US990869A - Electric switch-operating device. - Google Patents

Description

B. HENRARD & L. LEVEQUB ELEGTRIC; SWITCH OPERATING DEVICE.

APPLIQATION TILED FEB. 3, 1910.

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B. HENRARD & L. LEVE UE. ELBGTEIG SWITCH OPERATING DEVIGE.

9 APPLICATION FILED F313. 3, 1910. 990,869.

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BERTI-IELEMY HENRARD, or LIEGE, AND LEON LEvneUE, or ANTWEBP, BELGIUM.

ELECTRIC SWITCH-OPERATING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 2, 1911.

Application filed February 3, 1910. Serial No. 541,677.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, BnnTHnLEMY HEN- RARD and LEON Lnviiqnn, bot-h subjects of the King of Belgium, and residents, the former of Liege and the latter of Antwerp, Belgium, have invented certain new and useful Electric Switch-Operating Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a system of automatically actuating the switches of tramways and electric railroads the object being to provide a system of this kind adapted to work without any intervention of the personnel of the car and independently of the feeding current of the motors.

In the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 shows a side elevation of a trolley and the upper part of the trolley pole provided with contact members; Figs. 2, 3, 4t and 5 show front elevation views of same; Figs. 6 and 6 show a diagrammatic View of our system applied to a four track switch, one view being a continuation of the other. Fig. 7 shows a detail view of contacts arranged near the trolley wire; Fig. 8 is a similar view showing the arrangement of contacts near the underground feed wire. Fig. 9 shows the arrangement of the contacts in case of a sliding bow. Fig. 10 shows in detail a side elevation view of one of the yielding contact members. Fig. 11 is a top plan view of same; Fig. 12 shows a diagrammatic View of a modified form of our device.

Secured to the overhead or underground current supply member is a metallic yielding rubbing contact member 4: (see Fig. 10). The free end of this rubbing contact member laterally projects from the current supply member and is adapted when a switch is approached, to come into contact with an insulated metal strip secured to a suitable carrier arranged on or near the feed conductor. This metal strip is connected by means of a conducting wire with one or the other according to the direction which it is desired to give to the car, of two electromagnets, E which in the diagram shown by Fig. 6 is adapted to shift the switch point for the left hand track or E which is adapted to adjust the switch point for the right hand track, the ends of the windings of said electromagnet-s being earthed. In the description given below, the device will be supposed applied to a trolley as a current supplying member; but the same statements four lines A, B, C, D corresponding to the same track, it being understood that the cars of the same line will all carry their rubbing contacts at the same place. In the particular case shown by Fig. 6, the rubbing member may be positioned in four different fashions. l.--Above on the left as shown by Fig. 2 at F; 2.above on the right as shown by Fig. 3 at F 3.below on the left as illustrated by Fig. 4: at F and 4:.011 the right as shown by Fig. 5 at F*. This rubbing member may be formed of a coiled spring made of gun metal wire and the turns of which are brought close together as shown in detail by Figs. 10 and 11. One of the ends of this spring is secured into a piece of metal 2 which is in turn secured to the trolley pole 8. The opposite end of the coiled spring 1 is provided with a rounded metallic head 4 having a screw threaded shaft screwed into the coils of the spring. As

vented from oscillating when a car passes.

Secured to this carrier through the medium of insulators are four metal strips B, B B B (Figs. 6 and 7) of suliicient length which are insulated from each other and from the line. These strips are arranged respectively so as to come, at the moment of the passage of the car into contact with the corresponding rubbing contact member occupying one of the positions F, F F F The strips are electrically connected with the working electromagnets of the switch, it being borne in mind that the electromagnet E shifts the switch point for the left hand track while the electromagnet E shifts the switch point for the right hand track.

It is needless to say that according to the combinations to be produced it will be necessary to connect with the same electromagnet one or three overhead contact strips.

On the other hand, it will be readily understood that the position of the rubbing memberon the left or on the right side of the trolley does not designate a corresponding direction of the car that is to saythat a given rubbing member actuatinga certain switch toward the left may actuate another switch toward the right. Thedirection de; pends solely upon the method employed for connecting the strips with tlieelectromagnets and upon the position .of the rubbing member on the trolley.

In order'to find out the connections to be 4 made between the'strip and the electromagnets it is necessary to proceed as follows: Knowing the posltion of the rubbing member of a given line, it will be sufficient to' connect ateach switch, the contact strip engaged by the rubbing contact member with the electromagnet which causes the switch to move in the desired direction. These connections are shown by Fig; 6 for three switches.

It is easily understood that with this system the cars once adjusted automatically shift the switches so as to remain on their tracks. It will be furthermore understood that in a net comprising many lines, the

above described combination may be repeated that is to say that the rubbing mem ber might be secured at the same place for two or more difierent lines provided they do not employ the same track during a part 1 of their run.

In the arrangement shown by Fig. 6 the number of lines which may pass a given switch is equal to the number of contact strips of this switch. This number of lines may be doubled by the device described below and shown by Fig. 12. This figure diagrammatically shows a contact device 1) comprising two strips. If it is desired to cause the cars of four lines A, B, C, D to pass this switch one may proceed as follows: The trolley poles of the cars of lines A and B will evidently have their rubbing contact members at the same place but the 7 length of these rubbing contacts will be different. Thus it would be possible to provide the cars of line A with rubbing contact members having a normal length and the cars of line B with longer rubbing members.

On the other hand the switch a will be provided with a contact device comprising two strips Z) and if placed one after the other but one of which 6 will be positioned farther away from the conducting wire so that it will not be touched by the short rubbing contact member but only by the long one.

- It will be readily understood that when the strips 6 and b are connected with two different 'electromagnets, it will be possible to adjust the switch for the line A or for the line B. The same reasoning may be made for the lines C and D. By the process described'it will be possible to control four lines by a contact device comprising two I strips and so on. In a similar manner the rubbing contact member may have two, threeormore. different lengths whereby the number of possible combinations may still be increased if necessary. It is needless to say c that the shape and the method employed for securing the rubbing member may be varied at will. I 7

Having now fully described our said inventionwhat we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. An automatic switch device for electric tramways and electric railways comprising in combination with the current supply member of the cars and the switches of a plurality of yielding rubber contact members mounted on said current supply member at different places, a plurality of contact strips arranged in advance of the said switches at places allowing them to be engaged by the said rubbing contact members, electromagnetic means for controlling each of thesaid switches and means for connecting said electromagnetic means with said contact strips and the earth, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. An automatic switch device for electric tramways and electric railways comprising in combination with the current supply member of the cars and the switches of a plurality of yielding rubbing contact members carried by said current supply rod and having different lengths, a' plurality of contact of yielding rubbing contact members secured to said current supply member at different places and formed each of a coiled spring having a contact head screwed into its free end, a plurality of contact strips arranged in advance of each of the said switches at places where they can be engaged by said rubbing contact members, electromagnetic means for controlling each of said switches and means for connecting said electromagnetic means with said contact strips and the earth, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4:. An automatic device for electrictramways and railways comprising in combination with the current supply member and current supply wire of" the cars and the switches of a plurality of yielding rubbing said switches and means for connecting said contact members carried by the said current electromagnetic means with the said contact supply member at different places and strips and the earth, substantially as and for formed each of a coiled spring having a conthe purpose set forth. 15 tact head screwed into its free end, a plu- In testimony whereof we have hereunto set rality of contact strips arranged in advance our hand in presence of two witnesses.

of each of said switches and secured to a BERTHELEMY HENRARD, metallic carrier secured to the said current E E E supply wire and adapted to serve as a guide Wit for said current supply members, electro- G, D L

magnetic means adapted to control each of LAURENCE TUCK-SHERMAN.

topies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

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