US657941A - Lubricator attachment for steam-engines. - Google Patents

Description

No. 657,94l. Patented Sept. 18, I900.

w. F. JOHNSTON.

LUBRICATOR ATTACHMENT FOR STEAM ENGINES.

(Application filed Mar. 9, 1900.\

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFI E.

WIL IAM F. JOHNSTON, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

LUBRICATOR ATTACHMENT FOR STEAM-ENGINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 657,941, dated September 18, 1900. Application filed March 9, 1900. Serial No. 8,069. (No model.)

To 00% whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM F. JOHNSTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Richmond, in the county of Henrico and State of Virginia, have invented a new and useful Lubricator. Attachment for Steam-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved lubricator attachment for steam-engines, specially designed for use in connection with the valvechest and piston-cylinder of the engine.

Heretofore it has been common to provide an oil-cup on the steam-chest, and it has also been proposed to provide means for utilizing the steam-pressure in a manner to carry the lubricant along with the steam into the Working parts of the chest. Practical experience with some of the types of lubricating devices on a locomotive-engine has shown that the lubricator is not effective at the period of operation of the engine when the lubricator would become most available-as, for example, when the-locomotive is engaged in hauling a heavy train up a steep grade and over mountainous sections of the track.

The object that I have in View is to provide a lubricator in which the parts are positively and automatically actuated by a moving elelnent of, the engine-such, for example, as the valve-rod-and the parts of my lubricator are so constructed and combined that leakage of steam is minimized in the operation of the lubricator by the valve-motion of the engine.

The elements of the lubricator are arranged for operation in a manner to wholly avoid displacement of the lubricant by the pressure of the steam in the valve-chest, and as the lilbricator is positively actuated the necessary supply of liquid lubricantisfed into the valvechest, so as to be taken up by the steam and carriedto all the surfaces of the valve and the piston which require constant and thorough lubrication. 7 p

The invention consists in the novel con- .struetion and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of a portion of a steam-cylinder and a valvechest therefor, showing my improved lubri- "cator appliance of my invention.

cator applied to the chest. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional elevation through the lubri- Fig. 3 is a side elevation looking toward the left in the direction of the arrow in, Fig. 2.

The same numerals of reference are used to indicate like and corresponding parts in each of the several figures of the drawings;

In order that others may understand the application of my lubricator to an engine, I have illustrated a portion of the piston-cylinder at 5, the valve-chest at 6, the valve-rod at 7, and a section of the valve-operating rod a118, thelatter being coupled at 9 to the protruding'end of the valve-rod. All of these parts are ordinary in the art. Hence no novelty therefor is claimed in this application.

In applying my lubricator to the val ve-chest I employ a threaded bushing 10, which is screwed into a tapped opening which is ordinarily provided in the upper side of the valve-chest for the reception of an ordinary lubricator-cup.

The essential part of my lubricator is a feed-plug revoluble on a horizontal axis and provided with a series of pockets adapted to successively discharge a liquid lubricant in predetermined quantities into the valve-chest, combined with a casing in which the plug is fitted in a steam-tight manner and means operable by the valve-motion for rotating the will now proceed to describe. This feed-plug 11 is essentially circular in cross-section and tapered from one end to the other, so as to secure the appearance of a cone, and said plug is provided with an axial stem 12 and a series of comparatively-shallow pockets 13,

equidistant from each other, each pocket opening through the circular face of said feed-plug. A shell or casing 14 is provided with a conical chamber 15 for the accommodation or seating of the revoluble plug, and 5 IOO 13 in the revoluble feed-plug, whereby the liquid lubricant may be supplied by the passage 17 to one of the pockets, and on the rotation of the feed-plug the lubricant contained in the pocket is discharged into the passage 16. A supply-pipe 18 is united by a coupling 19 to the upper threaded nipple, which forms the feed-passage 17 to the chamber of the shell or casing. Another coupling 20 has threaded connection with another nipple on the lower side of the shell or casing, which nipple is provided with the passage 16. This coupling 20 is hollow to communicate with the passage 16, and said coupling is furthermore screwed into the bushing 10, whereby the shell and plug of the lubricator are united to the bushing 10, so as to be 'through for the passage of the stem 12 of the revoluble feed-plug. The cap 21 provides for the adjustment of the flanged gland 22, working within the open end of the shell 14 in opposition to the bushing-ring 22, seated f within the shell against the interior shoulder 22 located approximately in the plane of one end of the feed-plug. Suitable packing 22 is confined between the gland and the bushing-ring, and these parts constitute an eifective stufiing-box for one end of the shell or casing to prevent leakage of steam or oil.

I desire to remark that the interior surface of the shell or casing and the exterior surface of the plug are ground or finished in any of the usual ways known to those skilled in the art in a manner to make the plug accurately fit the chamber of the shell, thus producing a steam-tightjoint between the shell and plug, which minimizes the leakage of steam and wholly overcomes any tendency of the liquid lubricant to be displaced by the steam-pressure in the valve-chest. This is a very important feature of my invention, because it insures the proper feed of the lubricant to the valve-chest and normally overcomes the leakage of the steam, with a consequent reduction in the steam-pressure at the place where its energy is to be utilized in the propulsion of the engine A supporting-bracket 23 is provided with a plate 24 for the purpose of securely fastening the same upon the top of the valve-chest at a point alongside of and close to the casing of the feed-plug, thus providing means for bracing the operative parts of the valve attachment directly from the top of the valve-chest and at a point remote from the lubricator-cup, which is arranged in the cab of the locomotive or other accessible point remote from the engine. This supporting-bracket is provided at its upper end with a journal-bearing 25, which is disposed in axial alinement with the plug 11, and the stem 12 of this plug is of sufficient length to extend from the cap or gland 21 and find its support in the journal-bearing 25 of said bracket. The extended protruding part of the plug-stem 12 is provided with a ratchet 26 at a point between the bearing 25 and the cap or gland 21. A vibratory feed- I lever 27 is bifurcated or forked at one end to provide the legs 28, having the sleeves or collars 29. Ihis forked end of the lever is arranged for its sleeves or collars 29 to fit loosely on the plug-stem 12 at points on opposite sides of the ratchet 26, whereby the feed-lever is fnlcrumed on the stem of the plug in a manner to embrace the ratchet. A feed-pawl 30 is arranged within the fork of the lever, so as to be pivotally mounted at its heel by means of the bolt 31, which passes through said le ver and the pawl. This pawl is disposed over the ratchet for its nose to drop by gravity into engagement with the teeth of said ratchet, and iin the operation of the lever the pawl travels ftherewithfor the purpose of turning the lratchet when the lever is moved in one direction; but on the reverse movement of the leiver the pawl slips idly over the teeth on said I ratchet.

Any suitable means may be provided for iconnecting the free end of the feed-lever di- :rectly with a part of the valve-motion; but ias one means for the operation of the lever I ihave shown a jointed rod or arm 32, one end iof which is connected by a pin or bolt with 1, an eye-formed upper end 33 of the feed-lever. Q'A cuif or sleeve 34 is clamped to the valve- }operatingrod 8, preferably at a point adja- ';cent to the pivotal connection 9 between the l valve-stem and the said valve-operating rod i8, and to this cuff or sleeve is fastened the }other end of the angular rod 32. In operation the swinging and reciprocating movement given by the valve-motion to the rod 8 operates the jointed arm 32, as well asthe stem 7 of the slide-valve, the latter conftrolling the supply and exhaust of steam to g and from the piston-cylinder. The movement iof the feed-lever 27 in one direction causes the pawl to turn the ratchet and the stem 12 a suitable distancesay one-fourth of a revolution. The pockets 13 of the feed-cup are brought into coincidence successively with the supply-passage 17, so that each pocket will receive a limited or predetermined quantity of the liquid lubricant. On the rotation of the stem and plug by the action of the pawl-and-ratchet feed mechanism, which is operated automatically by the valve-motion of the engine, the liquid lubricant is carried bythe pockets of the feed-plug from the passage l7 and discharged into the passage 16, from whence the lubricant drops by gravity into the steam-chest, whereby the lubricant is taken up by the steam and carried to all of the surfaces which require lubrication.

An oil cup or reservoir may be provided in the cab of thelocomotive or located at any 1 other accessible poin t remote from the engine,

so as to be arranged in a position for the pipe 18 to be connected therewith,so that the lubricant will be supplied by gravity from the cup into the pipe 18 and thence to the feedplug. One advantage of placing the lubricant-reservoir in the cab resides in the fact that the lubricant is kept by the heat from I the boiler in a liquefied condition to permit of its free flowing to the distributing mechanism of the lubricator. It is evident that any suitable means may be employed for heating the lubricant, and thereby insuring its liquefaction.

From the foregoing it will be understood that it is essential to the successful carrying out of the invention that the lubricant be permitted to be supplied by gravity into and through the pipe 18, thus adapting the attachment for use in connection with that type of gravity or drop feed lubricators which are now commonly employed in connection with locomotive-engines. This desirable result is accomplished by providing a steam-tight joint between the valve casing or shell and the rotatable plug therein, so that the said plug acts as a steam cut-off to prevent the back pressure of steam within the valve-chest from displacing the liquid lubricant in the pipe 18 or interfering with the action of the lubricator connected with said pipe. Of course a gravityfeed lubricator is necessary to the successful carrying out of the invention; but any of the ordinary forms of such lubricators may be employed-such, for instance, as shown in Patents Nos. 291,847, 324,339, or 645,026, cerrain of these patents disclosing what is commonly known in the art as the Nathan lubricator.

It has already been explained that one advantage of placing the lubricant-reservoir in the cab resides in the fact that the lubricant is kept in a heated condition, thereby insuring the free flowing thereof by gravity into and through thepipe 18. While this would be a special advantage in connection with any form of reservoir located within the cab of a locomotive, still it is of special importance in 1 view of the fact that the present invention is designed-for use in connection with that type oflubricators known as gravity or sight feed lubricators. In other words, the inventionis in the nature of an automatically-actuated feedvalve attachment for an oil-conducting pipe which admits of the use of a gravity-feed lubricator in connection with the valve-chest of a locomotive-engine.

I am aware of the fact, as already stated, that it is common in the art to provide an oilcup on the valvechest and also to employ lubricant cups or receptacles which are supported on top of the valve-chest and associated with automatically-controlled valves; but it would be impracticable to employ a gravity-feed lubricator in such position, In the first place, economy in the use of oil is a requirement which locomotive engineers in ust carefully observe,and lubricators which are not immediately accessible and under control occasion unnecessary waste on account of a surplus supply of oil being usually delivered to the part to be lubricated. Therefore any lubricating device for the working parts of the engine within the cylinder and valve-chest should be under the direct control of the engineer, and consequently one of the important advantages of arranging the gravity-feed lubricator within the cab is that the feeding of the oil is always visible to the engineer, and he can readily manipulate the gravity-feed lubricator to provide for controlling or entirely cutting off the supply of oil to the pipe 18, irrespective of the oil-feed plug interposed in the line of the said pipe 18. It may not be necessary at all times to feed the lubricant to the valve-chest, and consequently by locating the gravity-feed lubricator within the cab this can be entirely controlled by the engineer, which result has not heretofore been possible in that type of lubricators providing means for automatically delivering measured quantities of oil into the valve or steam chest of the engine. Furthermore, a gravity-feed lubricator upon the valvechest would be, very objectionable, not only on account of being beyond the immediate control ,of the engineer, but also on account of the fact that the same would be rendered entirely ineifective by cold weather,

which causes such a thickening of the oil in lubricators of that type as to interfere seriously with their operation.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the lubricator of myinvention operates under all conditions in the service of the engine to supply the liquid lubricant in predetermined'quantities and in a regular manner, so that the lubricant is available to be ,taken by the steam under the most adverse conditions in the service of the engine, where-' by in hauling heavy trains over steep grades the valve mechanism and thepiston-cylinder will be lubricated at the periods when the lubricant is most required.

Having thus described the invention, what Iclaim is- A lubricator attachment for locomotive-engines comprising a valve-casing having oppositely-located inlet and outlet passages for the lubricant, and having a direct rigid coupling connection with the valve-chest, an oil-con- IIO ducting pipe leading from a remotely-located lubricator and connected with the inlet-passage of the valve-casin g upon the side opposite its connection with the valve-chest, an automatically actuated oil feed plug having a steam-tight fit within the casing and provided with a stem projecting exterior thereto, valveactuating means cooperating with the stem I outside of the valve-casing, and a separate exterior supporting and bracing bracket rigidly connected with the valve-chest of the engine and having a bearing receiving the extreme outer end of the plug-stem,whereby the valvemy own I have hereto affixed my signature in casing and the valve-actuating means are the presence of two Witnesses. mutually braced from the chest and vibrate V1 in harmony therewith to insure the mainte- JOHNSlON' 5 nance of an operative relation of the parts of Witnesses:

the attachment, substantially as set forth. JOHN H. SI GGERS,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as EDWIN E. VROOMAN.

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