US1566814A - Heating apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 22, 1925 w. L, BLISS HE TING APPARATUS Original Filed Jan. 31, 1918 s Sheets-Sheet 1 I N VEN TOR William L Bliss WI TNESS: W 1. 5m

ATTORNEY.

Dec. 22, 1925- 1,556,814

w, L, BLIS$ HEATING APPARATUS Original Filed Jan. 31, 1918 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 WITNESS: INVENTOR.

fa. M'Zlzam L. 51:85

v I W V B Y F7? NAM, MM I G ATTORNEY.

W, L, BLISS HEATING APPARATUS Dec. 22, 1925.

origiflal Filed Jan. 31, 1918 s Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Dec. 22, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM L. BLISS, or NIAGARA FALLS, NEW onnassier-toh ro VAPOR can HEAT- me COMPANY, Inc, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

HEATING em nate:

Application filed January 31, 1918, Serial 110;2145603? ItcnewedMay 2, 1924.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, lVILLIAIrL. Buss, a citizen of the United States, residing: at Niagara Falls, in the county of Niagara and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Heating'Apparatus, of which the followingis a specification. I

The present invention relates to steam heating apparatus.

More particularly the present invention relates to heating apparatus applicable to carheating.

It iscommon to heat'railway cars from a steam'train line-'which is supplied with steam from the locomotive when a locomotive isattach'ed. to the train. At times when nolocomotive is at-tached'to the train said train line is ordinarily attached to astationary. steam supplysystem and receives steam therefrom; Inasmuch as thecars are often tightly closed when standing connected to the stationary steam system, the temperature in the cars may rise to an undesirable de gree. Furthermore, unless-a system of inspection is maintained, there isoften a much greater supply of steam than 1s necessary,

resultingin a waste.

The system of heating contemplated by,

ing or likely tocontain water and to prevent injury to the paint or other damage which would be likely tO occur if the car-were allowed to stand WlthOHt' heat in a low temperature. Under these circumstances, however, it is not necessary that the car be kept at a temperature as high as that required during occupancy. It is not feasible to leave it to thetrainmen to adjust theheating. system to give'a lower temperature during the periodswvhen the car is out of service because the re-adjustment-islikely to be de glected or possibly the steam shut down to too greatan'extent. When it is considered that the ordinary passenger caron the average is'stand-ing unoccupied more than it is in service, it will be seen that the waste of steam incidentto maintaining the cars at the n0rmal occupancy temperature during periods of non-Occupancy, is very considerable. My invention seeks to minimize this'waste by providing the heating system with controlling means which function automatically to decreasethe amount of heating medium clelivered to thecar from a supply source when the car stands disconnected from the locomotive and tore-establish the normal supply when the car is again connected with the locomotive so 'asto maintain the car temperature at a lower point when unoccupied than'is maintained during occupancy.

()ne of the Objects of the present invention is to provide, in combination with the car heatingand'air-line systems, a steam valve which will permit'the passage of the required amountof steam to keep the railroad cars at the proper temperature when said cars are connected to thelocomotive, but which will automatically throttle the steam when'said cars are disconnected from the locomotive and taken out of service, permitting, however, a reduced amount of steam to pass from the stationary supply system into the heating devices of the car. A further object is to provide a valve of the kind referred to which may be locked in open position, if desired, when thelocomotive is disconnected, butwhich may be manually operatedat any time to return said valve to the condition to permit only the reduced amount of steam' to pass, said valve being adapted, in-any event, to be immediately responsive to the condition of connection to ordiscon nection from the locomotive.

The utilization of the heatingsystem contemplates in itssoecific embodiment either an arrangement whereby a'small amount of 2 c heating medium will pass into the radiators even when'the valve is moved to its extreme closing position, due to absence of pressure quantity of heating medium from reaching,

the radiators and the valve is capable also of being set to an'open position, the controlling means can be operated to supply the car radiators with a minimum amount of heating medium when the car is standing in the railroadyard and tea larger flow of heating mediumwhen the car is on a siding or during. the period it stands at a terminal, before the locomotive is connected with the train, at which time it is desirable to bring the car temperature as rapidlyas possible up to thenormal temperature of occupancy.

A further object is to provide a mechanism of the kind referred to which is sturdy in construction, cheap to manufacture, and which will necessitate a minimum of inspectionservicer Further objects 'will be apparent as the description proceeds 1 Figurel is a view partly in'section of one embodimentof the present invention.

.Figure 2 is a similar view of a modification. V Fig. 3isa diagrammatic plan view illustr a-tingthe application of the inventionto a car heating system. o. V

Referringfirst toLFig. 1, the, numeral/1 indicates the'ba se portion of avalve according' to theypresent invention .andmay be '1 made of cast iron or similar material. 'The baselportion '1 is provided with a pair of operated through a-packing-gland which is sockets.--2,' -2, preferably internally screwthreaded,-; which are adapted .to'be' connected to theftrain line and the heating devices in the carp; The baseportion 1 provides'between the sockets 2,. 2, a passageway for thesteam,which, however, may be obstructedby thev valve 3 which is adapted to be operated bythe valve stem 4. A; screw-plug 5 may be provided inthe bottom portion of the base member 1' whereby access may be had to the" valve 3 for assembly, inspec-' tion and repair; The valve stem 4: may be indicated as a whole bythe numeral "6.

Mounted .uponthe base "portion'l is a pair of upright'membersd, 7, which-serve as a support 'for the superstructure of the valve. Mounted upon said upright members 7 is a plate 8 which supports a gasket 9. Mounted upon the gasket '9 is a cylindrical member 10; The plate 8, gasket 9 and cylindrical member 10 may be securely bolted to the upright members 7 by means of the bolts 11, 11. j

Sliding withinthe cylindrical member 10 is a piston 12 which should preferably be of cup-shaped formation whereby to provide a depending petticoat portion 13." Said piston 12 is mounted upon valve'stem 4. A spring 14 is provided which urges the piston 12 to its uppermost position whereby to tendzto close the valve. 3. The; upper portion of the cylinder has communication with the passageway 15 which-may communicate with the signal line from the locomotive or with any other source of fluid supply which is operative when the locomotive is connected to the car uponwhich the present invention is used. A stop screw 16 is provided in the upper part ofthe cylinder 10 which screw may be adjusted to limit the upward movement of the valve stem 4 vto the desired point. When thepiston 12 is in its lowermost position the petticoat portion 13 should make a tight seal with the gasket 9 whereby to prevent the escape of fluid. With this construction a. close fit between the piston 12 and cylindrical member 10 is unnecessary, inasmuch as when the supply of fluid through the passageway 15 has caused the piston 12 to moveto its lowermost position, any wastage of fluid willbe prevented by the seal between the petticoat portion 13 and the gasket 9." An aperture 17 may be provided as shown, adjacent to the valve 3.

A'mode of operation of the above described embodiment of the present invention is substantially as follows:'

When the device is connected inservice on a car and said car is connected to the locomotive, the passageway 15 "will com: municate to the signal line fromthe-locos motive; Pressure of therair from said signal line will urgethe piston 12 against the tension of spring 14 to aposition wherein" the petticoat portion 13 will firmly engagethe gasket 9. In this position of the petti- 3 open, whereby steam may pass through coat 13,-the valve stem 4 will hold the valve 1 the base portion 1 between sockets 2, 2, to

- piston 12 upwardly. The stop screw 16 may be r adjusted to"'hold the piston 12 at any desired POSlflOD. In service said stop screw 2 16 may be so adjusted as to hold'the valve 3 1 slightly openysothat a small amount of steam may pass through the base portion 1 to maintain the low degree of temperature required in the car'when but of; service.

The: small aperture 17 may be provided or omitted, as desired. It the aperture 17 is provided, a small amount ofsteam Wlll be allowed to pass through the base portion 1 pressure reservoirs, even though the locomotive be disconnected. The invention is not limited, however, to use in connection with the signal line. Any means responsive to the connection of the locomotive may be utilized.

Referring now to the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2, 'means are provided whereby an operatoranay lock the valve 3 in open position when pressure is relieved through passageway 15. The valve stem l has secured thereto a member 18 with which a pair of levers 19and 20 are adapted to cooperate. Said member 18 may be secured to the valve stem 4 by means of a pin 21. The upper part of the member 18 is provided with a rounded head22 and the lower part of said member l8 is provided with an upturned portion providing a lip 23. The particular embodiment of the member 18 ch'osenfor illustration will be found advantageous for the reason that it can be readily turned out in a screw machine, and for the reason that, though the'stem t will rotate in use, such rotating will not affect the operation of thelip 23. The lever 19 may be pivotedon one of the members 7 and may be yieldably held in to its uppermost position by means of a spring 24. The lever 20 is illustrated as a bell crank lever and should be provided with a hook-shaped end portion 25 to engage with the lip 23 of the member 18. A spring 26 may be provided'for urging the lever 20 in a counter-clockwise direction to thereby tend to move the hook 25 away from the member 18. Said lever 20 may be mounted on one of the members 7. A compression spring 27 is mounted between levers'19 and 20. The spring 27 should be stiffer than the spring 26 but should be so designed that when the leversare in the positions indicated, that is, when the hook 25 is engaged with the lip 23, the spring 27 will be under substantially no compression. Said spring 27 should be so designed, however, thatwhen lever 19 is depressed sufficiently to free the lip 23 from the'hook 25, said spring 27 will be under suflicient compression to overcome the tension of the spring 26.

In Fig. 2, the upper part of the set screw 16 is illustrated as being housed within a cap 28. Said cap 28 will prevent the accidental movement of said set screw 16, and inasmuch as it may be screwed down by means of a pipe thread, it will prevent the escape of fluid from the passageway 15 around said set screw.

The embodiment of the present invention illustrated in Figure 2 will operate in re sponse to pressure upon the piston 12 in the manner discussed in connection with Figure 1, whereby when the locomotive is connected to the car upon which the present invention is being used, the piston 12 will be urged to its lowermost position, whereby the petticoat portion 13 will form a tight seal with the gasket 9, holding the valve 3 in open position. lVhen the locomotive is disconnected from the ear, the piston 12 will be urged upwardly by the spring 14, i'noving the valve 3 to closing position. The closed position of the valve may be varied as de sired by adjusting the set screw 16.

In case it should be desired to hold the valve 3 open at a time when the locomotive is disconnected, such a condition maybe obtained by operation of the lever 19. At the time when the locomotivchas been disconnected, the spring lel and the spring will cooperate to urge the lever 19 to its uppermost position. If theoperator desires to move the valve 3 to open position, he will depress the lever 19, thereby moving the lip 23 downwardly. lVhen the lip 23 has been moved downwardly to a point which will permit the engagement of the hook 25 therewith, the spring 27 will have been placed in a condition of compression, as described above. At this time, the spring 27 will overcome the pull of the spring 26 and will move the lever 20 in a clockwise direction, whereby, when pressure of the lever 19 is released, the hook 25 will engage with lip 23 to hold the valve 3 in the position illustrated. Steam may now pass from a stationary source of supply to the heating devices on the car. If the operator should desire to move the valve to closing position, he will depress the lever 19 and raise the lever 20. The depression of the lever 19 will free the lip 23 from the hook 25 and the raising of the lever 20 will throw said hook and lip out of engagement, whereby, when pressure is relieved from the lever, 19, the member 18 will be drawn upwardly by the spring 11.

It will be noted from an inspection of Figure 2 that when the valve 3 is locked in its open position, the piston 12 is at an intermediate point in its travel. whereby further depression of the piston 12 will move the lip to. a position below the hook 25.

. most limit of its travel. spring 27 will not be in a state of compresv If the locomotive shouldbe connected to the car and the passageway shouldbe connected tothe signal line of the locomotive,

the piston 12 would be moved to the lower- At this time the sionand the spring 26 is free to mo-vethe lever 20111 a counter-clockwise directlon,

whereby to release engagement between the lipl23 and hook 25. fore be no longer locked in position butwilloperate in'response to pressure above the piston 12., p The. member 4 need.- not be connected dire'etlywiththe valve 3 as here shown, but

intermediate connections, either mechanical, electrical or fluid maybe employed to oper. ate a steam valve located at a point remote from the operating member.

Referring to Fig. 3 of the drawings, 1 and J representthe two end portions of a car (which is centrally cut away), and K i-s'the end port-ion of an adjacent car of the train, the cars being operable along a trackway P.: The radiators are indicated at B,

and C isthe main steam line, and D isthe signal air line. When the cars are coupled in a train, the airlines of adjacent cars are connected by coupling pipes M, controlled by valves L, and the steam line N of car K f is similarly connected with steam line C of car J by couplings S and O. The control valve of a stationary steam supply in the yard is indicated atR,-and Q is a coupling forconnecting this yard supply with a coupling'Sof the steam line C on the car.

The operation of the heating system is as, follows: Whenflthe locomotive is connected up with the train, the signal line receives air pressure,- which, exerted againstfpiston 12 causes'valve 3 of the throttle device E to be opened and full steam pressure applied to the radiator through pipes F and Ff. The

radiator may have in addition its own regulatingmea11s,;eithe1', automatic or manual (for, lllustration, asmanually operated valve G is shown) whereby only so much of the minal steam supply pipe R, the radiator will i receive only such an amount of steam as can pass valve 3. i

. i The described embodiments of the present invention have been chosen merely for the purpose of illustratione Many modifications will occur to those skilled in the art; It is I v intendedin this patent to cover all such modifications that fall within the scope of The valve 3 will there heating system,- and the compressed air sys ,tem of a ra1lway car, a valve for controlling 1 the present invention pended claims.

Iclaim: J 1. 1.;Li combination with a railway car, a

Qheatingl device located in the car, a supply pipe leading thereto and adapted to be connected to a source of supply ofheatingimeas defined by the ap 'dium, a pipe adapted to be connectedwith" a source'of supply of pressure fluid, and a governing device for controlling the supply of medium from the source of supply to the heating device having a port and comprising automatiomeans whereby said port is restricted without being closed .on the disappearance of pressure fluid in said last'named pipe and is opened toa greater extent when said pipe is put under pressure.

2. In combination with a railway car, a

pipeleadingthereto and adapted to be con-" nected with a source of supplylof heating medium, a pipe adapted to be connected with a source of supply of pressure fluid, a valve for controlling the flow of heating medium to the heating device, means whereby, in the absence of pressure in said last named pipe,

said valve may be set to an intermediateopen position, and automatically operating means whereby when said last named pipe is put under pressure, the valve is moved to its: fully opened position. i f

3. In combination. with a railway the steam train pipe, and the air signal line 1 heating device located in. the car, a'supply f car and of the car, a heating device'in the car, a

valve to control the flow of steam from the train pipe to the heating device, andgoverning-means for the valverrwhereby, in.the

absence of pressure'lin the air: signal line,-.

said valve willassume lac-closed position or may be set to an intermediate open position,-

and apressure actuated device'subject -to pressure in said air signal line formoving said valve to its fully opened position,

4. In combination with-a radiator of the.

the introduction ofheating medium into said radiator, the movements of which are ef fected through the presence or absence of' pressure in a portion of said compressed air- 1 system, and means operable in the absencei. of pressure in said portion of the com pressed air system for operating said valve whichm-eansis made ineffective when pres: sure 1s returned to said portion of the C0111; pressed a1r system- 5. In combination with a railway car, 1 a

a heating device located in the car, a supply pipe leading thereto and adapted to; be con-V nected with a source of supplyof heating medium, a pipe adapted to be connected with a source of supply of pressure lfluitl,

a valve forcontrolling' the flow ofiheatingmedium to the heating device, means .fwhere by, in the absence of pressure infsaid last 1 9 named pipe said valvemay be set to an the introduction of pressure into.- said pipe.

6. In combination with axrailway car, a heatmg device located in the car, a supply pipe leading thereto and adapted to be connected with a source of supply of heating medium, a pipe adapted to be connected with a source of supply of pressure fluid, a valve for cont-rolling the flow of heating medium to the heating device, means whereby, in the absence of pressure in said last named pipe, said valve may be set to an intermediate open position or to a closed position, and automatically operating means whereby, when said last named pipe is put under pressure, said valve is moved to its fully open position.

7. In combination with a railway car, a heating device located in the car, a supply pipe leading thereto and adapted to be connected with a source of supply of heating medium, a pipe adapted to be connected with a source of supply of pressure fluid, a valve for controlling the flow of heating medium to the heating device, means whereby, in the absence of pressure in said last named pipe, said valve may be set to an intermediate open position or to a closed position, and automatically operating means whereby, when said last named pipe is put under pressure, said valve is moved to its fully open position and is thereafter moved in accordance with the disappearance of pressure from and the introduction of pressure into said last named pipe.

8. In combination with the steam train pipe and compressed air system of a railway car, a steam heating device in the car, a valve to control the flow of steam from the train pipe to the heating device, means whereby, in the absence of pressure in a part of the compressed air system, said valve may be set to a position which restricts the flow of steam to said heating device, and automatically operating means made effective when pressure exists in said part of the compressed air system for moving said valve in the opening direction.

9. In combination with the steam train pipe and air signal line of a railway car, a heating device in the car, a valve to control the flow of steam from the train pipe to the heating device, and governing means for the valve whereby, in the absence of pressure in the air signal line, said valve will assume a closed position or may be set to an intermediate open posit-ion, and a pressure actuated device subject to signal line air pressure to govern the movements of said valve in accordance with the disappearance of pressure from the air signal line and the introduction of pressure thereinto.

10. In combination with a railway car, a radiator therein, an air train pipe, a steam train pipe, a valve to control the flow of steam from the steam train pipe tothe radiator, and a device actuated when said air train pipe is put under pressure iabove atmospheric pressure to :move the valve to a fully open position, and, when the pressure in the air train pipe is reduced to atmospheric pressure, to move the valve 'to a position restricting the How of steam to the radiator.

11. In combination with a radiator, a supply pipe for heating medium and the compressed air system of a railway car; a valve for controlling the flow of heating medium from said supply pipe to said radiator, the movements of which are effected through the presence or absence of pressure in a portion of said compressed air system; and means operable manually in the absence of pressure in said portion of the compressed air system for setting said valve, which means is made ineflective when pressure is returned to said portion of the compressed air system.

12. In combination with a radiator, a supply pipe for heating medium and the compressed air system of a railway car; a valve controlling the flow of heating medium from said supply pipe to said radiator, which is opened and closed in response to appearance and disappearance of pressure in a portion of said compressed air system; and means operable in the absence oi said pressure for moving said valve to an open position which means is made ineffective on reappearance of said pressure.

13. In combination with a radiator. a supply pipe for heating medium, and the compressed air system of a railway car; a valve controlling the flow of heating medium from said supply pipe to said radiator, which is opened and closed in response to appearance and disappearance of pressure in a portion of said compressed air system; and means operable manually in the absence of said pressure for moving said valve to an intermediate open position. which means is made ineffective on reappearance of said pressure. l

14. In combination with a heating device, a source of supply of heating medium, a valve to control the supply of heating medium from said source of supply to the heating device and a conduit adapted under determined conditions to contain a pressure fluid; means governed by pressure in the conduit for moving said valve in response to changes of pressure in said conduit; and means operable only during the absence of pressure in the conduit forlmoyingrrsaid valve, which means isimade ineffective 'When' pressure reappears 1n 831d conduit.

15.1 1 combination with a heating device, a sourceof supply of heating medium, a

valve to vcontrol the supply of heating me- .dium from said source of supply to the heating device and a conduit.adaptedunderde- .7 terminedconditions to contain apressure fluid; means governed by the presence and absence 0f pressure in the conduit,loriicausing the valve to be opened and closed,' re- WILLIAM L. Buss;

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