US756961A - Igniter mechanism for explosive-engines. - Google Patents

Description

No. 756,961. I PATENTED APR. 12, 1904. N. E. HILDRETH.

IGNITEE MEGHANISM FOR EXPLOSIVB ENGINBS.

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No. 756,961. PATENTBD APR. 12, 1904.

N E. HILDRETH.

IGNITER MECHANI SM FOREXPLOSIVB ENGINES. APPLIOATION PILED JUNE 19, 1902.

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UNITED S-*rarns Patented April 12, 1904.

NED E. HILDRETH, OF LANSING, MICHIGAN.

IGNITER NIECHANISIVI FO R EXPLOSIVE-ENGINES..

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. *756,961, dated April 12, 1904.

Application filed June 19,1902. Serial No. 112,279. No model.)

To roll whom it nuy concern: i

Be it known that I, NED E. HILDRETH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lansing, in the county of Ingham, State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Igniter Mechanisrn for Explosive-Engines; and I do 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, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. r

This invention relates to an igniter mechanism for eXplosive-engines; and it consists in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter fullyset forth, and pointed out particularly in the claims.

The object of the invention is to provide simple and eflicient means for exploding a charge in the combustion-chamber 'of an engine-oylinder of the type using a mxture of air and any of the common ignitible gases, the arrangement being such as to produce a perfect spark and to aford a regulation of the operative parts, so as to time the explosion with respect to the movement of the piston as may be desired. i

The above object'is attained by the mechanism llustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is an elevation of a portion of a cylinder, showing an exterior View of the igniter mechanism and a portion of the reciprocatory rod, through the medium of which said mechanism is actuated. Fig. 2 is a verticalsection through the combustion-chamber and cylni der, showing the igniter mechanism in elevation. .Fig. 3 is an enlarged View, partly in section, showing a portion of the reciprocatory rod and a sectional View of the tilting dog mounted thereon adapted to engage an arm of i the igniter meohanism. Fig. 4 is an enlarged end elevation of the screw-plug in which the operative parts of the igniter are mounted. Fig. 5 is an inner end elevation thereof. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section through the plug and operative parts, as on line 6 6 of Fig. 4. Fig.` 7 is a detail in elevation of the operative mechanism, showing the position of parts just previous to the causing of the spark. Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view through the reciprocatory rod above the dog mounted thereon, showing the oblong opening through said dog. i

Referring to the characters of reference, l designates the cylinder, a portion of which is broken away and which preferably consists of an inner and an outer shell, between which is 'formed a water-space 2 for the purpose of keeping down the temperature of the cylinder, as .is well understood in the art, /Vithin the cylinder is a piston 3, whose reciprocatory motion is adapted to be imparted in the form of a rotarylmotion to the crank-shaft by means of the pitman adapted to be connected to the wrist-pin 4 of the piston, said pitman and crank-shaft not being shown, as they are of the common and well-known Construction. In the end of the cylinder is the combustionchamber 5, in which the charges of combustiblc gases are explod ed to impart an impulse to the engine through the piston, upon which said explosions act.

The explosive charges are ignitd in the combustion-chamber by means of anelectric spark produced at predetermined intervals, according to the speed of the engine. I The sparker comprises a suitable plug 6, which screws through the wall of the oylinder and projects into the combustion-chamber and in the end of which is seated a pin 7, upon which is journaled an oscillatory arm 8, adapted to swing in the arc of a circle upon said pin and having attached to the hub thereof one end of a stifi' coiled spring 9, whose opposite end is Secured in the plug 6. Passing longitudinally through the plug 6 is a rock-shaft 10, which is journaled in said plug and carries fixed to the outer end thereof a collar 11, having a straight face 12 standing uppermost and in the path of the arm 8. Upon the inner end of the rock-shaft 10 isa movable electrode 13, adapted to describe the are of a circle concentric with the movement of said shaft. Fixed in the plug 6 and extending therethrough is an electrode 14, which is insulated from the plug by a sleeve of suitable insulating material 15, and to the outer end of which IOO is connected a wire 16, which leads to a battery-generator or other source of electricity. (Not shown.) The other wire 17 from the source of electric energy is connected with the plug 6, as illustrated, or in any suitable manner, so that the current will pass into the rockshaft 10 and into the electrode 13, mounted upon the inner end thereof. The inner ends of the electrodes 13 and 1 1- are pro: vided with suitable contact-points 18, which are normally separated. Mounted upon the outer end of the rock-shaft 10 is a coiled spring 19, one end of which is secured to said shaft and the other end to the plug 6. The tension of spring 19 is less than that of spring 9, so that normally the force of spring 9 is eXerted to overcome that of spring 19 and to cause the fiat face 12 of the collar 11 to lie contiguous to and parallel with the under face of the arm 8, as shown by solid lines in Fig. 1, in which position the electrodes are held apart and their contact-points are separated. When the outer end of the arm 8 is raised, however, so as to release the collar 11, spring 19 will rotate the shaft 10 and actuate electrode 13 to bring its contact-point into engagement with that of electrode 14:, as shown in Fig. 6, thereby closing the electrc circuit through said electrodes. v The free end of the arm 8 is carried upwardly by an arrangement hereinafter described until considerable tension is placed upon its spring 9, when upon the release of said arm it will return and strike the collar ll a sharp blow upon the corner 20 thereof, as shown in Fig. i, thereby rotating the rock shaft 10 against the action of spring 19 and separating the contacts of the electrodes, thereby producing an arc which ignites the charge in the combustion-chamber of the engine. The contact-points of said electrodes are held separated by the force of the spring 9 until the succeeding operation.

To provide for Operating the trip-arm 8 in a manner to cause the separation of the contacts of the electrodes, as described, a reciprocatory rod 21 is employed, which is given movement by attachment to any movable part of the engine. (Not shown.) Upon said rod is mounted a tilting dog 22, having an aperture 23 therethrough, through' which said rod passes and which is oblong at its upper end, as shown in Fig. 8. Pivoted at 24 to the rod 21 is an eccentric lever 25, having the concave bearing-faces 26 and 27. The lower end of the dog 22 rests upon the eccentric lever and is maintained in place by the coiled-spring 28, the upper end of which is attached to said dog and the lower end to the rod 21. Upon the upper end of the dog 22 is a projecting lip 29, adapted to engage the outer end of the arm 8. Secured to the end of the cylinder is a projecting plate 30, through which the rod 21 passes. c

In the operation of this device it will be understood that the charge of eXplosiVe vapor is drawn into the combustion-chamber and compressed therein by the upward movement of the piston or the movement thereof in the direction of 'the combustionchamber. The parts are so timed in their operation that the dog 22 on the rod 21 engages the free end of the arm 8 as the piston is traveling back to compress the charge. At the time when the piston has reached the limit of its return stroke the dog 22 will slip past the end of the arm 8, allowing said arm to be returned by the tension .of its spring 9 and to strike the collar 11 of the rock-shaft 10, as beforevdescribed, and rocks said shaft to separate the contacts of the electrodes and produces a spark which eXplodes the mixture in the combustion-chamber and gives an impulse to the engine.

It is necessary in starting motors or engines of this class, because of the slowness of the movement, to explode the charge at the time when the piston has reached the limit of its in travel in order to avoid driving the piston back' by the force of the explosion before thecrank has passed the in center and causing the engine to run backward. After the engine has attained speed, however, it has been found that more power can be developed with a given quantity of eXplosive mixture if the charge is exploded before the piston reaches the limit of its in stroke, so that the full expansive force of the charge may be obtained, the momentum of the fly-wheel of the engine serving to carry the crank past the center.

I control the ignition of the charge with respect to the travel of the piston by means of the eccentric lever 25. When the parts are in position, (shown in Fig. 1,) the dog 22 Will trip the arm 8, so as to fire the charge at the time the piston reaches the limit of its in stroke, the position in which said parts are used in starting. After the engine has attained speed the eccentric lever is turned to the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1 and by solid lines in Fig. 7 through the medium of its handle 31, when the dog 22 will be raised higher and will sooner engage and release the arm 8 by the same movement of the rod 21, thereby causing the spark in the combustion-chamber before the piston has reached the limit of its return stroke.

The oblong opening 23 in the dog through which the rod passes is to allow the upper end of the dog to recede as said dogis returned by the operation of the rod 21 past the end of the arm 8, said dog being restored to its former position after passing said arm by the tension of the spring 28.

It will now be understood that by means of this device a charge may be fired in the combustion-chamber after the piston hasreached the limit of its inward travel when starting the engine and that after the proper speed IOO IIO

'lever the charge may be fired before the piston reaches the limit of its inward travel at such point as may be desired, thereby developing the highest efiiciency of the engine.

Having thus fullyset forth my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. ln an igniter for explosive-engines, the combination, With the igniting mechanism, of a reciprocatory rod, a dog mounted on said rocl adapted to engage and operate said igniting mechanism, saicl dog being sliclable upon said rocl and 'aclapted to tilt thereon, and means for returning said clog after the tilting movement, means for sliding the dog longitudinally on saicl rocl and for holding saicl clog against longtuclinal movement only, at two predeterminecl points.-

2. In an igniter for explosve-engines, the combination, with the igniting mechanism, of a reciprocatory rod, a dog having a central longtuclnal opening through which said rod passes, the shape of said opening at the lower end of the dog being round and substantially oblong at the upper end to allow a tilting movement of the dog upon the rocl, said dog being also movable longitudnally upon said rocl and aclaptecl to actuate theignting mechanism, and a spring attached thereto for restoring t after a tilting movement.

3. In an igniter for explosive-engines, the combination with the gniter mechanism of a reciprocatory rod, the dog mounted upon said rocl to move longituclinally thereon, said dog being aclapted to actuate the igniter mechanism, an eccentric lever pivoted to said rod and engaging the lower end of sacl dog, whereby said clog may be adjustecl upon the rod and held from longituclnal movement after adjustment.

4. In an gnter for eXplosive-engines, the combination with the cylinder, of a rock-shaft eXtending into the cylinder and carrying a movable electrocle, a fixed electrode eXtenclng into the cylinder in the path of the movable electrode, a collar upon the end of said rockshaft, a spring-actuatecl arm adaptecl to strike said collar and rotate said shaft to separate the electrodes, a reciprocatory rod, a dog mountecl on said rod to slide longitudinally and tilt transversely thereon, said dog being adaptecl to engage the free encl of saidlarm when moving in one direction and to slip past said arm on the return movement, and means for looking said dog against longitudinal movement only, at two precletermined points on said rod.

In testimony whereof' I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

NED E. HILDRETH.

Witnesses:

LUTHER B. MCEWING, WILFRED E. CADY.

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