Improvements in and connected with Surface Contact Railway Systems, and in Apparatus for use therewith.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Sept., 1897-Accepted, 9th Oct., 1897
Improvements in and connected with Surface Contact Railway
Systems, and in Apparatus for use therewith.
We, THE BRITISH THOMSON-HOUSTON COMPANY, LIMITED, of 83, Cannon Street,
in the City of London, Electrical Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention (which has been communicated to us from abroad by William B. Potter,
of Schenectady, County of Schenectady, State of New York, United States of
America) and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:
This invention relates to surface contact electric railway systems, and has for
its object to provide means for reversing the car at the end of its route without
giving rise to the difficulties which may otherwise arise from the reversal of the
sliding contacts.
It also has for its object to provide efficient means of effecting the reversal
of the car without a turn-table by the use of a "Y" equipped with suitable surface
contacts.
Another object of the invention is to provide a suitable controller for use in
the system just pointed out, so arranged that the lighting circuit of the car
may be kept intact.
Another object of the invention is to provide means for reversing the sliding
contacts to accord with the direction of motion of the car, and also to provide
mechanical means operated automatically for effecting this reversal.
To effect the objects pointed out, a "Y" with surface contacts of peculiar shape
is provided, so spaced that the car may be operated in either direction. On the
straight part of the Y (preferably) is left a dead space over which the car may
coast. During this coasting or drifting, as it is sometimes called, a switch is
to be thrown (which is arranged preferably accessible to the motorman), acting to
reverse the connection of the sliding contacts or shoes commonly provided in
such systems, with reference to the storage battery also commonly used, so that
the battery is maintained on the ground side of the system. Although the motors
are connected between the shoes, it is not necessary to reverse their connections,
inasmuch as they are series machines, and operate in the same direction which-
ever way the current may be passing through them.
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A controller is also provided having contacts at its normal or off" position.
These contacts are so arranged that they complete the circuit of the storage
battery, ordinarily used as a pick-up device, thus holding up the switch or switches
over which the car may happen to be, so that current passes to the contact shoes
and thus over the shunt circuit containing the lights.
To effect another object of the invention, the switch designed to reverse the
battery connections is so arranged that it may be thrown automatically by the
momentum of the car in the dead space. In this application however no claim
is made particularly for the operation of the switch for the purpose named
automatically, or electromagnetically, this not forming part of the present
invention.

page_text: The accompanying drawings show diagrammatic arrangements for accomplish-
ing the purposes named, Fig. 1 being a plan view of a "Y" for turning the car,
equipped with surface contacts; Fig. 2 showing how a turn-table may be sub-
stituted. Fig. 3 is a diagram of a suitable controller, which is not however the
only type that may be employed: Fig. 3 is a diagram of the circuits. Fig. 4
shows a mechanical device for throwing the battery switch. In Fig. 1, A, A are
the track rails, B, B the high potential studs, C, C the low potential studs (using
these terms to distinguish between studs from which the motor takes current and
those to which the current passes after leaving the motor). On the curved
portions of the "Y other studs of peculiar form are indicated. B₁, B₁ are the
high potential studs in this construction. These are of greater width than those
on the straight part of the track. C¹, C¹ are similar low potential studs. As
the car passes around the curve the contact shoes tend to move laterally, and
this lateral extension of the contacts or studs ensures the proper electrical connection
being made.
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On
Fig. 2 shows a turn-table as a means of effecting the reversal of the car.
the top of the turn-table are high potential studs B, B and low potential ones C, C.
The high potential studs are connected to suitable permanent contacts placed
beneath the turn-table (and indicated in dotted lines) by contact rings d, d, and
the low potential studs by contact rings e, e. No claim however is made to the
use of a turn-table having suitable connections to effect the reversal of the car,
in a surface contact system; but the figure simply illustrates this as one construc-
tion in which the invention may be employed.
In Fig. 3 is illustrated the controller which is of the resistance type, in which
the revolution of the motors will be in opposite directions according to the direc-
tion in which the handle of the controller may be turned, this being a well-
known type and being selected merely for illustrative purposes,, as for same might
be substituted a series, parallel, or other form of controller. The operation of
resistance contacts is so well known that it will be unnecessary to trace the
circuits, except that the current enters from the trolley circuit, passing from
the shoe F directly to the first contact of the controller, then through the resistance,
the motor field MF, the motor armature MA, and to the other shoe F¹; thence
it passes through the switch G, holding up that switch during the normal operation
of the car.
Additional contacts 11 and 12 are provided with which the storage
battery E is in circuit. Leads go to the two shoes F, F¹, and a switch L is
provided, by which one end of the storage battery may be connected to..one or
the other of the two shoes. This switch is a particular feature of the invention.
The operation of this part of the controller is as follows:
When the controller is brought to the off position so that the trolley circuit
is interrupted, the battery is switched in and sends current through the switch G
to ground, holding up the switch (the circuit being thus completed to the other
side of the battery, which is also grounded,) and thus sending the line circuit,
in the illustrated position, through the shoe F and the lighting circuit to the
shoe F¹. If the car were reversed however by the means shown in Figs. 1 and 2
or other suitable means, the shoe F which is now in contact with the high
potential studs, would be brought to the low potential side; but the battery, being
left on the shoe F¹, would get the full potential of the motor current and be
destroyed. When the car is reversed, therefore, the switch L is thrown, con-
necting the battery to the other shoe F, which has now become the low potential
or negative shoe. The battery is thus connected in multiple with the switch
coils and serves to pick up in the ordinary way, and also serves, as just described,
to hold up one of the switches in the off position; the motor and the lights being
connected between the two shoes, the direction of current through them is
immaterial.
In Fig. 4 is shown the mechanical device which is well adapted for throwing
the switch L. In this figure, A is the track rail, as before. Adjacent to the

page_text: track is arranged a cam P. The pivoted bell-crank lever N is provided with a
finger J registering with the notches upon each side of the cam part of the lever m.
The lever L has bridging contacts and the two sets of contacts 99 co-operate
with it to establish the circuit relations of the storage battery. At O is shown a
projection which may be fixed in any convenient way to the truck, and a spring o
is provided between the lever N and the projection, another spring o¹ maintaining
the finger Jin proper position. A friction roller n is provided upon the end
of the bell-crank lever N. The operation of this device is as follows:
When the car passes, the roller n strikes the cam P in the track and lifts,
throwing the lever N so that the finger J' strikes the lower notch of the cam
part J of the lever m, thus bridging the contacts 7 with the contact p. When
the car moves in the other direction, the reverse operation takes place, the finger J¹
then registering with the upper notch in the cam J. It is believed that hereto-
fore no means have ever been provided in a surface-contact railway system for
maintaining the lighting circuit when the motor current is interrupted, or for
shifting the battery from one shoe to the other when the car is reversed, and to
effect this reversal of the battery connections by mechanical automatic means.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said in-
vention (as communicated to us from abroad) and in what manner the same is to
be performed, we declare that what we claim is:
1. In a surface contact railway system, provided with a car having a storage
battery and contact shoes, means for turning the car, in combination with
means for reversing the connection of the storage battery to the contact shoes.
2. In a surface contact railway system provided with a car having a storage
battery and contact shoes, means for turning the car, in combination with
automatic mechanical means for reversing the connection of the storage battery
with the contact shoes.
3. In a surface contact railway system, a controlling device provided with
contacts for regulating the motors and auxiliary contacts at its normal off posi-
tion, and connections from the latter contacts to the storage battery, by which
the storage battery preserves the connection of the lighting circuit of the car to
the surface contacts when the motor circuit is interrupted.
4. In a surface contact railway system, motors, a lighting circuit, sliding con-
tacts co-operating with electro-magnets for connecting up the working conductors,
a storage battery, and a controlling device the contacts and connections of which
are adapted to operate the motors in the ordinary positions of the controller, and
to maintain the storage battery in circuit to operate the electro-magnetic switches
at the normal off position of the controller; whereby one or more of the road
switches may be maintained closed for preserving the lighting circuit intact when
the motor circuit is interrupted.
5. In a surface contact electric railway system, having a car provided with
a storage battery, motors and sliding contacts, a controlling device having a normal
off position in which the motor current is interrupted, and contacts at such normal
off position for maintaining the storage battery in circuit to keep the trolley
circuit alive while the motor circuit is interrupted.
6. In a surface contact railway system, having a car provided with motors, a
storage battery and sliding contacts, a controlling device having a normal off
position in which the motor circuits is interrupted, with auxiliary contacts at
such off position for maintaining the circuit of the storage battery so as to keep
the trolley circuit alive while the motor circuit is interrupted; in combination
with a switch for rendering such auxiliary contacts useful or idle at will.
7. In a surface contact railway system, a reversing switch or "Y" for reversing
the car, having a dead or drifting space provided with no surface contacts, and
with curved portions provided with surface contacts having greater width than
the ordinary studs or contacts of the road.

page_text: 8. A "Y" for reversing the cars in a surface contact railway system, having
curved portions provided with studs of greater width than those used in the
straight parts of the road.
8. A "Y" for reversing the cars in a surface contact railway system, having
curved portions provided with studs of greater width than those used in the
straight parts of the road.
Dated this 7th day of September 1891.
For the Applicants,