US1434902A - Draft regulator for furnaces - Google Patents

Description

C. R. McCOLLUM.

DRAFT REGULATOR FOR'FURNACES. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 29, 1920.

1,434,902. Patented Nov. 7, 1922.

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2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Nov. 7, 1922.

Patented Nov. 7, 1922.

UNITED STATES CHARLES RAYMOND MGCOLLUM, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

DRAFT REGULATOR FOR FURNACES.

Application filed March 29, 1920. Serial No. 369,590.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES RAYMOND McCoLLUM, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York,

borou h of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings b and tate of New York, have invented a new and useful Draft Regulator for Furnaces, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to regulating devices for furnaces, and has for an object to provide an improved construction Wherein the controlling drafts of a furnace and of a smoke pipe may be set to any desired position from a. distant point.

Another object of the invention is to provide a comparative small apparatus, electrically operated, for opening and closing the drafts of a furnace, and controllable from one or more points in a house.

A further object is the provision of means for a furnace wherein a comparatively weak motor is geared up to easily operate all of the dampers of the furnace and the smoke pipe, the arrangement being such that the motor is controlled from different points distant from the furnace.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an electric control and operating means for the dampers of a furnace with indicating means at one or more distant points for indicating the position of the dampers.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the invention shown applied to a smoke pipe, certain part-s of the pipe and furnace being shown broken away so as to illustrate in a better manner the operation of the various parts.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary top plan view showing the mechanism illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view through F igure 1 on line 3-3, a system of wiring being shown in connection therewith for illustrating the distant control.

Figure 4 is a detail fragmentary sectional View through Figure?) on line 4-4.

Referring to the accompanying drawings by numerals, 1 indicates part of a furnace having a draft door 2 connected with a chain 3 passing over a suitable pulley 4, said chain 8 also extending downwardly to the bottom of the furnace so as to be connected with the draft damper. This is an ordi with the damper 7. Th that damper 7 is closed or substantially closed when the check damper I though damper 7 could some other position if desired. Connected with the upper end of the damper arm 6 is a wire or cable 8 extending to a double drum 9 on which it is wound with a section extending through the aperture 10 so that there Wlll be no slipping between the parts. From the spool or drum 9 the cable also extends to the lower end of the arm 6, so that whenever the spool or drum 9 is rotated the arm will be actuated for swinging the damper 7, check damper 2 and also the draft damper of the furnace 1 either to an open or closed position.

In order to actuate the drum 9 and parts connected therewith, a driving mechanism and-controlling device are provided as shown more particularly in Figure 3. This mechamsm is provided with a motor 11 of anv desired kind, the armature of which has a shaft 12 extending an appreciable distance therefrom through an opening 13 in the brace 14, so that the pinion 15 may readily mesh with the comparatively large gear wheel 16 carried b the shaft 17. Shaft 17 is rotatably suppo ted in the braces 14 and 1 8, said braces ljeing bolted or otherwise rigidly secured ,to the bracket 19. The bracket 19 is provided with a horizontal section 20 which supports the motor 11 and the arc-shaped section 21 bolted or otherwise rigidly secured to the draft pipe 22 and upper horizontal section 23 for holding the upper ends of the braces 14 and 18 in proper place, and also for other purposes hereinafter fully described. A strip of asbestos, or other heat insulating material 24 is arranged between the arc-shaped section-21 and bracket 19 and the pipe 22. It will be noted that when'the motor 11 is operating power will be transmitted to the shaft 17, which carries a pinion 25 meshing with a large gear 26 rigidly secured to the spool or drum 9. The spool or drum 9 is rotatably mounted on the shaft 27 carried by the braces 14 and 18. From Figure 4 it will be noted that the gear wheel .If the motor is running in one 26 is keyed or otherwise rigidly secured to the drum 9, and said drum is provided with a central division web 28 in which the aperture 10 is positioned so that the wire or cable 8 may be arranged in two coils and the coils prevented from slipping. As the motor rotates power will be transmitted to the drum 9 for rotating the same and pulling on one end of the cable 8 while paying out the opposite end so as to shift the arm 6 and all the parts connected therewith. direction the dampers will be opened or set so that a good draft will be provided whereas if the motor is caused to operate in the opposite direction the dampers will be moved to a closed position, or such other position as will cause the draft to be shut off and the fire more or less choked.

In order to provide a proper tension for the wire or cable 8 pulleys 29 and 30 are held in engagement with the different le s of the wire by springs 31 and 32 (Figure 1%. These springs are. connected with a bracket 33 which in turn is connected to the horizontal section 23 and bracket 19 by a bolt or other securing means. This structure provides for an automatic take up of any slack in the wire or cable 8.

In order to provide information at 3a distant point as to the condition of the dampers a switch board 34 is provided, which is clamped to the brace 14 by screws 35 and 36, and is braced by a suitable bracket or bracing member 37 bolted or otherwise secured to the horizontal section 23 and the board 34 by a bolt 38. The board 34 is made from some insulating material, as for instance a sheet of fiber, and has clamped thereto a slate face late 39. The face plate 39 carries a retaining ar 40 forthe contact lever 41 and carries arc-shaped contact plates 42 and 43 held in place by screws 44 and 45 which also holds in place the feed wires 46 and 47. Additional screws are also provided for holding the plates 42 and 43 in place as well as the plate 40 so that there will be no looseness and that the contact lever 41 may provide a good electrical connection between said lever and either of the plates 42 and 43. A bolt 48 holds the lever 41 in place, and at the same time acts as a binding post for the signal wire 49. The upper end of the lever 41 is connected through a rod 50 to the arm 6 so that whenever said arm is moved the lever will be shifted.

At some convenient point in which the house with which the furnace is associated, a ,pair of switches 54 and 58 are suitably mounted, the switch 54 being of the singleole double throw type and the switch 58 bemg what may be termed a reverse switch and of the double throw two-pole type. Also there should be provided a battery or other suitable source of electric current supnected to t ply as indicated at 64. The negative side of the battery is connected by a wire 65 with one pole of the switch 58, while the positive side of the battery is connected through the wires 66 with the other pole of the switch 58. The switch 54 has its pivoted blade 54 connected with the wire 49. The blade 54 is adapted to be brought to engage with either the contact 53 or 57 of the switch. The contact 53 is connected through a wire 52 and a pilot lamp 51 with the wire 66, while the contact point 57 isconnected through the wire 56 and pilot light to the wire 65. Furthermore in this arrangement the wire 46 which as heretofore described has its one end. connected with the arc-shaped contact plate 43 carried by the switch board 34 and at its other end with the wire as indicated at 62, Figure 3, and the wire 47 which is connected at its one end to the are shaped contact plate 43 is connected at its other end to the wire 66 as indicated at 63.

With respect to the reversing switch 58 the same is connected through the wires 60 and 61 to the motor 11. The wires 60 and 61 are for supplying the motor with current for operating the same and are cone field of the motor through the wires 69 and 70 and to the commutator of the motor through the wires 67 and 68.

The purpose of the signal lights 51 and 55 is to indicate the position of the lever 41 and is accomplished in the following manner. Assuming that the lever 41 was disposed upon the contact plate 42 and that the dampers were in their relative position it then is obvious that the wires 49 and 46 would be connected together through the lever 41; This being the case should the switch blade 54' of the switch 54 be moved to manipulate the contact 54 a circuit will be established through the 'light 51. The current establishing this circuit traveling from the battery 64 through the switch 54 and from thence through the wire 49 and returning to the battery through the wire 46. Should the lever 41 be disposed upon the contact plate 43 then the wires 47 and 49 are connected. Now if the switch blade 54' is manipulated to connect with the contact 57 then the light 55 will be energized to indicate this position of the lever 41. The

current energizing the light 55 will travel from the battery 64 through the wire 66 then through the wire 47 and return by the wire 49 and from thence through the switch 54 and the light 55 and to the wire 65 which is connected with the opposite side of the battery. Should the lever 41 be disposed'beposition of the lever 41 and he desires to change the position of the diiferent dampers by moving the same toward their closed positrons or open position he may then use the motor 11 for this purpose. As heretofore described if the motor 11 is rotated in one direction the cable 8 will be drawn for opening the dampers, while if the motor is reversed the cable 8 will be drawn for closing the dampers. The switch 58 is adapted for causing the motor 11 to rotate in either direction and consequently by properly manipulating the switch the operator may cause the motor to bring the different ampers to the positions desired. It is of course to be assumed that the switch 58 is normally opened and. only closed at the time when 0 eratin the motor 11 for bringing the di erent ampers associated with the furnace to new positions.

It will be noted that the motor 11 is bolted fast to the bottom part of the bracket 19 by any desired number of bolts and is also insulated therefrom, while the u per part. of the motor is braced by suitable bracket arms 71 held in place preferably by the bolt 35 which is preferably insulated from the boundary material ordinarily not neces-' sary.

What I claim is:

l. A regulator for furnace dampers comprising means for opening and closing said dampers, including a rotating drum and a cable operated thereby, a motor, a train of reducing gears connecting the motor with said drum whereby when the motor is operated the drum will be rotated foropening and closin the dampers according to the direction 0% rotation of the motor, means for supplying current to said motor, means arranged at a distant point for causing said motor to reverse, a signal device arranged adjacent said reversing means, and means operated by the dampers of said furnace for actuating said signal means whereby sald slgnal means will indicate when the dampers are open and when they are closed.

2. A regulator for furnace dampers, means connecting said dampers so that the check damper will be open as the draft damper is closed, an arm connected with said dampers, a drum, a cable connected with said drum and with said arm so that when the drum is rotated the cable will actuate said arm for opening and closing the dampers, an electrically operated power member for rotating said drum, means controllable from a distance for causing said power member to move in opposite directions, a pair of lights arranged at a distant point, a switch arranged adjacent said power member and connected with said lights, and-means for connecting the switch arm withthe arm connected with the dampers so that when the dampers are moved by the power member to a closed position one of said lamps will be supplied with current for illuminating the same and when the power member moves the dampers to an open position the switch arm will be moved for completing the circuit of the other of said lamps.

3. A damper opening and closing device comprising means for actuating the dampers to produce an opening and closing action, a switch provided with a switch arm arranged adjacent said device, a rod connecting said switch arm with the dampers so that the switch arm will be moved to one position when the dampers are closed and to the opposite position when the dampers are open, and a pair of electric lamps connected with said switch and with a source of current, the connection being such that when said switch arm is in one position one light will be illuminated and when in the opposite position the other light will be illuminated, whereby an indication will be provided showing the position of the dampers.

' In a device of the. character described, the combination with a furnace having a damper, electrically operated means for opening and closing said damper, a switch connected with said damper formed with a pair of opposite contacts, a pair of indieating lamps arranged at a distant point I connected to said opposite contacts and to the switch arm, a source of current for said lamps, means for connecting the switch arm with said damper so that when the damper is closed the switch armwill be moved to close the circuit of one of said lamps and when the switch is moved in the opposite direction the circuit of the other of said lamps will be closed, and. a manually actuated switch having a pair of contacts interposed in the circuit of both of said lamps arranged adjacent the lamp so that the circuit of the lamps may be manually closed when temporarily observing the position of the damper.

5. In a furnace regulator of the clas described, the combination with a furnace having a damper, of a pivotally mounted arm connected with said damper, said damper being opened or closed by swinging said arm, a link connecting one end of said arm with a check damper, a pair of cables connected at one end to the respective ends of said arm, the other end of said cables lying on a drum, said drum having a divisional member for separating the cables and apertures through which the respective cables extend, spring means for maintaining said cables under tension, a motor for rotatin said drum in either direction, an electrica circuit for said motor, and a reversing switch in series with said electrical circuit for connecting in or reversing said motor.

6. In a furnace regulator of the class decircuit, contacts connected 111 said circuit and disposed in the path OI movement of said blade, and a lamp in series with each of said separate contacts, said lamp being closed in circuit when said arm contacts with 15 one of said separate contacts.

CHARLES RAYMOND McCOLLUM.

a pair of separately arranged 10

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