Im- PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING ELECTRIC LIGHT, AND IN MAGNETO- ELECTRIC MACHINES TO BE USED THERE WITH, WHICH MACHINES ARE APPLICABLE FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1872

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Thomas Slater at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th May
1872.
I, THOMAS SLATER, of Euston Road, in the County of Middlesex,
Electrician, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for "Im-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING ELECTRIC LIGHT, AND IN MAGNETO-
ELECTRIC MACHINES TO BE USED THERE WITH, WHICH MACHINES ARE APPLICABLE
FOR OTHER PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates partly to a peculiar arrangement of apparatus
for regulating the positions of the electrodes employed in producing
the electric light; and consists in connecting each electrode to a
separate rack, which racks gear into the opposite insulated halves of
a toothed wheel. Any partial rotatory motion of this wheel on its
axis will obviously cause the two electrodes to simultaneously approach
towards or recede from each other. The required motion of the toothed
wheel is obtained from an electro-magnet in the circuit of the electrodes,
which magnet acts upon an armature in one arm of a spring gripping
lever which embraces loosely the axis of the said wheel. When the
current is established through the electrodes the magnet attracts the

page_text: arm of the lever, causing such lever to grip the axis and to impart a
slight rotatory motion to the toothed wheel, thereby separating the
electrodes more or less according to the are required, the extent of this
being regulated by an adjustable stop screw in the arm of the lever.
The magneto-electric machine, which constitutes the second portion
of my Invention, and which I employ for generating the electricity
for producing the light, or for any other purpose wherein a current
of induced electricity is required, consists of one or more pairs of
rings of helices, each ring being composed of an annular core made
up of a number of concentric rings of hoop iron lapped with insulated
copper wire so as to form a series of distinct helices, the terminal
wire of each helix being connected with one of a corresponding number
of studs disposed in a circle in a piece of insulating material which
carries the aforesaid ring of helices. To this terminal wire is con-
nected the wire of the next preceding helix, and so on throughout
the series, each ring of the pair or series of pairs being exactly alike.
On diametrically opposite sides of each pair of rings of helices I dispose
a U shaped permanent or electro-magnet covered with several con-
volutions of copper wire, and having its north pole opposite to the
periphery of one ring of the pair, and its south pole opposite to the
periphery of the other ring of the pair, the poles of the other magnet
on the opposite side of the circumference of the pair of rings being in a
reverse position.
As the studs, herein-before referred to, revolve they successively
come in contact with two springs or rollers which are in connection
with the coils of wire round the magnets. By thus bringing each
helix successively in communication with the coils on the magnets,
I obtain an accumulation of induced electricity by mutual action of
the helices and magnets; thus, if the magnets are feeble on first
starting the machine they will induce feeble currents in the revolving
helices, which currents are sent round the magnets, thereby increasing
their magnetisation, this again proportionately increases the induced
currents, and thus by a successive alternation of mutual actions very
powerful currents are speedily obtained.