US417497A

US417497A - Combined support and safety device for overhead conductors

Info

Publication number: US417497A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1889-12-17
Anticipated expiration: 1906-12-17

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet '1.

R. A. MORGAN, Jr. COMBINED SUPPORT AND SAFETY DEVICE FOR OVERHEAD GONDUGTORS.

No. 417,497. Patented Dee. 17 1889 vi, PETERS. Flmln-Ulhugmphcr. Washinglom n. c.

'(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. R. A. MORGAN, Jr. COMBINED SUPPORT AND SAFETY DEVICE FOR OVERHEAD GONDUGTORS.

No. 417,497. Patented Dec. 17, 1889.

N. PETERS. Plmlniillmgmphnr, Washinglun, 0, C4

pended above the car. As .now commonly serious results.

liability of such accidents, and I accomplish vice, which is rendered operative when the wire forms one half of the electric circuit,

COMBINED SUPPORT AND SAFETY D STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT A. MORGAN, JR., OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS;

EVICE FOR OVERHEAD CONDUCTORS.

. SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 417,497, dated December 17, 18 89.

Application filed August 2'7, 1889 Serial No. 322,128, (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT A. MORGAN, J r., of Boston, county of Suffolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in a Combined Support and Safety Device for Overhead Conductors, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification,like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to electric circuits in which an overhead Wire or conductor forms one part of the circuit and the ground forms the other part thereof,'and has for its object to provide the overhead conductor with preferably a number of safety devices, as will be described,whereby the current maybe cut off from the ground in case the said wi re becomes broken or is cut.

My invention is especially applicable to electric railways of that class in which the current is taken from a trolley Wire susconstructed and known to me, thetrolleythe ground forming the other half, and if the trolley-wire becomes broken or is cut as, for instance, in case of firethe broken ends of the said wire might fall in contact with a person or animal and complete a short circuit to the ground through .the said person or animal, whioh might be attended with It is the object of-this invention to obviate my object, as herein shown, by means of a combined trolley-wire support and safety detrolley-wire is cut or broken either to completely cut the trolley-Wire out'of circuit or to shunt the current passing over the trolleywire.

My invention therefore consists in the combination, with an overhead conductor forming part of a ground-circuit and made of independent sections, of a safety device or cutout interposed between adjacent sections, whereby the current is cutoff from the ground through a broken section, substantially as will be described.

Other features of my invention will be pointed out in the claims at the end of this specification.

Figurel is a side elevation of atrolley-wire support and safety device embodying my invention, it being shown in its normal position to complete the circuit. Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the trolley-support in position to cutoff the current'from the ground; Fig. 3, an under side view of the trolley-wire support shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a transverse section of the trolley-Wire support on line x m, Fig. 1; Fig. 5, a transverse section on line y y, Fig. 1; Fig. 6, a detail to be referred to; Figs. 7, S, 9, and 10, details to be referred to; Figs. 11 and 12, modifications to be referred to; Figs. 13 and 14, details of modified forms of apparatus.

My improved support and safety device consists, as herein shown in Fig. 1, of two arms or sections a a, preferably provided with enlargements or disks a 0, which are loosely mounted, as shown, on a sleeve a of insulating material, into which is fitted a secondsleeve a which may be of metal. The sleeve a is provided with a collar a (see Fig. 4,) and the sleeve (i is also provided with a flange a between which and the collar a is located a spiral spring a Each arm a a, and its disk a a is preferably made of metal, and the disks a 'a on their inner side are provided withinsulation 1), preferably pieces of hard rubber, secured to the disks on opposite sides of a central metallic or conducting portion 2, forming one contact member of'the cut-out or safety device. The disks a a are mounted on the sleeve a so that their arms a a extend in opposite directions, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and between the said disks may, and preferably will be, inter posed'an independent ring or disk I), preferably of metal or other conducting material.

The ring 'or disk I) is provided, as herein shown, on its opposite sides 'or faces with insulation 12 which may be pleces of hard rubber, mica, or other usual insulating mate.

rial, it being shown in Fig. 7 as applied to the disk or ring b on opposite sides of a central exposed or uncovered portion 3, forming the co-operating contact member of the support or safety device. The disks a a and intermediate ring I) are secured on the sleeve a", as shown in Fig. 4, by means of a nut I), screwed upon the sleeve a, a washer l)", of insulating material, being interposed between the said nut and disk a and the inner faces of the disks a a are kept in contact with the ring I) by the spring a". The ring I), as herein shown, has secured to it a threaded post 0, upon which is placed a curved shield or guard 0, preferably of wood or insulating material, which is made of sufiicient width to cover the disks a a and ring Z) and protect them from rain, dirt, &c. The shield or guard c is provided with an upright portion 0 having bent about it, as herein shown, one end of springs c 0 extended out over the arms a a, and having their outer ends fastened to shoes 0 0, adapted to slide upon the arms a a. The springs c c are separated by washers c of insulating material, and covered by a guard 0 (shown as an inverted-trough-shaped ban) the said guard being secured on the upright 0 as shown, by a washer c and a nut c. The arms a a have secured to them the trolley-wire (7, which, as represented in Fig. 1, is made in sections, (marked 0 7,) the said sections being fastened to the arms a a, as herein shown, by screws e The trolleywire support is suspended in the air by a span wire or rod fl, secured to posts (1 at opposite sides of the roadway, and to avoid wear upon the parts of the support the sleeve (0'' is fitted upon a sleeve (7 having its opposite ends extended into a socket or recess in hubs d", secured on the span-wire by set-screw (7 Each arm (I a is preferably made thicker, as at 5, (see Fig. 3,) to obviate heating of the metal arm at that point.

In operation the current normally passes from one section of the trolley-wire, as G, to another section, as 7, through the arm a, contact'members 2 3, and arm a. If by accident or otherwise a section, as 7, of the trolleywire becomes broken, cut, or otherwise disconnected, the said section of wire will face toward the ground, and the arm (1., being thus left unsupported,will be quickly turned by the spring 0 from its horizontal position (shown in Fig. 1) to substantially the position shown in Fig. 2. As the arm 0' drops down, the contact-member 2 of the disk a is removed from contact with the member 3 of the ring I) and brought into contact with the insulation, thus breaking the circuit at this cut-out, so that if the loose trolley-wire section should come in contact with a person or animal, or, it may be, wit-l1 combustible material, no injurious effects would result.

In order to prevent the arm a from being raised again after it has fallen, I have provided a locking device for the said arm, it being herein shown as a projection (Z 011 each side or face of the ring 1), which co-operates with a depression or recess 01 (see Fig. 8) in each disk a a The projection (Z may be made as a fiat metal spring, or it may be formed by upsetting a part of the insulation.

When the wire is cut or becomes broken, the recess 01 on the disk (t3 is brought into line with the projection (1 and the latter springs into the said recess. The fallen arm. is thus locked and cannot be again raised to complete the circuit until the spring projection is positively unlocked.

I have shown and described my safety device as constructed so as to cut out the circuit; but I do not desire to limit myself in this respect, as the said device maybe employed to cut out the broken wire from the ground and yet shunt the circuit around the .break in the wire. To accom lish this result each disk (1 a may have secured to or forming part of it an additional strip or piece of metal 0, situated substantially at right angles to the conducting-strip 2, so that when the said disk is partially revolved at the break ing of the wire the strip or metal piece 0 is brought in cont-act with the contact member 3 of the ring I), as indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 13. The metal strip 0 may be joined by a' flexible connection, as a Wire 0, to a conductor 0 which is herein shown as carried down through the hollow post 0 The conductor 0 may be connected with the ground, or it may be connected to a similar conductor in an adjacent post.

I have herein described my invention as applied to trolley-wires; but it is evident it may be used equally well as a support for heavy power-wires forming part of a groundcircuit. 50, also, I do not desire to limit my invention to the particular construction shown, as it may be variously modified to adapt it to different constructions, and while I may prefer to employ the ring I1, it is evident the said ring may be omitted and the two disks o (1) brought in contact with. each other.

I have herein described the disks (6 a as made of metal and provided with insulation 1); but it is evident that the said disks maybe made of insulating material and provided. with metal strips to form contact-surfaces.

I have herein shown springs c c to move the arms a a quickly when the wire is broken, so that the circuit will be broken at the cutout or safety before it is completed by the broken section of wire coming in contact with the ground; but I do not desire to limit myself to the use of springs, as it is evident the arms c a may be weighted at their outer ends.

I prefer to construct the cut-out or safety device substantially as shown in Fig. 1; but I do not desire to limit myself to this form of cut-out, as it may be made in other ways for instance, as shown in Fig. 11, wherein a rack-bar his provided with collars h at its opposite ends, located in boxes or cylinders h 7L3, the said collars being acted upon by a normally-compressed spring h. The opposite ends of the rack-bar h are extended out through the boxes 7L2 h and have secured to them the ends of adjacent sections of the trolley or overhead wire. The rack-bar h IIO ' toothed periphery, and the meshes with and rotates a diskk having a disk k may be provided with a contactsurface which co-opcrates with a like contact-surface on a like disk 72 firmly supported by arms 71 secured to the bar h connecting the boxes 72/ h the disk 7L7 being also provided with a toothed periphery meshing with a rack-bar similar to the rack-bar h, and not herein shown.

The operation of the device is as follows, viz: As soon as a section of wire is broken the spring h moves the rack-bar and rotates the disk h sufficient to break the circuit, as above described. Y

I claim- 1. The combination, with an overhead conductor forming part of a ground-circuit and made of independent sections, of a safety device or cut-out interposed between adjacent sections, whereby the current is cut off from the ground through a broken section, sub stantially as described.

2. The combination, with an overhead conductor forming part of a ground-circuit, of a combined support and safety device consisting of two arms or sections provided with contact-surfaces, the said arms being movable one with relation to the other, whereby the said contact-surfaces may be disconnected when the overhead conductor is broken, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination, with a span-wire d,

of a combined support and safety device consisting of arms pivotally supported by said wire and provided with contact-surfaces, and a trolley-wire composed of sections, as 6 7, secured to said arms, substantially as described.

4:. The'combination, with an overhead eonductor forming part of a ground-circuit, of a combined support and safety device consisting of two arms or sections provided with contact-surfaces, the said arms being movable one with relation to the other, whereby the said contact-surfaces may be disconnected when the overhead conductor is broken, and a looking device for said arms, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with an overhead conductor forming partof a ground-circuit, of a combined support and safety device consisting of two arms or sections provided with contact-surfaces, the said arms being movable one with relation to the other, whereby the said contact-surfaces may be. disconnected when the overhead conductorjs broken, and springs to act on said arms, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

- ROBERT A. MORGAN, JR.

lVitnesses:

JAs. H. CHURCHILL, FREDERICK L. EMERY.