US1845494A - Electrical relay - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 16, 1 932. E, F NK 1,845,494

ELECTRICAL RELAY Filed June 8, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet J 31/ 32 2 I VEN TOR BY W ' A TTORNEY Feb. 16, 1932. J. E. FUNK 7 1,845,494

ELECTRICAL RELAY Filed June 8, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 EN TOR.

' ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 16, 1932 PATENT OFFICE JOHN E. FUNK, OF IBLOOMFIELD, NEW JERSEY ELECTRICAL RELAY Application filed June 8, 1927. Serial No. 197,836.

This invention relates to electromagnetic relays and more particularly to the provision of a rugged reliable electrically operated device which may be easily and cheaply manufactured and assembled.

A further object of the present invention relates to the provision of an improved electromagnetic responsive device arranged to be operated by alternating or pulsating current and having means for effectively preventing the effects of chatter.

Another object relates to the provision of an improved contact device which may be readily adjusted both in the manufacture of the relay and after the installation thereof.

Another feature of the invention relates to the provision of a relay having contact arms in proximity to the base of the relay so as to be out of the way of the electricians tools and wires, and thus will not be easily harmed.

Another feature relates to the provision of contacts and terminals which are readily accessible.

Another feature relates to the provision of an improved mounting base for the rela whereby undesirable leakage between the terminals is avoided.

Another feature relates to the provision of barriers effectively separating the relay terminals so as to avoid leakage in case currents of high voltage are to be connected to the relay.

Another feature relates to the provision of improved means for conducting current to the movable contact elements of the relay.

Still another feature relates to the provision of a relay having a relatively large movement of the movable contact springs, and thus high tension circuits may be safely controlled.

Another feature relates to the reduction of chatter when the relay is operated by energy of periodic wave form.

Still another feature relates to the triple use of a single stamping, for terminating and protecting a pigtail connection, and for protecting a spring element from strains set up by fastening devices.

An important object of the invention is to reduce costs by the provision of a relay embodying the foregoing features, which may be quickly assembled in quantity production, and in which variations in manufacture are readily compensated for even in rapid assembly of the device.

Other objects will appear from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a relay embodying features of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view with parts broken away;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a detail view of a portion of the relay; and

Fig. 6 is a detail view of a portion of the yoke of the relay.

Like reference characters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawings.

In the following description and claims, parts characteristic features and functions will be identified by specific means for cony venience of expression, but they are intended to be as generic in their application to similar parts or equivalent construction as the art will permit.

Referring to the drawings there is shown a mounting base 10 formed of an insulating material such as hard rubber or the like and provided on its lower face with a pair of spaced fillets 11, 12 serving to maintain the remaining portion of the lower face 13 of the base in spaced relation with the surface 14 upon which the relay is mounted. The base 10 is perforated as at 15, 16, 17 for suitable screws (not shown) whereby the base may be secured to the mounting surface 14. It will be noted by the use of three such securing screws that a three point support is provided thus insuring a secure support, free of vibration.

For connecting the parts of the relay with the external circuit of which the relay is to form a part, there is provided in the upper face of the base 10 a plurality of terminal members, the winding terminals being designated as at 20, 21, the front contact terminals as at 22, 23, and the movable contact spring terminals as at 24, 25. The terminal members 20, 21, 24, are alike in construction and a description of one will suffice for all. Each comprises a stamped metal plate 26 having, a depending ferrule or sleeve 27 snugly fitted in an aperture in the base 10. The interior of the ferrule 27 is screw threaded for the reception of a terminal screw 28. A second terminal screw 29 is similarly mounted and serves to maintain the end of the conductor of the exterior circuit to which the relay is to'be connected.

Similarly the terminals 22, 23 are provided in each case with a terminal screw 32 serving to hold down the exterior conductor and-corresponding to the screw 29 of the ter- ,minal 25, but the inner end of each of these terminals is provided with a contact point vor abutment indicated as at 33 in Figs. 1

and 4. The contact point 33 may preferably be made of a contact alloy. of conventional type, such asa platinum or silver alloy or other desired contact metal. The terminals 22, 23, 24, 25 which are located at the corners of the base are provided with L shaped bar- .riers, such as 34, on the upper surface of the base 10 contiguous therewith so as to reduce electrical leakage across the surface of the base. Similarly the intermediate terminals 20, 21 are provided with U shaped barriers such as 35, on the upper surface of the base 10 contiguous therewith for the same purpose.

The central portion of the upper face of .the base 10 is slightly raised as'at 40 and there ismounted thereon an i. shaped yoke 41; formed of paramagnetic material. The yoke 41-is securedin fixed positionto the base 10 by means of a "pairof machine screws 42, 42 extending uhrough suitable apertures in the baseIO. One leg of the yoke 41 extends substantially parallel with the upper face of the base 10. An electromagnet'43 is provided, including a core 44 of paramagnetic. ma-

terial upon which an energizing coil 45 is wound. The :core 44 is secured at one end to the upstanding leg of the yoke 41 by a machine screw 47 there being interposed if desired between the .fixed end of the core 44 and the proximate face ofthe yoke 41 a washer 48 formed ofa diamagnetic solid material su'ch' as brass. This washer serves as a gap in the magnetic circuit of the relay and efiectively prevents sticking of the armature. The horizontal leg of the yoke 41.is bifurcated (see Fig. 6.) and the'tines are per- 7 'forated asat 49 for a pivot pin to be depair OfzthGSG holes,.a pairof flat head machine screws 52 respectively forming a support for a block of insulating material 51 extending transversely across the relay and form'- ing a bridge thereon. Mounted on each of the extremities of the bridge 51 is a terminal member as at 53, 54, these being alike in construction so that a description of one will suffice for both. Each comprises a bent mean strip 55 formed preferably of'brass which may be bent into desired position and whichwill hold its adjustment. One end of "the strip 55 is provided with a terminal screw 56 for engaging the end of the conductor of the exterior circuit to which the respective back contact of the relay is to be connected. The free end of the strip 55 is provided with a contact point or abutment indicated as at 57, which may preferably be formed of a contact alloy of conventional type such as a platinum or silver alloy or other desired contact metal. A. pair of barriers 58, 58 is provided on the block, 51, in

spaced relation, in order to reduce electrical leakage between the terminals 53, 54. a

An armature 60 formed of magnetizable material is pivotally mounted as by a pin 61 extending through the armature and through the alined apertures 49 in the bifurcations 'eachof its ends an elongated movable contact spring designated respectively 66, 67. The free end'of each movable contact spring is provided with a contact point indicatedas at 68 formed of a contact alloy such as platinum or silver alloy or other desired contact material. A pair of barriers 63, 63 is provided on .theblock 64 in order to reduce electrical leakage between the movable springs 66, 67;

For serving as an abutment for the rivets which maintain thecontact spring 66 in place on the block 64 there is provided a stamping 70 illustrated in detail in Figs. 4 and 5. The stamping 70 is-preferably formed of metal relatively thicker than that. of the movable contact springs 66 or otherwise made relatively more sturdy. A pair of rivets such as 71, 71 extend successively through the block'64, the end portions of the respective contact springs 66, the stamping-70, thus securing all three members together. The stamping 70, however, serves to protect the relatively soft metal of the contact member 66 from the pressure exerted by the rivet head. The stamping 70 is latterly recessed as at 72, 7 3,

and there is secured midway between these recesses as at 74 a pigtail conductor 75, which forms a spiral loop around the stamping 7 O and terminates at its outer end under the head of the screw 28. Thus the stamping serves the additional functions of forming a terminal for the pigtail and for effectively protecting the pigtail against accidental damage by tools or otherwise. It is understood that the construction illustrated in Fig. 5 is provided also for maintaining the other movable contact spring 67.

The horizontal leg of the yoke 41 is provided with a pair of alined slots as at 80, 81, one of the slots 81 being slightly wider than the other. A slidable member 82 formed of paramagnetic material is held in intimate contact with the face of the yoke 41 by means of a pair of filister head machine screws 83, 83 extending through the slots 80, 81 respectively and into screw-threaded apertures in the member 82. The member 82 has a transverse dimension slightly less than the distance between the bifurcations of the yoke 41 and extends slightly over the end edge 84 of the yoke between the bifurcations. The end of the member 82 is provided with a shading coil 85, comprising at least one turn of electrically conducting material short circuited upon itself. The arrangement is such that when the armature 60 is in its operated position the front face of the armature makes intimate contact with the end edge of the slidable member 82. It is understood that the adjustment of the slidable member 82 is made during the assembly of the relay and that this adjustment is such as to secure intimate magnetic contact between the armature 60 and the member 82 and is then fixed by tightening the screws 83. The provision of a slot 81 of relatively increased width permits slight angular displacement of the slidable member 82 so as to compensate for variations in manufacture, or shop tolerances, which may result in the apertures 49, 49 of the two spaced tines of the yoke 41 being slightly out of alinement.

In the assembly of the relay the terminals 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 are secured to the base 10. The fixed portion of the yoke 41 is then mounted on the base 10 by screws 42, 42. The slidable member 82 is loosely mounted on the fixed element 41, but the screws 83, 83 are not tightened. The sub assembly comprising the bridge 51, and the back contacts 53, 54 is mounted on the yoke 41, a selection of the holes 50 being made in accordance with the operating requirements which the particular relaybeing assembled is expected to meet. If it 1s desired for example, that the relay operate under relatively small current the lowermost hole 50 isselected; or if a higher current flow is to'be used the upper hole is selected. The electromagnet 43 comprising the core 44 and the winding 45 is now mounted upon the upstanding leg of the yoke 41 by means of the screw 47, a washer 48 being interposed in the magnetic circuit at this point to provide a gap whereby sticking of the relay after having been operated, is effectively prevented. The screw 47 is tightened as much as possible. The pigtails 75 are attached to the terminals 24, 25 by the screws 30. The sub assembly comprising the armature 60, the weight 62, the block 64, the springs 66, 67 held by a stamping 70 is now pivotally mounted on the horizontal leg of the yoke 41 by means of the pin 61. Current is now applied to the winding 45 to attract the armature 60. The front face of the armature contacts with the free end of the core 44, but there may be considerable lost motion at the pin 61, or at one of the tines of the yoke 41. Such lost motion may result from variations in shop manufacture which are unavoidable and expectant in high speed quantity production. All of the lost motion may be eliminated, however, and the magnetic gap at the hinge of the armature fully closed, in the operative position of the armature by moving the slidable member 82 into intimate contact with the front face of thearmature. The member 82 may be slightly rotated about the aperture if necessary to take up discrepancies in alinement of the apertures through the spaced tines. When a snug contact has been secured the screws 83, 83 are tightened so as to maintain the member 82 in fixed position relative to the fixed portion of the yoke 41. A fine adjustment of the back contacts may now be made by bending the strips 55. A coarse adjustment of the back contacts 53, 54 with consequent modification of the normal operating current required to attract the armature, is made by selecting the desired hole 50 for the insertion of the member 52. A finer adjustment may be made subsequently however, by bending the strip 55, the arrangement being such that the path of travel of the contact point 57 resulting from such bending of the respective spring is a rotary one and is such that the contact point remains within the zone of engagement with the contact point 68 of the movable spring member.

In operation, assume that the terminals 20, 21 are connected into circuit with a source of energy for operating the relay and that the terminals 24, 25 are connected to that portion of a circuit which is to be switched, and that the terminals 53, 54 are connected to that portion of the exterior circuit which is normally in circuit but is disconnected upon'the operation of the relay, and that the terminals 22, 23 are connected to that portion of the exterior circuit which is normally out of circuit but is to be connected into circuit when the relay is energized. It may be assumed, however, that various functions of the relay may be dispensed with if desired. For example, the relay may be employed in any of the following five combinations, the first combination being that just described:

FB FB FB F FB B F F F B rent energizes the winding 15 of the coil as and causes energization of the electromagnetic structure of the relay. The armature 60 is thereupon attracted and is moved from the position of Fig. 3 into the position of Fig. 1.

Movement of the armature in the clockwise direction indicated in the drawings causes movement of the movable contactsprings 66, 67, carrying the contacts 68 thereof away from the back contacts 54, 53 respectively and thus breaking'the external circuit associated with the back contacts. In the energized position of the relay the contact points 68 of the movable contact springs 66, 67 make contact with the contacts 33 of the terminals 28, 22 respectively, and thus establish that portion of the external circuit connected thereto. If the operating current is alternating or intermittent in character, each change in magneto motive force causes the lines of force to cut the shading coil 85, producing in this coil momentary currents, which in turn set up momentarily a magnetic field tending to avoid chattering at the magnetic gap near the coil. For example, the shading coil 85 effectively prevents chatter of the armature 60 with respect to the sliding member 82. V

Thus the relay will remain in its operative position even when operated on alternating or pulsating currents, and may also of course be operated on direct current. In the latter case, the shading coils may be omitted.

When the circuit of the winding 45 is broken the device is deenergized and the armature 60 returns by virtue of the weight 62 to the normal position shown in Fig. 3. The movable contact springs 66, 67 are then rotated in a counter clockwise direction, breaking the front contact circuits respectively and again closing the back contact circuits. The relay is now ready for a subsequent use in like manner.

Theinvention upon which this application is based is broader than the specific embodiment shown and described for the'purpose of illustrating at least one of the ways in which it may be employed. The scope of the invention is therefore to be understood as not being limited by the present specific description. I intend no limitations other than those imposed by the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an electromagnetic device, an elect-romagnet having a magnetic return element, an armature, means for mounting said armature in such position as to normally leave an air gap between the armature and said element when the armature is in closed position, and a slidable magnetic member including a short circuited winding arranged to be locked in fixed position for wholly closing said air gap when said armature is in closed position.

2. In an electromagnetic device, an electromagnet having a return element, an armature pivotally mounted on said element in such position as to leave an air gap, a slidable member arranged to be secured in fixed position for wholly closing said air gap, and a shading coil mounted on said slidable member for effectively preventing chatter at the contact between the armature and said member. I

3. In an electromagnetic device, the combination with a magnetizable yoke comprising a fixed portion and a portion movable relative thereto, of an armature p-ivotally secured to the fixed portion and in contact with the movable portion, a coil secured to the fixed portion, and means for maintaining said yoke portions relatively fixed.

4. In an electromagnetic device, an electromagnet having a fixed element, an armature pivotally mounted on said fixed element in such position as to leave an air gap between the armature and the fixed element, a takeup member movably mounted to take up said gap, and a shading coil mounted on said movable member for effectively preventing chatter of the armature. V r 5. An electromagnetic device having a hinged armature, a moving plate arranged to make intimate contact with said armature in the operated position thereof, and a shading coil near said contacttoprevent chatter.

6. In an electromagnetic device, the combination with an electromagnet having a magnetic return element, an armature, meansfor mounting said armature in such position as to normally leave an air gap between the armature and said element when said armature is in closed-position, a movable member in said mounting means arranged to be locked in fixed position for wholly closing said air gap, and means for preventing chatter comprising a shading coil mounted on said movable member.

7 In an electromagnetic device, the combination with a magneti'zable yoke comprising a fixed bifurcated portion and a portion movable relative thereto, of an armature rotatably mounted between the bifurcations of the fixed portion, means for securing said movable portion in contact with said armature, and a solenoid for actuating said armature.

8. In a relay device, an electromagnetic structure including a fixed element and a slidable element, magnetic means for energizing the device, an armature attracted upon energization thereof and arranged to make intimate contact with said slidable element, a plurality of movable contact springs carried y said armature, a plurality of back contacts engaging said movable springs in the normal position, of the relay, an insulatin block supporting said back contacts, an

means for selectively securing said block to said fixed element.

9. In a relay, an armature, an insulating block mounted on said armature, a plurality of movable contact springs, a plurality of flexible conductors for conducting current to said contact springs respectively, fastening devices and means comprising a corresponding plurality of stampings each serving to terminate the respective flexible conductor,

and as an abutment for the fastening devices.

10. In a relay, an armature, an insulating block mounted on said armature, a plurality of movable contact springs, a plurality of flexible conductors for conducting current to said contact springs respectively, fastening devices, and means comprising a corresponding plurality of stampings each having a plurality of notches to register with the respective flexible conductor and each serving to terminate the respective flexible conductor to shield said conductor, and as an abutment for the fastening devices.

11. In an electromagnetic device, an electromagnet having a return yoke and an armature, means for mounting said armaturre in such position as to leave an air gap between the armature and the yoke when said armature is in closed position, and means associated with the yoke for relatively adjusting said armature and said yoke whereby said an gap may be closed when said armature is in operative position.

12. In an electromagnetic device, an electromagnet having a return circuit, said return circuit being formed with a pair of tines, a shading coil mounted between said tines, and an armature normally contacting with both of said tines and with the core of said electromagnet to effect a third point contact with said armature.

Si ned at Newark in the county of Essex and tate of New Jersey this 6th day of June JOHN E. FUNK.

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