WATER JACKETED EXHAUST ATTACHMENT FOR

3,105,708

Patented Oct. 1, 1963

3,105,708

WATER JACKETED EXHAUST ATTACHMENT FOR
INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE
Howard E. Esty, 67 Lynde St., Old Saybrook, Conn.
Filed Apr. 20, I960, Ser. No. 23,455
9 Claims. (CI. 285—41)

This invention relates to an attachment for the exhaust of an internal combustion engine and, more particularly, to a water jacket structure especially adapted for use on marine engines.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an exhaust system for inboard marine engines which is of inexpensive construction, can be easily installed by anyone, without special skills, and is adaptable to all types of installations.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a hot water system for boats which utilizes the heat from the engine exhaust while at the same time provides good sound suppressing qualities for the exhaust and absorbs engine vibration.

The device of the present invention can be used for through deck or hull exhaust systems, is adapted for special curves, etc. in the installation, and reduces fire hazards.

Briefly the invention relates to an exhaust attachment for an internal combustion engine which is comprised of a flexible metal tube having end fittings affixed to each end thereof with flange means on the fittings for interconnecting the tube at one end to the exhaust manifold of the engine and at the other end to a venting means. Each of the fittings includes a tubular portion of greater diameter than the tube which is mounted at one end on the associated flange coaxial with the tube and opens axially inwardly from the end thereof. Rubber hose encases or surrounds the metal tube in a concentric relation therewith and is connected at its ends to the respective tubular portions to provide an annular fluid passage in the space between it and the flexible metal tube. A plurality of fiber glass rope spacers are disposed longitudinally within the passage at spaced radial positions relative to one another and are affixed at their ends to the respective end fittings. Fluid inlet and outlet connections are provided on the respective fittings communiacting with the passage. Perforated peripheral guard flanges are disposed on each fitting, overlying the adjacent end portion of the tube and are interposed between the tube and said spacers, to assist in anchoring the spacers to the end fittings while protecting the ends of the flexible metal tube from pressure from the spacers and insuring that any bending of the flexible metal tube will be axially inward from the junction thereof with the end fitting.

In a modified embodiment perpiheral holes are provided on one of the fittings interconnecting the passage with the interior of the tube. This is normally provided at the discharge end of the exhaust attachment to give a wet exhaust.

Other objects and features of the invention will become apparent in the following description and claims, and in the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a partially sectioned side elevation of an exhaust attachment according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a section taken along lines 2—2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary partially sectioned side elevation of a modified form of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a partially sectioned side elevation of another embodiment of the invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 the exhaust attachment is indicated generally by the reference numeral 10 and it is comprised of an inner flexible metal tube 11 which may be of the bellows type as shown or any other flexible metal con

struction having fluid tight characteristics along its length. The tube 11 is affixed at its ends to end fittings 12 and 13 respectively by attachment to inwardly extending respective tube members 14 and 15 by brazing or the like. Flange

5 member 16 on fitting 12, affixed to the outer end 17 (or to the left as viewed in FIG. 1) of tube member 14, by any convenient means such as threaded engagement, is adapted for connection to the exhaust manifold (not shown) of the engine. Flange 17a on fitting 13 is similarly connected to

10 tube member 15 and is adapted for connection to the deck or hull opening, or other venting means 18. Thus the attachment has an intake end 19 and a discharge end 20.

End fittings 12, 13 also have tubular jacket portions or

15 members 21, 22 which are of greater diameter than tube members 14, 15 and are mounted coaxially therewith on the associated fitting. Jacket member 21 has an inner closed end 23 mounted at a spaced position from the adjacent flange 16 to facilitate aligning the bolt holes (not

20 shown) of flange 16 during installation on an engine block (not shown) by rotation of the flange, which may be either a floating or threaded flange. This arrangement is desirable to permit interconnection of the exhaust attachment between two units without putting a radial strain

25 on the flexible metal hose 11 in aligning the flange bolt holes. Both jacket members 21, 22 have axially inward open ends 24, 25.

Rubber hose 26 concentrically encases metal tube 11 and is connected at its ends 27, 28 to jacket members 21,

30 22 by conventional means such as hose clamps 29 to provide an annular fluid passage 30 between it and the flexible metal tube. Spacers, for example, heat resistant rope 31, such as rope made of fiber glass or the like are disposed longitudinally in passage 30 at spaced radial posi

35 tions relative to one another to separate the rubber hose 26 from direct thermal contact with the metal tube 11 during use. (See also FIG. 2.) Inwardly extending guard flanges 32 are mounted at the inner ends 33 of the tube members 14, 15 and overlie the extreme end portions

40 34 of the metal tube to prevent mechanical pressure of the spacers 31 on, and otherwise protect, the tube 11 at these points. The guard flanges 32 may have holes 35 or other perforations around their periphery to enhance cooling of end portions 34.

^ The spacers 31 are affixed at their ends 36 to the tube members 14, 15 by any suitable means such as wire 37 etc.

Fluid inlet and outlet connectors 38, 39 are provided on the jacket members 21, 22 which communicate with the 50 internal passage 30.

In use the engine exhaust gases pass from the intake end 19, through the interior of the metal tube 11, and out the discharge end 20 to the atmosphere. Water is passed through the annular passage 30 and is heated by the exhaust gases thereby cooling the latter. The v/ater may either be passed in through fluid connection 38 and out fluid connection 39 or the flow may be reversed, depending on choice. This exhaust system can be used with fresh water as the cooling liquid to provide a hot fresh 60 water supply on the boat, or it may also be used with raw or fresh water to implement a heating system. The end fittings, flexible metal tube, and the hose may be made of corrosion resistant metals such as bronze, brass, Monel, copper or the like, or suitable combinations of such 65 metals being of the type adapted for continuous operation from about 40° F. to over 250° F. All of the materials of course can be varied depending on the specific requirements of any particular installation. „0 Either end or any type of flange or end connection can be used for the inlet or outlet in dry exhaust use. For wet exhaust with the above embodiment any type of end,

55

3,105,'

3

e.g. flange, threaded nipple, etc. may be used on the inlet side. On the wet or outlet end tube 11 may be connected to the remaining exhaust system, i.e., wet muffler, exhaust pipe or hose, through hull, or any other necessary parts.

The above embodiment, although shown in FIG. 1 in 5 a straight installation, can be mounted in practically any configuration, straight or curved, since the overall structure can be bent along the longitudinal axis through a considerable arc.

As shown in FIG. 3, it may be desirable to have a wet i$ exhaust, in which case the tube member 15 of the end fitting has perforations therein such as holes 48 around its periphery so that the fluid medium in the annular passage 30 passes into the interior of the metal tube 11 at the discharge end 20 and passes with the exhaust gases 15 out to the atmosphere in the direction of arrow A. In ■the latter embodiment no fluid outlet connector need be included on the tubular jacket portion 22. This latter variation in structure is used normally where the device is not used to provide hot water for any purposes pre- 20 viously mentioned.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 4 utilizes, in place of the flexible metal hose, a device in which an inflexible metal tube 41 is used. All other elements of the structure are the same as the first embodiment. It is to be 25 understood that some elements may be made of one piece of material or they may be made in sections and fastened together. For example and as shown in FIG. 4, the metal tube 41 may be of one piece with the tube members 14 and IS on the end fittings. This structure 30 may likewise use a discharge end fitting as shown in FIG. 1 or that shown in FIG. 3. It is to be understood that those discharge end fittings shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 would also employ flanges 17 as shown in FIG. 1 or some similar means. 35

The structure of FIG. 4 is normally used where it is not necessary to have complete flexibility throughout the exhaust attachment and the device is made for a particular configuration and size. It may be either longitudinally curved as shown or may be straight or any other 40 shape as desired.

While certain embodiments of the invention have been shown and described it is to be understood that changes and additions may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of this in- 45 vention. For example, the rubber hose may be made of plastic or other modern equivalents of rubber for hose construction. 1

What is claimed is:

1. In an exhaust system carrying gases from the ex- 50 haust manifold of an internal combustion engine to a venting means, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting, a second fitting, said fittings each having a tube member thereon, a metal tube affixed

at its respective ends to each said tube member so as to 55 interconnect said first fitting and said second fitting, a tubular jacket member disposed on each said fitting having a greater diameter than said tube member, a rubberlike hose receiving said metal tube and being connected at its ends to said jacket members to provide an annular 60 fluid passage between said hose and said metal tube and a plurality of spacers disposed within said passage and affixed at their ends to said first and second fittings.

2. In a marine exhaust system carrying gases from the exhaust manifold of an inboard marine internal com- 65 bustion engine to a venting means on a hull of a marine vessel, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting having an end mounting means, a second fitting having an end mounting means, said fittings each having an inwardly extending tube member thereon, a 70 metal tube affixed at its respective ends to each said tube member so as to interconnect said first fitting and said second fitting, a tubular jacket member disposed on each isaid fitting having a greater diameter than said tube member and being concentrically disposed relative there- 75

4

to, a rubber-like hose receiving said metal tube and being connected at its ends to said jacket members to provide an annular fluid passage between said hose and said metal tube and a plurality of heat resistant rope spacers longitudinally disposed within said passage and affixed at their ends to said first and second fittings and fluid inlet and outlet connectors on said fittings communicating with said passage.

3. In an exhaust system carrying gases from the exhaust manifold of an internal combustion engine to a venting means, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting having an end mounting means, a second fitting having an end mounting means, said fittings each having an inwardly extending tube member thereon, a flexible metal tube affixed at its respective ends to each said tube member so as to interconnect said first fitting and said second fitting, a tubular jacket member disposed on each said fitting having a greater diameter than said tube member, a rubber-like hose receiving said metal tube and being connected at its ends to said jacket members to provide an annular fluid passage between said hose and said metal tube, a plurality of heat resistant rope spacers longitudinally disposed within said passage and affixed at their ends to said first and second fittings and fluid inlet and outlet connectors on said fittings communicating with said passage.

4. In an exhaust system carrying gases from the exhaust manifold of an internal combustion engine to a venting means, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting having an end flange means, a second fitting having an end flange means, said fittings each having an inwardly extending tube member thereon, a flexible metal tube affixed at its respective ends to each said tube member so as to interconnect said first fitting and said second fitting, a tubular jacket member disposed on each said fitting having a greater diameter than said tube member and being concentrically disposed relative thereto, a rubber hose receiving said metal tube and being connected at its ends to said jacket members to provide an annular fluid passage between said hose and said metal tube, a plurality of fiber glass heat resistant rope spacers longitudinally disposed within said passage at circumferentially spaced positions relative to one another and affixed at their ends to said first and second fittings, fluid inlet and outlet connectors on said fittings communicating with said passage.

5. In an exhaust system carrying gases from the exhaust manifold of an internal combustion engine to a venting means, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting having an end mounting means, a second fitting having an end mounting means, said fittings each having an inwardly extending tube member thereon, a flexible metal tube affixed at its respective ends to each said tube member so as to interconnect said first fitting and said second fitting, a tubular jacket member disposed on each said fitting having a greater diameter than said tube member and being concentrically disposed relative thereto, a rubber-like hose receiving said metal tube and being connected at its ends to said jacket members to provide an annular fluid passage between said hose and said metal tube, a plurality of fiber glass heat resistant rope spacers longitudinally disposed within said passage at circumferentially spaced positions relative to one another and affixed at their ends to said first and second fittings, fluid inlet and outlet connectors on said fittings communicating with said passage, and a guard flange on the inner end of each tube member overlying the respective end portion of said metal tube and interposed between said metal tube and said spacers.

6. In an exhaust system carrying gases from the exhaust manifold of an internal combustion engine to a venting means, a water jacketed connector attachment comprising a first fitting having an end mounting means, a second fitting having an end mounting means, said fittings each having an inwardly extending tube member thereon,