US2432372A - Fog generator - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 9, 1947. W, J, BESLER t 2,432,372

Foe GENERATOR INVEN TOR. WILLIAM J. BESLER,

FOG GENERATOR Filed Feb. 21, 1944 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 w. J. BESLER 2,432,372

FOG GENERATOR Dec. 9, 1947-.

3 Sheets-Sheet 5 'Filed Feb. 21, 1944 INVENTOA WILLIAM a. BESLER Patented Dec. 9, `1947 UNITED STATES FOGl GENERATOR' William J. Basler, nappy valley, Calif;

Application February 21, 11944, Serial'Nb. 5232292' 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to" ar compact, self-contained unit for producingv and releasing at. will, a substantially impenetrable, persistent fog or vapor and for a sustained period of time.

It is wellknown that artificial smoke and smoke from smudge pots have the distinct property of protecting growing vegetation fromy damage by frost or from` the intense heat of the sun and for other purposes. Necessary as smudge pots are, they produce serious problems. The smoke so produced is unhealthy, irritating to' the nose and throat and will lead to serious` physical results if breathed in excess. TheA fuel used in producing the-smudge: results ina dirty smoke which leaves a ilm of partly burned fuel on everything which it` contacts. damage to fabrics by the film of. partly burned fuel oil is permanent.

It is accordingly among the objects of the present invention to provide a device for. producing a fog or vapor whichis not harmful to humans, even if breathed for ar continued period of time, not irritating to theA noseand throat, not dirty in its makeup and which will not injure or coat either the crops or any other. objectY with which it may come in contact.

Smoke producers and fog generatorsv also have their tactical or military use for concealing ob jects bothy on the ground or on the Water and :from the air. In order to` accomplish this result the fog produced must besuch as to completely conceal the object for the requiredperiod of time but at thesame time permit the movement of troops or other persons Within its protection. Such a fog must' be persistent and possess the quality of remainingv for a suicient period or' time and vvithl'suflicient` concentration to protect the objective..

It is accordingly also among the objectives of the present invention to produce such a machine for military purposes.

A primary object of thepresentinvention is to provide a new and improved fog generator having aA simplified means for producing and. dis'- pensing a persistent: impenetrable fog.

Another object isto provide anew and improved device of the character'set forth having improved meansliorv automatically metering and controlling the materials used. and for automatically oper-ating the auxiliary parts in: order that amaximum efficiency may be obtained with econ- Particularly if fuel oil is used, thel 2 eratingI f-ogs or producing articial weather which can and may be easily transported, and which can operate independently of power lines;- or any other fixed power` source.` I

A still further object isf to provide a' fog generator of the character described?, thatl may be operated anywhere, especially onY land or sea, fully protected against; the. elementsduringoperation and otherwise.

A still further` object. of the presentA invention is to provide a machine-'which will produce fog in aminimum amount.A of time: aty the: maximum capacity.

These objectsv as welll as others-whichY will occur to thoselskilled inthe art and which-are inherent in the device itself, are contemplated and are to be considered within the scope ofthe presentl invention. It is understood that the drawings-used in describing` the present device are illustrative only and are not to be construed aslim-itingthe present invention to-V theprecise embodiment shown therein;

Referring nowmore. particularly to the: drawings illustrating; theA present invention;

Figure 1 is aside elevational: View, partly in broken section;

Figure 2lis ari-end elevational-view;

Figure 3 i is# a: plan view,r partly' insection;l

Figure 4 is a schematicview; andk Y y Figure 5- isa fragmentary view showing the fog oil supplyvalve;

Inthe drawings which@ illustrate the present invention likeP numerals" haveA been used to indicate similar parts in` the severalviews.- The base of the. unitconsists of a large tank` |0- whichy is areservoir for the several` liquids-used.- It is-divided into three compartments, the fog oil compartment being designated I2, the Water. compartment being. designated as I4 and thefuel compartment being designated-as I8;-

Mounted aboveV and-at` one endv of the reservoir I0, is a boiler assembly ofinovel construction, designed for economy of.A material, space, cost and speed of initial operation. It comprises preferably allower casing l-'I and an.` upper casing I8` both flanged at thejuncture andheld togetherinr a rigid constructioniby clamping-:ring i9. The lower casing I1 is separatedtransversely toprovicle by the partition 2|` a lower'compartment 20. Openings2i2 are providedllto furnish easy access to the interior of compartmenti The fire box 25v is formed by the concentriciWalll26angedfat the top and held by the. clamping ring I9; all in such a manner as to providefanannular space 24be tween the Wall 26 of the fire box and the: outer casing wall I7. As will hereinafter be described, low-pressure air for combustion purposes is supplied into this space 24 and serves also to cool and keep cool walls 26 and l1. In the bottom of the wall 26 forming a bottom for the fire box 25, there is a central opening or re box burner throat 3S into which projects a suitable burner nozzle assembly 33, a diffuser |42 and an electrode |44.

The space between the outer casing wall I8r and the wall 3| is insulated in any suitable manner and is covered by a ue pan 34 provided with a central stack opening. rihis opening is c-overed when the device is not in operation by stack cover 35 which is hinged for suitable manipulation. Within the chamber formed by wall 3| in the upper casing is a series of pancake or spiral heating coils. The lowermost coil or the coil nearest the flame, which is numbered 36, is known as the water coil in which the steam for the fog is produced. Coil 36 leads directly into coil 3l which is the uppermost or farthest from the llame of a series of pancake or spiral coils designated 38. The ow in coils 38 is generally termed counter-flow with respect to the flow of the products of combustion, and leads drectly into a transverse controlled thermostat tube 39 terminating on the outside of the boiler assembly upper casing |`8 in a dispensing manifold or multiplenozzle 4G.

Adjacent to the boiler assembly just described, preferably upon the otherrend of the reservoir base Ill of the unit, are the auxiliaries. A suitable engine or motor G2, which is here shown as a conventional gasoline engine, for driving the auxiliaries is yprovided and directly connected to the shaft of the motor is a blower 44 which delivers loW-pressure air to the annular chamber 2 and then through the central opening or throat 28 to the interior of the fire box 25 for combustion purposes. Y

Through a chain or other suitable drive 4S, the motor 42 drives on a single shaft the assembly i8 which comprises an air compressor 50, a pulsating fuel pump 52 and a pulsating water pump 513 as well as an independent fog oil pump 56.

The automatic fuelmetering and supply control of fuel for the boiler is accomplished by the fuel pump 52 which pumps the fuel from the supply compartment vI3 through a fuel suction pipe 58. The fuel passes through this pipe to strainer 6B, through pipe 62, thence through the bleeder or shut-off valve.54 t the pump 52 and thence by line 58 to a combined snubber or pulsation damper and pressure regulator '|0. At the tee 12 the fuel travels by line 1li through a pressure valve 15 to the burner nozzle 30 of the boiler assembly. The valve '|6 is provided to maintain the fuel pressure in thev line'so that a temperature control valve, later described, will pass suflicient fuel for a small opening, thus avoiding wide fluctuation in pressure while the device is controlling. The fuel pump always operates to pump a slight excess of Yfuel in order to insure theinstantaneous operation ofthe temperature control valve. As shown in the diagrammatic View of Figure 4 a fuel pressure gauge may be placed in the line 68 or in any othersuitable position for a quick, visual reading of theV pressure in the fuel supply line.

` There is another .line 8!) which leads from the tee 'l2 and carries fuel to a normally closed temperature controlvalve, actuated by a thermostat 3S as nhereinafter described'. A return or by-pass line 85 leads from the outlet of valve 82 to the fuel supply compartment I in the reservoir base ID.

Water is continuously and automatically pro.. portioned and supplied to the system. The water pump is set to s upply the correct amount of water required and operates always at full on position. The Water pump 54 of the assembly i8 pulls water from compartment ld of the reservoir base i through suction line Sii into a strainer |32 and then through the bleeder or hand valve |04 (which may be opened and used to prime the pump if necessary) and line |06 into the water coil 36 in the upper portion of the boiler, which coil is arranged and located nearest to the point of greatest heat as represented by the burner nozzle 35. A check valve |03 to prevent a backflow is located in the line just before it enters the boiler assembly. The water circulates through the coil 3@ untilit is converted into steam which is then injected into the inlet end of coil 3l, the most remote of the group of spiral coils 38.

Likewise the requisite amount of fog oil is automatically metered to the system and is also operated at full on or full off positions.y The fog oil pump 56 pumps the oil from compartment EZ of the reservoir base i3 through suction pipe iii? through Ythe three way valve H3 (see Figure 5) through strainer H5 to the inlet end of the pump. The fog oil is then pumped through a three way cock lill controlled by valve M6, via line ilthrough check valve l5 to the top of the boiler assembly where this line leads to the outer coil of the spiral coil 3l which is the top or most remote, with respect to the flame, of the spiral coils 38. The outlet end of the bank of spiral coils 38 leads into the transverse thermostat tube 39, as at |26).

On the exterior of the upper portion of the boiler assembly is a thermostat or constant temperature ring |21?. This is a cold ring which entirely surrounds the outer wall of the boiler assembly. It is mounted in a floating manner and merely rests upon the angle supports |25 which are attached toY the outer upper casing I8. As shown in Figure 1,it is held against vibration by the coiled spring |21'. IThe only rigid attachment of ring |25 is by means of lugs |25 located immediately behind the manifold outlet 43, whereby it is secured to the portion of tube 39 extending outside the outer casing of the boiler assembly. The tube 39 is free to move through the walls of the boiler assembly and in fact projects therethrough in both directions. On the portion of the tube which extends outside the boiler casing and at the opposite end from that where it is rigidly attached to the ring |24, there is rigidly mounted an operating finger or lug 23 which is adapted to contact and actuate the normally closed temperature control valve 82. Upon contact the normally closed temperature control valve 82 is opened to by-pass fuel oil into `return line @f under conditions hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order that the device may be operated in the open during inclement weather and without undue exposure of the several metering devices and auxiliaries, a hood |28 is provided to enclose said auxiliaries and controls and otherwise provide a covering for all of the operating accessories. If it becomes necessary to operate the device with the hood in place, access may be had through a hinged panel or door '|39'. It is to be understood that the hood |28 may be removed entirely to provide greater accessibility for required operation or adjustment.

As shown in the drawings the device may be provided with skids |32 secured to the angle irons *tastiere 'r4-s at A'the bottom of the `reservoir hase it'. 'The device is'also provided with lifting eyes '|34 mak-*- ing the device completely portable and readily movable to any desired location. It will be seen that by merely removing the skids |32 "the device may be secured in place by means "o'f the 'angles les 'and nrmiy attached `to the *docket a ship'or barge 'or in a truck. It is tobe understobd that portability may require the draining fo'f the individual compartments, and in this event'suit- 'able drain plugs |45 are provided for `leach conrpartment. v

Referring to Figure 5,"the three way 'valve '--l I3 there shown controls the supply of fog oil 'to the 'pump 56. Since the va1veisa1way's-in-open position, the normal positionor y'the "han-die 14's is 'in the position shown in fiiil lines 'in thedrawing as in this position the pump lis drawing on the supply in compartment |2. However, it may be necessary toe'ontiniie operation afterthe supply `in Compartment itis exhausted anu with opportunity to reii it. In 'this event aqfbarreiqor oruin or fog oii jean be `moyen alongside anti by ineens or a section of nexibi'e vhose attached Vat one Vrl'd to the valve l| |13, when Vthe --liad-lefis jnov'eu to the position shown in dotted inesjthe fogoii Vcan be pumped-uireetiy from the 'original container.

l In the'e'vent positive priming of the water 'pump compartment I4. Merely by putting'th'e comparte ment under a pressure of approximately 2 p. i.

in this or any other suitable manner, 'water may always be supplied Adirectly tothe pump through line 90.

r'he operation of the unit is best described by setting forth the steps which take place and the functions of each.

The motor 42 is started. This motor rivesthe assembly 48 which comprises the fuel pump 52, the water pump 54 and the compressor 50. On the same Shaft as the assembly '48 and simultaneously driven by ntotor'42 lis the fog oil puinp 56. Also driven by the motor Aby chain 46 'lo'ut on a separate shaft is a magneto |40, which supplies `high frequency electricity for ign-itin'g ythe re in the boiler. On the same shaft with the engine and also driven thereby, is the blower 44. It will therefore be understood that when the engine is started, all of these separate functions are immediately put into operation.

The fuel is pumped by means of pump 52, from the reservoir |6 through line 58, strainer 6U, into the supply line 68, to the combined snubber or pulsation damper and pressure regulator 1D, into line 14 through pressure maintaining valve 16 and thence to the burner nozzle 39 where it is atomized with compressed air coming from the air compressor 50. As before indicated the line supplying the compressed air from the compressor l] is line 85 which leads directly to the burner nozzle through the air bell 88 for insuring a smooth flow of compressed air.

The atomized fuel is released at burner nozzle 30 Within diffuser |42. The atomized fuel is ignited by an electric spark which arcs between the electrode |44 and the diffuser. The current for supplying this electric spark is generated by the magneto |40.

It should be remembered, however, that simultaneously water is being supplied to the water coil 3S. The water is pumped fromv the supply source |4 through the suction line 99, to the strainer m2,

thentfejtot'hefpurnp -54 and out throughiine its through 'check valve 'm3 and into 0011735 where *it is converted into steam. A

"with-oil being'suppiied to the burner nozzle and wateri'being'supplied to the coil the unit can 'run indeinitelygeven though there is no fog oil flowing into the system. The thermostat tube 39 will "limit the fire to the 'point where the boiler cannot overheat `or burn out the tubes. Thisis bebause 'the thermostat operates entirely in re'- spon's'e to tube temperature. Accordingly it is 'possible lto -run'the boiler Without water and still "do no damage or injury to the unit.

- ll be `observed that up to this poir'lit and Ya-ithoughthe device has been operating without "theff 'l, fog-oil puin'p 56 has beenA Operatin'g and pumpi'ngoil but the oil pumped is me'rell conveyed to the 'valve H4, which is a two-way valve 4'set at the "start for by-passing the oil into line 112e and taekinto the 'supply tank i2. 'ir-ne "dev fisullyblatdi thisfnalefr'a fvv i momeitsmritl 'the boiler has had a'n opportunity toi-ull li'i 'position and fog Oil is then supplied bypfnpii through line I8 and check valve H9 fto'coljSl, 'whichis'the coil'nearest the Aflue opening, where 'steam from eoil 36 is injected -ihto it and this mixtuietheh travels through the Spiral `coils `3l tothe outlet coil 38, then through the control thermostat pipe 39 'and out through the outlet manifold 40 in a great volume of fog-like 1lill f is VjllS't ahead ofthe point Where the Steam from `Water 'Coil 3B is injected i'nto the same coil 31. Thus from the moment the fog oil is supplied to the lcoil 31, it 'is o'omingl'ed and mixed under lpressure with steam and this mixture is circulated 'and 'further heated in coils 31 until released in 'form of -a 'vapor cloudiat the manifold outlets.

order 'to illustrate the operation of the thermostat control, assume that the fire from the ifozzle 30 has become too intense. Beginning at the moment the coils become heated by the yflame in the re box, the tube 39 will commence to 'expand relative tothe degree of heat to which 4it Vis being subjected. It will also expand relatively to the the'rmestat ring |24 'which is the 'reference point for the temperature control systern. The thermostat control ring |24 is a cold ring and maintainsv a relatively uniform or constant temperature. As has already been noted, the only point at which ring |24 is rigidly attached is by means of lugs |25 located just behind the outlet manifold 40. The lugs rigidly secure ring |24 to the outlet end of tube 39. Thus as tube 39 heats it will expand lengthwise and relatively with respect to ring |24, but being fastened by the lugs |25 as indicated, its expansion will be registered by movement away from the point of fixed position. As this movement takes place it moves finger |26 which is secured at the opposite end of tube 39 and as the movement increases the ringer |26 will impinge upon the actuating point of valve 82, which will in turn by-pass a proportion of the supply of oil to the burner or nozzle 3|) and cause it to return to the reservoir I6 by means of by-pass line 84. At the same time and as a consequence of the by-passing of fuel, the name and consequently the heat therefrom, is diminished and reduced. As the temperature is reduced pipe 39 contracts causing the nger |25 to move away from valve 82 and release the pressure on the valve. This again allows more fuel to be 7 supplied to the'nozzle 39. The hunting, i. e., the fluctuations in the supply of fuel to nozzle 39, does not continue indefinitely but given a constant source of vfuel (as this apparatus produces) at a constant pressure, a stable temperature will be ,quickly arrived at which will be the operating Accordingly there is more fire than necessary to meet the demands of the reduced flow-the additional heating will expand the thermostat tube 39 to by-pass fuel into line 84 and-back into the fuel tank. In 'this manner the flame will be cut down and the temperature reduced,linsuring a` safe operation of the unit regardless of -the conditions.

There is so little water used in the system that theA failure of the water supply will not reduce the operating temperature of the device to any v great extent. It should be noted, however, that the quality of the fog or vaporbeing produced from manifold 19 without the'admiXture of water i is much inferior and is inclined to be wetter heavier and is less sustaining.

I claim: Y

1. A device for producing and dispensing a dense and persistent fog comprising in'combination a boiler having a water and steam circuit joining with an oil circuit ata point aftersteam generation but withinsaid boiler for combined vaporization of oil'andsteam, a fuel burner for said boiler,v a pump for supplying-both fuel and water to the boiler, apump for' supplying oil for vaporization, a single source of power for driving said pumps synchronously to supply the correct proportions of each liquid, and means for dispensing fog from the circuit for combined vaporization of oil and steam.

2. A device for producing and dispensing a dense and persistent fog comprising in combination a base divided into non-communicative compartments for oil, fuel and water, a boiler mounted on said base having a water and steam circuit and joining with an oil circuit at a point after steam generation for vaporizing of the oil in the steam, a fuel burner for said boiler, means for igniting said fuel burner mounted on said base, a first pump mounted on said base for supplying both the fuel to said burner from the fuel compartment and the water to the water circuit from the water compartment, a second pump integrated as to quantity of supply mounted on said base for supplying oil to the oil circuit of said boiler from said oil compartment, a single source of power mounted on said base for driving said rst and second pumps and said ignition means simultaneously, and means for. dispensing fog from the circuit for combined vaporization of oil and steam.

3. A device for producing and dispensing a dense and persistent fog comprising in combination a base divided into non-communicative compartments for oil, fuel and water, a boiler mounted ron said base having a Water and steam circuit joining with an oil circuit for vaporizing of the oil in the steam, a fuel burner for said boiler, means for igniting said fuel burner mounted on said base, a first pump mounted on said base for supplying both the fuel to said burner from the fuel compartment and the water to the water circuit from the water compartment, a second pump integrated as to quantity of supply mounted on said base for supplying oil to the oil circuit of said boiler from said oil compartment, a single source of power mountedy on said base for driving said rst and second pumps and said ignition means simultaneously, and thermostatic means responsive to the temperature of the boiler circuits for automatically cutting down or increasing the supply of fuel to the fuel burner.

WILLIAM J. BESLER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

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