IMPROVEMENTS IN INSULATING WIRES FOR USE AS ELECTRIC CONDUCTORS
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I, WILLIAM EDWIN HEYS of Everton Road in the City of Manchester and
County of Lancaster Electrical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my
invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN INSULATING WIRES FOR USE AS ELECTRIC
CONDUCTORS" to be as follows: —
These Improvements relate to wires employed as conductors of electricity and
have for their object to improve their insulation and appearance.
In carrying out my Invention I take wires that have been covered in the ordinary
manner with paper cotton silk or other fibrous or suitable material. If the covering
is of paper cotton or other substance consisting mainly of cellulose I pass the covered
wire through cuprammonium and thereafter dry it by natural or artificial means.
If the covering material contains no cellulose or only a small quantity I pass the
covered wire through a solution of cellulose in cuprammonium and dry it thereafter
by natural or artificial means, I may also use a similar solution of cellulose for
paper or cotton covered wire instead of employing the cuprammonium only as
before described. In any case the operation may be repeated until the desired
effect is produced.
Instead of taking previously covered wire and coating or covering it with the
cuprammonium or a solution of cellulose in cuprammonium I may saturate the
paper cotton silk or other covering material with one or other of the liquids before
or during the process of laying it upon the wire.

page_text: I WILLIAM EDWIN HEYS of Everton Road in the City of Manchester and
County of Lancaster Electrical Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my
invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN INSULATING WIRES FOR USE AS ELECTRIC
CONDUCTORS and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
These Improvements relate to wires employed as conductors of electricity and
have for their object to improve their insulation and appearance.
In carrying out my Invention I take wires that have been covered in the ordinary
manner with paper, cotton, silk or other fibrous or suitable material If the covering
is of paper, cotton or other substance consisting mainly of cellulose I pass the
covered wire through cuproammonium and thereafter dry it by natural or artificial
means. If the covering material contains no cellulose or only a small quantity
I pass the covered wire through a solution of cellulose in cuproammonium and dry
it thereafter by natural or artificial means. may also use a similar solution of
cellulose for paper or cotton covered wire instead of employing the cuproammonium
only as before described.
The speed with which the covered wire should be passed through the solution
depends upon the hardness or permeability of the yarn or other covering, the nature
or composition of the covering, the metal of the wire and the strength of the
solution. For cuproammonium of ordinary commercial strength and for cotton
covered wire of ordinary quality I regulate the speed of the passage or the period
of immersion so that the covered wire is in the solution from six to twelve hours.
In some cases a shorter period will suffice in others a longer time will be required.
The correct period is in each case determined by experiment and is ascertained by
finding if the covering is changed throughout its thickness to a blue green colour
characteristic of a solution of cellulose in cuproammonium.
After treatment with the cuproammonium I dry it with a temperature gradually
increasing to 360° F or thereabout.
The operation is facilitated and the insulation improved by moistening the
covered wire by means of water or steam before immersion in the cuproammonium
and by again moistening it with water or steam after drying. After the second
moistening the wire should be again dried as before. This subsequent moistening
and drying may be advantageously repeated two or three times.
Instead of taking previously covered wire and coating it with the cupro-
ammonium or a solution of cellulose in cuproammonium I may saturate the
paper, cotton, silk or other covering with one or other of the liquids before or
during the process of laying it upon the wire.
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 use of cuproammonium or of a solution of cellulose in cuproammonium for
the purpose of improving the insulation and appearance of cotton, silk, paper and
similarly covered wires substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this third day of November 1884.