AN INTERNAL-COMBUSTION TURBINE.
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A Résumé of Recently Published Patents.
AN INTERESTING type of internal-combustion turbine is described in specification No. 169,714, by H. Fottinger. It is of the type in whichthe exploding gases act on a .cnshion of water or other fluid, instead of directly on the blades of the turbine rotor. The arrangement is rather ingenious, and is reminiscent of Ihe Humphrey internal-combustion pump, The gases are first-drawn into those cylinders, which appear, on one of the accompanying illustrations, as long, round
ended pipes, projecting from the upper part of the turbine casing. The four-stroke cycle is the basis of working, and the cylinders have no pistons, since the water serves the same .purpose. As the gas in any particular cylinder is exploded, it drives the water out from that cylinder into the turbine. Part of the fluid is guided directly intothe rotor,
which it. drives in the orthodox manner. The remainder passes into that cylindrical chamber which may be seen on the inlet side of the rotor, wherein it is whirled -round, entering, little by little, other parts of the rotor, and thus keeping up a. constant-driving effOrt, notwithstanding the impulsive manner in which the internal-combustion part of the Mechanism works.
A similar path is taken by the water as it makes its exit from the rotor. Part of it is directed back into the cylinders, control of the access to, and exit from, which is effected by suitable valves and gear driven from the turbine shaft (various forms of valve -gear may be used.: the inventor does not hind himself in that respect). That. water which does not enter the cylinders immediately it leaves the rotor whirls round in the chamber near that side of the rotor until such time as it may pass into the cylinder.
Other Patents of Interest.
A suggested design for an eight-wheeled vehicle is shown inspecification No. 190,794, the inventor being W. 13. Garden. All the axles are mounted on a rigid sub-frame, 'from which the vehicle body is sprung. All the wheels, according to the patentee, would be arranged for steering; some may be used for driving. It is claimed that this arrangement protects the body from shocks, as the wheels, by virtue of their being fixed to a rigid frame, are suspended by the same when a hole is encountered by one or other of them. .
An interesting development of the Kegresse " Sahara-crosst46 jug " vehicle, is foreshadowed by an invention which is described in specification Nu. 174,920 by the patentee. It describes runners of the sleigh type, and shows how they may conveniently be fitted to the chassis of a motor vehicle without interfering with the wheels, and, indeed, so fitted that the" sleds will only come into effect when the going is so bad that the Wheels sink to a certain level in the ground. When that occurs the weight is taken by the sleds. In the specification the sleds are Shown as attached to a front wheel, and an important feature of the patent is the provision, which takes the form of an automatIc ball type friction elutch,_for preventing undue oscillation of the sled attachment when it is not in use, but which nevertheless allows of its accommodating itself to the undulations of the surface of the ground Nekton it is actually in operation.
Specification No. 190,764, by A. J. Rowledge, and RollsRoyce, Ltd., describes a type of engine in which the usual crankshaft is replaced by a awash plate. The cylinders are arranged round the main driving shaft, to which their axes
i are all parallel. On that shaft s mounted a disc which is not normal to the shaft. The thrust of the pistons. is transferred to that disc, livhicb, by reason of its oscillations, transmits the reciprocatory movement of the pistons to the shaft ss one of rotation. The present invention is concerned with details of construction, principally as regards the Means of lubrication, and the connections between pistons and disc, so that the equipment may be more in keeping with the needs of an internal-combustion engine than is generally the case.
An interesting device to faeilitate the loading of a motor• vehicle with heavy packages is described in specification No. 179,909, by the Societe Charles Blum et Cie. A platform equal in width to the body of the vehicle, is attached to the frame at the rear by a. system of parallel links. A coupling rod connecting these links to the driver's cab enables him to raise it to the level of the platiorni of the lorry, or lower it to the ground, whilst the parallelism of the links, ensures that. this auxiliary platform is always horizontal. The modus operandi will, we think, readily be Understood. Ti should be pointed out that, when the job of loading the lorry is COM pleted, the auxiliary, platform is raised to its upper position, and secured there by strong hooks and bolts, so that it forms, in effect, an integral part of the lorry platform, and may be utilized as such, the rear end being subsequently closed by the usual tailboard. This tailboard, too, may be used in . another way to increase the utility of the loading device, as it may be employed, when laid in a horizontal position, asa kind of bridge, across which a load may be transferred from one vehicle to another.
An ingenious brake improvement is described by L. Renault, in specification. .No. 18.3-,790. The inventor refers to one abjection to the transmission brake, in that, in use, it involves frequent and emphatic reversals of Stress in the propeller shaft and other parts. His construction provides for the simultaneous application of the transmission brake and the one which acts directly on the rear wheels. The intensity of the application of the latter is, however, limited by the 'insertion of a spring of known strength in the connection, so that the rear brake is put on to a certain extent, and the transmission brake as much as is subsequently found to be necessary. The usual side lever operates the rear brake independently. An arrangement of valve .gear for a V-type engine, baying cylinders set at 60 degrees., is described in specification No.
171,105, by C. IL Wills. "