Improved Safety Device for Use with Overhead Collectors on Electric Tramways and the like.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Mar., 1899-Accepted, 1st July, 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Safety Device for Use with Overhead Collectors on Electric
Tramways and the like.
I, LUDWIG HUBER, of Augustastrasse, 79, Aix-la-Chapelle, Germany, Mecha-
nician, 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 to an improved safety device for use with overhead col-
lectors on electric tramways and the like, in which device a vertically-reciprocating
weight operates in conjunction with a spring-actuated brake-lever; and the objects,
of my improvement: are, first to provide a vertically-reciprocating weight, to
allow the contact-rod to mount and descend at will; and, second, to provide means
for preventing the contact-rod from being thrown over, when the contact-pulley
gets off the conducting wire.
I attain these objects by the device illustrated in the accompanying drawing,
in which
Fig. 1 is the view of an electric car provided with such devices:
Fig. 2 shows the device when the contact-pulley and the contact-rod take
their proper positions;
Fig. 3 is the same view, but, the contact-pulley being got off the conducting
wire, the brake-lever of the device is in a working-condition:
Fig. 4 shows the side-view of the device on a greater scale; and finally
Fig. 5 is the top-view of that device at the same scale.
Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.
Hitherto the contact-rod, when the contact-pulley gets off the conducting-wire,
throws over, because it is very strongly spring-actuated in order to attach the
contact-pulley to the conducting-wire. When the contact-rod throws over, it
will bend itself and often breaks, when it should be rectified. The contact-rod
being made of exceedingly fine material as a seamless tube, its throwing over
and consequently breaking is a great disadvantage. Further the contact-rod,
when throwing over, suddenly strikes against the poles, to which is attached.
the conducting-wire and causes so faults in the conducting-material.
Now, my invention prevents the contact-rod from throwing over, even when
the contact-pulley gets off the conducting wire.
There must be arranged a safety device at both sides of the electric car, and
that one in order to make use of one device, when the car goes in one direction,
and to make use of the other one, when the car goes in the opposite direction,
since electric tramways generally are not turned on a turn-bridge.
On a vertical rods, which I prefer to arrange as an insulated one upon the
roof of the electric car, there is arranged a vertically-reciprocating weight g
which can be of any shape. To the upper extremity of this weight there is
secured a prong i, between the branches of which is pivoted a brake-lever b.
The under extremity of the said brake-lever is connected by means of a spiral
spring to the lower end of the weight g The spring f is
not

page_text: immediately connected to the weight itself, but this latter bears a
clamp or the like, to which is fastened one end of the spiral spring. By
displacing in a vertical direction. this clamp on the lower end of the weight g,
I can enlarge the distance between the clamp k and the lower end of the lever b
in consequence whereof the spring f is more or less bent and, I regulate in such
a way the operation of the brake-lever b. At the lower end of the brake-lever,
there is fastened the rope r one end of which is connected with the contact-rod c
below the contact-pulley p, and that in such a way that I can easily disengage
the rope from the brake-lever-in order to reverse the contact-rodats
.
I can provide the rope-end, coming from the contact-rod, with a spring-
hook h₁ which I arrange in a ringu fastened to the lower end of the brake-lever;
a second spring-hook can engage the first one and is secured to the other rope
descending to the platform. By disengaging, the first spring hook from the
ring, I can make use of the rope to reverse the contact-rod from one direction
into the other. At the upper extremity of the rods there is secured an eye o
or the like through which is guided the rope in order to have.. the brake-lever
túrned, if required, by means of the rope into 'the proper direction.
Instead of arranging the safety-device on the roof of the electric car, I can secure
the rods by means of two eyes, to the foremost wall of the platform as indicated
by dotted lines in Fig. 1. When so arranged, the rope is conducted through
an eye, secured to the foremost end of the roof, to the end of the brake-lever b,
which is arranged in the same way, as herein before described, at the vertically-
reciprocating weight.
The figures 4 and 5 show the safety device on a larger scale. The arrangement
of the spiral spring f is a little different in, these figures from that shown in the
other figures; also the fastening of the rope to the under extremity of the brake-
lever differs unessentially from the arrangement described above:
In order to elongate more or less the spiral spring, I have not provided a clamp
at the under extremity of the weight g, but I have arranged below the brake-
lever b a spindle on which is put a nut-n. To this nut n.is attached the one
end of the spring f and the nut, moves along the spindle, when the latter is
rotated, elongating thus more or less the spiral spring. The lower end of
the brake-lever b is. a fork; between the branches of which the rope is squeezed
and, for the purpose, that the rope be not disengaged unnecessarily, I have pro-
vided it with a knot m or the like.
Now I will proceed to explain the operation of the described safety-device.
As the conducting-wire for electric cars with overhead line is not always equally
vertically distant from the ground, we know that the trolley-rods of electric cars
alternately rise and fall. The rope fastened to such rods in order to reverse them
from one direction into the other, therefore is raised and lowered by the trolley-.
rod; the spiral spring f retains the lever in its proper position and the weight
can vertically reciprocate along the rods, since the brake-lever is not operating,
while the trolley-pulley is touching the conducting-wire.
Having now particularly described and ascerained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1) In a safety-device for trolley-rods of electric tramways with overhead line,
the combination with the trolley-rod and the reversing rope, of a vertical guide-
bar, a weight adapted to reciprocate on the said guide-bar or rod, the said weight
being provided at its upper extremity with a prong, a brake-lever pivoted in
said prong and the under extremity of which being connected with the reversing
rope, a spiral spring connecting the said brake-lever with the said weight and
means for elongating the said spring, all essentially as described and for the
purpose specified.
2
2) In a safety device for trolley-rods of electric tramways with overhead line,
the combination with the trolley-rod and the reversing rope, of a vertical guide-

page_text: bar, a weight adapted to reciprocate on the said guide-bar or rod, the said
weight being provided at its upper extremity with a prong, a brake-lever pivoted
in said prong and the under extremity of which being connected with the revers-
ing rope, a spiral spring connecting the said spring with the said weight, a clamp
arranged on the under extremity of the weight, all essentially as described and
for the purpose specified.
3) In a safety device for trolley-rods of electric tramways with overhead line,
the combination with the trolley-rod and the reversing rope, of a vertical guide-
bar, a weight adapted to reciprocate on the said guide-bar or rod, the said weight
being provided at its upper extremity. with a prong, a brake-lever pivoted in
said prong and the under extremity of which being connected with the reversing
rope, a screw-spindle, secured under said brake-lever, a nut arranged on the
said spindle and provided with an eye, a spiral spring connecting the said nut with
the said weight, all essentially as set forth and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 24th day of March 1899.
JOSEPH MÖHLIG,
Agent for Applicant, Aix-la-Chapelle, Germany.
JOSEPH MÖHLIG,
Agent for Applicant, Aix-la-Chapelle, Germany.