US434171A - Gas-engine - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. 0. W. BALDWIN. GAS ENGINE.

N0.'434,.171. Patented Aug. 12, 1890.

(No Model.) 3 Slieets-Sheet 3.

C. W. BALDWIN.

GAS ENGINE. No. 434,171.. Patented Aug. 12, 1890.

Q I E 5; Q) a\ a? CYRUS \V. llALDlVIN, OF YONKEHS, NIUV YORK.

GAS-ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 434,171,

dated August 12, 1890.

Application filed February 13,1890. Serial No. 340,319. (No model.)

To all, 71/71 0771 it may concern:

Be it known that I, Uvnos W. BALDWIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Yonkers, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have inventcdccrtain new and useful 'lmprovemel'its in Gas-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to certain improvements in gas-engines, fully set forth hereinafter, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1. is an elevation of a gas-engine embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the cylinder portion. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the rear cylinder-head. Fig. -t is a section on the line t 4, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a sectional view in perspective, illustrating; one construction of the diaphragm.

The cylinder A of the engine is provided with the usual water-jacket, is closed at the end and receives the piston l), the chamber at the right of which in the cylinder constitutes the explosion-chamber, while that at the left is the pump-chamber, as in the engine patented to me September 1, 1885, No. 325,37 7. Below the explosion and pump chambers, within the casing of the cylinder, is an air-chamber X, that communicates with a valve-casing 13, having inlet air-ports it, closed by spring-seated. valves 15, the said chamber X also communicating With a port 17, closed by the valve it? in a passage or port 3 leading to the end of the explosionchamber, A port or passage 19, commuuicat ing with chamber X, is controlled by a valve 5, operated by the governor of the engine, and a port 2 constitutes communication between the pump end of the cylinder and its chamber X. A easing I, of any suitable construction, preferably circular and deeper at the center than at the periphery, and consisting of two concave disks 20 21, clamped together, is separated by a flexible diaphragm 22 into two chambers :11 1 The diaphragm 32 may be of rubber, leather, prepared fabric, or like flexible material, or it may consist of a plate or disk of thin copper or other metal, flat or stamped, or spun to form a series of concentric corrugations, as illustrated in Fig. 5, or it may be a piston sliding in the casing, the chamber X above the diaphragm communicating th rough a port 10, su rrounded by a tubular guard 9, with the chamber 113-;

while the chamber 1 below the diaphragm, communicates through a port (3 with the gassupply pipe 33, within which is a check-valve 24, opening upward. As shown, the diaphragm is a flat sheet of metal, amt a rubber or other gasket 4-0 is clamped between the parts of the casing and is of such thickness as to prevent the edge of the disk from being hold tight and allows a slight play that prevents danger of fracture from repeated bending. Within the casing lare two perforated guards 4] it, from moving into contact with the inner faces of the casing'and define the limits of its play in opposite directions. By leaving a space between the diaphragm aml the inside of the casing the air and gas act. equally at all times over the entire surface, which would not be the case if the diaphragm were broughtagainst the inner faces of the casing,graduallyclosing the ports. it will be evident that guards ot' ditlercut eonstructi ms may be used to thus limit the play of the diaphragm or piston. The chamber 1 also t-ommnnicatos with a port 7, provided with a valve 8, opening upward into a casing 12, inclosing a chamber and which communicates through a pipe 11 with an annular chamber r, surrounding the port 17, and terminating in an annular soles of ports (or in an annular port) 35, close by the valve 18, which is held down by a spring 20, so as only to rise when the pressure below it exceeds that. of the pressure above it.

A guard l3 extends over the port it), amt a screw-rod 25, extending from outside of the easing into the tube it, serves as a means of regulating the passage of gas through the tube to the chamber. r.

The piston l) is connected, as usual, to the crank of the driving-shaft, and the governor is connected with the valve 5 in such man.- ner as to open the latter to the full, allowing the air to pass in and out freely as the speed of the engine unduly i ncreases,aml the cylinder is provided with an exhaust-port. u, arranged to be uncovered by the piston as he latter approaches the termination of its forward stroke. \Vhon the piston moves back, the valve 5 being closed, (which is its position during the normal operation of the on which prevent the diaphragm gine,) the air is drawn into the pump end of the cylinder through the ports 14-, the valves lifting to permit it to How inavard, but closing as the piston reaches the end of its back-stroke. The decreased pressure in the chamber X, resulting from the exhausting action of the piston during its back-stroke, causes the diaphragm :32 to rise, thereby drawing a volume of gas into the chamber 7 the valve 2t lifting to permit the inflow of gas, but seating itself as soon as the gas ceases to llow upward. (in the forward motion of the piston the air is compressed in the chambers X .r, the diaphragm is forced downward, compressing the gas in the ehambery, and forcing it from said chamber through the port 7 (lifting the valve h) into the chamber f3, tube 1 l, and chamber 1*. The pressure of the exploded gases in the explosion-ehamber holds the valve 1 down and (entities the air and gas in their respective chambers under pressure until the piston l passes the port a, when the gases will rush from the explosionchamber rapidly, tendingto create a vacuum therein, so that the valve 18 will be lifted by the superior pressure underneath, and the air and gas will pass together into and be mixed in the port or channel 23, and will thence flow into the rear of the ex ilosioil-chamber, but before reaching theexhaust-port u the return movement of the piston will close said port and the air and gas will be compressed until the piston reaches the limit of its backward movement, after which they will be ignited and again drive the piston forward.

It will be seen that while the chambers in the casing I are in communication with the air-chamber X and gas-supp] y pipe, the said casing is exposed outside of the cylinder so as to be accessible, and being divided the parts thereof may be readily separated to permit access to the diaphragm if it should be necessary for repairs, such construction further facilitating the application of the casing and its diaphragm in gas-engines heretofore made and provided with air-chambers. It will be soon, also, that such application to existing engines is facilitated by constructing the casing 12 and the parts connected therewith aud with the valve 18 as part of a detachable casing J, adapted to be titted to the under side of the cylinder, as shown.

By providing the chamber between the chamber I/ and the port 3 with a eheck-valveS the gas is stored and retained under pressure and the diaphragm :22 is left free to act under the influence of the varying pressure in the air-chamber.

It will be seen thatthediaphragm :32 serves as a pump to draw in the air and gas; but instead of being operated positively and directly by the moving; part of the engine it is vibrated by means of the varyingprcssure in the pump or pump end of the cylinder.

' in order to prevent the oil used in lnln'icatthe parts from being discharged through port 151 or carried into the port 10,1 provide the guards 13 and t), which in tcrfere with the direct currents to said ports.

The charges may be ignited by any of the usual forms of igniting devices. I prefer, however, to use in this connection a [tameignitor, the construction of which I will now describe.

Opposite the port 3 in the rear head of the cylinder is the usual deflecting-plate 31, and with the port communicates a side port 32, to which is titted a valve 33, which is on erated through suitable connections by a cam upon the crankshaft so constructed as to open the valve when the charge is to be ignited, hold it open u til :"re waste gases are exhausted and until the new charge enters the cylinder, and to then close it before the new charge is compressed. Such a cam is illustrated at L, Fig. 1,and the connections are in the form of a reciprocatingrod 134, jointed to one arm of a rock-shaft 35, the other arm of which is jointed to the stem of the valve 33, which passes through a packing box 34. While the bevel face 23 closes the port 32 the body of the valve traverses a port 132, communicating with an igniting-tube N, which is surrounded by a chimney M, the said chimney having an interior lining 3t of asbestos or other non-conducting material, and a sheet 37 of said material being clamped below the lower edge of the chimney and its bearing on the head of the cylinder.

The igniting-tube is constructed preferably of a pipe threaded at one end to titat-hreaded socket in a nipple 38, screwing into the socket in the head of the cylinder, while the other end is threaded to receive a screw-cap 3.), which closes the end t r the tube; but the end of the tube. may be weided or closed in any suitable way. A burner 1.39 is an ordinary Bunsen burner so arranged that; the flame may play against; and heat the tube, and the latter, it will be seen, is arranged in the head 30 in close proximity to the port. 3, so that the gases will readily pass into the tube as they flow toward the cylinder. Inasmuch as the valve 33 is open from the time when the charge is ignited until the spent; gases are exhausted and is closed before any pressure is imparted to the gases in the cylinder by the back-stroke of the piston, the normal press ure in the igniting-tube, except just prior to ignition, does not exceed that of the atmosphere, so that when the tube is open the new charge will enter it more readily, while the complete closing of the tube during the entrance of the new charge into the cylinder and until the charge is compressed prevents pr(miat:nre explosion.

\Vhile I have shown the particular form of valve and valveopera ng devices I do not limit myscl to these constructions, as they may be varied withoutdeparting from the main feat u res of my invention.

Without limitiu g myself to the precise construction and arrangement of parts shown, I claim- 1. The combination, with the explosionchamber and air-pump chamber of a gas-engine, of an independent casing containing a chamber divided by a movable diaphragm into two chambers, one connected with the airchamber and the other communicating with the gas-inlet and also with the inlet-port of the explosion-chamber, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the cylinder of a gas-engine and with the air-pump and airchamber of the engine, of a casing external to said cylinder divided by a movable diaphragm into two chambers, one communicating with the air-chamber and the other with the gas-inlet provided with a check-valve, and both the air and gas chambers communicating with the inlet-port of the explosion-chamber of the cylinder, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the cylinder of a gas-engine, its air-chamber X, and air-inlet ports and valves, of an external casing I, divided by a movable diaphragm into two chambers, one communicating with the airchamber X and the other with the gas-inlet pipe and with the inlet-port of the explosionchamber, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of the cylinder of a gas-en gin e, its air-chamber and inlet-port and valve, and the casing I, divided bya movable diaphragm, gas-inlet communicating with a chamber at one side of the diaphragm, and a chamber ,2, communicating with said gaschamber through a port closed by valve 8, and also communicating with the inlet-port of the explosion-chamber, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with the cylinder of a gas-engine, of a casing containing a movable diaphragm arranged outside of said cylinder, and a casing J provided with the ports and passages constituting the communications between the air-chamber of the cylinder, the casing I, and the charge-inlet port 3, and also arranged outside of the cylinder, substantially as set forth. v

6. The combination of the casing consisting of two concave disks, a diaphragm, and detachable perforated guards on opposite sides of the (liaphragm, the diaphragm and guards extending between the concave disks, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of the sections 20 21 of the casingL, diaphragm, and gasket thicker than the diaphragm, for the purpose set forth.

8. The combination, with the cylinder provided with an air-chamber X and easing I and communicating port 10, of a shield 9, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination, with the passages and ports of a gas-engine, of shields arranged adjacent to the ports to prevent the passage of oil to the same, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CYRUS W. BALDWIN.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM RILEY, EDWARD R. BORLAND.

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