US548467A - scott - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

W. E. SGGTT. ELEGTEIG METER.

N0.548,4e7. Patented oct. 221895.

WVI'NESSES INVENTOR @www QMWMM EM 6%@ W @No Model.) 4 sheets-sheet 2.

W. H. SCOTT.

ELEGTRIG METER.

No. 548,467. Patented Oct. 22, 1895.

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4 Sh eats-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

W. H. SCOTT. ELECTRIG METER. No. 548,467.V

Patented Get. 22, 1895.

INVENTOR MMM wml Essfs l 4 ANDREW $.GMKIMAPHDY0LHMD WISHINGTONJZC.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

W. H.' SCGTT. ELEGTRIG METER.

N0. 548,467. Patented Oct. 22, 1895.

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INVENTOR WITNESSES WM ff/Qd @QWMZ/ ANUREW BLRAHM,PHUTG'UTHaWASHINETDMlQ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WILLIAM H. SCOTT, OF NORVICl-I, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO LAURENCE SCOTT do CO., LIMITED, VOF SAME PLACE.

ELECTRIC METER.

SPECIFICATION forming pere of Letters Patent No. 548,467, dated oeeober 22,1895.

Application led November 4, 1892. Sen'al No. 451,008. (No model.) Patentedin England November l5, 1888, No. 16 ,623; in Germany October 29, 1889, No. 56,088; in France October 29, 1889, No. 201,603; in Belgium October 29, 1889,1io. 88,240, and in Austria-Hungary March 15, 1890, No. 46,1?? and No. 5,699.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM HABDING SCOTT, electrical engineer, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Gothic Works, Norwich, in the county of Norfolk, England, have invented certain Improvements in Electricity-Meters, (for which patents have been obtained in Great Britain, dated November 15, 1888, No. 16,623; in Germany, dated October 29, 1889, No. 56,088; in France, dated October 29, 1889, No. 201,603; in Belgium, dated October 29, 1889, No. 88,240, and in 'Austria-Hungary, dated March 15, 1890, No. 46,147 and No. 5,699,) of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an eflicient electricity-meterin which the current to be measured is periodically made potent to indicate itself and move a counter by the action and reaction of a periodically made and broken shunt-current flowing in a circuit of high resistance through a coil of a watt-meter, the shunt-circuit being made and broken by means of contacts operated by clockwork or other timing mechanism.

l'. will describe my invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, Figures 1 and 2 of which are elevations at right angles to each other of an electricity-meter constructed according to my invention, and Fig. 3 represents in front elevation the contacts for making and breaking the shunt-circuit and the parts immediately connected therewith for operating the counter, the contacts being shown in a diierent position to that shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Figs. f1 and 5 are views of a modification in which a single clock may be employed to periodically operate several meters. Fig. 6 is a modification of a detail shown in Figs. t and 5.

The whole of the working parts of the meter are mounted on a base or support A, preferably of slate, glass, or earthenware, and are inclosed in a case `or cover B, which may be secured to the base by means of screws or4 otherwise, and sealed in such a manner that the working parts cannot be tampered with without first breaking the seal or seals and removing the case or cover.

C is a watt-meter consisting of two fixed conductors or coils D D and a suspended or oscillating conductor or coil E, constituting together an electrodynamometer.

The fixed coils D D' are connected in series with the main F, through which the current to be measured i'lows, and the coil E is in a shunt of. high resistance from the main F, in which shunt 1is also an electromagnet G or a solenoid'by which the clock or timing mechanism His operated so as to complete the circuit through the shunt and coil E at regular intervals of time-of, say, three minutes each 3 but it may be arranged to complete the circuit at any other desired intervals of time.

The clock is operated by the weight of the armature I of the electromagnet G, which armature is connected by a link K to a lever L, carrying a pawl M, gearing with a ratchetwheel N, fast on the arbor O, on which the pointer P of the clock is fixed. On the arbor O is loosely mounted a toothed Wheel Q, connected to the Wheel N by a spring N2, Fig. 3, and gearing with apinion Q', fast on another arbor R, Which also carries a spur-Wheel S in gear with a pinion T on the spindle U, carrying the verge-escapement wheel V. The pallets which engage the teeth ot the escape- Wheel are on a rod W, connected to or made in one with a bar X, which constitutes the pendulum ot the clock Y, being the pendulum-spring. Fast on the arbor R is a Wheel or disk Z, carrying pins or projections o., which are caused to act at intervals, as the disk Z is rotated, on a lever b, centered at c to the metal frame of the clock, but insulated therefrom. This lever is connected by a spring d to a bracket e, which is electrically connected at e to one portion f of the shuntwire from the main, the portion f' of the said shuntwire being connected at g to the metal frame of the clock.

The portion f of the shunt-wire passes from the main F'to the suspended coil E of the watt-meter, thence to the coils of the electromaguet Gr, and from the said magnet to the binding-screw e' on the bracket e. The portion f ot' the said shunt-wire passes direct from the main F to the connection g on the metal frame of the clock.

In the portion f or other suitable part of the shunt-wire is interposed a fuse 7i for the purpose ofbreaking the circuit therethrough should overheating take place.

The lever l), hereinbefore referred to, connected by a rod or wire 'i to another lever k, carrying a friction bowl or roller Z for raising and lowering a lever p, by which the counter is operated, as hereinafter described. The lever ZJ is stepped or notched at m and is provided above this notch with a piece of material n, which is a non-conductor of electricity, upon which piece the pins c alternately come into contact as the disk Z turns and depressies the lever b, so as to lower the friction bowl or roller Z out of engagement with a lever p. This lever is centered tothe frame of the suspended coil E of the watt-meter and carries a friction-pad or toothed block q to engage with a friction pulley or roller fr, fast on the arbor of the i'irst wheel s ot' the trains of gearing constituting the counter. By the time the bowl or roller Zis lowered out of contact with the lever p the pin d will have left the piece n ot' insulating material and come into contact with an inclined metal portion t of the lever. When one of the pins a is in contact with the inclineton thelever b, the current entering the shunt from the main-say atjL-(at the bottom ot Fig. 2) passesdirect to the suspended coil E and therefrom to the electromagnet G, thence to the bracket e, which is insulated from the frame of the clock. Consequently itpasses through the spring d to the lever b and by the pin ct in contact therewith through the arbor which carries the pins a to the frame of the clock and out therefrom by the portion f ofthe shunt (which is connected to the frame at g) to the main F, thus completing the circuit. lVhen the pin a leaves the incline on the lever b, the circuit is broken as the lever at the fulcrum on which it turns is insulated from the frame of the clock. \Vhen the circuit is thus completed, the suspended coil E iwill be attracted toward the stationary coil D and repulsed upon the coil D of the .wattmeter and impart through the lever p, friction-pad q, and roller r motion to the train of gearing in the counter, so as to indicate on the dials of the said counter the amount of current passing at that time through the meter. At the same time that the suspended coil E is moved over, as described, the armature I of the electromagnet G, is also attracted, whereby the pawl M is raised and the Weight of the armature removed from the ratchetwheel N. The clock, however, is kept going by the spring N2, which is put in tension at each descent of the armature I. The circuit through the shunt and coils E and G is maintained so long as the pin a is in contact with the inclinet of the lever b, which continues during a parallel rotation of the verge-escape-` ment wheel V under the action of the spring N2. Vhen the pin ct leaves the said incline and enters the notch m in the lever out of contact with the said lever, as shown in Fig. 3, the circuit through the shunt is broken.

yThe suspended coil Ey then falls by gravity into its normal position close to, but not in contact with, the xed coil D of the watt-meter, and the armature l being at the same time released, will, by its Weightactiug through the pawl M, keep the clock going.

Just before the shunt-circuit is broken* that is-to say, while the incline contact t under the action of the spring d is being pulled off the pin cL-the roller l is brought into contact with the lever P, so as to raise the frio tion-pad q out of contact with the roller r; but when the pin a leaves the inclinet and enters the notch m and so breaks the circuit through the shunt, as hereinhefore described, the suspended coil E will return to its normal position; but as the friction-pad had been raisedfrom the roller r no motion will beimparted to the counter-gearing by the hackward movement of the said suspended coil.

The. distance to which the suspended coil is moved toward the fixed coil D when the circuit through the shunt is made will depend upon the strength ot the current passing through the main, `and consequently as the coil E moves forward only periodically under the inuence of the current--that is to say, when the circuit in the shunt is completed* and as it only operates the train of wheels of the counter in its forward movement the watts in the circuit will be periodically integrated `and indicated on the dialsof the counter.`

In proximity to the armature l of the electromagnet G is a bellows u, which is com pressed by an arm o from the armature, so as to prevent jerking and noise when the said armature is attracted. For alike purpose the frame of the suspended coil E may be provided with a similar device or with strips or pads of yielding material, as shown at w.

The clock H is self-starting and cannot stop while the pressure or electromotive force is in the main; but in order to automatically stop the clock when no current is passing in the main notches m are provided in the periphery of the wheel or disk Z, carrying the pins a, and centered at y to the frame of the clock is a lever or bent wire e', which just before the pin o moves off the incline if on the lever b falls into a notch m, which at that time is in position to receive it, and at the same time a bar or wire z', suspended from the le ver or wire e, descends into the track of the oscillating bar or pendulum X, thereby stop ping the clock. An arm z2 from the lever or wirezextends over the lever L, which carries the pawl M, by which the clock is worked, so that when this lever is raised by the electromagnet G, as hereinbefore described, it raises with it the lever or wire .e from the notch in the disk Z, thus allowing the clock to work.

To preventinjury to the meter when being carried from one place to another, the suspended coil E may be temporarily prevented from oscillating by means of a screw a2, passed IIO through the bottom A of the meter into a projection c2 from the frame of the coil, and the clock H may be stopped by means of a bar H2, carrying wires or projections h2, which, by sliding the bar upward, may be brought into the track of the pendulum X, so

as to prevent the said pendulum from oscillating another wire or projection h3 on the sliding bar I-I, also raising the lever p, so as to disengage the friction-pad q from the roller fr on the wheel s of the counter. r2 is a friction brake or pad, which presses against the roller r, so as to prevent the counter from being accidentally moved when the pad q is out of contact with the said roller. When the rollerZ descends to permit of the pad q engaging with the said roller fr, as hereinbefore described, it comes into contactavith the arm carrying the said pad r2, so as to move the pad away from the said roller fr.

Instead of providing a clock or timing mechanisiu in each meter-case, as hereinbefore described, the timing mechanism may be situated at a distance from the meter anda single clock mechanism may be employed in combination with several meters. In this case a special meter-wiref extends from the clock H to the meter or meters, the shunt-coil of the said meter or meters being connected therewith. Each meter in this case may consist, as shown in Figs. e and 5, simply' of the wattmeter D D E, counter or registering device, lever p with friction-pad q for operating the counter, and a small electric coil i2 for moving the friction-pad q out of contact with the counting mechanism. The small electric coil 'i2 for raising the friction-pad q is connected in series with the suspended coil E and may be carried thereby, as shown in Figs. i and 5, or it may be stationary and act on the rod c', which carries the roller Z to raise the pad, as shown in Fig. '6.

When the circuit in the shunt-wirefis completed by the clockwork in the manner hereinbefore described, the suspended coilor coils of the meter or meters in which the current from the main is flowing will be moved toward the coil or coils D of the watt-meter or watt-meters, and at the same time the friction pad or pads q will be raised by the coil or coils t2 out of contact with the counters, so that no movement will he given to the counting mechanism by the forward movement of the said suspended coil or coils E. Directly, however, the circuit in the shunt-wire fis broken by the clockwork in the manner hereinbefore described the friction pad or padsq will fall by gravity onto thek rollers Z of the counter and the suspended coils E will return to their normal positions, and in doing so will impart through the friction-pad motion to the counting mechanism proportionate to the distance to which the suspended coil E had been moved toward the coils D,and which will be greater or less according to the amount of current dowing, and thus the amount of current consumed will be indicated on the dials ofthe counter.

I claim as my inventionl. An electricity meter having an electrodynamometer provided with conductors in series and in shunt, one of the conductors being movable in combination with means for periodically making and breaking theshunt circuit, whereby the moving conductor is made to move periodically an amount in proportion to the watts or ampres multiplied by volts in the circuit.

2. An electricity meter having an electrodynamometer, provided with conductors in series and in shunt, one of the conductors being movable, in combination with means for periodically making and breaking the shunt circuit whereby the moving conductor is made to move an amount in proportion to the watts and ampres multiplied bythe volts in the circuit, and means for throwing the moving conductor into or out of gear with an indicating train of gears as theshunt circuit is opened or closed.

3. In an electric meter, the combination of a watt meter, an electro-magnet in the shunt circuit, and clock-work operated by the armature of the electro-magnet, with a disk operated by clock work and provided with notches, a lever or wire adapted to engage in the said notches to automatically stop the clock, the said lever being actuated by the armature of the electro-magnet to be disengaged from the notches when the current is passed through the meter, all substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

4. In an electricity meter, the combination of a watt meter, registering mechanism and a rod attached to the moving coil or coils of the Watt meter and provided with a friction pad adapted to engage with and actuate a Wheel of the registering mechanism, with clock-work, a pin or pins in the shunt circuit actuated by the clockwork, a lever provided with an insulating surface and a metallic surface on which surfaces the pin or pins act to first move the lever and then make contact therewith to close the shunt circuits, and connections between the lever and the said rod whereby the friction pad is caused to engage with the registering mechanism when the current is passing through the shunt but disengaged the moment the shunt circuit is broken, substantially as set forth.

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

WV. II. SCGTT.

Witnesses:

AMANNSELL ATTHILL, JOHN J. Lun.

IOC

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