Lightning Arresters for Electric Conductors.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 7th June, 1889
Complete Specification Left. 25th July, 1889-Accepted, 31st Aug., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Lightning Arresters for Electric Conductors.
I, JAMES WARING SEE, of Hamilton, Butler County, State of Ohio, United States
of America, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
The object of this invention is to enable a fixture to be connected with the electric
conductor so that the passage of the damaging current due to a lightning stroke will
either be short circuited to earth, or cause a destruction of a portion of the circuit
so as to prevent such currents passing onward to instruments which might be
damaged.
For this purpose I provide a block of insulating material provided with two
binding posts and with two contact springs, one spring projecting from each binding
post, the springs being adapted to make contact with each other and being provided
also, each, with a clip or claw by means of which the springs may be slightly opened
and caused to grasp in these claws a block of wood or other insulating material
faced with gold-foil or analogous material which would be destroyed by the passage
of an electric current of extraordinary strength.
By omitting entirely the use of the foil block and by connecting one of the binding
posts to the line and the other to earth and by inserting a slip of paper between the
contact springs, the line is in normal working condition, but a lightning stroke will
strike through the paper and seek the short circuit to earth rather than follow the
continued line to the instruments. After a storm a new paper is to be placed.
By discarding the paper slip, and by inserting the foil-block in the claws, and by
connecting one of the line wires to one of the binding posts and the other line wire
to the other binding post, no earth wire is employed, and the circuit. is from one
contact spring to the other through the foil. The extraordinary current melts the
foil and leaves the line open.
Datad this 7th day of Ian 1000
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Lightning Arresters for Electric Conductors.
I, JAMES WARING SEE, of Hamilton, Butler, County, State of Ohio, United States
of America, 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 :-
This invention has to do with lightning arresters intended for use in connection
with telephone and telegraph lines and the like, and adapted, upon the passage of
the intense currents due to a lightning stroke, to either short-circuit the current to
earth, or to open the circuit so as to prevent the passage of the damaging current
beyond the point of application of the arrester. My improved lightning arrester is
adapted for use with a single line, and groups of the arresters may be arranged and
added to at will to suit lines in numbers. The invention will be readily understood
from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing,
in which
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a lightning arrester exemplifying my improvements.
Fig. 2 an end elevation of the same showing the springs in vertical transverse
section; and
Fig. 3 a plan of the same showing paper resistance K in place, and showing foil-

page_text: In the drawing A indicates a cylindrical plug of wood or hard rubber or analogous
insulating material.
B, a pair of binding posts attached to the plug, and projecting from the rear end
thereof, and presenting themselves at the front end thereof, these binding posts being
illustrated as consisting of square pieces of metal tacked into longitudinal grooves in
the periphery of the plug the binding posts being provided at their projecting end
with ordinary wire receiving features.
C, a pair of flexible springs projecting forwardly from the plug, each electrically
connected at its rear end with one of the binding posts; the drawing showing the
binding posts as having square bodies seated in square grooves in the plug, and
connecting with the springs by clamping the rear ends of the springs between their
inner faces and the backs of the grooves in the plug.
D, a contact at the forward ends of the springs.
E, a clip formed upon a side prolongation of the front end of each of the
springs.
F, a block of wood or other non-conducting material, adapted to be grasped by
the clips E when the springs are separated so as to be open at D.
G, a metallic flange on the front end of each of the binding posts, these flanges
seating against the front end of the plug and projecting beyond the periphery of the
plug to form a stop flange thereto.
H, a hole through each of the flanges G, adapted to permit the passage of an
ordinary wood screw.
J, two holes extending endwise through the plug; and K, a slip of paper or
other insulating or high-resistance material interposed between the springs at the
contact D.
The device may be inserted in a hole in a board and held in place by wood screws
in the holes H. For a number of lines a group of the lightning arresters, one for
each line may be secured in a properly perforated board. Such boards, so provided
with lightning arresters, may be mounted on or alongside the operating table of the
telephone exchange or on the wall of the exchange or telegraph office, or on the
house top fixture, or on the pole which supports the wires, or in ordinary connection
box on the pole. Such perforated boards may, obviously, be arranged to receive any
desired number of the lightning arresters, and as many lightning arresters may be
immediately applied as are at present needed, and lightning arresters may be added
as occasion requires.
In employing the device the line to be protected is brought to one of the binding
posts B, and from there continued on to the instrument or elsewhere. The other
binding post is connected by wire to earth. Normally the springs make contact
at D, consequently, under the conditions recited, the line would be put to earth
through the contact. A slip of paper, or other thin piece of high-resistance material,
is now inserted between the springs at the contact D. This cuts off the earth con-
nection. A lightning stroke, following the well known law with such intense currents,
will seek a short path through a high resistance rather than a short path through a
low resistance, and will, instead of following the line beyond the lightning arrester,
cut through the paper slip to the opposite spring to find its way to earth. The effect
of the stroke will be to burn a minute hole in the paper, but the circuit will still
be left open at the paper. This will be the case under ordinary circumstances, but
a lightning stroke of extra high tension will effect such a complete destruction of the
paper between the springs that the springs will come into contact and close the
circuit to earth. When this occurs subsequent strokes will find direct metallic
connection to earth through the spring contacts, but obviously a metallic connection
has been established which may interfere with the proper action of the line and
instruments. After the storm a new paper will be inserted at the contact. In
practice I have found that a slight shifting of the paper is all that is necessary to
destroy the short circuiting at the contact. The papers, may if desired be utilized
as a lightning record. The papers, before insertion, may bear the line numbers, and
after a storm they may be removed and dated and replaced by new papers properly

page_text: numbered. The perforations in the paper indicate, in a general way, the lightning
effects. They at least show what lines, among a group, receive strokes sufficient to
perforate the papers and which lines do not, and the character of the perforations
gives some information as to the comparative force of the discharges. In some
localities where, while making automatic provision for safety from lightning strokes,
it is the practice to at once connect all lines with earth upon the approach of a
heavy storm, the present device is of special value. The papers furnish the automatic
protection and upon the approach of the storm the papers may be removed, leaving
the lines in metallic connection with the earth. In some cases, where these arresters
are mounted in perforated boards, it may be desirable to make the connection at the
rear of the board by wires coming up at the rear of the boards, or by wires coming
up at the front of the board, or may be desired to make the connection at the
front of the boards by wires coming up the front of the board or up the rear of the
board. If the wires come up the rear of the board, and rear connection is wanted
the wires are inserted directly in the rear ends of the binding posts B. If the wires
come up the rear of the board and a front connection is wanted the wires are passed
forwardly through the holes J and their ends are put under the wood screws which
will be inserted in the holes J and screwed into the board to hold the lightning arrester
in place. If the wires come up the front of the board and a front connection is
wanted the ends of the wires will be held direct by the screws which will be in the
holes H. If the wires come up the front of the boards and a rear connection is
wanted the wires will be passed rearwardly through the holes J and their ends
connected into the rear ends of the binding posts B.
Thus far explanation has been made only of the device when employed as a means
for branching the line to earth as a measure of protection. Some electricians are
strongly in favor of the "safety catch" system in which a destructible section inserted
directly in the line is caused to be destroyed by the effect of damaging currents and
thus effect an absolute cut-off of the line. Safety catches are often constructed by
inserting in the line two spring clips holding a piece of wood or similar non-conductor
between them, this piece of wood being covered by gold-foil, but damaging currents
destroy the foil and open the line, which remains open until the foil is restored. My
improved lightning arrester provides for this system of protection.
F, is the ordinary foil-block in common use, and it is to be covered or provided as
usual, with gold-foil or the like. This block with its foil, when inserted between the
clips E, opens the contact D. When the foil-block system is employed the lightning
arrester is not to be connected to earth. The line is brought to one of the binding
posts B and continued on from the other binding post. Consequently the foil on the
block forms an essential part of the circuit. The damaging current destroys the foil
and leaves the line open. The line may be restored to working condition by
restoring the foil, or, the line may be permanently or temporarily at once restored to
continuity by removing the foil-block and permitting the contact D to close.
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. In a lightning arrester the combination substantially as set forth, of a plug of
insulating material, a pair of binding posts attached thereto, and a pair of metallic
springs adapted to make contact with each other and connected one to each of said.
binding posts.
2. In a lightning arrester, the combination, substantially as set forth, of a plug of
insulating material, a pair of binding posts attached thereto, and a pair of metallic
springs connected one to each binding post and provided with side-extensions having
clips adapted to engage a foil-block.
3. In a lightning arrester the combination substantially as set forth, of a plug of
insulating material, a pair of binding posts attached thereto, and a pair of metallic
springs adapted to make contact with each other and provided with side-extensions having
clips adapted to engage a foil-block and connected one with each of the binding posts.

page_text: 4. In a lightning arrester, the combination, substantially as set forth, of a plug of
insulating material, a pair of binding posts disposed within said plug and projecting
to the rear thereof, and a pair of metallic springs connected. one with each of the
binding posts and projecting from the front of the plug and adapted to. grasp a high-
resistance piece.
5. In a lightning, arrester, the combination,, substantially as set forth of a plug of
insulating material provided with two longitudinal grooves, a. binding post secured in
each of said' grooves, and a metallic spring clamped. in each of said grooves between
the binding posts and plug.
6. In a lightning arrester, the combination, substantially as set forth, of a plug of
insulating material, a pair of binding posts attached thereto and projecting to the
rear thereof, a metallic flange attached to each binding post. at the front. of the plug
and provided with a hole adapted to receive an attaching screw, and a metallic spring
connected with each binding post at the front of the plug.
7. In a lightning arrester, the combination, substantially as: set. forth, of a plug A
of insulating material provided with holes J, a pair of binding posts B attached to
the plug and projecting to the rear thereof, a metallic spring connected to each
binding post at the front of the plug, and a metallic flange G connected with the
front end of each binding post and provided with. hole. H. to receive an attaching
screw.
8. In a lightning arrester the combination substantially as set forth, of a pair of
metallic springs insulated from each other and adapted to grasp a thin high-
resistance piece and to make contact with each other at the grasping point when
the high-resistance piece is absent, and a binding, post connected with each of said
springs.
Dated this 95th dow of Inly 1000