US484919A - Electric-railway system - Google Patents

Description

I (No Model.) v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. H. PENDLETON. ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

Patented Oct. 25,1892.

. w um w M Q WA 2 W m E.

emu. fl w w my 5 E .2 s a a d r ,u x E \W i 5 I Q a w m (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. H. PENDLETON. ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

No. 484,919. Patentedflot. 25, 1892.

track-railway system.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

JOHN H. PEN DLETON, OF BROOKLYN, NEXV YORK.

ELECTRIC-RAILWAY SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 484,919,date'd. October 25, 1892.

Application filed August 1, 1891.

To all whom it may concern:

l 3e it known that I, J oHNH. PENDLnToN,a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric-Railway Systems, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has reference to improvements in electric-railway systems, and espeorally to those in which the working conductor is divided into a number of comparativelyshort sections and the circuit is closed only through the particular sections upon which cars are running.

My invention has for its objects to simplify the construction of such systems, to render the same more certain in operation, to permit the circuits to be closed by hand in case of' failure of the circuit-closing devices to operate automatically, and finally to render the system perfectly safe by so constructing the same that upon breakage of any one of the several sections said section is cut out of the circuit and made harmless.

With these objects in view my invention consists, essentially, in an electric-railway system combining in its structure a supplyconductor, a sectional working conductor, interposed energizing sections, a primary branch wire for each section of the working conductor, leading from the supply-conductor and including an electro-magnet, and a secondary branch wire for each energizing-section, leading from the main branch wire to the energizing-section, the one coil of the electro-magnet being included in both branch cir-' cuits, all of which is more fully pointed out in the following 's pecification and claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings and diagrams, in which Figure 1 represents, diagrammatically, the devices and circuits as arranged for a double- Fig. 1 is an elevation of a modified form of electro-magnet. Figs. 2 and 3 are details drawn to a larger scale than Fig. 1. Fig. 4 represents, diagrammatically, the devices and circuits as arranged for a single-track system. Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8 are diagrams illustrating the operation of the system shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation illustrating the arrangement of the switch-boxes with an underground supply- Serial No. 401,411. (No model.)

conductor. Fig. 10 is a side elevation of the same, drawn to a smaller scale. Fig. 11 is a similar view showing an overhead supply-conductor. Fig. 12 is a face view of the switchboX, showing a modification in the details of the switch-magnets. Figs. 13 and 14 are detail views.

. Similar letters and figures indicate corresponding parts. 7

. In the drawings and diagrams, referring at present to Fig. 1, the letter A designates the car running on suitable rails; B, its motor; D, the dynamo at the power-station, and O the supply-conductor. In this example one pole of the dynamo is grounded, as at a, and the end of the supply-conductor similarly grounded, as at b, a suit-able "resistance R being placed in the supply-conductor. If desired, one of the rails may form the returnconductor 0', as shown in Fig. 4.

j E is the Working conductor, divided into a number of comparatively-short sections 1 2 3, 850., between the separated ends of which are interposed short pieces of wire or plates 6 e 6 850., which, however, are not in contact with the working sections. These'short pieces I shallhereinafter term the energizing-sections.

The several sections 1 2 3, &c., of the working conductor are connected with the supplyconductor O by a series of primary branch wires, each wire composed of the two parts 10 11 12 13, &c. In each of these primary branch wires is included an electro-magnet, as M M M &c., the armatures n of which are held retracted by suitable springs, the whole being so arranged that the current from the supply-conductor 0 cannot enter any section until the respective armature is first attracted by the vitalization of the electro-maguet of said section, which vitalization is effected by secondary branch wires 16 17 18, &c., connected with the energizing-plates e e 6 &c., and with the primary branches at such a point that the circuits established in said secondary branches must pass through the coils of the electro-magnets.

The car is provided with any suitable collector running in contact with the working conductor-for instance, the trolley 25, which to prevent sparking may be provided with a rearwardly-extending brush t or a secondary ICO trailing wheel. To the same end the energizingsections e e 6 820., may be arranged in different vertical planes from the working sections and caused to overlap the same, as seen in Figs. 2, 3, 13, and 14.

The operation of the system is now as follows: Normally in virtue of the retracted armatures n of the electro-magnets M M M the several working sections are dead; buton contact of the trolley with one of the energizing-sections-say e-the circuit from the dynamo is closed through su pply-conductor 0, wire 10, coil of electro-magnet M, Wire 16,energizing-section e, trolleyt to the motor and back to the dynamo, thereby energizing the electro-magnet M and causing its armature to be attracted to close the circuit through the primary branch wires connected therewith. The car now entering section 2 of the working conductor, the current passes over wire 10, lower end of the core of electro-magnet M, armature n, wire 11, section 2 to the motor and back to the dynamo. When the car leaves section 2, the circuit is broken and the armature n is released, the section 2 being then dead.

In the example illustrated in Fig. 1 the end of the coil of each electro-magnet is secured to the end of the core, and in practice I have found it desirable to secure to the end of the core a small piece d, of brass or similar material,which forms a good conductor and at the same time permits the armature n to be promptly released on the breaking of the cir cuit. It is evident, however, that the piece could be secured to the armature or omitted and the motion of the armature arrested before it comes into contact with the core of the electro-magnet.

In Fig. 1 I have shown an ordinary hinged armature N, to which the wire 11, leading to the working section, is attached. The wire 10 after encircling the core is branched and one branch 16 made to connect with the energizin g-plate and the other with the contact-piece o.

For a single-track system, Fig. 4, the devices just described will be the same in construction, but in duplicate, two energizing-plates being arranged between the sections of the working conductor and two electro-magnets provided, one set operating when the car moves in one direction and the other when the car moves in the opposite direction. In this example I have also shown one of the rails forming the return-conductor C.

The operation will be readily understood from Figs. 4 to 8, inclusive, without further explanation.

In practice the electro-magnets and their armatures are inclosed in suitable boxes F, provided with locks, said boxes being secured to the poles G at a height to be readily accessible by the conductor of the car, so that in case of failure of any particular electro-magnet to operate automatically the same can be set by the conductor to close the circuit through the sections ahead. The boxes being numbered, the failure of any particular magnet can be reported and corrected. (See Figs. 9, 10, 11, and 12.) To facilitate the closing of the circuit by hand for the above purpose, the armature, as shown in Fig. 9, may be carried by a springarm and arranged across the path of a spring-pressed stud f, provided with a suitable head, or, as shown in Fig. 12, the armature may besecured directly to said stud. An additional advantage of this arrangement is that in a double-track system the car can be caused to runin case of necessity in a reverse direction by successively closing the circuits by hand.

It is evident that the supply-conductor can be arranged either overhead, as shown in Fig. 11, or underground, as shown in Figs 9. and 10. The working conductor, instead of being overhead, may be placed on the surface, in which latter case the boxes F would be placed in convenient positions near the track, either above or below the surface.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an electric-railway system, a supplyconductor, a sectional working conductor, interposedenergizing-sections,aprimarybranch for each section of the working conductor, leading from the supply-conductor and including an electro-magnet, and a secondary branch for each energizing-section, leading from the main branch to the energizing-section, the coil of the electro-magnet being included in both branches, substantially as described.

2. In asingle-track electric-railway system, a supply-conductor, a sectional working conductor, two adjacent interposed energizingsections, an electro-magnet for each energizing-section, and electrical connections, substantially as described, whereby the car can be run in either direction and will cause the circuit to be established in the working sections, substantially as described.

3. In an electric-railway system, a supplyconductor, a sectional working conductor, interposed energizing sections, a primary branch for each section of the working conductor, leading from the supply-conductorand including an electro-magnet located in an accessible position to permit of its armature being operated by hand, and a secondary branch for each energizing-section, leading from the main branch to the energizing-section, the coil of the magnet beingincluded in both branches, substantially as described.

4. In an electric-railway system, a supplyconductor, a sectional working conductor, interposed energizing-sections, an electro-magnet for each working section, and wires leading from the conductor to the coils of said electro-magnets and through contacts formed by the same to the working sections, and wires leading from the ends of the coils and connected with the respective energizing-sections, substantially as described.

5. In an electric-railway system, a supplyconductor, a sectional working conductor, in- I In testimony that I claim the foregoing as [O terposed energizing-sections, and wires leadmyinvention I have signed my name, in presing from the supply-conductor and coiled ence of two witnesses, this 31st day of July, about cores and branched at the opposite ends 1891.

5 of the cores, one set of branches being connected with the energizing-sections and the other branches through contacts formed by Witnesses: the attraction of the armatures with the work- A. FABER DU FAUR, ing sections, substantially as described. 0. SIMPSON.

JOHN H. PENDLETON.

Images