A New Principle in Motor Car Ignition An Arc Flame System In Which a Three-Coil Trans- former With a Closed Iron Circuit Obviates the Need of a Condenser Across the Vibrator Terminals ICHARD VARLEY, of ‘The Varley Duplex Magnet Co, Jersey City, N. J, has recently discovered a new prinetple in transformer action which he believes to be of much value for ignition Fic. |—Varley Three-Coil Tranalormer on $i condenser 1s required across the breaker contacts—provided, of course, that the tturee windings are properly proportioned. ‘The secondary discharge from the new transformer Is sald to be of long duration dard Low Tension Magneto with ‘Mechanical ‘Vibrator. urpeses. Tt can be used with nearly any souree of alternating current Mr. Var- ley employs a specially wound transform er, whied, connected tn elreutt with the armature of a lowstension magneto, pre- vides @ igh-tension Ignition system that Is in many respects different trom all others known, and the arcfame fs ob- tained without the necessity of winding the socondary upon tho magnoto arms. ure, ‘The new transformer has a closed iron clreult, and, In addition to tho usual 1ow ‘and high-tension windings. a third wind- Ing, known as a choke coll, 9 used and ts wound preferably under the high-ten- sion winding. Tals cheko coll occupies very He space and usually consists of one Tayer of turns under the secondary, or half of the turas may be placed on ther side of the secondary, ‘The chit advantage resulting from the use of this choke coll winding 1s that no fand to have all the characteristles of the spark delivered by a hightenston mag- neto with both primary and secondary windings on the armature and with a con- denser, ‘A large number of these transformers have been made for ignition purposes, ‘where the potential at the secondary ter minals bas been shown to be more than ‘ight timos as groat at could be obtained from the regular transformer without the choke cof. With this threecoil trans former the primary winding 1s connected to any soureo of alternating current and the mechanical eireult breaker {s of the usual type and placed tn the ehoke coil ‘circuit. In Fig. 1 the generator arms- ture Is shown as of the H-type and con- tains only one winding, the generator being posttively driven by the engine in the usual manner. Fix. 2 shows the de- vloe with a standard typo of magnetic vibrator. ig. 3 shows a vibrator unit I—Varley Three-Coil Transformer on Low-Tension Magneto with Magnetic Vibrator. . Google 186 containing the new transformer, for use fon an alternating current flywheel meg: nelo. The size of the transformer ts re- duced by about half as compared with the usual cofl, primarily in consequence of ‘he elimination of the condenser and the reduced bull of the secondary winding. In Fig. 1 the choke coll ts shown in cireult with an interrupter opened and closed by a cam. When the clrcuit closed while the alternating eurrent flows through the primary coll, an induced eur- rent flows tn 1t watch efeates a eounter- magnetizing force and greatly reduces the magnetic flux through that leg of the ‘magnet core on which the choke eoil and secondary coil are wound, the greater por- on of the magnette flux created by the primary winding rotumning through Teak ‘Connection with Flywheel Magneto, Rota lon of the eam cauace @ sudden opening fof me choke oll eireult, and as the eam fs in synchronous relation to tho gonera- tor, the clreat may be opened when the age paths past the secondary cot) current wave is at its maximum. At the Instant of scparation of the contacts a high voltage 18 induced in the secondary coll, and if the coll torminals are auf. clently close together a flaming discharge Is produced and continues for the balance fof the current wave in the secondary, unless arrested by another short circuit- Ing of tho cheko coll. ‘The high voltage at the secondary terminals {s due to the Inrush of flux into the core leg surround ed by the secondary winding. ‘When the arc is established, current flows in the secondary clrealt and the am: f ERSITY OF MICHIGANAuguat 15, 1915 yore turns of the secondary col! produce aan effect similar to that of the choke cotl, Ae, thay restrain the Inflow of flux and prevent an abrupt or instantaneous ex- Ihaustive discharre of energy at high volt: age. The secondary winding also acts somewhat in the manner of a condenser, by suppreasing tho spark at the brosker contacts. With all three windings prop: erly proportioned and with « very small potential across the contacts (obtained by making the choke cot! with few turns of heavy wire) thore ie Itile or no tend. fency to sparking st the contacts upon ‘opening of the choke cofl circu ‘By making the turns of the choke cot! ‘winding the tame as the primary and con- necting the choke coll in parallel with the primary, the elreuit breaker can be placed in elther cfreaft. With there errange- ments 4 condenser may be used tcross ‘the breaker contact ‘The secondary may de divided, with halt of the turns over the primary winding and the other halt ‘over the choke coll winding, both sec: ‘onderies being connected in series, or the secondary may also be placed directly ‘over the iron core midway between the primary and cheke coll windings | Pref. erence, however, 8 given to the scheme ‘where the choke coll winding is such as to obviate the neod of a condenser, This new transformer principle can est be demonstrated by connocting to the house elrouit, where alternating current {9 avaliable.” A transformer wound to step up the voltage to, say 9000 at the ‘secondary with the choke coll open, will, ‘when the choke coll Is connected too New Arc Frame Ignition System 4 187 FIG. 4—Varley Three-Coil Transformer on Lighting Generator. vibrator, as shown in Fig. 2, show a start. lng Increase in voliage at the secondary, something like 24,000, the vibrator vibrat- ing in eyachroniom with the primary cur rent, ‘Tue discovery of this transformer prin- ctple was brought about by an endeavor to destgn a coll to work with an external source of elternating current. the second- ary dlecharge to have all of the charac- teristics of the spark from a bigh-tension ‘magneto with revolving primary and ase. ondary windings, the energizing eurrent to be alternating to prevent pitting of the breaker contacts. No success was ob- tained after continued experiments with colle of the Ruhmker? type; and, furthor more, & condenser was always required with a Ruhmkort eoll when the primary current had to be Interrupted by means of @ mechanleal or magnetic efreuft breaker. ‘When, im the course of the experimental work, colle with closed tron elreult were ‘used, the potential st the secondary ter- ‘minals was far too low, and if the turns ‘were increased the voltage was raised at the expense of tho amperage. But by the tntroduction of the third Winding start- Hing results were obtained. The voltage {in the secondary was multiplied and the ‘are maintained by the continued current {In tho primary. ‘The now transformer can be wsod on cars ntted with direct connected, eontinu- fous current, twopole dynamos for light- Ing purposes, as in Pig. 4, aa It fs a slm- ple matter to fasten sliprings to the ‘armature of the lighting machino and take of a suitable alternating current, thereby eliminating the uso of « magneto, provided the Mghtlng machine 1s of a size sufficiently large to permit of being riven at magneto speed. What the Motor Car Does for Other Industries ‘mobile manufacturing companies ave a production season of about eight to ten months on each series of ‘ars, and through the past several months of general business depression thelr busi- no has kept nearly normel—and at this ‘vritigg is abnormal, as te supply ts hardly keeping pace with the demand. The following figures mlght be of tn ‘torest: A 5, tzown, mont of ke i ‘Total gunber of cars munutcture to “hea Si an ito zeae i Uae ee aE metho ‘rea 330 00,00 angina ssenie ‘Total value of the electrical equipment” #1035876 Thore hes been a great deal of talk among uninformed people as to the tnstar Ditty of the automobile manufacturing Durinees and of the drain on the resources ‘of the people that the purchase and use of an automobile represents. wing Yord cars, 850000, $18.100.00, Google By G. Brewer Griffin. Disregarding for the moment the oper- ating expense and upkeep which the in- dividual assumes, let us consider how ‘many élferent classes of business the a ‘tomobiie industry, of such an enormous volume as above mentioned, neips to maintain—ignoring altogether the truck production of the country, whleh comes outside the consideration, as the purchase ‘and use of commercial vehicles needs no brlet of detense. Tt meane that there has been consumed on new cars alone for 1915, conservatively estimated, approximately (670 09 ton of brat sae 24680 donee tne, 3 Sure Jari ego fr renmii burda s4s030 boned fet aimifctured alors and ier woud for te, op tow, eels, Sea fees running bean ‘All these materials have 1o be and are largely fabricated by manufacturers who supply the automobile concerns, and a few moments’ reflection will show the enormous army of workers employed in utting thie material nto usable shape. In the starting, lighting and ignition Industry alone are employed today be tween nine and ten thousand people, and when wo stop to consider the other ms- teriais that are used by them in making thelr part of the car—such as lead, in the storage batteries, iron oxide, rubber, aluminum and copper wire, magnaltum, platinum, ote—one will soon s09 how many different branches of industry are affected by the automobile business And we hare not begun to couslder the mll- ons of gallons of gasoline that are being istilled or the great quantitios of lubri eating olls and greases, peint and var. patty, ete.