Improvements in Mechanism for Transferring Electric Car Batteries.
Year: 1891

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Mechanism for Transferring Electric
Car Batteries.
I, FREDERICK GLEASON CORNING, 38 West Washington Square, in the City,
County and State of New York, United States of America, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANISM FOR
TRANSFERRING ELECTRIC CAR BATTERIES," 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 devices for substituting charged "secondary batteries
or "accumulators" for the exhausted ones in an electric car wherein the motive
power is derived from batteries located upon the car itself.
My invention is applicable to various forms of apparatus, such for instance as
that shown and described in my separate Patent Application No. 2082100 dated
Dec. 20th, in which the car is moved vertically to bring the horizontal
transferring surfaces of the car floor and the battery benches into coincidence ;
and my invention is also applicable to apparatus in which the batteries are
transferred between a stationary charging-rack and a stationary car by means of
an independently-movable hoist or carrier such as heretofore described in U.S.
Patent No. 427,459, granted May 6th, 1890, and English Letters Patent No. 2080
A.D. 1890.
The object of my invention is to shift an entire gang of batteries simultaneously
from bench to car, or vice versú, automatically, effecting a great saving of time.
To this end my invention consists, in conjunction with a horizontal transferring
surface or way upon or through which the batteries are to be shifted, of propelling
wheels or rolls stationed in the paths of movement of the battery-trays to engage
them either by frictional or positive contact; and my invention also consists, in
conjunction with such rolls or other propelling-surfaces in the paths of the several
trays, of means for moving all of the said surfaces (or any plural portion of them)
simultaneously from a common point or source of power application; and, moreover,
in disconnective transmitting mechanism for driving the propelling surfaces of the
charging-benches, the car-receptacles, or other horizontal ways that are brought
into temporary coincidence. Such instrumentalities as rolls, pinion-gears, and
sprocket or other wheels are herein treated as equivalents, as also the instru-
mentality of webs, belts, or sprocket-chains as additional thereto, are to be
regarded as equivalents, all included within the meaning of the term "propelling-
surfaces." The employment of plane contact-surfaces or racks or spurs on the
trays are furthermore included within the meaning of the term "rectilinear contact-
surfaces."
Referring now to the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1. is a horizontal section representing one side of an electric car, a portion

page_text: Figure 3, is a cross section on the line a¹¹ of Fig. 1 ;
Figure 4, a cross section ²x²;
Fig. 5, a cross-section 3-³, and
Fig. 6, a cross-section - of Fig. 1.
Fig. 7, is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of the charging-rack and one of
the trays of the series in Figs. 1 and 6.
Figs. 8 and 9, are cross-sectional and plan views, respectively, showing the
application of the invention to battery-benches of double width and also showing
a modification of the disconnective transmitting-gearing between the driving-
shafts.
Fig. 10, is a cross-section of a portion of the car, the charging-rack, and an
intermediate hoist or carrier for the batteries, illustrating the further application of
my invention.
1, represents the floor of the car; 2, the bed-sill thereof; 3, one of the battery-
receptacles located in the usual manner beneath the seats.
In Figs. 3 to 6, inclusive, 4 represents a transferring-bridge, which is always on
a level with the floor of the said battery-receptacles in the car.
5, is the battery-charging rack composed of several horizontal benches 6, 6, &c.,
arranged in vertical series, wherein through suitable electrical connections the
batteries are recharged when deposited therein.
The car and bridge 4, may be conveyed vertically together by means of an
elevating-platform, or, the car and bridge being stationary, the battery-rack 5, may
be moved vertically, or both the car and the battery-rack may move in co-operation,
whereby to bring the receptacles 3 directly opposite any of the benches 6. The
bridge 4, may be omitted, as in Fig. 8, the car and rack being in juxtaposition.
Again, the car and rack 5, may be permitted to remain stationary, using a separate
hoist or carrier 7, as the means of distributing and substituting the batteries.
In Figs. 1 to 7, inclusive, 10 is the driving-shaft of the propelling mechanism in
the charging-rack; 11, the driving-shaft on the bridge, and 12, that in the car,
each extending the entire length of the gang of batteries. The shafts 10, 11, 12,
are connected by gearing 15 to rotate in a common system. The rotary propelling-
surfaces on the shafts or operated by them are located at successive intervals in the
paths of the trays, the latter being propelled thereby simultaneously in ranks
throughout their course of travel to or from the benches or the car, or upon inter-
mediate transferring-surfaces.
20, represents frictional propelling-rolls upon the driving-shafts 10, 11, 12, which
rolls equal or nearly equal the breadth of a tray and engage therewith on the plane
under sides, the friction upon such propelling-rolls due to the weight of the trays
being sufficient to propel the latter over the idlers 21, 21, &c., intermitting the
positions of the said propelling-rolls. The propelling-rolls 20, are located at
suitable intervals in the paths of the trays, whereby the leading end of the tray
shall have frictional contact with one roll 20 before its following end passes out of
contact with the preceding one, rendering the propulsion continuous. Should it be
desired to assign the propelling function to all of the rolls 20 and 21, the latter may
be connected to the former, as illustrated in Fig. 1, by sprocket-chains 23.
Webs 24, of any suitable flexible material or belts 25, may be employed in
addition to the rolls, whereby to extend the propelling-surfaces, as shown in Figs. 1
and 4.
In order to insure positive contact and perfect alignment of the ranks or gangs of
batteries, the pinions 26, may be employed as a part of the propelling-rolls (or the
rotary surface other than the pinion-teeth may be dispensed with, the trays being
supported upon suitable tracks, as in Fig. 7) and the bottoms of the trays provided

page_text: with racks 27, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5. Again, sprocket-wheels 28 on the
driving-shafts and idlers 29 corresponding thereto, bearing sprocket-chains 30, may
be employed and operated in the same manner as are the belts 25, the trays
engaging with the chains by means of spurs or projections beneath them, as
illustrated in Figs. 1, 6, and 7, the trays being supported on rollers or track-wheels
in any of the modes described. As seen in Figs. 8 or 10, in locations where the
trays are to be transported over a swinging bridge-such as the bridge 31, forming
a portion of the side of the car when closed, or the bridge 32, such as described in
my aforesaid Patent Application, No. 2082100-some of the propelling-rolls or
equivalent or the idlers may be concentric with the hinges of the bridge, or have a
continuous shaft forming such hinge, and the belts or chains passed over them in
the manner illustrated forming a continuous propelling-surface when the bridges are
let down.
Referring now to the disconnective transmitting mechanism, that in Figs. 1,
and 2, consists of a driving-gear 40, on the bridge-shaft 11, driven gears 41, 42 on
the other shafts 10, 12, and transmitting-gears 43, 44 on the sectors 45, 46 main-
taining engagement with the gear 40. The sectors 45, 46 are pivoted on the
shaft 11, and may be clamped in different positions by means of hand-nuts 47.
When the car is moved into the stall or onto the elevator, as the case may be,
opposite the bridge, and coincidence of both is obtained with one of the charging-
benches, the transmitting gears 43, 44, are engaged and clamped in position and
operated by means of a crank applied to the shaft 11. It will be seen that such
gears will readily intermesh should the transferring-surfaces for the batteries not
be brought into perfect coincidence. When the batteries have been shifted, the
gear 43, is returned to its disengaged position preparatory to bringing a different
bench into coincidence by the movement of the car or bench-rack, or both, or both
gears 43 and 44 disengaged preparatory to moving the car out of the stall.
Power may be applied to any of the shafts 10 at will and thence to the other
shafts by a vertical driving-shaft 50, (shown in Fig. 1, and by dotted lines in Fig. 2,)
said shaft being driven by a suitable motor, and having loose bevel-gears 51
connected or disconnected with it by clutches 52, said loose gears intermeshing with
bevel-gears 53 upon the shaft 10. In Fig. 10, a similar transmitting mechanism as
that in the foregoing description is indicated by dotted lines. In Fig. 9, I have
illustrated a modified form of disconnective transmitting mechanism, consisting of
counter-shafts 60, 61, bearing bevel-gears 62, 63, 64, which engage with bevel-
gears 65, 66, 67, respectively, on the shafts 10, 11, 12. The counter-shaft 60, is
movable lengthwise through the gears 62, 63, rotatively engaging with them in all
positions, (by means of a spline and groove,) and on the adjacent ends of the
shafts 60, and 61, there are clutch-faces 69, 70, which when brought opposite
one another at the time of coincidence of the car and bench may be engaged
by thrusting the shaft 60 endwise, all the parts then being rotated by a crank 71,
or power appliance.
Benches 6, 6, of double width are represented in Figs. 8, and 9; also, a con-
tinuous transferring-way across the car. Two ranks of batteries in a bench may
be transferred to opposite sides of the car by employing a clutch 72, whereby
the gear 63 and shaft 10 and its connected propelling-surfaces are disengaged
until the first battery-tray-for instance, 91 in Fig. 8-has been moved a proper
distance in advance of the other tray--for instance, 9" when by closing said
clutch both trays subsequently advance simultaneously until their respective
positions under the opposite car-seats are reached. The same operation is reversed
in removing the exhausted batteries from the car.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what 1
claim is:
1. In the hereindescribed apparatus for transferring and recharging electric car
batteries, the combination with the horizontal transferring surfaces, ways or

page_text: repositories, of propelling rolls stationed at successive intervals in the paths of
the trays engaging with rectilinear contact surfaces on said trays, substantially
as hereinbefore set forth with reference to the annexed drawings.
2. In the hereindescribed apparatus for transferring and recharging electric
car batteries, the combination with the horizontal transferring surfaces, ways or
repositories movable into different levels with reference to one another, of the
rotary or orbital propelling surfaces, driving shafts therefor on each such surface,
way or repository extending the length of a rank of batteries, and disconnective
mechanism for transmitting motion between the said shafts, substantially as herein-
before set forth with reference to the annexed drawings.
3. In the hereindescribed apparatus for transferring and recharging electric car
batteries, the combination with the horizontal transferring surfaces, ways or
repositories movable into different levels with reference to one another, of
mechanism for transferring batteries, automatically, consisting of propelling rolls or
their equivalent located at the successive intervals in the paths of the battery-trays
upon such surfaces, ways or repositories, driving shafts for the rolls, idlers
elongating or succeeding said rolls in the paths of movement of the trays and belts
or their equivalent extended between said rolls, substantially as hereinbefore set
forth with reference to the annexed drawings.
Dated this 6th day of January 1891.
HUGHES, ELI & HUGHES,
76, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents for Applicant.