US691809A - Electric controller. - Google Patents

Description

ELEcTmc coNTRoLLEB.

sheet'l.

(Application led July 19, 1900.)

(NoModel.)

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No. 69|,809Lr Patented lan. 287 i902.

- w. B. POTTER.

ELECTRIC GUNTRULLEB. Application mea J'uly 19, 1900.; (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

3m/enum Wil l iam B. potter,

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UNITED STATES 'WILLIAM B.

ERAL

POTTER, orscHENEOrADY, `ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW'YORK.

PATENT @Erica NEW YoEmAesIt-iuon 'ro OEE'L 'ELECTRIC CONTROLLER.

SPECIFICATION forming part bf Letters Patent No. 691,809, dated January 28, 1902.

(Case No. 1,440,) ofwhich the following is a Y specification.

My invention relates to means for opening the power-circuit j of an electric controller upon the occurrence of predetermined condiwhenever the current flowing through the controller exceeds a predetermined limit or whenever for any reason' the operator removes his hand from the controller-handle when it is in one of its opera tive positions--and constitutes an-im provement on the arrangement disclosed in patent 'to F. Case, No. 655,389, dated August 7, 1900. I

My invention is especially applicable to telectric-railway systems in which it is desirable to keep 4the current supplied to a cai` or train within certain limits and in which an-'injury to the motorman or a temporary disability while running may with the con# trollers or'dinarily employed permit the car or -train to run wild with serious results.

It is -of course equally applicable to the ordinary street-car controller, in which case it will opcrate to open the power-circuit directly, or to the master-controller of a train system to open-the main circuit supplying power for he operationfof thc separate motor-controlers.

forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 shows in cross-section one embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 shows a modified constructhe auxiliary and main controller-contacts.

Referring first to Fig. 1, .A indicates a controller-cylinder of ordinary construction keyed to the shaft B, the lower end of the cylof its operative positions.

mounted a spring g,

Referring to the accompanying drawings,y

the dog. position shown by a spring skinterposed b 'ef-l Vro inder and shaft being broken away. 'Mounted .on the upper end ot the shaft B is the handle C, by means of which the cylinder is turned. Between the main cylinder and the handle is mounted the auxiliary cylinder D, the contacts of which serve to open the power-circuit (in the particular construction shown in this figure) wh'e ever the operator/removes hishandfrcm: the Ahandle C while the main controller-'cylin'de'ris in one 'The auxiliary cylinder comprises a body of insulating id aterial carrying contact-strips a and b and is mounted on a sleeve c, free to revolve onthe'controller-shaft B. Thissleeve is provided at controllerits lower end with a flange c', and the peof the iiange is provided with a proriph'ery jeotion d, adapted .to engage alngeon the con- Between the iiange c' andthe troller-casing.' upper end of the 'main controllerrcylinder is fastened at its inner end to a pin h' in the upper end ofthe main cylin;v

derand at its outeriend to a pin h c'. This springis in the position shown in Fig.l 1" operates to maintain'the projection d in engagement with the vlug e, and thus to hold the cylinder D in position to'open the power-circuit. It withthe arrangement thus vfar described the controller vhandl'e should be turned in right inthe flangenormally under tension, and

handed rotation, the main controller-cylinder would be rotated, brit the auxiliary cylinder.

D would remain in the position shown, the spring g unwindingby the amount that the 'main cylinder is movedforward. In order that the cylinder D may be caused to move with the cylinder A, a dog on, having a profjection m at its lower end, is slidingly mounted in a groove in the controller-shaft. When the controller-handle occupies the position shown in' the drawings, the projection m' 'lies directly beneath dog m is operated from a push-button in the controllerfhandle, when depressed to raise the dog throughthe instrumentality of a lever 7a, having its end at l projecting into a slot in the upper end of This lever Ismaintainedin the tween the lever and the handle.

a slot in the iiange c'. The

the push-button operating t 'Ixo controller will be completed.

y Supposing the parts to occupy the position i .shown in Fig. l ofthe drawings, if the opera.- tor places his hand on handle C in such a position as to depress the push-button E the dog m will be raised until its lower end m engages the slot in the flange c. Il now the l handle ofthe controller is turned, the auxiliary cylinder D will be carried with the main cylinderA and the power-circuit through the The controller'. may nowbe turned into any one of its operative positions, and when so turned will operate the same as any ordinary controller. Il", however, after the handle has been-turned x5 part way the hand is removed from the handle, the spring s will operate to raise the pushbutton and to depress the dog m, thereby disengaging the projection m from the slot in the flange c' and permitting the auxiliary cylzo inder D to be thrown backward by the spring g until the projection d on the liange ccomes into engagement with the lug e on the controller-casing, thereby opening the power-cir-- cuit atV the contacts of the auxiliary cylinder. However the handle C may now be turned the controller will be entirely'inoperative and Awill so remain until the handle C has been vbroughttothe ott position, when again the lower end ofthe dog m will come into position 3o beneath the slot in the flange c'.

From the above description it will be clear that the controller can be operated only when vthe push-button in the handle is depressed before the handle is moved from its oil? position, and that if when the controller is in ,any-one of its operative positions the oper- 'ator removes his vhand from the controller- 'ha'ndle the power-circuit will be immediately broken at the cylinder-D and cannot be again 4o restored until the controller-handle has'been returned toits oil' position. In constructions herepfore designed for accomplishing this object the spring which operates to open-circuit the controller-contacts has been so arranged that whenever the motorman turns the controller-handle into any one of its operative positions he is compelled not only to overcome the friction of the controller, but

also to wind up the spring` In the construcgction which I have devised the spring is so arranged that it relieves the motorman from 'anyeiort to overcome the spring, as the torsional strains are entirely self-contained. So long as the projection on the end of the dog 5 is maintained' in engagement with the slot in the ange c the spring, although under tension, is entirely inoperative and always reina-ins in this condition unless the push-button E is released when the controller is in one n of its operative positions. In this case the motormanin turning the controller back to its off position winds up the spring.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a modified construc tion in' which in lieu of the dog m a sleeve 0 isprovided at the upper end of the controllershaft. This sleeve is provided at its loweri end with a projecting' portion p, which engages a slot in theupper end of the sleeve c. The upper end of "'thesleeve o is enlarged and slotted at r, and the lever 7s. is provided with a projection l', adapted in the oil? position of the controllcrto be projected into the slot. The engagement between the sleeve o and the sleeve c is somewhat more clearly illustrated in Fig. 4, which shows a cross-section through the upper end of the sleeve c and the nut, which locks the parts of the cylinder D together. 'lhevpart p shown in this figure is the projection on the lower end of the sleeve o. In Fig. 3 the position of the controller-cylinder in its casing is indicated, the projection on the flange c being shown in engagement with the lug c and the spring g and the handle of the controller being indicated in dotted lines. This figure shows also the upper end of the sleeve c and its surrounding. nut and the sleeve o. It will be noted that in this which is the ofV position of the controller thel slot rlies directly under the middle of the controller-handlein position to be engaged by the projection Z on the lever 7c. I

The arrangements above described are intended to open the power-circuit of the controller whenever the motorman releases the handle of the controller. In Fig. 5 I have shown a similar arrangement provided with a locking device normally held in operative position by a spring, together with electromagnetically-actuated means fordisengaging the locking device and permitting the circuitbreaker to open the controller-circuit whenever the current flowing in the circuit to be cont-rolled exceeds a predetermir d amount. In this figure an electromagnet, comprising themembers F and G, is interposed between the main and auxiliary-cylinders of the controller. The member F is supported on the shaft by means of an adjusting-hott, the adjustment being for the purpose of regulating the distance between the elements F and G, i and thus varying the amount of current required to operate the tripping device.. The lower end of the member Fis held against the upper surface of the, nutt by means of a spring s' engaging `a collar u, fixed to the conr troller-shaft. This member is provided with a winding w, connected between the contactstripfand the other contacts of the controllei-,(not shown,) so that the entire current supplied to the controller passes through it. The i member G, which constitutes an armature forl is secured from turning on the controller-shaft by a feather engaging a groove in the said sha-ft, but is free to move up and down. AThis armature carries a stop o, which engages with a lug on the flange c. As shown in this figure of the drawings, the Y pin h', to which one end of the springg is fastened, is enlarged to constitute the lug. The armature is maintained in position, so that I the stop carried thereby will engage the lug 7L' by means of the spring s2 interposed bethe member F,

IOS

r is in any one current greater than that for gaging the "tromagnet is adjusted iiows through the controller the' armature G will 'be drawn into contact with the, member F, thereby diseniliary cylinder D will then be throw-aback to its off' position where the projection d engages the lug e on the controller-casing, thus y opening the controller-circui-t at the contacts of the auxiliary cylinder. Further turning of the controller-handle will turn the main controller-cylinder, but will not move the auxiliary cylinder. Thecontroller-will therefore remain inoperative until thehandle C is turned back to its E position, when the stop on the armature G will slip under and engage the end of the lug h. After such engagement has takenplace the main and auxiliary cylinders will move together until the cnrrent'again rises to an amount greater than that for which the electromagnet is adjusted,

when the same action willV take place as before.

In Ifig. 6 I have indicated in development the ixed and movable contacts of the auxiliary cylinder D and the first set of contacts on the main cylinder A, together with the circuit connections therefor. From this figure it will be seen that current entering from the trolley T will pass to thefixed contact-a' and thence through the movablecontacts a andpbv Vof the auxiliarycylinder D to the fixed contact b', whence it will flow through the iixed contactf to the mpvable contact f, and thence through the fixed and movable contacts of the main cylinder to the circuitto be controlled'.

Although I have'shown Vthe arrangements for opening the controller-circuit from the controller-handle and for opening the controller-circuit whenever the current exceeds a predetermined limit in separate figures of the drawings, it is evident that if desirable both of these arrangements might be combined in a single structure, and although in the, constructions shown in the drawings the conv tacts constituting the circuit-breaker are carried by the sleeve mounted onthe controllershaft it is evident that in certain of 'its fea-` tures my invention is not limited to such con-4 struction. The arrangement ,of the spring v connection by means of [which theI circuitbreaker is operated, so that the torsional strains will be normally self-contained', constitutes one of the principal features of myin-f vention`,' and though I preferably linterpcpe' .this spring connection between the controller-v shi ft and an auxiliary cylinder mounted thereon it is to be understood'that the part ro- T tatable on the shaft may, instead of carrying-- the circuit-breakingrcontacts, operate in any suitablepnannerto open a circuit-breakeras, forexamplc, in the manner shown'in the patent to F. E. Case, abovereferred to.

which the elecstop fu from the lug h. The anxiliary, in g contacts, mounted on the controller-shaft,

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

A I. In combination in a controller, a rotata- .ble shaft, movable contacts mounted to rotatefreely thereon, engage therewith, means tending to maintain said movable contacts out of engagement with their corresponding fixed contacts, and means for operatively connecting said movable contacts to the controller-shaft.y

2. In combination, in a controller, a cylinfixed contacts adapted to der mounted on the controller-shaft and provided with contacts adapted to open the powercircuit, means tending to maintain said cylinder` in its open-circuit position, means for causing said cylinder tomove with the controller-shaft, and means operating under predetermined conditions tov release said cyl- 3. In combination in a controller, a sleeve upon the controller-shaft, a spring connection between said sleeve and said shaft, and means for holding the said sleeve in a definite posi.- tion en said shaft against the `force of the spring.

4. In combination in a controller, a sleeve upon the controller-shaft, a stop limiting the movement of said sleeve, a spring connection between said sleeve and said shaft, means for locking the sleeve to the shaft, and means op'- erating under predetermined conditions for unlocking the sleeve.

5. In combination in a controller, a main cylinder, an auxiliary cylinder, a spring connection between them, means for locking said cylinders togetherwith the spring under tension and means for disengaging said locking means,

on the controller-shaft, a spring connection IOO t I05 l 6. In combinatio\nin a controller, a sleeve between 'said sleeve and said shaft, means for locking saidsleeve to the said'shaft, and means operating under predetermined con` ditions yfor disengaging said locking means.

--7 In combination, in a controller, a springactuated sleeve mounted on the controller- IIO shaft, and an electromagnetically-actuated l device for lockingvsaid sleeve-to'said shaft.

8; In combination, in a controller, a springactuated sleeve mounted on the'controllershaft, an electromagnet having an armature adaptedv to' lock, saidsleeve -to said shaft, andv means for'adjnstin'g lsaid electromagnet to actnate said armature when the current supplied to Ithe winding of said magnet reaches a predetermined lirrrit.v Y

' 9. In combination ina controller, an auxcylinder provided withcircuit-breakmeans tending to maintain saidrlcylinderto gaging -said locfring means.

10. .In combination 1n a controller,an auxt liliary cylinder mounted` on the controlle'r- Y shaft, a spring connection between said cyl- I can be operated to lock the sleeve to the shaft ro inder and said shaft, means for locking said only in the 01T position of the controller.. cylinder to said shaft, and means 'controlled In witness whereof I have heren-n to set my by the current supplied to said controller for hand this v17th day of July, 1900. disengaging said locking means. n

l1. In combination in a controller, a, spring- WILLIAM B' POT l ER' actuated sleeve on the controller-shaft, and means for locking said sleeve to said shaft, I said locking means being so arranged that it l Witnesses:

BENJAMIN B. HULL, MABEL E. JAooBsoN.

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