Practical Hand Book of Gas, Oil and Steam Engines / Stationary, Marine, Traction; Gas Burners, Oil Burners, Etc.; Farm, Traction, Automobile, Locomotive; A simple, practical and comprehensive book on the construction, operation and repair of all kinds of engines. Dealing with the various parts in detail and the various types of engines and also the use of different kinds of fuel.

by John B. Rathbun

CHAPTER XII
GOVERNORS AND VALVE GEAR

(127) Hit and Miss Governing.

When the speed of an engine is held constant for varying loads by missing explosions on the light loads and increasing the number for heavy loads, the governing system is said to be of the “hit and miss type.” The mixture remains constant in quantity and quality in this type of engine. A hit and miss governor allows only enough charges to be fired to keep the speed constant.

When the load falls off, with a natural tendency on the part of the engine to increase its speed, the governor cuts out the next explosion by holding the exhaust valve open and the inlet closed, thus preventing fresh mixture from being drawn into the cylinder. With an increase in load, the governor allows the valves to follow their regular cycle with the result that a greater or less number are fired in succession. Hit and miss governing is very economical for only full charges of the most perfect mixture are fired, and with short exhaust pipes the scavenging is much better than with other forms of governing. The principal difficulty with this system is that the regulation is not as perfect as with some other types.

(128) The Throttling System.

Unlike the hit and miss system of governing, the throttling type of governor allows the engine to take an explosion on every working stroke, the speed being held constant by either regulating the quality or quantity of the mixture, or both. Throttle governor permits of close speed regulation as the impulses are more frequent and not so violent as with the hit and miss system.

The governor acts directly on the throttle valve, and at no time is the operating mechanism disengaged from the driving cam. The throttle governor engine is particularly well adapted for driving dynamos, supply electric light, as the uniform speed gives a smooth, steady light without the objectionable flickering so likely with the hit and miss engine. To obtain the best fuel economy with a throttling engine, it should be run close to its rated capacity, as the poor and imperfect mixture admitted at light loads considerably increases the fuel consumption.

Fig. 76-d. De La Vergne Governor.

Practically all motors of the variable speed type such as are used on automobiles and motor boats are controlled manually by the throttle; although marine motors are often fitted with governors to prevent racing when the screw is lifted out of the water in a heavy sea.