US2198875A - Heater for automobiles - Google Patents

Description

April 30,' 1940.' 7 .w. fms|v:| v 2.198.875

` HEATER FOR .AUTOMOBILES Filed `June 27, *1955 '2 snets-sheeti .v mlNTH HHN/mba April 30,1940.

W. KARSEL v HEATER FOR AUTOMOBILES Filed Juge 27, ls's 2 sheets-sheet 2 y 'Patented nplr..3o',1l9iio i HEATER. Fon an'rouomus William Karsel, (lhicago, Ill., assixnor to Stcwarty Warner Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Virginia Application :une 21, 193s, sgrmm. aan? l 7 claims. (c1. zar-1am.'

This invention relates to heaters for motor vehicles and is particularly adapted for use with automobiles having internal combustion engines.

The objects of this invention are to provide an improved heater of the character set forth in which the heat is suppliedl by` means of a suitable burner and is transferred to the body of the vehicle by means of a suitable fluid such as steam or the like; to provide a novel heating apparatus for automobiles, having a steam generator and a radiator, and means 'for transferring the' steam fromthe generator to the radiator; to provide a heating apparatus for motor vehicles including a radiator and novel means for mounting the same yon the body of the vehicle and supporting a distributing fan thereon; to provide a heater for automobiles or the like including a combustion chamber and a steam generating chamber associated therewith, and improved fuel feeding means,

and means for withdrawingthe gases of combustion from the combustion chamber; and to provide such other advantages and improvements as will appear more fully from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 'l is a longitudinal sectional Viewv showing my heater as applied 'to the dash-board or wall of a vehicle, parts being broken away or shown diagrammatically for convenience in illustration;

. Figure 2 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view showing the adjustable air controlling mechanism;

Figure 4 is a sectional detail taken on ythe line 4 4 of Figure 1 showing the circuit making and breaking device; Figure5 is a wiring diagram showing the circuits for the ignition device; and l Figure 6 is a sectional detail showing a modied connection between the steam generator and the radiator.A

As shown in these drawings, 1 indicates generally a steam generator which is arranged adjacent to the dash-board or wall 8 of the vehicle'and 9 indicates generally the heat distributing appara-- tus positioned within the body of the vehicle and connected to the steam generator by any suitable connecting means. 'Then generator 1 has a combustion chamber ill with a plurality of baille plates il for directing the movement of the gases therethrough and for transmitting .heat to the walls of the cylinder or receptacle l2 enclosing the chamber. The cylinder is provided at its upper end with an intake opening i3 in which is iitted a carburetor or gas mixer I4 rof any suitable kind. This mixer is preferably provided with an adjusting' screw i5A for controlling the fuel and a rotatable disc or ldamper I6 for controlling theair. It is also provided with an in- 5 wardly projecting pipe I1 having a plurality of small holes i8 t'o insure the proper mixing of thev air and fuel before entering the chamber. A fuel supply pipe I9 leads from the mixer i4 to a source of gasoline or other suitable fuel supply 10 such as the carburetor 20 of thel vehicle engine.

The combustion chamber I0 is enc1osed-or surrounded by a jacket 2i which is spaced therefrom to provide a water or steam generating chamber 22. Water is supplied to this chamber through 15 an inlet 23 having a plug 24, the upper end of the inlet terminating ata predetermined distance above the bottom of the chamber, as indicated, so that a limited amount'of water may be placed in the generating chamber. 20

The fuel intake is lpreferably automatically controlled by the steam pressure. In order to do thisa pipe 25 leads to a control valve- 26 inthe pipe I9. This control valve may be of any desired kind such as used for this purpose and preferably 25 has a diaphragm 2l which coacts with the valve stem 28 for closing the valve and also` prevents steam from entering the intake. pipe. 'I'he valve is preferably held in normally open position by means of a spring 29, which is positioned between 30 the diaphragm and the adjacent `portion of the valve body as illustrated.

The fuel is ignited by any suitable ignition device such as a spark plug 30 which projects through an opening u3| in the combustion recep- 35 tacle and isvadapted to ignite the mixture therein in a well-known manner. Any suitable means such as commonly used for-supplying electricity for the spark plug maybe utilized, as for instance a vibrating coil or the like, but I prefer to use a 40 circuit and controlling larrangement such as will presently be described. l

The furnace or combustion chamber i0 is provided -with an outlet pipe 32 which leads from the .bottom thereof to the intake manifold of the 45 vehicle engine als indicated. at 38. This provides a positive suction for withdrawing-the products of combustion andy insures` a suitable draft `through lthe combustion chamber for drawing in the air and fueli My improved heat exchange devices which are located within thebody of the vehicle include a radiator 34 having a hollow body portion 35 ,with a combined inlet and outletconnection for a hollow lug t8 'which extendsndownwardl'y and out- 55` 2 wardly from the lower corner of the bodyl portion 35, the lower wall of which is preferably provided with a groove or downwardly sloping channel 31 to insure the vreturn of the water of condensation from the radiator. 'I'he lug or connection 36 has a threaded extension 38 which extends through a hole in thefdash or wall 8 and which is provided with anut 39 for drawing the shoulder or flange 48 on the connection against the opposite face of the dash, thus providing a simple arrangement for fastening the radiator and associated parts in position. A pipe 4I leads from the c'onnectionf 36 to 'a connection or hollow lug 42 extending upwardly and'outwardly from the steam chamber 22 as shown particularly in Figure 1. The body portion of the radiator 35 also has a hollow lug or connection 43 which is provided with an air outlet or escape valve 44 to provide for the escape of air in the system'when the heater is started.

The body portion of the radiator 4is provided with a plurality of encircling fins or ribs 45 which are preferably formed integrally therewithl and which, together wtih the projecting ttings are connected with a shell or casing 46 which encloses the main portion of the radiator as shown in Figures l and-"2 but which is open at the top and bottom. It will be seen that vertical pasl sageways 41 are thus provided around the radia- V"tor body for the circulation of air.

A fan motor 48 is mounted on a plate 48 which is secured to the top of the casing 46 by means of screws 50, this plate having openings 5|for the free passage of air therethrough. The fan 52 is mountedon the shaft 53 of the motorand is arranged in the space between the radiator and the plate 49. The motor is supplied with current from a battery 54 or other source of electric supply through a supply wire 55 having a switch 56 therein, the opposite brush or terminal of the motor being connected by a wire 51 to ground,- which furnishes a return to the battery in the usual manner, as shown in Figure 5. The

current supply to the spark plug 38 is preferably` controlled by the motor 48. In order to do this a Wire 58 leads from the wire 55 to the rotor 58 of a commutator `or circuit breaker, this rotor being mounted on the shaft 53 of the motor. The brush or contact 68 of the circuit breaker is connected by wire 6 l with one terminal of a high tension coil 62, the opposite terminal of which is grounded by means of a wire 63 or in any other suitable manner. A high tension wire 64 leads from the supplied thereto.

coil :59 to the spark plug whereby current is The lower end of the shell or casing 46 is closed by a plate 65 which is secured by screws 66 and which has an annular opening 61 for receiving a rotatable disc 68 having a plurality of parallel openings 68. These openings are controlled by means of adjustable louvers or shutters 10 which are pivoted at 1| to the disc. The louvers have short upwardly projecting arms 12 which are connected by links or wires 13 so that they may be operated simultaneously. The end link or' arm 12 is connected by a link or rod 14 with a slide or thumb piece 15 which is slidably mounted in a slot 16 in the disc. The louvers or slats 18 may be adjusted by moving. the tliumb ,piece 15 and the disc may also be rotated by means of this thumb piece to direct the air in any desired direction.

When the heater is to be used, fuel is admitted through a shut-o valve 11 in the pipe I8 and the motor 48 is started by closing the switch 56. The

suction from the engine causes air and fuel to be vpipe 4I to the radiator and will heat the surrounding air which is driven over the same by the fan.'52. The air passing over the radiator and Ynection 8| with an inlet opening 82 for receiv- In some instances however, currentmay be mo- 5 m'entarily supplied' and the combustion will be continued due tothe initial ignition of the fuel inthe chamber; As soon as steam is Ygenerated it will pass up through the supply andreturn through thehousing or casing may be vdirected vby. means of `adjustment of the disc 68 and the louvers mounted thereon as above described. The character of the burning or flame in the combustion 'chamber may be noted through a sight or observation tube 18 having a transparent eye-piece 18 so that the mixture may be proper-` ly adjusted. When the steam pressure is raised to a predetermined amount the pressure on the diaphragm 21 will cause the valve 26 to be closed or partly closed and thus the fuel supply will be adjusted automatically in accordance with the heat requirements. When the fan is stopped the current will also be cut oif from the spark plug and stop the further operation of the burner. In addition to the provision of a forced circulation through the combustion chamber, the connection with the intake manifold will also serve to quickly heat the gases for the engine and thus vimprove the engine operation during cold weather. Furthermore, in the event of incomplete combustion in the combustion' chamber any combustible gases will pass into the engine for power purposes.

The modification shown in Figure 6 ilustrates a slightly different arrangement for connecting the steam chamber with the radiator. In this arrangementthe radiator 86' has a threaded coning the inlet pipe 83 which is connected with the upper portion of the steam chamber 84. This threaded connection also has an outlet opening 85 which is connected by means of a return pipe 86 with an opening 81 in the bottom of the steam chamber 84. With this arrangement the water of condensation may pass down through the return pipe and thus insure a more rapid circulation than where it passes back through the steam pipe as in the form just described.

From this description it will be seen that I provide a steam heating apparatus for automobiles in which the amount of heat furnished is independent of the heat of the engine and therefore any desired amount of heat may be readily produced and conveniently distributed in order to properly heat the body orv closed part of the vehicle. While I have shown a preferred form cf my invention it may bechanged in the construction or arrangement of the parts in order to adapt it for different vehicles or different conditions, and therefore I do not wish to be limited to the particular arrangement herein shown and described, except as specified in `the following 65 means for supplying fuel 7( radiator mounted in the space to be heated, and means connecting the radiator with the steam generating chamber, said means comprising a conduit of suiiicient cross sectional area to permit concurrent flow of' steam from said generating chamber to said radiator and flow of condensate in the opposite direction.

2. The combination with an automotive vehicle having an internal combustion engine, of a substantially closed furnace, a conduit from the furnace to the fuel supply of the vehicle, an outlet conduit from the furnace to the intakeof the vehicle engine, means for igniting the fuel in the furnace, a steam generating chamber operatively associated with the furnace, means for introducing a predetermined amount of water in the steam chamber, means actuated by the pressure in the steam chamber for controlling the fuel supply to the furnace, a radiator mounted in the vehicle body, a conduit connecting the radiator with the steam chamber, and a fan for circulating air around the radiator. v

3. An apparatus for heating automobiles having internal-combustion engines, including a coinbustion chamber separate from the automobile engine, means for supplying fuel from the vehicle. carburetor to the combustion chamber, a mimng valve for mixing air with the fuel, means for igniting the mixture in the chamber,l an ex` haust pipe from the chamber to the intake manifold of the engine, a jacket surrounding said chamber, means for supplyingl water to the jacket. means responsive to the pressure in said water jacket to control the rate of supply of fuel to said combustion chamber, an outlet pipe leading from said jacket, a radiator connected with said outlet pipe, a casing enclosing said radiator, an electric fan for'forcing air through the casing, and means for controlling and directing the movement of the air passing from the casing.

4. The vcombination with an automobile having an internal combustion engine and having a fuel'supplyof a combustion chamber separate from the automobile engine, a mixer for fuel and air connected with said chamber, a fuel supply pipe from the mixer tothe fuelsupplyof the automobile. bames arranged in said chamber, an

'outlet pipe from the bottom of the chamber connected with the intake manifold of the automobile, a spark plug for igniting the mixture in said housing, a steam generating chamber surrounding the combustion chamber, a control valve in the fuel supply pipe,` means connecting the valve with the steam chamber tending to close the valve when the steam reaches 'a predetermined pressure, a radiator mounted in the vehicle body and comprising a receptacle having a plurality of uns projecting therefrom. means providing a passageway for steam connecting the receptacle with the steam housing, a casingenclosing said radiator receptacle, an apertured plate secured to the top of the casing, an electric fan mounted on said plate for forcing air through the casing. a disc rotatably mounted inthe bottom of the casing.

l 3 openings in said disc, shutters for controlling said openings, and means for actuating said shutters.

v5. The combination with an automobile having a closed body and a dash-board, and havingV an internal combustion'engine, of a' substantially closed cylinder, a generator valve connected with,

the intake of the cylinder, a lfuel supply pipe from the generator valve to the carburetor of the en gine, baiiles arranged in said cylinder for deecting the gases passing therethrough, an exhausty outlet from said cylinder, a steam chamber around the cylinder, a pressure actuated control valve for controlling the fuel supply to the' cylinder, a passageway from the steam chamber to the control valve, a spark plug mounted in the cylinder, a radiator, connections from the radiator to the steam chamber, an electric fan arranged to force air around the radiator, a circuit from a source of electricity to the fan, a high tension coil, a circuit from the same source of electricity to thecoil, an interrupter `actuated by the motor arranged in the coil circuit, and a high tension wire from the coil to the spark plug.

6. In a motor vehicle provided with an internal combustion yengine and a fuel supply for the same and having a closed body, the combination of a combustion chamber separate from the engine and arranged outside of the body, a steam generator operatively associated with the combustion chamber. a radiator mounted Within the vehicle body, a conduit from the radiator to the steam generator for conducting steam from said generator to said radiator and for conducting condensate in the reverse direction, means connecting the combustion chamber with said fuel supply and with the atmosphere for supplying a combustible mixture to the combustion chamber, means for igniting said mixture, and an exhaust outlet leading from said combustion chamber to the intake manifold of the engine.

7. The combination with an automobile having an internal combustion engine, of a substantially closed cylinder, means for supplying fuel will result in a reduction in the rate at which the fuel is supplied to the combustion chamber and vice versa, a spark plug mounted in the cylinder, a radiator, steam connections from the radiator to the steam chamber, an electric. fan for forcing air around the radiator, a circuit from a source of electricity to the fan, and means controlled by source to the spark plug.

the fan motor for supplying electricity from said 0

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