US977888A - Rotary engine. - Google Patents

Description

G. F. LEIGER.

ROTARY ENGINE,

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16,1910.

977,888. k Patented Dec. 6, 1910;

4 BHBETS-SHEET 1.

G. F. LEIGER.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIQATION FILED MAY16,1910.

4-. SHEETS-SHEET 2.

G. F. LEIGER.

ROTARY ENGINE.-

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16,1910.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

co., wnsnmcmu. n. c.

75': MORE 5 rzrsns G. F. LEIGER.

ROTARY ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED MAY 16,1910.

977,888. Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

GEORGE E. LEIGER, OF SOUTH HAVEN, MICHIGAN.

ROTARY ENGINE.

erases.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented nee. e, 1910.

Application filed May 16, 1910. Serial No. 561,598.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE F. Lnrenn, a citizen of the United States, residing at South Haven, in the county of Van Buren, State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to engines and particularly to that type of engine in which a plurality of cylindersare mounted upon a single shaft, in the operation of the engine the cylinders themselves being adapted to revolve.

It is the object of this invention to. provide an improved engine in which there shall be no tendency of the pistons and links to bind on account of the fact that the power is applied at one side of the eccentric, whereby cylinders of any desired size may be employed without producing undue friction and without causing undue loss of power and in which the parts may be maintained at all times in balance so that the engine may be operated at high speed without danger of injury to the engine by reason of centrifugal force.

It is a further object of this invention to improve this type of engine in sundry details hereinafter pointed out. The means by which I have accomplished this object are illustrated in the drawings and hereinafter specifically described.

That which I believe to be new is set forth in the claims.

In the drawings :Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved engine; Fig. 2 is a top or plan view; Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 1 is a vertical section taken on line 44 of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary top or plan View, partly in section, of the right-hand end of the machine as shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 6 is an end projection of Fig. 5.

Referring to the several figures of the drawings, in which corresponding parts are indicated by like reference characters,10 indicates the base of the machine, and 1112 indicate standards rising therefrom. 1314e indicate bearings carried by said standards, and 15 indicates an arch extending from one of said hearings to the other.

16 indicates a shaft journaled in the hearing 13, and provided on its outer end with a pulley 17 18 indicates a heavy spindle, one end of which is inserted in a central opening bored in the shaft 16 (see Fig. 3) and the other end of which is journaled in the bearing 14. As shown in Fig. 6, the spindle 18 is provided with a crank 19, the whole preferably being formed integrally.

20 indicates a lever keyed on the outer end of the spindle 18, and 21 indicates a circular rack secured 011 the hearing 14, at any point around which rack said lever is adapted to be set and secured by means of a latch mechanism 22 of any approved type. By means of this lever the spindle 18 may be rotated a partial turn so that the crank 19 will stand as desired on either side of the longitudinal central line of the spindle l8 and shaft 16.

2324-25 26 indicate four cylinders formed integrally with a hub 27 which is keyed upon the tapered inner end of the shaft 16. 28 indicates a nut screw-threaded on the end of said shaft to hold said hub, in position thereon.

29303l32 indicate four cylinders formed integrally with a hub 33 which is mounted loosely upon the spindle 18. The cylinders are arranged in pairs directly opposite each other, cylinders 23 and 29 forming one pair, cylinders 24 and 30 another pair, cylinders 25 and 31 a third pair, and cylinders 26 and 32 a fourth pair. Each pair of cylinders are connected at their outer ends by two bars 34. which cause the cylinders formed on the hub 33 to rotate with the cylinders formed on the hub 27 and therefore with the shaft 16 and pulley 17. Each of the cylinders is provided with a piston 35 and piston-rod 36. Fixedly secured to the ends of the piston-rods of each of said pairs of cylinders is a crosshead 37 38 indicates bars connecting the crossheads 37. In the construction shown, these bars 38 comprise plates, cut out at their central portions to straddle the shaft 16 and the spindle 18, and end rod portions, the whole being made integral. These bars 38 are held in posit-ion by clamps 39 embracing the rod portions thereof so as to permit the bars to move longitudinally of themselves relative to said cylinders. 404l indicate two links pivoted at their inner ends on the crank 19 of the spindle 18, and pivotally connected at their outer ends to two of said crossheads 37 so as to stand practically at right angles to each other.

42 indicates a horizontal opening leading from each of the cylinders at its inner end.

43-44 indicate valves fitted upon the outer ends of the hubs 2733, respectively, each of said valves being provided on its inner face with two concentric arc-shaped grooves 4546. Each of the valves 43 44 is provided with a socket in its outer face into which projects an arm 47 suitably secured-on the framework to hold said valves against turning with the hubs.

48- ind-icates a split collar screw-threaded upon the shaft 16 adjacent to the valve 43 and adapted to be locked in position thereon by a bolt 49 passing through the ends of said split collar. 50 indicates a similar split collar screw-threaded upon the spindle 18 adjacent to the valve 44 and locked in position by the bolt 51. Each of the collars 4S-50 is split partly in two at its central portion, as indicated in Fig. 3, to render it more easily tightened in position by the bolt connecting its ends. By means of these collars 48 and 50, the valves 4344 may be held with the desired degree of pressure against the hubs 27-33.

Each of the valves 4344 has its groove 45 connected with a pipe 52 through which steam, compressed air, or other fluid under pressure, is adapted to be forced from any suitable source. indicates a stop cock by which the supply of fluid under pressure adapted to be cut off or otherwise regulated. The groove 46 of each valve is also connected with an exhaust pipe With the valves 4344 held in corresponding positions,-that is, with the groove 45 positioned in the upper half of the valve as shown in Fig. 4,-and with the lever 20 in the position shown, upon the turning of the cook 53 to open the passage therethrough, compressed air or steam or other fluid under pressure is forced into the grooves 45 of the valves. Passing through the openings 42, the steam enters the cylinders 23 and 29, and the pistons 35 in such cylinders are forced upward, carrying with them the uppermost crosshead 37. Through the medium of the bars 38, the lowermost crosshead 37 also is forced upward, the pistons 35 in the cylinders 25 and 31 being free to move upward by reason of the communication of the openings 42 in such cylinders with the grooves 46 of the valves 43-le4 and thence with the exhaust pipes 54. The upward motion of the said lowermost crosshead 37, through the medium of the link 40, causes the cylinders and the shaft to rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 4. This rotation brings the openings 42 in the cylinders 96 and 32 very soon into communication with the grooves 45 of the valves 43 and 44, and the openings 42 in the cylinders 24and 30 into communication with the grooves 46. The crosshead 37 at the left is thereupon forced to the left, of course, carrying with it,

through the medium of the bars 38, the crosshead 37 at the right in Fig. 4 and forcing also to the left the pistons 35 in the cylinders 24 and 28. The movement to the left of the crosshead 37 at the right-hand side of the machine as shown in Fig. 4 (the said crosshead, however, not being shown), through the medium of the link 41, assists in producing rotation in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 4.

It will be understood from the above explanation and from an inspection of the drawings that each cylinder in turn is connected with the source of fluid under pressure, each cylinder being so connected up in the construction shown during approximately three eighths of each rotation. Thus at every phase of the rotation at least one piston of each set of cylinders is so connect ed up and during approximately half of the time two of the pistons of each set are connected directly with the source of fluid un der pressure. It will be understood, further, that in case the lever 20 is swung to the opposite side from that shown and the crank 19 of the spindle 18 swung also toward the opposite side of the machine, the

pistons will continue to be actuated as be fore but the rotation will be in the opposite direction. It is likewise evident that with the lever 20 in an upright position, so that the crank 19 of the spindle is in a corre spending raised position, the piston 35 in the uppermost cylinder would reach the limit of its motion outward when such cylinder came to a vertical position instead of when it came to a horizontal position. When the cylinder came to such verticaliposition with the piston at the limit of its outward stroke, the engine would stop and remain so until the lever 20 was moved to one side or the other. It will be understood that with the lever 20 placed in a horizontal position toward either side of the machine the leverage of the links 40 and 41 will be the greatest and the valves 43 and 44 will work to the best advantage. As the lever is raised toward a vertical position, the leverage of the links 40'41'becomes less and less, and the valves work less and less advantageously, with the result that the speed of the engine decreases as the lever 20 is raised.

I have shown and described the valves 4344 connected up in parallel relation with a common source of fluid under pressure, but I do not limit myself to that construction. In case steam were used as a motive power, for example, it might be desired to make the cylinders upon one of the mg each It will be understood, of course, that power might be applied to the pulley 17 and the device be used as a pump rather than as an engine, and I therefore do not limit myself specifically to its use as an engine.

That which I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is,

1. In an engine, in combination, four cylinders adapted to revolve about a common axis, each of said cylinders being located diametrically opposite and in line with another of said cylinders, a piston in each cylinder, rigid connections between the piston in each cylinder and the piston in the cylinder diametrically opposite it, and links cooperating with said rigid connections for pivotally connecting said pistons in eccentric relation to said axis.

2. In an engine, the combination of a shaft, a hub keyed thereon, four cylinders radially mounted on said hub, each of said cylinders being located opposite and in line with another of said cylinders, a piston in each cylinder, a crosshead fixedly secured on each of said pistons, two bars each of which rigidly connects two oppositelydisposed crossheads, and links connecting two of said crossheads in eccentric relation to said shaft.

3. In a rotary engine, the combination with a revoluble hub, a plurality of cylinders mounted thereon, said hub being provided at one end with longitudinally-extending bores communicating with the inner ends of said cylinders and having its said end beveled, a piston in each of said cylinders, two bars one of which rigidly connects the piston in each cylinder to the piston located in the cylinder on the opposite side of said shaft, and links each connected at one end to one of said pistons and pivotally mounted at their other ends in eccentric relation to said hub, of a valve internally-beveled to fit closely upon the beveled end of said hub, said valve being provided with two concentric grooves on its inner face adapted to register with the bores in said hub, and means for forcing fluid under pressure into one of said grooves in said valve.

4. In a rotary engine, the combination of four revolubly mounted radially disposed cylinders, four revolubly-mounted radiallydisposed cylinders positioned opposite there to, pistons in said cylinders, a crosshead connecting the pistons of each pair of oppositely-positioned cylinders, bars 38 connectpair of oppositely-located crossheads, and links each connected at one end to one of said crossheads and at its other end mounted in eccentric relation to said revoluble cylinders.

5. In an engine, in combination, four cylinders adapted to revolve about a common axis, each of saidcylinders being located diametrically opposite and in line with another of said cylinders, a piston in each cylinder, a piston-rod connected with each piston and extending radially outward therefrom, rigid connections between the piston-rod in each cylinder and the piston-rod in the cylinder diametrically opposite it, and two links cooperating with said rigid connections for pivotally connecting two of said piston-rods in eccentric relation to said axis.

6. In a rotary engine, the combination with a shaft, and a spindle in alinement therewith, said shaft and spindle being telescoped and adapted to rotate freely relative to each other, of four cylinders radially mounted on said shaft and keyed thereto, four cylinders radially mounted on said spindle and adapted to rotate thereon, said spindle being provided with a crank portion between said two sets of cylinders, rigid connections 34: between the cylinders mounted on said shaft and the cylinders mounted upon said spindle whereby said cylinders are all caused to rotate together, pistons in said cylinders, a crosshead connected with the pistons of each of said pairs of oppositely-positioned cylinders, bars rigidly connecting each pair of oppositelylocated crossheads, and links each connected at one end to one of said crossheads and at its other end pivotally mounted on the crank portion of said spindle.

7. In a rotary engine, the combination with a shaft, and a spindle in Valinement therewith, said spindle and shaft each form ing the bearing for the inner end of the other, of a plurality of cylinders radially mounted on said shaft and keyed thereto, a like number of cylinders radially mounted on said spindle and adapted to rotate thereon, said spindle being provided with a crank portion between said two sets of cylinders, rigid connections 34 between said two sets of cylinders adapted to cause each pair of oppositely-positioned cylinders to move together, pistons in said cylinders, a crosshead connected with the pistons of each of said pairs of oppositely-positioned cylinders, links each connected at one end to one of said crossheads and at its other end pivotally mounted on the crank portion of said spindle, means for giving said spindle a partial rotation to vary the position of the crank portion of said spindle relative to the spindle proper, and valve mechanism adapted to connect said cylinders with a suitable source of fluid under pressure whereby said cylinders are caused to rotate in either direction according to the position of said crank portion of said spindle.

GEORGE F. LEIGER.

Witnesses:

PHILIP SOMMER, W. H. DE BUsK.

Images