THE SAFETY ELECTRIC LAMP FOR COAL MINERS
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Feb., 1886.
Complete Left, 23rd Nov., 1886.
Complete Accepted, 21st Jan., 1887.
I, Rev. WILLIAM JOSEPH SMITH, Catholic Priest, St. Helens Presbytery, Elsecar,
Near Barnsley do hereby declare the nature of my invention for THE SAFETY
ELECTRIC LAMP FOR COAL MINERS" to be as follows:
"
or other
A piece of Carbon or other substance which can be rendered incandescent by the
electric current is wholly or in part inclosed by wire gauze. The whole is inclosed
in a chamber or inclosure which is wholly or in part composed of glass
transparent or translucent substance. This said chamber or inclosure is exhausted of
the air it contains, and is either left as what is usually called a vacuum, or is filled
with some gas or vapour which will not support the combustion of the said incandescent
substance.
The invention consists essentially in the intervention of wire gauze between the
incandescent substance, (as for instance in the Swan or Edison lamp) and the exterior
wall of the lamp by which intervention in the case of damage to the lamp, there is
no likelihood of any explosive mixture that may be surrounding the lamp at the time
of such damage, becoming ignited during the combustion of the incandescent substance
by contact with Oxygen or other gas capable of supporting its combustion.

page_text: I WILLIAM JOSEPH SMITH St. Helen's Presbytery, Elsecar, Near Barnsley, Catholic
Priest, 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:
The characteristic of my invention consists in the interposition of wire gauze
between the carbon of an incandescent electric lamp and the exhausted envelope of
glass in which such carbon is contained.
The advantage of such an interposition of gauze being that in case of fracture of the
glass of the incandescent lamp, the carbon of the said lamp is prevented from igniting
any combustible gas or gases or mixture of gases or of coal-dust and air that may at
the time of such fracture surround the lamp.
To make this lamp 1° a cage of wire gauze is made, the wires of which gauze are
sufficiently near to each other to prevent the passage of flame through such gauze.
An opening is left in this cage of wire-gauze, through which the conducting wires
may enter. (Such a cage of wire gauze may be made cylindrical with one end closed
and the other open.)
2. The conducting wires to which is attached the carbon to be rendered incandescent,
must be isolated from each other, and from the wire gauze. This may be effected by
passing the said wires through a non conductor of electricity, as for instance a piece
of vulcanized fibre, to which non conductor is secured the open portion of the said
gauze cage.
3. The gauze-cage containing the carbon with isolated wires attached is secured in
an envelope of glass. (This may be done by fixing the said gauze cylinder into an
open end of a glass tube, through which tube the conducting wires are permitted to
pass. The end of the said tube containing the gauze cage is now inserted in a glass
envelope through an opening resembling the mouth and neck of a bottle. The tube
and opening of the said envelope are then sealed against the outer air; this may be
done by softening the glass by heat and compressing together the neck of the said
opening and the said glass tube. The conducting wires are permitted to pass through
the sealed end of the tube, and through the sealed opening of the glass envelope.)
4. The glass envelope thus containing the carbon inclosed in the wire-gauze is then
exhausted and hermetically sealed.
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
The principle of interposing wire gauze between the carbon of an incandescent lamp
and the exhausted envelope containing it, with the view of preventing the ignition of
any
combustible gas or gases or coal dust that may surround the said lamp at the time it
may be broken, and during the consequent combustion of the said carbon. But take
notice that in thus showing how this principle can be applied I do not claim as any
part of my invention any process described excepting only the isolating of the
conducting wires from the wire-gauze by passing them through some non-conductor
of electricity, as for instance vulcanized fibre, to which non conductor the wire gauze
is secured.

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Feb., 1886.
Complete Left, 23rd Nov., 1886.
Complete Accepted, 21st Jan., 1887.
I, Rev. WILLIAM JOSEPH SMITH, Catholic Priest, St. Helens Presbytery, Elsecar,
SAFETY
Near Barnsley do hereby declare the nature of my invention for THE
ELECTRIC LAMP FOR COAL MINERS "to be as follows:-
A piece of Carbon or other substance which can be rendered incandescent by the
electric current is wholly or in part inclosed by wire gauze. The whole is inclosed
in a chamber or inclosure which is wholly or in part composed of glass or other
transparent or translucent substance. This said chainber or inclosure is exhausted of
the air it contains, and is either left as what is usually called a vacuum, or is filled
with some gas or vapour which will not support the combustion of the said incandescent
substance.
The invention consists essentially in the intervention of wire gauze between the
incandescent substance, (as for instance in the Swan or Edison lamp) and the exterior
wall of the lamp: by which intervention in the case of damage to the lamp, there is
no likelihood of any explosive mixture that may be surrounding the lamp at the time
of such damage, becoming ignited during the combustion of the incandescent substance
by contact with Oxygen or other gas capable of supporting its combustion.

page_text: I WILLIAM JOSEPH SMITH St. Helen's Presbytery, Elsecar, Near Barnsley, Catholic
Priest, 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:-
The characteristic of my invention consists in the interposition of wire gauze
between the carbon of an incandescent electric lamp and the exhausted envelope of
glass in which such carbon is contained.
The advantage of such an interposition of gauze being that in case of fracture of the
glass of the incandescent lamp, the carbon of the said lamp is prevented from igniting
any combustible gas or gases or mixture of gases or of coal-dust and air that may at
the time of such fracture surround the lamp.
To make this lamp 1° a cage of wire gauze is made, the wires of which gauze are
sufficiently near to each other to prevent the passage of flame through such gauze.
An opening is left in this cage of wire-gauze, through which the conducting wires
may enter. (Such a cage of wire gauze may be made cylindrical with one end closed
and the other open.)
2. The conducting wires to which is attached the carbon to be rendered incandescent,
must be isolated from each other, and from the wire gauze. This may be effected by
passing the said wires through a non conductor of electricity, as for instance a piece
of vulcanized fibre, to which non conductor is secured the open portion of the said
gauze cage.
3. The gauze-cage containing the carbon with isolated wires attached is secured in
an envelope of glass. (This may be done by fixing the said gauze cylinder into an
open end of a glass tube, through which tube the conducting wires are permitted to
pass. The end of the said tube containing the gauze cage is now inserted in a glass
envelope through an opening resembling the mouth and neck of a bottle. The tube
and opening of the said envelope are then sealed against the outer air; this may be
done by softening the glass by heat and compressing together the neck of the said
opening and the said glass tube. The conducting wires are permitted to pass through
the sealed end of the tube, and through the sealed opening of the glass envelope.)
4. The glass envelope thus containing the carbon inclosed in the wire-gauze is then
exhausted and hermetically sealed.
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
The principle of interposing wire gauze between the carbon of an incandescent lamp
and the exhausted envelope containing it, with the view of preventing the ignition of any
combustible gas or gases or coal dust that may surround the said lamp at the time it
may be broken, and during the consequent combustion of the said carbon. But take
notice that in thus showing how this principle can be applied I do not claim as any
part of my invention any process described excepting only the isolating of the
conducting wires from the wire-gauze by passing them through some non-conductor
of electricity, as for instance vulcanized fibre, to which non conductor the wire gauze
is secured.