The times., 1897-11-08
NEW ELECTRIC APPLIANCES
Patents Secured by United States
Electric Lighting Company.
REDUCES COST OF SUPPLY
AiaE BE Substituted for Steam, Gas
for Cooking and the Manufacture
of Ice for Refrigerators-H Is
Believed That All Private Houses
VIII Soon BE- Benefited.

The United States Electric Lighting Com
panv has jast secuted tie sole paten:
right 70. the District OF Columbia of the
recently patented central control system
Of multiple motoring The patents were
taken cut August II and October Q last
aud tine invention promises to rev v5!Uuonize
TIE proGuctioh of power and light. II
will Low make electric heating, cooking,
cod storage. and refrigera ting possible, and
at greatly decrea sed cost.
one OF the most difficult questions that
Eas perpiexed electric Light and power
COMPANIES is the method Of charging for
current An electric light company thai
furnishes current for lamps only is
usually compelled To earn its running ex-
peuses aud whatever profits it produces
during period OF a few hours oaly out
OF each day. Unless there happens 10 be a
sufficient d.mand Tor The current Cs.rIng
tie day, The generating mechanism must
PRACTICAL, lie iale t.y far the greater part
OF the twen.vfoar hours, or until the
nIgEt demand j. due. The steam IS III the
boilers and the fires are banked during
tnase Idle hodrs, and If a demand for tue
generators could operate al this time at
an expense merely covering the fuel used.
As it is, however, a plant furnishing cur
rent FOR lamps only has a period or ac
tivity OF not more than three or three and
one lalf hours out Uf the twentyfCur.
During this short time il must earn is
running expenses and dividends. 1t viii
b. seen, therefore, that the current fur.
uiNhnd for i9uaraS uoucf rtacpScarffn rgSt
far More than u would II the plant could
furnish liz output during all the hours Of
the day or nearly all.
An electric hight plant is supplied with
means Tor indicating its daily output by
diagram, IN which the fluctuation is shown
by a line called the lo8d-curve. Early N
the evening as the demand begins, THIS
line viii be near the lowest edge of the
card, tut a. The various theaters open aud
other place. that require a large nunI1er
OF lights the l0aG-curye rises with 1uuca
abruDtaeSs 20 its highest point, which is
called Tie peak. When this point u
IIaAunum output is reached the genera
tC-s YIN usually be working not far
below their utmost capacity.
IT, al this time, a customer males a
sudden demand for current, it may easily
happen taat the quantity he calls for VIII
raise the peak OF the load-curve above tile
utmost ,aPsclty OF the central station.
Under such circumstances the company
must enlarge the plant and add To the
generating IaechsniciSn without regard
70 tie fact that the interest on the money
thus expended may be more than the
entire income received from the customer
who has tnade the increase necessary. Itls
evident, therefore, that TO lie Profitable
70 TIE company, an increased demand for
current should not come at the moIaent
when the plant is required to use its geu-
orators al fun load, as 1t is termed, in
order 20 supply itS nightly demand.
These are So.ne OF the reasons why elec-
tric lichr companies have been unable u
offer current at prices which would put
them or equal terms in competing with gas
After niEe OF ten different plans had
been tested ia England, at Brighton and
else where, the attention of the United States
Electric Lighting Company was directed
70 . method which has proved a COLA
pletc 6epa-ture from former plans, and
which Is claimed 70 be a simple solu.
ticn Of the whole problem. 1t is com
monty EEown as the Oxley central con
tTDl system Of multiple metering Of electric
currents. Its results are SO valuable and
far-reacbing in beneficial respects that
a brief description VIII be OF interest.
The inventor is a graduate of the
greatest technical school III England, hold
ing E frsi-class certificate of the tech
nOlogical examinations OF the CITY and
Guilds, of London. Since arrivirg In this
country be has had a widely varied ex-
perieuce Ia some OF the largest electric
light and power stations and telephone
and telegraph companies ia the United
States.
Taught by tho mistakes Of the several
methods previously expioiued, he saw that
tbe essential and even vital Conditions Of
success were that the meters should De
wholly controlled from some single point,
such rs the central station, and that no
material change should be made in the
rretering tHechenisIn. A method, OF what
ever kind IL might be, should be capable
OF installation upon existing systems with
out any subsya antial rcarrangenent Of cir-
cults or oranges in construction.
The methUd ,leyiseI, therefore, consisted
n placing at each outlying sta ton a sim
pie uppa aratus which na be termed a con
troller. Itcontains two independent electro
ma gnets which are so connected that the
Current that energies them IS supplied
magnets alternately attract an aTmature
pivoted between its ends, knives beine
mounted thereon, one Of which IS thrown
into a clip at each attraction of tne
armature. This operation completes or
csta blishcs, tie circuit of the srna tuTe OF
one meter, and simultaneously opens the
armature ciIcuit Of the other meter
The s0finef is in condition to start, there
fore, the instant that any current is thrown
upon the service wires by tuning on one
or more lamps, OF other translating de
vices. and at the same instant the arma
ture circuit Of the other meter is opened
and the meter stops. 4 like appara tus is
located at each point where current IS
used at both rates, and controlling cir
cEit is supplied consisting OF. two, or
prefera bly Of only one wiTe. This is con.
nected TO single sN ftch-contact at aay
suitable siugle point, prefera by the cen
trail station.
It is thence led along past each point
where current is used al both rates. A
small double switch at tue central sta
tion is used to close the circuit OF either
electro-magnet for an instant, this switch