US1272282A - Telephone-exchange system. - Google Patents

Description

J. L. MCQUARRIE.

TELEPHONE EXCHANGE SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20.1917.

Patented July 9, 1918.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES L. MGQUARRIE, 0F MONTCLAIR, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, INCORPORATED, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

TELEPHONE-EXCHAN GE SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 9, 1918.

Application filed November 20, 1917. Serial No. 202,934.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMns L. MCQUARRIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Montclair, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Telephone- Exchange Systems, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and eXact description.

This invention relates to automatic switches, and more particularly to automatic switches of the type used in telephone exchange systems.

This invention is an improvement upon applicants copending application, Serial No. 158,567, filed March 30, 1917.

It is the object of this invention to provide a switch which shall be mechanically simple, and also compact and low in cost of construction.

A feature of the present invention is the use of a contact bank of the panel type in connection with a switch of the well-known up and around structure. The contact banks are essentially Similar to those used and described in the above mentioned application, excepting that each shelf of contacts is provided with multiple contacts on its lower surface as well as on its upper surface. It is obvious that by this arrangement, the number of shelves to be used will be halved.

A feature of this invention is the use of a brush set arranged to contact with the terminals on the lower surface of said contact banks upon movement in a rotary direction after the completion of an odd number of steps in a vertical direction; and arranged to be moved in a rotary motion over the upper surface of the contact banks upon completion of an even number of vertical steps.

, It is thought that the invention will be best understood from the following detailed description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the essential operating elements of the switch, together with a suitable circuit arrangement for controlling the same;

Fig. 2 shows aplan view of a contact bank shelf with a brush carriage in its normal relation tosaid bank;

Fig. 3 is a plan view showing in what relationto one another a plurality of switches are mounted so as to be accessible to the same contact bank; and

Fig. 4 is a detailed view of a double brush set constructed inaccordance with the principles of this invention.

Referring now to Fig.1, it will be seen that there are provided a plurality of contact banks such as 10, 10 and 10". The construction of these contact banks will be better understood by reference to Fig. 2. In Fig. 2 the unit contact bank is indicated generally at 10 and is shown to be made up of a number of strips of conducting material, as indicated at 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16, all suitably insulated from one another, in the manner usual in the panel type of Contact bank construction. These strips are arranged to run longitudinally the entire length of the shelf 10 and are provided at each switch with bent-over contact portions as 17, 18 and 19 to provide terminals for engagement with the brush set carried by arm 20. The location of the bent-over contact portions of the various strips is so arranged that the contacts may be engaged successively by the brush carried by arm 20, upon rotation of said arm. At 21 is indicated an arm of the switch adjacent to that controlling the arm 20. The relation of the switches and contacts may be better understood by inspection of Fig. 3, which shows a number of switches in relation to a contact bank shelf.

As described in the previously mentioned application, these shelves are to be arranged one above the other, so that when the brush carriage is elevated to a desired level, the brush may then be rotated transversely of the contacts to select the desired set of contacts. Therefore in the previous arrange ment it was necessary to provide as many layers or shelves'of multiple panel strips, each accessible to a plurality of switches, as there were groups of contacts. If it was desired that the switch should have access to ten groups of terminals, ten shelves of contacts were required in the previous arrangement. In the present arrangement, however, referring to the bank 10 in Fig. 1, it

.will be seen thateach shelf is provided with vfive shelves will be needed to provide access to ten groups. As shown in Fig. 1, the contacts, of the first group and second group are insulated from one another in a suitable manner as indicated by the insulating strip 22.

The contact banks are so arranged that upon the completion of the first vertical step by shaft 23, the brushes 24, 25 and 26 will be in a position to engage the contacts on the lower side of shelf 10. Upon the completion of the second group step, the brushes 27, 28, 29 will be in a position to engage the contacts on the upper side of shelf 10 On the completion of the third group step, the brushes %4,- 25 and 26 will be in a position to engage the contacts on the lower side of shelf 10'.

The mechanism for operating the brush carriage may be .that of any well-known type of up and around switch and any one of a number of well-known circuit arrangements may be used therewith. The switch is equally adapted for use as a selector or connector.

Refer-ring now to Fig. 1, a brief description of the operation of the device as a seleotor switch will be given. Assuming that the subscriber whose-substation, is indicated at 30, desiresa connection, he will remove his receiver from the switchhook, whereupon his line will be extended in any desired manner to the selector whose circuits are shown in Fig. 1. In the present case, it will be assumed that the means for extending his line to the selector is a line finder, whose brushes are indicated at 81, 32 and 33.

As soon as the line finder has operated, a circuit is completed from grounded battery, right-hand windingof line relay 34, side-switch wiper 35 in its first position, finder brush 31, contact 36, through the loop of the calling subscribers. line, contact 37, finder brush 32', side-switch wiper 38, in its first position, left-hand winding of relay 34 to ground. Relay 34 is energized and attracts its armature, completing a circuit from grounded battery, winding of slow release relay 39, armature and front contact of relay 3'4 to ground.

The subscriber now operates his sender, indicated at 40, to cause a series of inter- ;ruptions in the line circuit. Upon the first deenergmatron of line relay 34, a circuit is completed from grounded battery, winding of slow release. magnet 41, armature and from contact of relay 39, armatureand back contact of relay 34 to ground; Relay 41 is energized and completes a, circuit from grounded battery, windingof escape magnet 42, side-switch wiper 43, in itsfirst position, armature and frontcontact "of relay 41. to gr0i1nd; parallel with thecirctiit of relay 41, a circuiti s completed from grounded battery,'winding of vertical 'st'eppin magnet 44,secondary ofi -normal' contact 4 armature and frontcontact ctr-clay: 39; armature and back Contact of relay 34 to ground. Magnet 44 is energized and advances the brush shaft 23 one step in a vertical. direction. Magnet 44 is, energized in response to each interruption of the line circuit, but relays. 39 and 41 being slow to release, remain energized during the sending of the impulses Upon completion of the firstseries of impulses, at which time the shaft 28 has been elevated to the desired contact level, line relay 34 remains energizedfor a relatively long period er time, causing the deenergization of relay '41. gization of relay 41 causes in turn the deenergization of escape magnet 42,;which releases and allows the side-switch wipers to be advanced, in, their second position.

In the second position of the side switch a circuit is completed from grounded battery, contact springs 45, winding of rotary stepping magnet 46-,- side-switeh wiper ($0,- in its second position, armature and front contact of relay 34 to ground. Magnet 46 attracts its armature to advance the brush shaft 23 one step in a rotary direction, thus opening the contact 47" to prevent further actuation of the vertical stepping magnet 44. Magnet 46, upon attraction of its armature, interrupts its own circuit at springs 45 and deene'rgizes. Magnet 46 continues to interrupt its own circuit and advances the brush set over the selected contact bank until an idle trunkis found. If it is assumed that the idle condition of trunks is indicated by the presence of ground potential on the test terminals of Said trunks, it will be observed 7 that the escape magnet 42' is energized as soon as the brush set is positioned on the terminals of an idle trunk. This circuit.- for escape magnet 42 extends from grounded battery, winding otescape magnet- 42, side switch wiper 43, in its secondpositiomconductor'48, test brush 26 or 29, according to whether an even or odd numberof steps has been taken, to ground by way of the test terminal of the idle trunk; The energiZation of escape magnet 42 advances theside-switch wipers into their third position, thus opening the circuit of magnet 46; and bringing the brush set to rest upon the terminals of an idle trunk in the selected group.

Upon completion of conversation ground will be applied to conductor 48 from the connector in the wen-known manner, whereupon a circuit will be completed iron grounded battery, winding of release ma-gnet 5ft),-priinary ofi normalcontaetsol, side- 7 switch wiper 52,5111 its third position, eonductor-48 to ground. Magnethtl is energized and operates the double holding dog -to withdraw pawls 53 and 5415mm engagement with thevertical and rotary ijatcliets respectively, to allow the switeh'tobe released; f It is to be observed that magnet 50* upon. en-

ergizer-ion completes a ieeieng circuit for itself by way of primary off-normal contact 51, conductor 55, contacts 56 to ground. Magnet 50 therefore remains energized until the switch has been completely restored, at which time the circuit of magnet 50 will be broken by the opening of off-normal contacts 51.

lVhat is claimed is:

1. In an automatic switching device, a multiple terminal bank comprising a plurality of sections arranged in superimposed tiers, each tier being provided with an upper and lower contact bearing surface, each of said surfaces comprising a separate group of multiple terminal strips, switching mech anisms in operative relation to said terminal bank, and means to operate a switching mechanism to select a desired group of contacts and to select a desired contact in a selected group.

2. In an automatic switching device, a multiple terminal bank comprising a plurality of sections arranged in superimposed tiers, each tier being provided with an upper and lower contact bearing surface, each of said surfaces comprising a separate group of multiple terminal strips, a plurality of movable brush carriages, a brush set carried by each of said brush carriages, means to advance a brush carriage to select a desired group, and means to advance said brush carriage transversely of a selected group to position its associated brush set on a desired terminal set in the selected group.

3. In an automatic switching device, a plu rality of switching mechanisms, movable contacts controlled thereby, a multiple terminal bank comprising a plurality of sections arranged in superimposed tiers, each tier being provided with an upper and a lower contact bearing surface, each of said surfaces comprising a plurality of terminal strips suitably insulated from one another, contact portions on said strips projecting at desired intervals and in proper relation to one another, said contact portions being suitably oflset for engagement with movable contacts of said switching mechanism, means to operate one of said switching mechanisms to advance its movable contacts carried thereby into operative relation with one of said contact bearing surfaces to accomplish group selection, and means to advance said movable contacts transversely of said selected surface to select a desired terminal set in the selected group.

4. In an automatic switching device, a multiple terminal bank comprising a plurality of sections arranged in superimposed tiers, each tier being provided with an upper and lower contact bearing surface, each of said surfaces comprising a separate group of multiple terminal strips, switching mechanisms in operative relation with said terminal bank, means to cause vertical motion of a switching mechanism to select a desired group of contacts, and means to cause rotary movement of a switching mechanism to select a desired contact in a selected group.

5. In an automatic switching device, a multiple contact bank comprising a plurality of unit layers placed in superimposed relation, a plurality of movable brush carriages, brushes-carried thereby, means to advance a brush carriage into position to select a desired group, and means to advance said brush carriage transversely of a selected group to enable the associated brushes to engage contacts in said selected group, and means to advance said brushes over contacts on the lower surface of a selected layer or over contacts on the upper surface of a selected layer in accordance with whether the number of group steps taken by said carriage is odd or even.

6. In an automatic switching device, a multiple contact bank comprising a plurality of superimposed unit layers, each of said layers being provided with contact sets on its upper surface and on its lower surface, vertically and rotatably movable shafts in operative relation to said contact bank, a brush carried by each of said shafts, means to selectively move a brush during vertical movement of said shaft to select a desired group of contacts, and means to move said brush during rotary movement of said shaft transversely into engagement with a desired contact in the selected group.

In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my7name this 16th day of November, A. D. 191

JAMES L. MOQUARRIE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). 0.

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