Improvements in Arc Electric Lamps.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Nov., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 31st Aug., 1892-Accepted, 1st Oct.. 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Arc Electric Lamps.
We, THOMAS PARKER, Works Director of The Electric Construction
Corporation Limited of Wolverhampton, in The County of Stafford, and EDMUND
SCOTT GUSTAVE REES, of Wolverhampton, aforesaid, Electrical Engineer to said
Corporation, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of our invention is to provide an are electric lamp which is more
efficient in action and the mechanism of which is more readily cleaned than in such
lainps as hitherto constructed.
In an arc lamp constructed according to our invention we connect the positive
and negative carbon holders together by means of a chain cord or the like which
passes over a pulley, the upper carbon and its holder being of sufficient weight to
fall by gravity lifting the lower carbon holder by means of the said chain or the
like until the points of the carbons are in contact. The pulley above mentioned
instead of running on a centre fixed to the frame of the lamp as in lamps hitherto
made is mounted on a centre capable of moving under the action of the current as
hereinafter described which may be effected by attaching it to one end of a
vertical rod, the other end being attached to a horizontal bar to the other end of
which an iron rod constituting a core is attached the said horizontal bar being
pivotted to the casing of the upper carbon or other suitable part so that the weight
of the said iron rod or core and its adjuncts is sufficient to cause the vertical rod
when the current is not on to ascend to a certain fixed point, lifting the carbon
holders and carbons up by means of the pulley.
The lower end of the iron rod or core may be inserted in a dash pot round the
said iron rod and fixed to the casing of the upper carbon or other part of the frame
of the lamp is a coil of wire or solenoid, connected in series with the carbons so
that on passing a current through this coil and the carbons, the iron rod is moved
so that the pulley descends and allows the lower carbon to "strike the arc
upper carbon being prevented from falling as follows:-
the
A train of wheels at one end of which is a pinion and at the other an escapement
or other impeding device is fixed in an independent framework which is pivotted by
means of a pin or similar device to pieces fixed to the frame of the lamp. This
pivot is arranged in such a manner that the frame rocks over when the lamp is
carbon
"started up" so that the pinion engages with teeth attached to the upper
holder. The escapement is prevented from allowing the carbons to approach each
other by means of a catch or brake which engages in the escapement wheel.
Attached to the aforesaid vertical rod, which carries the pulley in smaller coil of
fine wire, connected as a shunt across the arc, which coil attracts a piece of iron or
another coil connected to the catch and to a lever centred to the vertical rod the
shunt coil is so arranged that when the electro motive force across the arc is too
great the catch is released allowing the carbons to approach each other and so
decrease the length of arc until the electro motive force is normal when the catch
again engages in the escapement.
Any variation of the current through the are causes the core of the series
solenoid to move which moves the vertical rod increasing the action of the shunt
releasing mechanism and increasing or decreasing the length of are also by means
of the movement of the pulley and chain or the like.
When the current through the arc and series coil is stopped, the iron core causes
the vertical rod to ascend, a point of which engages in a part of the independent
frame which carries the gearing or similar device and causes it to rock on the pivot,
until the pinion is thown out of gear, leaving the carbon holders free to be moved
up and down for trimming or other purpose...

page_text: The frame carrying the gearing is arranged so that on removing the pivot the
whole frame with all gearing and escapement complete may be removed for cleaning
or other purpose.
Dated this 3rd day of November 1891.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Arc Electric Lamps.
We, THOMAS PARKER, Works Director of The Electric Construction
Corporation Limited of Wolverhampton in the County of Stafford and EDMUND
SCOTT GUSTAVE REES of Wolverhampton aforesaid Electrical Engineer to said
Corporation 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 invention is to provide an arc electric lamp which is more
efficient in action and the mechanism of which is more readily cleaned than in such
lamps as hitherto constructed.
We will describe our invention with reference to the accompanying drawings,
Figures 1 and 2 of which are elevations at right angles to each other of an electric
arc lamp constructed according to our invention.
Figure 3 is a plan of the same and Figures 4, 5 and 6 are enlarged details of the
feed regulating mechanism.
Figures 7, 8 and 9 are views similar to Figures 1, 2 and 3 shewing a modified
arrangement of the magnets and feed regulating mechanism and
Figures 10, 11 and 12 are enlarged details of the same.
In an arc lamp constructed according to our invention we connect the positive
and negative carbon holders together by means of a chain cord or the like A which
passes over a pulley B, the upper carbon and its holder C being of sufficient weight
to fall by gravity and lift the lower carbon holder D by means of the said chain or
the like until the points of the carbons are in contact. The pulley B instead of
running on a centre fixed to the frame of the lamp as in lamps hitherto made, is
mounted on a centre E capable of moving under the action of the current which
may be effected by attaching the pulley to one end of a vertical rod F the other
end of the said rod being connected to one end of a pivotted horizontal bar G, to
the other end of which bar an iron rod H constituting the core of a solenoid I is
attached. The said horizontal bar G is pivotted to the casing K of the upper
carbon holder or to other suitable part of the lamp so that the weight of the said
iron rod or core H and its adjuncts is sufficient to cause the vertical rod F when
the current is not on, to ascend to a certain fixed point lifting with it the carbon
holders C and D and carbons by means of the pulley B.
The
The lower end of the core H may be inserted in a dash pot L as shewn.
solenoid coil I may be fixed by arms M to the casing of the upper carbon holder as
shewn or to other suitable part of the frame of the lamp the said coil of wire being
connected in series with the carbons so that on passing a current through this coil
and through the carbons the core H is raised, thereby rocking the horizontal bar G
on its centre or pivot so that the rod F carrying the pulley B descends and allows
the lower carbon to "strike the arc "the upper carbon holder C being prevented
from falling as follows:-
The
Pivotted at N to the frame of the lamp is a frame P carrying a train of gear
wheels at one end of which train of gearing is a pinion Q2 and at the other end
an escapement wheel Q³ and a stop gear R or other suitable impeding device.
pivot N of the frame P is arranged in such a manner that when the current is cut out
of the lamp the said frame is tilted by a projection f on the rod F so as to maintain
the pinion Q out of engagement with a rack S on the upper carbon holdor C but

page_text: when the lamp is started up the rod F carrying the pulley B is caused to descend
as hereinbefore described whereupon the frame P will turn on its centre or pivot N
and bring the pinion Q into engagement with the rack teeth S on the upper carbon
holder and prevent it from descending with the rod F and pulley B and consequently
the arc will be struck by the descent of the lower carbon."
In the arrangement illustrated by Figures 1 to 6 the carbons are prevented from
approaching each other by means of a catch T on a lever U pivoted to the frame P
the said catch engaging with a projection V on the stop wheel R on the spindle
carrying the crutch X of the escapement wheel.
Attached to the rod F which carries the pulley B is a solenoid coil Y of fine wire
connected as a shunt across the arc, the core Y of which solenoid is connected at
its lower end to the lever U carrying the catch T and at its upper end to a lever Z
centered at to the rod F. The shunt coil Y is so arranged that if the electro
motive force in the shunt wire across the arc increases above the normal, the core Y
is raised so as to disengage the catch T from the projection V and allow the
train of gearing Q to work and so cause the carbons to approach each other and
decrease the length of arc until the electro motive force in the shunt wire is reduced
to its normal, and the core Y to descend, so that the catch T will again engage the
projection V.
It will thus be seen that any variation of the current through the arc causes the
core H of the series solenoid I to move, which core through the horizontal bar G
moves the vertical rod F thereby increasing the action of the shunt releasing
mechanism and also increasing or decreasing as the case may be the length of arc
by means of the movement of the pulley B and chain A or the like.
When the current through the arc and series coil is stopped the core H
descends by gravity thereby causing the vertical rod F to ascend and the projection
thereon to engage the frame P and rock it on the pivot N until the pinion Q³ is
thrown out of gear with the rack S thereby leaving the carbon holders free to be
moved up and down for trimming or other purpose.
Instead of disengaging the pinion Q from the rack S as hereinbefore described
the said pinion may be retained in gear with the rack by mounting the first wheel
of the train of gearing Q loosely on the spindle of the pinion and providing on the
said spindle a fixed ratchet wheel b as shewn in the arrangement illustrated by
Figures 7 to 12 with which ratchet wheel two pawls e carried on the loose wheel
engage as shewn in Figure 11 so that when the current is cut out of the lamp the
pinion Q and its spindle is free to turn in one direction without operating the train
of gearing (the pawls c then slipping over the teeth of the ratchet wheel b) but
when the lamp is started and the pinion is turned in the reverse direction by the
descent of the upper carbon holder motion is imparted by the ratchet wheel b and
pawls to the train of gearing Q which retard the descent of the carbon holder to
maintain the arc. The separate fine wire shunt coil Y shewn in the arrangement
illustrated by Figures 1, 2 and 3 may be dispensed with and the fine wire be
differentially wound or combined with the main or series wire coil I as shewn in
Figures 7 and 8 in which case the lever U carrying the catch T hereinbefore
described or the friction brake pad T, as shewn in Figure 11 for regulating the feed
of the carbons to maintain the arc may be operated by a projection d on the rod F
engaging a levere upon which the lever U carrying the brake pad T rests as will
be clearly seen on referring to Figures 10, 11, and 12 of the drawings.
In either arrangement described the frame P with all the gearing and escapement
mechanism carried thereby may be readily removed for cleaning or other purpose
by removing the pivot N.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1st. An arc electric lamp having the negative and positive carbon holders
connected together by a chain or the like passing round a pulley mounted on an

page_text: '
automatically adjustable axis and operated by the direct action of a solenoid for
the purpose of striking the arc substantially as hereinbefore described.
2nd. In an arc electric lamp a train of gearing, by which the feed of the
carbons is regulated, mounted on an independent frame detachably connected to
the frame of the lamp so as to be capable of being readily removed and replaced
substantially as hereinbefore described.
3rd. In an arc electric lamp an independent frame carrying the gearing by
which the feeding of the carbons is regulated, the said frame being pivotted to the
frame of the lamp in such a manner as to adinit of the independent frame being
tilted by a movable part of the lamp when the current is cut out, so as to disengage
the train of gearing from a rack on one of the carbon holders and so that when the
current is turned on, the frame will rock on its pivot and bring the train of gearing
into gear with the rack and be retained in gear while the lamp is in action
substantially as herein before described.
4th. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting the improved
are electric lamp hereinbefore described and illustrated by Figures 1 to 6 inclusive
of the accompanying drawings.
5th. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting the improved arc
electric lamp hereinbefore described and illustrated by Figures 7 to 12 inclusive of
the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 21st day of A 1900
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
Agents.