Show gen general e kalele electric dri c company communicated while some unique developments have characterized the progress in the electrical industry made ladeby by the general electric company during the general advance has consisted very largely or of improvements in apparatus that had already attained relatively high efficiencies both electrically and mechanically the essential features of the achievements embrace a marked refinement in design resulting in increased efficiencies for many classes of apparatus economical concentration cent ration of large energy values in single machines and a broadening of the field of application based on experiment and analysis of exhaustive operating data transformers prior to 1914 the largest core type transformers produced by the general electric company did not exceed 2000 kv a in rated capacity but during the year the maximum rating was carried up to kv a the maximum rating of single phase water cooled shell type transformers has also been increased by the construction of four units of kv a capacity there has been a marked reduction in interruption to service in transformers of recent design as they are now capable of withstanding momentary short circuits under sustained primary voltage without injury to the coils this has been accomplished largely through changes in the groupings of the coils and working to higher inherent reactance A feature of unusual interest for the year is the development of a combination transformer which may be operated either self cooled or water cooled it may be designed for normal operation with water circulated through the cooling coils in which case it may also be safely operated at 50 per cent of normal load without the circulation of water and without exceeding its specified temperature rise one the other hand this transformer may be designed for normal unit and be provided operation as a self cooled with the necessary cooling coils which when utilized permit operation efficiently at 50 per cent above the normal capacity the economical advantages or of such transformers are obvious especially for localities cali ties where the purchasing rate of water is high and the transformer is fully loaded only part of the time this design also provides a factor of safety in case of interruption in the water supply in which event the apparatus may still be operated at partial load instead of being shut down mine locomotives all of the mine locomotives manufactured by the general electric company in 1914 were provided with commutating pole motors and ball bearings as standard equip aix LA A HP induction motor driven mine hoist ment and the operating records of those placed in service during the year show that these improvements have reduced the number of interruptions to service and have resulted in decreased maintenance cost the increasing output of many mines has rendered it ft necessary to equip with locomotives loco 0 of relatively large capacity capable bof of handling heavy trips over steep grades and for long hauls for this class of service there have been built a number of 3 motor 15 and 20 ton locomotives the 20 ton unit combines some unusual features in design and construction the body is 11 made of rolled steel each side frame being cut from a solid rolled steel slab while steel slabs in conjunction with steel channels are used for the end frames the three driving motors are each rated at 85 hp h p and are of the split frame type these particular locomotives co were built for 42 inch gauge but the same construction and capacity can be I 1 utilized for a minimum of 36 inch gauge up to date practice in haulage locomotives 4 may be represented by reference to the constructive features of a typical 16 ton single truck three motor unit in this the latest type of industrial locomotive the truck frame is built of steel throughout both the sides and ends being cut froni from single pieces of solid slab the Plat platform forni is built of steel channels and plates and the cab of steel sheets it is a standard gauge machine and in so far as possible all details have been developed along the lines of standard railway practice the wheels axles journal boxes brake b beams ams brake shoes and couplings being all in accordance cor dance with MOB requirements it is driven by two 60 hp h p volt motors and equipped with straight air brakes an interesting type of locomotive has 41 also been constructed for service at thea the mines of the braden copper company in chile S A it is a 25 ton double truck 1 l machine for 30 inch gauge and has an overall height of only seven and one half feet the four dr draing aing motors are each rated at 45 hp h p volts multiple unit con arol and automatic air brakes are also ini in I I 1 eluded in the equipment it is probable that this locomotive is the heaviest wiehl with the narrowest gauge and the lowest overall height of any machine of this type ever built there has been a definite increased demand for the storage battery type of locomotive for gathering work as it has been demonstrated that in this service each locomotive co do will effectually displace at least two or three mules heavy units are note not as a rule required and the locomotives of this class so far provided have been rated at from three to seven tons most of these are of the straight storage battery type but a limited number have in addition been equipped so that they can operate from a trolley wire when in the main head ings of a mine the advantages of this arrangement are obvious in that by means of a small self contained motor generator set the battery may be automatically charged while the locomotive is running on the trolley when the locomotive is work wor ing the rooms gathering the cars a varying percentage of the battery charge will be consumed but as soon as the locomotives is again operated on the trolley these loss I 1 es are automatically compensated for with this dual system of operation the battery need never be entirely discharged and I 1 if space limitations are severe it permits the th use of a smaller battery than would other othe wise be necessary A representative ma niad chine of this type has been in ope operation operatic ratio in a west virginia mine tor for a a period 0 about four months it runs on a 42 9 i gauge tra track k and its overall height does no j exceed 30 inches mine hoists i the largest induction motor shaft hoist I 1 equipment in america was placed in oper aljon tion in Noy november ember 1914 at lansford pa for the lehigh coal navigation com the driving motor is rated at lp l vany p r p three phase 25 cycle and drives ahr through ough a single reduction gear S positive control of the hoisting speed is secured by means of an improved type of liquid f rheostat and high tension air brake contractors the motor circuit being 2300 volts this hoist serves a ft vertical shaft hoisting pounds per trip at the rate of 90 trips per hour with a maximum rope speed of approximately 1600 feet per minute t k the liquid rheostat referred to above was developed primarily for mine hoist service and insures safe operation at quick reversal it employs two sets of fixed electrodes at different elevations one set is widely spaced while the other set has large electrode areas and has small spacing in order to obtain a very low final slip the two sets of electrodes are connected in parallel after the electrolyte has reached a certain level corresponding to a predester reflectors insures a more effective control of the light distribution than any type of globe yet developed for street car headlights a new line of concentrated filament incandescent lamp has been provided and a large percentage of these now in service are equipped with a new and highly efficient form of glass parabolic reflector the improved efficiencies that have been obtained during the year in luminous are arc lamps have been due very largely to the production of an electrode which for a given current consumption produces from 30 to 50 per cent more light than any electrode previously utilized this has been accomplished through exhaustive hau stive research work resulting in new electrode compositions containing a larger proportion of titanium than older electrodes the use of this element in suitable combination enables this type of are arc lamp to give the highest illuminative efficiencies yet obtained by any commercial lamp in addition to this the arc lamp mechanism has been simplified and the light distribution improved by the adoption of a prismatic refractor similar in principle to that E mu 5 rw 11 1 A 10 u rp GENIAL TRIG COMPANY 11 II 11 1 10 7 Z g combination storage battery and trolly mine locomotive with platform removed to show internal arrangement decrease in motor voltage all parts y of the rheostat itself are stationary thus insuring absolute reliability the electro lyte level is varied through the operation t of a movable weir and a small motor daiv 1 en pump lighting the commercial application of the high i efficiency mazda lamp involved the design of a complete new line of fixtures these were nere rendered necessary partly by the in crease ease in size and the modifications in the shape ape of the lamp which were found advis I 1 able due to the concentration in a single incandescent unit of the large candle power permitted by the high efficiency type of lamp mp but largely because of the increased temperatures Pera tures experienced in their opera tion during the past year these lamps have been een successfully adopted for street light ing ng in a number of cities and for series operation nation they have been provided with a new type pe of compensator having efficiencies of from 93 to 95 per cent with power factors actors or of from 97 to 98 per cent there has also been developed by the general beneral Oe electric company a prismatic re brator actor which in with suitable designed for the high efficiency mazda lamp but differing from it in form these commutative improvements have resulted in the production of a new line of 5 amp luminous are arc lamps giving practically the same illuminating values obtained with 66 amp lamps A 5 amp series rectifier is also available for operation in connection with the new lamps the vast number and varied character of the developments in the modern electrical industries renders it exceedingly difficult to give in limited space comprehensive description of teh progress made in any year in this reference to a limited number of specific examples it may be reiterated that most of the apparatus and devices cited have already been subjected to the stresses of commercial service and have successfully withstood operating tests |