Interrupter - Wikipedia

An interrupter in electrical engineering is a device used to interrupt the flow of a steady direct current for the purpose of converting a steady current ... Interrupter FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia Jumptonavigation Jumptosearch Forotheruses,seeInterrupter(disambiguation). GoldingBird'soriginalsketchofhisinterruptercircuit.Description:Theprongsattheendofthepivotedarmdipintomercuryfilledrecesses.Thiscompletesacircuitwhichenergisesacoilaroundtheironpivotarmandfunctionsasanelectromagnet.Themagneticpolarityissoarrangedthatapermanentmagnetunderneaththearmthenrepelsthepivotarmandcausesthecircuittobreak,buttheprongsattheotherendofthepivotarmthencloseanidenticalcircuitatthatendandtheprocedurerepeatsendlessly.Theoutputoftheinterrupterisfedtoaninductioncoilwhichgreatlyincreasesthevoltageappliedtothepatientbytransformeraction.[1] Aninterrupterinelectricalengineeringisadeviceusedtointerrupttheflowofasteadydirectcurrentforthepurposeofconvertingasteadycurrentintoachangingone.Frequently,theinterrupterisusedinconjunctionwithaninductor(coilofwire)toproduceincreasedvoltageseitherbyabackemfeffectorthroughtransformeraction.Thelargestindustrialuseoftheinterrupterwasintheinductioncoil,thefirsttransformer,whichwasusedtoproducehighvoltagepulsesinscientificexperimentsandtopowerarclamps,sparkgapradiotransmitters,andthefirstX-raytubes,aroundtheturnofthe20thcentury.Itslargestusewasthecontactbreakeror"points"inthedistributoroftheignitionsystemofgasolineengines,whichservedtoperiodicallyinterruptthecurrenttotheignitioncoilproducinghighvoltagepulseswhichcreatesparksinthesparkplugs.Itisstillusedinthisapplication. Contents 1Medicaluse 1.1Bird'sinterrupter 1.2Page'sinterrupter 1.3Letheby'sinterrupter 1.4Otherdesigns 2References 3Bibliography Medicaluse[edit] Bird'sinterrupter[edit] ThephysicianGoldingBirddesignedhisowninterruptercircuitfordeliveringshockstopatientsfromavoltaiccellthroughaninductioncoil.Previously,theinterrupterhadbeenamechanicaldevicerequiringthephysiciantomanuallyturnacogwheel,orelseemployanassistanttodothis.Birdwishedtofreehishandstobetterapplytheelectricitytotherequiredpartofthepatient.Hisinterrupterworkedautomaticallybymagneticinductionandachievedaswitchingrateofaround5Hz(fivetimespersecond).[1]Thefastertheinterrupterswitches,themorefrequentlyanelectricshockisdeliveredtothepatientandtheaimistomakethisashighaspossible.[2] Page'sinterrupter[edit] ArathermorecumbersomeinterrupterwasconstructedbytheAmericanCharlesPageslightlyearlierin1838butBird'sworkwasentirelyindependent.Althoughthereislittleincommonbetweenthetwointerrupterdesigns,Pagetakesthecreditforbeingthefirsttousepermanentmagnetsinanautomaticinterruptercircuit.Bird's(andPage's)interrupterhadthemedicallydisadvantageousfeaturethatcurrentwassuppliedinoppositedirectionsduringthemakeandbreakoperations,althoughthecurrentwassubstantiallylessduringthemakeoperationthanthebreak(currentisonlysuppliedatallwhiletheswitchisdynamicallychanging).Treatmentoftenrequiredthatcurrentwassuppliedinonespecifieddirectiononly. Letheby'sinterrupter[edit] AmodifiedversionoftheinterrupterwasproducedbyHenryLethebywhichcouldoutputonlythemake,oronlythebreakcurrentsbyamechanismconsistingoftwospokedwheels.Birdalsoproducedauni-directionalinterrupterusingamechanismwewouldnowcallsplit-rings.ThedateofBird'sdesignisuncertainbutmaypredateLetheby's.Bothdesignssufferedfromthedisadvantagethatautomaticoperationwaslostandtheinterrupterhadtoonceagainbehand-cranked.Nevertheless,thisarrangementremainedacheaperoptionthanelectromagneticgeneratorsforsometime.[1][3] Otherdesigns[edit] Otherearlyinterruptersworkedbyclockworkmechanismsor(non-magnetic)reedswitchesoperatedbymotionofthepatient'slimbs.OneexampleofsuchadeviceisfoundinthePulvermacherchain.[4] References[edit] ^abcBird(1838),pp.18–22 ^Coley,p.368Morus,pp.250–251 ^Morus,pp.250–251Bird,Lectures,pp.119–122Letheby,pp.858–859 ^Lardner,p.289Pulvermacher,p.2 Bibliography[edit] Bird,Golding"Observationsoninducedelectriccurrents,withadescriptionofamagneticcontact-breaker",PhilosophicalMagazine,pp.18–22,no.71,vol.12,January1838. Bird,GoldingLecturesonElectricityandGalvanism,intheirphysiologicalandtherapeuticalrelations,Wilson&Ogilvy,London,1847. Coley,N.G."ThecollateralsciencesintheworkofGoldingBird(1814–1854)",MedicalHistory,vol.13,iss.4,pp. 363–376,October1969. Morus,IwanRhysFrankenstein'sChildren:Electricity,Exhibition,andExperimentinEarly-nineteenth-centuryLondon,PrincetonUniversityPress,1998ISBN 0-691-05952-7. Lardner,DionysiusElectricity,Magnetism,andAcoustics,London:Spottiswoode&Co.1856. Letheby,Henry"Adescriptionofanewelectro-magneticmachineadaptedsoastogiveasuccessionofshocksinonedirection",LondonMedicalGazette,pp.858–859,13November1846. Pulvermacher,IsaacLewis"Improvementinvoltaicbatteriesandapparatusformedicalandotherpurposes",U.S.Patent9,571,issued1February1853. 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