The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-03-06
FOUR YEAR CLOCKS.
The KELLEY MOTOR MUST TAKE
A BACK SEAT NOW.


Years Of Quiet Labor Secures Patents
on q Spring" Motor Which Comes
Near Solving the Problem of Per-
petual Motion-Springs Whose Re-
acting Power ia Utilized to Give In
defiuite Running Capacity-Queer
Notions CONCERNING Springs.
CCopuI1htl
NEW YORK, March 5.-No one would take
Sigismund B. Workman for a great in
ventor and yet for twenty years this WELL
known New York merchant has been labor
ing assiduouslY and unremittingly in per-
fecting an idea which now promises to rival
the most wonderful advances made in
electrical engineering. visited him at his
laboratory in his magnificent Seventy-ninth
street mansion and found in him anything
but the typical inventor.
This work, !" said be, has been my req
reation, and now that the final patents have
been granted believe can talk with free-
dom on the subject You know that for
centuries the minds of mechanical engi-
neers have been busy solving the amount Of
power that could be conserved in a steel
spring. They have made innumerable esti-.
mates and tests, but the difficulty seemed
|
power could be gained for use in watch.
clock aud other light movements, and even
in these instances the expenditure of the
power they found they we're able to get out
OF spring was OF comparatively small
duration.
"For instance, when an effort was made
| in Philadelphia TO apply a spring motor to
street car system there the engineers soon
| found that their power was not sufficient at
| any time TO get car up more than twenty
miles on a small grade. In fact engineers
OF the present day have devoted most OF
their time TO steam, electric and pneumatic
motive powers and have allowed the spring
idea TO remain quiescent, hoping for devel-
opment in that field by a future genera.
| ton.
IL have worked quietly and unosteuta-
tiously here in my workshop, taking such
time as / could from my business, and IL the
verdict Of the scientists who have viewed
my invention is TO be taken as a criterion
can say that have solved the spring motor
| problem. The nature of my invention is a
mechanical movement designed TO utilize
the power of coiled steel spring for operat-
ing or running clocks or other machines,
aud taking its first power from another
source Of energy. transmitting IL then to
the operating mechanism. The object of my
| invention is to obtain, under the unwind
| ing OF spiral spring, an increased number
| of revolutions of the spring axle or shaft.
These revolutions are from ten to hundred
times the number OF rotations performed in
| the first winding. The invention comprises
| In mechanical movement prime moving I
wheel adapted TO be actuated by the spring, ]
| another wheel fast TO the spring arbor or !
shaft and of different diameter. either
| larger or smaller than the prime moving (.
wheel, and a compound wheel or trans
| hitting device operating in connection
with tue prime moving wheel and the fast I
wheel, so that the power of the spring is
transmitted through the prime moving
wheel and the compound wheel to the fasU
| wheel and axle
In adapting the spring motor to the pro-
pulsion OF machinery there is tendency for j
] the spring to uncoil rapidly and break. I
; overcame this objection bv combining an
automatically operating clutch with loose .
wheel forming part of the ferential gear
between the spring axle or the shaft and a
| countershaft- In my first invention / en-
ployed single primary axle, a coiled
| spring, a drum which contained the spring !
and in which it was loosely mounted on the
axle, shaft parallel with the axle, differ
entail gearing on the axle, and the counter
shaft with two primary wheels loose on the !
axle. One of these primary wheels is rigid .
with the drum, and an automatic clutch I
mechanism operating in connection with the |
gearing to free the axle from the influence
| OF the spring when the drum has attained
It's maximum OF speed enables me to secure
an increased number OF rotations OF the axle !
and shaft on the uncoiling of the spring
"In the invention just granted l aim to
secure the multiplied number of rotations
Of the axle and power shafts as the springs
uncoil TO still greater degree. A still
further object is to partially rewind each
spring of a series OF springs at each turn Of I
the power shaft by temporarily arresting
the uncoiling of each spring and utilizing
the power OF the acting spring OF the series /
n MI Ind fba
thus insuring a longer operation Of the
movement.
with these ends In view the invention
consists in the combination, with series Of ,
axles two or more), each having a spring
and drum, single power shaft common
to all the spring axles.and different gearing
between the power shaft and each spring
axle. OF mechanicism which temporarily ar-
rests in succession each one of the spring
axles during complete turn Of the power
shaft and which permits the acting springs
To partially rewind the spring on the axle SO
arrested"
Ia his studies on spring motors Mr. WORT
mann has come across some very queer
ideas. He was telling me incidentally OF
| the proposition OF Paris engineer who,
| had an idea that he could prevent railway
disasters by use Of the spring idea. He
proposed to construct a steel spring which.
| when placed III front of an engine would
take upon itself all the momentum of a
colliding engine and leave the trains abso-
| lutely intact. When it came to estimating
as to the amount of steel to be used for the !
purpose IL was found that several million
tons would hardly be enough to effectuaIly
resist the tremendous energy OF a moving
giant engine.
my invention as now perfected when apS
piled TO clocks will enable them TO run forf
several years. On heavier machinery my
idea is simply 20 increase the number OF
springs, adjusting all Of them with these
clutches and cams as they are arranged I'M
the final patent granted me. Elevators
could be run for days by means Of this con-
served energy, aud there Is no question in
my mind but that the power can now be
successfully applied to street cars and to the
heaviest kind OF machinery. 1t took me
years to overcome the capacity Of a spring
to break. In fact, that was my main
difficulty, and it was not until / applied
what you might call the brake OF the ma
chine, the clutches. that l succeeded, and
now you see there is absolutely no danger
Of a break in any Of the springs ha We used. y
With this Mr.. Workman began q test of
the four-spring machine, and its power of
conserving energy seemed indefinite. By
the application OF his brakes he made thes
spring coil as he pleased. giving it renewed
energy each time, and stopping 1t just whenz
he pleased, then again renewing it, when it.
n = A.