US2435325A - Steam generator - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 3, 1948. RElCHQLD 2,435,325

S TEAM GENERATOR Filed, Aug. 16, 1944 :ii uunmi LUDW/G RE/CHOLO IN VEN TOR.

Patented Feb. 3, 1948 STEAM GENERATOR Ludwig Reichold, Winsted, Conn, assignor to The Silex Company, Hartford, Gonn.,a corporation of Connecticut Application'August 16, 1944,,Serial No. 549,687

2 Claims.

This invention relates to steam generatorsand more particularly to a portable generatorof relatively small capacity capable of generating steam substantially instantaneously.

For variouspurposes steam. in relatively small quantities is employed, and a generator capable of producing steam or other vapors without heating a large body of liquid is desirable. Onesuch use is in connection with pressing irons. In recent. years domestic electric irons have been produced in which the iron is provided with a water container and with means for heating the water to vaporize it. The steam so produced is delivered through suitable channels in the pressing plate to the material being pressed.

While the so-called steam iron is an improvement in domestic irons, it possesses several disadvantages. The first is that the mounting of the water container on the iron produces a bulky and cumbersome piece of apparatus. Also in pressing some fabrics, it is desirable that the last few pressing strokes be made with a dry iron and when the water container is mounted on the body of the iron in proximity to the heatin element of the iron, it is impossible to discontinue the production of steam during the ironing operation.

It has been proposed to provide an iron with suitable channels for the delivery of steam to the pressing plate and to connect such iron by flexible tubing to a steam generator mounted at a. convenient point. Such devices, however, have not been entirely satisfactory due to the fact that generators heretofore provided necessitated heating a large body of water for the production of steam and therefore were uneconomical and required considerable time for raising the body of water to the boiling point.

In the present invention Iprovide a generator which may be mounted on the ironing boardv or at any other convenient'point and is adapted to be used in connection with an iron having channels by means of which steam may be delivered to the ironing surface of the pressing plate. The generator preferably consists of a container of suitable size for the water to be vaporized in which is mounted a heating coilcarried by a float. The float is adapted to retain the heating coil justbeneath the surface of the body of water. In this manner the heating is confined to that portion of the water immediately below the surface. This results in the production of steam almost instantaneously when the generator is turned on and also produces economy in operation in that only a small portion of the water is heated, the conduction of heat throughthe body of water beneath the heating coil being relatively small.

While generators of this type for various purposes have heretofore been proposed, the generator of the present invention comprises certain improvements in the construction and arrangement ofv the float and in the means for automatically cutting off the supply of current when the. water supply is depleted which make a device of this character practical and useful. While the present description is primarily directed to the use of the generator in connection with an electric iron, it maybe used for many other purposes, suchas for humidifying rooms, generatingv steam for small sterilizers, and generating vapors. in medicaitreatments. Also while the description is directedprimarily to the vaporization of water, it will of course be apparent that theinvention maybe employed in connection with the generation of vapors of any liquid.

In the accompanying drawing I have shown one embodiment of the invention. In this showin Fig. 1 isa horizontal, sectional view;

. Fig. 2.is a vertical, sectional view; and

Fig. 3 is-a detailed view of theautomatic cutoff switch. showing the switch in open position.

'Referringtothe drawing, the reference numeral I designates generally a suitable container for the water or other liquid to be vaporized. This container may be of any desired size and shape and is shown as a substantially cylindrical container comprising a bottom 2, side walls 3 anda top 4 integral with .the sidewalls. The. bottom maybeprovided with a flange 5 to be connected to a flange 6 on. the-lower edge of the side wall by suitable. fastening means I, and a strip 8, of packingmay be arranged between the bottom and the sidewall. When thecontainer is used for supplying steamtoan iron and is. mounted on the ironing board, it may be connected to a supply tank (not shown) by a pipe 9, the levelof the supply tank being such that when liquid is contained therein, it will maintain the same water level as the water or liquid in the. generator as indicated at ID in Fig. 2 of the drawing. When employed for other uses, the pipe 9 may be eliminated and the container filled through an inlet opening arranged adjacent the top and provided with a closure plug l2. A steam outlet 13 is provided in the top and is adapted to be connected by flexible tubing, such as a'rubber hose, to an iron, sterilizer or other equipment with which the generator is used. The generator maybeprovided with a safety valve 14 and may also be provided with a suitable gauge Ma in the side wall to permit ready determination of the liquid level'in the generator. The top, of course. may be removable or, when the generatorisused for vaporizing liquids for humidifying rooms, the top may be open.

' A float I5 is mounted in the container I, the float being preferably formed of sheet metal and being hollow to float on the body of liquid. A plurality of arms or straps l8 extend outwardly from the float and are provided with opening I! to receive guide rods 18 which are mounted in the container and guide the float in its vertical movement. A heating coil l 9 of electric resistance wire is mounted upon a suitable support 20 and the support and the heating coil are supported in openings in insulated lugs 2i mounted on the float. One end 22 of the heating coil is connected to a terminal 23 mounted on one of the arms or straps l6 and extending a considerable distance beneath the float. The other end 24 of the heating coil is connected to aterminal 25 mounted upon the same strap. A mercury switch 26 is mounted on the under side of the float. As shown, one element 2'! of a hinge is secured to the bottom of the float and the second element 28 is secured to the flat upper surface of the switch. Pins 29 connect the two elements of the hinge and permit the mercury switch to swing about the hinge as a pivot. The lower sides of the mercury switch are inclined downwardly from the outer edge to the center as indicated at 30 and a quantity of mercury 31 is mounted in the switch.

The term nal 25 is connected to the switch by a lead wire 32, the end of this wire being secured to one of the contact elements 33. A second contact element 34 is connected to a terminal 35. mounted on another one of the arms or straps l by wire 36. As shown in Fig. 2, the ends of contact elements 33 and 34 are slightly spaced from each other. Terminals 23 and 35 are connected to ribbon-like electrical connectors 36 and 31, which are in turn connected to terminals 38 and 39 in the bottom of the container.

The operation of the device will be apparent from the foregoing description. A desired liquid level is maintained in the container by delivery of water through pipe 9 or by filling the container though inlet opening H. The float assumes a position adjacent the upper surface of the water and when the terminals 38 and 39 are connected to a source of current, the heating coil i 9 causes generation of steam in the portion of the .water adjacent the top of the body of water in the container. It will be noted that the construction permits the use of an open coil directly exposed to the water. As the coil is beneath the surface of the water at all times, it is not subject to excessive oxidation as would be the case if it were exposed to air. The arrangement of the heating coil just beneath the surface of the body of water confines the heating operation to a small quantity of water so that steam is formed without heating a large body of water. This not only results in economy of operation, but also results in substantially instantaneous production of steam which is an important advantage when the device is used in connection with a pressing iron or in similar uses where a small amount of steam is frequently desired without the delay of heating the entire body of water. Also the use of the device in connection with a steam iron permits the steam to be cut off at any time as in the last few strokes of ironing because the steam generation will cease substantially immediately when the current is turned ofi.

Current; flows from the terminal 38 through the ribbon-like connector 36 to terminal 23, wire 22, through the heating coil [9, wire 24, terminal 25, wire 32, mercury switch 26, wire 36, terminal 35,

ribbon-like connector 31 to terminal 39. This current path is maintained as long as the mercury switch is in a horizontal position with the terminals 33 and 34 of the switch connected by the mercury 3|. To prevent operation of the device when the water supply is exhausted, a post 40 is mounted in the bottom of the container, off center, at a, point to engage the mercury switch when the float lowers and tilt it as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing. As will be apparent from Fig. 3 of the drawing, this moves the body of mercury 3| away from the ends of the switch terminals 33 and 34 and therefore disconnects the coil from the source of current. Likewise, if the container I is moved into any position other than its normal position, as when the container is mounted on an ironing board and the ironing board stored between uses, the mercury switch 26 will disconnect the coil from the source of current and prevent the circuit to the coil from being accidentally left closed. The bottom of the container may be provided with a suitable valved outlet 4! for draining.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a container, a plurality of vertically disposed rods mounted in the container and forming guides, a float mounted in the container, radially disposed arms extending from the float, the arms being provided with openings to receive the guides, a plurality of lugs mounted on the float, a heating coil supported by the lugs and exposed to a body of liquid in the container adjacent the upper surface thereof, a mercury switch hingedly mounted on the bottom of the float and connected in series with the heating coil, and a post mounted on the bottom of the container to tilt the mercury switch and disconnect the coil from the source of current as the float is lowered in the container to bring the switch into engagement with the post.

2. A device of the character described comprising a container, a float mounted in the container, a heating element surrounding the float adjacent the top thereof and carried thereby, means for connecting the heating element to a source of current, guiding members projecting from the float, means in the top of the container co-operating with the guiding members to guide the float vertically in the container, a mercury switch mounted on the bottom of the float and arranged in series with the heating element, and means in the container to actuate the mercury switch when the liquid level in the container falls to a predetermined point.

LUDWIG REICHOLD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

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