US2595919A - Remote-control system employing a thermal delay switch - Google Patents

Description

y 6, 1952 J. L. BONANNO 2,595,919

REMOTE-CONTROL SYSTEM EMPLOYING A THERMAL DELAY SWITCH Filed Nov. 12, 1947 2 SHEETSSHEET l IN VEN TOR. JOSEPH L Eamnmvo YM f.

A TTORNE Y y 6, 1952 J. L. BONANNO 2,595,919

REMOTE-CONTROL SYSTEM EMPLOYING THERMAL DELAY SWITCH. Filed NOV. 12, 1947 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 IN V EN TOR. 705524 Z 60M4A/N0 A TTOR NE Y Patented May 6, 1952 REMOTE-CONTROL SYSTEM EMPLOYING A THERMAL DELAY SWITCH Joseph L. Bonanno, Madison, N. J assignor to The Lionel Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 12, 1947, Serial No. 785,407

3 Claims.

1 The present invention relates to remote control systems employing thermal delay switches and is more particularly directed toward such switches and circuits suitable for use in the operation of toy railroad cars.

It is customary to provide toy railroad cars with an instantaneously operated device such as an electromagnetically operated coupler and with some other electrically operated accessories such as dump car mechanism, door opening mechanism, merchandise handling mechanism or the like operated less frequently, or subsequently. See, for example, my Patent No. 2,232,508, February 18, 1941. The present invention aims to provide an arrangement whereby the couplers may be actuated when desired and whereby the other accessories may be actuated after the couplers have been actuated, the controls requiring no more than the usual power and return rails which carry the propulsion current for the toy railroad trains.

According to the present invention the car carries a relay which is not responsive to propulsion current but is responsive to non-propulsion current in the rails. This non-propulsion current may be a tuned radio frequency current, produced as shown in my application Serial No. 779,273, filed October 11, 1947, or a direct current component superimposed upon the A. C. propulsion current. A relay operated in such superposed current is shown inmy Patent No. 2,155,343, dated April 18, 1939.

The present invention makes it possible to control the couplers or the accessory as desired when the car is at any place along the usual two rail or three rail track.

Other and further objects will appear as the description proceeds.

The accompanying drawings show, for purposes of illustrating the present invention, one form, together with modified forms of circuit, it being understood that the drawings are illustrative of the invention rather than limiting the same,

In these figures:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a thermal delay switch together with wiring diagram;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view on the line 2-2 of Figure 1; I

Figure 3 is an end view taken from the right of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an exploded view showing the component parts;

Figure 5 illustrates a modified wiring diagram; and

Figure 6 shows a complete wiring diagram for 2. a radio frequency control and part of the car.

The thermal delay switch has an insulating base Ill' having a threaded hole II, two notches I2, I2, and two holes I3, I3. Immediately above this base is a bimetallic thermal element I5 of U-shape. This thermal element has two contact terminals I6, I! which protrude beyond the base, two holes I8, I8 spaced the same as the holes I3, I3, and its left end as shown in the drawings is entirely free. This bimetallic element is so arranged that its free end bends upwardly away from the base upon heating of the bimetallic element by currents flowing through it.

Immediately above the bimetallic element I5 is a spacer l9, made of insulating material and above this spacer is a sheet of insulating paper and a flexible sheet metal contact plate 2|. The contact plate, insulating sheet and thermal element all have the same general contour and are provided with holes which align with the holes I3. The free end of the contact plate 2| carries a silver contact 24. Immediately above the contact plate 2| is another spacer similar to the spacer I9. A cover plate 26 has stiflening side flanges 21, 2'! and prongs 28 adapted to enter the notches I2 and be bent about the bot tom of the base. The plate 26 has holes 29 adapted to be aligned with similar plate holes in the other parts, and hollow rivets 30, 39 and spacers 3|, 3| are employed to assemble the other parts together. The contact plate 26 has a bendable tongue 32 carrying a silver contact 33 opposite the contact 24 of the flexible plate 2|. The tongue 32 is adapted to be bent to adjusted position by a screw 34 passing through the threaded hole II.

The contact plate 2| has a protruding soldering lug 35 and the cover member 26 has a similar lug 36. The thermal delay switch is carried on the car C, Fig. 6, and one side of the bimetallic element (for example I1) is connected by wires 31, 38 with electromagnetic couplers 39, 39 carried by the car and grounded as usual to the return rail 45. The other terminal I6 of the bimetallic element is connected by wire 49 with a contact 4| adapted to be engaged by an armature 42 of a relay 43. As shown in Figures 1 and 6, this relay is of the type adapted for use in an electronic controller and forms part of a car carried assembly R which also includes a rectifier 46 and a tuned radio frequency receiver 47. These parts are connected through the usual contact rollers 44' on the car to the power rail 44 and through the wheels 45' as usual to the return rail 45.

The propulsion current circuit includes a variable voltage stepdown transformer 6| connected to the power supply wires 62 and having an output circuit whose wires 63 and G4 are connected to terminals 65 and 66 of a radio frequency transmitter designated generally by the reference character 61. This radio frequency transmitter has an output coil 68 composed of a few turns of heavy copper wire connected with the terminal 65 and with an output terminal 69. The terminal 66 of the controller 61 is connected by a strap 10 to an output terminal 10. The terminals 69 and 10 of the radio frequency transmitter are connected by wires H and 12 with the center and grounded rails 44 and 45 of the track layout.

The radio frequency transmitter 61 has input terminals 80 and 8| adapted to be connected to the power supply 62. The transmitter is here shown as provided with a diode-pentode vacuum tube having two filaments 83 and 84 connected between the terminals 80 and 8|. The filament 83 cooperates with an anode 85 and cathode 86 of a diode section, while the filament 84 cooperates with a cathode 81 and anode 88 and two grids 89 and 90 respectively of a pentode section. The anode 85 of the diode section is connected to the filament as indicated at 9l'. The anode 88 of the pentode section is connected by a wire indicated at 92 with one side of a trimmer condenser 83 and with a metal plate 94 having a plurality of resilient fingers 95 adapted to be brought into engagement with contacts 96 connected toa plurality of taps carried by a tank coil 91. One end of the tank coil 91 is connected to the trimmer condenser 93 by a wire indicated at 98, while the other end of the tank coil 91 is connected through a radio frequency choke 99 and wire ice with the cathode 96 of the diode section. Two condensers [Ill and IE2 are in series with one another and in parallel with the trimmer condenser. These condensers are connected to the filament circuit by a wire indicated at I03, the condenser Hll is shunted by a condenser I04 and resistance I connected to the control grid 90 by a wire I05. The control grid 99 is connected to the radio frequency choke lead I06 through a resistance [06 and the cathode 81 and filament circuit through a condenser [91. A condenser H18 interconnects the filament 84 and cathode 81 with the choke lead I00. A condenser I09 is placed across the input terminals 65 and 66 to by-pass the radio frequency currents on the power side.

When the device is designed for operation on 60 cycle house current and employs a No. 117N7GT tube suitable values for the condensers, resistances, choke and tank coil may be selected whereby it is possible to secure frequencies of from 240 to 360 kilocycles to be supplied the propulsion circuit and a selected frequency in this range is available when the desired button is depressed.

The receivers such as R have wiring diagrams such as shown in Figures 1 and 6. The receiver R shown at the left end of Figure 6 responds to one selected frequency and is adapted for controlling a particular load, while the receiver R carried on the car C responds to a different frequency and is used to control the two loads through the thermal relay.

When the relay 43 closes the circuit at contact 42 current flows from the power rail directly to the contact 42 and through the wire 40 to the thermal relay parts described in detail herein. When this circuit is closed propulsion current as well as any other circuit circulates through the load circuit of the thermal relay. The power of course comes from the power transformer 6|, the electromagnetic relay acting as connecting means to the power line.

Where it is desired to employ the thermal relay in a circuit having a relay operated by superposed direct current as in my Patent No. 2 $55,343, a direct current sensitive relay such as shown at 23 in that patent is used instead of the relay 43 discussed above.

When the track circuit is provided with radio frequency currents of the frequency corresponding with that of the tuned receiver the relay is actuated and current flows through the thermal element to the couplers to operate them. On heating of the thermal element it moves against the insulating sheet 20 and applies pressure to the free end of the flexible sheet 20 and applies pressure to the free end of the flexible contact plate 2| bringing the contact 24 against the contact 33. This interconnects plates 2! and 26. These plates may be employed as control switches for additional accessories. The circuit can be connected as shown in Figure 1 wherein the relay connected side 16 of the thermal element is connected to one of the soldering lugs 35 or as while the other lug is connected to an accessory device such as an unloading coil 59, which is grounded. It will be noted in this arrangement that the current for operating the unloading coil does not pass through the thermal element. These parts can readily be manufactured and adjusted so as to operate with rather precise timing so that when the relay receives but a short impulse of operating current the couplers only are operated and when the relay circuit is closed for a few seconds the thermal element acts to close the circuit to the other accessory.

The same structure for thermal retarder can be used as a direct thermal relay as indicated in Figure 5 in which the thermal element 15 is in a circuit entirely different from that of contact members 24' and 33.

Since it is obvious that the invention may be embodied in other forms and constructions within the scope of the claims, I wish it to be understood that the particular form shown is but one of these forms, and various modifications and changes being possible, I do not otherwise limit myself in any way with respect thereto.

What is claimed is:

l. A toy railroad car having two current collectors cooperable with the usual rails, a relay on the car connected to the current collectors to be energized therefrom, the relay being non-responsive to propulsion current but responsive to nonpropulsion current in the rails, and a normally open work-circuit on the car closed when the relay is energized, said work circuit including two current consuming electromagnetic devices one permanently connected to the relay through a bimetallic thermal member adapted to be heated by flow of current, the other including a switch closable by the thermal member when heated, whereby one of the electromagnetic devices may be actuated by instantaneous energizing of the relay, and the other device actuated only after the relay has been energized for a predetermined time.

2. A toy railroad car as claimed in claim 1 wherein the relay connection includes a tuned radio frequency receiver and rectifier.

3. A toy railroad car having power supply and grounded current collectors cooperable with the usual rails, a pair of electromagnetically opera- .ble couplers connected to the grounded current collector, a car-carried electrically operated accessory connected to the grounded current col lector, a normally open car-carried relay having one contact connected to the power supply rail, a bimetallic thermal element connected between the other contact of the relay and the couplers so that coupler operating current passes through the thermal element upon closing of the relay, and a relay connected accessory operating circuit in parallel with the thermal element and coupler and including a pair of normally open contacts closable by the thermal element.

JOSEPH L. BONANNO.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,073,443 Cardoza Mar. 9, 1937 2,173,483 King Sept. 19, 1939 2,243,671 Ehret May 27, 1941 2,303,786 Bonanno Dec. 1, 1942 2,338,474 Wilson Jan. 4, 1944 2,425,717 Bean Aug. 19, 1947

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