USRE13542E - Fbedebic e - Google Patents

Description

F. E. BALDWIN. AOETYLBNE GAS GENBRATENG LAMP. APPLIOATION FILED FEB.5,1913.

Reissued Mar. 11, 1913.

111w 11mm Q A W prising a metallic or other receptacle and gas tight closure.

rnnnnruc n. BALDWIN, or NEW an, N. Y.

ACETYLENE-GAS-GENEBATING' LAMP,

Original No. 881,580, dated May 22,

Specification of leissued Letters Patent. Reissued Mar, 11, 1913. 1906, Se'riil' No. 165,587. Application for reissue filed February 5,

1013. Semi m 748,886.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Fnmmarc E. BALD- WIN, a citizen of the United States, residing in New York, county of Richmond, and State of New Yor have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Acetylene- Gas-Generating Lam s, represented in the and the accompanying drawings, partof the same.

The invention upon which is based the present application for Letters Patentis' a forming a lamp designed to generate and burn acetylene or similar gas, and is an improvement on the form described and shown in a patent granted to me August 28, 1900,.No. 656,874.

ike the lamps of said patent, that of the present application is intended for use and adapted to use as a bicycle, automobile, yacht, or miners lamp, or for any other analogous purpose it being necessary only tochange its form or dimensions toadapt it to any one of the purposes mentioned.

In the drawings hereto annexed, Figure 1 is a central vertical section of the'complete lamp. Fig. 2 is a similar view of a portion of the lamp, exhibiting a modification. Fig. 3 is a similar view of a further modification. Figs. 4, 5, and 6 are details of parts of-the lamp, showing another modification.

The features of novelty which characterize my present invention reside in details of construction and will be pointed out in the course of the following description of the devices illustrated in the drawings and the manner of using the same, and more particularly specified. in the subjoined claims.

Generally considered, the lamp is one c012- 7 preferably provided with a bottom B, which maybe readily detached and which when the lamp is in use is held firmly in osition by suitable clamps C, so as to ma e a water The receptacle is divided, preferably horizontally, by a partition D into two compartments, the upper one, E, designed to serve as a water-chamber or reservoir, the lower, F, as a gas-generating chamber adapted to contain a receptacle G for calcium carbid, which is generally attached to or forms the detachable bottom.

In the top of the lamp is an orifice closed by a screw cap H or similar device for the introduction of water to the reservoir, and

fully described and ollowing specification -,of small from the gas-generating chamber .F' throu h the water-reservoir E and out throng? tIie top of the lamp extends atube I, whic con-' ducts the gas to the burner J.

I roceed now to a detailed description of the eatures enumerated below, which I have devised as improvements in lamps of the neral character above described.

The mean; for effecting and controlling the generation of. gas.-A quantity of calcium carbid, preferably in a finely divided condition, is placed in'the receptacle G and retained by any suitable device, such as a spiral spring K, interposed. between the bot-- tom of the water reservoir Eand a looselyfitting or perforated-plate K, care being taken to adjust the-tension of the spring so that the proper degree of pressure will be exerted upon the mass of carbid. A tube L leads from the water-reservoir down into the receptacle G and forms a ductwhich introduces the water into the body of carbid which said receptacle is designed to contain.

Various means have been employed to regulate or control the normal rate of flow of water through a water-supply tube. For example, the bore of the tube has been made diameter; but this plan has not been found practical for various reasons. In the first place, the discharge outlet thereof is under pressure of several inches of water, and'it is practically impossible to make the, bore so minute that the water will issue in sufiicientl small quantity. If the at-' tempt is made to secure this small flow by making the tube very minute, it then becomes so easily clogged that the operation of the lamp is rendered extremely uncertain. The smallest particle of-foreign matter in the water or a bit of. slaked carbid carried into the bore by back pressure of the gas will stop the flow completely, and the-lamp will go out. Sucha tube is also d-ifiicult, in fact, almost impossible, to clean. Another method which vhas been employed is to use a duct of comparatively large bore and fill the same with a wick of more or less loose texture for the purpose of checking the supply. This for a time operates with some degree of success, though from the very nature of the'material used the precise amount of the feed can never be exactly determined. A valve is generally necessary to regulate the supply., Furthermore, when the lamp has been used for a time the wick, which of Q Again, if the lamp has not been used for course must act as a strainer, becomes filled with solid matter-such as sand, dirt, and

organic particles contained in the waterso that the feed is reduced. This necessitates frequent adjustment of the valve to restore the proper supply. In time the wick becomes completely choked, and the user,

often unskilful in such matters, must tam-v per with the lamp and insert a new w1ck,.

which is 'at best a troublesome procedure.

some time the wick dries out, and a very appreciable time is required to soak it up so' that the water will again flow through.

The method which I have invented for securing the proper feed under all circumstances without the aboveobjectionable featimes is to makethe bore of the duct of comparativelylarge size, extend the tube which forms the duct downward so that its end willbe. always embedded in the carbid, and.

then restrict the duct by means of a wire or rqd preferably'centrally located therein to leave a channel of the proper size. This arrangement is simple; but in a long experience it has been found to be entirely successful. It is posslble to secure the correct d'rop-by-drop feed witha'duct of considerable slze, since the friction of the water on the large area of the tube-wall and wire reduces its flow. This retarding-friction may be regulated by varying the size of wire used. The duct does not become choked, since if foreign particles are deposited therein the Water-can take a zigzag course around it without the supply being appreciably affected. If it is at any'timenecessary to clean the tube, the wire is simply reciprocated and rotated a few times from the outside of the lamp without disturbing the position of other parts. This nice regulation ofthe flow enables me to entirely dispense with the troublesome adjustment of the valve. If a valve is used at all, it is employed to shut off the flow entirely and not to regulate it. The construction just described is shown in Fig. 1, in which'L is the water-supply tube, and N the constricting wire. In this illustration the. size of the parts is of course exaggerated. Fig. 2 shows a similar construction with a valve M on the constrictingwire M"w'hich may be set by turning-the screw-plug M in the top of the lamp. In some cases, however, there is employed in-conn'ection with the means for introducing the water into the mass of carbid a device in the nature of a stirrer, which on proper manipulation may be usedto break up the mass of carbid surrounding the outlet of the water duct and which by having, become slaked and caked by the action of water prevents the proper percolation of the latter to the unslaked carbid in the receptacle G, Fig. 1. As such device I employ a stem or rod N, which extends down through angles to form-an arm N.

the tube L and is'b'ent' at substantially right This rod may form a prolongation of the valve-stem M of Fig. 2 or in case no valve is usedmay extend from the top of the lamp down through the water-reservoir, as shown in F ig. 3 It *-will be understood from what has been said that, thefunction-of the stirrer is to break up, pierce ordisturb the particles of the slaked carbid mass which, when-the lamp is in use, forms at the delivery end-of the. tube. This slaked carbid mass tends to solidify and either shutsv the wateroflaltogether or restricts it so that less water "isf delivered from the w'ater'tube than thelamp demands for'efficientoperations Aj's it is su'lficient, under certain circumstances, to insure the requisite water flow by so manipulating the stirrer, as to pierce, breakup, or-loosen the slaked carbid mass immediately around or at the mouth of'the tube, it is obvious that the stirrer need not always be formed with a bent end or so as-to extend radially from the--mouth of the tube.

As calcium carbid possesses strongly absorptive properties, the introduction of water-through the tube L will result in the gradual slaking of the material about its outlet; but the lime thus produced becomes graduallyless permeable to the water, so that an insufficient quantity of gas is generated to maintain the proper flame. \Vhen this becomes noticeable, the rod N is turned,

so as to causethe arm N to break up to a greater or less extent the mass of lime, and in' practice I have found that under ordinary conditions tie is amply sufficient to insure a substantially uniform generation of gas until all of the carbid in the receptacle Gris exhausted. I r

In the largersized lamps it is desirable to employ two or more water-tubes L and,

if desired, stirring-rods N, extending down to different points in the.carbid-receptacle.'

This is indicated in Fig. 4:, which is an under plan view of the bottom D of the water-reservoir, showing three, water-tubes L in section. It is, however, desirable when a plurality of stirring rods are employed that some means he provided for actuating all of them simultaneously. A- device suitable-for this purpose is shown in Fig. 6, in which O is a ring placed on top "of the lamp, with which bent ends of all the rods N engage, so that a partial rotation of the ring will impart a corresponding movement to each rod.

The means for consuming an" excess of gas.-Although the means described above effect a remarkably uniform generation of gas, it sometimes occurs that an amount of gas in eXcess'of that required for the burner is temporarily produced, and the usual plan is to provide some channel for its escape into the am When the lamps are used in con-- fined places, however, this method of disposing of the unconsumed gas is objectionable,-

owing to its very disagreeable odor. To remedy this, I provide a channel of escape,

a which terminates in the immediate vicinity of the burner proper, so-tliat any excess of gas which may issue will be ignited by the flame of the burner and consumed. This may be accomplished in various ways; but the most ractical of which I am at present aware is t lat shown in Fig. 1. In this figure there is shown a tube P, which extends downward from the top of the lamp to a point near the orifice of the water-tubeL in the lower part of the water-reservoir E.

' The rod N extends through this tube without leaving sufficient space for passage of escaping gas. The air to replace the water which flows into the'carbid-chamber enters through the burner and tube hereinafter described. When more gas is generated than is. carried ofi by the burner tube, it forces the water up through the tube L and enters the water-reservoir. Practically none of the gas will find its way up the tube P under any circumstances, but rising to the upper part of the reservoir E it escapes'through a tube R, provided with a vent'Sof such character as as to constitute a burner and in such close proximity to the main burner J that any gas issuing through it will be ignited by the flame of the latter and burned.

The specific construction rofn the various parts of my lamp may be, as will be seen rrom a consideration of the nature of the improvements, very greatly varied without departing from the invention.

What I claim is 1. In a lamp of the kind described, the 40 combination with a water-reservoir, and a receptacle for calcium'carbid, of a tube extending from the former a considerable distance into the latter so as to be embedded in the mass of carbid contained in said receptacle, and a rod or stem extending through said tube into thecarbid-receptacle and havingits end formed as a stirrer to break up the slaked carbid around the outlet of the water-tube, as set forth. 2. In a lamp of the kind described, the

combination with a water-reservoir, and a receptacle for calcium carbid, of a tube extending from the former into the latter so as to be embedded in the mass of carbid contained in the receptacle, a rod extendin from a point outside of the lamp throug the tube and into the. carbid-chamber and having its. end bent to form a stirrer for breaking up the slaked carbid around the outlet of the water-tube, as set forth.

3. In a lamp of the kind described,- the combination with a water-reservoir, and a receptacle for calcium carbid, of a plurality of tubes extending from the former intothe latter so as to beembedded in the mass of carbid contained in the receptacle, a stirrer passing througheach tube adapted to break up the slaked carbid around the end of the tube, and means for actuating all the stirrers simultaneously, as set forth. 4. In a lamp of the kind described, the combination with a water-reservoir, and a receptacle for calcium carbid, of a watertube extending from the former a consider- .able distance'into the latter and adapted 7 5 to be embedded in the mass of carbid in the receptacle, and a rod extending through the water-tube, and constituting a stirrer to break up slaked carbid around the outlet of the water tube,'the rod operating to restrict and thus control the flow of water to the carbid, as set forth.

V5.'In a lamp of the kind described, the combination with a water-reservoir, a carbid-receptacle, and a tube restricted by a wire extendin into the carbid-receptacle from outside t e lamp and open to the water-reservoir, a tube exterior to the'lamp, connected with the reservoir and adjacent 1 to the main burner, and equipped with a $0 burner, said auxiliary burner acting as an air-vent to admit air during the-normal operation of the lamp.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing 95 witnesses.- 7 FREDERIO BALDWIN.

Witnesses: I

AUGUSTA WHITE, JAMES Q. RICE.

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