IMPROVEMENTS IN PRIMO- SECONDARY BATTERIES OR BATTERIES WHICH PARTAKE OF THE NATURE OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY BATTERIES
Year: 1884

page_text: I, GEORGE GUILLAUME ANDRÉ, of Dorking, in the County of Surrey, Electrician
do hereby declare the nature of said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRIMO-
SECONDARY BATTERIES
OR
BATTERIES WHICH PARTAKE OF THE NATURE OF
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY BATTERIES," to be as follows:-
Heretofore the weight of secondary batteries in transport has in many cases
formed a serious obstacle to their general use; another objection has been the
short duration of their lead plates. Now the object of this invention is to obviate
these defects by introducing batteries having a new mode of action combining that
of the primary and the secondary battery. For this purpose I form or provide the
battery with an electro-negative element, or elements which are removable
therefrom and which are packed and sent to the charging station and there
charged (and not in the cells) so that when thus charged and then returned and
replaced in the cell or cells the battery shall be ready for action again and work
after the manner of a primary battery. The nature and construction or
configuration of the said element may be greatly varied without materially
altering the mode of action. In one form of battery I make the negative element
with a wooden core with bottom flange and with sheet lead or wire wrapped
round the core and surrounded with highly burnt powdered or granulated coke
mixed with peroxide of lead, all enclosed in a porous envelope which may be made
of two layers of canvas. The canvas may in some cases be nitrated to make it
acid proof. One or more such elements are placed in the solution containing the
positive element which may be zinc iron or lead. When the peroxide has been
reduced to protoxide the negative element is removed, sent to the charging station
and there, by the action of the current from a dynamo machine, the protoxide is
again reconverted into peroxide, thus rendering the negative element ready for use
again. The exciting liquid may also, if desired, at longer intervals when zinc is
used for the positive element be removed to the charging station and the zinc be
deposited by the same charging current.
The invention will be valuable in the case of the lighting of mines where it is
practically impossible to employ dynamo-machines directly for supplying the
current to the working places of fiery coal mines by wires to the incandescent

page_text: lamps. Now by my invention a miner's electric lamp may be constructed which
shall be small and portable while powerful, the lamp being connected or combined
with the battery or mounted thereon. Any suitable form of electric incandescent
lamp may be used therewith.
It will be seen that, for all purposes, this invention provides for the transport of
the electro-negative element only, instead of the whole cell which is necessary in all
existing constructions of storage batteries.
I GEORGE GUILLAUME ANDRÉ of Dorking in the County of Surrey Electrician
do hereby declare the nature of said invention for "LMPROVEMENTS IN PRIMO
SECONDARY BATTERIES, OR BATTERIES WHICH PARTAKE OF THE NATURE OF
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY BATTERIES," and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
Heretofore the weight of secondary batteries in transport has in many cases
formed a serious obstacle to their general use; another objection has been the short
duration of their lead plates. Now the object of this invention is to obviate these
defects by introducing batteries having a now mode of action combining that of
the primary and the secondary battery. For this purpose I form or provide the
battery with an electro-negative element or elements which are removable
therefrom and which are packed and sent to the charging station and there
charged (and not in the cells) so that when thus charged and then returned and
replaced in the cell or cells the battery shall be ready for action again and work
after the manner of a primary battery.
The nature, construction or configuration of the said element may be greatly
varied without materially altering the mode of action.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings is a vertical section of one form of
battery constructed acting and manipulated according to my invention. Figure 2
is a plan view of same. Figures 3 and 4 are side views of an element of a modified
form.
In this form of battery I make the negative clement with a wooden core A with
bottom flange A and with sheet lead or wire B wrapped round the core and
surrounded with highly burnt powdered or granulated coko mixed with peroxide of
lead Pall enclosed in a porous envelope C which may be made of two layers of
canvas. The wooden cores are first soaked in hot paraflin wax and then wrapped
round with the lead. One or more such elements are placed in the solution
containing the positive element or elements R which may be zinc iron or lead. A
number of these negative elements are as here shown placed and held in a wooden
frame so as to be bodily removable therewith. Each frame consists of a bottom
plate D and two end pieces E E which are formed with holes E' for readily lifting

page_text: the frame by the fingers or by special iron hooks or prongs inserted in such holes.
The side picces E are moreover united by cross piece or plate F near the top. The
elements are held in place by recesses in the bottom flange D and holes through
the cross piece F. They will thus be kept sufficiently apart so as not to interfero
with each other and are at the same time separately removable for renewal of the
metallic layer B and the layer P of peroxide of load and carbon which may be
necessary when the textile envelope C has to be renewed. The cores A are hero
shown circular in section but might if desired be made of any other suitable form
such as that of flat plates or of any intermediate section. The cell G containing
the elements may be inade of wood or other suitable material which may be lined
with a lining H of lead (or "insulito ").
Figure 3 shows a wooden core lapped round with lead and Figure 4 shows the
element complete having the canvas or other suitable porous material wrapped
round the lead. This is another form of element which may be used with such
al corc.
Obviously the elements might also if desired bo removed from the wooden frames
DE For from a fixed frame in the cell and be transported to and from the charging
station in another frame provided for the purpose but I prefer to transport the
elements in the removable frames D E F.
An important feature in this form of battery is this that the length of the
elements or the depth of the cell may be extended very considerably thus saving
floor space or shelf space. This is chiefly owing to the circumstance that the
element material is perfectly supported in the manner described by the wooden
core A and is held firmly thereon and without possibility of being displaced or
bulging in places whereby the elements are also capable of being placed quite close
together.
When the peroxide has been reduced to protoxide the negative elements in their
frames D. E. F are removed, sent to the charging station and there by the action of
the current from a dynamo machine, the protoxide is again re-converted into
peroxide thus rendering the negative elements ready for use again. The exciting
liquid may also if desired at longer intervals when zinc is used for the positive
element be removed to the charging station and the zinc be deposited by the same
charging current. Obviously the negative elements might if desired bo charged in
the cell after the manner of ordinary secondary batteries. For the exciting liquid
I prefer to use a half saturated solution of sulphate of soda.
The invention will be valuable in the case of the lighting of nines where it is
practically impossible to employ dynamo machines directly for supplying the
current to the working places of fiery coal mines by wires to the incandescent
lamps. Now by my invention a min-rs electric lamp may be constructed which
shall be small and portable while powerful, the lamp being connected or combined
with the battery or mounted thereon. Any suitable form of electric incandescent
lamp inay be used therewith.
It will be seen that, for all purposes, this invention provides for the transport of
the electro-negative element only instead of the whole cell which is necessary in all
existing constructions of storage batteries.
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:
First: A galvanic battery cell having its electro negative element or clements
adapted to be removable from the cell so that they can be sent to a charging
station and there charged (and not in the cell) and that when thus charged and
then returned and replaced in the cell the battery shall be ready for action again
thus avoiding the transport of the whole cell with its liquid contents substantially
as set forth.
Second In galvanic battery elements a core A of wood or other suitable non-
conducting material for supporting the lead or other metallic element material
substantially as set forth.

page_text: Third: An element consisting of a core A, a layer B of lead wrapped round the
core and an envelope C of textile or other suitable porous material for holding the
lead in place substantially as set forth.
Fourth An element consisting of a core A, a layer B of lead lapped round the
core, an outer layer P of Peroxide of lead and granulated carbon and an envelope C
of textile or other suitable porous material, substantially as set forth.
Fifth The removable frame D E F for holding the negative elements while in
action in the cell and during transport and while being charged substantially as set
forth.
Sixth A primo-secondary battery cell consisting of the negative elements held
in the removable frames D E F and the positive elements R all contained in the
exciting liquid in the cell, the negative elements being rezuovable for charging in
the manner of a secondary battery so that when replaced in the cell the battery
shall work again after the manner of primary battery substantially as set forth.
Dated this Ninth day of October 1884.