Improvements in and connected with Magnesium Lighting Apparatus for Photographic and other Purposes.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Sept., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 15th June, 1897-Accepted, 31st July, 1897
Improvements in and connected with Magnesium Lighting Apparatus
for Photographic and other Purposes.
ARTHUR SALMON 169 Hampstead Road, London N.W. Optician and Photographer do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
An apparatus to procure a powerful artificial light for use in a photographic studio
or any apartment when daylight is not available or desired and so constructed for
portability that it can be safely and easily transported and set up where its use is
required. It consists of a cabinet with removable glass front and a door at the back,
in which two spirit lamps are enclosed and four pivotted arms at the ends of which
charges of magnesium ribbon are clipped, being separated from each other by means
of a tin sheath.
The arms are pivotted and connected to a pneumatic piston which is brought into
action at will of operator by means of a rubber tube and ball outside apparatus. On
pressing ball the piston moves the arms (connected by rods) from an upright position
and brings the magnesium ribbon charges into contact with the flame of the two
spirit lamps, when they simultaneously ignite and produce a powerful light of several
seconds duration. On releasing pressure on ball the arms resume their upright
position, the door at back of apparatus is opened and the tin sheaths which held the
magnesium ribbon charges are ejected by means of a bolt like arrangement at the end
of each arm and fall into a tray at bottom of cabinet, the arms are recharged, the door
closed and the apparatus is again ready for another illumination at will of operator.
The smoke and smell produced by combustion ascend into a smoke chamber and
conducted thence by a portable telescopic chimney, which can be enclined at any
angle and in any direction, out of window or nearest available place by means of a
bellows attached to top of smoke chamber, from which a short length of chimney
projects, and over which the said telescopic chimney is slipped, allowing of its being
enclined in any desired direction. For portability in transport the telescopic chimney
is detached from smoke chamber and shut up, packing with tripod or other stand on
which cabinet is screwed when in use.
The top of smoke chamber to which bellows and tube are attached (which tube the
telescopic chimney fits over) unscrews and reverses into body of smoke chamber, the
smoke chamber which is screwed to top of cabinet reverses into body of cabinet,
all other parts of apparatus remaining in position thus forming a compact and
portable apparatus.
TYL
1000

page_text: Improvements in and connected with Magnesium Lighting Apparatus
for Photographic and other Purposes.
I ARTHUR SALMON 169 Hampstead Road, London, N.W. Optician and Photographer,
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 this invention is to procure a portable lighting apparatus that can be
readily carried from place to placo and set up where desired, and in which magnesium
ribbon can be burnt in a more advantageous manner than heretofore for the purpose.
of producing a powerful artificial light for photographic or other purposes, when
sunlight is not available or desirable.
Figs. 1 and 2 show my apparatus in front elevation and cross section respectively,
and Fig. 3 to 9 inclusive are enlarged and detail views.
In my apparatus, the strips 1 of magnesium ribbon which may be fixed in pairs in
metal holders, 2, (Figs. 6 6) are mounted in spring clips 3 (Fig. 5) at the upper ends
of arms 4, 5, that are pivoted at 6 within a closed casing 7 which has a glass front 8
and a hinged door 9 at the back within which are also arranged one or more spirit
lamps 10. Or Bunsen burners may be used where more convenient. There may be
one or more sets of pivoted arms and each set may comprise one or more of such
arms, the strips of magnesium ribbon carried by each pair projecting towards each
other and towards the lamp 10 situated between them. In the example shown there
are two sets of arms, each comprising two pairs of levers, viz.-4, 5, and 4° 5° (Figs. 13
and 4). Arm 4 is connected by a link 11 to the arm 4ª, and arm 5 is connected by a
link 12 to the link 11, and by a link 13 to the arm 5. The armn 4 of each set is
connected to the piston 14 of a pneumatic cylinder 15 which is in communication by
a passage 16 (Fig. 8) with a rubber tube 17 and ball 18 outside the apparatus. On
pressing the ball 18 air will be forced into the cylinder 15 and the piston 14 therein
will make its outstroke with the result that the pairs of pivoted arins will be moved
from the upright position shown in full lines in Figs. 1 and 3, into the inclined
positions shown in dotted lines and the strips 1 of magnesium ribbon will be brought
into contact with the flame of the lamps by which they will be simultaneously ignited
and thus produce a powerful light of several seconds duration.
When two or more sets of pivoted arins are used, each of the pneumatic cylinders 15
is preferably connected up to the same rubber ball 18 and tube 17 by a passage 16
provided with a cock 20 so that the piston 14 controlling any set of pivoted arms can
be worked at will, and before the expiration of the light produced by the burning of
one set of magnesium strips, another set can be brought into action by again pressing
the ball thus giving a continuous light. Or by opening all the cocks 20 and pressing
the ball the several sets of magnesium strips can be ignited simultaneously when it
is desired to produce a very powerful light. The clamps 2 holding the ends of the
burnt strips are detached from the clips 3 by moving upward, tubes 21 (Figs. 5, 6 and 7)
arranged to slide upon the pivoted arms, the detached clamps falling into a tray 22
at bottom of the casing 7. The arms are then recharged, the door closed, and
the apparatus is again ready for another series of illuminations at the will of the
operator. The clamps 2 may be provided with finger pieces 2 (Fig. 6) to facilitate
their removal. In this case the sliding tubes 21 may be dispensed with.
The door 9 also enables the operator to remove the lamps from their sockets for
trimming and lighting, and to make all necessary adjustments from the back of
apparatus.
The smoke and smell produced by combustion ascend into a smoke chamber 23 and
are conducted thence by a portable telescopic discharge pipe or chimney which can be

page_text: inclined at any angle and in any direction out of window or nearest available place, by
means of a bellows 24 (similar to that of a concertina attached to the top of the smoke
chamber and provided with a tubular extension 25 over which the said telescopic
chimney is slipped.
To render the apparatus portable and compact for transport, the smoke chamber 23
is made detachable from the casing 7 and the cover 23 is made detachable from the
smoke chamber. The latter when detached is turned upside down and secured
within the casing, and the cover is turned upside down and secured upon the smoke
chamber so that the bellows and tubular extension are then located within the same,
a cover (not shown) is then secured over the whole by the screws and nuts shown at 7^.
The glass front of the casing may during transport be protected by a sliding lid.
The telescopic chimney after being detached from smoke chamber is shut up and
packed with the tripod or other stand on which the casing 7 is screwed when
in use.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. A lighting apparatus for photographic and other purposes wherein strips of
magnesium are held in pivoted arms mounted within a casing and connected to the
piston of a pneumatic cylinder so that upon admitting compressed air to the cylinder
the ends of the strips of magnesium will be ignited by being brought into the flame
of one or more lamps also located within the casing which is provided with a chimney
by which the smoke and smell resulting from combustion within the casing can be led
to any convenient place.
2. A lighting apparatus characterized by the Claim 1 in which there are one or more
sets of magnesium ribbon holders, each set comprising one or more pairs of pivoted
arms connected by links so that when the arm connected to the pneumatic piston is
moved forward by that piston the strips of magnesium carried by each pair of pivoted
arms in the set will be moved towards the flame of the corresponding lamp aud ignited
whereby a powerful light of some seconds duration will be produced, the communica-
tion with each pneumatic cylinder, when two or more sets of pivoted arms are used being
controlled by a valve so that the strips of magnesium corresponding to the different
sets of pivoted arms can be ignited in succession when a greater duration of the light
is required or simultaneously when a more powerful light is required.
3. A lighting apparatus characterized by Claim 1 in which the casing containing
the lamp or lamps and pivoted arins has a smoke chamber provided with a bellows 24
and tubular extension 25 so that a telescopic chimney fitted to the said tubular
extension can be moved in any direction..
4. A lighting apparatus characterized by Claim 1, in which the casing is provided
with a smoke chamber 23 cover 23 of which with bellows and tubular extension can
be reversed in position so as to be located within the smoke chamber and the smoke
chamber is also capable of being reversed in position so as to be located within the
casing 7 so as to render the apparatus portable and compact.