US248908A - baldwin - Google Patents

Description

5 Sheets-Sheet 1.

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C. W. BALDWIN..

HYDRAULIC ELEVATOR.

Patented Nov. 1, 1881.A

(No Model.) 5 sheetssheet 3. O. W. BALDWIN.

HYDRAULIC ELBVATOR. No. 248,908. Patented NOV. 1,1881.

/WMNMEM (N0 Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 5.

C. W. BALDWIN. HYDRAULIC 1118111111011.

No. 248,908. PatendNov. 1,1881.

DNrrEn .STATES PATENT OEEicE.

OYRUS W. BALDVIN, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

HYDRAULIC ELEVATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 248,908, dated November 1, 1881.

Application tiled March 19, 1880. (No model.)

To all 'Lr/tom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Crans W. BALDw1N,a citizen ot' the United States, now residing in London, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hydraulic Elevators, of which the following is a t'nll, clear, and eXact description.

My invention relates to that class of hoisting-engines in which an inelastic iiuid under pressure acts upon and imparts movement to one or more pistons, the object of my invention being to remedy difficulties incident to such engines as heretofore constructed, render the apparatus less complex, facilitate the operation and manipulation, and prevent injury resulting from the sudden stoppage of the outlet, as well as prevent said outlet from being fully closed until the speed ofthe piston is reduced.

In the drawings forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is an elevation showing a vertical apparatus embodying my invention. Fig. la is a detached side view; Fig. 2, a sectional elevation Fig. 3, a transverse section on the line y y, Fig. 1 5 Fig. 4, an elevation ot' the parts shown in Fig. 3, partly in section; Fig. 5, a part section on the line y y, Fig. 2; Fig. 6, a side elevation ot' the parts shown in Fig. 5 and adjuncts; Figs. 7 andS, section elevations of the valve-chest and valves, showing the valves in different positions; Fig. 7, a detached view ot part of the. packing-ring;

Fig. 9, a part plan ot' one of the pistons; Fig.

10, a sectional elevation ot' a piston; Fig. 1l, an inverted plan of the piston.` The views 4 to 11 are drawn to an enlarged scale.

In many of its general features the apparatus shown is similar to that for which Let-ters Patent of the United States were granted to me on the 2d day of April, 1878.

A and B are two cylinders, which may be are separated by a partition, a part, C, of which is horizontal or transverse, and a part, O', vertical or longitudinal. The part C carries a stuffing box i'or the piston-rod B2, and in the part O is made an opening,s, which forms the only direct means ot' communication between the cylinders A and B. This opening is closed by an ordinary clack-valve, O2, Fig. 3, which, when there is no pressure ot' water in the cylinder B, is free to open or close; butwhen the water under pressure is turned on the valve will fall naturally to its seat, thereby obviating the objections to the use oi' spring-valves, which are apt to get out of order, and which in ust necessarily be employed when the valveseat is horizontal.

D is the supply-pipe, in connection at DX with a cistern or the city mains or reservoir, containing an inelastic fluid under pressure, and opening atits upper end into the cylinder A, and at its lower end into the valve-chest E.

F is the discharge-pipe from the cylinder B into the valve-chamber s3. The valve-chest E contains a stopping and starting valve, E4, (shown as a series ot' disk-Valves,) the construction and working ot' which is fully described in the specification ot' my aforesaid patent and other patents granted to me.

E is a pulley suitably mounted, and round which passes the endless cord for stopping and starting the apparatus. rlhis cord passes through the car and round a pulley on the upper part ofthe litt-framing, and is worked by the attendant in the car. On the axle of the pulley E is a pinion, E?, which gears with a rack, E3, attached to the stem of the diskvalves, and by which they are worked.

I take the supply of water for the cylinder B direct from the supply-pipe D, the connection being provided with a cut-ott' valve, b, to be hereinafter described.

The discharge-passage from the upper cylinder, which in the former patented machine was made in the walls of the lower cylinder I dispense with, and in place thereof I employ an external pipeH, which l connect at its` upper end in any' convenient ina-nner to the cylinder A, and at its lower end with the discharge-passage F of the cylinder B. By thus arranging these passages I am enabled to sirnplit'y the construction both ot' the lower cylinder, B, and the valve-chest E, as in the latter I dispense with one of the openings into Ioo the valve-chamber and reduce the throw of the valve.

The supply-opening in the cylinder A and the discharge-passage in the cylinder B are so arranged that should any accident occur to the apparatus, the discharge ofthe water from one or other of these openings will be partially stopped, and a cushion of water will be formed in one case above the -piston A, and in the other case below the. piston B, which will prevent the pistons striking against the cylinder ends. To this end the cylinder-head consists ot' a circular box or casing, l', through which the piston-rod A2 passes. The top of the box I is provided with a stuing-box for the piston-rod, and iu the bottom of the box I is one or more circular openings, t, to receive corresponding plugs, J, ot' somewhat less diameter, and mounted in any convenient manner adjustably on the piston -rod A2, immediately above the piston. The supply-pipe D columnnicatcs with the box I. The bottom end ot' the cylinder B is closed by a similar hollow head or casing, I. In this case, however, no stuifing-box is required when the piston does not descend through it, and the circular opening is made in the top ot' the box l to receive a circular plug,J, also of less diameter than the openingl, and secured in any convenient manner adjustably, if desired, to the under side of the piston B. The discharge-passage F communicates with this box.

It will be seen that should the piston A', from any accidental cause, rise to thetop of the cylinder A, so that the plug J enters the opening in the bottom of the box I, the discharge of water from the top ofthe cylinderA will be partially (and gradually it' the plug is tapering) cut otl", and the working ot` the apparatus will be retarded, while the striking ot' the pistou against the cylinder end will be prevented by the cushion ot water which will be formed in the cylinder above the piston. In like manner the plug J, entering the opening in the box I', will gradually and partially close the discharge ot' water from the bottom ofthe cylinder B with results similar to those indicated above.

I would here remark that when in ordinary work it is not proposed that the piston shall rise or fall to such an extent as to cause the plugs J or J to enter the openings in their respective boxes I and I.

G is a hollow casting or conduit and valvecase, which is bolted or otherwise secured to the supply-pipe D and the cylinder B. In the sides of this casting is formed an annular passage, a, which communicates at one side with the inlet-port s', closed by a piston-valve or other valve, b, mounted on apiston rod, c, which maybe worked either by hydraulic power or mechanically from the valve-stem l. When hydraulic power is to be employed for working this piston the piston-rod c, which projects through a suitable stung-box, may be connected to a suitably-placed counterweighted rocking arm, the object ot' which is to always maintain the piston b at its highest position and close the opening into the passage a. (See Fig. 4.) A pipe, B4, in connection with the discharge-passage F, communicates with the valve-case G at d, and is provided with a cock, B2, which is opened and closed in any convenient manner from the valve-stein l or otherwise. Then the cock is opened the water in the pipe and under the piston b will escape into the discharge F, and the pressure ot' the supply-water from the pipe I) will force down the piston b and open the passage a, thereby allowing water to flow into the top of' the cylinder B.

To prevent the too sudden descent ot the piston b when the pressure is exerted on its upper surface, I make two or more holes in the piston, which will allow some of the water to pass through to the under side, land thus form a temporary cushion before it escapes down the pipe into the discharge F. When the cock is closed the water will continue to llow through the. openings in the piston until the pipe is full, when the column ofwater in the pipe will neutralize the pressure ot' the water on the piston b, which will be caused to rise into the position shown at Fig, 4 by the action ot' the counterwcight.

When mechanical means are to be employed for opening the passa ge a., I connect the pistonrod 0 by means of a link-rod, c', to one arm of a bell-crank lever, c, which is pivoted to a bracket, c', carried by the supply-pipe D. (See Figs. l, 2, 5, and 6.) The other arm of this lever e is provided with a pill or stud, e2, which works in a slotted plate, j', attached to the rack E3 of the spindle l. When the pin e2 is in the position shown yat Fig. 2 the piston-valve b will be raised, and the opening a will be closed, as seen at Fig. 4; but when, through the rising or falling of the plate j', the pin c2 is brought past either of the inclined portions to the ends ot the slot (into the position shown at Fig. 6, for instance) the lever e will be rocked on its center and depress the rod c, which will, in turn, draw down the piston b and open the passage a.

The slot in the plate f is so arranged that the supply of water under pressure to the cylinder B shall be cnt off while the dischargeopening F is closed. The central portion of said slot is of such length that the ordinary movements of the spindle l to open and close the ports of the cylinder A may be effected without any movement ot' the lever c and valve b,- but by a slightly-increased movement in either direction the valve b may be lowered either to admit the motor tluid upon the piston B to increase the power, or to open communication with the pipe D, when the pistons rise, to facilitate the descent ot' the load. The like der.

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rangements, by a butterfly-valve, h, the stem of which projects through the walls of the casting and carries at its outer end a counterweighted finger, h. The valve It is closed by a rod, h2, (secured in any convenient manner to and descending with the piston-rod A2,) striking against the end of the finger h, which rocks the valve on vits center and brings it into the position shown at Fig. 2, the inger assuming the position shown at Fig. la. l As the rod h2 ascends with the piston-rod A2 it will allow the valve h to open by the action ofthe counterweig'ht.

To stop the ascent of the car, the discharge F is closed, and as there will then be no eXit for the water from below the pistons, the pressure of water above the pistons will be neutralized, and the working ofthe apparatus will be necessarily arrested. The too-sudden closing, however, of this discharge F will cause a shock or jerk to the car when stopping, and will also tend to strain considerably the parts of the apparatus. Asa means ofpreventingthese shocks or jerks, which are most detrimental in this class of machinery, I employ a valve so formed and arranged as to throttle to a great extent the discharge-opening F from the valve-chamber s3. This arrangement is shown in Fig. 2 and in the enlarged sectional views at Figs. 7 and 8. The bottom ot' the valve`chamber being open when the valves are raised into the position shown at Fig. 7, a free discharge ot' the water from both cylinders, A B, when both are working, through the passageF takes place'. When only one cylinder is working, which is generally the case with a light load, a portion only of the water from cylinder A is discharged through pipe H and dischargepassage F, the remainder passing through the clack valve G2 into cylinder B above the piston B.

The valve-stem Z, I prolong to receive a conical valve, m, which is held in the required position between a sleeve, l', on the stem l and aunt, m', screwed on the end thereof. The diameter ofthe valve m will depend upon the amount of throttle it is desired to give to the discharge, butin allcases it must be somewhat less than that of the passage F. The conical valve works in a prolongation of the valvechamber E, an enlargement, s2, being' made therein to allow full space for the tlow of the discharge-water around the valve m. The diameter ot' this enlargement should be such that when the valve fm is in the enlargement (see Fig. 7) the area of the annular space round the base ot' the cone shall be equal to the area ofthe opening F ofthe discharge-port F. (See Figs. 2 and S.)

lt will be seen, on referring to the respective figures, that the disk and conical valves are shownin three positions. In Fig. 7 the position shown would be that assumed by the valves when the car is ascending with both cylinders While in Fig. S the supply D is in connection with the discharge-passage F, the valves h and b being also open, the pressure of the water is equalized on both sides ot` the piston, and the car will thus descend by its own weight, the water above the piston A being forced out ot' the cylinder A at D into the supply-pipe D, and thence through the vaIve-chestE into the discharge F, and up the pipe H into the cylinder A, below its piston A. In like manner the water above piston B is forced out vthrough the valve b into the supply-pipe D, whence it passes through the valve-chest E and discharge F into the cylinder B, below its piston B.

The stopping of the car in its descent is effected by raising the valves into the position shown at Fig. 2, when the connection between the passages l) and F will be broken at the same time that the discharge-passage F is closed. disk-valves, will gradually lessen the area ot' the discharge-space round the base ot' the cone until it enters the port Ei, from which point the discharge space will remain the same, and the speed ot the outtlow of the discharge-water \\ill be correspondingly diminished. By this time the disk-valve will have descended only about one-third of the depth of the discharge-opening F, and so long as any portion, however small, of the discharge F iemains open, the outtlow of the discharge-water will continue, but its speed will be diminished so gradually that the tinal closing ot the opening F will be hardly perceived.

The valve m may form a prolongation of the lower disk-valve, and may be of any t'orm serving to gradually diminish the iiow of the discharge-water before it can be wholly cut oft'.

I perforate the pistons A and B to allow the water under any momentary unusual pressure to pass through the'm i'rom below to above the pistons.

The manner in which [construct my pistons is shown in detail, on an enlarged scale, at Figs. 9, 10, and 11. In these figures the piston is formed with an annular passage, i, therein. A number ot' circular openings are made through the upper face ot' the piston, to communicate with the passage t', and a series ot' enlarged openings, t2, are made in the under side ofthe piston, also to communicate with the passage t'. The openings t', as well as the upper" face ot' the piston, are covered by a diskvaive,f2, ot' india-rubber, or of other suitable material, which is secured to the piston by the cnllarj and clamping-screw. lo is the packing, which is held in place by the ring lc', secured to the under side ofthe piston by the screws k2.

Any unusual pressure ot' the water on the under side ot' the piston, whether produced by the closing ot' the discharge F during the rapid descent of the piston, or by any other cause, will cause the valve f2 to rise and allow some ofthe waterbelow it to pass upward into the space above it until the pressure below is reduced, when the descent of the piston will be arrested and the ascending car stopped.

The valve m, as it descends with theL IOO IIO

Sometimes it may be necessary, and perhaps desirable, to connect the discharge-port ofthe valve-case E with a tank or reservoir to receive the discharge-water. In this case the closing of the discharge would cause a back rush of the disch argewater and a consequentham mcring on the conical and disk valves. To prevent this I employ' a relief-valve, K, (see Fig. 2,) which may consist of an ordinary clack-valve opening inward, inclosed in a suitable valvebox communicating with the conical -valve chamber by a short pipe.

The operation of this valve is as follows: The rushing out of the water will tend to cause a vacuum to form behinditand below the val ves, and will cause the valve K to 'open and admit a sufficient quantity of air to fill the vacuum and form a cushion to prevent hammering or shock from the back rush ofthe water.

As it is very important that the top valve ofI which, n and n2, are of the same diameter, or

nearly so, as the valve-chamber s3, while the disk n is of less diameter'. The disk n is se cured in any convenient manner to the valvestem t, and between the disks n and a', I place a disk of leather or other suitable material, n3, the diameter of which shall be such that when the disk is placed in the valve-chamber its edges shall turn down and present a fiat surface to the sides` ofthe valve-chamber E, constituting a cup-leather packing. The edges of the leather disk n3 are kept constantly in contact with thc cylinder E by a ring, n4, preferably of india-rubber, and triangular-shaped in cross-section. (Sec Fig. 7 The apex of this triangle is inserted between the periphery of the disk u and the flange of the leather disk n3, and the ring is suppoi ted in position by the disk n2, which rests on the nut vr", screwed on the valve-stem l.

Holes are made in the disks a n2, to allow water to pass into the space between the edge of disk n2 and the inbber disk a4, the object being to prevent a vacuum being formed in the space, which would tend to draw the flat part ofthe rubber away fiom the valve-cylinder E. As the disk u wears away, it is only necessary to screw up the nut a5, when the ring a* will be caused to press outward the edges of the leather or other disk n3, and thus maintain the disk-valve water-tight.

\Vhile I have shown the valve-chest E with its ports communicating with the pipe D leading to two cylinders, the'same arrangement of chest, parts, and valve is applicable, as are other features of my invention, where but a single cylinder is used.`

It will be obvious that various valve-operating appliances may be employed in connection with the valves herein described; that the forms of the valves maybe changed; that va-` rious appliances may be used for manipulating them from the cage or from various parts of the apparatus; and that the structure of the different parts of the apparatus may be varied according to the circumstances under which it must be employed, and yet retain thc features which constitute my improvements.

I do not here claim the perforated valve b combined with the pipe leading from below the valve and its cock, as this may constitute the subject of a separate application for Letters Patent.

I claim- 1. The contiguous cylinders A B, their pistons and ports, and the intermediate partition havinga longitudinal part., Gf, with an opening and a self-closing valve arranged vertically, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination ofthe cylinders A B and thel valve-chest E, communicating with both cylinders through two ports only, the communication with the ends farthest from the chest being through one port and the pipe D, and with the ends nearest the chest through the other port and the passage F and pipe H, suhstantially as set forth.

3. 'Ihe combination, with the cylinder havingl a port, D', of a valve, h, arm hz, and appliances on the piston-rod whereby the valve is closed as the piston approaches the end of the cylinder, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the contiguous cylinders A B and their pistons, each receiving water upon both sides, of the pipe or passage D, communicating with each cylinder near one end, and provided with a valve, b, controlling the passage to the cylinder B, and with appliances for actuating said val ve,snbstantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with the valve b and valve-chest E and its valves E* and valvevoperating appliances,ofdeviccs whereby' the valve b is moved as the movementof the valves E* is completed, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination, with the valves E4 and operating appliances, and with the valve b, ot' devices whereby said valve b is operated by continuing the movement of the appliances for operating the valves E4, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of the valves E4, stem l, platejslotted, as described,lever e, and valve b, connected to said lever, substantially as set forth.

e. The combination, with the valve-stem l,of the plate u, perforated plates n n2, packing n3, and ringw, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination, with the valves E4 and chest E, of asupplementary valve, m, arranged to partially close the outlet-port before the discharge-port is fully closed, for the purpose set forth.

l0. In an elevator having a closed cylinder, piston, and pistonrod, the combination, with the head ofthe operating-cylinder, of one or more openings through which the water passes from or to the port, and projections carried by the piston or piston-rod and arranged to partially close said openings as the piston completes its stroke, substantially as set forth.

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11. In an elevator having a closed cylinder, 13. The combination of the discharge-pipe piston, and piston-rod, the combination, with leading from the valve-chest; E, of a hydraulic acylinder, of a chest, I, formingthe head,com elevator and an inlet-valve K, substantially municating with the outlet-port, and having as set forth.

5 an opening, 1.3, adapted to a plug, J, carried with the piston, substantially as set forth. CYRUS W. BALDWIN1 12. The piston having` ports and provided Y with a relief Valve, in combination with the cyl- Witnesses inder, its inlet and outlet passages, and valve A. STANDING?,

1o for closing the latter,substantia1ly as set forth. WM. A. TALCOTT.

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