US570526A - Water-elevator - Google Patents

Description

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WATER ELEVATOR.

Patented Nov. 3 18 96.

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. WATER ELEVATOR. N0. 570,526. Patented Nov. 3, 1896.

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WATER ELEVATOR. No. 570,526. Patented Nov. 3,1896.

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WATER ELEVATOR.

No. 570,526. Patented Nov. 3, 1896.

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MOSES II. WVHITE, OF IVANATOHEE, lVASl-IINGTON, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO SOLOMON SAUNDERS, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

WATER-ELEVATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 570,526, dated November 3, 1896. Application filed November 14, 1895. Serial No. 568,932. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, MOSES H. WVHITE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Wa V natchee, in the county of Kittitass and State of lVashington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Water-Elevators; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention is in the nature of a waterelevator, and is adapted to take water from a running stream, river, or other water supply and elevate and deposit the same at a distant point under the action of the force of the current on said apparatus. This apparatus was particularly designed and is especially adapted for irrigating purposes, but is capable of general use wherever it is desired to elevate water in the manner above set forth.

Broadly considered my invention comprises an endless track or runway extending from the river or source of water supply to a distant elevated point and an endless traveler formed by a series of pivotally-connected buckets movable over said endless track.

In the preferred form of the apparatus the buckets are provided with propelling-wings, which are adapted to fold inward in one direction only, so that underthe action of the current, as the buckets are submerged into the stream, said propelling wings will be opened to receive the force of the current, thus automatically causing the endless traveler or series of buckets to travel in a 0011- tinuous direction. As the buckets are withdrawn from the stream the propelling-blades will fold back to decrease their resistance .with the water. i

The preferred arrangement of the apparatus is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein, like letters referring to like parts throughout the several views- Figure 1 is a perspective View showing the apparatus in working position. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of the track or runway and several of the buckets of the endless traveler in working position thereon. Fig. 3 is a side elevation showing a portion of the track or runway with several of the buckets in working position thereon, one of said buckets being shown in its open and the other in its closed position. Fig. 4. is a transverse vertical section taken on the line XX of Fig. 3,som e parts being broken away; and Fig. 5 is a plan view of the parts shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

A indicates the current of the river; B, an elevated point, such as a distant hill. The track or runway is formed by a pair of endless parallel rails a, which, as shown, are supported by posts a at proper intervals along the line.

1) indicates the buckets, which, as shown,

are supported in pairs connected by braoketirons b, which bracket-irons are provided with flanged wheels 19 which work one on each of the rail-irons a. It may be here noted that these rail-irons afiare outward from each other approximately at an angle of forty-five degrees from a perpendicular, and that the flanged Wheels b engaging said rails at the same angle, are thereby held to the track and the buckets prevented from rising or being thrown out of position. The brackets b are provided with ball sockets or seats I) and with extended connectingbars b terminating in ball-heads 11 The brackets b are pivotally connected together by the engagement of the ball-heads 11 0f the one bracket with the socket or seat 12 of the adjacent bracket 1).

The bucketsb are provided at their bottoms with gravity-closed valves b pivoted at b and provided with depending trip-arms b. As shown, the trip-arms b are provided at their free ends with antifriction-rolls b Normally these valves are closed, but are automatically opened at two'points in the travel of the buckets by means of inclined camways a (see Fig. 3,) which under the-advancing movement of the buckets engage the antifriction-rolls Z) of the trip-arms b force said arms backward, and thereby open said valves I)". These camways a are located one pair in that portion of the track or runway which is submerged beneath the surface of the stream and the other pair at the elevation B. The former inclined camways a open the valves a" to permit the buckets to fill with water when submerged, while the latter inclined camways open the said valves to permit the buckets to empty under the action of gravity.

11 are the propelling-blades, secured one to each of the buckets b by means of hinges b, which permit said wings to fold outward at right angles to the runway, as shown in Figs. 2, 4, and 5 by full lines, and to fold backward, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5. It will be noted that these wings b are so pivoted that when turned outward they stand with their upper ends leaning forward in the direction of their travel. In virtue of this construction the propelling action of the current will have a slight downward-forcing ac tion on the buckets, which, of course, tends to make the wheels Z) tightly hug the rails.

0 indicates a catch trough or basin located at the elevation B, immediately under the upper members of the inclined ways a and 0 indicates an aqueduct leading from the basin c for conveying the water' elevated by the apparatus into the basin to distant points over the country where it is desired to use water for irrigating purposes.

If desired, I may also employ a wall at, which is built out from the bank of the river on a line with the inner side of the track or run way. This wall will tend to deflect or divert the natural current of the river and cause the same to follow more closely the line of the runway.

The operation is as follows: Under the action of the current the submerged buckets and pivoted wings act as motors and cause the continuous circuitous movement of the whole train of buckets, as already indicated. As the buckets are lowered into the water the valves Z), under the action of the lower camways a are opened and the buckets are permitted to fill. As this action takes place at or about the time the buckets are first thrown into the water, the lifting action which would otherwise occur from the buoyancy of the buckets is avoided. Obviously under the above action the filled buckets will be elevated until they are brought immediately over the basin 0, at which point the valves 17 will be again opened by the upper camways a and the water deposited and distributed as before stated.

Attention is further called to the fact that the action of the wind serves as an auxiliary force to assist the action of the current of the stream, for, as will be noted, no matter which way the wind is blowing it will catch behind and open out some of the propellingwings Z2 while the wings of the buckets which are moving against the wind will simply be folded backward out of the wind. It will also be understood that so far as certain of the details of my apparatus are concerned it is immaterial whether the apparatus is propelled in the manner set forth by the action of the current of the stream or whether the apparatus is propelled by other means. As is also obvious, various alterations in the details of construction of the apparatus may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention. For instance, suppose it is desired to elevate water from a still body, such as a lake, or from a river the current of which is insufficient to propel the carriers. In this case I might employ power devices which are driven either by steam, electricity, or by wind-power devices. In each of these cases the folding wings, if provided on the endless traveler, would still act as auxiliary power devices under the action of the wind to assist in propelling the traveling carrier. Again, the endless carrier, driven in any one of the different manners above set forth, might be employed for purposes of transporting or moving devices other than water-buckets, such, for example, as to draw logs from the river.

lVhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows 1. In a water-elevator,the combination with the endless track or, runway extending from the water supply to a distant elevation, of the inclined camways located at said water supply and said elevation, and the endless traveler formed by a series of pivotally-connected buckets provided with valves which are normally closed, but which are adapted to be opened by said inclined camways when the buckets are passed thereover, substantially as described.

2. In a water-elevator, the combination with the endless track or runway extending from the water supply to a distant elevation, of valve-tripping devices, located one at the said water supply, and the other at the said distant elevation, and the endless traveler, formed by the series of pivotally-connected buckets provided with valves that are normally closed, but which are adapted to be opened by said valve-tripping devices as said buckets pass the same, substantially as described.

3. In a water-elevator,the combination with the endless track or runway extending from the water supply to a distant elevation, of the valve-tripping devices, located one at said water supply and the other at said distant elevation, and the endless traveler, comprising the pivotally-connected trucks movable over said track, the buckets supported, one pair by each truck, and provided with pivoted or folding propelling-wings and with valves that are normally closed, but which are adapted to be opened by said valve-trippin g devices, said parts operating substantially as described.

4. In a water-elevator, the combination with the endless track or runway comprising the parallel flaring rails a, of the inclined camways ailocated respectively at the water sup- IIO ply and at a distant elevation, and the endless a said parts operating substantially as detraveler, comprising the pivotally-connected scribed. 10 trucks b 11 b b 11 the buckets I) carried by In testimony whereof I affix my signature said trucks, the laterally pivoted or folding in presence of two Witnesses.

5 wings 12 carried by said buckets b, and the MOSES H. WHITE.

valves 12 in the bottoms of said buckets b lVitnesses: provided with depending trip-stems 6 sub- KIRK VVHITED,

jectto the action of said inclined camways CHAS. OULBRETH.

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