Year: 1887

page_text: We CHARLES GORDON CURTIS, FRANCIS BACON CROCKER and SCHUYLER SKAATS
WHEELER, all of New York, in the County and State of New York, United States of
America, Gentlemen do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement:—
The object of our improvements, which are applicable to electric batteries generally,
but are especially applicable to electric batteries required to give very strong currents
and requiring comparatively frequent renewals, is to enable the battery to be taken
care of and renewed with the least amount of trouble, to increase the power or amount
of current obtainable from, and especially to reduce the internal resistance of the
battery; and to provide means for conveniently raising the electrodes clear of the
battery vessels or jars, and also for varying the amount of immersion and setting them
at any desired depth by means of a handle or other convenient device, so that the
power or current supplied by the battery can be easily and nicely regulated; and to
enable this to be done in such a way that when the hand is removed from the handle,
the electrodes will remain fixed immersed to that extent.
Our invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 being a front
view of our battery, showing it enclosed in a box, the front of which is removed or
opened; Fig. 2 being a top view of the same, showing the top or cover of tho
box open.
We have shown our battery, comprising two cells, enclosed in a convenient form of
box A, so that it can be easily carried about; but it will be evident that it may be
enclosed or mounted in any other form of box or compartment. This box we form
with a hinged cover or top, a, and a front of two hinged doors, a¹ a¹, so that the front
can be opened and the battery jars or liquid holders conveniently taken out of the
box. To enable the jars to be removed, emptied, and refilled with as much con-
venience as possible, and to obtain the maximum holding capacity within a given
sized box or space, we make them in the form of rectangular jars or pitchers, and
formed with lips at one corner, and handles at the diagonally oposite corners, as
clearly shown in the drawings; but of course in this battery any other desired form
of jar or liquid holder may be used, if preferred. The form of electrodes shown in
the drawing, and which we prefer to employ, though of course other forms of

page_text: electrodes may be used if preferred, consist of zinc plates B, and carbon bars or
pencils C, the carbons being mounted in and electrically connected with metal holders
or frames D. In cases where it is desired to use two or more cells and have them
connected in series, we form the carbon holder D, which supports the carbons of one
cell, with a projecting portion or arms EF, which extend across to the adjacent cell
and terminate in a slotted frame or zinc holder F, which is rigidly attached to but
insulated by rubber bushings, f, from the carbon holder of the same cell, as shown.
If more than two cells be employed, the carbon holder D of the second cell is formed
with arms or extensions E, like that of the first cell, which reach over to the third cell
and connect with and support its zinc, and so on for as many cells as desired. The
zinc of the first cell is mounted in and connects with a special holder F¹, which is
attached to but insulated from its carbon holder in the same way, as clearly shown.
The zinc holders F are formed with slots through which the zines can be conveniently
dropped, and which hold them in their positions, the zines being firmly held in placo
and electrically connected with their holders by screws G, as clearly shown. Whenever
it is desirable that the electrodes be conveniently raised and lowered, we mount them
upon a pivoted arm H, which in cases where two cells are employed, we form with a
bar or pin, h, which passes loosely through the arms or portions, E E. The arm H
is pivoted or hinged to the side of the battery box or other support, and is provided
with a handle, I, on the outside of the box, which can readily be attached or detached
when desirable. In order to steady the electrodes and hold them in a vertical
position as they are raised and lowered, we rigidly affix to one of the arms E or some
part of the frame which connects two sets of electrodes, an arm J, which projects
downward and is pivoted to a steadying arm K, which is also pivoted to the side of
the box immediately below a pivot or axis of revolution of the arm H, and which
works parallel to the arm H. With this arrangement the electrodes can very con-
veniently be raised and lowered by simply moving the arm or handle I, and being
mounted on the arm H, they move through a small arc of revolution about the axis of
the arm H, so that they have a slight movement sidewise; but this movement is
immaterial in most cases, and the electrodes are prevented from oscillating and kept
vertical throughout the whole stroke. In order that the electrodes when set at any
desired depth of immersion may remain fixed at that depth, so that all that is necessary
to do is to set the handle I at the right point and remove the hand, we provide a
balance spring to support and more or less balance the weight of the electrodes. The
balance spring may be arranged in any desired way for this purpose, but we prefer to
arrange it as shown in the drawings, by attaching one end of the spring M to the side
of the box or the hinge of the arm H and at the other end to an elbow or portion of
the arm K which projects downward. The object of this construction is to cause the
vertically upward or effective pull of the spring in the direction of the electrodes to be
the same, so as to just balance the clectrodes at all points of their stroke. When the
electrodes are in the position shown, the spring M is stretched more than if the
electrodes were immersed less, and consequently it exerts a greater pull in the
direction of its length; but in this position, its pull, although greater, is less effective
in supporting the weight of the electrodes, because it is pulling with a smaller lever
arm N or in other words, with a less leverage. Whereas, as the electrodes are
raised, the free end of the spring being fixed to the elbow of the arm K, swings
around the point P, so that while this allows the spring to shorten and reduces its
pull, it correspondingly increases the distance or lever arm N with which the spring
pulls around the fulcrum P, so that the moment or effective pull of the spring remains
practically the same in whatever position the electrodes be placed.
By properly proportioning the tension and length of the spring and the proportions
of the various parts, the spring may be made to exert a pull tending to support or
balancing the electrodes, which is practically the same, or just balances the weight
of the electrodes at all points in their rise and fall.
In order that the electrodes when immersed to any desired depth shall remain set
at this point, we provide a friction holding device R, which prevents the electrodes
from either moving up or down in case their weight is not exactly balanced by the

page_text: wherever they may be.
The electrodes of any desired number of cells may be connected together and their
carbons and zines supported in the same way, thus forming any desired number of
couples in series.
We claim as our invention :-
1. The combination in a battery of a negative element formed of two parallel walls
having openings or passages therethrough, a continuous conductive support for the
said walls, and a positive element consisting of a solid plate interposed between and
insulated from the walls of the negative element and sustained by said support,
substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
2. The combination in an electric battery, of a negative element consisting of a
holder of conducting material supporting two parallel carbon walls or rows of rods,
the said holder having a central opening, and a positive element consisting of a plate
fitting said opening in the holder and resting upon insulated supports attached to said
holder at the ends of the opening, substantially as described.
3. The combination, with the electrode or electrodes of a battery, of mechanism to
raise and lower the electrodes out of and into the solution, and a counter-balancing
spring connected or combined with the raising and lowering movement so as to exert
practically the same balancing or supporting effect at all points of the stroke, substan-
tially as described.
4. The combination, with the electrode or electrodes of a battery, of mechanism to
raise and lower the electrodes out of and into the solution, means for counter-balancing
or partly counter-balancing the weight of the electrodes, and a friction holding device
arranged to take up or support any excess of the weight over the supporting power of
the counter-balancing device over the weight and thereby hold the electrodes fixed at
any point, substantially as described.
5. The combination, with the electrode or electrodes of a battery, of mechanism to
raise and lower the électrodes out of and into the solution, means for practically
balancing or supporting the weight of the electrodes and constructed to exert
practically the same balancing or supporting effect at all points of the stroke, and a
friction holding device arranged to take up or support any excess of the weight over
the supporting power of the spring or excess of the supporting power of the spring
over the weight, substantially as described.
C. The combination, with the battery-box or support A, of the arm H pivoted
thereto, the rising and falling electrode or electrodes pivoted or mounted on and
guided by the free end of the arm H, and means for holding the electrode vertical or
practically vertical as it rises and falls.
7. The combination, with the battery-box or support A, of the arm H pivoted
thereto, the rising and falling electrode or electrodes pivoted or loosely mounted on
the free end of the arm H, and the arm K, one end of which is also pivoted to the box
or support, and the free end of which is connected to the electrodes so as to guide or
steady then as they rise and fall.
8. The combination, with the battery-box or support A, of the arm H carrying the
electrode or electrodes, the fixed holding are or device S, and the moving holding
device R bearing upon or engaging with the fixed device S, and connected with the
arm so as to move with it, substantially as described.
9. The combination, with the battery-box or support A, of the arm H pivoted
thereto and carrying the electrode or electrodes, the arm K also pivoted to the
support A and connected with the arm or portion J, and the spring M, one end of

page_text: which is connected with some part of the rising and falling movement, so as to cause
the lever arm of the pull of the spring to decrease as the tension of the spring increases,
substantially as described.
10. The combination, with the battery-box or support A, of the arm H pivoted
thereto and carrying the electrode or electrodes, the arm K also pivoted to the
support A, the arm or portion J connecting the electrode and arm K, the fixed holding
are S, and the holding spring R attached to the end of the arm K and engaging with
the arc S, substantially as described.
11. The combination, with the rigid arms or connecting portion E formed with the
carbon holder or support D at one end and the zinc holder or support F at the other,
of the zinc holder or support F' rigidly attached to but insulated from the zinc
holder F, substantially as described.
12. The combination, of a series of zinc holders F and a series of carbon holders D,
the zinc holder of each couple being rigidly connected with the carbon holder of the
next couple by a conducting arm or portion, and the carbon and zinc holders of each
couple being rigidly attached to but insulated from each other, and means for raising
and lowering the electrodes thus rigidly connected together, substantially as described.
13. A battery jar or a liquid holder formed with a space or a portion cut away,
which space is within the circumscribed figure or general outline of the vessel, and in
which space the handle is located, substantially as set forth.
14. A rectangular jar or liquid holder formed with one of its corners rounded or
cut away, and a handle at that corner, which handle comes practically within the
circumscribed rectangle, substantially as described.
15. A rectangular jar or liquid holder formed with a handle at one corner and a lip
or spout at the diagonally opposito corner, both of which are practically within the
circumscribed rectangle, substantially as described.