US1722973A - Incubator - Google Patents

Description

I -July 30, 1929. T. K. TIFFANY INCUBATOR Filed May 20.. 1 925 2 Sheets-Sheet ,lq

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INCUBATOR Filed May 20. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet ZNESSES:

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N N. n. m. +V r. 6 m @Y B Www -NLN Patented July 30, 1929.

UNITED STATES TOLBERT K. TIFFANY, OF TRENTON, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO JAMES H. BELL, OF

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

IN CUBATOR.

Application led May 20, 1925. Serial No. 31,511.

This invention relates to incubators, and is concerned with improvements calculated to facilitate manipulation of the eggs for positional change as required periodically during incubation.

More specifically stated, one object of my invention is to provide, for use in connection with an incubator of the cabinet type, means for supporting a comparatively large number of egg trays in compact sequence and in multi-columnar formation; said means affording a department or section capable of adjustment for the purpose above mentioned, as well as a department or section which is serviceable as a nursery whereto the vtrays may be transferred for hatching of the eggs.

Another object of my invention is to enable, in an incubator with the aforesaid appointments, individual access to the differ- ,ent departments or sections of the tray supporting structure.

Other objects and attendant advantages accruing to my invention will be apparent from t-he detailed description hereinafter of a typical embodiment as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Fig. I is a view, partly in fro-nt elevation and partly in longitudinal section, of the incubator.

Fig. II is a cross section on a larger scale of the organization, taken approximately as indicated by the arrows II-II in Fig. I, and with the egg-trays in horizontal position.

Fig. III is a partial front elevation of the tray supporting structure; and,

Fig. IV, is a fragmentary perspective illustration showing the means whereby an ordinary egg tray is adapted for use in the nursery section of the tray supporting structure.

With reference to the drawings, the numeral 1 indicates the housing of the incubator, the sameA affording an elongated incubating chamber 2 capable of accommodating, side by side, a number (in this instance two) of egg-tray-supporting racks each comprehensively designated 3. Fresh air enters the incubator 1 at opposite ends through grated openings 4 that communicate with ducts 5 extending laterally into the hollow base 6 of the structure and in turn communicating, through ports 7, with the hollow end walls 8 at their bottoms. As shown, these walls 8 are each lsubdivided interiorly by an intermediate partition 9, into separate vertical branches 10 and 11, the air passing upward in the branch 10, over the top of the partition 9, then downward in the branch 11 and finding its way into the incubating chamber 2-at the bottom-through an opening 12. Concurrent with upward travel in the branches l0 in opposite end walls 8, the air is heated by contact with coil banks 13 therein, said banks being connected between flow and return mains 14, 15 extending respectively across the top of the structure and through the hollow base 6. After coursing horizontally through the chamber 2 from the ends thereof, the two opposed air streams make their exit by way of a centrally-located flue 16 whereof the lower portion 17 is coextensive in width with said chamber, while the upper portion is in the form of a pipe 18 which leads to the exterior through the roof of the incubator enclosure 1, entry of air into the flue 16 being via bottom openings 19, 19 at opposite sides thereof. An auxiliary bank 20 of heating coils in the lower portion 17 of the Hue 16 serve to induce upward draft in the pipe 18, and thereby stimulate circulation of air through the chamber 2 as explained. This circulation is however subject to automatic governance by thermostats 21 which are located within the chamber 2 and actuate dampers 22, 23 arranged to cooperate respectively with exhaust outlets 24, 25 extending through the roof of the structure, the outlets 24 leading directly from the chamber, and the outlets 25 from the air liow passages 10, 11 in the end walls 8. As a result of this arrangement, in the event of a temperature rise in the chamber 2 beyond a predetermined degree due, for example, to animal heat given olf by the eggs during the latter stages of incubation, the exhaust openings 24, 25 will be uncovered to a greater or lesser extent to compensatively vent a portion of the heated air as required. The auxiliary coil bank 20 is connected in parallel with the main heating coil banks 13 across the flow and return mains 14, 15; and each of the several coils thus receives its proper apportionment of the flow of heating medium for which I prefer to employ hot water in the present instance. The features thus far described form the subject matter of a copending application under Serial Number' 31,51() filed by me simultaneously herewith, and have been referred to with a view only toward facilitating a general understanding of the disclosures which tollow.

Referring now to the egg tray racks 3, it will be best observed from Fig. I that these are exact counterparts of one another, and accordingly, in order to avoid the in convenience of repetitive description, reterence to them will, ior the time being, be made in the singular. As shown, each rack 3 comprises a lower or subsection 30 for nursery trays, and a superposed upper` section 3l for incubating trays. vThe subsection 30 -as best shown in Fig. III embodies a rigid frame constructed wholly from structural angles with upper and lower horizontals 32, corner verticale 33, and intermediate central uprights 34, the back and sides et' the trame being enclosed by screening 35, see Fig. II. To the corner verticals 33 and the central nprights 34 are secured laterally-extending slide rails 3G which are coordinated in pairs to support the egg trays indicated at 37, in. the double-columnar arrangement illustrated. The trays 37 are ot the typical variety ordinarily employed during incubation; but in order to adapt them for use as nursery traysin the nursery section 30, I provide detachable supplemental front boards 33 to close up the necessary head spaces which must be provided for the newly-hatched chicks. 'Ihe supplemental boards 38 are equipped with clips 39 designed to engage over the top edges of the front walls 40 of the trays 37 in a manner obvious fromFig. IV, and also with tinger knobs 4l-Fig. III-for convenience in withdrawing the trays.

The upper section 3l of the tray rack 3 embodies a vertical central member 42 fashioned torectangular configuration (see Fig. II) preerablylfr'om flat bar metal, and spaced parallel end members 43. Extend ing between the central member 42 and the spaced end members 43, respectively, are pivotally-connected 'cross members 44 upon which are secured slide rails 45 that extend laterally ot the rack 3 and cooperate in pairs to support a double column ot the egg trays 37, the arrangement and grouping thus being the same as in the nursery section 30. The upper rack section 3l sustained by brackets 46 extending from the front and rear ends oi the subsection 30, said brackets affording clevices 47 'at their upper ends for horizontal pins 48 that serve as ul'crum bearings' centrally beneath the lowermost pair of cross members 44 of the two adjacent vertical series. By such an arrangement, it "will be apparent that the upper rack section 3l may be adjusted through relative lon'gitudinal` 'shiftingrbetvveen its verticals 42, 43, and the trays 37 thus transposed from the horizontal position, of Figs. II and III to angular positions either in one direction or the other as shown in Fig. I so that the yolks ot' the eggs are positionally shifted as required from time to time during the process oi incubation.. As a means to stabilize the movement of the upper section 3l of the tray rack during adjustment, I utilize a pair oi fixed spaced rods 50 vthat extend trom top to bottom of the incubating cli-amber 2. The rods 50 serveas guides for the intermediate vertical rectangular members 42 oi the section 3l, the upper and lower horizontals of said section having correspondingly spaced aligned apertures 'for accommodating the rods with suiiicient clearance to insure tree movement. The mechanism employed to adjust the rack section 3l includes a screw 5l which is atlizied to lthe lower end of one of the vertical members, preferably centrally of the intermediate member 42 as shown. This screw 5l is engaged by an axially-threaded nut or collar 52 which is positionally fixed and supported for rotation in a bracket 53 secured to the top ot' the subsection 30 of the rack 3. T he collar 52 is circumi'erentially toothed to function as a. worm wheel 'for meshing engagement with a drive worm 54 fast on an actuating shaft 55 having journal support jointly in the bracket 53 and a cooperating bearing 56, the latter also mounted on the top oi' the subsection 30. From Figs. I and II it will be noted that the actuating shafts 55 of the two tray racks 3 extend to the eX- terior ot' the incubator housing through its 100 front wall, the squared outer ends 57 of said shafts being accessible in counter-bores 58 so as to permit ot engagement by a detachable operating handle such as shown at 59.

In order that the two tray racks 3 may be individually accessible, the incubator housing l is equipped at the front with two groups oi closures, each such group composed of double upper doors 60 swingable 110 outward about vertical hinges 6l, and a lower door G2 swingable upward on horizontal hinges G3. The upper doors G0, permit access separately to the upper section 3l .oit the tray rack 3; and said doors are glazed 115 as conventionally illustrated, lenabling observation ot the eggs from time to time during the incubating period without necessitating their exposure to the chilling influence oi" outside atmosphere. The lower 120 door G2 in a like manner permits access separately to the subsection 30 of the tray rack 3, said door being preferably made solid and opaque to exclude excessive light during the hatching phase of the incubating 125 period. y

Having thus described my invention, I claim: I

l. rack for incubators comprising a K vvertical Central member, spaced parallel end 130 members, a series of pivotally connected tray-supporting cross members, fulcrum supports extending centrally beneath the lowermost of each series of cross members, and spaced rods to guide the central member to longitudinal movement, whereby the rack as a whole ma be adjusted so that the trays .of the two columns may be shifted to different complemental angular positions.

2. A tray rack for incubators comprising a central and parallel vertical members in spaced relation, pivotally-connected cross members extendingr transversely between the several vertical members to support a multiplicity of egg trays in multi-columnar formation, fulcrum supports centrally beneath the lowermost cross members of each series of cross members, and spaced rods to stabilize the central member during longitudinal movement; in combination with means enabling adjustment of the rack including a screw on one of the vertical members, a. positionally fixed nut cooperating with the screw, and connections whereby the nut may be rota-ted from the exterior of the incubator'.

3. In an incubator the combination of racks comprising stationary nursery sections and .relatively movable incubating sections supported thereover by fulcrum bearings on the nursery sections, said incubating sections embodying pivotal tray supports adapted for simultaneous movement in columnar' series.

4. A tray rack for incubators comprising a lower section for nursery trays, said section including rigid fulcrum-bearings for columnar tiers of egg-tray supporting inembers, and means adapted to slidably roc-k the respective columnar tiers of egg-tray supporting members on the bearings aforesaid, for the purpose specified.

5. A tray rack for incubators comprising a lower rigid section for nursery trays, said section including stationary clevisbearingjs for columnar tiers of pivotal egg-tray supporting members, and mechanism actuable to slidably rock the respect-ive columnar tiers .of egg-tray supporting members on the devis-bearings to effect their reverse inclination with respect to the horizontal.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name at Trenton, New Jersey, this fourteenth day of May, A. I). 1925.

TOLBERT K. TIFFANY.

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