Improvements in the Lighting of Miners' Safety Lamps and the like by Electricity.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Dec., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 5th Sept., 1898-Accepted, 12th Nov., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Lighting of Miners' Safety Lamps and the
like by Electricity.
HENRY DAVIS, All Saints Works, Derby, Safety Lamp Manufacturer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
-
An improved arrangement for lighting miners safety lamps and the like by
electricity without opening the lamp.
The manner in which this is carried out will be more particularly ascertained
from the following description.
This arrangement provides for the electric connections coming outside the lamp
at the junction between the lamp glass & the lamp body instead of through the
lamp vessel which introduces a sliding contact and other complications.
It consists of a ring of metal (hereinafter called the first ring) or other conductor
insulated from the body of the lamp & projecting slightly up the side of
the glass, (hereinafter called the projection) having on its inside a lug, pillar or the
like carrying one end of a platinum or other suitable conductor which on the
passage of an electric current becomes hot & ignites the oil or spirit the other
end being fastened to another ring (hereinafter called the second ring) preferably
making contact with the lamp body; or the end of the conductor instead of being
fastened to the second ring can be connected direct or through a spring to the
lamp body if convenient.
The second ring is insulated from the first ring but need not project up the side
of the glass unless it is desired to insulate the second ring from the lamp frame.
If it is desired to ignite the spirit or oil by an electric spark the first ring is
provided with a point or knob from which the spark passes to the wick tube;
in this case one ring only is required.
To light the lamp it is placed on a conducting plate, connected to one pole of
a source of electricity & pushed or brought up to a pin or contact fixed horizon-
tally (hereinafter called the pin) which when it comes in contact with the pro-
jection completes the electric circuit from a battery or other suitable source of
electricity through the platinum conductor, inside the lamp, which becoming
heated ignites the spirit or oil.
The pin for making the electric connection can if desired be made up for hand
use connected to the source of electricity by a flexible conductor.
For use where inflamable gasses are present the pin is surrounded by a sleeve
of rubber or other suitable material, projecting beyond the pin so that on pressing
the pin onto the projection the rubber gives way, allows the pin to make connection
and on withdrawing it the spark caused by breaking the circuit has passed before
the rubber leaves the projection thus preventing the access of inflamable gas to
the spark.
Dated this Thirteenth day of December One thousand eight hundred and

page_text: Improvements in the Lighting of Miners' Safety Lamps and the
like by Electricity.
I, HENRY DAVIS, of All Saints Works, Derby, Electrical Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
-:
This invention relates to an improved arrangement for lighting miners' safety
lamps and the like by means of electricity, without opening the lamp.
I will proceed to describe my invention in connection with the accompanying
drawings, in which :-
Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a lamp embodying my invention,
Fig. 2 an elevation of part of same at right angles to Fig. 1, and
Fig. 3 a sectional plan view.
In carrying out my invention I provide means for making an electric connection
outside the lamp at the junction between the lamp glass and lamp body, thus
avoiding the necessity of sliding contacts and other complications which would
be required were the connection made through the lamp vessel.
For this purpose as will be seen in the drawings, I employ a ring A of metal
or other conductor of electricity, such ring encircling the lamp glass B, and being
insulated from the main body of the lamp by means of insulating material C.
The ring A is preferably provided at any suitable point outside the lamp glass B
with a projection a, the object of which will be presently described, and also with
an extension a passing under the glass into the interior of the lamp. The exten-
sion a has attached to it one end of a platinum or other suitable conductor D),
which passes over or in close proximity to the top of the wick tube E. The other
end of the conductor D may as shown be in contact with a metallic plate l which
electrically connects it with the main body of the lamp, and which is insulated
from the extension a¹ by means of suitable insulating material d¹.
When it is desired to light a lamp constructed as above described it is placed
upon a conducting plate X connected with one pole of a battery Y or other source
of electricity, and the projection a of ring A is then brought into contact with
a pin Z or other part in connection with the other pole of the battery, so that a
current of electricity will pass from such pin to the projection a and thence by
ring A and extension a¹ to the platinum or other conductor D which becomes
heated to incandescence and so ignites the oil or spirit at the top of wick
tube E. The electric circuit from the conductor D is completed by means of the
plate-d, which as above stated is in electric connection with the main body of the
lamp and so with the conducting plate on which the latter is standing.
Instead of connecting the end of conductor D to plate d it may be connected in
any suitable manner to a ring making contact with the lamp body, or directly,
or through a spring to the lamp body itself.
If it is desired to ignite the spirit or oil by means of an electric spark the
extension a¹ of ring A would terminate in a point or knob from which (on the
contacts being made as above described) the spark would pass to the wick
tube E.
The pin Z which makes contact with the projection, a when the lamp is to be
lighted may either be fixed to project horizontally or so made that it can be held
in the hand of the operator. For use where inflammable gases are present the
pin Z is preferably surrounded by a sleeve of rubber z or other suitable material
projecting beyond the end of the pin so that when the latter is pressed on to the

page_text: projection a the rubber gives way to allow the pin to make connection, while when
the pin is withdrawn the spark caused by the breaking of the circuit passes before
the rubber leaves the projection a, so that the access of inflammable gas to the
spark is prevented.
In the lamp shown in the drawings the illumination is regulated by screwing
or unscrewing the oil or spirit reservoir F which can then be clamped by thumb
screw G carried by a pivotted piece H. The latter is preferably locked by a
leaden rivet h (Fig. 3), so that the inner end of the thumb screw G cannot-
be removed from the path of a flange f at the top of reservoir F, and therefore
the user of the lamp will be unable to remove the reservoir so as to expose the
uncovered flame.
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 is:-
1. The method of lighting miners' safety lamps and the like consisting in
placing such lamp on a conducting surface in electrical connection with one pole
of a battery or other source of electricity, and bringing an insulated part on
the outside of such lamp into contact with a pin or other part in electrical con-
nection with the other pole of the battery, substantially as specified.
2. The means for electrically lighting miners' safety lamps or the like consisting
in a ring or projection on the outside of the lamp and adapted to be brought
into contact with one pole of a battery or other source of electricity, such ring or
projection being either in connection with a platinum or other conductor, which is
also in metallic contact with a part connected to the lamp reservoir, and through
which conductor the current may be caused to pass and so light the lamp, or the
ring or projection being within sparking distance of such part connected to the
lamp reservoir, substantially as specified.
3. The means for electrically lighting miners' safety lamps or the like consisting
in a ring or projection on the outside of and insulated from the main body of the
lamp, such ring or projection being adapted to be brought into contact with one
pole of a battery or other source of electricity, while the main body of the lamp
can be placed in electrical connection with the other pole of such battery, in
combination with suitable means inside the lamp for igniting the flame by the
passage of the current of electricity, substantially as specified."
Lo 1000
ALLISON BROS.,
Agents for the Applicant.