provements in Safety Apparatus for Lamps.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Apr. 1898
Complete Specification Left. 23rd Feb., 1897-Accepted, 17th Apr., 1897
DIONAL DE
Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Lamps.
I, AUGUSTUS WILLIAM BRITTAIN, of 33 Tooley Street, in the Borough of
Southwark, and County of London, Produce Buyer, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to apparatus for automatically extinguishing lamps in case
of their being accidentally upset or unduly inclined or otherwise subjected to
sudden or unusual motion and refers more particularly to lamps with Argand or
circular burners-but is applicable also to lamps of other kinds.
According to my invention I provide an arm with a cup or ring or the like at or
near its free end, on or in which is placed a detached or detachable weight,
preferably of spherical or similar form, so arranged that if the lamp be upset or
fuclined from the vertical to a dangerous angle or to such angle as may be
prearranged, or if violently agitated, the weight will fall off or out of its support,.
and the arm being thus relieved of its weight will rise and swing round under the
action of a spring and turn with it the spindle of the wick controlling spur wheel
or wheels in such wise that the wick is lowered into the wick tube and thereby
extinguished.
The weight lever is arranged to move only within certain limits against one of
which it is carried and held by a helical or other spring when the weight is off.
A ratchet wheel and pawl, or other equivalent arrangement, or arrangement of
wheel and detent or the like, connect the sleeve and the spindle in such manner that
the sleeve and lever may be moved, without affecting the spindle, from its position
of rest to the position in which the lever is required to support the weight, and so
that when the lever is released from the weight and is carried by the spring into its
first position it carries with it the spindle, so turning it as to lower the wick into
the wick tube, thereby extinguishing the light.
Dated the 23rd day of April 1896
NEWNHAM BROWNE,
Agent for the Applicant.
Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Lamps.
I, AUGUSTUS WILLIAM BRITTAIN, late of 33 Tooley Street in the Borough of
Southwark and County of London, but now of 64 Gresham Street in the City of
London, Produce Buyer, 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 :-
My invention relates to apparatus for automatically extinguishing lamps in case
of their being accidentally upset or unduly inclined or otherwise subjected to sudden
or unusual motion and refors more particularly to lamps with Argaud or circular
burners but is applicable also to lamps of other kinds.

page_text: According to my invention I provide an arm with a cup or ring or the like at or
near its free end, on or in which is placed a detached or detachable weight,
preferably of spherical or similar form so arranged that if the lamp be upset or
inclined from the vertical to a dangerous angle or to such angle as may be
pre-arranged, or if violently agitated, the weight will fall off or out of its support,
and the arm being thus relieved of its weight will rise under the action of a spring
and turn the spindle of the wick controlling spur wheel or wheels in such wise that
the wick is lowered into the wick tube and thereby extinguished.
The weight lever is arranged to move only within certain limits against one of
which it is carried and held by a helical or other spring when the weight is off.
A ratchet wheel and pawl or other equivalent arrangement or arrangement of
wheel and detent or the like, connect the sleeve and the spindle in such manuer that
the sleeve and lever may be moved, without affecting the spindle, from its position
of rest to the position in which the lever is required to support the weight and so
that when the lever is released from the weight and is carried by the spring into
its first position it carries with it the spindle, so turning it as to lower the wick into
the wick tube, thereby extinguishing the light.
Instead of the weight lever being centered on the spindle of the wick controlling
apur wheel the arrangement may be modified by centering it on another spindle
which also carries the spring, and which is provided for that purpose at the side of
the burner, revolution of the wick controlling spindle being imparted therefrom by
means of a rack attached to and moving with the lever and engaging with a spur
wheel on the spindle.
In the accompanying drawings
Fig. 1 is an elevation of a lamp of the well known "Cosmos" type to which my
invention has been applied.
Fig. 2 is a plan of the underside of the burner.
Fig. 3 is an elevation, partly in section, of a nearly similar lamp to which my
invention has been applied showing a modification of the arrangement shewn in
Figs. 1 and 2-the weight lever being centered on a separate spindle.
Fig. 4 is an elevation of the rack and pinion seon edge wise in Fig. 3.
Fig. 5, is an elevation of a lamp of nearly similar type showing the application
of my invention to a lamp in which the wick, instead of being raised or lowered
directly by spur wheels, is mounted on a wick carrier.
Fig. 6, is a vertical section of the same in which the pedestal is not shewn.
Fig. 7, is a plan of the weight lever and some connected parts.
Fig. 8, is an elevation of the shutter tube, and
Fig. 9, is an enlarged elevation and plan of one end of the weight lever and part
of the spindle on which it is fixed.
The same letters of reference indicate the same or equivalent parts in all the
figures in which they appear.
Throughout the drawings A indicates the weight lever; a, a seat, preferably a
oup or ring, on or in which the weight B rests when the lamp is burning; b, a chain,
by which the weight may be attached to the gallery or other fixed part of the
lamp; C, a spring which lifts the weight lever and actuates the extinguishing
apparatus when the weight B is removed, and which spring is adjusted to be
slightly overpowered by the weight when it is on its seat a; D is the milled head
and d, is the spindle for raising and lowering the wick; ee are spur wheels thereon.
Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, d, is a disc fitting loosely on the spindle d
and connected with one end of the spring C to which disc the lever A is jointed
at d', and which carries a pin d, against which the lever A rests when the weight
is on its seat. d is a spring fixed at one end to the disc d', and the other end of
which presses against the armi A and lifts it when the weight B is removed, so that
the pawl-like tooth A' is caused to engage in the teeth of the ratchet wheel g
which is keyed on the spindle d.
When the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, that is to say when the
weight B is on the weight lever A the wick is at the burning level and the lamp

page_text: may be lighted, and the tooth A' being free from the ratchet g the wick can be
adjusted in the usual manuer. If now the lamp be so inclined or shaken that the
weight falls off its seat, or if it is lifted off, the spring d lifts the lever so that
the tooth A engages with the ratchet wheel g, and the helical spring C, one end
of which is attached to a fixed part of the lamp and the other to the disc d', being
freed from the control of the weight, rotates the disc b, carrying with it the lever A..
the tooth of which being engaged with the ratchet wheel rotates the latter
together with the spindle d and spur wheels & thereby lowering the wick into the
wick tube and extinguishing the lamp.
Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4 which show a modification of the previous
arrangement, the weight lover A is centred on a spindle h, round which is coiled
the spring C, not shewn in Fig. 3, which actuates the extinguishing apparatus.
The weight lever A which is of the shape shewn in Fig. 7 is connected by the
links or bars i, one on each side of the burner to a short tube K which slides freely
up and down on the wick tube. To this piece K is attached a bar shown,.
together with the pinion 1, in Fig. 4, working through a guide band ' and having
at its lower end a rack 2 which engages with a pinion I keyed on the spindled in.
such wise that when bar is raised by the rising of the weight lever A consequent
on the removal of the weight, the pinion is rotated and with it the spindle d and
spur wheels e, and the wick is carried downwards and extinguished. By the same
movement the piece or tubular shutter K rises until it comes in contact with the-
Alame spreading disc m whereby the space above the wick is entirely closed in, and
any sparks or ignited fragments of burnt wick which may be adhering to the top.
of the wick tube or otherwise are effectually extinguished.
When the weight B is on the weight lever A and the lattor consequently at.
its lowest point the cogs of the rack are just below and clear of the pinion, and
the wick may be adjusted in the usual manner.
In Figs. 5 to 9 I have shown the application of my invention to a lamp of similar
type but in which the wick instead of being controlled directly by the means of
spur wheels is mounted on a moveable wick carrier.
As in Fig. 3 the weight lever A. is centered on a spindle, round which or part
of which, a spring C is coiled, see Fig. 7. The lever A passes under two pius n
which rest upon it, one of which projects from an ear on the tubular shutter K and
the other from a bark depending from other side of the shutter K, see Fig. 8..
The bark has ou one side of it a rack which engages with a pinion (, and which
pinion engages on its opposite side with a rack O which is attached to and operates.
the tubular wick carrier p which has preferably elongated perforations at its lower
part such as are usually formed in this piece but which are not shown on the
drawings. The pinion is keyed on the spindle d. The rack has no cogs at
that part which is against the pinion when the weight is on the weight lever,
and the latter consequently at its lowest point, so that when in this position
the wick and flame are regulated in the usual manner by the milled head D.
Qis an air tube having openings y at its lower end and fitted at its upper
extremity with a perforated cap r through which air is supplied to the flame and
which also supports the flame spreading disc m.
The weight lever AI prefer to mount on an arbor of octagonal form as shewn
in Fig. 9 so as to facilitate the adjustment of the tension of the helical spring C,
one end of which spring is fixed to or rests ou the perforated casing or other fixed
part of the lamp and the other end of which is fixed to the spindle h.
It will be readily seen that my invention needs ouly obvious modifications to
adapt it to lamps with flat wicks or to Argand burners differing somewhat in
arrangement from those shewn in the drawings.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven--
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The improvements in safety apparatus for lamps hereinbefore described.

page_text: 2. A lamp safety apparatus in which a detached weight is so supported that if
the lamp is upset or inclined far from the vertical, or is violently agitated, the
weight will fall from its support aud a spring released from the control of the
weight will operate so as to cause the wick to descend and the lamp will be
extinguished, substantially as described and shown in the drawings.
3. The automatic extinguishing apparatus for lamps constructed and operating
substantially as described and shown in Figa. 1 and 2 of the accompanying
drawings.
4. The automatic extinguishing apparatus for lamps constructed and operating
substantially as described and shown in Figs. 3 and 4 of the accompanying
drawings.
5. The automatic extinguishing apparatus for lamps constructed and operating
substantially as desoribed and shown in Figs. 5 to 9 of the accompanying
drawings.
6. The automatic extinguishing apparatus for lamps where the wick is
depressed and a shutter is raised construoted and operating substantially as
described.
A. W. BRITTAIN.