US1096457A - Connector-stand. - Google Patents

Description

F. J. RAVLIN & J. LOFGREN.

CONNECTOR STAND.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.31,1918.

Patented May 12, 1914.

FREDERICK J. RAVLIN AND JOHN LOFGREN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CONNECTOR-STAND.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 12, 1914.

Application filed January 31, 1913. Serial No. 745,366.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FREDERICK J. RAV- LIN and JOHN Lorennn, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, -1n the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Connector-Stands, of which the following is a specification.

In locomotive round houses, wlnch are ordinarily dark, it is common practice to provide portable electric lights for the wipers or engine cleaners, and for the mechanics who may be making repairs or adjustments. These portable lights consist of electric lamp bulbs usually protected by wire netting, the lights being supplied with current through a flexible lamp cord having a screw plug at the end adapted to screw into a lamp socket fastened to the wall or ceiling. It frequently happens that the wiper or the mechanic will leave the lamp with cord attached in some recess in the locomotive and go away and forget it and when the engineer comes to back out his engine some part of the connection becomes damaged or destroyed.

The object of our invention is to provide apparatus whereby such damage may be avoided.

\Ve accomplish our object by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is an elevation of the complete apparatus partly .in central section. Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a central vertical section of the upper portion of a modified form of the apparatus, and Fig. 4 isa topplan view of the modification shown in Fig. 3.

Similar referencecharacters denote like parts in the different views.

Referring first to the form shown in Figs. land 2, the base 1, secured ordinarily to the floor, has a tubular standard 2 rising therefrom, near the top of which is rigidly secured a collar 3. This collar forms a bearing for a rotatable plate 4 which is preferably circular in outline, as shown. At variouspoints on the periphery of said plate are sockets 5 adapted to receive push plugs 6. Said plugs have cords 7 extending therefrom to the portable lamps 8. Plugs 6 are electrically connected to the source of supply through conductors 10, and the construction is such that the lamps will be energized or deenergized by merely pushing the plugs straight into the sockets or withdrawing them. The conductors 10 are led to and form part of the cable 11, which is located in the standard 2 and leads to a suitable source of electric supply. Cable 11 is flexible and, therefore, the table 4 may be rotated many turns in either direction without damaging it.

In operation, suppose the apparatus is in use in a round house; the repairer or engine cleaner procures a lamp and cord and connects up by pushing the plug into any one of the sockets which may be vacant. He then leads the flexible lamp cord into the cab or wherever he may be working. It now the repairer or cleaner forgets to reremove the lamp and the engineer subsequently .backs out the locomotive without noticing the lamp the strain of the lamp cord will first rotate the table to such position that the line of tension will coincide with the line of retraction of the plug from the socket. In other words, when the lamp cord has become taut it will first rotate the connected plug and socket around so as to be in line with the line of pull before the strain is great enough to break anything, consequently the plug will leave the socket and prevent any damage being done.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the table may rotate many turns in one direction without damaging the cable 11, and this form is ordinarily sufficient, for on the average the table will be rotated as frequently in one direction as in the other and the movements in one direction will about offset the movements in the other direction. However, in the form shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the table may rotate any number of turns in the same direction without damage. In this form the conductors 10 are electrically connected to two rings 12 and 13, the central apertures whereof are located over the center of the standard 2. These rings are electrically insulated from the table and from each other and are engaged by connector arms 14 and 15 respectively. These connector arms are supported upon an insulating ring 16 within t e standard and are energized through a cable 17 which leads down through the standard as in the other form of apparatus. The form of table is immaterial and in Fig. 4 it is shown to have a plurality of laterally projecting integral arms instead of the circular outline shown in Fig. 2

Obviously the apparatus is applicable "to other locations than round houses, for example, it is common practice in, machine shop-s and other manufactories to use portable lamps for lighting up the work in hand, and a working strain is frequently placedextension cords may all be readily disconnected and put away. At-the same time, if preferred, the lamps and their cordswhen not in' use may be placed upon the table, where they will be easily accessible and yet be out of harms way.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is '1. The combination of a hollow-stationary standard, a rotary member mounted at the top thereof and adapted to rotate about an axis coincident with the axis oisaid standard, a plurality of p-ush-and-pull sockets mounted upon said rotary member, conductor rings connected to said conductors, said rings being concentric with said rotary member, a. cable leading up through said upright member, and connector arms connected to said cable and adapted to engage the respective rings.

2. A connector stand comprising a hollow stationary upright standard, a table mounted thereon, push-and-pull sockets on said table, and conductors passing up through said standard and leading to said-sockets, said table being rotatable in a horizontal plane. e

3. A connector stand for round houses and the like comprisinga hollow stationary upright standard, a table mounted at the top thereof, pull sockets on said. table, conductors passing up through said standard and electrically connected to said sockets,

a push plug adapted to enter any-one of said sockets, and an extension lamp cord connected to said plug, said table being rotatable in a horizontal plane whereby,-when a strain is exerted upon the cord, the table will automatically rotate and bring the median line of the socket and plug into coincidence with the line of the strained cord and thereby facilitate the release of the plug.

In witness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names ln-the presence of two 1 witnesses.

FREDERICK J i RAVLIN. JOHN LQFGREN.

l/Vitnesses THOMAS N. LoreREN, ERNST FREDMAN.

Images