Signedplate on front: CENTRAL SCIENTIFIC CO. / TRADE MARK / LABORATORY (CENCO logo) SUPPLIES / APPARATUS CHEMICALS / REG. U.S. PAT. OFF. / CHICAGO, ILL;
on face of hanging meters: W.M. WECH / SCIENTIFIC CO / CHICAGO, ILL;
on face of gague: U.S. / GAUGE CO. / N.Y.
FunctionThis is a water motor. It uses a mechanism called the Pelton wheel, to transfer power from a stream of water on a pipe, to rotational motion that can be used to power a machine, or connected to a generator to make electricity.
The pelton wheel is one of the most efficient means to transfer energy from a fluid like water to a motor. In it, a water stream (or several strams) is directed at the concave side of a series of cups, pushing them forward.
After passing through the system, water flows out at low speed, having ceded most of its kinetic energy.
This particular motor appears to have been made for demonstration purposes with a glass window to be able to see its function, and a stand on the back to attach other tools, such as spring balances that may have been used to test the torque produced by the motor and its relationship to the pressure of the water entering the system.