Improvements in and relating to Electric Heaters.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 13th June, 1898-Accepted, 24th Sept., 1898
"
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Electric Heaters.
I, ROBERT LUNDELL, a Citizen of the United States of America, residing at 141,
East Forty-ninth Street, in the City, County, and State of New York, United
States of America, Electrical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement: —
My invention relates to that class of electric heating apparatus known as the
Dewey Heater," and shown and described in Letters Patent No. 5595 dated
March 31st, 1891, and my invention consists in certain improvements thereon,
as hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.
The object of my invention is to rapidly radiate or diffuse the heat from the
heat developing electric conductors or resistances by means of an air agitating
body, such as a fan, so that the heat will be evenly diffused throughout the apart-
ment or room in which the apparatus is located.
In the ordinary stationary electric heaters which are used in apartments and
cars for heating purposes, the heat is imperfectly diffused by the ordinary circula-
tion of the heated air rising from the heated electrical resistance or conductors.
To obviate this imperfect diffusion and to render the atmosphere more even, I
show a fan in connection with the electric heat developing surfaces, whereby
through the agitation of the air the heat is prevented from directly rising and is
diffused evenly throughout the apartment, whereas, in the present form of electric
heaters a great amount of heat is stored and wasted at the ceiling.
In carrying out my invention I employ the usual ventilator fan and electric
motor and locate the heat developing electric resistance or conductors upon a guard
directly in front of the fan. By this arrangement, the electric current being
turned on, the fan revolves, throwing the air in the usual manner, and the
electric heating resistances or conductors are heated by said current and the heat
is removed or displaced from said resistances or conductors rapidly by the fan
as the air passes over said resistances or conductors and is diffused in a horizontal
direction.
In the accompanying drawings which illustrate a construction embodying my
invention
Figure 1 is a side view of a fan and a partial sectional view of the heater
mounted on the guard of the fan.
Figure 2 is a view looking from the rear of the motor and showing the insulated
porcelain supporting blocks of the heater and which support the conductors or
resistances in their proper positions.
Figure 3 is a detail perspective view of two of the blocks and the retaining rods.
Like letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the several views.
A represents the usual electric motor supported on the base A¹ and having the
usual shaft B and suitable oil cups C for lubricating the shaft B. Mounted on said
shaft B at its front end is a fan 1) having four blades D¹. Located around said

page_text: fan is a guard E held in place by braces E' secured to the guard at E2 and to the
motor at E3. On the front side of the guard E there is located the electric heater F
which is constructed with an outer metallic ring F¹ and an inner metallic ring F
connected radially by the outer and inner retaining rods F, F. Located between
said rods and held in place by them are a series of porcelain insulating blocks G
provided at their outer sides with the recess GI and at their opposite ends with
the grooves G2 G3, in which grooves G2 G3 are respectively located the retaining
rods F3 F, and by means of this construction said insulated blocks are held
rigidly in position between the outer and inner rods F3 F4. The clamps F5 are
secured at one end to the front of the guard and at the opposite end to the outer
metallic ring F, and by means of said clamps the electric heater F is held firmly
in its position with relation to the fan guard.
The electrical conductors or resistances H composed of suitable resistance wire
and in which the heat is developed by its resistance to
the passage
of the electric current, are arrangea in a convolute and held in
position by the grooves G in the insulating blocks G. By this
arrangement an open screen is formed in front of the fan, which screen
heats the air from the fan and allows by its construction the free passage of the
same.
The air from the fan takes up the heat from the conductor or resistance H and
removes or displaces the same in a horizontal direction, instead of allowing it
to rise directly to the ceiling. By this diffusion of the air by the fan, the tempera-
ture of the room is rendered more equable than by the ordinary methods of heating.
The electric current passes in through the wire J to the binding post J, where
the current is divided and part of said current passes to the motor A in the usual
manner through the wire J2, and the other part of the current passes through the
wire J³ to the binding post J4 secured to the outer metallic ring insulated there-
from. The current then passes by the wire K to the binding post K',
then to the metallic strip K2 through the washer K³; to the switch
arm K to the switch contacts K through the metallic strip K to
the screw
K in the inner metallic ring 12 insulated therefrom. From
said screw the current passes at H₁ to the conductor or resistance H at its inner
end. The current passes through all the convolutions of the conductor or
resistance H, which is secured at its outer end H2 to the binding post H³ secured
to the outer metallic ring F and insulated therefrom. The current passes through
said binding post to the wire H, to the binding post H³ and out through the
wire H, which is also the exit of the part of the current coming from the motor
through the wire H7.
The switch arm K4 is mounted on the shaft L which is operated by the
button L'.
This apparatus is designed to be used part of the time as an ordinary summer
or cooling fan. When it is desired to use it as a heater, the current is turned into
the conductor or resistance H by manipulating the button L' to bring the switch
arm K over the contact point K³, which position is shown in the drawing, and in
which position the current passes through the conductor H, and the fan becomes
a heater by reason of the air from the fan taking up the heat developed in
the conductor or resistance H by the passage of the electric current. Among the
various advantages of this method of heating may be mentioned the fact that the
life of the heating resistance or conductors is greatly prolonged by the rapid
removal or displacement of the heated air from the surfaces of the conductors or
resistances, because said conductors or resistances are kept at a low temperature
although they are giving off a great amount of heat to the rapidly moving air.
In the drawing but one convolution of the resistance wire H is shown, but in
actual practice I have found it advisable to use more than one convolution, for
the purpose of increasing the resistance and the heating surface.
I do not limit myself to the arrangement and construction shown, as the same
may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention.

page_text: 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 an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, and an
electric heater located in relation to said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen to allow the
passage of air.
2. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, and
an electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from said fan passes.
3. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, and
an electric heater secured to the guard of said fan and located in front of said
fan and consisting of one or more heat developing electrical conductors or
resistances forming an open screen through which the air from said fan passes.
4. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan; an
electric heater located in front of said fan, and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from the fan passes, and insulating blocks for supporting the
electrical conductors or resistances.
5. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an
electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from said fan passes, and insulating blocks having grooves in
which the conductors or resistances are located and supported.
6. In an electric heating apparatus a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an
electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from said fan passes, insulating blocks having grooves in which the
conductors or resistances are located and supported, and rods for holding said
insulating blocks in position.
7. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an
electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from said fan passes, insulating blocks having grooves in which the
conductors or resistances are located and supported, and rods located in grooves
in the ends of said insulating blocks for holding said blocks in position.
8. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an
electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat
developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through
which the air from said fan passes, insulating blocks for supporting the electrical
conductors or resistances, an inner and an outer ring between which said insulating
blocks are located, and rods located on the ends of said blocks and connected to
said rings for holding said blocks in position.
Dated this 12th dor of Jun 1900
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.