US1720241A - Air moistener - Google Patents

Description

July 9, 1929. E; A A A 1.720.241

AIR MOISTENER Filed Dec. 14, 1927 2 Sheets-Shem l 3 l mmltoz c. E. SALLADA AIR MOISTENER Filed Dec. 14, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet CE 5 5111a ria Patented July 9, 1929.

CLARENCE E. SALLADA, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

AIR MOISTENER.

Application filed December 14, 1927.

This invention relates to means tor imparting umisture to the hot air circulating from a hot-air turi'iace for heating lmildings. It is well known that the heated currents sent through a building from a hot-air Iturnace are very dry and tend to cause shrinkage of woodwork with consequent loosening of the joints in jlurniiture and the wooden trim of buildings and many attempts have been made to impart moisture to these heated currents so as to overcome the stated shrinking and joint loosening. The object oi the present invention is to provide a. simple mcchanisn'i which may be readily installed in any hot-air furnace and in which :ll floats and similar actuating elements will be eliminated so that the operation of the device will be certain at all times. and a further object ot the invention is to provide a, mechanism which will be simple inconstruction withoutany loss oi? cil'icicnc v. These stated objects. and other objects which will im-identally appear in the course oi? the following description, are attained in such an apparatus as is illustrated in the accom mnying drawings. and the invention resides in certain novel features which will be. particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is an elevation, partly broken away. of the upper portion 01 a hot-air "turnace having my improved air moistener installed therein;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal section thro l the air n'ioistener;

I) is a transverse section on. the line a oi" Fig. I

Fin. 4 is a trout end elevation of the receiving cup attached to the evaporating pan or trough, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail elevation of a portion of the cut-ott valv, and its mount- 1" ig. (l is an enlarged section of the cut-off valve.

In the drawings. the reference numeral 1 indicates the outer casing or shell of a hot-air turn ace having the usual. openings 2 through its crown to receive the ends 01 the hot-air circulating fines, while the reference numeral 3 indicates a portion of the tire-box of the tn rn ace.

In carrying out the present invention, there is provided an evaporating pan or trough 4: which is pret'erably constructed of sheet metal and is mounted in the crown of the fur- Serial No. 240,039.

nace immediately over the top of the firebox, as shown in Fig. 1. To support the pan, there is provided a telescopic beam consisting of a tube 5 and a rod 6 slidably titted in the tube, the telescopic construction of this supporting beam 1 )ermitting it to be adjusted to the diameter of the furnace crown so that the device may be set in a furnace of any size. The front end of the tube 5 is externally threaded so that it may be engaged in an intern ally threaded socket or boss 7 upon a head 8 which head is a casting having a vertically exteiu ling slot 9 through its lower portion for a. purpose which will presently appear. Secured by screws 10 or other fasteners to the rim of the h ad 8 is the outer end of a cylindrical casing 11 which extends through an opening cut therefor in the side of the turnace shell, and to the top of this casing is secured an angle bracket 12 which is also secured, to the furnace shell. as will be understood upon reference to Fig. 2. The outer or rear end of the rod 6 extends through a narrow slot 13 formed in the shell of the furnace dian'ietrically opposite the opening which receives the casing 11, and upon the outer side of the shell is secured a. guiding and holding plate 1st which has its central portion longitud in ally offset and formed with a slot 15 which receives the end of the rod 6. The end of the rod 6 engaged in an opening provided therefor in a metallic strap 16 which is disposed within the otlset portion of the holding and guiding plate 1-14. and between the same and the side of the. furnace so that, if this strap be moved longitudinally, the end ot the rod ti wi il be corresponding adjusted and the supporting beam thus readily brought into a level position. A'lter the supporting beam has been properly set, the upper end of the strap 16 bent over the upper end of the plate 14. as shown at 17 in Fig. 2. so that the parts will be set in the position to which they have been adjusted.

On the outer side of the head 8 and preferably alined with the boss 7 is an outer boss 18 having an opening 19 therein to receive a stud 20 whereby to support theinflow-controlling device. the stud being secured in the opening by a set screw 21 in an obvious manner. The stud 20 is formed on a block 22 which has a top threaded portion whereby it may be engaged in the lower end of a crown E3 having a nipple 24: on its upper side to receive the e-nd ot' a water teed pipe 25, the end of said. pipe being secured in the nipple tocommunicate with a radial passage 29.

shapedto form a seat for a needle valve 30.

threaded in the block and projecting from the.

front ofthe same, a packing box or gland 31 being mounted around the stem of. said valve, as shown in Fig. 2,,to prevent leakage. From the cross passage 29, an outlet passage 32 extends. downwardly through the block or cast- 7 ing 22. Resting upon said block 22 within the crown 23 is a screen and above said screen filteringmaterial 3% is placed within the crown to lill.the same.

The e aporating pan or trough at is provided in its front end near its bottom with a port through which the water may pass into the pan and secured to the front end of the pan is a receivingcup '36 which. is cast and isformed with an opening,37 in its top to admit-thewater. As shown in Figs. i and 5, this receiving cup somewhat narrow and, as shown in Fig. 2, its bottom is preferably flush with the lower side'of theport 35 so that the water delivered into the cup will be directed atonce into the evaporatingpan. The cup is provided with lateral flanges 38through which screws,,rivets orother fasteners are inserted tose-cure the same to the front end of the panand, from. the topof the. cup fastening arms 39 diverge to be secured to the front endjot the pan and reinforce thGBftDlG so that any .tendencyof the end of: the pan tobucklewill be resisted. The cup is provided with a drain opening in its bottom norv mally closedby a plug 40 andin its front end immediately. adjacent its top is formed with:

tached to the sides-of the cup adjacentthe top thereofand spanning the inlet'opening 37 is a yoke-42wh1ch carries a cupe li-i. As shown most clearly 11] Fig. 2, this cup 43 1s a cylindrical member, preferably of sheet copper, having an open upper endgand having a bot.

tom portion restingupon the. yoke 42 and provlded centrally with :an openingthrough which passes a nipple- 41, said nipple alsopassing throughan alined opening in the .top of the yOkG tIDClIbQlIlgBXtGYDflllY threaded to recelve a securmg nut 45. The nipple 4 is formed as an integral part of a T-fitting having its head 46 extending diametrically within the cup 43 and adapted to rest upon the bottom of the cup, a gasket 47 being inter posed between the head -l6 and the bottom of the cup to prevent leakage in an obvious manner. \Vhen the nut is turned home against the yoke 42, obviously the cup .413 will be clamped upon the yoke. The head portion of the T-litti-ng is provided on its upper side with an annular rim 4-8 within which is seated a washer or gasket 49, and this washer, which may. be of any approved .form or material, is rcmovably held in its seat by a cap 50 having a depending resilient rim 51 formed with a bead 52 adapted to engage in. an annular groove formed in the outer surface of the rim 4L8, is clearly shown in Fig. 6. It should be understood, however, that a needle valve may be substituted for the washer, if desired. Below the head 52, the rim of the cap is spread, asshewn at 54, whereby it may easily .ride over the rim 48 and spring. into engagethe operation. of the apparatus. Asshown in Fig. 2, the nipple 32 is provided with an external annular rib 56 which tits within the upper. portion of the cup l3 an d thereby serves to guide said cup and maintainit in a vertical position when it moves with the evaporating pan and the receiving cup as the mech anism operates in the manner hereinafter set forth.

Asbefore stated, the evaporating pan is formed of sheet metal and desired rigidity maybe imparted tothe .top of the same by forming re-entrant flanges 57 along the edges of its sides, asshown most clearly in Fig. 3. Fitted upon the supporting beam immediately adjacent the inner end of the casing 11 is a bracketincluding a central eye or bodyportion 58 having a set screw 59 mounted therein whereby. it may be secured; upon the tube 5,.and ayoke 60 which spans the top of the evaporating pan and has its terminal portions disposed at. the outer opposite sides of the same to receive a fulcrum pin or rod 61 which passes through said terminals and the 1 sides of the pan. andmaybe secured by cotter pins 62 orother preferred means. Spaced inwardly from thecye 58, a second eye or bracket 63 encircles the tube 5 and is secured thereto by aset screw 64. Theeye 63 is provided on its under side with lugs or ears (35 which depend within the top of the evaporating pan and receive a cross pin 66, as shown. Mounted upon the pin. 66 between the lugs is anangle bracket or fitting 67 having one tubular arm or branch presented to the rear end of the pan and another tubular arm or branch presented downwardly and forwardly. A supporting pin or stud 68 is secured in the rearwardly presented branch and extends through an opening provided therefor in the rear end of the pan while a counter-balance rod 69 is secured in the downwardly and forwardly presented arm and is equipped at its free end with a counter-weight 70, as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

It is thought the operation will be readily understood from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. The normal working position of the parts shown in Fig. 2, the cut-off valve, consisting of the washer l9 and the parts associated therewith, being opened or spaced away from its seat which is defined by the end of the outlet nipple 32 so that water may flow into the receiving cup and thence pass into the evaporating pan. In installing the apparatus, the needle valve 30 is set so that the vater will flow at the rate which judgment and experience may show to be best adapted for successful use in a furnace of the size in which the device is being installed. The ater will ten d to accumulate in the evaporating pan and normally the weight of the re ceiving cup and the front end of the pan together with the weight of the water therein and the leverage exerted by the counterbalance arm 69 and the counter-weight will hold the pan in the position shown in Fig. 2. Should the water continue to accumulate in the pan, it will reach the back of the pan and eventually it will overcome the leverage exerted by the counterbalance and the rear end of the pan will move downwardly, the pan rocking about the fulcrum rod 61 in an obvious 'manner and this movement will carry the receiving cup and the cut-oft valve upwardly so that the washer 49 will seat against the lower end of the nipple 32 and cut off the further flow of water, itbeing noted, particularly npon reference to Fig. 1, that the fulcrum 61 of the pan is nearer the front end of the same than the back end thereof so that the back end of the pan tends to over-balance its front end. As the water evaporates, eventually, the leverage exerted by the counter-weight will prevail and the counterweight will move downwardly so that the pin or stud 68 will swing upwardly and lift the rear end of the evaporating pan thereby restoring the parts to the position shown in Fig. 2. The rate at which the water is flowing may be observed through the open space within the yoke 42 below the outlet nipple ll of the cut-off valve and the needle valve 30 should be set so that the water will merely drip from said nipple. Ordinarily, the ratio between the feeding of the water and the evaporation of the same will be constant and a constant supply of vapor will be fed to the hot air currents passing out through the buildin Should the fire fail without the fact being noticed, the weight of the accumulated water will serve to cut off the further flow in the manner previously described so that flooding will be avoided but, if, for any reason, there should be an excessive tICClllIllllillZlOIl of water, the overflow nozzle 41 will permit the same to escape without causing any serious damage. The water passing into the evaporating pan will be filtered and cleaned in its passage through the filtering-material 3st and the screen 33 so that ordinarily it will be free of foreign matter and there will be no sediment in the evaporating pan or the receiving cup. Should there be any sediment, however, and it should be necessary to clean out the pan or the cup, this may be easily accomplished by removing the" drain plug sit) and, flushing the pan and the cup. The water will pass through the several passages in the block 22 in an obvious manner and, striking upon the washer 49, will be spread to escape over the top and sides of the same and will find an outlet through the diametric passage in the head or body 46 of the T-fitting and then escape through the depending nipple 41 thereof. If it should be necessary to repair or renew any of the parts of the cut-off valve, the flow of water from the main supply pipe is checked by closing the usual cut-ofl' valve provided therein, and the cut-oft valve with the cup .13 may be removed by withdrawing the pivot screws which attach the yoke 42 to the receiving cup 36, the regulating valve and filter remaining in place upon the head 8. If it be desired to inspect or renew or repair the filtering material or the regulating valve 30, removal of the set screw 21 will permit the block 22 with the parts mounted thereon to be removed without necessitating removal of other parts. The apparatus is very simple in construction, compact in arrangement and certain in operaton.

It will be noted that in my present apparatus there are no floats employed. These floats have been heretofore used and were con.- nected with the cut-off valve so as to be ac tuated by the level of the water in the evaporating pan but they were uncertain in operation because they were apt to get out of order and any slight deposit upon the fulcrum of the float or any of the elements connected therewith would interfere with the successful action. In my present apparatus, the space which is occupied by the float in the arrangements heretofore generally employed is available for the storage of the water and the weight of the water itself operates to rock the evaporating pan so that the pan serves as a lever to raise and lower the cut-ofi' valve and thereby automatically control the inflow of the water to be evaporated.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

1. In an air-moistening apparatus, the

combination of supporting-means, an evaporating pan mounted on the supportingorating pan mounted on the supporting means for rocking movement, means for supplying water to the pan through the front end thereof, a cut-elf valve carried by the front end of the pan, and a counterweighted arm mounted adjacent the rear end of the pan and engaged with the rear end:

of the pan the weighted end of the arm extending forwardly within the pan.

3. In an air-moistening apparatus, the combination of a supporting beam, means whereby said beam may be secured in the shell of a furnace, a bracket secured on said beam, an evaporating pan pivotally carried by said bracket, a water-supplying element mounted adjacent-the front end of the pan, a cut-off valve-carried by the frontend of the pan and movable therewith to permit or stop flow fromsaid element, and a counterbalance within the pan rockingly supported on the beam and engaged with the rear end of the pan.

4t. In an air-moistening apparatus, the combination of a supportingbeam, means whereby said beam may be secured within the top of afurnace shell, an evaporating pan pivotally carried by said beam, a watersupplying element mounted adjacent the front end of thepan, a cut-off valve carried by the front endof the pan to be moved thereby toward and from said: supply element, a bracket secured on the supporting beam adjacent the rear end of the pan, an anglemember pivoted inthe lower portion of said bracket, a pin. extending rearwardly from said angle -me1nber and engaged through the rear end of the pan, and acounter-weight engaged in saidangle member and extending downwardly and forwardly therefrom.

5.111 air-moistening apparatus, the combination of a tubular casing, means for securing said casing in one side of a furnace shell, a head securedin the outerend of said casing, a supporting beam secured atone end to saidhead and at its opposite end in the shellof the furnace, an evaporat ing pan pivotally supported on said beam and having its front end disposed within the casing, a receiving cup secured upon the front end of the pan and extending through said. head, a mechanism secured to the head above the receiving cup for permitting and regulating inflow of water, and a cut-off valve carried by the receiving cupand cooperating with said mechanism.

6. In an air-moistening apparatus, the combination of a supporting means including a head having an opening through its lower portion, an evaporating pan mounted for rocking movement upon said supporting means, a receiving cup secured upon the front end of the pan and extending through theopening in said head,said receiving cup having aninlet opening through its top and the front end of the pan having a port there through at the bottom of the receiving cup, a water supplying and regulating device mounted'upon the head above the cup and having adepending outlet nipple, a yoke pivotally mounted upon the receiving cup adjacent the top of the same, a retaining cup *arried by said yoke, and a T-fitting having a head within said retaining cup carrying a washer adapted to seat against the lower end of said outlet nipple and having a depending nipple to direct water through the inlet opening of the receiving cup.

7. In an 'air-moistening apparatus, the combination of supporting means including a head having an opening through its lower portion and having an external boss above said'opening, an evaporating pan mounted for rocking movement upon the supporting means, a receiving cup secured upon the front end of the pan and extending through the openingin the head, a block secured in the boss'on thehead and having water passages therethrough, a regulating valve mounted inone of said passages, a cut-off valve carried by the receiving 'cupand-inovable therewith toward and from the outlet end ofsaid passages, and a filtering chamber on the upper side of said block.

In testimony whereof I affixmy signatnre,

CLARENCE E. 'SALLADA. [L. s]

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