NEW APPARATUS FOR REGULATING AND MEASURING ELECTRIC CURRENTS
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Samuel Beeman, William Taylor and Frank
King, all of Cannon Street in the County of Middlesex for an Invention of
LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Samuel Beeman, William Taylor and Frank
King, all of Cannon Street in the County of Middlesex for an Invention of
NEW APPARATUS FOR REGULATING AND MEASURING ELECTRIC CURRENTS
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Samuel Beeman,
William Taylor, and Frank King at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents
on the 10th August 1882.
JOSEPH SAMUEL BEEMAN, WILLIAM TAYLOR and FRANK KING, all of Cannon
Street, in the County of Middlesex, NEW APPARATUS FOR REGULATING AND
MEASURING ELECTRIC CURRENTS,
Our invention consists in the manufacture of a cell, on the principle of a storage
or secondary battery, with or of plates proportioned to the amount of current to
be stored or used, the whole or a portion only of such plates and battery being
divided off by an air or gas tight chamber closed at one end with a fluid joint
and fitted with a telescopic chamber or elastic diaphragm or piston, in such a
manner that the gas evolved from the battery by its pressure on the telescopic
chamber or equivalent causes the same to rise and fall, and inove suitable indicating
and contact-breaking apparatus, or actuate a train of wheels with a recording
device, and also by means of an actuating lever or other equivalent, shunt or cut
off the current from the battery or generator. Or in lieu of the chamber being
telescopic, it may be closed at one end and at the other with a fluid joint, when the
gas evolved will cause the liquid to be forced out in the open space and there
actuate a float or other equivalent, and effect the same results.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Joseph Samuel Beeman, William Taylor, and Frank King in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 10th February 1883.
JOSEPH SAMUEL BEEMAN, WILLIAM TAYLOR and FRANK KING, all of Cannon
Street, in the County of Middlesex "NEW APPARATUS FOR REGULATING AND
MEASURING ELECTRIC CURRENTS
در
Our invention relates to the manufacture of a cell, constructed partly on the
principle of a storage or secondary battery, as used for storing electricity, and
provided with plates proportioned to the amount of current to be stored or used.
The whole or a portion only of such plates and battery is divided off by an air or
gas-tight chamber closed at one end with a fluid joint, and filled at the other end
with a telescopic chamber or elastic diaphragm or piston, in such a manner that
the gas evolved from the battery by its pressure on the telescopic chamber or
equivalent causes the same to rise and inove, suitable indicating and contact-
breaking apparatus. In some cases the moveable chamber or diaphragm is used to
actuate a train of wheels with a recording device, or by means of an actuating
lever or other equivalent, it is used to diminish or regulate, shunt or cut off the
current from the battery or generator. In some cases in lieu of the chamber being
telescopic, it may be made closed at one end, and closed at the other with a fluid
joint, when the gas evolved will cause the liquid of the fluid joint to be forced out
from the gasholder into the cell, and there actuate a float or other equivalent, and
effect the same or similar results to those above referred to. The annexed drawings
will serve to illustrate various modes of performing our invention, but we would
remark as regards the contact-breaking or current regulating or indicating
apparatus that the devices shown may be modified considerably without departing
from the nature of the invention, in all the figures like letters refer to like or
corresponding parts.
Figs. 1, 2 and 3 are respectively part plan, cross section, and transverse section
of a storage or secondary battery cell, fitted with what we call a gas chamber B,
holding a plate or plates A which are made proportionately in size to the amount
of current electric energy intended to be stored by the battery, the chamber B
may be of any convenient size or shape, and may extend over and occupy the
whole of the cell, as in Figs. 16 and 17; in the chamber B is formed a suitable
orifice fitted with an elastic diaphragm or equivalent D, as in Figs. 2, 6, 7, 10, 11
and 15, or in lieu of said diaphragm a telescopic chamber E, as in Fig. 8, may be
used, or a piston F, as in Fig 9, or apparatus similar to a Bourdon pressure-guage
tube may be used; said diaphragm or an equivalent therefore is acted on by the
pressure of the gas evolved from the plate or plates A contained in the chamber or
cell B, or the diaphragm or its equivalent may be made large enough to cover the
whole chamber or cell, or both, and is acted on by the battery plates generally,
rs in Figs. 16 and 17. On the diaphragm or equivalent being lifted it raises a
lever or other device G which rests or is fixed on it, and said lever or device. is
made to operate any well-known electrical contact-breaking apparatus, or such
breaking apparatus as are shown in Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 6, where G is the lever or
equivalent actuated by the diaphragm D or its equivalent, in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, said
lever G being furnished at one end with a rod H dipping in a cup 1, supplied with
mercury or other metallic contact-breaker, said mercury or equivalent being in
electrical connection with the electric generator or any other contact-breaking
apparatus.
Figs. 12 and 13 show mode of using the diaphragm D, or its equivalent, for
actuating a style or train of wheels aud recording devices in connection with

page_text: apparatus which will stop the balance wheel of a clock mechanism when the
diaphragm is in action, as shown in Fig. 14.
Fig. 4 shows apparatus whereby the orifice C may be dispensed with, and in
lieu thereof, and of its diaphragm D, a float K, may be used, actuated by the rise
and fall of the electrolyte in the cell-said electrolyte being operated upon by the
gas in the chamber B-the electrolyte being kept at a uniform level by any
convenient method, such as is shown.
Fig. 5 shows apparatus in which the orifice C has inserted in it a bent tube,
partially filled with liquid, as shown; the gas evolved from plate or plates A
passing into the bent tube, impinge on said liquid thereby cause it to rise in the
bent tube, and there actuate a float or equivalent fitted with devices for the purpose
of breaking electrical contact. When we use mercury in the tube as the liquid,
and make the tube of glass, a metal wire or wires can be introduced through, or
into the glass, so as to come into contact with the mercury at any desired point,
and thus make or break electrical contact. When we use our apparatus for regu-
lating secondary batteries we proportion the size and position of the plate or
plates A, by making such plates smaller than the plates or electrodes of the battery
proper, according to the amount of current to be stored in the battery. We find
that the plate A being made, say 9-10ths of the storage capacity of any other plate
in the battery, gives a desirable result, and that the battery is thereby cut out of
the charging circuit some time before the gas would otherwise be evolved from
the battery plates, and thus prolonging considerably the life of the plates composing
the battery. We claim:-
1. The combination, with a secondary battery or batteries of a gas chamber,
and plate or plates, elastic diaphragm or equivalent, or fluid joint, alone or in
combination with contact-breaking, or measuring, or recording devices, one or
more, substantially as illustrated and described, and for the purposes set forth.
2. The use in combination with secondary batteries of a gas chamber and plate
or plates and float device, such as are herein before referred to, alone, or in combi-
nation with contact-breaking, measuring, or recording devices, one or more,
substantially as illustrated and described, and for the purposes set forth.
3. The combinations of parts consisting respectively of plate or plates, chamber,
and moveable diaphragm or equivalent, when used in combination with contact-
breaking or measuring, or recording devices, one or more, combined substantially
as in the various modifications herein described and illustrated in the drawings
annexed.
4. The use of a gas chamber closed at the bottom with a liquid joint, so that
gas collecting in said chamber may cause the liquid to rise in any opening
provided and arranged, so as to actuate any contact-breaking, measuring, or
recording device.
In Witness whereof we the said Joseph Samuel Beeman, William Taylor and
Frank King have hereunto set our hands and seals this 6th day of Kebruary
J. S. BEEMAN (LS.)
W. TAYLOR
FRANK KING (LS.)
(L.S.)