Improvements in Contact Bars for the Overhead Conductors of Electrical Railways and Tramways.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Mar., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 29th Nov., 1894-Accepted, 29th Dec., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Communicated from abroad by Messrs. SIEMENS & HALSKE, of 94, Markgrafen
Strasse, Berlin, in the German Empire.]
Improvements in Contact Bars for the Overhead Conductors of
Electrical Railways and Tramways.
We, SIEMENS BROTHERS & CO. LIMITED of 12 Queen Anne's Gate, West-
minster, in the County of Middlesex, Electrical Engineers, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to an improved construction of the contact bars carried by
the vehicles of electric railways or tramways for taking off current from overhead
conductors. The said improved construction has for its object, firstly to effect a
continuous and uniform lubrication of the surface of the contact bar and to reduce
the wear of the overhead conductor sliding in contact therewith, secondly to produce
a stronger and more durable construction of the said contact bars with a minimum
weight than is possible with the ordinary form thereof and thirdly to greatly reduce
the noise caused by the sliding of the contact bar along the conductor. For these
purposes the contact bar is constructed as follows: A bar of conducting metal
such as brass is introduced into a trough shaped bar by preference of light sheet
metal, such as aluminium which is suitably supported by the vehicle and the trough
of which is of such a width and depth as to leave a certain space on either side
between it and the sides of the inner bar, and also a space between the lower edge
of the latter and the bottom of the trough. The said spaces between the sides of
the trough and the bar are filled in with a suitable absorbent or permeable material
such as cotton wick, and the bar is then fixed to the trough by means of bolts or
rivetts passed transversely through both so that the porous material is nipped
tightly between them. The ends of the trough are closed fluid tight, so as to form
an enclosed space below the contact bar extending along the entire length thereof.
A small pipe connected to this space communicates with a suitable apparatus of any
known construction on the vehicle for conveying a continuous supply of liquid
lubricant under slight pressure through the pipe into the said space in the trough
so that such lubricant in rising through the porous material will be distributed
thereby on the exposed surface of the contact bar. By means of this lubrication
the wear of the contact bar and of the overhead conductor is greatly reduced, and
owing to the trough shaped construction of the supporting bar, the necessary
strength is obtained with a minimum of weight in particular if it is made of
aluminium. By the interposition of the porous material acting as a sound deadener.
between the contact bar and the trough and also by the lubrication of the bar a very
noiseless sliding contact between the bar and the conductor is insured.
Dated this 3rd day of March 1894.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.

page_text: Improvements in Contact Bars for the Overhead Conductors of
Electrical Railways and Tramways.
We, SIEMENS BROTHERS & Co. LIMITED, of 12 Queen Anne's Gate, West-
minster, in the County of Middlesex, Electrical Engineers, 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:-
This invention relates to an improved construction of the contact bars carried by
the vehicles of electric railways or tramways for taking off current from overhead
conductors. The said improved construction has for its object; firstly to effect a
continuous and uniform lubrication of the surface of the contact bar and to reduce
the wear of the overhead conductor sliding in contact therewith, secondly to produce
a stronger and more durable construction of the said contact bars with a minimum
weight than is possible with the ordinary form thereof, and thirdly to greatly reduce
the noise caused by the sliding of the contact bar along the conductor. For these
purposes the contact bar is constructed as we will describe with reference to the
accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shews a side view partly in section and
Fig. 2 a cross section to an enlarged scale. A bar of conducting metal a, such as
brass, is introduced into a trough shaped bar b by preference of light sheet metal,
such as aluminium which is suitably supported by the vehicle such as by tubular
arms e and the trough of which is of such a width and depth as to leave a certain
space on either side between it and the sides of the inner bar a, and also a space d
between the lower edge of the latter and the bottom of the trough as shewn at
Fig. 2. The said spaces between the sides of the trough and the bar are filled in
with a suitable absorbent or permeable material c c, such as cotton wick, and the
bar is then fixed to the trough by means of bolts or rivets g passed transversely
through both so that the porous material is nipped tightly between them. The ends
of the trough are closed fluid tight, so as to form an enclosed space below the
contact bâr extending along the entire length thereof. A small pipe connected to
this space communicates with a suitable apparatus of any known construction on the
vehicle for conveying a continuous supply of liquid lubricant under slight pressure
through the pipe into the space d in the trough so that such lubricant in rising
through the porous material c c will be distributed thereby on the exposed surface
of the contact bar. By means of this lubrication the wear of the contact bar a and
of the overhead conductor is greatly reduced, and owing to the trough shaped
construction of the supporting bar, the necessary strength is obtained with a
minimum of weight, in particular if it is made of aluminium.
By the interposition of the porous material acting as a sound deadener between
the contact bar and the trough and also by the lubrication of the bar a very noiseless
sliding contáct between the bar and the conductor is insured.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
In contact bars for overhead conductors of electrical railways and tramways, the
combination with the conducting bar for making contact with the conductors, of a
trough shaped bearer embracing the sides of the bar with the intervention of porous

page_text: or capillary material adapted for conveying liquid lubricant, supplied to the lower
part of the trough, to the exposed part of the contact bar, substantially as
described.
Dated this 20th day of November 1004
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.