Improvements in and relating to Conduits, Conductors, and Collectors for Electric Railways.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Oct., 1392
Complete Specification Left, 17th Oct., 1892-Accepted, 5th Nov., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Conduits, Conductors, and
Collectors for Electric Railways.
I, ROBERT BOOTH, Mechanical Engineer, of 181 Forest Street, in the City of
Malden, County of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts in the United States of
America do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to a system of laying an electrical conductor and accessories
in roads and streets in such a manner as to ensure a safe and economical method of
conveying the current from the generating station solely to the vehicles to be
propelled.
It consists essentially of an electrical conducting strip or bar embedded or
encased hermetically in a partially or wholly flexible tube or casing or series of
tubes or casings of insulating material and a series of protruding flexible contact-
strips, normally held apart from the conducting strip, but susceptible to contact
therewith by the agency of the determined pressure exerted by a spring trolley or
current-conveying device attached to vehicle to be moved. The said encased
conducting strip and contact strips, which form the main conductor, being
'armoured' with suitable strips and secured in a substantial support of iron, concrete
or suitable material.
D
1 of Antahan 1000
ROBT. BOOTH.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Conduits, Conductors, and
Collectors for Electric Railways.
I, ROBERT BOOTH, Mechanical Engineer of 181 Forest Street, in the City of
Malden, County of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts in the United States of
America, 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 a conduit system for electric railways, and its object is to
provide a safe and economical method of conveying the current from the generating
station solely to the vehicles to be propelled.
My invention consists essentially of an electric conducting strip or bar imbedded
or encased hermetically in a partially or wholly flexible tube or casing or series of
tubes or casings of insulating material and a series of protruding flexible contact-
strips, normally held apart from the conducting strip, but susceptible to contact
therewith by the agency of the determined pressure exerted by a spring trolley or
current-conveying device attached to vehicle to be moved. Or, which is equivalent,
by changing their relative positions, a flexible conducting strip, a series of
protruding embedded contact strips, and a modified form of spring trolley.
In the drawing accompanying this Specification;
Fig. 1 is a cross-section of my invention showing, in its support, what constitutes
the "main conductor."
Fig. 2 shows the same in its approximate relation to the road bed, and vehicle
when used on an ordinary track.
Fig. 3. is a longitudinal section showing the action due to the pressure of spring
trolley attached to passing vehicle to be operated upon.
Fig. 4. is a cross section of an alternative construction as fully referred to.
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page_text: :
In these figures 'A' (or in Fig. 4. 'A. A¹³) represents a tube or casing composed
mainly of india rubber or other elastic and non-conducting material, serving the
two-fold purpose of insulating the metallic conducting strip 'B' and as a spring or
cushion to conform with the spring trolley C. C₁ in producing a temporary
contact between the conducting strip 'B' and the successive contact strips 'D', D³,
Dete. (either or all being more or less flexible) as the vehicle passes over them.
The tube 'A' would preferably be made in sections with closed ends and of a
length to suit manufacturers' interests, each section being provided with its
conducting strip with suitable terminal connections at each end to secure a
continuous and insulated conductor. Also having one or more protruding metallic
contact-strips D. D',' Fig. 1, or 'D' Fig. 4. The contact-strip 'D. DI,' Fig. 1,
is shown as two strips screwed together but it might obviously be in one piece if
desired, but for flexibility and a complete hermetical joint with tongues 't. t.' of
tube 'A' the two pieces as shown would be preferable.
The conducting strip 'B,' might, or need not, be attached to a piece of wood or
similar material imbedded or moulded in the tube 'A.'
'F. F' are flexible armour strips, preferably of steel, cemented or otherwise
attached to the tube 'A' and are for the purpose of protecting the tube against
abrasion which would be caused by ordinary vehicular traffic and also to enable the
discs C¹ C¹ to properly assist the disc 'C' in compressing the tube 'A' as shown
in Fig. 3.
The backing 'K' may be of channel-iron or similar construction and material, as
shewn in Fig. 1, or it may be of concrete or similar substance as in. Fig. 4. the
object being to provide a substantial and durable support or backing for the main
conductor as may best suit the track to be operated upon.
The current-collecting device would consist of a spring-trolley composed of
disc C1, Fig. 4 (or discs 'C' C¹,' Fig. 1) of wood or other insulating material
mechanically but not electrically connected to a metallic disc 'C,' the combined
discs revolving in suitable bearings at the extremity of the spring fork 'G,' the
pliability of said fork being of such a degree of strength as will enable the combined
metallic and insulating discs C. C to depress, as shown in Fig. 3, the strip 'D,'
Fig. 1, into good contact with the conductor 'D' or, as in Fig. 4, the conductor 'B'
into similar contact with strip 'D.' The required current is then diverted from the
conductor 'B' through the strip 'D. D'' to disc 'C,' thence by brush or collector 'H'
and wire to motor as in ordinary practice.
The provision of feed wires to the conductor at intervals by means of insulating
bushes etc. would be by ordinary methods.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, declare that what I
claim is :-
1st. In an electric railway conduit system, the combination of a disconnected
series of protruding and more or less flexible metallic contact strips or bars with a
more or less flexible metallic strip, bar, rod, or continuous and jointed series of
.strips, bars, or rods, or similar electrical conductors hermetically embedded or
encased in a partially or wholly flexible tube or casing, partially or wholly
'composed of insulating material, said contact strips and conducting bar being
susceptible to mutual contact by the applied pressure of the spring-trolley, and
forming a 'main-conductor' substantially as shewn and described.
2nd. In an electric-railway conduit system, the combination of a' main-conductor,'
substantially as above described, with flexible armour strips,' substantially as
shewn and for the purposes specified.
3rd. In an electric-railway conduit system the combination of a 'main-conductor'
and its armour strips' as and for the purposes before described with a 'support or
backing' formed of channel iron, wood, concrete or other suitable material sub-
stantially as and for the purpose specified.
4th. In an electric-railway conduit system the combination of a 'main-conductor'

page_text: armoured and supported as above described with a spring-trolley substantially as
and for the purpose specified.
5th. In an electric-railway conduit system, the combination of a 'main-conductor'
armoured and supported substantially as hereinbefore described and a spring-trolley
5 also substantially as hereinbefore described, with an electrically propelled vehicle.
Dated this 17th day of October 1892.
ROBT. BOOTH.