US1401231A - Contact for spark-gaps - Google Patents

Description

A. E. ANDERSON.- CONTACT'FOR SPA'RK GAPS.

APPLICATION FILED -.IULY 9,1921.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

jNVE/VTOR Q. A fin A TTORNZIY UNITED STATES" Arrensr nuennn annnn'soiv, or 'non'rcrinm, new JERSEY..

CONTACT ron smart-ants.

Sp ecification of LettersPatent.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

Application filed July 9, 1921.' Serial No. 483,510.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, AUeUsT EUGENE AN- DERSON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the town of Montclair, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Im' provements in Contacts for Spark-Gaps; and I do hereby declare the following specification to. be a full, clear, and exact description of my said invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to'which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying draw ings, and to reference characters marked thereon, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates generally to contacts for spark-gaps and'particularly to ignition devices for explosive engines, in which the compressed charge is fired by an electric spark, and more particularly to an arrangement of the terminals of a spark-plug.

The objects of my invention are to provide a spark-gap for an explosive engine, or the like, whose terminals shall be kept clean automatically. Other minor objects will hereinafter be set forth.

My invention consists, broadly stated, in mounting a spark-plug, connected in the usual manner, in a magneto and distributer circuit, upon the cylinder of an explosion engine, but differing from the usual practice in this, that the spark-plug carries only one spark-terminal as a fixed electrode, the

other spark-terminal being mounted upon the top of the piston-head as atraveling electrode, and in wiping contact with the bore of the piston-cylinder.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiment of my invention as applied to the piston and its cylinder of an explosive engine, Figure 1 is a sectional view in elevation of an engine cylinder and of the piston working therein, parts of both being broken away, and Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the two electrodes affording the spark-gap therebetween. the like parts in these figures, in which 1 is an engine cylinder, shown as having the water-cooling jacket 2 thereabout. 8 is a piston-head working in said cylinder having the beveled top 4. 5 is a spark-plug screwed into the, crown 6 of said cylinder and extending therethrough into the combustion or explosion chamber 7 8 is a porcelain sleeve serving to insulate the conductor 9-wh1ch Like numerals of reference indicate terminates below in the electrode 10, and formlng wlth the nut 11 a threaded bindingpost at the upper end adapted to be connected to a distributor and through it to a sourceof current such as a megneto, neither of which parts are necessary to be shown.

The electrode 10 is bent at right angles to the conductor and extends-radiallyinward until its tip is substantially in alinement with the bore of the cylinder. 12 is a rectangular bracket, attached by the screws 13 to the top of the piston-head and in electrically conductive relation therewith, extending vertically upward to form a second electrode let, whose.u pa th, as the piston .reciprocates, brings it into sparking-relation to the elec trode 10, the gap therebetween approximatmg between and i of an inch. The electrode 14 is so mounted upon the piston as to engage frictionally at each pistonstroke in wiping contact with the inner surface of the cylinder. By such contact, the travellng electrode 14 is kept clean and bright and the establishment of the spark between it and the fixed electrode 10 is therebyinsured.

As will be obvious, the electric current may be supplied from any suitable source and applied through any of the usual forms of distributers to my type of spark-gap, which may be used to ignite acharge of ex plosive fuel compressed in a cylinder by a piston in any kind of engine in which a spark-plug is now used, as a substitute therefor, by so attaching an angle-bracket to the piston-head that the side of one of its arms will be wiped clean at each piston stroke and caused to approach the fixed electrode, the

circuit from the magneto being groundedor completed through the engine frame. I

have found from extended use through a se ries of test conditions that the traveling electrode keeps free from fouling and presumably because of this fact that the fixed electrode retains its clean condition. In consequence of the non-fouling of these electrodes 'tionary electrode.

cent; less gasolene fuel for the samedistance,

although while equipped lwith the normal spark-plugs they were clean at the-start and cleaned every hour during the test.

It, will be understood that the'traveling electrode in my system'may be mounted in any suitable manner upon'the piston-head, as by mechanical means, as illustrated,'or otherwise fastened thereto, or may be formed integrally therewith, and that the fixed electrode may he'of any suitahle'character, so long as thei'nvention is realized and practicable therewith. V

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new: ,7 v

1. In an explosion-engine, a stationary electrode and atravelingelectrode adapted to move into sparking relation with said stationary electrode, and means adapted automatically to wipe said traveling electrode when out of sparking-relation to said sta- 2. In an explosion engine, a cylinder and a piston therein a stationary electrode iii-said contact with said cylinder.

4:- In an explosion engine,acyl1nder and cylinder. and a traveling electrode upon said pistongthe traveling electrode being adapted "to contact with said cylinderin wiping enmounted upon the said piston and in wiping a piston therein, an electrode mounted in the crown of said cylinder and a-second elec- J trode mounted in the head of said piston,

and means: adapted automatically to wipe said second electrode. I

' 5.111 an explosion engine, a cylinder and ally to engage the bore of: said cylinder during a part of the pistons stroke.

' AUGUST EUGENE annnnson.

Images