US417112A - Automatic pump-governor - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

J. A. STEININGBR. AUTOMATIC PUMPv GOVERNOR.

' Patented Deo. 10, 1889.

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N0.417,112. PatentedvDec. 10, 1889.

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AUTOMATIC PUMP GOVERNOR.

No. 417,112. Patented Dec.- 10, 1889.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JACOB A. STEININGER, OF CRESTON, IOVA.

AUTOMATIC PUMP-GOVERNOR.

`'SIPECIIFICAJTION forming part of Letters Patent No. 417,112, dated December 10, 1889.

Application tiled August 1, 1889.

To all whom, it muy concern..-

Be it known that I, JACOB A. STEININGER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Creston, in the county of Union and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvement-s in Automatic Pinup-Governors for Brake Mechanism; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the lettcrsand figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to devices by which the supply of steam to the power-generating mechanism of a iiuidpressure brake appara* tus is automatically cutoff when the pressure in the train-pipe or main reservoir reaches certain limits and is restored when the pressure in either falls below a determined limit.

The object of the device is to prevent such an excess of pressure as would tend to cause the sliding ot' the wheels, and to obviate the unnecessary operation ot' the pump, as well as to provide for the accumulation ot such surplus of pressure in the main reservoir when the brakes are applied as will insure their prompt release when required.

A further object is'to insure that the surplus pressure thus accumulated in the main reservoir shall bear a certain ratio to the reduction of pressure in the train-pipe, whereby if the train-pipe pressure excessively reduced thc surplus pressure pumped up shall be greater than when the train-pipe pressure is but slightly reduced, so that in any event the train-pipe pressure may be quickly restored with no more than the necessary expenditure of steam.

Certain other advantages and capabilities of my invention will appear in connection with the detailed explanation hereinafter given, and it will be apparent that my invention is applicable, broadly, to the controlling of a valve by two independent pressurechambers.

The improvement consists, essentially, Ain two movable abutments, each located in a pressure-chamber of its own and connected with a valve in such a manner that. each has sena No. 319,385. ci@ moda.)

an independent control of the valve, whereby any reduction of the pressure .below the normal in either chamber will cause the valve to open.

My improvements are shown as applied to. the air-pump governor ot an air-brake-system, tl'iough they are not necessarily confined.r vto that speciic kind of brake.

In the drawings, 'Figure l is a full-length vertical section of the preferred form of governor, the pressure-chambers being relieved from pressure, and the throttle-valve being about to open to start the pump. Fig. 2 is a modification designed to be used when the reduction of pressure is'to move the stem downward to positively operate a throttlet'alve. Fig. 3 is an elevation of the casing inclosing the adjustable joint uniting the stems, the

slip-cover being in section. Figsc and 49 are modifications in which the stemis in one piece. Fig. 5 shows a rigid stem composed of p two parts adjustably united. Figs. 6, 7, and 8 illustrate the successive operations ofthe parts under differentconditions; andFig. El is a detail showing a modification ot the joint uniting the stems. A The same letters refer to corresponding parts in the saineiigures.

Steam is appliedto the steam-cylinder of the air-pump through a valve-casingA, enterseats against a face around the delivery side of the opening and is supported' inplace byy a threaded spindle C, a cavity in wliichiife?I ccives the stem b of the valve. projects through a stuffing-box to the outside of the casing and is provided with a suitable handle c, by means of which it can be run in' and out through the threaded sleeve C. From the upper side of the valve rises a neck I1', the upper part of which is enlarged, forming a cylindrical. head h2, which slides easily in av recess in the valve-casing. Along one side of the head is formed a groove or port bi". The neel; D is hollow to receive the stem CZ of an exhaust-valve D, which is held up to its seat CL2 by a helical spring (Z, surrounding the stem d inside of the head b2, which is counterbored to receive it. The valve-stem d is ex- The spindlef'go t'ended above the valve and is provided with wings to guide it centrally in the passage-way a3, which communicates with the exhaustpipe E. These parts are all old and are found in the automatic air-pump governor in common use. The operation of them is as follows: The spindleC is screwed down so as to permit the throttle-valve B to be unseated by the excess of steam-pressure on the upper side of the valve, permitting steam to pass through the valve-casing to the pump. X/Vhen the pump is to be stopped, the valve D is unseated, allowing the steam on the upper side of the valve B to escape through the exhaust E, which causes an excess of steam-pressure on the lower side of the valve B, forcing the valve to its seat in the septum A and cutting off the supply of steam to the pump.

My improvements relate to those parts of the governor by which the valve D is automatically seated and the pump started when the pressure in the train-pipe or the main reservoir falls below a given point, and, on the other hand, the valve is unseated and the pump stopped when the train-pipe or mainreservoir pressures reach said given point, as will now be described.

In its simplest form my governor consists of two pressure chambers, arranged one above the other and containing movable abutments carried on a rigid stem that passes through both chambers, and is provided with a spring or springs adapted to resist the uuidpressure on the abutments. Such an arrangement is shown in Fig. et, in which the Valve-stem d projects into the lower chamber F, in which works a movable abutment G, such as a piston, or, preferably, a diaphragm of exible material held securely around its periphery rlhe abutment is carried on a stem H, projecting into the upper part of the chamber F, which is of lesser diameter than the lower part, and in which is a movable abutment G-preferablya diaphragm-fastened to the stem H. The space I between the two diaphragms constitutes what I term the train-pipe pressure-chamber, being in communication with the train-pipe of the brake system through the pipe J. The stem H extends up through a counterbored casing A2,`in which is a helical spring H', surrounding the stem and seated on the bottom of the counter-bore. At the top of the casing the stem is screw-threaded to receive the nut h and the jam-nut h', by means of which the tension of t-he spring can be adjusted, the upper end of the spring bearing against the underside of the nut h. The spring thus tends to resist any downward pull on the stem H.

Upon the upper end of the casing A2 is secured an open frame A3, preferably composed of two arms, as shown, rising from a threaded sleeve screwed upon the end of the casing A2 and locked by a suitable j am-nut.

Thenuts h h are easily accessible through the open sides of the frame A3, which is provided with a removable slip-cover AG to protect the nuts from dirt and from accidental displacement. The frame supports a chambered block A4, in which is a movable abutment K. A smaller abutment K is located in the smaller upper portion of the chamber A4, and both abutments are carried by the stem H, which projects up into the casing A2. The space I between the two abutments K K constitutes what I call the main-reservoirpressure chamber, being connected with the main reservoir by means of the pipe J.l

Since the abutments G and K are of greater area than the abutments G K any increase of the fluid-pressure in either of the'pressurechambers I I will exert a downward pull on the stem. rlhe tension of the spring can be adjusted to resist this tendency until the unbalanced pressure on the abutments G K exceeds a determined limit, when the stem will descend and open the exhaust-valve D. In the compressed-air system the normal pressure in the main reservoir is about ninety pounds to the square inch, which by means of a loaded valve (the feed-valve) in the engineers valve is reduced to seventy pounds in the train-pipe, the excess of twenty pounds being retained in the main reservoir to insure a speedy release of the brakes. The

total normal unbalanced pressure on the abutl ments G and K is therefore one hundred and sixty pounds, and the spring H must be strong enough to yield only when these normal pressures have been reached.

The stem H is provided with suitable collars h2, which limit the amount of its vertical play in the chambers. It is preferably about one thirty-second of an inch in practice. y

In the modification shown in Fig. eta the two pressure-chambers are brought close together, and the spring is arranged above them. The space between the two pressurechambers is vented by an opening no to prevent the accumulation of pressure between the abutments G and K, which would interfere with the free action of the abutments. It is obvious that the stem may, if desired, be made in two parts united bv an adjustable joint, as shown in Fig. 5, where the stems H H2 are united by a right and left hand nut h3. It is also obvious that instead ofone spring two may be used, as shown in Fig. the stem H or H2 being extended up into a counter bored casing A5, where it is furnished with a pair of nuts to adjust the tension of the upper spring H3.

It is preferable to use two springs instead of one, since one can be set to balance the normal train-pipe pressure and the other the normal main-reservoir pressure, and each can be independently regulated.

The operation of my device is as follows: Suppose the parts to be as shown in Figs. 4, 4, and 5, the exhaust-valve D being closed and the pump at work. The pressure in thc train-pipe and chamber I and in the main reservoir and chamber l will rise until it IIO reaches the limits at which t-hesprin gs H and H3 have been set to yield. The stems H and H2 will then move down, unseating the valve D and stopping the pump; but this will not happen so long as the pressure in either chamber fails to vreach its limit, since the resistance of both the springs H H2 must be overcome. The exhaust-valve D being'open and the pump stopped, the train-pipe 4and main-reservoir pressures being at their normal point-say seventy and ninety pounds, respectivelyv-let a reduction take place in the main-reservoir pressure from leakage or from using the air for some purpose. This will destroy the balance between the tension of the spring H3 and the pressure on the abut- 'ment K, allowing the unbalanced strength of the spring to lift the stem, the downward. pressure in the train-pipe chamber I being so little in excess of the strength of the spring H that these two forces are almost balanced, and so voffer but very little resistance to the pull on the stem. Any reduction in the mainreservoir pressure will therefore start the pump, even though the pressure in the trainpipe chamber is at its normal, and the pump will continue to operate until the normal pressure has been restored in the main reservoir. Again, the exhaustfvalve D being open and the pump stopped, let the train-pipe pressure be reduced, as by applying the brakes, or by a leak through a defective joint, or from accidental rupture of the pipe. The

unbalanced pressure on the abutment (l now becomes less than the tension of the spring H', which instantly lifts the stem H,` allowing' the exhaust-valve D'to close and the pump to start, supplying to the main reservoir a surplus pressure above the normal to be availp able to 'restore the train-pipe pressure and release the brakes; but this condition of things is not permanent during the entire time the train-pipe pressure may remain below the normal, for if it remain so for any length of time the surplus liuid-pressure in the main reservoir at length reaches a point where it will overbalance the surplus strength of the springH and move the stems downward,there by stopping the pump; but since the degree of surplus strength in lthc spring H depends upon the amount of reduction in the pressure that has taken place in the train-pipe it is evident that the degree of surplus pressure that must be developed in the main reservoir to overbalance the spring l-l will not always be the same, but will bear a certain fixed ratio to the reduction of pressure in the trainpipe-that is to say, if a reduction of five pounds pressure below the normal in the trainpipe requires an excess of two pounds above the normal in the main reservoir to stop the pump, then a train-pipe reduction ofltwenty pounds will require an excess of eight pounds in the main reservoir to accomplish the same result; but since it is desirable to restore the normal train-pipe pressure as quickly as possible when the brakes are to be released, and

since a greater main-reservoir pressure is required to do this when the train-pi pe reduction has been considerable than is required when the reduction in the train-pipe has been moderate, it will be seen that my governor automatically meets the requirements of every case and stops the pump when and only when the proper main-reservoir pressure has been attained to quickly restore the normal trainpipe pressure. The consumption of steam is therefore exactly proportional to the work that the pump has to do, and unnecessary pumping, involving waste of steam and wear of the the upper stern H2 is formed into or provided with a headed pin L. A anged nut or nipple N slides freely on the pin above the head Z and is adjustable upon the end of the stem H, where it can be locked bya j ain-nut n. These nuts are accessible through the open sides of theframe A3 when the slip-cover A is removed.

By means of the anged nut N and headed l 'voir when the train-pipe pressure is reduced.

It will be noticed that the vertical play of,` the upper steril H2 is greater than that of the lower stem H. Suppose the play of the stems to be, respectively, one-sixteenth and one thirty-second of an inch, the latter being of course a suflicient amount of movement to open the exhaust-valve. Let the head Z be set, as shown in Fig. l, so that there is left between it and the stem H a space of one thirty-second of an inch-enough to absorb the entire surplus movement of the upper stem H2.V Put the normal pressure` on the abutment K and it will depress the upper stem H2 until it strikes the lower stem H, the flanged nut allowing the pin L to slide through it. (See Fig. 6.) When the nornial'pressure in the lower chamber is reached, the lower stem will move down freely a thirty-second of an inch and open the exhaust-valve, the stems remaining' as shown in Fig. 7. The upper stein has a capacity'of further downward movement; but the normal pressure in IOO IIO

chamber I is not sufficient Vto compress the pump at once starts and slowly increases the pressure in the main reservoir above the normal. 4Under this increased pressure the abutment K tends to move farther downward, but is opposed by the stem Il, which is just touching the head l. The opposing force is due to the unbalanced upward tension of the spring I-I, which has been liberated by the reduction of fluid-pressure in the chamber l. This unbalanced tension holds up the stem H until the surplus abnormal pressurein the main reservoir has risen high enough to overcome it and torce the two stems downward. As has been previously stated, this surplus abnormal pressure will always bear a fixed ratio to the amount by which the train-pipe pressure has been lowered. In this way the Asurplus main-reservoir pressure is always proportion al to the loss in the train-pi pe pressure, so that the latter can be quickly restored when the time comes, and yet no unnecessary work is put upon the pump.

Should it be desired to vary the ratio between the loss in the train-pipe pressure and the corresponding surplus pressure in the main reservoir, it can be done by means of the flanged nut N, as follows: Suppose the parts to be as shown in Fig. 1. Let the nut N be screwed down until the head l and the stem H come in contact. This puts upon the upper spring H2 an additional compression, owing to the stem H2 having been drawn down one thirty-second o'f an inch. The degree of fluid-pressure necessary to move the abutment K has therefore been raised, and this increase must be overcome by an increased surplus or abnormal pressure in the main reservoir before the exhaiiist-valve can be opened. Since the anged nut can be adjusted to any point within this range of movement of the head l, it is evident that the surplus pressure to be pumped into the main reservoir can be regulated within certain limits with great nicety, inasmuch as it depends not only upon the loss of pressure in the train-pipe, but also on the amount of extra tension put upon the upper spring by the nut N.

In case it is desired to operate a throttlevalve which'v requires the stem to Ydescend when the pressure in the chambers is reduced, the construction shown in Fig. 2 is available. The relative position of the abutments is here reversed, the larger ones being uppermost, so that when the pressure in either of the chambers is reduced the springs tend to force the stems downward. The upper stem is provided with a set-screw O, tapped into its end and adapted to come in contact with the top of the lower stem. A lock-nut P secures the set-screw when it has been properly adj usted. The set-screw and lock-nut may also be used in combination with the flanged nut N and headed pin L in the governor, (shown in Fig. 1,) if desired. Such an arrangement as this is illustrated in Fig. 9 and provides for the most delicate adjustment of the parts.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

l. The combination, with a throttle-valve, of a movable stem adapted to control said valve, the stem being composed of two parts united by a loose joint, permitting each part to have a movement. independent of the other,twe movable abutments subjected to fluid-'pressure and connected, respectively, with the two von the abutment connected with its respective stem, andan adjusting device for varying the space between the two stems H H2, substantially as described.

The combination, with the two movable stems H H2, of the headed pin L on one stem and the flanged nut N on the other stem, engaging with said pin, and the set-screw O, for adjusting the length of one of the stems, substantially as described.

4. An automatic governor for the air-pump of a fluid-pressure brake system, consisting of a valve controlling the admission of steam to the pump, a stem controlling the movements of the valve, two movable abutments connected with said stem, one subjected to the main-reservoir pressure and the other to the train-pipe pressure, and one or more springs connected with said stem and set to balance the normal main-reservoir pressure and the normal train-pipe pressure, substantially as described.

5. An automatic governor for the air-pump of a duid-pressure brake system, consisting of a valve controlling the admission of steam to the pump, a stem controllin g the movements of the valve, said stem being made in two independ ently-movablc parts, a movable abutment connected with each part and subjected one to the main-reservoir pressure and the othery to the train-pipe pressure, aspringconnected with each part and set to balance the normal pressure on its abutment, and a loose adjustable connection between the two parts of the stem, whereby the reduction of pressure on either abutment will cause the steam-valve to be opened for a longer or shorter period, substantially as described.

(i. An automatic'governor for the air-pump of a duid-pressure brake system, consisting of a valve controlling the admission of steam to the pump, a stem controlling the movements of the valve, said stem being made in two independently-movable parts, a movable abutment attached to each part, one subjected to the main-reservoir pressure and the other to IOC IIO

the train-pipe pressure, the former having au trolled by the train-pipe pressure, substanrange of movement in' excess of the latter, a tialiyas described. IO spring' connected with each part of the stem In testimony whereof I affix my signature in and adj usted to balance the normal pressure presence of two Witnesses.

on its abutmenandan adjustableloose con- JACOB A. STEININGER. neotion unitingthe two parts of the stem, per-V \Vitne'sses: mitting` a play between them not greater GEO. B. XVEBSTER,

than the range of movement of the part oon- ROBT. BISSET.

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