GB448868A - Improvements in prepayment mechanism for gas and similar meters - Google Patents

Abstract

448,868. Prepayment mechanism for meters. WILSON GASMETERS, Ltd., G., Foleshill Road, Coventry, WILSON, J. H., The Mill House, Baginton, near Coventry, and ORMEROD, G. A., 24, Ash Tree Avenue, Coventry. Dec. 12, 1934, No. 35654. [Class 27] In bi-coin prepayment mechanism for meters which includes planetary gearing between the quantity mechanism and a pair of driving wheels selectively actuated on the insertion of appropriate coins, the planetary gearing includes two coaxial wheels, at least one of which is an internally-toothed annulus. The coin-pocket casing 13, Fig. 1, contains driving wheels 14, 15 held against rotation in one direction by pawls 16, and rotated respectively in the other direction after the insertion of a shilling or a penny by a projection 17 on a slider 18. In each case the driven element of the planetary gearing is a wheel 24 meshing with a pinion 25 on a lay-shaft 26, the pinions 24, 25 being a speed-increasing gearing. The lay-shaft through speed - reduction worm gearing 29 rotates one sun-wheel 27 of an epicyclic quantity-mechanism, the other sunwheel 30 of which is driven by the meter, and the planet-wheel 28 of which actuates a valvecontroller 35 and an indicator. The planetary gearing transmitting the drive from the wheels 14, 15 to the pinion 24 comprises an internallytoothed annulus 38 secured in a recessed face of the wheel 14 and an externally-toothed wheel 40 carried by a spindle 39 fast with the other driving wheel 15. The planet element comprises compound spur wheels 41, 42 rotatably mounted on an arm 43 of a planetcarrier 44 which is fast with the wheel 24. The gear ratios are such that the wheel 24 is rotated twelve times as much by actuation of the " shilling " wheel 14 as by actuation of the " penny " wheel 15. In a modification, Fig. 3, the wheel 14 carries a toothed annulus 46, the arm 43 of the planet-carrier being fast on the spindle 39 to which the other driving wheel 15 is secured. The driven gear 24 is fast with an internally-toothed annulus 47. Specifications 387,678 and 448,862 are referred to.