Improved Means to be Used in Supplying, Distributing, Controlling, and Indicating Electricity for Lighting and other Purposes.
Year: 1888

page_text: Improved Means to be Used in Supplying, Distributing, Controlling,
and Indicating Electricity for Lighting and other Purposes.
I HENRY EDMUNDS of No. 10 Hatton Gardens in the City of London Electrical
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
-
My invention relates more especially to a system of Electrical distribution described
and claimed in the Specification of my application for Patent No. 8641 dated the
15th June 1887 and has for its object to render the said system more efficient and
reliable.
In the system referred to the following conditions or safe-guards are desirable.
That during discharge each section is successively removed in the same manner
as during charging.
That charging ceases when the battery is sufficiently charged.
That any section of the Battery when sufficiently charged is cut off from discharge.
That if the Batteries be disconnected from the charging main they should be
re-connected as soon as the discharge from them becomes sufficiently great to render
further charging desirable.
That when the Batteries are separated from the charging circuit they should be
re-connected whenever from any cause their electro motive force falls below a certain
definite limit.
That the discharge from the Batteries at any time should not be permitted to exceed
a certain definite limit.
That when the electro-motive force falls below a certain definite limit the discharge
therefrom should be stopped or restricted.
That the electrial connection inter. se. of the numbers of the Section may be changed
so as to be different during the processes of charging and discharging.
The first mentioned provision is provided for in the system described in my aforesaid
specification by the magnet 21 placed in the local circuit.
The said magnet 21 may be replaced by any motor the action of which is controlled
by a detent or equivalent mechanisin, its operation being to produce a certain definite
action intermittently at fixed intervals.

page_text: In the event of the breakage of the main circuit within the house or stoppage of or
insufficient current from the generating station, an Electro magnet is used which will
cease to be energised by reason of the stoppage of the current and its armature will
fall so as to establish a path for the charge current external to the local installation
thus guarding against interruption of other work on the line and back discharge or
short circuiting of the Section in the charging circuit will be prevented.
Whenever the Voltage of the local circuit of Secondary Batteries falls too low or too
much current has been discharged from the Batteries it is desirable as aforesaid that
the local circuit be interrupted and that such Batteries be automatically placed in the
charging circuit and that as soon as such abnormal condition ceases to excite the
discharge circuit be resumed by the Batteries.
Further whenever a predetermined quantity of current is being discharged at
any instant it is desirable as aforesaid that the charging current he immediately put
on the Batteries so that they are at once replenished without waiting for the fall of
Voltage to take place as under the ordinary conditions of discharge and in the event
of a still greater current being used at any moment I cause either intermittent fluctua-
tion in the light or the reduction of the light by the insertion of a suitable resistance
to induce the user to cease the excessive demand.
These operations I effect by means of a Voltage magnet and control magnets
worked in conjunction with one another in a manner which I will now describe.
I provide an Electro-magnet or its equivalent whose armature may move to distinct
positions according to the current flowing from a shunt from the discharge Battery in
accordance with the current flowing due to the variations of Voltage causing contacts
to be inade or unmade severally according to the positions for the purposes of affecting
mechanisms for opening or closing circuit for the charge or discharge of the mains of
the Battery.
To prevent back discharge from the batteries in the event of a stoppage of the
dynamos at the generating station, and in case of a reversal of the current being made
from the generating station to prevent this reversed current passing into any section
of the group of storage batteries and also to regulate in conjunction with other
appliances as hereinafter described the working of the batteries employ with
each installation a polarizing switch illustrated in the accompanying diagram in
which I also shew an electro-magnetic cut out designed to prevent a current of
lower strength than a certain minimum from entering any section of a group of.
battery sections which may be in the shunt H' from the main at any local
station. The polarized switch consists of two solenoids one marked O being a wire in
sufficient turns and of sufficient area to carry easily the current of the charging
main H. H and the other marked 02 being a fine wire shunt of high resistance to take
a small portion of the current from the sections of a battery in the local circuit H².
This latter high resistance coil surrounds an armature 03 capable of being magnetized
and whose polarity is determined by the direction of flow of current from the local
battery through this fine wire coil, and the armature alters by displacing the height at
which the mercury in a vessel P is situated so that it may make or break circuit
through the section of the
group
in the charging main. When such circuit is broken.
owing to the rise of the core an alternative path for the main current is provided
through the core 0³ and the mercury contact cup O and H³.
The electro magnet cut out Q has an armature Q which by displacement alters the
level of mercury in the vessel Q3 and makes or breaks the direct through circuit past
the local installation.
In the event of the breakage of the main circuit within the house (in H¹) or
stoppage of charging current at the generating station the electro magnet will cease
to be energized by reason of the stoppage of the current and its armature Q' will at
once fall when a path for the charging current external to the local installation will be
provided by H. Q³, H thus guarding against interruption of other local installations
and back discharge or short circuiting of the section in charging circuit will be
prevented by the breaking of circuit to A and P which will be affected by the core 03
being raised solely by the current in O³.

page_text: whenever the voltage or any of the msta
or if too much current has been discharged from the batteries it is desirable that such
batteries be automatically placed in the charging circuit or that the local circuit be
automatically broken and that as soon as these abnormal conditions cease to exist the
discharging circuit be resumed by the batteries, further whenever a predetermined
quantity of current (say over 20 amperes for example) is being discharged at any
instant it is desirable that the charging current be immediately put on to the batteries
so that they are at once replenished without waiting for a fall of voltage to take place
as under the ordinary conditions of discharge and in the event of a still greater current
say over 30 amperes being used at any moment it causes either intermittent fluctuation
in the lights or a reduction of the light by the insertion of a suitable resistance to
induce the user to cease the excessive demand. These operations I effect by means of
a voltage regulator and a local control magnet working in conjunction with one another
in a manner which I will now describe with reference to the accompanying diagram 1
is the voltage regulator consisting of an electro-magnet 2, energised by a shunt 3 from
the local circuit H². This electro-magnet operates two contact bridges 4 and 5 which
make or break circuit through mercury cups as shown. The circuit governed by
the bridge 4 is a circuit 6 from the battery through the fine wire solenoid 0% of the
polarized switch and back to the battery and the circuit governed by the bridge 5
indicated by the numeral 7 passes from the battery as a fine wire coil round the upper
core and of the local control magnet 9 and thence to the battery. The local control
magnet has another core 10 which forms a plunger for the mercury cup 11. The
return wire of the local circuit H2 from the lamps to the battery is in permanent con-
nection with the mercury in the cup 11 the level of the said mercury permitting the
current in that return wire to pass through the solenoid 12. with or without cutting
in or out the resistance R.
In the diagram the parts are shewn in the position they would occupy under con-
ditions where the voltage of the batteries is at a maximum and that too great a current
is not being used in the local circuits, the circuits 6 and 7 being broken.
If now it be assumed that as in the ordinary course of working the voltage of the
batteries has fallen the armature carrying bridges 4 and 5 will be together lowered
until the bridge 4 completes the circuit through 6 the diminished current in the electro
magnet not being sufficiently diminished however to permit the bridge 5 to fall further
to make the circuit through 7.
The current now passing through 6 traverses the fine wire coil 02 of the polarized
switch neutralizing the current in O, and permitting the armature 03 to fall and cause
the charging current to enter the batteries and raise their voltage. Upon the voltage
reaching the higher limit, the current in 2 is correspondingly raised and the bridge 4
is returned to its raised position, and the current through the coil O2 is broken and
the armature 03 is raised by the coil O, and the charging current no longer goes to
the batteries.
It is possible that the Batteries may be drawn upon for an excessive period and
at such a rate that the charging current is not able to charge at a sufficient rate to
check the fall of voltage, which would thus reach a much lower degree than that which
has just been considered, whereupon in addition to the fall of the bridge 4, completing
circuit through 5 as before, and putting batteries into charge, the bridge 6 will fall to
make the circuit in 7, the effect being that the upper armature 8 of the local control
magnet is raised, coming against the collar 13, raises also the lower armature 12, and
breaks the local circuit through the Mercury cup 11, for in place of breaking the
circuit, a resistance R may be introduced if desired. As the voltage rises, the
bridge 5 is first raised, but the armature 02 of the polarized switch remains unaffected,
and the charging current continues to flow into the Batteries until a further rise of
voltage increases the current sufficiently to raise the bridges 4 and 5 so that circuit
through 6 is broken and the polarized switch operated to cut off the charge.
Now to consider the operations in the case of a current of 20 amperes or more being
used at any instant, in that case it is desired at once to commence to replenish the
batteries without interrupting the local circuit. Such a current passing in the local

page_text: circuit H2 through the coil 12 will raise the armature 10 but not to a sufficient
height to cause the mercury in cup 11 to break the local circuit, making circuit
through the coil O2 of the polarized switch by means of the Mercury cup 14, and
circuit 15, thereby turning the charging current into the batteries until such time as
the discharge of this high current ceases, when the charge will be shut off.
But it a still greater current be discharged (say 80 amperes) at any instant, it
becomes necessary not only to put the charge on to Batteries immediately, as in the
previous case, but also either to interrupt the local circuit or to insert a resistance
therein thus causing intermittent fluctuations in the lights with the object of inducing
the user to cease the excessive demand: As in the previous case, the current passing
in the local circuit and through the coil 12 will raise the armature 10, but to a higher
position, so that the local circuit through 11 is broken, and as before the charge
thrown in by the action of the Mercury cup 14 and circuit 15 as just described with
reference to the use of a 20 ampere current.
Referring to Figs. 7, 8 and 9 of the Drawings of my aforesaid Specification 1 may
provide an indicating or metering arrangement as follows-On the shaft marked 17
of those Figures is placed a worm driving through a worm wheel a spindle on which
is a clutch in connection with a counter or revolution indicator. Normally the worm
wheel is out of gear with the worm and is prevented from rotating by a stop but the
clutch when operated by the electro magnet raises the worm wheel puts the counter in
gear with the worm and the number of revolutions which the shaft makes while the
Clutch is in gear will be counted. The electro magnet may be energised by a shunt
from the charging circuit to the batteries, and therefore the counter will only operate
when the batteries are receiving charge and so when a constant current is used the
number of turns of the shaft will be a measure of the quantity of such current
passed..
Dated 16th April 1888.

page_text: Improved Means to be Used in Supplying, Distributing, Controlling,
and Indicating Electricity for Lighting and other Purposes.
I HENRY EDMUNDS of 10 Hatton Garden in the City of London Electrical Engineer
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 more especially to a system of electrical distribution described
and claimed in the Specification of my Patent No. 8641 dated the 15th June 1887
and has for its object to render the said system more efficient and reliable.
In the patent referred to which relates to a system of electrical supply by means of
secondary batteries-the following conditions or safeguards are mentioned as being
desirable.
1. That during discharge each section is successively removed in the same manner
as during charging.
2. That charging ceases when the battery is sufficiently charged.
3. That if the batteries be disconnected from the charging main they should be
re-connected as soon as the discharge from them becomes sufficiently great to render
further charging desirable.
4. That when the batteries are separated from the charging circuit they should be
re-connected whenever from any cause their electro-motive force falls below a certain
definite limit.
5. That the discharge from the Batteries at any time should not be permitted to
exceed a certain definite limit.
6. That when the electro motive force falls below a certain definite limit the
discharge from the batteries should be stopped or restricted.
7. That the electrical connections inter se of the numbers of the section may be
charged so as to be different during the processes of charging and discharging for
example the cells being charged in multiple and discharged in series or vice versa as
desired.
The first and seventh mentioned provisions are provided for in the system described
in my aforesaid Specification. The other provisions I provide for by means of the
arrangements which I hereinafter describe.
In the event of the breakage of the main circuit within the house or stoppage of or
insufficient current from the generating station an electro magnet is used which will
cease to be energised by reason of the stoppage of the current and its armature will
operate so as to establish a path for the charging current external to the local
installation thus guarding against interruption of other work on the line.
To prevent back discharge from the batteries in the event of a stoppage of the
dynamos at the generating station or in case of a reversal of the current being made
from the generating station to prevent this reversed current passing into any section
of the group of storage batteries and also to regulate in conjunction with other
appliances as hereinafter described the working of the batteries I employ with each
installation a polarizing switch S illustrated in the accompanying diagram in which I

page_text: also shew an electro magnetic cut out Q designed to prevent a current of lower
strength than a certain minimum from entering any section of a group of battery
sections which may be in the branch from the main at any local station. The
polarized switch consists of two solenoids one marked O being a coil of wire in
sufficient turns and of sufficient area to carry easily the current of the charging
main H H and the other marked 0 being a fine wire shunt of high resistance to
take a small portion of the current from the sections of a battery in the local
circuit H2 these coils O and 02 surround an armature (3 capable of being magnetized
and whose polarity is determined by the direction of flow of current from the local
battery through this fine wire coil and the armature by displacement alters the height
at which the mercury in a vessel P is situated so that it may make or break circuit to
the battery being charged. When such circuit is broken owing to the rise of the
core 3 an alternative path for the main current is provided through the core 0³ and
the mercury contact cup 0 and H³.
The electro magnet cut out Q has an armature Q2 of suitable dimensions for the
current used which by displacement alters the level of mercury in the vessel Q³ and
makes or breaks the direct through circuit past the local installation.
In the event of the breakage of the main circuit within the house (in H¹) or
stoppage of charging current at the generating station the electro magnet will cease
to be energized by reason of the stoppage of the current and its armature Q will at
once fall when a path for the charging current external to the local installation will be
provided by HQ³ thus guarding against interruption of other local installations
and back discharge or short circuiting of the section in charging circuit will he
prevented by the breaking of circuit to Hat P which will be effected by the core Q³
being raised solely by the current in O².
Whenever the voltage of any of the secondary batteries falls too low or if too much
current has been discharged from the batteries it is desirable that such batteries he
automatically placed in the charging circuit and that the local or discharging circuit
be automatically broken or controlled and that as soon as these abnormal conditions
cease to exist the discharging circuit be restored to its normal condition. Further
whenever a predetermined quantity of current say whose value expressed in Watt's is
equal to or more than that which the charging current could supply at the same
time is being discharged at any instant it is desirable that the charging current be
immediately put on to the batteries so that they are at once replenished without
waiting for a fall of voltage to take place as under the ordinary conditions of dis-
charge and in the event of a still greater current say such as would be injurious to
the battery as being discharged at any moment it causes either intermittent fluctuation
in the lights or a reduction of the light by the insertion of a suitable resistance to
induce the user to cease the excessive demand. These operations I effect by means of
a voltage regulator and a local discharge control magnet working in conjunction with
one another in a manner which I will now describe with reference to the accompanying
diagram. is the voltage regulator consisting of an electro magnet 2 energized by
a shunt 3 from the local circuit H2. This electro magnet operates two contact
bridges 4 and 5 which make or break circuit through mercury cups as shewn. The
circuit governed by the bridge 4 is the circuit 6 from the battery through the fine
wire solenoid O² of the polarized switch S and back to the battery and the circuit
governed by the bridge 5 indicated by the numeral 7 passes from the battery as a fine
wire coil round the upper core 8 of the local control magnet L and thence to the
battery. The local control magnet L has another core 10 which forms a plunger for
the mercury cup 11. The return wire of the local circuit H² from the lamps to the
battery is in permanent connection with the mercury in the cup 11 the level of the
said mercury permitting the current in that return wire to pass through the solenoid _12
with or without cutting in or out the resistance R.
In the diagram the parts are shewn in the position they would occupy under
conditions where the voltage of the batteries is at a maximum the circuits 6 and 7
being broken.
If now it be assumed that as in the ordinary course of working the voltage of the

page_text: batteries has fallen the armature carrying bridges 4 and 5 will be lowered until the
bridge 4 first completes the circuit through 6 the diminished current in the electro
magnet not being sufficiently reduced however to permit the bridge 5 to fall further
to make the circuit through 7.
The current now passing through 6 traverses the fine wire coil 02 of the polarized
switch S neutralizing the effect of the main charging current in O and permitting the
armature 03 to fall and causing the charging current to enter the batteries and raise
their voltage. Upon the voltage reaching the higher limit the current in 2 in the
voltage regulator V is correspondingly raised and the bridge 4 is returned to its
raised position and the current through the coil O2 is broken and the armature 0³ is
raised by the coil O and the charging current no longer goes to the batteries.
It is possible that the batteries may be drawn upon for an excessive period and at
such a rate that the charging current is not able to charge at a sufficient rate to check
the fall of voltage which would thus reach a much lower degree than that which has
just been considered whereupon in addition to the fall of the bridge 4 completing
circuit through 6 as before and putting batteries into charge the bridge 5 will fall to
make the circuit in 7 the effect being that the upper armature 8 of the local control
magnet is raised coming against the collar 13 thereby raising also the lower
armature 12 and breaking the local circuit through the mercury cup 11 or in place of
breaking the circuit a resistance R¹ may be introduced if desired thus limiting the
discharge. As the voltage rises the bridge 5 is first raised opening the circuit at 7
restoring the normal conditions of the discharge circuit at 11 but the armature 03 of
the polarized switch remains unaffected and the charging current continues to flow
into the batteries until a further rise of voltage increases the current sufficiently to
raise the bridges 4 and 5 together so that the circuit through 6 is broken and the
polarized switch $ operated to cut off the charge from the main to the batteries.
Now to consider the operations in the case of a predetermined current being used
any instant where it is desirable to commence to replenish the batteries without
interrupting the local circuit or waiting for the fall of voltage.
at
Such a current passing in the local circuit II through the coil 12 will raise the
armature 10 to a sufficient height only to cause the mercury in cup 14 to make
contact through circuit 15 through the coil O2 of the polarized switch thereby turning
the charging current into the batteries until such time as the discharge of this
predetermined current ceases, when circuit 15 will be again opened.
But if a much greater current be discharged say (an amount injurious to the
batteries) at any instant it becomes necessary not only to put the charge on to
batteries immediately as in the previous case but also either to interrupt the local
circuit or to insert a resistance therein causing fluctuation or reduction in the lights
with the object of inducing the user to cease the excessive demand. As in the
previous case the current passing in the local circuit through the coil 12 will raise
the armature 10 but to a higher position so that the local circuit through 11 is
interrupted causing fluctuation or reduction of light through resistances I this control
being maintained till the normal conditions are restored.
In the description and diagrams I have shown mercury contacts but it is obvious
that other mechanical contacts can be employed in practice if desirable.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1. In connection with a system of electrical supply by means of secondary batteries
a polarising switch "S" substantially as described with reference to the accompanying
diagram controlled by both a main or charging circuit and a local or battery circuit
so that when both circuits are closed they may neutralize or confirm the magnetisation
in a core or armature which can thereby open, close or divert circuits in connection
therewith the current in the main circuit being controlled from the charging source
and the current in the local coil being controlled according to the condition of or
discharge from the batteries.

page_text: 2. In connection with a system of electrical supply by means of secondary batteries,
the means substantially as described with reference to the voltage regulator "V" in
the accompanying diagram controlled by current from the batteries whereby variations
of voltage cause circuits to be opened or closed in connection with a polarised
switch "S" substantially as and for the purpose described.
3. In connection with a system of electrical supply by means of secondary batteries
the means substantially as described with reference to the local control discharge
magnetic regulator "L" as described with reference to the accompanying diagram
controlled by two circuits one the main discharging circuit from a battery causing
contacts to be made or unmade according to the current flowing whereby such
batteries as are disconnected from the charging main are reconnected when the
discharge from them has reached a predetermined limit and which limit further
exceeded causes the interruption of or insertion of resistance into the said discharging
circuit thereby controlling the current discharged from the batteries; the other said
circuit being in connection with the voltage regulator controlling the discharge current
so as to be operated in event of the voltage of the batteries having fallen below a
predetermined limit.
4. In connection with a system of electrical supply by means of secondary batteries
the combination of means substantially as herein before described for the purposes
described.