Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Two or more Electric Current Switches simultaneously or periodically.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 26th June, 1897
Complete Specification Left, 24th Mar., 1898-Accepted, 25th June, 1898-.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Two or more Electric
Current Switches simultaneously or periodically.
I, OWEN DAVID LUCAS, Electrical Engineer, of 39, Victoria Street, Westminster,
in the County of London, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention has for its object, to connect two or more switches with a hand
lever or equivalent mechanism, in such a manner that they may be reversed
either separately or simultaneously, according to requirements; or so that a
series of switches may be operated in varying groups according to a predeter-
mined plan or period. It is intended for any switch operated by a backward and
forward or turning movement of the switch handle, and is adapted to act on
each switch alternately in opposite directions, so that if one forward and back-
ward oscillation of the hand lever causes the switch lever to move forward, the
next forward and backward oscillation of the hand lever will cause the same
switch lever to move backward, and vice versa.
The apparatus chiefly comprises a two-armed operating lever, one arm of which
is provided with a handle and with a stud or studs or bars parallel to the fulcruin
of the lever, while the other arm (situated on the opposite side of the fulcrum) is
connected with a one-armed auxiliary lever by means of slotted links; a one-
armed auxiliary lever mounted on an axle parallel to that of the hand lever and
provided at the free end with a stud or pair of studs or bars parallel to the axle:
a set of connecting rods, one for each switch, each connecting rod being hinged
at one end to the handle of the switch, while the opposite end is free and adapted
to press (at certain positions of the mechanism) on the stud or bar of the hand
lever, each connecting rod having moreover, on its underside an inclined or curved
slot adapted to receive (in certain positions of the mechanism) the stud or bar
mounted on the auxiliary lever; and a pair of springs adapted to draw the said
levers in a given direction. To these may be added a disengaging mechanism
adapted to set one or more of the connecting rods out of action, when required.
The operating lever, auxiliary lever and link may be duplicated, according to
the size of the apparatus.
As there is no permanent connection between the connecting rods on the one
hand and the operating and the auxiliary lever on the other hand, each switch
may be operated by hand, without disturbing the function of the other switches.
The disengaging mechanism chiefly comprises a series of two-armed lifting
levers, one for each connecting rod, one arm of each lever serving to lift the
corresponding connecting rod, while the other arm has at its free end a pin or
upward projection which passes through a table or platform and presses on the
underside of a specially slotted cardboard or metal disc mounted on the said table;
a cardboard or metal disc pivoted on the said table and provided with slots
similar to those used in the revolving or travelling sheets of mechanical musical
instruments, the distance of the slots from the centre of the disc corresponding

page_text: to that of the lifting levers, so that according to the position of the disc and the
arrangement of the slots in the same, the pins or bent extremities of the lifting
levers will either be held down by the disc, or allowed to rise through the slots.
As long as the extremity of a lifting lever passes through a slot, the correspond-
ing connecting rod will remain in action, but as long as the extremity of the lifting
lever is held down by the disc, the connecting rod will remain out of action.
The common hand lever or operating lever mentioned above is connected with
the slotted disc by means of a suitable ratchet mechanism, so as to turn the said
disc forward one division at each return motion of the operating lever. The
slotted disc may be supported by, and run on, friction rollers. There
may further
be connected with the mechanism an indicator or set of indicators, to show, what
switches have been operated by the last movement of the lever, or will be operated
by the next; also suitable gearing on the principle described for operating one or
more liquid or other resistances when required.
If the apparatus is to be used for electric advertising signs, so as to switch the
lamps of the said sign in and out of circuit periodically, according to a given plan
which determines the number and arrangement of the slots in the disc, the operat-
ing lever will be set in motion automatically, for instance by an electro motor
or by clockwork.
"The same invention may be adapted also for working electric signals simul-
taneously or in a given order of succession, and generally to control switches or
arrangements of switches in such a way, as to render some of them automatically
immovable, while others can be moved, an independent hand control being pro-
'vided if necessary.
Dated this 26th day of June 1897.
FAIRFAX & WETTER,
Agents, 37 and 39, Essex Street, Strand, London.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Two or more Electric
Current Switches simultaneously or periodically.
OWEN DAVID LUCAS, Electrical Engineer, 39, Victoria Street, Westminster,
S.W., 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 for its object, to connect two or more switches with a hand
lever or equivalent mechanism, in such a manner that they may be reversed
either separately or simultaneously according to requirements; or so that a
series of switches may be operated in varying groups according to a predeter-
mined plan or period. It is intended for any switch operated by a backward and
forward or oscillating movement of the switch handle, and is adapted to act on
each switch alternately, in opposite directions, so that, if one forward and back-
ward oscillation of the hand lever causes the switch lever to move forward, the
next forward and backward oscillation of the hand lever will cause the same
switch lever to move backward, and vice versa.
In the accompanying drawings:-
Fig. 1 is a vertical section of an apparatus embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is
a sectional plan along line I-II of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan along line I-IV
of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is. a vertical section similar to Fig. 1, but showing a different
stage of operation; Figs. 5 and 6 are detail views on a larger scale,

page_text: The apparatus chiefly comprises a two-armed operating lever G, one arm of
which is provided with a handle g and with a stud or studs or with a bar A
parallel to the axis or fulcrum of the lever, while the other arm (situated on the
opposite side of the fulcrum) is connected with a one-armed auxiliary lever I by
means of a slotted link II or a pair or links; a one-urned auxiliary lever I
mounted on an axle parallel to that of the hand lever and provided at the free
end with a stud or pair of studs or with a bar F parallel to the axle; a set of con-
necting rods L, one for each switch, each connecting rod being hinged at one end'
to the handle M of the switch, while the opposite end is free and adapted to
press (at certain positions of the mechanism) on the stud or bar A of the hand
lever; each connecting rod having moreover on its underside an inclined or curved.
slot adapted to receive (in certain positions of the mechanism) the stud or bar -
mounted on the auxiliary lever; and it may further have (with suitable switches)
on its under side a projection Q fixed in a suitable position to maintain its free
end under certain conditions of the lifting levers opposite the stud or bar A.
at the upper end of the two-armed operating lever G; and a pair of (or more)
springs cand e adapted to draw the said levers in a given direction. To these
may be added a disengaging mechanism adapted to set one or more of the con-
necting rods out of action, when required.
The operating lever, auxiliary lever and link may be duplicated, according to.
the size of the apparatus. _
As there is no permanent connection between the connecting rods L on the one.
hand and the operating lever A of the auxiliary lever. I on the other hand, each
switch may be operated by hand, without disturbing the function of the other
switches.
The disengaging mechanism (Figs. 1 and 2) chiefly comprises a series of two-
armed lifting levers N, one for each connecting rod L, one arm of each lever
serving to lift the corresponding connecting rod, while the other arm has at its
free end a pin or upward projection R, which passes through a table or plat-
form and presses on the underside of a specially slotted cardboard or metal
disor mounted on the said table; a disc 1 pivoted on the said table and provided
with slots similar to those used in the revolving or travelling sheets of mechanical
musical instruments, the distance of the slots from the centre U of the disc
corresponding to that of the lifting levers N, as indicated by Fig. 3, so that accord-
ing to the position of the disc and the arrangement of the slots in the same, the
pins or bent extremities R of the lifting levers will either be held down by the
disc, or allowed to rise through the slots.
As shown by the plan Fig. 3, the lifting levers N are preferably made to .con-
verge at the extremities carrying the pins R, and the pins R are placed in 2
straight line, which is a radius of the disc r¹.
The dotted line X-X in Fig. 2 indicates the position of one of the lifting
levers N (of which Fig. 1 shows an oblique side view), that is to say, the angle
which one of the levers N forms with the parallel connecting rods L.
"
The apparatus may be so adjusted, that as long as the extremity R of a lifting
lever passes through a slot, the corresponding connecting rod L will remain in
action, so that a forward and backward motion of the operating lever G puts one
or more switches alternately "on" or off"; but as long as the lifting lever N
is held down by the disc, the connecting rod L will remain out of action (being
held up by the arm P of the lever L); or the apparatus may be so adjusted, that
as long as the extremity of a lifting lever passes through a slot, the corresponding
connecting rod will be in action, in such a way, that a forward and backward
movement of the hand lever will put the switch "on," but as long as the
extremity of the lifting lever is held down by the disc, the connecting rod will be
lifted, so that its free end comes opposite the upper stud or bar A of the operating
lever G, and a forward and backward movement of the operating lover will put
the switch "off," so that as long as the lifting lever passes through the slot, the

page_text: switch remains ** on," and so long as the operating lever is held down by the disc
and there is no slot, the switch remains " off."
In order to maintain the recess in the free end of the connecting rod opposite
the stud or bar A of the operating lever during the whole course of its movement,
a projection Q of suitable curvature may be added on the underside of the con-
necting rod L, where the connecting rod. slides over the lifting lever N.
The common operating bar A or the lever G is connected with the slotted
disc by means of a suitable ratchet mechanism, so as to turn the said disc for-
ward one division at each return motion of the operating lever.
Such a ratchet mechanism is illustrated by Figs. 5 and 6. The table r has a
circular recess, to receive the ratchet wheel mounted on an axle U. The
ratchet wheel has four pins s projecting from its upper face, each pin passing
through a hole of the cardboard disc r¹ and of the removable upper disc V.mounted
on the axle U.
The ratchet wheel is set in motion by means of a pawl t pivoted to one end of
a connecting rod T. The opposite end (not shown) of this rod T has a slot,
through which passes a pin fixed to the operating lever G or to a separate lever
mounted on the axle B. The pawl is held in position by a pair of springs
and, so that the return motion of the rod T will turn the wheel S, and therefore
the disc r¹, forward one division, and that the ratchet wheel S may be turned
back by means of a handle W mounted on the axle U. In this manner it is pos-
sible, to turn the disc r in the direction opposite to that given to it by the con-
necting rod T, and the operating lever Ĝ, in order to repeat any number of
operations.
The lever H and the connecting rod T are both slotted, as mentioned above, and
the length of the slots is so adjusted, that during the time the lever I is in motion,
the connecting rod T remains at rest, and during the motion of the connecting
rod T, the lever I remains at rest.
Fig. 1 shows the position of the switch and operating mechanisms, when the
extremity R. of the lever N passes through a slot of the disc r¹, and Fig. 4 shows
the position, when the extremity R is situated between two slots.
There may be further connected with the mechanism an indicator or set of
indicators, to show what switches have been operated by the last movement of the
lever, or will be operated by the next; also suitable gearing on the principle
described for operating one or more liquid or other resistances, when required.
If the apparatus is to be used for "changing signs," so as to switch the lamps
of the said sign in and out of circuit periodically, according to a given plan which
determines the number and arrangement of the slots in the disc, the operating
rod G will be set in motion automatically, for instance by an electro-motor or by
clockwork.
56
Such changing signs" are formed in the known manner, either by so arrang-
ing several electric lamps or groups of lamps, that they form a word or design,
or that they serve to illuminate a word or figure composed of transparent
elements, and the lamps belonging to different groups may have different colours.
The said lamps or groups of lamps are inserted in parallel circuits, each of
which can be opened and closed by a separate switch controlled by one of the
levers L. Each revolution of the slotted disc r¹ corresponds to a complete cycle
of changes.
The same invention may be adapted also for working electric signals simul-
taneously or in a given order of succession, and generally to control switches or
arrangements of switches in such a way, as to render some of them automatically
immovable, while others can be moved, an independent hand control being pro-
vided, if necessary.
The said signals, whether optic or acoustic, are operated by parallel circuits,
each of which is controlled by a separate switch and one of the connecting rods L.
Consequently, the working of the different signals depends on the arrangement
of the slots in the disc r¹.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim tis:
1. The combination of two or more independently movable switches, each of
which is provided with operating mechanism comprising an adjustable hit or
miss device, with an operating lever adapted to set the said mechanisms in motion
when the corresponding hit or miss devices occupy a given position; a set of
lifting levers adapted to control the position of the said hit or miss devices, and a
movable pattern disc or sheet perforated according to a given plan and adapted
to control the position of the disengaging levers according to its perforations,
substantially as described:
2. The combination of two or more independently movable switches, with an
operating lever and two or more independently adjustable switch operating
mechanisms inserted between the said operating lever and the switch levers, each
of the said mechanisms being adapted to operate the corresponding switch lever
in either direction during a single forward and backward motion of the operating
lever, or to be set out of action, substantially as described.
3. The combination of two or more independently movable switches, each of
which is provided with an adjustable hit or miss operating mechanism, with an
operating lever adapted to set the said mechanism in motion, a movable pattern
disc provided with perforations according to a given plan, and adapted to control
the hit or miss devices of each switch operating mechanism according to the
perforations of the pattern disc, and ratchet mechanism adapted to transmit the
motion of the operating lever to the pattern disc, substantially as described.
4. A multiple switch operating apparatus as described and shown by the
drawings.
AL
011 1
L 1000