372 A1

Récent Patents. ^e noutline.

the flexible pistons e, are formed, being put around the hoop, the pistons are thereby made gas-tight, the lend of other thin metal of which the recesses are formed, being turned down on the flexible material, and thus binding the flexible material between the sides of the recesses and the wire hoops; and in order to ensure a gas-tight joint, bees-wax, or other suitable material, may be used between the surfaces of the recesses and the wire.

The centres of the flexible pistons or surfaces are each held between two circular plates of tin or other suitable material, which plates are rivetted or otherwise affixed together; and to these plates the staples or openings (for the connecting pins of the arms g, g, tó work in) are affixed.

The flexible material of which the pistons c, c, are made, is of the best oiled silk of commerce, which I have found to wear for a considerable length of time; or it may be of thin deer-skin leather, or other leather or animal membrane, saturated with bees-wax mixed with neat's-foot oil, or any suitable material which will offer the least possible friction on the bending thereof, and be as little liable as possible to be injured by the chemical action of gas, and at the same time of a close texture, to prevent the gas passing from one compartment to another.

At the upper end of the axes f, f, are affixed the arms h, h; and to these arms h, h, are connected, by pin joints, the rods i, i, as is clearly shown; and the rods i, i, are connected together by the passage of the cranked wirej, through an eye or opening formed in each of the con necting rods i, at the ends opposite to where they are connected to the arms h, h. 229 ai awoda The cranked wirej, moves in suitable bearings in a

bracketck, as is clearly shown in the drawing. At the upper end of the cranked wire j, is affixed a toothed pinion, which actuates a series of wheels and pinions, by which the number of revolutions of the cranked wire j, are indicated, and the quantity of gas which has passed through the meter will be registered, as is well understood by gas-meter makers.

on It should be remarked that the flexible pistons or surfaces c, c, should be so set in respect to each other, as not to arrive at the end of that movement at the same time, but that one should be in full action at the time the other comes to the end of the stroke. This may be done by making the arms h, h, i, i, of such length, that the arms i, i, when their ends are united free from the crank, and are brought or placed for the purpose over the centre of the valve, these ends will form with each other a right angle. This is the test of the proper length of these arms.

o I will now proceed to trace the manner in which the parts act, in order to produce rotatory motion to the cock or valve, and, consequently, an equal or nearly continuous flow of gas into the chamber No. 5, and from thence to the outlet pipe. It will be seen that the lower end of the cranked wire j, rests against either of the projections k, k, of the valve in fig. 18, and by the rotatory motion of the cranked wire j, caused by the Avorking of the flexible pistons c, the valve d, will be moved round in the direction of the arrow thereon, and thus obtain rotatory motion, the part l, of the cock or valve acting as an axis. In tracing the action of the parts, it will be desirable to call attention to the nature of the cock or valve, and to the pipes or ways shown in figs. 16, 17, 18, and of these being well understood, the working of the other parts, and the

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operation of one part on the other will be quickly

seen.

On the pipes or ways m, n, is affixed what may be called the seat o, of the cock or valve, this scat has four openings 1, 2, 3, and 4, corresponding with the com partments Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4. The gas supply pipe g, passes under, and is connected with the central opening p, of the seat o; hence, all the gas from the pipe g, passes up through the pipe p, and the short tube or part 1, of the cock or valve working within the opening p, the gas flows into the upper portion of the cock or valve, which consists in the following parts, the circular plater, which rests on the plate o, and the plate r, being ground together to produce an uneven gas-tight surface or joint.

The plate r, has two openings s, t, each of them equal to cover two of the openings 1, 2, 3, 4, in the seat or plate o; on the plate r, is affixed the projecting ring, which, surrounding the opening s, and the end, divides the plate r, into two parts, and the projecting ring v, being covered by the plate w, produces a chamber into which the gas flows from g, before it enters either of the openings 1, 2, 3, 4; hence, whichever of the openings 1, 2, 3, 4, over which the opening s, is, those two openings will be open to the supply of gas to their respective chambers, and it will be seen that the opening t, of the plate r, opens into the chamber No. 5; hence, whichever of the openings 1, 2, 3, 4, over which the opening t, at any time stands, will permit the passage of the gas or fluid from their respective compartments to flow into the chamber No. 5. Thus, supposing the opening s, to be over the openings 1, and 4, the gas will be flowing from the pipe g, into the compartments Nos. 1, and 4, and the opening t, will at the same time be over the openings 3, and 2, by which

means the gas in the compartments Nos. 3, and 2, will be permitted to flow from those compartments into the chamber No. 5, and from thence to the burner or point of delivery; and the flowing of the gas into the chambers Nos. 1, and 4, will propel the flexible pistons or surfaces c, and by the connecting rods, and by the cranked wirej, the cock or valve will be caused to perform a continuous rotary motion, and these open a way into each of the compartments Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4, for the flow of gas from the pipe g, and from these compartments into the chamber No. 5, and so on continuously as long as the gas or fluid runs. The meter here shown is of a proper size for indicating the passage of one fifth of a cubit foot from the pipe g, to the chamber No. 5, for every revolution of the cranked wirej. Having thus far confined the description of the invention to gas meters, I would now remark that it will be evident that if water or other fluid were to be permitted to flow through the pipe g, and flow off from the eduction way, the quantity passing would, in likė manner, be indicated. The mode of regulating this instrument so as to make some aliquot portion of a cubic foot to be measured by each complete revolution of the valve, is, by making the arm of the crank of such length by experiment in the construction of each size of these meters, as that with the aid of a test gasometer, the requisite quantity will be passed, be it a fifth or a sixth or other part of a cubic foot, it being obvious that the smaller the diameter of the circle which the ends of the arms i, i, describe, the less is the range of the pistons, and the less is the quantity of fluid they suffer to come into the compartments in which they respectively move, and vice versa. It is also plain that the quantity passed in each meter by each operation, must

also depend upon the size of the induction and eliz eduction 100 tubes, and of the holes in the valve seat and valve. frevdl pals Having thus described the nature of the invention, and the mode of combining the various parts in the best manner I am acquainted with, I would remark, that I am aware that gas and other meters have been before made having flexible pistons or surfaces similar to those above described, but acting very differently so far as their action is communicated to the cock or valve through which the fluid passes; I do not, therefore, claim as a new invention the application of flexible pistons or surfaces generally for such purposes; but I do declare that the invention for which these Letters Patent have been obtained, consists in the combination of two flexible pistons or surfaces acting by means of jointed and connected pitmen as aforesaid, upon a rotary valve constructed substantially as aforesaid, in a case with compartments substantially as afore said, whereby gas or other current fluid entering into the case or meter is allowed to pass through, or being drawn off from it, the current will work the meter, and all the fluid that passes through it be measured substantially as aforesaid.-[Inrolled in the Inrolment Office, June, 1837.]

To GEORGE SAINT LEGER GRENFELL, of Paris, in the kingdom of France, merchant, at present residing at No. 4, Cadogan-place, Sloane-street, in the county of Middlesex, for certain improvements in the construction of saddles.-[Sealed June 5th, 1834.]

THIS invention consists in constructing a saddle of wood without any padding, which the Patentee states