpose of limiting the sliding movement of the push rod 20 relative to the valve l8 and its attendant sleeve 19. The numeral 23 designates a coil compression spring within the sleeve [9 and imposed between the upper inside end of the sleeve l9 and the upper end of the push rod 20 for yieldingly holding the valve assembly in an upward position relative to the push rod 20.

I have used the numeral 24 to designate a compression spring imposed between the upper face of the valve l8 and the top or cover of the housing I4 for yieldingly holding the valve IS in a closed position. I have used the numeral 25 to designate a roller rotatably mounted on the lower end of the push rod 25 adjacent the cam I3. I have used the numeral 26 to designate the outlet chamber of my gas fuel regulator separated from the inlet chamber l5 and in communication with the secondary chamber IT at times through a valve seat ii. I have used the numeral 28 to designate a valve slidably mounted in the housing M as shown in the drawing. The numeral 29 designates a compression spring about the valve stem 28 for yieldingly holding the valve stem in a closed position on the seat 21.

The numeral .30 designates a valve actuating arm pivotally secured within the housing I4 and having a fork 3| on its end closest to the pivot point of the arm 30 loosely embracing the push rod 20. The numeral 32 designates a shoulder formed on the push rod 20 and in engagement with the ends of the fork 3| as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing. The other end of this lever 30 is in operative contact with the valve stem of the valve 28; thus the movements of the push rod 2|] are transmitted to actuate the valve 28. Ihave used the numeral 33 to designate the oil inlet in communication with a suitable source of fine oil under pressure. The oil admitted through the pipe 33 is conducted into the chamber and thence released at times through a valve 34 and a spray nozzle 35 into the chamber 26. This valve 34 is actuated by the arm 30 at the same time the valve 28 is actuated, thus admitting oil into the chamber 26 to mix with the dry gas and be carried into a carburetor and thence into the motor I6.

I have used the numeral 36 to designate an outlet pipe having one end in communication with the outlet chamber 26 of the gas regulator and its other end in communication with an ordinary dry gas carburetor II. This carburetor II has the ordinary'throttle rod 31 thereon for increasing or decreasing the supply of gas to the motor. The numeral 38 designates a crank arm having one end operatively secured to the throttle rod 3? and being yieldingly held in one of its positions by an ordinary spring. I have used the numeral 39 to designate a gate valve imposed in the outlet pipe 36 and having therein the pivotally mounted gate 40 which is operatively secured to the other arm of the crank arm 38. Thus when the throttle is open and the motor is operating, the gate valve is in an open position, but when the motor has been stopped or the throttle decreased, this gate valve will shut off the supply of gas to the carburetor regardless of the action of the fuel regulator.

Normally, these dry gas carburetors are merely mixing valves so that the proper amount of air may be introduced into the dry gas for proper combustion within the motor.

The practical operation of my device is as follows:

Gas, under pressure, is admitted through the pipe l6 and into the chamber |5. When the crank shaft I2 is rotated as in cranking the motor or during its normal operation, the cam l3 will cause the push rod 2|] to reciprocate. As the rod travels upwardly, it first compresses the spring l9 until the pins 22 strike the upper edges of the slots 2| and then opens the valve l8, against the tension of the spring 24, admitting the gas to the chamber As the cam |3 rotates further, dropping the push rod 26, the valve l8 will close by virtue of the force exerted upon it by the spring 24.- It will then continue its downward travel under tension of the spring |'9 until the pins 22 hit the lower ends of the slots 2|. During the downward movement of the push rod 26, as the pins 22 ride within the slots 2|, the shoulder 32 will contact the fork 3| of the lever 36, pivoting it and raising the valve 28, allowing the gas to escape into the outlet chamber 26 and thence into the pipe 36, the valve 39 and into the carburetor H. At the same time that the valve 28 is raised by the arm 30, the small valve 34 is raised or opened, allowing oil under pressure to escape from the pipe 33 through the nozzle 35 and be sprayed into the chamber 26 where it will be carried through the pipe 36 into the carburetor H and thence into the motor It). It will be. noted by this construction, that at least one of the valves 23 or 28 will be in a closed position at all times, preventing the escape of the gas from the regulator regardless of the altitude in which the cam I3 is stopped and very close control of the volume of gas allowed to enter the motor can be had.

As a further prevention against the regulation of gas and to insure instant stopping of the motor, the gate valve 39 is provided which is actuated through the medium of the lever or crank arm 38 by the throttle rod 31 as will be appreciated.

Thus it will be seen that I have provided a gas fuel regulator which fulfills all of my objects and overcomes the disadvantages of regulators now in use. My device does not depend upon delicately balanced devices, has no parts likely to become out of order and positively prevents leakage of gas when the motor is not functioning. Furthermore, my device acts uniformly relative to the motor speed which is not the case when vacuum pressure is utilized, as the suction decreases with the speed of the motor. My device admits gas in direct ratio to the speed of the motor and thus 7 permits faster acceleration and more uniform control of motor speed when dry gas under pressure is used as the fuel source.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my improved gas fuel regulator without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, an inlet chamber designed to be in communication with a source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber, a reciprocating valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a push rod in slidingly yielding engagement with said valve, a means for reciprocating said push rod, an outlet chamber, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a means for operatively securing said second valve to said push rod; said second mentioned valve so actuated as to be closed when said first mentioned valve is opened and opened when said second mentioned valve is closed, and an outlet in communication with said outlet chamber.

2. In a device of the class described, an inlet chamber designed to be in communication with a source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber, a reciprocating valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber,

a push rod in slidingly yielding engagement with said valve, a means for reciprocating said push rod, an outlet chamber, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a means for operatively securing said second valve to said push rod; said second mentioned valve so actuated as to be closed when said first mentioned valve is opened and opened when said second mentioned valve is closed, and a means for spraying oil under pressure into said outlet chamber at times.

3. In a gas fuel regulator to be used in conjunction with an internal combustion motor having a carburetor and crank shaft, a housing, an inlet chamber in said housing designed to be in communication with a source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber in said housing, a valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a push rod slidably mounted in said housing and having its upper end slidably and yieldingly engaging said valve,

a means for limiting the sliding movement of said push rod relative to said valve, a roller rotatably mounted on lower end. of said push rod, a cam secured to the crank shaft of the motor and in contact with said roller of said push rod, a means for yieldingly holding said valve in a closed position, an outlet chamber in said housing, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber in said housing, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a rocker arm pivotally mounted in said housing having one of its ends in operative engagement with said push rod and its other end in operative engagement with said second mentioned valve and an outlet pipe in communication between said outlet chamber and the carburetor of the motor.

4. In a gas fuel regulator to be used in conjunction with an internal combustion motor having a carburetor and crank shaft, a housing, an inlet chamber in said housing designed to be in communication with a source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber in said housing, a valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a push rod slidably mounted in said housing and having its upper end slidable and yieldingly engaging said valve, a means for limiting the sliding movement of said push rod relative to said valve, a roller rotatably mounted on lower end of said push rod, a cam secured to the crank shaft of the motor and in contact with said roller of said push rod, a means for yieldingly holding said valve in a closed position, an outlet chamber in said housing, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a rocker arm pivotally mounted in said housing having one of its ends in operative engagement with said push rod and its other end in operative engagement with said second mentioned valve; said first mentioned valve and said second mentioned valve being so timed relative to each other that one of said valves is opened when the other of said valves is closed, and a means for spraying oil into said outlet chamber at times.

5. In combination with an internal combustion motor having a crank shaft and a dry gas carburetor, a gas fuel regulator comprising a housing, an inlet chamber in said housing in communication with a suitable source of dry gas under pressure, a secondary chamber in said housing in communication with said inlet chamber at times, an outlet chamber in said housing in communication with said secondary chamber at times, a valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a means for operatively securing said valve to the crank shaft of the motor, a second valve imposed between said secondary chamber and said outlet chamber, a means for operatively securing said second mentioned valve to the crank shaft of the motor; said first and said second mentioned valves being so timed and actuated that one valve is in a closed position when the other valve is in an opened position, and an outlet conduit in communication between said outlet chamber and said carburetor.

6. In a device of the class described, a housing, an inlet chamber in said housing designed to be in communication with the source of fuel under pressure, a. secondary chamber in said housing in communication through an opening with said inlet chamber at times, a valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber and capable of closing said opening between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber at times, a sleeve formed on the lower end of said valve, a push rod having one end slidably mounted in said sleeve, a means for limiting the sliding motion of said push rod relative to said sleeve, a means for yieldingly holding said push rod in one position relative to said sleeve, a means for facilitating the reciprocating movement of said push rod, an outlet chamber in said housing, an opening between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a valve imposed in said opening, a means for yieldingly holding said Valve in a closed position, a means for operatively securing said second mentioned valve to said push rod; said first mentioned valve being in an open position when said second mentioned valve is in a closed position and said first mentioned valve being in a closed position when said second mentioned valve is in an open position and an outlet passageway in communication with said outlet chamber.

'7. In a device of the class described, a housing, an inlet chamber in said housing designed to be in communication with the source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber in said housing in communication through an opening with said inlet chamber at times, a valve imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber and capable of closing said opening between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber at times, a sleeve formed on the lower end of said valve, a push rod having one end slidably mounted in said sleeve, a means for limiting the sliding motion of said push rod relative to said sleeve, a means for yieldingly holding said push rod in one position relative to said sleeve, a means for facilitating the reciprocating movement of said push rod, an outlet chamber in said housing, an opening between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a valve imposed in said opening, a means for yieldingly holding said valve in a closed position, a means for operatively securing said second mentioned valve to said push rod; said first mentioned valve being in an open position when said second mentioned valve is in a closed position and said first mentioned valve being in a closed position When said second mentioned valve is in an open position and a means for injecting oil into said outlet chamber when said second mentioned valve is in an open position.

8. In a device of the class described, an inlet chamber designed to be in communication with a source of fuel under pressure, a secondary chamber, a valve mechanism imposed between said inlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a means for operating said valve, an outlet chamber, a second valve imposed between said outlet chamber and said secondary chamber, a means for operatively securing said second valve to said first mentioned valve mechanism; said second mentioned valve being so actuated as to be closed when said first mentioned valve is open and open when said first mentioned valve is closed, and an outlet pipe in communication with said outlet chamber.

CLAUD L. ROBINSON.

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