US1237341A - Electric car-heating system. - Google Patents

Description

L. P. HYNES.

ELECTMC CAR HEATING SYSTEM. APPucATmN mio Mlm. 22, ma.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

L. P. HYNES.

ELECTRIC CAR HEATING SYSTEM.

mmc/111011 m51) 111111. 22, 1913.

1,23%341 1 1111111111111 Aug. 21, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

L. P. MINES. ELECTRIC CAR HEATING SYSTEM. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, I9I3. 1,237,341h l PamntedAug. 21,1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIcE.

LEE P. HYNES, or

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, .ASSIGNORy T0 RAILWAY UTILITY COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION 0F ILLINOIS.

ELECTRIC CAR-HEATING SYSTEM.

Application led March 22.

To all whom z'z may concern: i n

Be it known that I', LEE I). I-IYNEs, a citi- Zen of the United States, residing at Chicago, county of Cook, State of Illinois, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Car-Heating Systems, of whichg.

the following is a specification.

My invention relates more particularly to such a system which is thermostatically controlled, my object `in part being to employ therein a thermostat thermometer for making and breaking lthe circuit through the car heaters. By thermostat thermometer I mean to indicate a thermostat which comprises a column of mercury which, near its lower end,` is in constant contact with one branch of a circuit and is adapted to complete the circuit by making contact at a point higher up in the tube inclosing the mercury column. An instrument of this character is rather delicate and it is necessary to avoid sparking upon the completion or interruption of the circuit. My invention therefore comprises means by which the heating current can be controlled to a nicety by a thermostat of this character without risk of injury to the latter. In the accompanying drawings and in the following specification I have specifically set forth a preferred form of my invention and of the various details thereof for the purpose of exemplifying the same but it is te beiunderstood that I am not limited to the specific system or apparatus shownbut the scope of my invention is to be gathered from the following claims in which I have endeavored to dene the same from the prior art so far as known to me without, however, relinquishing or aban- Cloning` any portion thereof.

Inv the accompanying drawings Figure l. is a diagrammatic representation of my system; Fig. 2, a vertical section of the main relay or cutout on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3; Fig. 3, a top plan of the same with the cover removed; Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section on the plane ofthe line Ll-tof Fig. 3 at right angles to the plane of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a vertical section of an auxiliar relay on the line 5 5 of Fig. 6; Fig. 6 is a top plan view; Fig. 7 is a vertical section of the same on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a vertical section of a shunt resistance forming part of my system; and Fig. 9 is a vertical section of a special form of thermostat thermometer likewise forming part of Vmy system.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aue'. 2i.. ist El.

1913. Serial No. 756,190.

Each part1 is designated by the same character of reference wherever it occurs in the several views. Referring rst to the dia grammatie View, the trolley or other supply circuit is indicated at 11u12, the car heateas atl3-13 and the circuit is closed `tlirough the latter by means of a main contactor 1t the details of which need not be described since it is or may be of a form well known in the art and which comprises as diagrammatically shown in Fig. l, a pivoted switch l5, an electro-magnet 16 controlling the same, resistances 1T and 18 connected on opposite sides of said electro-magnet. a stationary contact 19 and a`blow-out 20. Any other form of electro-magne'tically operated contacter capable of taking care of the trolley voltage which in modern practice ordinarily amounts to about 550 volts, may be employed instead of that just de.- scribed. The coil of the magnet 16 together with the resistances of the main contactor forni part of a circuit in shunt to the main heating circuit comprising also contacts of a cut-out or main relay 2l and wires 22 and 23. A second shunt circuit between the leads of the trolley, which is permanently closed, includes a wire 23, shunt resistance 24e, wire Q5 and wire 23 above mentioned. From the last named circuit a minor shunt circuit is taken comprising the thermometer thermo stat 26 and thc coil of an auxiliary relay 27. In order to secure from the main circuit of 55() volts a su'tliciently small voltage to avoid injury to the thermometer thermostat the circuit thereof is in shunt to a small section 2S of the shunt resistance Q4 and obviously hy proportioning the resistance of this section 28 to the entire resistance across the leads the voltage in the thermostat circuit may be made of any desired amount. The auxiliary relay 2T controls the current', through thc coil of the main relay 2l, the spring 29 controlled thereby serving to close the normally open contacts SiO-3l of said main relay coil. The main relay 21, when energized, opens contacts in the circuit through the coil of the main contacter referred to above, and thereby breaks the heating circuit. A condenser 32 is connected across the contacts @E0-3l of the auxiliary relay to prevent arcing and a condenser 33 is connected across the terminals of the ther- .mometer thermostat :26 for the same purpose when the current is broken, butthe circuit 4including condenser 33 is controlled by the main relay and is open when the contacts of relay-comprises a'casing 34, which may be. of iron, containing a solenoid -coil 35 `preferably mounted upon a spool for convenience in removal and readjustment and l surrounding a lnon-magnetic tube 36 of brass or other similar material in which the solenoid core 37 is freely movable in a vertical direction. At its lower endthe casing is magnetic circuit. At-lts'upper end the solenoid core is tapered at 4l and connectedv closed by an iron cover plate 38 and its up perjp'end by an iron disk 39 having a de- '.pending nipple or boss 40 o f the same material which is hollow and countersunk at its lower end 42 of the solenoid. The casing 34,-cover plate 38, disk 39, and boss 40 form with the solenoid a substantially closed toa neck 43 lupon the upper reduced, end of which 4is-mounted a -spool or collar 44 of insulating material secured to the neck by .a nut 45.l )Above'the disk 39 is mounted an insulating-disk 46 upon which arese` 'levers 48-48 which are of bell crank form and control the current through the coil of magnet 1,6 o f the main contaetor.' To 4 the outer and longer 'arms of these levers'v are secured in any suitable manner, as by the metal Aclips 49- 49, the members of a .pair of carbon contact-blocks n50-50 which are further secured in position byscrews 4'5l-51.. The'contac't levers 48 are provided with-inwardly: projecting arms 5252 which engage in the groove ofithe spool or collar 44v and are operated thereby to swingthe contact 'arms into closed 'or open'positions.

The upper end of the casing is closed preferably by agcover 53, the under face of which is protected bya disk of insulating material; mica vmay be suggested as. suit- Upon opposite sides rof the'pair o vcontact armsare mounted insulating'plates 55-55, preferably ofi mica, which' arev yscrewed or otherwise secued to blocks of insulating material 5656 screwed to the'walls ofthe casing. YVithin the sc gf ments divided oit on opposite sides of t e 'contact arms by these insulating plates are mounted electro-magnets 57 58458' of which arev attached angular core but outside the' mica insulation. E5

pieces 59-59 which 'extend downwardlyA 'upon' opposite `sides of the contact blocks The coils of these electro-magnets are 'connected 1n 57, to the coresv 4series with lther'contact arms of the device so that as long as the current is passing between the latter it is also-passino' throu h the magnets whichare so woun and t e cores of'which are so connected to the iron plate 39 `as lto form a magnetic circuit, the

only break of which 'is across the Space occupied by the contact blocks. This magnetic circuit has noappreciable effect upon thc contact blocks when the latter are in closed position. When, however, the circuit is opened by separating the contact blocks, the magnetic circuit exerts its well known effect to quench any arc that may bo drawn between the carbons. The pole pieces of the magnets are however protected by the insulating partitions. v

It will 'of course be understood from the foregoing description that when a current passes through the solenoid coil of the relay the 'core is drawn upwardwithin the saine and throws the inner ends of the con- .,tact members upward andthe carbon blocks 'tain the'solenoid core in its upper position and the weight of the latter, when no eurrent'is passing through the solenoid coil, is

cured brackets 47,-47 between the project-` l ing ears of which arepivoted the Contact suiicient to insure close contact between thev carbon blocks. A

As heretofore stated, this ymain `relay not only controls the current through the magnet of the main contacter but also opens andcloses the circuit through-the condenser 33. The particular construction by which this is accomplished is shown in Fig. 2. The lower cover -plate 38 is, formed with a central' aperture through which the solenoid core extends and which is tapped to receive a' sleeve 60 ofsuitable conductive material vprovided intermediate its ends with a perhaving Contact points 67 for making electricalzconnection with the diaphragm 61. One branch of the circuit of condenser 33 is attached to the brass ring through an opening 68 in the plunger, and other branch of the vcircuit to the sleeve at 69. When the solenoid core isin its lower position, as it main relay, the solenoid core is raised and completes the condenser circuit by allowing -the spring to force the plunger against the diaphragm.

The condensers 32-33 are or may be of any ordinary approved type but the auxiliary relay 27 and the shunt resistance present features of novelty in their construction and will-be specifically described.

The relay as shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, comprises a case, preferably of sheet metal, in which is inclosed a solenoid coil 27, the core 72 of which is limited in its movement by screws 7373 extending through openings in the armature plate 74 of the core. Screws 73 are attached into a U-shaped iron forging 75 which partially surrounds the solenoid coil, and the ends 7 6 of which extend beneath the coil to form with the armature plate and core a substantially closed magnetic circuit. Above the forging 75 the casing is substantially closed by a disk 77 of insulating material upon which is mounted a leaf spring contact 31. The disk 77 and forging 75 are perforated in the axis of the solenoid coil and core, and the latter carries a rod 30 of insulating material which is adapted when the solenoid core is drawn upward, to bear against the spring contact'l and close it against the adjustable stationary contact 30 which, as shown, comprises a screw mounted in a bracket 80, the latter being connected to the terminal of the main relay and the sprin'g contact being connected to the wire 22, as show-n at 81. The specific construction'of the shunt resistance 24 diagrammatically shown in Fig. lyis illustrated in Fig. 8. It comprises a nonmagnetic casing 82 which is adapted to be screwed to any tlat surface and incloses a spool83, through the bore of which a screwbolt 84 for the purpose of s'ecuring it to a support 85, by means of the nut 88. Upon the spool is a coil of suitable resistance material, the terminals of which are connected by wires T, R to the wires 23, 25, respectively.' At an intermediate point betweenl the ends ofthe coil and pref- 'erably toward the middle thereof, a suitable -length of the resistance material is shunted 'through the thermometer thermostat circuit by the wires 87-88. The current through the thermometer thermostat will of course bey determined by the fall potential across thesi terminals, and the latter may be substantially fixed by determining the total vfall ef potential in the resistance coil and properly proportioning the shunted length of the coil. By connecting the shunt near the center of the resistance coil the danger of disastrous short circuiting is avoided.

'As above stated, a construction of the therinometer thermostat is shown in Fig. 9. This device comprises thermometer tube v89 of glass or similar insulating material in which the bore is enlarged as at 90 91 at the point where the contact wires are inserted, for the purpose of securing a larger contact surface. In the particular form shown but two contacts are employed, `but it will be understood that if desired, a number of contacts to be alternatively employed, may be inserted in the thermometer tube,

and suitably connected. The wires forming the contacts 92-93 are preferably of platinum and extend through bores or openings formed in the wall of the tube and into the enlarged openings or cavities above mentioned. and turn downward to the lower ends thereof, and are suitably covered with insulating material from the points at which they enter the thermometer tube. As shown in the figure, the wires are bent to lie against the outer wall of the thermd'meter tube and wrapped with wire or cord, as at .Q4- 95, to prevent their being broken. The thermometer tube is incased throughout its length from the bulb. upward in a housing QG of rubber, glass, or similar insulating material, which tits closely around the tube immediately above the bulb and is filled with an. insulating compound which is poured in around the .thermometer and allowed to set. The insulator tube is. in

cased in a tubular metal jacket 97 which also extends over and protects the bulb and is closed at its upper and lower ends by screw plugs 98*99 forming parts brackets 100-101, adapted to be attached to a wall or other flat surface, the walls of the jacket being perforated opposite the bulb to allow free contact with the air;

The particular arrangement of the various elements of the system is of course immaterial, so long as the connections above described are provided, but it is ordinarily found convenient to `inclose the main relay or shunt resistance and the auxiliary relay in a suitable case or box, and to mount ther thermometer thermostat where it will be exposed to the' air in the compartment to be heated, and under observation.

The operation of the apparatus has been substantially described in connection with below that for 'which the thermometer thermo'stat is arranged or set, 'there will be no current through the latter, the auxiliary relay will be unenergized and its contacts open, there will be no current through the coil of the main relay and henceits contacts will be together, permitting a ow of current through the coil of the main contacter,

closing and retainin l0.

closed the switch thereof, which closes t e circuitthrough the car heaters. When the temperature 1n the car or other compartment being heated rises suiciently tov cause the mercury in the thermometer thermostat to close the circuit therethrough, the current Hows from the shunt ofresistance 24 through the thermometer thermostat and a coil of the auxiliary lrelay 27. It may be noted here, as above described the vcircuit of condenser 38 being open at the main relay at the time the contact is made at the thermometer thermostat,

nthe condenser is inactive and no discharge spark is given. The How of current through the coil of the auxiliary relay attracts the core and armature thereof,l drawing them lup into` position in which the insulator rod 79 closes the contacts of the switch. This closes a circuit from the conductor 23 through the coil 2l of the main relay, contacts. 30-31, wires 22-23, back to line. The main relay thereupon draws up its armature and throws open the'. contacts controlled thereby, as heretofore described and if an arc is formed between said contacts, it is immediately blown out by the magnetic cirl"'cuitabove described. The opening of the contacts of the main relay breaks the circuit through the coil 16 of the main conductor, theswitch whereof immediately opens and the current through the heaters is interrupted. When the temperatun` in the com-I' lactor for controlling said circuit, compris? ing an electro-magnetic operating coil, a main relay controlling the current through said coil, and comprising an operating coll, an auxiliary relay controlling the current through the latter coil, and comprising an operating coil and a thermostat controlling the current through the last named coil.

"2. In a heating system of the class described, a heating circuit, electro-magnetic means for opening and closing the same,

rent through said contactor contact device and an auxiliary relay, the

`said means including a thermostatvv adapted and arranged to make and break the current through said electro-magnetic means, a con.- denser in shunt to said thermostat, and means for closing the condenser circuit after the circuit is closed through said thermostat, and opening it after the circuit through the thermostat is open.

3. In a heatingsystem of the class described, and in combination with theheating circuit and electro-magnetic means for opening and closing the same, a main relay controlling the flow of current through said electromagnetic means and including van electro-magnetic coil and a part operated thereby, a thermostat contro ling the passage of current through the main relay and a condenser in shunt to said thermostat, the circuit of which comprises a pair of contacts controlled by the movable part of the main relay. i l

4. In a heating system of the classA described, and in combination with the heating circuit and electro-magnetic means for' opening and closing the same, a main relay adapted to open and close the circuit through said electro-magnetic means, an auxiliary relay for controlling the circuit of the main relay and comprising an electromagnetic coil, a thermostat controlling the circuit of the auxiliary relay, a'condenser in shunt to said thermostat, and connections controlled by the main relay for opening and closing the condense circuit.

5. In a heating system of the class described, and in combination`with the heatingcircuit and electro-magneticmean:l for opening and closing the same, an"`auxiliary relay controlling the current througlr said electro-magnetic means, a thermostat ron'- trolling the circuit through the relay, a condenser iri shunt to the thermostat, a pair oflcontacts controlling the condenser circuit,

.and means operated by the main relay for controlling the said contacts.

(i. In a heating system of the class described, and in combination with the heatingcircuit thereof and its electro-magnetic contactor, a permanently closed circuit in shunt thereto, and comprising a resistance,4 a circuit in shunt to a section `of said resistance and comprising a thermostatic switch and electro-magnetic means for controlling the o erationof said main contactor.

7. n a heating system of the class described, and in combination with the heat'- ing circuit and its electro-magnetically controlled contactor, a permanently closed shunt to said heat circuit co rising a -resistance, 'a main relay control lng the cura thermostatic electro-magnetic coil of which is in shunt to a section of the resistance, contact means 'controlled by said auxiliary relay; for controlling the passage of current through the main relay, and means controlled by the main relay for controlling the passage ot' current through the contactor.

8. In a heating system of the class described, 'and in combination with the heating circuit and the electro-magnetic contactor thereof, a main relay, the contacts of which are comprised in and control the'circuit of the contactor', a pair of contacts con trolling the electro-magnetic means of the main relay, a permanently closed circuit in shunt to the heating circuit and comprising a resistance, a circuit in shunt to a section of said resistance, and including a thermostatic switch and electro-magnetic means controlling the last mentioned contacts.

9. In a heating system of the class described and in combination with the heating circuit thereof an electro-magnetic switch controlling the heating circuit, a main relay comprising a solenoid coil, core, and contacts, the latter of which control the passage of current through the first named switch, a pair of contacts for making and breaking circuit through said solenoid coil, a permanent shunt to the heating circuit comprising a resistance, a circuit in shunt to a portion of said resistance and including a thermostatic contact and electro-magnetic means controlling the contacts in the main relay coil circuit.

10. In a heating system of the class described, and in combination with the heating circuit and an electro-magnetic contactor LEE P. HYNES.

Witnesses:

JOHN B. MACAULEY, ROBERT DOBBERMAN.

Images