PERFECTING THE MU MOTOR APPLIANCE.
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Recent Developments. Leading Feature Wagons, Sweepers, Tower Wagon! Engines, Gully Emptiers, Washers, Refuse vurpose Machines and Road Rollers.
THERE have been extraordinary developments in the employment of all types of mechanically propelled municipal appliances during the past few years. Petrol, steam and electricity have all been pressed into service. Each has its particular merits, and as time number of types of appliance grow so is the demand spread over machines in which these three forms of power are employed. Increasing congestion amongst the populations of our cities and towns renders more and more necessary the employment of modern methods and appliances which will combine efficiency with economy and cleanliness. Huge buildings which are springing up in every direction necessitate powerful firefighting equipment and the provision of escape ladders capable of reaching to heights which, a few' years ago, would not have been considered possible. It is almost Impossible to visualize the state of affairs which would arise in connection with sanitation if mechanical appliances and vehicles were not available and manual labour had to be resorted to as in former years.
In an increasing number of instances, not only is the motor appliance looked upon as a means of dealing with a particular class of work, but as one which can usefully be made to fulfil several functions, and such appliances are beingmarketed and purchased in greater quantity and in a wide diversity of types. Th2se are of particular service where the need for serving a certain purpose is not constant. In summer, for instance, road watering may be urgently required, and there are other seasonal periods of activity. Consequently, it is an advantage to be able to equip, say, a tipping wagon with a tank body and suitable controls for watering. 'A combination easy to effect is the wateripg and washing machine, because, naturally, washing is just as essential, and, perhaps, more so, in winter than in summer. A gully emptier may easily be equipped to deal also with the emptying of cesspits. Watering and washing machines may serve as emergency fire-pumps, and a gully emptier can easily be equipped to form a satisfactory street washer.
A recent vogue is the employment of tractors, chiefly of the petrol type, which can be used in conjunction
with various types of trailer. These are employed in many classes of work, such as refuse collection, the carrying of road and other material and the haulage of special trailers equipped as cesspit emptiers.
Recent years have also seen a great development in the employment of vehicles and trailers having a. low load-line, and so permitting the men loading them to tip dustbins, etc., into them without an undue expenditure of energy or the necessity for climbing steps or ladders.
Although at first looked at with a certain amount of doubt, motor sweepers have proved capable of dealing effectively with the cleansing of many miles of streets per day, and machines in which automatic collection of the sweepings is a feature are being used to an increasing extent, partly for hygienic reasons and partly because they avoid the need for extra manual labour and collecting vehicles following the sweepers.
As a further means of economizing in motive units, the container system of refuse collection and general haulage is coming to the fore, the containers either being drawn behind tractors or carried upon the platforms of the motive units. Such systems permit an almost uninterrupted flow of work, one or more containers being loaded or unloaded, as the case may be, while the vehicle which carries the others is journeying to and fro.
A very important branch of municipal activity lies in road building and maintenance. For this purpose large numbers of vehicles, chiefly tipping wagons, are necessary, whilst, apart from this, road-tarring appliances, gritters and a variety of rollers are all necessary.
In every class of appliance and vehicle constant improvement is being carried out, and the illustrations which accompany this article are representative of the most modern types. Perfeetion can never be achieved, but can be approached, and we shall now deal with the various forms of modern appliance, pointing out particular features which further efficiency.
The fighting of fires is necessarily one of the most important branches of municipal activity, and we will, therefore, treat first with this.
From the comparatively slow and cumbersome appliance of a few years 'ago has developed the high-speed modern type with a powerful engine, compact pump -of high output and, usually, a ;Most complete equipment, which includes auxiliary fire-fighting-appliances, such as a tank of chemical extinguisher, air pump for supplying smoke helmets and special extinguishers for petrol and similar fires.
Among the most modern and efficient pumps we may refer particularly to that marketed on. their fire engines, also as a unit, by Dennis Bros., Ltd.; the Hatfield, used on all Merryweather products; the Rees-Roturbo, used exclusively on Leyland, Stanley-Ford and Stanley-Morris appliances, and the special type employed on the Martin. There is also the efficient and powerful two-stage centrifugal type employed on the Halley-Simonis engines.
One of the most recent developments is the special type of appliance employed for fighting petrol fires. One of these machines is the Fire Suds, made by Merryweather and Sons, Ltd. This carries a tank holding a large quantity of material which produces a thick foam enabling fires to be blanketed out.
Much attention is also being paid to the development of small but powerful trailer fire pumps, amongst these being the Dennis, Merryweather, Martin, Leyland, Baico and Renault-Simonis. The Leyland is particularly interesting in that. the pump itself can be detached from its chassis for conveyance over rough ground, for which purpose carrying handles are provided. Improvements in the bigger pumps include the by-passing of water from the pump through the cylinder jackets and so keeping the engine cool. As an example of recent high-speed models we may refer particularly to the Halley-Simonis first-aid engine lately built for Auckland. This runs at over 40 m.p.h. on good road'i and at 15 m.p.h. on rough roads. Martins also have under construction a high-speed model with an output of 500 gallons and equipped with a six-cylinder engine developing SO b.h.p. This will weigh approximately 3 tons and will be capable of speeds of from 50-60 m.p.h. Past light types of Tilling-Stevens pumps are also being made.
In addition to the trailer pumps various types of motorcycle and sidecar fire-fighting equipment have been placed on the market. One of the most recent of these is the Leyland, which is really a fire-engine in miniature. Much good work has been done and many lives saved by the employment of the turntable ladders. One of the latest of these is that manufactured by Tilling-Stevens Motors, Ltd., and mounted on their well-known petrol-electric chassis. In this the electric supply from the machine serves to operate the ladder, and this power is also employed for supplementary purposes, such as running searchlights, drills, cutting plant, blowers and exhausting fans. In the Leyland-Metz turntable ladder there is an automatic plumbing device which takes charge of the variation up to 10 per cent. from the vertical, whilst the combination of interlocking controls with automatic stops renders impossible a wrong sequence of operations.
We have already referred to some of the advantages of using multi-purpose appliances. One of the most useful types is the Dennis gully-emptying street-washing and sprinkling machine, an outstanding feature being that it can be 'used for any one of these duties without the necessity for changing a single; part. Another type is the Thornycroft tipping and watering wagon, which we illustrate.
The Clayton steam gully emptier can also be employed as a gravity sprinkler outfit, and for this purpose has Warwick sprinkler beads. When in use as a gully emptier the air is exhausted by a suitable steam ejector.
The well-known Yorkshire steam wagon is made in several dual-purpose types. There is a combined gully emptier and street washer with a new design of tank and, in one model, with a sludge-tank door split down the middle. For smaller boroughs, gully-emptying and street-sprinkling equipment, which can easily be removed and replaced by a standard tipping body, can be provided. Another steam appliance is the Atkinson-Walker tipping and street-watering combination. This has a permanent wood body, and when it is to be used as a sprinkler a rectangular tank of 1,000 gallons capacity is placed inside it. The sprinklers are perforated inclined cylinders. In other types of the same make the substitution of a refuse container for a sprinkler or vice versa occupies about 20 minutes only. In the Mann steam wagon the tipping body can, if required, be made interchangeable with a 1,000-gallon watering tank. A centrifugal pump is then used to supply the sprinkler beads.
, A model which should appeal to road surveyors is the Leyland steam tar sprayer, with a tank of 1,000 gallons capacity ; this can also be put to a variety of other uses. Petrol machines have also been supplied with alternative street-watering and refuse-collecting bodies, a tipping gear forming part of the equipment. A somewhat unusual machine Is the hierryweather combined fire-engine and watering vehicle. This has a 500gallon water tank and a natfield pump, the hose being carried on a reel at the rear. A 440-gallon round water tank with two special gravity-sprinkler 'leads, the whole forming, with.its controls operated from the cab, a detachable unit, is used on one Garner model, and when taken out, leaves an ordinary lorry body. Watering and washing apparatus interchangeable with a tipping wagon body has also been supplied on A.E.C. chassis. Que model of the K-type Karrier watering machine carries a detachable tank of 750 gallons capacity in its tipping body.'
Where tarring operations are in progress ninny miles of road may have to be gritted, and for this purpose a useful machine is the 25-cwt. Bean tipping wagon equipped with a Tuke and Bell gritting device. The arrangement of this device can be seen from our illustration.
As an adjunct to the Pagefield system of refuse collection, a fully equipped gully-emptying tank on small wheels can be run on to the carrier.
Although hardly an appliance, yet the'Clny prison van convertible to an ordinary van is a most useful type. This van is divided into several compartments by partitions; these and the seats can be removed to allow uninterrupted body space. If the seating be left, the van can be used as an emergency ambulance.
Another water-cart and fire-engine is the Renault. This has a tank of over 700 gallons capacity and a Rateau centrifugal pump with a mechanical primer.
The problem of evolving gully and cesspit eniptiers to work satisfactorily under all conditions is ono which has for long exercised the minds of makers, and, as a result, many efficient types have been produced. The main improvements have aimed at obtaining an even flow into the tank a the contents of the gully or cesspit without choking and the effective discharge of the whole of the contents without the need for manual effort,
To attain these ends, efficient combined exhausting and pressure pumps or injectors are used in conjunction with large pipes free from sharp bends and restrictions smaller than the entrance, In most cases the tanks are fitted at a fairly, steep angle, and pressure can be applied to the sludge tank to assist in the discharge of the contents, this being facilitated by Quick-opening doors of the largest possible Size. In sdme instances steam or water is blown under the sludge to lift it as it is ejected, whilst in most cases the tank is divided into two compartments, one containing pure water for resealing gullies, and sometinales separate vacuum chamber is employed.
Some makers specialize in their own equipment, whilst others employ that made by Tuke and Bell, Ltd., or the Eagle Engineering Co.' Ltd.
In the Dennis gully emptier, which is made in 750gallon and 1,000-gallon types, a rotary pump exhausts the air, and the noxious gases withdrawn are burnt by the engine exhaust before being expelled. By using the pump as a compressor, water may be delivered under pressure, and hand-stirring obviated. For emptying, the tank is tipped to an angle of 40 degrees. A rotary air pump is also 'u'sed in the cesspit emptiers, and the suction pipe may be emptied by air pressure when required, this action being also employed to deliver the contents to a level higher than the machine when emptying. '
The Karrier gully aud cesspit emptier is made in two models of 500 gallons and 1,000 gallons capacity. It has a single tank, which is half-filled with water, the contents being drawn into the tank so that the water forms a trap. An interesting machine is the Lacre, which operates either on the open or closed circuit system as desired. In the latter case the tank is filled with fresh water, and the pump forces water at high pressure through the dredging head, breaking up the sediment, which is then sucked up a large-bore pipe. The Leyland machine consists of a large galvanized tank _divided into two portions, one of which takes up the contents of a gully by vacuum, whilst the other contains the sealing water ; a two-way tap on the pump enables it to be used for filling the water tank.
Many improvements have been embodied in the latest Lail& as supplied to Kensington. Pressure or suction may be applied to either of the two compartments of the tank. When discharging, a vacuum is maintained in the sludge tank, the door released, but held by the pressure of the outside air until pressure is supplied to the tank, when. the contents are discharged rapidly and cleanly.
One of the most popular of the steam type is the Yorkshire, which, since it was fully described in our issue of June 23rd last, has been equipped with a new design of tank which improves its efficiency.
Atotal capacity of 1,450. gallons is afforded by the Atkinson-Walker machine, of which 350 gallons is for fresh water for boiler feeding and gully flushing. The vacuum is created by a Mirrlees ejector, the gases -from which are passed into the boiler furnace to destroy anygerms. One of the latest of the steam types is the Fowler, which, in addition to many novel and patented features embodied in the design marketed last year, has another, the subject of a fresh patent. This is a means of drawing the surplus water from the top of the sludge tank for resealing purposes ; thus the effective capacity for real sludge is considerably increased. A separate vacuum tank expedites the work Of the ejector, whilst the steep angle of the tank floor for automatic emptying and the novel feature already referred to are both claimed to be exclusive to the Fouler machine. Sprinklers for street watering and washing can easily be fitted if desired. The sludge tank itself has a capacity of 925 gallons; the water tank 980 gallons, whilst the vacuum tank can hold: an additional 170 -gallons of sludge.
The long platform length afforded by the Super-Sentinel steam wagon enables ;the provision of very large ,tanks gully emptying, watering, etc., the capacities for anal work
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varying between 850 gallons and 1,500 gallons. In one model two water-sealing tanks are provided, one on each side of the main tank, the vacuum being obtained in this by the use of a steam ejector.
In addition to the motor machines already dealt with, others of proved value are the Tilling-Stevens and the Halley, the latter being a combined cesspit and gully emptier built in various capacities from 500 gallons to 1,200 gallons.
Refuse collection is still a controversial subject so far -is the methods employed are concerned. Elsewhere in this issue we treat with the Pagefield system, which is proving very satisfactory.
Another interesting type has been devised by the makers of the S.-D. Freighter.. This is also a container system, in which the bodies to be loaded are supported on stands and rolled by one man from these on to the chassis. The con7 tainers may be end-tipping with the single type and side.‘ tipping with the double type. At St. Marylebone one chassis is operating with 18 containers without difficulty.
Low-built vehicles are becoming more and more popular, and in addition to the Freighter there is the Carrim ore Lowtruck, the new Corber and Heath Low-deck, the Guy and Vulcan with small wheels, and the Dennis in which the wheel arches are taken up into the body so that the platform is virtually ozdi a level with the tops of the wheels ; the body is tapered outwards to facilitate discharge. A low-loading Guy refuse collector with standard wheels instead of the small type is also marketed.
The Karrier was a pioneer machine of the low type. In the latest -model the body-loading height is only. 3 ft. 10 ins, from the ground, and this with a ,tipping wagon.
Several designs of Albion refuse wagons have bten produced and are giving extremely satisfactory service.
For the smaller municipalities the three models of the Morris collector should prove an economical, proposition, whilst in other cases consideration may be given to the Ford, or, if a bigger-capacity vehicle -with Ford components be required, the 30-cwt. or 50-cwt. Baico are satisfactory models.
The Yorkshire low-built refuse collector is a development of the heavier well-body machine, but has been specially designed for its work.
Electric vehicles have, of Course, alway,s been popular in this direction. Amongst those most used are the RansomesOrwell, the Garrett (which can also be fitted with kerbside control to expedite collection), the Clayton and the G.V. Many Electromobiles have also been supplied, amongst these being an interesting typewith four-wheel drive.
Washing and watering vehicles are now essentials to street cleanliness, particularly in. congested areas,. One of the most powerful of these is the Dennis, equipped with the same pump aS is employed on the Dennis fire-engine. It gives .a ,"pressure of 60-80 lb. per sq. in., and a spread of 50 ft. is possible for sprinkling, or 8-10 ft. for washing.
A 2,000-gallon tank is used on the. MandsTay sprinkler and washer, the pressure being afforded by a slot-speed,
single-stage centrifugal pump. There are four fish-tail washing jets in addition to sprinkler heads.
In the Leyland machine especial attention is given to the minimization of splash and the angle at which the water is delivered—in sprinkling, to be most effective, and in gully emptying, to avoid loss of momentum of the water on its way to the gutter.
Two very large capacity machines are the Berliet watering vehicle' and the Halley, with an Eagle semi-trailer carrying a 2,000-gallon tank. Warwick sprinkler heads are used. A neat little machine is the 750-gallon Albion, with Steel Darrel tank and pressure feed to sprinkler heads at the rear.
The Super-Sentinel watering vehicle is built in several models up to 1,500 gallons capacity. The sprinklers are in full view of the driver and for spreads up to 25 ft. are gravity fed. For a greater area high-pressure sprinklers can be fitted.
A Reeve11-type pump giving a pressure of 25 lb. per sq. in. is employed in the 750-gallon type J Thornycroft road washer. The Thornycroft cesspool or gully emptier may also be nsed as a street waterer, for which purpose a two-way pump giving suction or pressure is utilized.
Hand in hand with watering and washing go street sweeping and collecting. Motor-driven sweepers of most efficient types are the Karrier (which is also designed to collect its sweepings), the Lacre three-wheeled L type, which is favoured by many municipalities, and the four-wheeled Laiily —a French product of proved ability.
For attending to overhead wiring, street lamps, etc., the tower wagon has proved of the greatest service. These machines can be supplied by the majority of our petrol and electric vehicle manufacturers, and we' shall, therefore, only refer to two or three special types. There is, for instance, the Albion extra-high tower wagon for Glasgow. This gives a platform height of 30 ft., the chassis being a subsidy model. In the Tilling-Stevens type the petrol-electric plant affords a generous supply of electric power for welding and similar work, and in this sense makes it a dual-purpose machine.
Amongst what we may term special vehicles are the Pagefield and Leyland short-wheelbase overtype models designed for refuse collection and similar work in narrow streets.
Many special types of roller have been built to meet the new requirements of road construction and maintenance, for which the old pattern is not altogether satisfactory. Amongst the most modern types is the Wallis and Steevens' Advance, in which the rear rolls are self-adjusting to road camber and the front roll can be locked to prevent rocking.
Another novel type is a special Robey, in -which the driving mechanism, etc., is concentrated on one side so that the main roll can operate close up to walls, etc.
Amongst the quick-reversing tandem and special types for asphalt and other bituminous surfacings and tar macadam are the steam-driven Millers-Marshall and ArmstrongWhitworth, and the petrol-propelled Darford and Perkins.