NEW OR IMPROVED MEANS OR APPARATUS FOR DETECTING AND INDICATING STOPPAGES, BREAKDOWNS, OR DISCONNECTIONS IN TELEGRAPHIC OR PNEUMATIC COMMUNICATIONS, ESPECIALLY IN SYSTEMS OF CONTROLLED OR SYNCHRONIZED CLOCKS, WHETHER IN THE LINE WIRES OR TUBES, OR IN THE NORMAL OR STANDARD CLOCK, OR OTHER INSTRUMENT CONNECTED THEREWITII
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Alexander Lund at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 13th July 1880.
JOHN ALEXANDER LUND, of the Firm of Barraud and Lunds, of 41, Cornbill,
in the City of London, Manufacturers. "NEW OR IMPROVED MEANS OR APPARATUS
FOR DETECTING AND INDICATING STOPPAGES, BREAKDOWNS, OR DISCONNECTIONS
IN TELEGRAPHIC OR PNEUMATIC COMMUNICATIONS, ESPECIALLY IN SYSTEMS OF
CONTROLLED OR SYNCHRONIZED CLOCKS, WHETHER IN THE LINE WIRES OR
TUBES, OR IN THE NORMAL OR STANDARD CLOCK, OR OTHER INSTRUMENT
CONNECTED THEREWITII."
This Invention primarily relates to means or apparatus for detecting and
indicating stoppages, breakdowns, or disconnections in telegraphic or pneumatic
communications, especially in systems of controlled or synchronized clocks, whether
in the line wires or tubes, or in the normal or standard clocks, or other instruments
connected therewith, whereby a visible or audible indication, or both, of the
disconnections or breakdowns may be given.
For the purpose of my Invention I employ in connection with the clock,
instrument, line wire, tube, or other communication, a weak testing battery, and
also a local battery connected with a suitable clockwork and a bell alaruin and an
indicator, the electric communication being kept broken by a pair of contact springs
in the clockwork. On any suitable part of the "motion "or train of the time picco
I fix two pins, preferably insulated. One of these pins acts upon one of the contact
springs a few minutes before the passage of the testing current which is transmtited,
say, every hour or at any other desired interval, thus bringing the one spring partly
towards contact with the other spring, but leaving it held by a catch. The testing
current is made to pass through an electro-magnet, the keeper or armature of which
is attached to the aforesaid catch, and therefore as long as the telegraph line or
pneumatic tube, or clock, or instrument is in working order, the catch is withdrawn
by the passage of the testing current. The spring is therefore released and the
second pin passes it without acting on it. But should the communication be broken
either in the lino tube or instrument, and the testing current fail to pass through,
it and
the spring remains held by the catch, and then the second pin acts upon
brings it into contact with the second spring, so that the circuit through the local

page_text: battery being complete, the current from this battery passes to the bell alarum,
causing the same to sound, and also to the indicator, which will then indicato
that the line is broken down.
This or an analogous action may be used for a variety of purposes; for instance,
to effect the shunting of the instrument hitherto connected with the broken line to
an alternative line, that is to say, that when the line is broken, a time piece with
pins as before described, causes a pair of contact springs to shunt the connection of
the instruments on to the alternative line. This shunting will be found particularly
advantageous in the caso of standard, electric, or synchronizing clocks, where if the
standard clock should stop or get thrown out of action, another or alternative clock
can be automatically brought into action.
Although I have described the testing and reporting as effected by means of an
electric current, my Invention is not limited thereto, as the same object may be
attained by pneumatic or other communication.