348 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



LAfGUST, 



claims in respect to the first part of his invention — First, the 

 placing the direct-actina; marine steam-engines between a line 

 drawn throuffh tlie centre of the piston-rod, and a ]>arallel line 

 drawn throwfjli theadjiiinini; bearin"-, or i]i the spaces usually occu- 

 pied by the crank in ordinary engines ; also the connecting the 

 piston-rods to the driving-wheels, without the aid of cranks. 



LAP-WELDED IRON TUBES. 



Job Cutler, of Birmingham, civil engineer, for '^ certain im- 

 provrmentu in ine/deii iron pipes or tuhcx to In; used as the flues of steam- 

 boilers." —GrawieA. January 13 ; Enrolled July 13, 1848. 



The object of the patentee is to produce lap-welded iron tubes 

 or pipes, so formed as to give increased strength to those parts 

 which are exposed to wear, without additional weight to the entire 

 length of the tube, and thereby to obviate the evils to which boiler 

 tubes are at present exposed. He makes the internal diameter of 

 the tube greater at one end than at the other, instead of its being 

 the same, or uniform throughout, as has hitherto been the case ; 

 the external diameter remaining, however, the same, and uniform 

 throughout the entire length of the tube. The tube will, of course, 

 be cylindrical upon the extericn-, and conical upon the interior sur- 

 face. The increased thickness of metal at tlie one end is to be 

 drawn from the remaining portion of the entire length of the tube. 

 And further, the operation is effected at one heat, so that the 

 ductility of the iron of which the tubes are composed shall remain 

 unimpaired. 



The modus operandi is as follows : — The patentee employs a series 

 of grooved rolls, moved by suitable toothed wheels and a mandril, 

 with a conical bulb or head, the stem of which is of increasing 

 diameter towards the opposite end. The skelp, after being pro- 

 perly prepared, as is usual in the manufacture of lap-welded iron 

 tubes, is heated and passed between the first of the series of rolls. 

 It is then welded over the conical bulb, and forced, at the same 

 time, over the stem of the mandril. This mandril is held by a grip, 

 attached by a hinge thereto in a stop, so as to allow of its being 

 lowered and passed, after the conical bulb has been removed between 

 the second series of rolls, the diameter of the groove of which is 

 smaller than that of the first series. The tube, with the mandril 

 still inside, is then passed through the third series of rolls, the 

 groove of which is smaller than that of the second series. The 

 object of these successive rollings, after the skelp has been welded 

 on the mandril, is to remove any irregularities upon either of the 

 surfaces, and to make the edges of the tube perfectly smooth and 

 uniform. The tube is then taken to the drawing bench, in front 

 of which is a stop, and against which the pij)e rests. The stop is I 

 furnished with a hole to allow of the passage of the grip of the 

 mandril, wliich is held by a pair of pliers ; and, the bench being 

 made to move while the pipe remains stationary, the mandril is 

 withdrawn. \\''hen it happens that the mandril adheres too tightly 

 to the tube, it is proposed to heat it in a mufile or furnace, then to 

 cool the end wliicli rests against the stop, and repeat the above 

 operation, or to roll it cold between three rollers, as is usually 

 done in straightening shafting. 



ATMOSPHERIC RAILWAY. 



William Froudi:, of Darlington, Devon, civil engineer, for 

 " Improvements in the valves used in closing the tubes of atmospheric 

 railways." — Granted January 5 ; Enrolled July S, 1848. 



The material which is employed in this invention for closing 

 the slit in tlie tube, is vulcanised india-rubber; and the advantage 

 proposeil to be gained is the dispensing with any unctions sub- 

 stance for keeping the valve air-tight. Flat valve-seats are 

 formed on each side of the slit, botli of which are bounded by 

 vertical flanges ; the right-angles formed by the vertical flanges 

 and the valve-seats, being rounded olf, and the valve-seats slightly 

 recessed by shallow circular recesses, which therel)y form the 

 hinges or centres of motion of the valves. There are two valves 

 employed, the lower portion is composed of plates of iron, of about 

 eight inches in length each ])late, the shape of the lower surface of 

 which agrees in contour with the seat upon which it is placed ; 

 the one edge of the ])lates forming, with the shallow circular re- 

 cess in the seat, the hinge or centre of motion. The other edge 

 of the plates is nearly over the centre of the line of opening, 

 thereby nearly meeting the edge of the opposite plate upon the 

 other valve-seat. The under side of the plates over the aperture, 

 is formed of the same curvature as the inside of the tube. The 

 upper surfaces of these plates are flat, except that part over the 



aperture immediately adjoining the edge, where it is lower than 

 the ])art over the seat. Upon these plates are placed a continued 

 sheet of vulcanized indiii-rubber which extends from beyond the 

 centre of tlie line of opening or ajierture over the whole surface 

 of the plates up tlie inner side, and also on the to]i of the vertical 

 flange. Tlie jiortion of the vulcanized india-rubber sheets which 

 are over the line of opening, are increased in thickness and fill the 

 whole of the depressed part of the plates, thereby forming at that 

 part a thick pad. The upper surface of the vulcanized india- 

 rubber is covered with canvas. Above the vulcanized india-ruliber 

 sheets are placed flat )ilates of iron, of similar length to those 

 beneath and lying over them ; they are securely rivetted together, 

 thereby holding firmly between them the vulcanized india-rubber. 

 The vulcanized india-rubber is secured to the side and top of the 

 vertical flange by means of a series of iron bars, which are bolted 

 to the flange, and which are to be about 15 feet long, which secures 

 that edge of the valve air-tight, or nearly so. Al'lien the valves 

 are firmly pressed upon their seats, the edges of the vulcanized 

 indiii-rubber jiads in contact are below a line drawn between the 

 centres of motion of the two valves, whereby the tendency of the 

 elasticity of the pads will be to further press the valves upon the 

 seat instead of raising them therefrom. The patentee projioses to 

 employ, for the purpose of opening the valves for the passage of 

 the bar connecting the piston apparatus with the carriages, a series 

 of not less than five wheels placed in advance of the connecting- 

 bar ; the first of these wheels being placed at about nine feet 

 before the bar, and the other at intervals of about two feet from 

 centre to centre. After the passing of the connecting-arm, the 

 valves are lowered and closed over the opening by a wheSl attached 

 to the upper part of the connecting-bar, or to the carriage, in 

 such manner as to run over the valves, and thereby press them 

 down upon their seats, where they are securely retained, and effect 

 an air-tight, or nearly air-tight, joint. 



MINING APPARATUS. 



Pierre Augustus Puis, of Paris, for " Improvements in appara- 

 tus for raising and lowering heavy bodies in mines." — Granted De- 

 cember 22, 184.7; Enrolled June 22, 1848. 



The principal feature in this invention is the application of 

 atmospheric pressure to the raising of weights, and to the draining 

 of mines. The first plan by which the patentee proposes to raise 

 bodies is by having a vertical air-tight tube in which there is a 

 solid piston, to the under part of which the weights to be raised 

 are to be attached ; and the upper part of the tube being exhausted, 

 the atmospheric pressure below will force up the piston and its 

 load. In the drawings attached to the specification, two pistons 

 are represented, the one following the other in the ascent. When 

 the upper one reaches the top it is relieved of its load by means of 

 a slide, which passes in below it, cutting off communication with 

 the rest of the tube, and the weight is removed by a door in the 

 side of the tube; the up]ier piston is then carried by exhaustion in 

 a continuation of the tube above the shaft. The next one is then 

 brought up and unloaded in a similar manner. The bottom of the 

 tube is closed after the weights are introduced, the air being ad- 

 mitted by a small tube proceeding from the top of the mine, by 

 which the admission of the air to the underside of the pistons is 

 regulated. In another method of applying the atmospheric tube, 

 instead of raising the weights within the tube, they are elevated 

 on the outside, by means of arms projecting through a continuous 

 slit. For the purpose of raising water in mines, the apparatus 

 consists of a series of air-cylinders, which are placed at regular 

 intervals down the shaft. Each of these is in communication with 

 an exhaust tube. The lower pump draws the first lift by suction, 

 the water then passes through the bucket, and is forced up a step 

 higher to a small reservoir placed for the purpose. The next pump 

 above repeats the operation, drawing the water from the reservoir, 

 to which it has been previously raised by the pump below, and so 

 on till the water arrives at the top. The action of the pumps is 

 produced by alternately exhausting and admitting the air from, 

 and to, the cylinders, on the upper side of the pistons. Another 

 part of this invention relates to the raising weights in mines by a 

 series of vertical rods, which are attached to each other, forming 

 one continuous rod to the bottom of the pit. Two of these com- 

 bined rods are placed side by side, and suspended at the top by 

 two chains, attached to, and passing round, wheels supported over 

 the mouth of the shaft. These wheels have a semi- rotary move- 

 ment imparted to them from a steam-engine, by which means a 

 continual reciprocating motion of the two rods is kept up. Hooks 

 or notches are formed on the vertical rods at regular distances, 



