US830461A - Eccentric-cylinder rotary engine. - Google Patents

Description

N0- 830,46l. PATENTED SEPT. 4, 1906.

- G. W. STANFORD &L. F. SMITH.

BGGENTRIG CYLINDER ROTARY ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED 00w. 20. 1906.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE W. STANFORD AND LOUIE F. SMITH, OF GROVETON, TEXAS.

ECCENTRlC-CYLINDER ROTARY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 4, 1906.

Application filed October 20,1905. Serial No. 283.663.

1'0 ctZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE -W. STAN- FORD and LOUIE F. SMITH, citizens of the United States, residing at Groveton, in the county of Trinity and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Eccentric-Cylinder Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specification.

- Our invention relates to fluid-pressure engines, and particularly to that class of said engines known as rotary engines.

The object of the present invention is the provision of means for maintaining a continuous and steam-tight contact between the wall of the engine-cylinder and the abutments against which the steam acts to drive the usual rotary piston.

A further object of the invention is the provision of improved valvegearing for con trolling the flow of steam to and from the steam and exhaust ports of the engine.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description which now follows.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a rotary engine constructed in accordance with the invention, and Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section of the same.

Like numerals designate similar parts in both of the figures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 5 designates a hollow casting, which, together with the side plates 6 and 7, forms the enginecylinder. Mounted for rotative movement in said cylinder is a rotary piston 8. Piston 8 is hollow, and one side thereof is closed by a web 9, which carries a shaft 10, having its bearing in side plates 6. The opposite side of piston 8 is partially closed by a flange 11, which carries upon its outer face an annular rib 12, said rib fitting snugly in an annular channel 13, formed in the inner wall of side plate 7, to thereby provide a bearing for piston 8.

The circumferential wall 14 of piston 8 is channeled, as at 15 and 16, for the reception of abutments 17 and 18. Packing-strips 19 and 20 are slidably disposed in slots 21 and 22,formed in said abutments, and are forced into engagement with the inner wall of the engine-cylinder by coiled springs 23 and 24. Links 25 and 26 are pivoted at 27 and 28 to the rear ends of abutments 17 and 18. The opposite ends of said links are pivoted upon a stud 29, which is carried by side plate 7, as is clearly illustrated in Fig. 2.

A cam-disk 30, having a cam-groove 30 formed in its face, serves to impart reciprocatory movement to a rod 31, which carries an antifriction-roller 31, adapted to rest in camg"r0ove 30, and through said rod and a rocker-arm 32 serves to impart an oscillatory movement to a shaft 33, upon the outer end of which said rocker-arm is secured. Secured by bolts 34 upon the top of the enginecylinder is a hollow casting 35, which forms the steam-chest of the engine. Shaft 33 has its bearings in one of the side walls of said casting 35 and carries upon its inner end a segmental gear-wheel 36, the teeth 37 of which mesh with gear-teeth 38, formed upon the upper face of a slide-valve 39, said slidevalve being arranged to control the flow of steam to steam-port 40 and from exhaustport 41.

The operation of the device is as follows: Steam enters the steam-chest through the steam-supply pipe 42, passes through the steam-port 40, and impinges against abutment 18, to thereby impart a rotary movement to piston 8, as will be readily understood. It is in the improved means for maintaining a steam-tight contact between the abutments and the walls ofthe enginecylinder that the present invention resides. It is common to provide the pistons of rotary engines with abutments which are forced beyond the circumferential wall of the piston by springs. Since the distance to which said abutments must be forced is equal to the differencein diameter of the piston and the engine-cylinder, it follows that the throw or movement of said abutments is considerable, and it has been found to be difficult to provide springs which will force the abutments out from the face of the piston a sufiicient distance and then possess power enough to maintain a steam-tight contact between said abutments and the wall of the engine-cylinder.

By referring to Fig. 2 of the drawings it will be seen that cam-groove 30 is of such shape as to actuate the valve 39 twice during each revolution of piston 8, to thereby admit steam to the engine-cylinder behind each of the abutments 17 and 18. These abutments are slidably disposed in channels 15 and 16 and of course rotate with piston 8.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that simple and eflicient means are herein provided for accomplishing the objects of the invention, but while the various elements shown and described are well adapted to serve the purposes for which they are intended, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction shown, for changes within the scope of the appended claim may be resorted to without departure therefrom.

Having described our invention, what w claim is i In a rotary engine, the combination with an annular cylinder, of a rotative piston mounted within said cylinder and bearing against the inner wall thereof at one side, said piston being hollow and having an opening formed through one of the walls thereof, an annular flange formed upon the side wall of the piston and entering the annular groove formed in the side wall of the engine-cylinder, a shaft extending from the opposite side of the piston and having its bearing in the Wall of the engine-cylinder, a stud projecting from the wall of the engine-cylinder through an opening formed in the wall of the piston in the interior of said" piston, said stud being concentric with the inner wall of the enginecylinder, abutments slidably disposed in the peripheral wall of thepiston and links connecting said abutments with the stud. In testimony whereof we afiix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE W. STANFORD. LOUIE F. SMITH. Witnesses:

A. M. CAMPBELL, W. S. PosToN.

Images