An Electric Demand Indicator.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Dec., 1899-Accepted, 20th Jan., 1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Electric Demand Indicator.
I, JESSE HARRIS, residing at Rensselaer, in the County of Rensselaer and State
New York, United States of America, Electrician, do hereby declare the nature
this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be par-
cularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:.
-
My invention relates to a new and improved form of rate meter for electric cur-
ents which may be either a watt or an ampere rate meter or indicator; the one
hown in the drawings being an ampere rate indicator but, by substituting for
ire 3, a coil or helix in the manner well known to those skilled in the art, it
may be made a watt rate indicator. In the drawings Figure 1 shows a plan view
f my indicator or meter in operative construction, and Figure 2 a graphical view
of the rise and fall of the current and the registrations of my indicator in connec-
ion therewith during four succeeding nights, the rise and fall of the current
as shown being greatly exaggerated for purposes of illustration. The numeral 1
shows the indicator case which may be of any configuration or form desired. .2
shows a solenoid, which may be in any form desired and 3 a bundle of wires
preferably, forming an armature free to move in the central opening through the
solenoid 2, the wires or armature 3 being suspended by the arm 5 pivotally attached
to the scale beam 4, bar 6 being pivotally attached at its upper end preferably, to
the scale indicator plate 10. The right hand end of the scale beam 4, as shown and
as used by me, preferably, in my indicators, is free or unattached and the beam is
pivoted at 41. On the horizontal arm of the scale beam 4 is a sliding weight or
body 8 having attached to it a pointer 7, or its equivalent, pointing to the scale 12,
and a pawl 9, or its equivalent, preferably depending from it and arranged to
engage with the ratchet bar 11. 13, 13 indicate binding posts and a and b wires
The sliding weight or body 8 has but one direction of
for the electric current.
movement and that is to the right or towards the free end of the scale beam, and
will not slide contrarywise or toward the left or pivoted end at whatever angle the
scale beam may be forced by the action of the armature , for the scale beam
is never forced to assume a sufficiently sharp angle to allow body 8 to so move,
the pawl 9 having nothing to do with preventing such contrarywise motion, its
function being to force the body 8 towards the free end of the scale beam only,
as will be described hereinafter, and, therefore, I make no use of pawls, ratchets,
clutches, nor any mechanism, whatever to prevent a contrarywise or backward
motion of body 8 or pointer 7. The scale 12 as shown in the device herein illus-
5 trated and described preferably begins at the indication 5, which is an arbitrary
for smaller systems
point above zero point, for the reason that the indicator shown is intended for
of about fifty lights, but
lighting system
a
much below 5 and above
start the indications below 5 and
in hand seem to demand.
zero as the conditions of the
10 Figure 1 the pointer stands at 5, showing that it has moved one notch or from
This
5.to 5. The operation is as follows: When the current is completed, i.e., passes
over the wires a and b, armature 3 is moved in the opening of solenoid 2.
movement swings arm 4 to the right, and as the arm 4 and the scale beam ar
pivoted at 41, the free end of the scale beam is elevated and the beam cause
1
case
as
In

page_text: to stand at an angle, and pawl 9, by this rising of the scale beam, becomes disen-
gaged from the teeth on ratchet plate 11 and stands disengaged until there is
sufficient reduction of current to allow the scale beam to lower sufficiently, the
pawl 9 at no time acting to prevent a rearward or backward movement to body 8
and pointer 7, as the pointer 7 and body 8 will not slide backward on the beam
from any position thereon although pawl 9 be entirely removed. I use therefore,
no mechanism whatever to prevent backward movement to the pointer 7 and its
adjuncts as none are necessary. As the scale beam falls, on a sufficient lowering
of current, pawl 9, which is loosely pivoted and has a slight backward and
forward swing, and stands nearly or quite perpendicular when disengaged
from the ratchet plate 11, drops with
the arm or scale beam and
engages with the tooth in advance of the one it last engaged with and pushes the
body 8 and pointer 7 along the scale beam but one notch or tooth and this is
only done when the current has been turned on and rises above and then falls
below the current force that was required to move the pointer 7 the preceding
notch. This will be plainly seen by viewing Figure 2 wherein the horizontal lines
show amperes or are capacity lines, and the vertical lines are time lines, dividing
the capacity lines into days or nights, and as marked, show that the capacity lines
have been divided into four sections, representing the first, second, third and
fourth nights the indicator has been used. I make no use of such a card with my
indicator or meter. I have introduced it in Figure 2 simply to assist in illustrating
the action of my indicator and it is used for illustrative purposes only. Viewing
Figure 2 it will be seen the horizontal lines are numbered from the bottom
upward, and that zero point is below the lower line marked 5. We will assume
that the pointer 7 is standing at 5 on the scale plate 12 and a customer or user
lights his lamps for the first night and first, lights a portion of them, then turns
out some, then lights more, and then turns nearly all of them out, then turns on
more than he has yet used and continues this turning on and shutting off during
the whole first night. By following and noting the irregular, perpendicular solid
lines in the space on Figure 2 marked "first night" the action and registering of
my indicator will be easily understood and it will at once be understood that it
is not a maximum meter, but a true and accurate rate indicator. It will be under-
stood that the variations of current shown are greatly exagerated beyond what
would be likely to happen in practice and that this is done to clearly illustrate the
action of my indicator. Beginning at the first night, the current is seen to start
at zero and rise or increase to 6, and then fall or decrease to 6, then rise to 7
and then fall to slightly below 5. Up to the instant the current fell below 5;
5 having been the starting point from which the pointer was to be first moved, my
inuicator did not indicate or register, nor the pointer 7 move along the scale beani,
but the instant the current fell below 5, the scale beam fell, pawl 9 entered the
second notch or tooth on the scale plate and pushed pointer 7 along from 5 to 5,
and this was so because my indicator will not register however high the current
may rise, until it has dropped its energy below the energy required to move the
pointer to the previous position it occupied, and it registers only on the drop of
the current and not on its rise or increase. Returning to Figure 2, the current
having dropped slightly below capacity line 5, (which was the starting line or
point) the indicator registers 5½ and I mark this point in Figure 2 as 5½ for illus-
trative purposes. The current is again turned on and rises to 8 or line 8, then falls
to 6, then rises to 71, then falls below 5, and as 5 was the last point registered
and as the current has fallen below the energy that was necessary to move the
pointer to 5, the pointer is moved forward one notch or point more, viz. to 6
and I mark this point in Figure 2 as 6. The current is again increased and rises
to 8 and then falls below 6, the point of last register, and to zero, and having again
fallen below the energy which moved the pointer its last notch or point, the pointer
again moved a notch or to 6 and I mark 6 on Figure 2 at that point. This is then
the record for the first night and it shows or indicates the number of maximums
of current the customer has used repeatedly for that night. The second nights

page_text: 0
agram may be traced out in precisely the same way, but the only point necessary
be observed is that the fluctuations of current have been such that the pointer 7
n the scale has moved first to 7, then to 7, then to 8, and finally to 8, when the
ero point was reached or the lights all turned out. The third night shows no
egister or movement of the pointer, for the reason that on the third night the
ndicator started with the pointer at 8 which represented a point where the
urrent energy must first rise above 8 and then fall below it before the indicator
ould register, but the tracings show that at no time during the third night did the
urrent rise in energy to line 8½ and the indicator therefore could not register.
The fourth night shows a high rise of energy directly from zero and a heavy fall
elow line 8, and a register took place, moving pointer 7 to line 9. The energy
gain rose to line 10 and falls again to and below line 9 and the indicator pointer is
gain moved one notch or to 9 but during the balance of the evening the
energy or current did not again rise above line 9½ and consequently could not
all below 9 and no further register was made for that night. The periods marked
aights may be considered as months if desired or any other divisions of time.
When we read the indicator we know it started at nothing which was marked 5
and as it could not register except by successive notches, we know that however
high the current may have run (which would not be indicated on the indicator)
that the customer must have had a maximum above 5, then one above 6, than
one above 6, than one above 7, then one above 7, then one above 8, then one
above 8, then above 9 and then above 9½, because, if he had not, the indicator
could not have reached the indication 9, as it must move a notch at a time or
a notch at every drop below the energy required to advance the last movement of
the pointer. I have therefore so arranged the parts of my meter or indicator and
their operation, that I predetermine what a maximum shall be, and that these
predetermined maximums shall be registered in succession, i.e., as will be seen by
viewing Figure 2, my meter is not affected by the ordinary increase or fluctuation
of the current, as, if it starts at zero it may increase to any extent and may
fluctuate to any extent between 5 and 11 or any higher point, thus reaching a
plurality of apexes or ordinary maximums, without operating my meter or indi-
cator, and it will only register when the current shall, at some moment of fall
or reduction, reach a point lower than 5, or lower than or below the current energy
required to make the last register, and when it does so register, (as it is seen to
have done in Figure 2 at 5) it registers not the simple fact that an apex or ordinary
current maximum has been reached, but that some one or more such maximums
have been reached and that one such maximum or several of them as the case may
be, have been registered as a single maximum, and I have called such registered
maximums predetermined maximums, for the reason that no note has been taken
of the ordinary increase or fluctuation of current, but only of its fall below certain
predetermined points, and when it falls below such predetermined points it then
operates the indicator, and I thus predetermine what, for my use, a maximum shall
be and such maximums I have named predetermined maximums. These prede-
termined maximums must follow each other in succession and be successively
registered and they can be read at any and all times on the scale plate. It will be
evident to any one skilled in the art, that where I cause my indicator to register
on the fall of the current, it may be made to register on the rise of the current
energy and the same practical result will be attained, but I prefer to have it
register on the fall of the current as herein indicated.
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. An electric rate indicator or meter consisting of a scale and an indicator and
having means whereby the indicator is caused to indicate on the scale suc-
55 cessively each predetermined maximum of current reached substantially as
described.

page_text: 2. An electric rate indicator. or meter-consisting of a scale and an indicator.and
a source of power and an armature arranged to be moved thereby and arranged to
communicate motion to and to cause said indicator to indicate on the scale a suc-
cessive increasing measurement of current of predetermined value substantially
as described.
.
3. An electric rate indicator consisting of a source of power and a movable body
arranged to be moved thereby and having means for recording such. movements so
that said movements when recorded shall indicate the use of one or more .prede-
termined maximums of current at different times substantially as described.....
4. An electric rate indicator consisting of a source of power and an armature
arranged to be moved thereby and, having an arm or beam arranged to be moved
by the armature and a weight on said arm or beam arranged to move along the
same when the arm is moved and means. for indicating the movements of the
weight along the arm or beam substantially as described.
.
5. An electrically operated measuring device consisting of a source of power and
an armature arranged to be moved in a predetermined direction thereby, and an
indicator, and having means arranged to move and cause reflex action in the arma-
ture whereby the indicator is caused to make register when the current is reduced
substantially as described.
6. An electric rate indicator consisting of a source of power and an armature
arranged to be moved thereby and means for indicating its movements and an arm
having a weight arranged to move or slide thereon and to cause reflex motion in the
armature when the current is reduced substantially as described.
7. An electric rate indicator consisting of a source of power and an armature
arranged to be moved thereby and means for indicating its movements arranged to
make one indication for each predetermined maximum of current reached in suc-
cession and so that said indications may be read at any time substantially. as
described.
Dadal
fam han 1900