US1541015A

US1541015A - Electric switch

Info

Publication number: US1541015A
Application number: US641310A
Authority: US
Inventors: William W Weeks
Original assignee: ELEVATOR SUPPLIES CO Inc
Current assignee: ELEVATOR SUPPLIES CO Inc; ELEVATOR SUPPLIES COMPANY Inc
Priority date: 1923-05-25
Filing date: 1923-05-25
Publication date: 1925-06-09
Anticipated expiration: 1942-06-09
Also published as: FR586594A

Description

June 9, 1925.

w. w. WEEKS ELECTRIC swn'cn File'duayg2 192s I, m M m M, j M m a I v A M w m 8 Z 4 4 \I w u a .M 4 3 n I x w 1 a m, 1 a d, w

. circuit is broken.

Patented June 9, 1925.

tennis UNITED STATES PATENT oFF I -g WILLIAM W. WEEKSLOF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, AssIGNon "ro LEVATOR surrtrns,

COMPANY, me, A oonronirrronor NEW JERSEY.:

' ELECTRIC swrrcn.

Application filed May 2 5,

To all whom it may GOILOQWH. Be it known that 1, WILLIAM WALLACE WEEKS, a citizen of the United States, resid ing at 366 4th St, Brooklyn, New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improveinent in Electric Switches, of which the following is a clear, full, and exact description. e

This invention relates to an electric switch, and more particularly" to an improved switch for opening andclosing the controller circuit of an elevator with the opening and closing of the elevator; door.

in the operation of elevators, is essential that a switch be employed for breaking the electrical operating circuit when the ele-. rator door is open, so as to render it impossible to start the elevator, by accident or otherwise, while the elevator door is open. Various forms of switches have been employed for this purpose, but the switches heretofore used have been unsatisfactory for the reason that with continual use the switches become worn and produce bad contacts resulting in sparking, Such sparking, or arcing across the points of contact, frequently burns oil the points, of contact on the contacting members so that rapid deterioration of the switch takes place and a very poor and inefficient operation of the elevator results. i

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide an'improved switch in which the objectionable features above noted are overcome. Y

A second object of the invention is'to provide a switch of a form in which 'wear will be diminished so as to attain a considerably longer life of the switch.

Another object of theinvention is topro-' vide means whereby the switch when operated shall maintain substantially perfect contact while current is passing through the switch, and which shall maintain substantially perfect insulation when the electrical Another object of the invention is to provide a switch particularly adapted for elevator operation in which the'circuit breaking means operatessubstantially instantaneously to force the contacting or conducting 'means apart instead of rolling away from. the points of contact as inthe form of switch "generally, employed for this purose., P Another object of the invention is to pro 192s. Seria1 No.641,3 10."

vide a switch of a form which,if through accident or intention it is called upon to make and break contact in a circuit, will operate satisfactorily for this purposeand stand such extra duty. 1

With these and other objects in View, the invention comprises various ieatures. heres inafter described and particularly defined in the claims.

The invention. may be best understoodby describing it in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which-- a g Fig. l is aview in elevation of the switch with thepfront cover. plate removed; Fig. 2-is-a horizontal section, of the switch taken on the line 22.of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section of the device on theline 3-3 ot Fig. 1, showing the switch operating lever attached to the cam pivot. 1 g

' Thepreferred form of the invention comprises a casing; 10 having a base 12in which are openings 14 and .16 through which the leads from a circuit are adapted to pass to connect with terminals 18, 20, of the usual :Eorm..i The terminals 18, 20 are suitably con nected by meansot conducting wires 22, 24

to conductingbars 26, 28 preferably of brass] or copper, which are pivotally supported on pivot-s 25,27 within the casing,as shown 1n Fig. 1 of the drawings. At their points of support, the bars are separated by means of. insulating material which extends downwardly therefrom in order to prevent short circuiting across the bars. At their lower.

ends the bars" 26, 28 are extended outwardly and positioned between the lower ends thereof is a cancer movable member 30, having conducting and insulating portions thereon by means of which the circuit, through the 1 site each other in corresponding depresssions I on the surface of the cam or movable member 30.- Adjacentythe ends of the

segments

32, 34, are insulating portions 40, {i2 which are preferably integral with the bodyof the cam or movable member andwhich project outwardly forming raised or nosed portions on diametrically opposite faces of the movable memberl The movable member is substantiallyelliptical in form, the distance between t e segme ts 32, 3 ei g the minor x thereof, and the distance b'etw'een'the enter 7 portions of the

insulatin'gs'ections

40, 42 comprisingthe major axis vof the ellipse. Between the end portions ot' the segments 32, 34: and the

insulating sections

40, 42, are air gaps 434', 4:6,4'8and 50 by means of which increased insulation is attained between the conducting segments and the insulating portions of the movablemember. In order to keep the

bars

26, 28 continually in contact withthe surfaces of the movable member 30, provide springs 52, 54 which'iare preferably helical in formand supported by

means oflugs

56, 58 attached to the bars'26, 28 respectively. The outer ends of thezhelical' springs are supported upon the surface of insulating members 60, (32 which are shown in eross'section in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The movable member -80' is suitably supported upon a bar or pivotfi to which it is attached by any suitable means, such, for example,'as a pin passing through a slot'in the movable member and the pivot. The

pivot 64 is attached to a lever 66 which is connected to an operating: mechanism by which the switch is operated. When the lever is attached to the toggle levers of an elevator doorffor example, the switch will be operated with movements of the door. The switch may be'so connected as to break the elevator operating circuit when the elevator door is opened a predetermined amount, thus rendering operation of the elevator by means of the control lever impossible while the door is open beyond that predetermined-amount. The operation of the switch in connection with the controller circuit of an-elevator is as follows:

When the elevator door is opened by means of the toggle levers, a bar connected to the lever 68pmoves the lever whi'ch in turn rotates the cam or movable-member 30 so that the insulating portions 40-, 42 thereof come into contact with the bars 26,'28,'spreading them outwardly against'the

yieldablesprings

56, 58, causing an interruption of the cur,- rent passing through the elevator operating circuit In this position otthe rmojgab'le member 30, the elevator cannot be operated by means of "the controller lever in the ele vator, and nomovem'ent of the elevator ist'hereiore possible until the circuit isag'a in closedby the op'eration of the movable memher. hen the door is-cl'osed, thevarious' levers are again operated so that the movable member is turned in theposition in which the conducting segments 32,34eare in contact with the bars 26,- 28. The circuit through the bars is: thus completed, andthe elevatormay'then be operated by means of the controller lever.

By the spreading action of the extended insulating portions of the movable member 30 of the switch, the

bars

26, 28 are forced rapidly outwardly against the tensfion of the springs '56, '58 and as soon as the movable inember is turned intoposition for closing the circuit through the bars, the bars 26, 28- are suddenly and forcibly thrown inwardly against the contacting surfaces by means or" the springs, and a sub stantially perfect contact is therefore made between the surfaces of the segments and the bars. By this means, sparking at the contact surfaces of the switch is prevented, which results in an increased life of the switch.

It is to be understood that the device which has been describedis not limited in itsapplication" to elevator operating circuits, but may be employed in connection with any other mechanism to which it is adapted. It is also to be understood that various n'iodifications and changes may be made in the device as described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 5

Having thus described the invention, What isblainied as new is: i y

1. An" electridswitch comprising circuit terminals, conducting bars'I connected to said terminals, amovable member mountedte: tween said conducting bars, means formairr taming said bars incontact with said mem ber, circularconducting arcs ind-airman said member whereby said bars remain sta tionary inposition 'when in Contact with said arcs, conducting mean's'in said movable member between said arcs, and non-con ducting portions on said movable, member extending outwardly thereon whereby when said movable member is operated to attain contact between said non-conducting por tions and'said 'bars the latter will be moved outwardly and, the circuit through said movable member will be broken.

2. An electrical switch comprising pressed conducting bars, liptical movable member pivotally positioned between the bars, said movable member having diametrically opposite conducting members upon the minor axis of the said elliptical member and diametrically op'po-' siteinsulat ing port-ions on the major axis of the said elliptical member, and means spring for operating the movable member to connect the said conducting members in series with thesaid conducting bars.

3'; 'An electrical switch comprisinga movable member having diametricallyopposite conductingportions thereon and'diametricailyopposite insulating port-ions thereon,

the distance between the insulating portion's being greater than that ,.between the conducting portions, conducting bars pivotally placed W1th"respect to the-Jsaid a substantially e1- v movable member so as to spread with the movements of the said movable member when the insulating portions thereof are in contact with the said bars, and spring means adapted to maintain the said bars into contacting relation with the said movable member. I

4. An electrical switch comprising a movable insulating member having diametrically opposite conducting portions thereon in the form substantially of circular segments, the said insulating member having projecting nosed insulating portions between the said segments, conducting bars pivo ally placed with respect to the said movable member so as to yield withthe movements of the said movable member, and spring means adapted to maintain the said'bars in contact with the said movable member.

5. An electrical switch comprising a movable insulating member having diametrically opposite conducting portions thereon in the form ofsub'stantially circular segments, the said insulating member having nosed insulating portions between the said so positioned as to cause the said bars tospread rapidly with a speed depending upon the speed of movement of the said movable member and the distance of the nosed. portions from the pivoted ends of the said bars.

6.. An electric switch comprising a mov- 1 able member having diametrically opposite conducting surfaces and diametrically op, posite insulating surfaces thereon, the distance between the insulating surfaces being greater than that between the conducting surfaces and conducting bars adapted to be held in pressure contact with opposite surfaces of said member.

Signed at New York city, N. Y. this 24th day of May 1923.-

WILLIAM W. WEEKS.