US1795114A - Automobile trouble indicator - Google Patents

Description

March 3,1931. s. B, FLICKER 1,795,114

AUTOMOBILE TROUBLE INDICATOR Filed Dec. 15, 1926 u INYENTOR, Feat man 3 F72 eke]? 744771055 ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 3, 1931 [UNITED STATES BEN-TMANB. FLICKER, or PHILLIPS, WISCONSIN AUTOMOBILE amounts INDICATOR Application filed December 15, 1926, Serial No. 155,090.

This invention relates to automobile troub-leindicators, and especially to a device for automatically indicating to the eye of an automobile driver, not only that the auton'iobile is not operating perfectly, or in danger of being injured by some defect or omis sion, but also to indicate the exact trouble and the exact point at which the trouble is located.

The foregoing paragraph may be taken as indicating the main object of this invention, and another object is to provide a device of this character which is comparatively simple of construction, compact in arrangement, ex-

15 ceedingly efficient in operation, and capable of being applied to practically every. make and style of automobile. i i

7 Other objects and important features are pointed out or implied in the following de- 2 tails of description, in connection with-the accompanying drawings in which:

Fi 'ure 1 is a face view of the device applied to the dash or cowl of the automobile.

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional View along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 isa horizontal sectional view along the line 3-8 of Fig.4.

Figure l is an enlarged fragmental detail view of the mechanism for indicating the "t"- spark plug trouble.

Referring to these drawings, in detail, in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views, and inwhich a part of a dash or cowl is if? shown for illustrating the application of my invention, the entire front or face of the device is shown on the cowl in Figure 1,it being understood that this front-or face 11 is the front wall of a casing which has one of its end walls indicated at 13. This casing also has a bottom or floor 14 (see Figures 2 and 3) While this casing is shown of one-piece construction, except its cover and back, it is understood that it may be of any appropriate construction and of any appropriate material.

Within the casing described in the preced- 7 ing paragraph, devices are arranged for op crating to indicate spark plug trouble, timer 59 circuit troubles, gas circulation, and lubricating oil temperature. Suitable openings are provided in the front wall or face plate 11 for parts of these devices to extend through. into plain View of the automoblle driver or operator while he operates the. automobile on which this device is applied. These trouble indicating devices will now be separately described in detail, as follows: i T

In rear 01 an upper opening 16 and a lower opening 17 (of the face plate 11) is located the mechanism shown in Figures 2, 3 and 5, this mechanism including a vertical rod 18 which is preferably of hard rubber or other insulating material. The upper end of this rod is providedwith a handle 19 which is i also of insulating materal. This rod 18 has thereon alternate series of insulating rings or collars 20 and conducting rings or collars 21, these rings or collars being of equal and uni? form diameter, and being secured on the rod 7 18 by any appropriate means. On oppositesides ofthe vertically movable switch. meniber 18192021, I provide two series of conducting plates 22, the plates of each series being in superposed and spaced relation, and being held in such spaced relation by means of insulating washers or spacers 23 which may be of any appropriate size, shape or material. Each conducting plate 22 is provided with an opening 24; through which an insulating rod 25 extends, it being understood that each series of plates 22 is held in cooperative relation with the vertically movable rod 18 and its adjuncts by means of one of these rods 25 and spacing members 23. It should also be understood that the upper and lower ends of the rods 25 can be secured to the casing by an appropriate means, so they are held in fixed relation with the casing, and each series o! conducting plates is spaced from the other series so that no current can flow from one to another except when the conducting members 21 electrically connect them as shown in Figure 2. It should be understood that the conducting members 21 normally stand in the space between the horizontally alined conductingplates 22 of each pair, 'andthat the contacting surfaces of these plates 22 are 'concaved so as to closely fit aroundthe conduct ing members 21, and around the insulating members 20 when the handle 19 is raised for bringing these members 21;between the horinumber of circuit closing connections such as shown in Figure-2 will correspond to the number of spark plugs to be tested. Each conducting plate 22, of one series-,is suitably connected with a conducting wire 26 which extends to and is connectedwith' the distribu-' tor, and each plate 22 of the Other series is P suitably connected with a conducting wire 27 which extends to andis connected with one of the spark plugs, it being understood that there is a conducting wire 26 for each binding post of the distributor, and that there is a conducting wire 27. foreach o'neof the spark plugs. It is also understood that this mechanism forms part of the high-tension circuit between the distributor and the spark plug of an automobile.

' The method of testing the respective circuits through the spark plug is as follows:

,Bjy raisingthe handle 19 until all of the conducting members 21 are out of contact with the conducting members 22, a spark gapis provided between the adjacent ends of the conductors 22,,and-a spark will be seen to jump across the spark gap ineach spark plug circuit in which the current 'is sufiiciently strongyand in any spark gap where the spark is not seen,it is thus indicated that the currentis notsufiiciently strong in this particular spark plug circuit, or that there is a loose connection, a short circuit or other trouble with respect to this particular spark plug -circu'it.' It is understood that the sparkgap between the iront'edgcs oi the members '22 is a few thousandths of an inch narrower than the spark gap atjthespark plug, and thatthe spark gap at the rear edges'oi the members 22 is considerably'wid'er thantheother spark gaps, *so that no hidden spark will-pass from one to another of the plates 22. By alter- I nately raising and lowering the rod 18 and its conducting members 21, while watching 7 therespective spark gaps, the spark plug circuits can be very quickly and easily tested while the automobile is traveling-,ior the spark plug circuits need not be broken more thaninstantaneously in order :to' ascertain whether any particular one of them is missing or weak. Another way of testing the spark plug circuits is to raise the circuit closing device 1819 21 one-space at-a time until the lowermost member 21 is between the uppermost pair'oi the conducting plates 22,

and watching each spark gap as the circuit closing. device is raised beyond i-t.- The index numbers 1, 5:, :3, 6, 2, 4, the aocornpanying this trouble indi'cato-r'is applicable, not only to automobiles, but also to internal combustion engines of every kind and for every purose. V

VVh'at I claim as my invention is:

1. Ina trouble indicating mechanism for internal combustion engines," twoseries of electric conducting contacts arranged in pairs having spark gaps between those of each pair, thecontactsof one series being pro,- vided with means for electrically connecting the1n respectiv-ely to the spark plugs of one of the said engines, the contacts of the other series being provided with means for electrically connecting them respectively to the distributor of the engine, a series of alined and united circuit-closing contacts insulated from one another and disposed between said two series. of fixed contacts, and means to move said aline'd contacts in thedirection oi theiralinement and thereby bring each these alined contacts from between a corresponding pair of said fixed oontac'tsand thereby to form spark-gaps between said fixed contacts of each pair. I V- 2. In a trouble indicating mechanism for an internal combustion engine, two series of electric conducting contacts arranged in pairs and provided with means to electrically connect them in the ignition circuit of said engine, a serles of aljm'ed conducting members, insulating elements between the almed contact elements, andm'eans combining with able longitudinally iorj'moving Said al'ined conducting members and insulating elements alternately into and out of contact with said pairs of electric conducting contacts, for the Y In testimony whereof I afiix my signature. BENJ'MAN 'B. FLICKEB.

words ,Firing order, and the accompanying arrows, combine to show the firing order

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