US1045773A - Quick-action electric switch. - Google Patents

Description

J. A. COLE.

'QUICK ACTION ELECTRIC SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. so, 1911.

n l [TB @d vTOI-IIN' A. OGLE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

QUICK-ACTIGN ELECTRIC SWITCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.y

- Patented Nov. 26, 1212.

Application led August 30, 1911. Serial No. 646,841.

Fo a-ZZ whom it may "concern: V n

Be it known that I, JOHN A. COLE, a c1t1- Zen of the United States, residing at the city.

oflNew York, in the borough of Queens and State of New York, have invented certainv new and useful Improvements in Quick- Action Electric Switches, of which the following is a. full, clear, and exact description.

the said mechanism may This invention relates to electric switches, and has for one of its objects the provision of an improved positively acting mechanism for abruptly opening and closing such switches.

Another object of my invention is to so dispose the operative parts of the device that the contact elements and substantially all of be positioned to the rear of a switchboard, leaving but little more than the switch handle audits supporting bracket upon the'front of said board.

A further object of my invention is to so arrange the movable contact elements of my switch that they are aided in action by gravity.

My invention contemplates the inclusion in the switch operating mechanism above referred to, of toggle acting parts and the combination therewith of spring impelled elements which insure the unfailing operation of the device.

.These and other objects of my invention will be hereinafter described and: more particularly set forth in the appended claims.

ln the drawings which form a part hereof and in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of a switch constructed in accordance with the principles of my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line IIII of Fig. 1.` Fig. 3 is avertical transverse section taken on line IIIe-IH of Fig. 1. Fig. 4- is a small scale illustration of the switch parts and operating mechanism with 4. the switch in closed position.

The switchboard proper has been broadly designated 1, and has secured to the front thereof a bracket 2 which is provided with outstanding lugs 3 through which extends the shaft or pin 4 upon which the' operating lever 5 is mounted. Upon the rear side of the switchboard is mounted a second bracket (i which indirectly supports the contacts. An' extension 7 of bracket 6, which projects rearwardly from the 'may be made of slightly base-thereof carries an insulating base block or plate 8, the eXtension 7 vbeing preferably bifurcated to provide arms 9 to which said plate is secured in any suitable manner. The plate 8 is preferably provided with alined apertures 10 disposed adjacent the center thereof for the reception of threaded thimbles 11 which are secured firmly in position by means of nuts 12; said nuts in the exempliiication shown being received into a recess 13 into which open the recesses 10, above referred to. Suitable plastic insulating material 14 may be poured around these nuts when in position, securing them against inadvertent displacement, and also providing insulation therebetween. VaShers 15 are also preferably provided in connection with these nuts; being' also embedded in the plastic insulating mass. A U-bolt 16 extends through the thimbles 10 and is freely movable longitudinally therein, the lower extremities of the arms of this bolt being threaded as at 17 to alford means for securing an insulating block 18 thereupon; this block being adjust ably held upon the U-bolt in any desired position by .means of washers 19 and nuts 20. Block 18 carries somewhat Y-shaped metallic blocks 21 upon either side thereof, which blocks in turn .carry the preferably V-shaped leaves 22 which constitute the movable cont-acts. These leaves may be of copper or other suitable material, and should have considerable elasticity so that when their upper edges are vdriven against the fixed Contact pieces 23, the legs of the Vs will be spread apart thereby effecting very perfect electrical connections at the respec v tive points of contact. The leaves are held firmly in position in the blocks 21 by means of triangular clamping blocks 24; screws 25 being threaded into the bases of blocks 21 to this end. The outermost V-shaped leaf 26 heavier gage metal than the inner leaves, and is also preferably provided at its contact making edges with beads 27 to obviate any possibility of such leaves buckling, as after considerable use the contact making surfaces of the pieces 23 may become slightly roughened or burned. The burning of such surfaces is a remote possibility,however, since the switch parts in operation make and break contact so quickly that arcing is substantially eliminated. i

The Contact pieces 23'may be' secured to the block 8 in any suitable manner, and are preferably Lfshaped, the outstanding shorter legs of such members being adapted to be drawnirmly into contact with the depending stems 28 of the terminals 29. The bodies of these terminals are disposed in recesses 30, vpreferably adjacent either end of the block 8, said terminals being adapted for the usual soldered connection withv the extremlties of the lead wires. (n'the particular switch exemplified, upon the upper side of the block 8 and between the arms 9 of the bracket 6, are two toggle brackets 31, one such bracket being upon either side of the center line of the said block, and these brackets carry a pinv 32 which may be se- 4cured therein in any suitable manner, as by means of split cotters 33; said pin 32 carrying the links 34which form the lower portions of toggles,'broadly designated 35, the upper links of these toggles beingvrespec-l tively designated 36. The upper extremities of links 36 are apertured for the reception of a pin 37 which may be held in position by split cotters 33 in like manner to pin 32. Between the links 36 is a lever 38-'through which the pin 37 extends; the inner end of said lever being pivotally mounted at 39 between the ears 40 of a small bracket 41. This bracket 41 is adjustable vertically with respect to bracket` 6, being l clamped thereagainst by means of screws 42; the holes 43 in the base of bracket A1 through which these screws extendl being slotted to permit of the adjustmentabove referred to. A set screw 44 extends through a lug 45 which projects laterally from the upper extremity of the bracket 6, and this set screw permits of very accurate adjust ment of the bracket 41 with respect to bracket 6, and thereby of the pivotal pin 39, with respect to pin 32.. The rear extremity of ,the lever 38 is slotted as at 46 for the`reception of the horizontal portion 47 of the U-bolt 16. The links 34-and`36 are pivotally connected together to complete the toggle by means of a Across-pin 47, which is permanently secured in a rod 48. The rod 48 and the cross-pin 47 are movable through a slot 49 in a link or bar 50; the outer eX- t-rernity of said bar being pivotally connected at 51 in any suitable manner to the operating` lever '5 of the switch. The slot 49 is reduced at its forward extremity 49 fo'r the reception of a flattened portion 52 of the rod 48 above referred to; this construe tion preventing said rod from rotating, and permitting onlv longitudinal displacement thereof. The slot 49 is somewhat greater in width than the diameter of rod`48 to afford space for the reception of a. helical springv 53, the forward .extremity of which bears against the shoulders formed in the slot 49 by the reduction in the width thereof in the manner above described, while therear ex-l -lirinly held in place.

tremity of this spring is preferably coiled around past the pin 4T so that the spring is The forward ex- .tremityof the spring 53is alsol preferably secured to the bar 50, as at 53. Bar 50 rides freely in a slot 54 which extends through board 1 and the brackets Q and 6: and the rear extremity of this bar is adapted for engagement with a spring latch 55 when the link has been driven almost completely7 to its innermost position.A This latch preferably consists simply of a somewhat Z- shaped spring which is secured-to the block .8 in any'suitable manner; the upper p0rtion of the spring being turned over to form a lip 56 which is adapted for engagement with the rear extremity of the lever 38; the lip 56l being adapted to enter the slot 46 and to thereby prevent the upward movement of ylever 38 until the latch has been disengaged therefrom. The lower rear corner of the lever 38 is preferably beveled as at 57 in order to insure the engagement of the latch with the slotted portion of said lever, when the lever is being swung downward into latch engaging position. The bar 50 may be guided laterally by the side walls of the slot 54, and its `rear extremity rides between the brackets 31.

The operation of the switch is as follows: Assuming that the parts -are disposed as shown'in Fig. 1 with the latch in engagement with they, lever 38, the toggle .will be broken and thespring 53 will have urged the bar .50 and thereby the handle lever 5 .substantially to its outer-most positionf By reason of the engagement of the U-bolt 16 with lever 38 the said bolt, and thereby the elastic contact blades carried upon the extremity thereof, will be in their lo'wermost positions, the switch being open. Upon pressing thehandle tc-ward'the board, bar 50 will be driven inwardly, and spring 53 will be placed under compression, thus bringing pressure, which. will increase as the .handle is thrown inwa'rdly, upon the pin 47 and thereby upon the toggle parts, tending to aline the latter, and elevate the lever 38. This action, however, is'resisted bythe latch, and no movement of the `flexible .contacts will occur until the innermost extremity or nose of the bar 5() encounters vthe latch. Thereafter, a'further inward movement'of the bar 50 effects a disengagement of the latchv from lever 3 8, when the spring 53, which is now under substantially its maximum compression becomes free to drive the pin 47, rearwardly, thereby ab ruptly elevating'the lever 38 through the instrumentality of the' toggles; resulting in an almost instantaneous closure of the switch, and bendingthe legs of the elastic contact leaves 22 apart. When the switch is closed the toggle parts are sub" .'.antialhr in alineinent but are preferably not exactly so, the pin 47 being driven rearwardly just beyond a line connecting the pivotal axes of links 3l and 3G. .i stop 57 `being suitably positioned, upon the lever 38, for limiting the rearward movement of the toggle parts. To open the switch, the handle is pulled outwardly and the lirst movement in that direction of the bar 50 enables the latch to spring back into its normal or engaging position; but. since the pin 47 has previously been driven past. the line connecting the centers of pins 32 and 37, the spring action of the .elastic leaves '22, ,acting through the U-bolt, lever 38 and the toggle, will he sufiicient to resist the.forward movement of the pin i? until the rear wall of the slot 49 comes-into engagement with the rear end of the rod a3; the springv 53 being meanwhile placed under tension. Thereafter the outward movement of the bar 50 ypositively forces the toggle linksA out of falineiiient, breaking the toggle, and thereby enabling lthe spring 53 to abruptly effect the downward displacement of the contacts 22.

By adjusting the screw 4A upwardly or downwardly, the corresponding movement of pivot 39 will move the outer end of the lever 38 upwardly or downwardly about the pin 37 as a pivotso that when the toggle is straightened the U-bolt will be drawn upward to a greater or less extent, said adjustment serving'to increase or decrease the pressure between the elastic leaf contacts 22 of the stationary contacts 23.

,Tt should be here noted that the lever 38 serves to multiply the comparatively sliglft movement of the pin 37 so as to produce a relatively long movement of the movable contacts in practically the saine lapse of time as would be rconsumed for a shortr` movement` without the lever. A more rapid make and break is thus secured.

Normally the momentum of the moving parts will be sutlicient to effect the rengagement of the latch with its lever.. lf, however, it be desired to insure positively that. such latching action shall invariably occur even if the handle 5 be drawn outwardly very slowly, light compression springs 58 may be providedon the depending arms of the U-bolt 1G, intermediate the thimbles 10 and the nuts 2O upon the upper side of the block 18, which springs will exert sutlicient effort upon the bolt 16 and thereby upon the lever 38 to insure the engagement of latch and lever 38; the handle ofcourse being correspondingly driven to its outermost position. I prefer also to provide bumper springs 59 upon the respective arms of the U-bolt above the block 8, these springs never being under any material compression,

` but merely serving to reduce the shock due to the forceful and rapid displacement' of the holt and its attendant contacts when the switch is openedA To this end, the respec-A Several advantages accrue from constructing a switch in the manner whichv l have described. In the rst place, both the making and the breaking of the circuit." are extremely rapid. Further the switch parts employed are relatively inexpensive to manufacture; and the switch elements proper may all be disposed upon the rear side of the board, enabling them to be inclosed in suitablev casings 62 while ,all that is visible of the switch upon the front of the hoard'is 80 its handle, the supporting bracket therefor, and a small portion of the bar 50. The electrical connections are readily` made to the swit'ch by means of the'terminalsl; and

While I have' shown a four-pole switch, it 85 is obvious that my invention may be einyployed in connection with switches of other types. The toggle action in connection with the yie'ldingly mounted rod and latch is regarded -as of considerable importance, as is also the particular 4co-action between the elastic contact leaves andthe toggle, with the further positive breaking of the toggle by the outward movement of the handle.

I particularly direct attention to the fact 95 that my switch not only opens rapidly but closes with substantially equal rapidity, even when .the operating handle is moved' quite slowly. Further Athe switch while adapted to carry heavy currents, if made of proper proportions, occupies but little space upon the switchboard by reason of the rearward disposition of its elements.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. ln an electric switch, a .plurality of contact elements and mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in contact with each other, said mechanism including pivotally mounted toggle parts, a spring adapted to exert pressure upon at least onefiio of said parts, ,for driving their pivotal points substantially into alinement, means for positively opposingsaid pressure, and means for displacing said opposing means.

A2. In an electric switch, plurality of 115 Contactvl` elements and `mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in contact with each other, said mechanism including toggle forming parte, a spring adaptedV when stress is applied thereto to exert pres- 12o sure upon at least one of said parts, for driving them into substantial. alinement, means for ,opposing said pressure, and means for displacing said opposing means.

3. In an electric switch, a plurality of contact elements and mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in contact with each other, said mechanism including y a toggle, said togglebeing normally broken when the switch is open, a spring for dispos- 13 0.

nient, a latch tor opposing said spring, and

, tact elements and mechanism including an spring, said'carrier being bodily movable contact vdisplacing said lever, means tor holding said 'means being movable initially by a move- -ment of said handle and being adapted for parts of said toggle in substantial alinel,

means toiy disengaging said latch. l,

4. In an electric switch,` a plurality of' elements' and mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in contact with eachother, said mechanism including a lever, a support, thrust connections between said lever and said support adapted, when operated', to displace said lever with respectl to said support, means for placing said connections under stress, no-rmal movement of said connections under said stress lever against displacement, and means for disengaging said holding means when said stress has attained substantially a maximum.

5. In an electric switch, a plurality ot contact elements and mechanism including an actuating handle for abruptly separat-ing said elements. regardless of the speed of the, switch opening movement of said handle, said mechanism comprising pivotally connected parts constituting a toggle, said contactelements when in contact being normally held firmly together by said toggle, and means tor breaking said `toggle, said movement substantially independently ot said handle after such initial movement. 6. In an electric switch, a plurality of conactuating handle for, abruptly separating said elements regardless of the speed ot the switch opening movement of said handle, said mechanism comprising a support, a lever mounted independently of said support and thrust connections between said lever and said support for holding said lever spaced from saidsupport, said thrust connections normally resisting initial switch opening movement of said lever toward said support when said contact elements are in' ('perat-ive relationship. 7. 'In an electric switch, a .plurality of contact elements and mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in contact with eac other, said' mechanism including resilient vmeans adapted to nove said contacts together; a latchfor positively retaining said contacts separated; a carrier for said spring having a rif-ness adapted to receive saidtoward said' latch for compressing said spring; and' igieans slidable in said carrier adapted to retatr. said spring in said recess; said carrier being adapted to directly strike said latch to disengage said latch from retaining position when said spring is compressed.

8. In an electric switch, xed contact elements, resilient contact elements movable with respect to said fixed elements, a lever for moving said resilient elements, a fixed support, connections between said lever and said support, and handle operated means for varying the disposition of said connections,

'said connections being normally maintained in substantial lalinement with each other when the contact elements are in operative relationship by the pressure of said resilient elements against said fixed elements operating through said lever.

9. In an electric switch, an insulating support, contacts mounted thereon, a vcontactcarrying part, said part being movable in guided relation to said support, a pivoted member adapted to move said contact-carrying part, means tor abruptly displacing said pivoted member, said means including toggle parts, an energy storing device for operating said toggle parts, a latch for restraining movement of said parts, and means for releasing said latch when the energy stored in said device has attained substantially a maximum.

10. In an electric switch, an apertured insulatingr bas, fixed ccntactscarried thereby,

a U-bolt extending through the apertures in said base, contact pieces carriedv by said U' i bolt, an. actuating lever for said bolt, linked connections between said lever and base, a handle, a link between said handle and said connections, a spring normally adapted to actuate said connections, a latch for said lever, said link being adapted to compress said spring when the handle is operated in one direction, and means for releasing said latch when said link has been further driven in the same direction.

.. 11. In an electric switch, av plurality of Contact elements and mechanism for abruptly placing said elements in Contact with eachother, said mechanism including resili' e'nt means adapted ,to lmove said contacts together; a l'atcli for positively retaining movable toward said latch for placing said resilient means under stress, said last mentioned means being adapted to directly strike said latch to disengage said latch from retaining position when said resilient means has attained substantially a maximum stress.

12.'Av In anelectric switch, a plurality'vof contact elements and mechanism for abruptly placing said element-s in contact with .A each other, said mechanism including a com- .pression spring adapted tomove said contacts together; 'latch Jorpositively retaining said contacts. separated; and ay carrier for said spring bodily movable toward said latch for compressing said spring, said carrier being adapted to directly strike said latch to disengage said latch from retaining position when said spring is compressed.

13. In anA electric switch; fixed contact elements; resilient contact elements movable saidA contacts separated; yand means bodily with respect to said fixed contact elements; 1

n, fixed support; connections between said fixed support and said movable Contact elements adapted to be maintained in one position by the pressure of said movable contact elements against seid i'ixed Contact elements for preserving tlie pressure between said contact elements. l"and means for adjusting said pressure.

le. n an electric switch; fixed Contact elements; resilient Contact elements movable with respect to saidxed Contact elements; zi ixed support; connections between said fixed support and seid movable Contact elements including o toggle; ineens for multiplying the thrust of said toggle upon seid movable Contact elements, said toggle being` adapted to be maintained in one position by the pressure or said movable contact elements zigainst'said fixed Contact elements for preserving t-lie pressure between said Contact elements; and means for adjusting said pressure.

ln Witness whereof, l subscribe my signaltnre, in the presence of two Witnesses.

JOHN A. CLE. Vlitnesses:

Fniinnnrc WM. ERICKSON, WILLrAM J. SULLE/AN.

epes of this patent may be obtained for ive cents eech, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, E?. G.

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