US1181550A - Electric lighting. - Google Patents

Description

W. C. STARKEY.

ELECTRIC LIGHTING.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 9,1910. 1r 1 b latented may 2, 1916.

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W. CfSTARKEY.

ELECTRIC LIGHTING. APPLICATIONQFKLED MAY 9,1910.

1,181,550. Patented May 2,1916.

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ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATE-S WILLIAM C. STARKEY,

PATENT orinon.

OF MANSFIELD, OHIO.

ELECTRIC LIGHTING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Ma 2, 1916.

Application filed May 9, 1910. Serial No. 560,390

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, WILLIAM C. STARKEY, of Mansfield, county of Richland, and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Electric Lighting; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

The object of this invention is to provide means for automatically maintaining the efficiency or candle light of incandescent lamps when the current in the circuit therefor diminishes below a predetermined normal voltage. The invention has been made with particular reference to use in electric cars so that when the current in the circuit diminishes materially below normal, automatically operated means will modify the resistance in the circuit so as to maintain a normal current in the lamp circuit or will cut out enough lamps to leave an average normal current for the remaining lamps, whereby the efliciency of the lamps will be maintained.

The chief feature of the invention consists in the use of a series relay for controlling the current that passes through a lamp circuit or through a part of the circuit. This relay accomplishes its object by cutting out some resistance, and that resistance may be either a lamp or a series of lamps, or a resistance coil, or'the like.

The nature of the invention will be un-, derstood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims. I

In the drawings Figure 1 is a diagram of lamp circuits having a resistance coil and a relay for automatically cutting out a resistance coil when the voltage is below normal. Fig. 2 is a diagram of the lamp circuits with a relay arranged to cut out a por-, tion of the lamps. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the relay mounted inconnection with one lamp so as to cut out that lamp when the voltageis below normal. Fig; 4; is a side elevation of one lamp and'relay. Fig. 5 is .a central vertical section through the relay for the lamps shown in Fig. 4. I In the diagram shown in Fig. 1 the current comes in over the wire and passes through a series'of lamps 11 and out over the wire 12 through the magnet 13 of the series relay, wire 14., resistance coil 15 to ground at 16. With this arrangement, currentis employed having a higher voltwire 19 running to ground, and another running from the wire 14. I The magnet 13 and armature 17 are so arranged that the armature will be attracted by the magnet only Avhen there is the excessive current above spoken of. \Vhen that current diminishes suliiciently to permit the armature 17 to fall away from the magnet, the latter will connect the wires 19 and 20 so that the current through the magnet and wire 14 will pass out through the armature l7 and wire 19 to ground, and thereby, with a smaller voltage in the circuit, leave to the lamps an average voltageas high as that had before. In other words, the relay has merely shortcircuited the resistance which has been reducing the portion of the current going to the lamps.

In Fig. 2 there is no resistance coil 15 but insteach the wire 119 runs from a terminal near the armature through the series of lamps so as to cut off a portion of it. As shown in Fig. 2, one-fifth of thelamps is cut off. A wire 210 runs from the other terminal near the armature to the wire 12. With a normal voltage all the lamps will be efiicient, but when'the voltage becomes low, the armature 17 W1 drop and connect wires 119 and 210. Then the current will not pass through the cut-out lamps, but will come in over wire 119, the armature and wires 210 and 12 through the magnet and out to ground over wire 14. Since only fourfifths of the lamps are now 'in use, there will be an average normal voltage.

Still another and probably a more useful and common form is shownin Figs. 3, 4: and 5. In Fig. 3 the current comes in over wire 10, through some of the lamps 11 to the magnet 13 of the relay interposed in the series of lamps and connected with one lamp 111. ires connect the lamps and between the connecting wires for three lamps wires 31 and 32 run from the armature ter- 1 the casing.

power of the four lights left in the circuit '15 much greater than the total candle-power of the five lights would be if they were all in the circuit on the same total voltage.

This is due to the fact that the candle power ing circuit.

The preferable construction of relay adapted for cutting'out individual lamps is indicated in Figs. l and5. There is a cylindrical casing l0 which is internally threaded at each end, and the ends l1 and 42 are non-conducting disks that screw into Y The end 4C1 has a screw plug 4-3 adapted to screw in the usual socket for an incandescent lamp. It is lilled with a non-conducting block at. with a centrally located conducting rod #5 that is connected by a wire as with a terminal a7 that extends through the non-conducting block 48 iii-the socket l9, into which the plug of a lamp 11 is adapted to screw. The magnet 13 is located within the casing just described and.

it is connected by a wire 50 with the plug 43 and wire 51 with a terminal 52 in the end 42. The two terminals 1-7 and 52 are imposition to be engaged by the armature 17 when it drops to the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 5. Then the current which has previously been going through the lamp is short-circuited through the armature from the wire 51 to the wire 46 and. said lamp is cut out. lVhen the circuit resumes its normal current, the armature 17 will be drawn back to the magnet and the lamp 11 will be cut in.

From theforegoing explanation it is seen that the form of relay shown in Fig. 5 may be used in connection with any number of lamps as desired and will automatically cut out the lamps according to the current in the circuit and they will be cut in upon the -rcsumption of a normal current. The lamp shown in Fig. 3 and the number of lamps shown in Fig. 2 that are adapted to be cut out are something in the nature of resistance and to some extent perform the same func .tion as the resistance'coil 15 in Fig. 1, but the former arrangement is preferable hecausc normally there will be more lamps than with the arrangement shown in Fig. 1. and the arrangement shown in Fig. 3 is preferable because by having a supply of relays shown in Fig. 5 on hand the number of lamps maybe arranged in the manner described to suit even a very reduced condition of the current: that is, so as to out out three of the lamps shown in Fig. 3 and leave two lamps which will receive enough current to have the normal eflieiency.

I The relay herein is a series relay for regulating the current as distinguished from the voltage relay and, therefore the total current which passes through all of the lamps connected in series also passes through the relay.

I claim as my invention 1. In an electric lighting system of the class described, a circuit including'a varying voltage source of power and a plurality of translating devices, a shunt circuit around at least one of said translating devices, and a single electrically operating means in series with said translating devices for opening and closing said shunt circuit.

In an electric lighting system of the class described, a source of power of variable voltage, a plurality of translating devices in series in said circuit, a normally open shunt circuit around at least one of said translating devices, and a relay in series with said translating devices responsive to a predetermined drop in current for closing said shunt circuit to maintain a con stant current in the other devices.

3. In an electric lighting system of the class described, a circuit including a source of power-subject to substantial fluctuations in voltage, a plurality of translating devices in series in said circuit and subject to the fluctuations in voltage producing changes of current therein, and an automatic regulator also in series with said translating devices and responsive to predetermined variations in the current for controlling the current through at least one of said translating devices for maintaining constant the current in the other translating devices.

i Inan electric lighting system of the class described, afcircuit including a source of power subject to fluctuations in voltage, a plurality of lamps in series in said circuit and also subject to said voltage and to cur-,

rent fluctuations, and means in series with said lamps subject to said current fluctuations for increasing the current in a number of lamps less than the total number thereof.

i 5. In an electric lighting system of the class described, the combination of a source of power subject to fluctuations in voltage, a circuit including a plurality of lamps in series subject to said voltage fluctuations, a regulator comprising an electro-magnet in series and subject to current fluctuations, a lamp normally in said series, and means controlled by said electro-magnet for cutting the regulator lamp in and out of said circuit in accordance with the current fluctuations.

6. In an electric lighting system of the class described, the. combination of a circuit including a source of power and a plurality of lamps in series and subject to voltage and consequently to current fluctuations, a regulator removably insertible in said circuit and including a lamp adapted to be normally connected in series and a low resistance magnet adapted to beconnected in series with said lamps, and means con trolled by said magnet in response to said current fluctuations for cutting said regulator lamp in and out of circuit.

7 In an electric lighting system, the combination of a source of power of variable voltage, a circuit including said source of power and a plurality of lamps in series and subject to said voltage and current fluctuations, a low resistance magnet in series, a lamp normally in series, a normally open shunt circuit around said lamp, and means controlled by said magnet in response to a predetermined fluctuation in voltage for closing said shunt circuit to vary the total resistance of and the current in said circuit.

8. In an electric lighting system of the class described, the combination of a source of power subject to fluctuations in voltage, a circuit including a plurality of sockets and lamps therefor in series subject to the voltage fluctuations and the fluctuations in our- Y rent, and a regulator adapted to be removably inserted in series between any lamp and its socket comprising an elec romagnet through the other lamps of the series.

9. In a system of the class described, a circuit including a plurality of lamp sockets and lamps therefor connected in series and subject to fluctuations of voltage causing thereby a fluctuation of current, and a regulator removably disposed between a lamp and its, socket having a single magnet in series with the lamp and socket with armature contacts and connections therefor with which the armature cooperates to short circuit the lam attached when the current is low for increasing the cigrent in the remaining lamps.

In witness hereof, I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of the witnesses herein named.

VVILEIAM O. STARKEY.

Witnesses G. H. Bon'vk, O. M. MCLAUGHLIN.

to which the regulator is

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