The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-01-24
A USEFUL INVENTION.
The Simple Electrical Device
Which Saves Many Lives.
PRODUCT or A sgATTE BRAIN.
Engineer Gordon'a Automatic rat-oHt
ON tho Electric Hallway New
Northern Pacific Branch.

one Of fhe most notable inventions in
electrical science has beef made by Feat
tle man, aud practical experience has
r,rosed II Ia he success. The inventor is
". -. Gordon, chief engineer of the Scat
Tie Electric Railway a Power Company
ono of the greatest difficulties in the
way Of the successful operation Of electric
railways has been to ind some way OF
cutting off the current from the wires
when short circuit occurs. If any two or
more lines arc crossed or any obstruction
prevents the passage of the current short
circuit occurs, burning out the fuses or
arfnafures of the dynamos. When wire
falls from any cause, any person or animal
coming in contact with IL receives a severe
shock which often proves fatal. Hitherto
no sure means had been found Of cutting
of the current. device known as the
automatic rurrent-brenker IN in use, by
which any dynamo In cut out instantly
,lpon the occurrence of n short circuit.
0ne Of these devices is connected
with each dynamo and whenever
short circuit across OH the wire running
from that dynamo to- the main wire, it Is
designed to automatically cut out that ma-
chine. When n short circuit occurs on the
main wire oil the circuit breakers should
net. so ms to cut out all the machines and
stol, the whole cnrrent. But these circuit
breakers are not certain of action, as they
sometimes stick When any one of them
fails the current IL not completely cut out,
the wire in burnt through, danger re-
suits 10 any person coming in contact with
Ii and tho fuses orr artnaturcs OF the dy-
nnfnos are burnt out.
An instance Of the results Of such failure
occurred some mouths ago when two
horses were killed by contact with fallen
wire on Front street. Immediately after
that accident Mr.. Gordon began working
an device to make the cutting out of the
current complete, certain and instan-
taneous whether all the .irctit-breakers
worked or not. The result was an anto-
.natie cut.out. If anyone or all except one
nf the cireuit-breakers fail To act, this de-
vice will Immediately cut the current out
from the main line by pulling the main
line switch automatically. AT the electric
railway power house FIVE machines arc in
use and In case any of the main line wires
should be- down, some enc OF the circuit
breakers would be siire 10 act and would
automatically eilt out the current from all
the machines.
THE cutoff has II rod running along the
whole range of eireuit-hreakcrs, aud at
tached 10 il il lever of insulated wires
over each circuit breaker. When q short
circuit occurs, the armattire in the circuit
breaker Is drawn down by magnetism,
thereby LIFTING the two arms of n toggle-
Joint. This joint throws UP the lever and
slightly turns the rod. On the end of this
rod is a small arm, from which another rod
runs down, connecting with a latch which
holds the main lever for pulling the switch.
This rod drops aud pulls a lever
which releases another latch. As soon rs
this latch is released q spring, which has
been held in tension by it, closes up and
acts on the main lever. This dies up and
pulls the switch, cutting out the main line.
IL only ono of the five eircnit-breakers acts,
which is certainty, IL will, by working
the automatic cut-out, cut out the whole
current instantly. Moreover, the switch
viii remain ont as long as the short cir
cult continues. II n man puts the switch
ia again he cannot keep il in, for IL would
10 sooner be put IN than IL would fly out
again
With this cut-out in use, there is no dan
ger of any mans coming lin contact with
ike wire when the wire is down. for the
very instant that the wire touches any
thing the cut will act In tho same
way IL Is rendered impossible for IA machine
10 be burnt out. IL always serves as Il
signal when a car leaves the track or any
trouble occurs on the wire. During the
three months that this invention has been
IN use on the electric railway. 1t has acted
hundreds Of times on Gone occasion, four
times in ~ minutes, and on another.
six times III - minutes. aud il has
never failed in action. 1t is impossible to
estimate the saving IL has effected for the
company The burning out of an arma-
ture in a chr involves an expense of $50 To
$lou, which may reach $S00. Ii the arma-
taro Of a dynamo is burned out the cost
runs mp to $1,000 for re-wrapping At
present these machines have to hc sent
Fast for ro-wapping, involving great
delay, bat the Home Electric Company Is
lifting up a shop in which this work can
he done.
Mr.. Gordon has flied caveat for a
patent ON his invention and il now wait
ing for reply from several electric COM
nA4 tstr s,F. at To. D. -.