New or Improved Means for Economizing Electric Energy in the Heating of Electrically-heated Apparatus, and Facilitating the Use of such Apparatus.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Jan., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 26th Oct., 1897-Accepted, 15th Jan., 1898
New or Improved Means for Economizing Electric Energy in the
Heating of Electrically-heated Apparatus, and Facilitating the
Use of such Apparatus.
I, HENRY EDMUNDS, of 39, Victoria Street, in the City of Westminster, Electrical
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as follows:-
In electrically heated apparatus such for example as electrically heated solder-
ing irons, laundry irons, cooking apparatus, and the like, it requires some consider-
able time to raise the temperature thereof to the requisite degree and in cases
where no further rise of temperature is required or is desirable or when the
apparatus is only to be used at intervals great waste of electric energy occurs by
maintaining the electric current on to such an extent as to raise the temperature
beyond the degree required or to maintain the temperature whilst the apparatus is
not in use and it is the object of my Invention to overcome these objections by
providing means whereby the requisite temperature can be maintained without
undue waste of electrical energy after the requisite degree of heat is attained or
whilst the apparatus is not in use.
According to my Invention as applied for example to electrically heated apparatus
such as soldering irons, laundry irons and the like which are used at intervals and
which are required to be kept at the requisite temperature for immediate re-use I
provide a pocket or receiver made of, or lined with, a material which is a non-
conductor of heat or a sufficiently bad conductor of heat to prevent the dissipation
or considerably retard the dissipation of heat from a heated article placed therein,
so that when a soldering iron, or a laundry iron or such electrically heated apparatus
is placed therein the heat thereof is retained until the apparatus is required for
re-use. In combination with the said pocket or receiver I may employ a thermostat
which is so acted upon by the heat of the apparatus that whilst the necessary heat
thereof is maintained the thermostat so acts upon a switching device as to maintain
the electric supply circuit to the apparatus broken but when the temperature
decreases to below the requisite degree the thermostat causes the switch to be
operated so that the current is supplied to the apparatus until the proper tempera-
ture is reached when the thermostat acts to cut off the current. In applying my
Invention to electrically heated ovens or other apparatus whose temperature is to
be maintained at a predetermined degree I may envelope it in a material which
is a non-conductor or a su ciently bad conductor of heat so that when the requisite
temperature is attained it is retained and unnecessary waste of electric energy is
prevented by reason of a thermostat which I combine with the apparatus operating
to switch off the current when the predetermined temperature is attained. When
the temperature lowers beyond the predetermined degree the thermostat acts to
operate the switch to again put on the supply of electric current to the apparatus.

page_text: The thermostat may in each case be made so that it can readily be adjusted to
operate at any predetermined temperatures.
Dated this 26th day of January 1897.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Field's, London, W.C., Agents.
QJP
New or Improved Means for Economizing Electric Energy in the
Heating of Electrically-heated Apparatus, and Facilitating the
Use of such Apparatus.
(<
257054
I, HENRY EDMUNDS, of 39, Victoria Street, in the City of Westminster; Electrical
Engineer, 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:-
In electrically heated apparatus such for example as electrically heated solder-
ing irons, laundry irons, cooking apparatus, and the like, it requires some consider-
able time to raise the temperature thereof to the requisite degree, and in cases
where no further rise of temperature is required or is desirable, or when the
apparatus is only to be used at intervals great waste of electric energy occurs by
maintaining the electric current on to such an extent as to raise the temperature
beyond the degree required, or to maintain the temperature whilst the apparatus
is not in use, and it is the object of my invention to overcome, these objections by
providing means whereby the requisite temperature can be maintained without
undue waste of electrical energy after the requisite degree of heat is attained or
whilst the apparatus is not in use.
According to my invention, as applied for example to electrically heated apparatus
such as soldering irons, laundry irons, and the like which are used at intervals and
which are required to be kept at the requisite temperature for immediate re-use,
I provide a pocket or receiver made of or lined with, a material which, is a non-
conductor of heat or a sufficiently bad conductor of heat to prevent the dissipation
or considerably retard the dissipation of heat from a heated article placed therein--
so that when a soldering iron, or a laundry iron or such electrically heated apparatus
is placed therein the heat thereof is maintained until the apparatus is required for
re-use. In combination with the said pocket or receiver I employ a thermostat
which is so acted upon by the heat of the apparatus that whilst the necessary heat
thereof is maintained the thermostat so acts upon a switching device as to maintain
the electric supply circuit to the apparatus broken but when the temperature
decreases to below a pre-determined degree the thermostat causes the switch to be
operated so that the current is supplied to the apparatus, until the proper tempera-
ture is reached when the thermostat acts to cut off the current.
In applying my invention to electrically heated ovens or other apparatus whose
temperature is to be maintained at a predetermined degree I envelop it in a
material which is a non-conductor or a sufficiently bad conductor of heat so that
when the requisite temperature is attained it is retained and unnecessary waste of
electric energy is prevented by reason of a thermostat which I combine with the
apparatus operating to switch off the current when the predetermined temperature
is attained. When the temperature lowers beyond the predetermined degree the
thermostat acts to operate the switch to again put on the supply of electric current
to the apparatus: The thermostat may in each case be made so that it can readily
be adjusted to operate at any predetermined temperatures.
In the accompanying drawing I have illustrated in Figure 1 a soldering iron A

page_text: placed in a pocket or receiver B lined with a non-conductor, or bad conductor of
heat, such as asbestos for example. C is a thermostat which, when subjected to a
temperature at or above that at which the apparatus is to be maintained, keeps the
electric switch D (which, preferably, as shewn in Fig. 1, is of the construction
described in my specification No. 17643 but which may be of any other desired
construction) in such a position that the electric heating circuit from the electric
generator to the heating coils of the apparatus is interrupted!
When the tempera-
ture lowers, the thermostat moves so as to operate the switch and complete the
circuit to put on the current until the temperature is raised to the required degree
when the thermostat again interrupts the circuit.
The thermostat C may be of the well known form, which comprises a flexible
tongue operating between two contacts such as those marked c² 3 in Figure 2, the
tongue being brought against one or other of these contacts according to whether it
is exposed to a temperature above or below that previously determined.
Fig. 2 shews a diagram of an oven enveloped in a material b which is a non-
conductor, or a bad conductor of heat. This device is provided with a thermostat C
which operates an electric switch D to complete and interrupt the electric heating
circuit as hereinbefore explained with regard to Fig. 1.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. For use with electrically heated apparatus a pocket or receiver made of, or
lined with, a non-conductor, or bad conductor, of heat, and a thermostat and electric
switching device arranged in connection with a source of electricity so as to put
on the current when the temperature decreases, and cut it off when the temperature
increases beyond predetermined limits substantially as herein before described.
2. The combination with electrically heated ovens or the like of an envelope of
a non-conductor, or a bad conductor of heat and a thermostat and electric switching
device arranged in connection with a source of electricity so as to put on the
current when the temperature decreases, and cut it off when the temperature
increases beyond predetermined limits substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this 26th day of October 1897.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.