US3535065A - Igniter cartridge - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 20, 1970 A. GUENIN IGNITER CARTRIDQE 4Shets-Sheet1 Filed July 9, 1968 Oct. 20, 1970 ALGUENIN 3,535,065

IGNITER CARTRIDGE I Filed July 9, 1968 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 20, 1970 1.. A. GUENIN I GNITER CARTRIDGE 4 Sheets-Shed 5 Filed July 9, 1968 OCL 20, 1970 GUEMN 3 ,535,065

. IGNI TER CARTRIDGE Filed July 9, 1968 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 United States Patent US. Cl. 431267 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An igniter cartridge using a pyrophoric or hypergolic material stored in a holder and released from the cartridge through a discharge orifice opened and closed by the movement of a spring driven inertial member.

The invention relates to an igniter cartridge using a pyrophoric or hypergolic material and suitable for a smokers lighter and other devices having a burner that must be ignited.

It has been suggested that pyrophoric and hypergolic materials be used in igniters, notably to ignite the burner of devices such as smokers lighters. It is apparent that igniters of this kind are also suitable to a great variety of implements and devices having a burner that must be ignited, such as stoves, heaters or burner illumination lamps.

These igniters can use either a pyrophoric material, which ignites spontaneously on exposure to air, or a hypergolic material, which ignites spontaneously on exposure to fuel, hereinafter, and in the claims, the term pyrophoric material is intended to embrace also hypergolic material. By way of example, a material suitable for these igniters is aluminium borohydride.

Suitable pyrophoric materials are usually very expensive, and it is necessary to provide a device that releases only minute quantity of the material into the air each time that the burner is to be ignited.

Advantageously, the pyrophoric material is contained in a replaceable cartridge, so that the device can be quickly put into working order merely by substituting a fresh cartridge for the empty one.

It has previously been proposed to manufacture flexible-wall cartridges having a discharge orifice for the material and a closure member for closing the: orifice. However, when attempting to construct small cartridges of this type, which can be easily mounted in a device of small dimensions such as a smokers lighter, it is very difficult to manufacture reliably thin-walled cartridges of. which the wall thickness is held within sufiiciently close tolerances.

Various attempts have shown that it is difiicult to provide a mechanism housed in the cartridge for the purpose of releasing the pyrophoric material. This is true where the mechanism must operate from the outside, even though only small amounts of the material are to be delivered. An operating member must be provided which passes through the cartridge wall, there being a sealing joint between the member and the surrounding part of the wall. It is difficult to produce absolutely reliable sealing member in mass production. The difficulty is that these joints are quickly attacked by the usual pyrophoric materials, so that the sealing after some time is poor, which can lead to leakage and loss of the pyrophoric substance.

The purpose of the igniter cartridge of the invention is to avoid the preceding drawbacks and difficulties.

An object of the invention is a cartridge for an igniter, including an outer case containing a pyrophoric material, a discharge orifice in said case through which the pyro- Patented Oct. 20, 1970 phoric material is released, an obturator in said case for opening and closing said discharge orifice, an inertial member located within said case and movable therein and mechanically independent of the exterior thereof for moving said obturator with respect to said case to momentarily open said discharge orifice.

This object and others of the invention will be apparent from the ensuing detailed description.

The invention will be described with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view in longitudinal cross-section of a first embodiment of a cartridge and mechanism for releasing and ejecting a predetermined amount of the pyrophoric material.

FIG. 2 is a view in longitudinal cross-section of a second embodiment of a cartridge and mechanism for releasing and ejecting a predetermined quantity of material.

FIG. 3 is a view in longitudinal cross-section of a third embodiment of a cartridge and mechanism for releasing and ejecting a predetermined amount of material.

FIG. 4 is a view in longitudinal cross-section of a fourth embodiment of a cartridge and mechanism for releasing and ejecting a predetermined amount of material.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are longitudinal views in cross-section of respective embodiments of the cartridge of the invention.

With reference to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the igniter comprises an outer case 1 for the cartridge mounted in a tubular holder 2 in which it is free to move a little. A Washer 3 of resilient material, positioned between the upper end of the cartridge and a screwed down cap 4, presses the lower end of the cartridge against a supporting shoulder 2a incorporated in the holder 2.

The case 1 contains a charge of a pyrophoric material held in the glass wool 5 enclosed in a perforated drum 6. The upper end of the case embodies a discharge orifice in the bottom of a tubular member 7, the orifice being closed by the head 10 of a closure member or obturator 8 biased by a compression spring 9.

Within the case, between the discharge orifice and the drum 6, there is located an inertial member 11 acted upon by a compression spring 12, the movement of the member being guided by a stem 13 unitary with it and projecting into a tubular part 14 of the drum 6.

A hand-operated actuating button 15 is slidingly mounted in the lower part of the holder 2 to move against a return spring 16. The upper rim 17 of the button is bent inwards to retain the lower end of'a member 18 acting as a hammer which is held spaced from the lower end of the button by a compression spring 19.

Normally, the hammer-member 18 is held in the position shown by a spring claw 20. But when the button 15 is depressed against the force of the springs 16 and 19, the button rim 17 bears against the inclined surface 21 of the claw 20 and forces it outwards so as to free the hammer-member 18, which is then propelled upwards by the spring 19 and caused to strike the lower end of the cartridge 1. The movement of the latter against the resilient washer 3 (the resilience afterwards returning the cartridge case 1 to its original position) occasions a sudden displacement of the interial member 11, which latter hits the obturator 8 and thus opens the discharge orifice. Thus the inertial member or mass 11 is moved while being free of any mechanical connection with the outside of the cartridge.

When the button 15 is released, the spring 16 simultaneously returns it and the hammer-member 18 to their 3 starting positions, the member 18 once again being locked by the claw 20.

The ejection of the desired amount of the pyrophoric material through the discharge orifice is facilitated by a saucer-shaped washer 22, carried by the upper face of the inertial member 11 and acting as a one-way valve. When the member 11 moves upwards, this washer forms a seal with the interior wall of the cartridge case 1, so as to compres the pyrophoric material held between this washer and the discharge orifice. The washer 22 is sufficiently flexible so that pyrophoric material from the drum 6 is free to enter the space comprised between this washer and the discharge orifice, while the inertial member returns to its starting position. Thus, the washer 22 functions in the manner of the piston of an air-compressor pump, and contributes to the ejection of the pyrophoric material through the discharge orifice when the latter is open.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is similar to that of FIG. 1, except that here the energy stored in the spring 19 by pressing in the actuating button acts directly on the base of the cartridge case 1, which latter rises until the inwardly bent rim 23 of a sleeve 24 strikes a shoulder 25 in the holder 2. The inertial member 11, in the shape of a piston, consequently moves upwards to hit the stem of the obturator 8, as previously described. Here again the member 11 is displaced without help of a materially connection through the casing of the cartridge. Thus, the member 11 is mechanically independent from the exterior of the cartridge. This embodiment also differs from the first in that the member 11 is guided in its longitudinal movement by a finger 26 fixed to the drum 6 and projecting with clearance into a blind hole embodied in the member 11. A seal 27 is fixed to the upper end of the holder 2. The seal is sufficiently flexible so that the cartridge case 1 is free to move upwards as required.

The third embodiment, shown in FIG. 3 differs from the first two in that the intertial member 11, which acts as a piston, itself carries a needle-shaped obturator 30 which closes the discharge orifice incorporated in a diaphragm 30a. To open the orifice, the inertial member and the obturator must move downwards. To this end, the cartridge case 1 is mounted in a bushing 31 that slides in the holder 2. Depressing the button 15 moves the bushing downwards, the energy thus stored in the spring 19 being liberated when the base of the bushing contacts the inclined surface 21 of the claw 20, which later, spring-biased clockwise, is forced to pivot counterclockwise, freeing the cartridge case 1, which moves downwardly until its lower rim 32 strikes a shoulder 33 of the holder 2. At this instant the member 11 moves downwards, withdrawing the obturator 30 from the discharge orifice and momentarily opening the latter. The member 11 is acted upon by a return compression spring 34, which propels the former away from the drum 6 and pushes the obturator back into the orifice, which is again sealingly shut. The to and fro movement of the member is again produced without mechanical connecting element between the outside and inside of the cartridge.

In this embodiment the inertial member 11 again has a one-way valve 22 contacting the interior wall of the cartridge case. When the inertial member moves downwards the pyrophoric material held in the lower part of the cartridge case 1 escapes into the upper part thereof by passing around the valve. But when the inertial member rises, the one-way valve prevents the pyrophoric material from returning to the lower part of the cartridge case, and instead ejects it through the discharge orifice before it is closed by the obturator 30.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5, the general arrangement of the cartridge is similar to that of the preceding forms, but the manner of moving the inertial member 11 is different. The cartridge case 1 does not move. Instead, partly surrounding it is a magnetic coupler 36 movable, by means of a hand-operated actuator 39, along two shafts 37 against the action of springs 38. Both the inertial member 11 and the coupler 36 are of a magnetic material, such as a ferromagnetic material, one or both being a permanent magnet. The cartridge case 1 is made of a non-magnetic substance, such as aluminium.

In operation, depressing the magnetic coupler 36 causes the inertial member 11 to move downwards against the bias of a return spring 40, until the force of the latter exceeds the magnetic force between the member 11 and the coupler. Consequently, the inertial member is propelled upwards by the spring 40, at the end of its movement striking the obturator 8 and raising the latters head 10 to open the discharge orifice. When the actuator 39 is released, the coupler 36 returns to its starting position, whereupon the igniter can be operated again. In this embodiment the connection between the inside and outside of the cartridge is immaterial since it is produced by a magnetic field.

In FIG. 6 is shown a variation of a cartridge similar to that mounted in the device illustrated in FIG. 2. The drum 6, holding fibre soaked with a pyrophoric material, is held in a stamped sheet iron cartridge case 45, with a seal 46 between the drum and the cartridge case. The inertial member 11 is guided in the cartridge case in which it is free to move against a compression spring 47. The inertial member carries a stem 48, of which the head 49 forms a conical extension that engages in a discharge orifice 50 embodied in the case 45.

The cartridge of this embodiment can be used together with an operating mechanism of the kind shown in FIG. 2. When the upper end of the cartridge case comes to abutment, the member 11 and the stem 48 continue to rise, causing the discharge orifice 50 momentarily to open.

FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of a cartridge intended to be used in conjunction with the device shown in FIG. 3. The stamped sheet iron cartridge case 45 incorporates a discharge orifice closed by a needle-shaped obturator 51 fixed to the upper end of a round-bottomed container 52, which holds the pyrophoric material in a fibrous wad and is free to move against the action of a compression spring 53. The lower end of the container 52 narrows to a downwardly extending projection 54, which engages, and holds the container in a central opening of a diaphragm 55 that thus acts as a guiding member for the container 52. The latter thereby serves as the inertial body 11 of the preceding forms, enabling a reduction in the weight and in the size since the mass of the pyrophoric material stored contributes to the kinetic energy that causes the obturator 51 to open the orifice.

In all of the embodiments of the invention described, a small amount of pyrophoric material is discharged by movement of the respective obturator 8, 30, 49 or 51, which is released by means of exterior of the cartridge and requires no opening in the cartridge other than the discharge orifice.

Although the preferred embodiments of the invention have been described, the scope of, and the breadth of protection afforded to, the invention are limited solely by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A cartridge for an igniter, the cartridge having an outer case containing a pyrophoric material, a discharge orifice in said case through which the pyrophoric material is released and obturating means in said case for opening and closing said discharge orifice, and wherein the improvement includes an inertial means located entirely within said case and movable therein and mechanically independent of the exterior thereof, actuating means accessible at said exterior of the case and movable relative to the latter, and spring means loaded in response to initial movement of said actuating means to store energy which, upon further movement of said actuating means, S released to said inertial means for moving said obturating means with respect to said case to momentarily open said discharge orifice.

2. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, including means for guiding the movement of said inertial means.

3. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, including a quantity of fibrous material in which the pyrophoric material is held, said fibrous material being positioned within said case and spaced from said discharge orifice, and wherein said inertial means is located between said fibrous material and obturating means.

4. The cartridge as defined in claim 3, wherein said inertial means constitutes a piston for moving the pyrophoric material towards said discharge orifice.

5. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, including means for guiding the movement of said inertial means, a quantity of fibrous material in which the pyrophoric material is held, said fibrous material being positioned within said case and spaced from discharge orifice, and wherein said inertial means is located beween said fibrous material and obturating means and constitutes a piston for moveing the pyrophoric material towards said discharge orifice.

6. The cartridge as defined in claim 5, wherein said inertial means is movable from a rest position towards said discharge orifice and back to the rest position and including a one-way valve means carried by said inertial means and moving therewith and contacting the interior wall surface of said case so as to form in the latter a chamber between said discharge orifice and one-way valve means, whereby said one-way valve means drives the pyrophoric material towards said discharge orifice when said inertial means moves towards the latter and allows the pyrophoric material free passage when said inertial means returns to its rest position.

7. The cartridge as defined in claim 6, wherein the cartridge is round in cross-section, and said one-way valve means has a circular periphery that contacts the interior wall surface of said case and forms a seal therewith when said inertial means moves towards said discharge orifice so as to prevent the pyrophoric material from escaping from said chamber except through said discharge orifice when the latter is open but said one-way valve means allows the pyrophoric material to enter said chamber when said inertial means returns to its rest position.

8. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, wherein said obturating means is carried by said inertial means and moves therewith, and including resilient means acting on said inertial means so as to cause said obturating means to close said discharge orifice.

9. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, wherein said obturating means includes a stem that is moved when said inertial means is moved, whereby said discharge orifice is opened and closed.

10. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, wherein said inertial means is of a ferromagnetic material for movement by a magnetic field, and said case is non-magnetic.

11. The cartridge as defined in claim 10, in which said actuating means includes a member of magnetic material movably mounted at the exterior of said case, at least one of said inertial means and said member of the actuating means being a permanent magnet, whereby movement of said actuating means causes movement of said inertial means in a direction to load said spring means until the loading of said spring means overcomes the magnetic coupling therebtween and the energy stored by said spring means is released to said inertial means.

12. The cartridge as defined in claim 1, including a perforated container for the pyrophoric material, said container constituting said inertial means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,419,769 4/1947 Frank 222-500 2,760,364 8/1956 DAlton et a]. 431-267 3,184,119 5/1965 Hull 222-500 EDWARD G. FAVORS, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 222-500

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