US2980891A - Electromagnetic impulse counter - Google Patents

Description

April 1961 H. STEINBACH EI'AL 2,980,891

ELECTROMAGNETIC IMPULSE COUNTER Filed Sept. 14, 1955 INVENTORS H. STEINBACH R. SCHEIDIG ATTORNEY United States PatentO ELECTROMAGNETIC IMPULSE COUNTER Heinz Steinbach, Kornwestheim, Wurttemberg, and Rudolf Scheidig, Stuttgart-Feuerbach, Germany, assignors to International Standard Electric Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 14, 1955, Ser. No. 534,322 Claims priority, application Germany Sept. 24, 1954 1 Claim. (Cl. 340168) The invention relates to an electromagnetic impulse counting device used, for instance, as registers or control switches for receiving dial pulses in exchange or switching systems. Impulse counters of this kind are provided with ten armatures which are arranged next to one another and between a common attracting pole and a common retracting pole of an electromagnet and, in order of sequence, operate contact spring sets when D.C. pulses are applied to an attracting winding.

In one such known arrangement of this kind as described in Patent No. 2,487,015 issued November 1, 1949, and 2,538,818, issued January 23, 1951, the individual armatures are actuated successively, the unactuated armatures being held during impulses by the retracting pole and, in the pulse intervals, being mechanically brought into a center position lying nearer to the attracting pole by the previously attracted armature. From this center position the corresponding armature, by the next impulse, will be attracted by the attracting pole. The contact spring sets which are respectively allocated to each armature, consist in one known arrangement of four stacked contact springs which are assembled to form one front contact and one back contact. In order to permit the employment of the counting device in electrical circuits, one contact spring of the front contact may be electrically connected to the one contact spring of the back contact of the contact stack of the next succeeding armature. Hence the circuit proceeds over the front contact of the actuated spring set and over the back contact of the next succeeding spring set so that when the armature belonging to the latter is actuated the existing circuit will be disconnected. This is necessary because, owing to the good remanence of the magnet core, the attracted armature will remain stuck to the attracting pole until restored to normal position by the energization of a retracting winding.

This relatively great expenditure of contact springs is avoided in another known arrangement in which upon the actuation of an armature, the front contact, which was previously actuated is mechanically opened by the actuation of the next armature. The back contact, required in the first mentioned arrangement, will thereby be saved and the number of contact springs of each spring set will be reduced by half.

The present invention relates to an impulse counting device of the kind last referred to and has for its object the avoidance of certain disadvantages hitherto experienced therewith.

According to a feature of the present invention each spring set comprises a pair of overlying springs, the contact carrying portions of which are respectively off-set in different directions and located so that the contacts of one spring cooperate with contacts of a preceding spring set and contacts of the other spring cooperate with contacts of the next succeeding spring set.

The invention will now be particularly described with 2,980,891 Patented Apr. 18, 1961 reference to an example shown in Figs. 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawing wherein- Fig. 1 shows a schematic representation of the complete. impulse counting device;

Fig. 2 shows the form or construction of the contact springs, and

Fig. 3a shows the position of the contact springs of the impulse counting device before any impulses have been applied to its attracting winding; and

Fig. 3b shows the position of the contact springs after the application of two impulses to the attracting windmg.

The magnetic circuit of the counting impulse device consists of a core 1 carrying an attracting winding 14 and a retracting winding 15, a yoke member 2 on which are mounted the contact spring set 10a, 10b, and a preparing spring 7 and a holding spring 8 for actuat-t ing the individual armature 5. The ten armatures 5 are arranged next to one another as in U.S. Patent No. 2,538,818 previously referred to and are designed as angular armatures which are rotatable about a common axis 13. Their free ends, when in their normal condition, are hold to the retracting or hold pole 4. Only the armature which is the first to be actuated is in an intermediate position between the retracting or hold pole 4 and the attracting pole 3. The preparing springs 7 and the holding springs 8 provide in known manner that each succeeding armature 5, during the interval following an impulse, is brought into the preparatory intermediate position between the attracting and holding poles. The armatures which are attracted on account of an impulse, remain stuck to the attracting pole 3 until re turned in common to their normal position by an impulse applied to the retracting winding 15.

To each of the armatures there is associated a front contact, such as b, 101b, etc., Fig. 3. To each of these ten front contacts, which are arranged next to each other, there is functionally associated a back contact, such as 100a, 101a, etc. The first back contact 100a is closed in the normal condition (Fig. 3a). The contact springs 10a and 10b which overlie each other, are in turn provided with offset portions in the plane of the springs, whilst the contacting points themselves continue in the direction of the general longitudinal axis (Fig. 2). Thus the upper spring 10awhen viewing the counting device from the front side of the armature-is off-set toward the right-hand side, and the lower contact spring 10b toward the left-hand side. By this arrangement at the point of engagement of an armature 5 and an associated insulating pin 11 the upper spring 10a of the preceding front contact meets onto the lower spring 10b of the next succeeding front contact. The contact springs themselves may be equipped with double contacts, as shown. The upper springs 10a are slotted so that the dual contacts may act independently of each other.

In Fig. 2 the construction and shape of the contact springs 10a and 10b is shown. For reasons of clarity, on the left-hand side there is only shown the upper contact spring 10a and, on the right-hand side only the lower contact spring 10b, but the cooperation of the front contacts through the offset portions can be clearly seen from the springs in the middle.

The two end contact spring sets, i.e. the lower spring 100!) of the back first contact, and the upper spring a of the last right-hand front contact each rest on an insulating pin 11a, which is fixed in a holding frame 9. The distance of this frame 9 from the yoke 2 may be varied by means of a screw pin 12. The remainder of the insulating pins 11 are arranged to slide in apertures a a in the frame 9 and rest on the upper arms of the associated armatures 5.

In the operation of the device when the first impulse is applied the back contact 100a, 1001) is opened and remains open for indicating the busy condition of the counting device during the whole period of the impulses (impulse train) until the armatures are dropped. (The direction of movement of the armatures 5 when being attracted is indicated in Fig. 3b by means of the corresponding arrows 561 to 510). By the attraction of the first armature (arrow 501) to the attracting pole 3, the associated insulating pin 11 raises the lower contact spring 1% of the second contact set, which lower spring is firmly connected with the said pin. The insulating pin 11 also engages the upper spring 10a of the preceding back contact and opens the latter, while the second contact 101a 1011) is being closed. 011 the second impulse, the second armature will be attracted (arrow 502) and its associating insulating pin 11 raises firstly, the lower associated spring 10b (contact 1112b) and, secondly, the upper spring 10a (contact 101a) which is functionally the preceding one. The previously closed front contact 101a, 101b, will now open and the associated back contact 102a, 1112b will close. This switching position is shown in Fig. 3b, i.e. after two impulses. The actuation of the remaining front contacts -103110 is effected in an analogous manner by succeeding impulses. It will be noted that functionally each contact set is first actuated as a front contact and then as a back contact.

It may be seen from Fig. 3 that when the contact springs are shaped in the manner according to this invention, the construction of the contact assembly can be simplified and the overall height of the impulse counting device may be reduced to a minimum. This height can amount to less than of the width of the iron circuit and, consequently, of the entire width of the impulse device. The soldering terminals of the magnet coils 14 and 15 may be led through the rear portion of the yoke 2 in an electrically and magnetically insulated manner.

While we have described above the principles of our invention in connection with specific apparatus, it is to be clearly understood that this description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of my invention.

What is claimed is:

A magnetic counting device including a pole structure and means for transmitting a series of magnetizing impulses thereto, a plurality of armatures associated with said pole structure, means for successively advancing said armatures to an intermediate position in the efiective operating field of said pole structure during the counting operation, in timed sequence with said magnetizing impulses, a contact spring set associated with each armature comprising first and second contact springs overlying one another and having contact carrying portions which are off-set in difierent directions with respect to one another and positioned so that a contact of said first spring is separately associated with a contact of a spring of the preceding spring set and a contact of said second spring is operatively associated with a contact of a spring of the next succeeding spring set, and means for actuating each said spring set responsive to a further movement of its associated armature, the said last-mentioned means comprises a pin one end of which engages said armature, the other end of which engages a surface of one of said first and second contact carrying springs, and which passes through and is secured to the other of said first and second contact carrying springs.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,069,169 Leake Jan. 26, 1937 2,077,091 Brander Apr. 13, 1937 2,385,858 Horman Oct. 2, 1945 2,441,001 Bellamy May 4, 1948 2,452,568 Harrison Nov. 2, 1948 2,538,819 Bellamy Jan. 23, 1951 2,610,242 Farkas Sept. 9, 1952 2,622,143 Boswau Dec. 16, 1952

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