US756408A - Call or alarm device for hotels or other buildings. - Google Patents

Description

No. 756,408. PATENTED APR. 5, 1904.

R H. REED.

CALL OR ALARM DEVICE FOR HOTELS OR OTHER BUILDINGS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 4. 1902.

K0 MODEL.

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UNITED STATES Patented April 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

HARVEY REED, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO WILLIAM M. STONE, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

CALL OR ALARM DEVICE FOR HOTELS OR OTHER BUILDINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 756,408, dated April 5, 1904. Application filed September 4, 1902. Serial No. 122,082. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern: Be it known that I, HARVEY REED, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, I

in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Call or Alarm Devices for Hotels or other Buildings; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to provide tallic contact-bars 9', of which in practice there would usually be one for each guest-morn.

For each room-bar 1' there is .a series of separated contact-pieces h. All of the contactpieces it of a given horizontal row are electrically connected in any suitable wayas, for instance, by short wires 70.

Electrical contact may be made between any one of the contact-pieces h and its respective room-bars r by a removable plug 19. On the switchboard Z), as shown, above the upper row of contact-pieces it is a metallic strip or common bus-bar I), which is electrically connected to signaling devices located in the several rooms, as will be hereinafter fully described.-

In each guest-room is placed an annunciator or signal device, including an electricallyactuated bell g, preferably of ordinary construction and which, as shown, is secured to an insulating-support g, to which is pivoted a switch-lever m. The switch-lever on cooperates with a pair of contact pins m and m and is yieldingly held at the left in contact with the pin m by means of a spring m The purpose of this switch will appear later on. Each bell g has the ordinary binding-post 9 one of which is connected to the correspondlng roombar by a leadlng-wlre n. The swltches of the several annunciatlng devices are all, connected to the common busbar I) by a lead-wire a. The bell-magnets g are electrically connected to the two binding-posts g by short wires of, and the binding-posts 9 to which the lead-wires a do not connect, are connected to the contact-pins m by short wires n A miniature electric lamp t is placed in a shunt t, which leads from the corresponding Alarger electric lamp t is connected in a circuit t which leads from thebell-circuit.

switch m and the contact-pin m and includes a battery or source, of electrical energy t.

The said element t may be either a battery or tery or source of electrical energy 8 through leads 8 one of which leads has branches 8 arranged in pairs and normally broken by switches s. As shown, there are three such switches s and these may be assumed to be located one in the janitors room or basement, another in the office, and another in the hall of a building. (Not shown.) At one end of the solenoid s is a supporting-plate of insulating material, and working therethrough and into the solenoid is a soft-iron armature or needle .9, to the outer end of which is secured a metallic contact-bar 8 As shown, the contact-bar s is provided at its ends with guide-pins 8 that work through said plate 8 Light springs s", placed on the guide-pins s yieldingly hold the contact-bar s substantially as shown in the drawing. This contact-bar s is connected by a lead-wire 8 to the common bus-bar b. On the insulating plate or support 8 is a plurality of contactfingers s, which are insulated from each other and of which there is one for each room that is, one for each room-bar and annunciating device. The contact-fingers s are connected by lead-wires 8 one to each of the room-bars 7'.

The solenoid and circuit-closing device may be located at any convenient point, but preferably in the ofiice. A battery or source of electrical energy .9 is interposed in the lead- Wire 8 The several horizontal series of contact-pieces h are connected to a common battery or source of electrical energy 20 by wires w, and the said battery in turn is connected to the common bus-bar b by a'wire 2 0 Operation: Whenever the bell-circuit, including the leads n and n, is closed by the insertion of the plug p between one of the roombars r and one of the contact-pieces h, as illustrated, for instance,at the upper left-hand corner of the switchboard, the bell will of course be sounded and simultaneously therewith the miniature lamp t will be lighted. This miniature lamp will give sufiicient light to enable the occupant of the roomto find his Way readily to the alarm device or to any other part of the room. When the bell-circuit is closed, as above stated, the current will flow from the battery 'w through the wire m bus-bar 6, lead n, switch m, wire of, through the bell-magnets, thence through the wire n lead a, the connected-room-bar r, contact n, and wire w back to the battery. A portion of the current will, as already stated, flow through the shunt-circuit 2?. If the occupant of a room wishes more light than is afforded by the miniature lamp t, it may be obtained by throwing the switched end over into contact with the contact-pin n thereby throwing into action the larger lamp t This movement of the switch on also throws the alarm device out of action.

A general alarm is turned in whenever one of the switches 8* is closed. When this is done, the solenoid s is energized and, acting on the soft-iron needle 5 draws the contactplate 8 into contact with all of the contactfingers s, and thereby closes all of the annunciated circuits and causes all of the bellsg to be sounded and all of the miniature lamps to be lighted from electrical energy aiiorded by a battery 8. Y

It will of course be understood that the device described is capable of modification within the scope of my invention herein set forth and claimed. For instance, the contact-fingers 8 might be carried by a part subject to the solenoid and be made to engage with a fixed contact-strip, which would be reversible of the construction illustrated in the drawings.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

1. A guest-call comprising a bell and a lamp in the guests room, an electric circuit including said bell and lamp, whereby they may be simultaneously thrown into action, said circuit extending from the guests room to a calling-station, a switch located in the guests room and normally closing the said bell-circuit, a second electric lamp also located in the guests room, an electric circuit including said second lamp which latter circuit is normally opened and is adapted to be closed by a movement of said switch required to open the bellcircuit, and means independent of said switch for opening and closing the said bell-circuit, substantially as described.

2. A fire alarm or general-call device comprising a solenoid, and a controlling-circuit involving one or more switches, an armature or needle subject to said solenoid, a plurality of contact-fingers, a contact-bar engageable with all of said fingers, under the direct action of said solenoid and armature, electric bells located in different rooms, and circuit connections includingsaid bells, said contactfingers and said contact-bar, whereby all of said bells may be simultaneously thrown into action, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

- HARVEY REED.

Witnesses:

E. H. KELIHER, FRANK D. MERCHANT.

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