Improvements in Electric Refrigerating Apparatus for Railway Vehicles.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Apr., 1890-Accepted, 12th July, 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Electric Refrigerating Apparatus for Railway
Vehicles.
I, MARK WESLEY DEWEY, of the City of Syracuse, in the County of Onondaga, in
the State of New York, United States of America, Electrician, do hereby declare the
nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ELECTRIC REFRIGERATING APPARATUS
FOR RAILWAY VEHICLES," 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 cooling or freezing apparatus for railway cars of any kind,
but particularly refrigerator cars, or cars to be used for the transportation of
perishable goods.
The object of my invention is to electrically cool said cars or vehicles and to apply
the method thereto described and shown in my United States Patents Nos. 413,136
and 420,641, dated respectively October 15th, 1889, and February 4th, 1890.
The electricity may be derived from a dynamo or battery carried on the car,
or from line-conductors, or both combined. When the electricity is generated by a
dynamo on the car, the electric cooling apparatus is preferably in parallel or
multiple-are connection with a secondary battery, so that the latter will be charged
while the car is in motion and the generator driven, and supply electricity to the
cooling apparatus when the car is at rest, or whenever the current from the generator
is insufficient for the purpose.
It is immaterial to iny invention, generally speaking, what the source of electricity
may be, as is also the specific construction of the apparatus, the controlling and regula-
ting devices therefor, and their location on the car or cars.
My invention consists broadly in the combination of a vehicle or car, a suitable
source of electricity, an electric cooling apparatus on the vehicle in circuit with the
source, and suitable controlling or regulating devices.
My invention consists, further, and more specifically, in the combination in a system
of cooling cars by electricity, of a moving car, a dynamo electric machine carried on
the car and having its armature mechanically connected to the axle or wheel of the
vehicle, and to be driven by the latter, conductors connected to the dynamo, an
electric conductor having one or more parts adapted to be cooled by a current, and a
secondary battery in parallel circuit with the dynamo, and suitable current controlling
devices.
My invention consists also in the combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of
electricity, an electric conductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled
by a current and connected to the source, a reservoir containing a medium and
arranged to be cooled by the said parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir,
through the interior of the car, and back to said reservoir, and a pump and motor for
forcing the medium through the pipe.
In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows a sectional elevation of a refrigerator
car and a portion of another car coupled to it, embodying my invention, and Figure 2
is a modification of the same wherein, preferably, an uncongealable medium is
circulated in pipes, and employed to distribute the cold (so to speak) to the apartments
to be cooled in the cars.
Referring specifically to the drawings, A represents a car containing the dynamo or
supply circuit and A¹ is a car coupled to it.
B is a generator of electricity or dynamo electric machine having a pulley on its
armature shaft connected with a pulley 61 on the axle a of the vehicle, by a belt or
chain 6, so that the movement of the vehicle A or its axle a rotates the armature of
the dynamo B.

page_text: Cis the supply conductor or circuit on the vehicle connected to the dynamo.
ccare electrical connections between the supply conductor on the vehicle and
line conductors c¹ c¹ arranged along the path of the vehicle, when line conductors are
provided. Both the connections c c and line conductors c¹ c' are shown in dotted
lines.
In order to provide against a possible failure of the current from the dynamo, and
to supply electricity during a stoppage of the car, a secondary battery or accumu-
lator D is connected in a shunt-circuit d of the supply-circuit and is charged from the
latter whenever there is a surplus of current generated, and discharged when the
current in the supply circuit is insufficient for the cooling apparatus.
B₁ indicates a box or case containing suitable well known automatic regulating
devices for the circuits or currents, and preferably consists of an automatic switch for
breaking the circuit through the dynamo B when the electro-motive force of the
secondary battery exceeds that of the dynamo, and for closing the circuit when the
electro-motive force of the dynamo exceeds that of the battery, and also consists of
an automatic regulator or adjustable resistance located in the field circuit f of
the dynamo to maintain a constant current in the supply circuit C during variations
in speed of the dynamo. e represents a lever on the car pivoted at e¹ and reaching to
and on each side of the belt 1 to shift the latter, when desired, to a loose pulley on
the axle a to stop the dynamo when the current is not required.
E is the cooling apparatus or conductor having one or more parts to be cooled and
one or more parts to be heated by the passage therethrough of the electric current,
and is connected in the supply circuit which latter includes an ordinary automatic
regulator or adjustable resistance to control the current flowing through the
cooling apparatus, and a circuit breaker C" to open the circuit entirely when
desired.
Referring to figure 1, F represents an apartment or space in the upper part of the
car between the roof and a horizontal partition p and containing the heated parts of
the conductor. The apartment F is ventilated by ventilators g g g on the roof to carry
off the heat from the heated parts. The cold parts of the conductor are located in the
apartment F of the car, to be cooled. It will be understood that the electric current
flowing through the conductor E conducts or convects the heat from the apart-
ment to the apartment F from which it is dissipated. The cold parts located in the
apartment to be cooled absorb the heat therein and conduct it through the partition
to the parts called the heated parts from which the heat is disengaged or diffused.
In Fig. 1, the conductor in circuit containing the cooled parts is extended the
entire length of the car A and is coupled by a coupling-device i to the circuit (on
the car A containing another conductor E. A train of cars may be thus equipped,
each with a cooling apparatus in a single circuit extending from car to car and
arranged so that any one of the cars may be cut out of circuit without
interfering with the others.
To
Referring to Fig. 2, the conductor E having the cooled parts, is located only at one
end of the car A, and with its cold parts within a receptacle, reservoir or tank G
containing preferably an uncongealable medium as brine, which is cooled. Pipes H
extend from the tank through the car A a number of times, and when desired, to and
through another car A' coupled to the former, and back to the said tank.
maintain a rapid circulation of the medium through the pipes H I provide a suitable
pump I and an electric motor J to operate the pump. The said motor is in a shunt
circuit L of the conductor C, and is regulated by the current regulator L'. The pipes
or circulatory apparatus H is arranged so that the car A' may be uncoupled from
car A without breaking the circuit of the pipes, and is effected by closing the
cocks and opening the cock to open a passage from one pipe to the other
and thus complete the pipe circuit on the car A.
The apartment F in this case, is separated from the apartment by a perpendicular
partition p and said apartment F is ventilated by a suitable ventilator g in the roof of
the car.

page_text: Any other manner of mechanically connecting the armature, with a wheel or axle
of the vehicle may be substituted, as may any equivalent means whereby the dynamo
is driven from the source of energy propelling the vehicle.
Regulating and controlling devices for the operation of the dynamo and control of
the electric current, may be used with my invention, if desired, the same or similar
to the regulating devices shown and described in U.S. Patents Nos. 410,586 and
411,301, or any other suitable and well known regulating devices may be employed
and I would therefore have it understood that I do not limit myself to the devices
herein shown or described.
Having now particularly described an ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a moving car, a
dynamo electric machine carried on the car and having its armature mechanically
connected to the axle or wheel of the vehicle, and to be driven by the latter, con-
ductors connected to the dynamo, an electric conductor having one or more parts
adapted to be cooled by a current and a secondary battery in parallel circuit with the
dynamo, and suitable current controlling devices.
2. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a moving car, a
generator of electricity arranged to be driven by the movement of said car, an
electric conductor having one or more parts adapted to be cooled by a current, and a
secondary battery in parallel circuit with the generator, and suitable current con-
trolling devices.
3. in a system of cooling vehicles by electricity, the combination of a moving
vehicle, a generator of electricity on the vehicle, and arranged to be driven when the
vehicle is in motion, an electric conductor having one or more parts adapted to be
cooled by a current and in circuit with the generator, and suitable controlling
devices.
4. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a plurality of cars
coupled together, an electric supply-conductor on one of said cars, and a cooling or
freezing apparatus carried on two or more of said cars and connected to the supply
conductor.
5. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a plurality of cars
coupled together, an electric supply conductor on one of said cars, an electric con-
ductor having one or more parts adapted to be cooled by a current and connected to
the supply-conductor, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled by
the said parts, pipes extending from the car containing the reservoir to one or more
of the other cars, and means for circulating the medium.
6. The combination of a moving vehicle, a generator of electricity driven by the
vehicle, an electric cooling or freezing apparatus to cool said vehicle and in circuit-
with the generator.
7. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, and an electric
cooling apparatus on the vehicle in circuit with the source.
8. The combination of a vehicle, a source of electricity, an electric cooling apparatus
to cool said vehicle, a secondary battery to accumulate a portion of the current from
the source, and electric circuits including said cooling apparatus and battery in
multiple are connection.
9. The combination of a vehicle, a source of electricity, an electric cooling apparatus
to cool said vehicle and a secondary battery to accumulate a portion of the electric
energy from the source, and in electrical connection with the latter.
10. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric cooling
apparatus on the vehicle in circuit with the source, and suitable controlling or
regulating devices.
11. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric con-
ductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled by a current and connected
to the source, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled by the said

page_text: parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir, through the interior of the car, and
back to said reservoir.
12. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric con-
ductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled by a current and connected
to the source, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled by the said
parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir, through the interior of the car, and
back to said reservoir, and means for circulating the medium through the pipe.
13. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric con-
ductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled by a current and connected
to the source, a reservoir containing an uncongealable medium and arranged to be
cooled by the said parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir, through the interior
of the car, and back to said reservoir, and means for circulating the medium through
the pipe.
14. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric
conductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled by a current and
connected to the source, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled
by the said parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir, through the interior of the
car, and back to said reservoir, and a pump and motor for forcing the medium through
the pipe.
15. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a plurality of
moving cars coupled together, a generator of electricity driven by one of the cars, and
a cooling or freezing apparatus on two or more of said cars, and in circuit with the
generator.
16. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric
conductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled by a current and
connected to the source, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled
by the said parts, and a pipe extending from the reservoir, through the interior of the
car, and back to said reservoir, and a pump and motor for forcing the medium through
the pipe, and suitable controlling or regulating devices.
17. In a system of cooling cars by electricity, the combination of a plurality of
cars coupled together, an electric supply conductor on one of said cars, an electric
conductor having one or more parts adapted to be cooled by a current and connected
to the supply conductor, a reservoir containing a medium and arranged to be cooled
by the said parts, and pipes extending from the car containing the reservoir to one or
more of the other cars coupled thereto.
18. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric con-
ductor on the vehicle and having parts adapted to be cooled and other parts adapted
to be heated by a current, and connected to the source, an apartment on the vehicle,
to be cooled by the cooled parts of the conductor, and a ventilated apartment on the
vehicle containing the heated parts of the conductor.
19. The combination of a vehicle, a generator of electricity on the vehicle and
driven by the movement of the vehicle, an electric conductor on the vehicle and
having parts adapted to be cooled and other parts adapted to be heated by a current
from the generator, an apartment on the vehicle to be cooled by the cooled parts of
the conductor, and a ventilated apartment on the vehicle containing the heated parts
of the conductor.
20. The combination of a vehicle, a suitable source of electricity, an electric cooling
apparatus on the vehicle in circuit with the source, and suitable automatic controlling
or regulating devices.
Dated this Lith day of April 1890
MARK WESLEY DEWEY.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.