Improvements in the Extinguishing Mechanism for Lamps.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Aug., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Apr., 1891-Accepted, 23rd May, 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Extinguishing Mechanism for Lamps.
I EDGAR HARRISON of 5 New Street, Erdington in the County of Warwick
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements connected with the mechanism for
extinguishing oil lamps, and its object is, to provide an automatic arrangement after
the following manner, whereby upon the overturning of the lamp in any direction,
the flame shall be immediately put out.
.10-
It consists in the employment of a weighted beam, in connection with a retaining
catch or its equivalent, in combination with a spring which, when released-
otherwise permitted to act,-raises the shutter boxes, and puts out the light.
In constructing this my invention, I may proceed somewhat thus:
Upon the wick tubes are carried the usual shutter boxes, these two boxes being
further connected to each other, such connection also serving for a central vertical
slide; the slideway or guide for the latter, being carried through the burner body.
Within this guide I further provide a spiral spring, the constant tendency of which
is to raise the slide and shutter boxes &c. to their highest or extinguishing position.
Again. At the one side of the burner body, I make provision to receive the one end
of a fulcrumed beam, its other end being weighted. This beam may consist
of two parts, one part passing along on either side of the wick tubes and extending
to the exterior of the burner body and there weighted, or it may consist of one of
such parts, carried along the one side only. To this beam at its inner end is
connected a catch or retainer, which, when the slide &c. is down (unextinguished)
rests upon a recess, or a projection, in or upon the said slide, and keeps it down
against the upward pressure of the aforesaid spring.
Its action may now be described as follows:-
While the lamp is in its vertical (normal) position, the weighted beam exercises
its greatest gravitating force, or weight, and so keeps the shutters &c. down, but if,
as will be readily seen, such lamp were tilted over to an angle of 90° such force
or weight would be practically nil, and the spring would be free to exercise its full
force upon the slide. Therefore immediately the lamp begins to overturn, this
gravitating force is being lessened, until the spring and the catch or retainer
withdrawn from the slide is free to raise the slide, and to extinguish the lamp.
This arrangement may be applied to single or double wick lamps, and if preferred
the weighted part of the beam may be inside the burner.
Dated this 20th day of August 1890.
CHARLES T. POWELL,
Applicant's Agent.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Extinguishing Mechanism for Lamps.
I EDGAR HARRISON of No. 5 New Street Erdington in the County of Warwick
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
This invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described connected with
the mechanism for extinguishing oil lamps and the object of the said invention is to
provide an automatic arrangement whereby upon the overturning of the lamp in any
direction the flame shall be immediately put out.

page_text: The said invention consists in the employment of a weighted beam or lever in
connection with a retaining catch or its equivalent in combination with a spring
which when released or otherwise permitted to act raises the shutter boxes or
extinguishers and puts out the light.
The parts of the automatic extinguishing mechanism are arranged and operate
as follows:
Upon the wick tubes of a duplex burner are carried the usual shutter boxes or
extinguishers, the said boxes or extinguishers being connected to each other by a
central vertical slide. Within a guide for the central vertical slide, I provide a
spiral spring the constant tendency of which is to raise the slide and shutter boxes
or extinguishers to their highest or extinguishing position.
At one side of the burner body I make provision to receive the one end of the
fulcrumed beam or lever, its other end being weighted. This beam or lever
consists of two parts or arms, one part or arm extending horizontally on either side
of the wick tubes to the exterior of the burner body and there weighted; the
other part or arm extending vertically and terminating in a catch or retainer which
when the slide is down and the wicks uncovered rests upon a recess or a projection
in or upon the said slide and keeps the said slide down against the upward pressure
of the aforesaid spring.
The action of the parts described is as follows:-
While the lamp is in its vertical (normal) position the weighted beam or lever
overcoming the upward pressure of the spring keeps the shutters or extinguishers
down but if the lamp be tilted over, say, through an angle of 90 degrees, the
weighted arm of the beam or lever is made inoperative and the spring is free to
expend its full force upon the slide and the shutters or extinguishers are raised and
the flame of the lamp extinguished.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying drawing the
manner in which my invention is to be performed.
Figures 1 and 2 represent elevations taken at right angles to one another (partly
in vertical section) of a duplex burner of a lamp for burning volatile oil to which
burner automatic extinguishing mechanism constructed according to my invention
is applied; Figure 3 represents a plan of the same and Figure 4 illustrates the
position which the burner occupies after the lamp has been tilted or overturned
and the automatic extinguishing mechanism brought into operation; that is, the
said Figure 4 shows the burner after it has been turned on its side or through an
angle of about 90 degrees from the upright or normal position Figures 1 and 2 ;
Figure 5 represents in elevation the jointed shutter boxes or extinguishers for the
duplex wick tubes or cases of the burner together with the vertical slide or sliding
rod or bar and Figure 6 represents the weighted beam or lever of the extinguishing
mechanism detached from the burner.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several figures of
the drawing.
a, a are the two wick tubes or cases of the duplex burner and b, 6 are the jointed
shutter boxes or sliding extinguishers of the ordinary kind, working on the said wick
tubes, the said sliding extinguishers when in their lowered position leaving the
wicks exposed and when in their raised position covering the wicks and extinguishing
the flame.
Fixed to the inner plates of the sliding extinguishers b, b is the vertical slide or
sliding rod or bar c constituting part of the extinguishing mechanism. It will be
seen by an examination of Figure 5 that the slide or sliding bar c is connected to
one of the pairs of extinguishers b, b through the pin or stud d thereby leaving_a
space between one side of the said slide or sliding bar and the extinguishers. In
this space the inner arm of the ordinary hand extinguisher lever e works (see
Figure 3) the forked end of the said arm of the lever embracing the said pin or
stud d as seen in Figure 1. By means of the said hand extinguishing lever e the
shutter boxes or extinguishers, may be raised and lowered independently of the
automatic extinguishing mechanism. The top of the sliding bar c has a cross recess
1,
C

page_text: C
in it at fand the side of the said bar has a guiding groove h in it for the purposes
hereinafter described. The rectilinear vertical notion of the sliding bar c is
preserved by the extinguishers b, b sliding upon the fixed wick tubes or cases a, a.
To the bottom of the body of the burner the closed tubular case i is fixed in
which the coiled spring is contained and in which the lower part of the sliding bar c
works, the sliding bar being supported and pressed upwards when at liberty to move
by the said spring k; 1, 1, 1 is the weighted beam or lever of the automatic
extinguishing mechanism shown detached in Figure 6. The said weighted lever
has motion in a vertical plane on the pin or centre carried by a short bracket
fixed to the lamp burner. The said weighted lever consists of the horizontal
part and the vertical cranked part or arm 1 at right angles to the horizontal part,
the said horizontal part 2 having upon its outer end and external to the lamp
burner the weight 13. The horizontal part 2 of the weighted cranked lever passes
between the wick tubes a, a and the turned up or vertical part is situated at the
middle of the vertical spring slide or sliding bar c (see Figure 2). The extreme
top of the vertical part or cranked arm of the weighted lever is hooked or formed
into a catch or retainer marked for engaging with the cross slot in the top of
the spring sliding bar c and holding down the said bar and the extinguishers b, b
connected with it. As the sliding bar rises and falls, the hooked end or catch 1 of
the weighted lever works in the vertical groove in its face and when the
extinguishers have been depressed to their full extent by the ordinary hand lever e
acting on the bar cand thereby compressing the coiled spring k in the case a the
weight on the end of the lever 1, 12 causes the said lever to turn on its centre and
engage the hooked end or catch 15 with the cross slot at the top of the sliding
bar and hold down the said bar and the extinguishers b, b attached to it. The
parts now occupy the respective positions represented in Figures 1, 2, and 3 and
the automatic extinguishing mechanism is set for use. When the weighted
lever 11213 occupies its normal position or the position represented in Figures 1, 2 and 3
its weight overbalances the upward pressure of the compressed coiled spring k
and the sliding extinguishers b, b are maintained in their lowered positions and the
wicks in the tubes or cases a, a are uncovered and the said extinguishers are held
out of action so long as the lamp is upright. But the sliding extinguishers can be
raised and lowered for covering and uncovering the wick by operating on the
ordinary hand lever e without interfering with the parts by which the automatic
extinguishing is effected. Should however the lamp be tilted or overturned in any
direction the automatic extinguishing mechanism is brought into action and the
parts made to occupy the respective positions represented in Figure 4 thereby
extinguishing the flame. That is to say, when the burner is tilted or moved through
an angle of about 90 degrees or turned on its side from the vertical_position
represented in Figures 1 and 2 to the horizontal position represented in Figure 4,
the changed position of the weight 13 of the weighted lever causes it no longer to
overbalance the upward pressure of the compressed spring and the said spring
being thus unrestrained raises the rod e first forcing back the catch or retainer
out of the slot in the top of the said rod c and afterwards raising the
extinguishers b, for extinguishing the flame as represented in Figure 4.
The arrangement of parts constituting my invention may be applied to single as
well as to double wick burners of oil lamps and if preferred the weighted part of
the beam or lever may be situated inside the burner.
My improved automatic extinguishing mechanism is especially applicable for
use with lamps burning volatile oils but may also be used with lamps burning
fixed oils.
•
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven-
tion and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as
my invention of "Improvements in the extinguishing mechanism for lamps":
The construction and combination of the parts hereinbefore described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawing for automatically bringing the

page_text: extinguishers of oil lamps into operation when the lamps are tilted or overturned;
that is to say, the combination of the weighted lever 1, 12, 13 and 1 with the spring
slide or sliding bar or rod c to which the sliding extinguishers are connected the
said weighted lever when in its normal position overbalancing the upward pressure
of the spring of the slide or sliding bar or rod and holding down the said slide or
rod and maintaining the extinguishers in their normal or uncovering position, the
motion of the burner through an angle of about 90 degrees on the tilting or upsetting of
the lamp bringing the weighted lever into such a position that it no longer overcomes
the action of the spring which spring then operates the extinguishers substantially
as described and illustrated.
Dated the 17th day of Anil 1901
EDGAR HARRISON.