Patent GB-118330-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to Electric Signalling Systems, more particularly for use in Mines.
IPC: B66B19/06
Filed: 1917-08-25
Abstract: 118,330. Automatic Telephone Manufacturing Co., and Remington, C. Aug. 25, 1917. Mine signalling systems; order apparatus.-In a mine signalling system of the kind described in Specification 18780/14 comprising a number of signal-controlling relays and employing destination and level signals, a cautionary signal, and action signals, the destination, level, and cautionary signals are cancelled at the end of the wind, while the action signals are cancelled at the beginning of the wind. A destination signal cannot be cancelled by the setting up of another signal, and if this signal be a destination signal it cannot be indicated. Action signals set up during the wind are cancelled at the end of the wind. Construction. The relays 5 to 9 control the level signal LIL, the cautionary signal LC, and the action signals LR, LS, L2, L4, and L5; while the relays 10 to 13 control the destination signals L6 to L9, The level signal LIL and the cautionary signal LC are retained during the wind by a relay 21, the destination signal is retained during the wind by a relay 22, and the fifth action signal is adapted to be energized, when the destination signal L6 has been previously energized by the action of a relay 23. The signal impulses are received over the leads 2 by a master relay 1 and the impulses sent to the relays 6 to 13 are controlled by an impulse control relay 4. The circuits of the parallel connected retaining windings of the relays 6 to 9 are controlled by a set of time-lay relays 15, 16 and 17, by means of which the action signals below LR and LS are cancelled if an interval longer than the time taken for the three relays to release their armatures occurs between two successive impulses; while the relay 19 of a pair of cancelling relays 18, 19 is energized by a dynamo 20 driven by the winding engine. Operation. Level and destination signals. To energize a destination signal, say L6, six current impulses are received by the relay 1. The first impulse operates directly on the relay 5 to energize the level signal LIL and the ' raise ' signal LR or ' stop ' signal LS according as the cage is at rest or in motion as described in Specification 118,828. This selection is obtained by the armature 82 of the relay 18 which, in the position shown when the cage is at rest, connects the signal LR to the positive pole of the battery; and in its other position, when the cage is in motion, connects the signal LS to the battery. The relay 5 also locks up over its winding 39 which is connected directly to the cancelling-lead 24, and closes a pair of contacts in the circuit of the operating winding of the relay 6. The circuit of the relay 6 is completed upon the de-energization of the relay 4 so that only the relay 5 is operated by the first impulse. A similar operation of the relay 4 ensures that only one relay is energized by each received impulse. The successive impulses maintain the slow-release relays 15, 16, and 17 in their operative positions thereby maintaining the locking circuits of the relays 6 to 9 connected to the cancelling lead 24 through the contacts 52, 53. After the sixth impulse which energizes the sixth relay 10 to energize the destination signals L6, the onsetter pauses in his operation to allow the slow-release relays 15 to 17 to de-energize. When the relay 17 de-energizes, the relay 22 is energized as follows :-positive pole of battery, key 31, contact 34, armature 33 of relay 18, lead 32, contacts 55, 54 of relay 10, relay 22, contacts 41, 40 of relay 17 to negative pole of battery. The energized relay 22 locks itself up over the contacts 44, 45, completes a retaining circuit for the level signal LIL over the contacts 46, 47, and opens the circuit of the operating windings of the destination signal relays at the contacts 48, 49, whereby a second destination signal cannot be energized until the end of the wind when the relay 22 is de-energized. Cautionary signal. To energize the cautionary signal LC after a destination signal has been energized, three impulses are sent to the master relay 1. The first impulse of this signal, in addition to energizing the relay 5, opens the circuit of the retaining windings of the relays 6 to 9 at the contacts 50, 51 of the relav 15 before this circuit is again closed at the contacts 52, 53 of the relays 16, 17. The relays 6 to 9 assume the normal positions shown and the relay 23 is energized over the following circuit when the contacts 40, 42 of the relay 17 are closed; positive pole of battery, key 31, contacts of cancelling relays 18, 19, lead 32, contacts 55, 54 of relay 10, relay 23, contacts 57, 56 of relay 9, contacts 42, 40 of relay 17 to the negative pole of battery. The relay 23 locks itself up until the end of the wind and its contacts 60, 61 short-circuit the contacts 62, 63 of the relay 10 so that the fifth action signal L5 may be energized when the relay 10 is energized. After the cessation of the three impulses to set the cautionary signal, the de-energization of the relay 17 closes its contacts 64, 65 to energize the relay 21 as follows :-positive pole of battery, key 31, contacts of cancelling relays 18, 19, lead 32, relay 21, contacts 64, 65, contacts 69, 68 of energized relay 7, contacts 67, 66 of relay 8 to negative pole of battery. The energized relay 21 locks itself up over the contacts 70, 71, closes a second maintaining circuit for the level indicator LIL at the contacts 72, 73, and completes a maintaining circuit for the cautionary signal LC at the contacts 74, 75 whereby the signal LC is maintained energized until the relay 21 is de-energized at the end of the wind. Action signals. To energize an action signal after the destination and caution signals have been energized, the desired number of impulses are sent to the master relay. The first impulse of this signal, in addition to energizing the relay 5, opens the circuit of the retaining windings 6 to 7, which were operated to energize the cautionary signal, at the contacts 50, 51 of the relay 15 before this circuit is again closed at the contacts 52, 53 of the relays 16, 17. Signals, cancelling. When the wind is commenced, the dynamo 20 energizes the relay 19 which operates its armature 77 to energize the slow-release relay 18 and its armature 30 to disconnect the lead 24 from the battery. The retaining windings of the operated action relays 5 to 9 ara thereby de-energized and the action signals cancelled at the commencement of the wind. The operation of the armature 33 of the relay 18 does not disconnect the lead 32 of the level, cautionary, and destination signal maintaining circuits from the battery since this lead is previously connected to the battery by the operation of the armature 30 of the relay 19. When the wind ceases, the relay 19 is de-energized to disconnect the lead 32 from the battery before it is again connected at the contact 34 of relay 18, thereby cancelling the level, cautionary, and destination signals at the end of the wind. Action signals, energizing during the wind, and cancelling. When the relay 18 is energized its armature 25 engages contact 26 thereby connecting the lead 24 to the battery through the armature 30 and contact 28 of the relay 19, which upon de-energization at the end of the wind, cancels the action signal which has been set up during the wind. The contacts of the cancelling relays may be arranged as described in Specification 18780/14, in which case the action signals energized during the wind are cancelled when the next wind starts.