Complete Spanifinntin
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Aug., 1899
Complete Spanifinntin
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Two or more Electrical
Regulating Switches or Resistance Devices Together or Separately.
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 relates to the operating gear for two or more electric resistance
devices, and more particularly to mechanism for connecting two or more
resistance devices, so that any of them can be operated independently of the
others, and that any two or more can be operated simultaneously when required.
Each individual resistance device is connected with a separate driving shaft
or spindle adapted to be turned by means of a handwheel, and a main driving
shaft or analogous mechanism is connected with the different shafts by means
of friction cones, each of which can be set in and out of motion at will.
a
The accompanying drawing is an axial section of a hollow driving shaft,
together with handwheel, friction coupling, and disengaging gear, belonging to
one of the resistance devices. a represents a double pulley, to one half of which
is attached the upper end of a rope carrying at its lower end a metallic cone or
contact piece movable up and down in a liquid resistance, while the other half
of the pulley serves to suspend a balance weight, b indicates a hollow driving
shaft carrying at one end the double pulley a and
wheel c for turning the pulley, dis
at the hand-
shaft in a plate e of marble or
bearing which supports the
a wall. fis
screwed to the wall
a cast iron bracket
e and serving to support the bearing h of the
horizontal driving shaft g. f is a spindle passing through the hollow shaft /
and provided with a conical enlargement fitting into a conical recess of the
shaft b, k is a bevel wheel mounted on to the shaft b and gearing into a bevel
wheel mounted on the main driving shaft g (not shown). Z is a helical spring
nserted between the shaft b and tooth wheel k and serving to keep the friction.
one out of contact with the shaft b. On the screw-threaded extremity of the
pindle i is mounted a screw nut which has the shape of a small handwheel and
erves to press the cone ¹ against the conical recess of the shaft b so as to couple
he two parts together, when required.
If the mechanism is in the position represented by the drawing, the turning
f the main driving shaft will set the tooth wheel k, together with the spindle i
n motion, but the shaft b and the pulley a remain at rest.
If, however, the nut m is screwed down sufficiently, to press the friction cone /¹
gainst the conical socket of the shaft b, the motion of the wheel k will be com-
unicated to the pulley a and the latter will act on the resistance device.
If the friction cone is out of contact, and the handwheel c turned, the
ulley a will turn and lift the rope, without acting on the spindle i and on the
ain driving shaft g.
The pulley
a may be replaced by a helically grooved drum, which guides the
pe when it is being wound on and off.

page_text: The pulleys or drums mounted on the different driving shafts of a series are
arranged out of line with each other a horizontal guide plate is mounted between
the series of pulleys and the series of resistances situated underneath the same,
said guide plate having as many perforations as there are ropes to be guided, and
each rope having a knot or stop pin above the guide plate and one below the
same, for limiting the motion of the rope in both directions.
Instead of a resistance cone suspended from a rope, any suitable regulating
switch or other regulating device may be connected with each of the series of
horizontal shafts mentioned above, for instance an ordinary contact lever adapted
to slide over a series of fixed contacts arranged in an arc of a circle, may be used,
and the axle of the said contact lever may be connected with the horizontal driving
shaft mentioned above by means of two or more pairs of bevel wheels.
Dated this 3rd day of August 1899.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Two or more Electrical
Regulating Switches or Resistance Devices Together or Separately.
I, OWEN DAVID LUCAS, Electrical Engineer, of 39, Victoria Street, Westminster,
in the County of London, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and as-
certained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to the operating gear for two or more electric resistance
devices, and more particularly to mechanism for connecting two or more
resistance devices, so that any one of them can be operated independently of the
others, and that any two or more can be operated simultaneously when required.
Each individual resistance device is connected with a separate driving shaft
or spindle adapted to be turned by means of a handwheel, and a main driving
shaft or analogous mechanism is connected with several shafts by means of friction
cones, each of which can be set in and out of motion at will.
The drawing filed with the Provisional Specification is an axial section of a
hollow driving shaft, together with handwheel, friction coupling, and disengaging
gear, belonging to one of the resistance devices. a represents a double pulley,
to one half of which is attached the upper end of a rope carrying at its lower end
a metallic cone or contact piece moveable up and down in a liquid resistance,
while the other half of the pulley serves to suspend a balance weight.. b indi-
cates a hollow driving shaft carrying at one end the double pulley a and at the
other a handwheel e for turning the pulley, d is a bearing which supports the
shaft in a plate e of marble or a wall. f is a cast iron bracket screwed to the
wall and serving to support the bearing of the horizontal driving shaft g.
i is a spindle passing through the hollow shaft and provided with a conical
enlargement fitting into a conical recess of the shaft b, k is a bevel wheel
mounted on the shaft 6 and gearing into a bevel wheel mounted on the main
driving shaft g (not shown). is a helical spring, which may be inserted between
the shaft and tooth wheel to keep the friction cone out of contact with
shaft b. On the screw-threaded extremity of the spindle i is mounted a
screw-nut which has the shape of a small hand-wheel and serves to press the
cone against the conical recess of the shaft b, so as to couple the two parts
together when required.
If the mechanism is in the position represented by the drawing, the turning

page_text: snart will set the tooth wheel k, together with the spindle
in motion, but the shaft b and the pulley a will remain at rest.
If, however, the nut m is screwed down sufficiently, to press the friction
cone against the conical socket of the shaft b, the motion of the wheel k wil
5 be communicated to the pulley a, and the latter will act on the resistance device
If the friction cone ¹ is out of contact, and the handwheel c turned, the pulley.
will turn and lift the rope, without acting on the spindle i and on the main
driving shaft 9.
The pulley a may be replaced by a helically grooved drum, which guides the
0 rope, when it is being wound on and off.
The pulleys or drums mounted on the different driving shafts of a vertical
series are arranged out of line with each other, and a horizontal guide plate is
mounted between the series of pulleys and the series of resistances situated under-
neath the same, said guide plate having as many perforations as there are ropes
5 to be guided, and each rope having a knot or stop pin above the guide plate and
one below the same, for limiting the motion of the rope in both directions.
Instead of a resistance cone suspended from a rope, any suitable regulating
switch or regulating device may be connected with each of the series of horizontal
shafts mentioned above, for instance an ordinary contact lever adapted to slide
over a series of fixed contacts arranged in an arc of the circle may be used, and
the axle of the said contact lever may be connected with the horizontal driving
shaft mentioned above, by means of two or more pairs of bevel wheels.
In the drawings filed with the Complete Specification (Sheets I, II and III),
Sheet I is a side elevation of the operating gear for resistance devices arranged in
four groups, the gear belonging to different. groups being placed at different
levels; Figure II is a partial plan of the same.
Each group of regulating devices is controlled by a common shaft g¹, or g²,
or g³, or gt.
Instead of double pulleys a, as shewn by Sheet I, I employ helically grooved
rope pulleys a, a, a, &c. As shewn by Sheet I, the rope pulleys belonging to
driving shafts situated in the same vertical plane are arranged out of line with
each other, and their ropes o¹, 02, 0, 0, are placed at approximately equal dis-
tances apart, each rope being provided with a balance weight p,
passing through a separate opening of the guide plate q.
74, and
Sheet II shews the guide openings belonging to the second row of resistance
devices not shewn in the drawings.
-
--
Sheet I shews also the stops r, r, which are secured to the rope of to limit the
motion of the same.
In order to shew at a glance the position of the different resistance devices or
regulating switches, and to prevent overwinding, each of the horizontal pulley
shafts mentioned above may be combined with any suitable indicator and a stop
gear situated in close proximity to the handwheel. Such an indicator is illus-
trated by Sheet IV of the accompanying drawings and many comprise, for instance
a spur-wheels, fixed on the pulley shaft underneath, the handwheel o, and gearing
nto a second spur-wheel t, mounted on an axle parallel with the pulley shaft.
The spur-wheel t, is provided with a graduated scale, and a stationary index
inger u is mounted on the marble plate e, so as to shew the position of the re-
istance device or switch, and the ratio between the diameters of the two spur-
wheels is calculated so that the maximum range of motion of the resistance or
egulating device corresponds to less than a complete revolution on of the index
inger.
To prevent the index finger from turning in the reverse direction, when the
and wheel is started to insert resistances, an adjustable clamp or intermediate
oth is secured to the circumference of the index wheel, so as to fill up the
terstice between two teeth; the same clamp will also prevent the index wheel
om making more than one revolution.
Instead of an ordinary toothwheel keyed on the pulley shaft, I may use a

page_text: disc in which are fixed a number of pins parallel to the axis of the disc, for
instance, four pins equally distributed over the circumference and adapted to
gear at certain intervals into a graduated tooth wheel mounted on an axle parallel
to the pulley axle.
I am aware, that it has been proposed to control a liquid resistance or a series
of liquid resistances by a horizontal shaft mounted above the same, each resistance
device being connected with the said shaft by a rope or cord running over a drum
or pulley mounted on the shaft, and I do not claim such an arrangement.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. Apparatus for operating two or more electrical regulating switches or
resistance devices, comprising in its construction two or more hollow driving
shafts, each of which is provided with a handwheel and connected with the
corresponding resistance device or switch by means of a rope and pulley, two or
more driving spindles passing axially through the said driving shafts, and adapted
to be coupled with the same by means of friction cones, and a main driving shaft
coupled together with the said driving spindles, so as to impart rotary motion
to the same, substantially as described.
a and
2. The combination of two or more ropes and rope pulleys a, each of which is
connected with and adapted to operate an electric resistance or switch device, with
two or more hollow driving shafts carrying at one end the said pulleys
at the other end a handwheel e, two or more driving spindles provided with
cones and screw nuts m, a main driving shaft geared together with the
spindles, and means for supporting and guiding the said shafts and spindles,
the whole being arranged and adapted to operate substantially as described.
3. In a multiple resistance or regulating gear of the type described, the com-
bination of a plurality of rope pulleys or drums mounted on the different driving
shafts out of line with each other, with a perforated guide plate for the ropes
mounted between the rope pulleys and the series of resistance or regulating
devices, and a plurality of ropes provided with knots or stop pieces, substantially
as described and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 30th day of April 1900.
FAIRFAX & WETTER,
Agents, 37 and 39, Essex Street, Strand, London.