US1596189A

US1596189A - Cab switch

Info

Publication number: US1596189A
Application number: US748886A
Authority: US
Inventors: John J Kennedy; Charles W Dake
Original assignee: Pyle National Co
Current assignee: Pyle National Co
Priority date: 1923-12-20
Filing date: 1924-11-10
Publication date: 1926-08-17
Anticipated expiration: 1943-08-17

Description

Aug. 17, 192s. 1,596,189

J. J.l KENNEDY Ef AL CAB SWITCH l Original Filed Dec. 20, 1923 2 SheetsSheet, 2

w ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 17, 1926.

l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

JOHN J'. KENNEDY A ND CHARLES W. DARE, 0Fl CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOBS T0 THE PYLE-NATIONAL COMYANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION F N'EW JERSEY. f

CAB SWITCH.

Original application 1ed- December 20, ,1923, Serial No. 681,789. Divided and this yapplication led f November 10, 1924.

Our invention relates to` improvements in a cab switch and dimmer kor compensation switch for locomotive electric headlights.

It has for one object to provide a new and I improved form of switch whereby the engineer may control the electric headlight.

Another ob'ect is to provide a switch Wherein the headlight may be turned on or off or dimmed dependent vupon the driving conditions. Another object is to provide a durable, compact and convenient switch which will retain proper adjustment at all times. Other objects will appear from time to time throughout the specication.

Our invention is illustrated more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a plan view;

Figure 2 is anelevation looking in the' direction of the arrow in Figure l;

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view;

Figure 4 is a wiring diagram.

Like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the specification and drawings.

A is an insulating baseof hard rubber, bakelite, or similar material adapted to be mounted at any suitable point in the cab. A1, A2 are conductors leading to the lamp and to the source of power and in series with the lamp and power source. A8 is a pivot for the switch arm. It is electrically connected by means of a conductor bar A* and bindin post A5 with the conductor A1. A6 is e switch arm mounted on the pivot Aa having an insulated handle A. switch arm may bek itself a conductor or it may, as indicated, have a conducting element As on its underside communicating with the pivot A3 and extending downwardly toward the handle A7.. A9 is a quadrant mounted on the basek A and in slidable enga-gement with the upper side of the handle A". This quadrant may or ma not be of insulating material. The qua,- rant is marked as indicated with the words Off, Dim, and On as indicating the operation of the switch in its various positions. in relation to the operator.

B isa resistance coil or dimmer comprising a supporting base containing resistance The f Serial No. 748,886.

wire, the. particular arrangement of the wire forming no art of the invention. Suflice it to say that t e resistance isA suiiicient to dim the light as desired. B1 is a binding post for the conductor A. This bindin post extends down through the base A an communicates with the Y-shaped flat conductor bark B2 recessed in the bottom of the panel A. One arm of this conductor bar communicates with one terminal ofthe resistance element as at B3, the other arm communicates with the contact segment B" by means of a conducting screw Bi which passes up through the body of the panel, This conductor segment B4 is mounted on the panel A, and notched. as at B4 so as to make a yielding spring engagement with the arm A and to hold it in the on position against vibration. Bit is a dimmer contact segment mounted on the face of the base A, notched as at B7 to yieldingly hold vthe switch arm A6 in the dim position. This segment overlaps the segment B* so that as thev switch arm'L is moved to the right, it comes in contact with the on segment B before it disengages from the dimmer segment B6 so as to prevent surging in the circuit. The segment B6 communicates by means of a screw B7 with the conductor bar B8 recessed in the bottom of they panel? A, which bar in 'turn communicates with a screw B9 and the opposed terminal of the resistance element B. g

With the partsv inthe positionVY shown'in Figures 1, 2 and 3, the lig t is dimmed, the current ypasses from the conductor' A1 through binding post' A5, conductor A", switch arm A, shoe As, segment B6, screw B7, conductor B8, screw' B", through the dimmer resistance coil B, screw B3, conductor B2, binding post B1v tothe conductor A and' the current for the light is then in circuit through the dimmer and a dim light is shown.

AsA the switch arm is moved to the right itV first disengages from the springy held notched in the segment BB' and travels along the segment, the light beingy stilldim until the shoe A.el engages the segment` B". At this time the dimmer is in parallel and short Cil circuited, the path of the current being as above indicated through the dimmer and also from the conductor A1, through binding post A5, conductor A4, screw A3, arm A, shoe Jrs, segment B4, screw B5, conductor B2, binding post B1 and to the conductor A". Further movement of the switch lever to the right will cause the shoe A8 to engage the notch B5 and will break the circuit through the resistance element. The engagement of the shoe with the notch holds the switch in the i on position and current will continue to pass directly through the lamp without passing through the resistance element.

C is a dead terminal segment on the face of the panel A. It is notched at 1 to pro vide yielding means for holding the lever arm in the off position and prevent its dropping down under vibration. All the segments project upwardly from the face of the panel A and yieldingly force the switch arm up against the quadrant A" and being notched provide spring locking elements to prevent vibration or jarring or dropping of the switch arm from one position to another except when actually operated by the engineer.

The shoe A8 may or may not be a spring. 1f it is a spring, it will serve the same function as the spring contact segments B1, B6 and C and under some conditions they need not be springs. In other words, as long as there is a spring engagement between the switch arm and the contact segments, which spring engagement holds the arm against the quadrant and holds part of the arm against the segments and locks the parts together when the arm is in line with the notches in the segment, there is suliicient, and one or the other or both the segments or the shoe on the arm may serve as a spring.

Experience shows that it is frequently difficult in actual practice to maintain constant voltage regulation of a locomotive headlight generator and it sometimes happens that when a headlight is off, the generator speeds up and the voltage will rise as much as five or sinv volts. If the switch is suddenly closed and the over voltage thrown onto the lamp, and the lamp will ultimately burn out and therefore, itis desirable, esgecially since a dimmer is necessary anyway in lighting the light after it has been off to first throw a dimmer resistance into the circuit so as to load the generator, reduce the speed, and bring the voltage down to normal, the resistance holding the voltage down until normal speed has been reached, thus breaking the light. Our switch is peculiarly well adapted to perform this function because when the switch is moved from the off position toward the on position, the resistance is cut and the light burns dim for an appreciable length of time while the operator is moving the lever across. As the lever or switch arm moves on, a time is soon reached when, without interrupting the dimmer resistance, there is a direct connection short circuiting the dimmer directly through the light, thus protecting the light against suoli over voltage and avoiding surging in the circuit.

D is a motor generator set preferably mounted on a locomotive boiler and containing within the housing any suitable type of steam governor. D1 is a steam line by which boiler steam is fed to the generator set. D2 is a conductor leading from the generator set to the incandescent motor headlight D". The conductor A2 leads from the binding post B1 on the switch to the metal conductor A1 from the binding post A5 on the switch to the motor generator set.

It will be evident that while we have shown an operative device, still many changes might be made in the size, shape and arrangement of parts without departing materially from the spirit of our invention and we wish, therefore, that our draw ings be regarded as in a sense diagrammatic.

This application is a division of my copending application Serial Number 681,789, tiled December 20, 1923.

Wie claim:

l. A switch for locomotive headlights comprising a panel, a switch arm pivoted thereon, a guide quadrant therefor and a plurality of contact segments adapted to yieldingly engage the arm as it is forced upwardly against the quadrant and held in position, a resistance element, a plurality of binding posts, one of them connected to the switch arm, the other connected to one of the contact segment-s and to one end of the resistance element, electric connection between the other contactsegment and the opposed end of the resistance element, said live contact segments overlapping to permit simultaneous engagement with the switch arm.

2. A. switch for locomotive headlights comprising a panel, a switch arm pivoted thereon, a guide quadrant therefor and a plurality of contact segments adapted to yieldingly engage the arm as it is forced upwardly against the quadrant and held in position, a resistance element, a plurality of binding posts, one of them connected to the switch arm, the. other connected to one of the contact segments and to one end of the resistance element, electric connection between the other contact segment and the opposed end of the resistance element, said live contact segments over-lapping to permit simultaneous engagement with the switch arm, each of said segments being notched at a point removed from the position of simultaneous engagement with the switch arm.

3. A control switch for locomotive headlights comprising a resistance element, a

Switch arm and Contact segments, one of them connected to the resistance element, the other connected directly to the circuit, the segments overlapping to permit simultaneous engagement with the switch arm.

4. A1 switch for locomotive headlights comprising an insulating panel, a switch arm pivoted thereon, a guide quadrant adapted to be engaged on its under side by the switch arm and a plurality of spring contact segments engaging the under side of the arm and yieldingly holding it against the quadrant, a resistance element mounted on the panel above the switch arm, and a plurality of binding posts on the panel, a

conductor joining one of them and the pivotpoint of the switch arm, a conductor recessed in the bottom ofthe panel and joining the other binding ost and one end of the resistance element an one of the segments, a conductor recessed in the under side of the panel joining the other end of the resistance element and one of the segments.

5. A switch for locomotive headlights comprising an insulating panel, a switch arm pivoted thereon, a guide quadrant adapted to be engaged on its under side by the switch arm and a plurality of spring Contact segments engaging the under side of ythe arm and yieldingly holding it against the quadrant, a resistance element mounted on the panel above the switch arm, and a plurality of binding posts on the panel, a conductor joining one of them and the `pivot point of the switch arm, a conductor joining the other binding post and one end of the resistance element and one of the segments, a conductor joining the other end of the resistance element and one of the segments.

Signed at Chicago, county of Cook and State of Illinois, this 16th day of April 1926.

JOHN J. KENNEDY. CHARLES lV. DAKE.