US1878223A - Filling device for battery cells - Google Patents

Description

Sept 20, l932- J. L.. wooDBRlDGE FILLING DEVICE FOR BATTERY CELLS Filed M ay 5. 1928 Patented Sept. 20, 1932 Y JOSEPH LESTER woonnmneni'or PHIIiAnELI'rIIA, PENNSYLVANIA FILLING DEVICE FOR BATTERY Application filed May 5, 1928. Serial No. 275,287.

My invention relates to illing devices for storage battery cells and has for its object to provide a combined vent and iilling plug suitable for insertion in the filling opening o a storage battery cell or similar liquid container by the useof which water can be added to the cell up to a certain maximum level, at which point no further flow of water into the cell will occur and any surplus will overflow and can be transmitted to an adjacent cell for filling the same. Another object of the invention is to provide a filling device of this nature which will prevent the liquid in the cell from mingling with the overflowing water after the cell is full but will keep the two entirely separate. Another object is to permit gas to escape from the cell after' filling to the proper level without forcing out through the filling vent any considerable quantity of liquid and to insure that any small .amount of liquid which is thus forced out will be the pure water used for filling unmixed with any of the acid or other liquid in the cell.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a cross sectional elevation of a A filling device embodying features of my inveition positioned in the cover of the cell, an

Figure 2 is a horizontal section of the filling device taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Referring now to Figure 1, A is the cover of a battery cell and B-B the side walls,- only the upper portion of these walls being shown. The cover is sealed to the walls by means of sealing compound S located in the o channel between the cover and the cell walls.

Other parts of the cell such as plates, separators, terminals posts, etc., have been omitted for the sake of clearness, as they are not essential parts of this invention. The filling device consists of a vent plug having a cylindrical barrel 1, provided with an internal cylindical filling passage 3, closed at the top by the cap portion 4. `IIearpthe topof the m barrel 1 are located two'horizontal ducts 5 and 6,'one -on each side thereof, their inner ends communicating with the passage 3 and their outer ends open and arranged to receive the end of supply and overflow pipes 7 and 8 f which may be flexible rubber tubing.

The barrel 1 is Vinserted in the opening of 55 the cover A and held in place in the usual manner by interrupted screw threads 9 and 10, which may take the form of the so called bayonet lock. The barrel 1 is also provided with a flange 11 extending over the upper 60 surface of the cover surrounding the opening, and a gasket 12 of compressible mate-` rial such as soft rubber is interposed between the flange 11 and the top of the cover, and when compressed by the locking effect of the screw threads 9 and 10 will hermetically seal the barrel 1 into the opening of the cover.

The lower end of the passage 3 is closed by a cap 13 which is provided with an upstanding rim 14 designed to encircle the lower end of the barrel 11, fitting it closely on two sides as shown in Figure 2 but spaced a'way from it at two diametrically opposite points, thus providing two spaces 15 between the rim 14 and the lower end of the barrel 1. rIwo openings or notches 16 are shown in the lower edge of the barrel 1, arranged to register with the openings 15 and thus provide a free passa-ge for liquid from the passage 3 through the openings 16 and the spaces 15 into the interior of the cell. The tops of the notches 16 are ata lower level than the top of the rim 14 so that when the openings are filled with liquid, the gas in the upper part of the cell is trapped therein. These provisions constitute .a dip seal or liquid seal element- .since thejlower edge of barrel 1 dips into the liquid contained in the cap 13. Located axiallyfwith respect to the barrel 1 is shown a vent tub'el which as here shown is integral with'the cap 13 and Vwhose duct 18 communicates below with the interior of the cell at a point corresponding with the maximum desired level ofthe liquid and at its upper end opens into the passage Y 3 above the horizontal ducts 5 and 6.,

The operation Vofthe device described above is as follows:

When it is desired to fill the cell by thel addition of water or any other suitable liquid,

the liquid may be supplied through the tube 7 to the duct 5. It will flow down through the passage 3 and out through the openings 16 and spaces 15 overflowing the rim 14 and falling down into the cell. As the liquid flows into the cell, the air or gas which it displaces in the upper part of the cell will escapethrough the duct 18 and out through the horizontal duct -6 and the tubing 8 to the open air. This will continue until 'the liquid in the cell rises to the level of the lower opening of the duct 18. When this point is reached, the duct 18 will be closed preventing further escape of air or gas from the cell. A slight increase in the pressure of the trapped gas will prevent the further flow of liquid from the passage 3 into the cell since the arrangement of the openings 16 and the spaces 15, where the latter are filled to the height of the rim 14, providea gas trap 'preventing gas from escaping back through these passages.

If the supply of liquid continues to be furnishedthrough the pipe 7, the surplus filling the passage 3 will overflow through the duct 6 and if another adjacent cell provided with a similar filling device is connected to the duct 6 by the tubing 8 as shown,l

the surplus liquid will Yfill the next cell to the proper level and any further surplus will `flow out through the similar outlet duct to succeedingcells in the series until allv have been filled. Any further surplus will then be discharged from the outlet duct of the last 1 cell.

lVhen the filling operation has been completed, gas may be developed in the cell either due to local action or to charging current. This gas will accumulate in the top of the cell until sufficient pressure has been-developed to force the liquid back from the spaces 15 to a'level below the top of the openings 16 when'tlie gas will pass out in the form of bubblesthrough the openings 16 and escape through the ducts 5 and 6 and the tubing 7 and 8, eventually reaching the open air.

The amount of liquid which must be forced back in order to permit gas to escape is only that contained iin-the spaces 15 above the upper surface of the openings 16. By suitably proportioning the dimensions of these spaces. this amount of liquid can be reduced to negligible proportions. If the cells are being filled with water, this surplus liquid thus forcedV out will always be water since there is no contact between the water in the spces 15 andthe acid or other liquid in the ce It will be understood that modifications may be made in the device herein described without departing fromrthe spirit of the invention. For example, the barrel 1 and the cover A may be made integral. The cap 13 and the barrel 1 are shown as two separate pieces fitted together but it may be practical to make them in one piece or to divide them in any other way for convenience in manufacturing. 7

I claim:

1. In a filling device for a liquid container having a closure7 the combination of a filling passage extending through the closure, an inlet and an outlet duct with which said passagecommunicates at the top, a liquid seal element through which said passage communicates at the bottom with the interior of the container, and a duct communicating at its lower end with the interior of the container below the level of the liquid seal element and having at its upper end communication with theV external air.

2. In a filling device for a liquid container having a closure, the combination of a filling passage extending through the closure, an inlet and an outlet duct with which said passage communicates at the top, a liquid seal element having an overflow through:

which said passage communicates at the bottom with the interior of the container, and a duct communicating at 1ts lower end with the interior of the container below the level terminates, and a duct terminating in the' container below the level of the liquid seal element overflow. l

4. In' combination a plurality of liquid containers having closures, afillingV device for each container having a filling passage and an inlet and an outlet duct with which said passage communicates at the top, a liquid y' sea-l Velement having an overflow through which said passage communicates at the bottom with the interior of the container, a duct for each container communicating at its lower end with the interior of the container below the level of theliquid seal element overflow, and means for conveying the overflow from the outlet duct at the top of one filling device to the inlet duet of the next.

5. A filling device for battery cells comprising a hollow closure adaptedwtomextend into and out of the cell and having an inlet and an outlet for the outwardly extending portion and having a liquid seal element for passage, ducts provided near the closed end of the barrel, a cap closing the lower end of said passage and provided with an upstanding rim encircling the lower end of the barrel and fitting it closely at certain points and spaced away from it between said oints providing spaces, there being provi ed in the barrel openings communicating with said spaces, and a tube opening through and extending below the cap and communicating with the interior of the barrel above the I rst mentioned ducts.

' the hollow portion of said body, an upward- 7 A filling device for a 'liquid container said device comprising, a closure having an inlet duct passing therethrough and terminating within the container above the normal liquid level via an upturned outlet, in combination with a duct communicating at one end with the space outside of the cell and at the other end with the interior of the cell at the normal liquidlevel, whereby when the liquid level rises tothe normal point the gases in the cell are trapped and further iow or diffusion of liquid into the cell prevented.

8. A filling device for an enclosed liquid container, said device comprising a hollow body having a liquid inlet duct therein adjacent its top and having an outlet duct therein adjacent its top for both liquid and gas, a liquid inlet and gas outlet passage in ly open liquid seal element at the bottom of said passage,y and a duct for venting gas from the container communicating at its lower end with the interior of the container below the liquid seal element and communicating at its upper end with said passage above said inlet and outlet ducts.

JSEPH LESTER VVOODBRIDGE.l

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