US2792443A - Ignition coil and support therefor - Google Patents

Description

. y 4, 1957 A. CATALANO 2,792,443

IGNITION COIL. AND SUPPORT THEREFOR Filed July 7, 1952 Anton/'0 Ca/a/ano INVENTOR mm.) 9 MW Fig. 2

ATTORNEYS United States PatentO IGNITION COIL AND SUPPORT THEREFOR Antonio Catalano, Milan, Italy Application July 7, 1952, Serial No. 297,468 Claims. (Cl. 17459) This invention has for its object to provide a removable ignition coil housing and a fixed support therefor, for motor cars, motorcycles and other units having explosion engines.

The ignition coils of motor cars are generally enclosed within boxes of circular shape, around which a collar is fixed, the flattened ends of which collar present holes for the passage of bolts by means of which the collar and the coil box are fixed on the vehicle in the proximity of the engine. The terminals for the feed wires, as well as the terminal for the high tension cable are all located on the coil box. For changing the coil of a motor car, it is necessary to take off the high tension cable, to disconnect the feed wires and to unscrew the fixing bolts of the collar. This latter operation presents difliculties some times when the screws are located in inaccessible places. At least a screwdriver is necessary for the coil changing operation. The high tension terminal, being located very near to the feed wire terminals, may easily cause a current discharge from the first to the second, especially when the weather is humid or when water becomes spread over the coil.

The present invention eliminates such inconveniences by providing a removable coil housing and a fixed support or holder therefor, in which the coil housing is held by resilient holding means in such a manner that the coil housing can be inserted into and removed from said support without the necessity of using any tool and with an easy and speedy hand operation.

Advantageously, the terminals for the feed wires are located on the support and are connected to contacts. Other contacts are located on the outside of the coil housing and connected with the coil contained in the coil housing, and both the said support contacts and the said coil housing contacts are arranged in such way that they touch each other when the coil housing is inserted into the holder or support.

According to one embodiment of this invention, the high tension terminal also may be fastened on the holder or support and may have a contact adapted to cooperate with a corresponding contact on the coil housing.

The above and other features of this invention will be better understood from the following specification with reference to the annexed drawing, in which:

Figures 1 and 2 show respectively a front elevation and a top view of a first embodiment of the removable coil housing and fixed support therefor, according to this invention;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of a second embodiment of the invention.

In Figures 1 and 2, 1 designates the coil housing, which is of circular cross section and has on its upper end the terminal 1" for the high tension cable and in the lower part an annular groove 1'. The coil housing is formed from any suitable electrically non-conductive material. At the upper part of the housing, two electrically conductive contact strips 2 are located at diametrically opposed points and are connected to the coil windings contained within the housing 1, as shown in Fig. 1.

The holder for the housing is constituted by an open collar 3, the flattened ends 3' of which have holes for the passage of fixing bolts by means of which the support is fastened onto the car or other fixed support. Two vertical spring leaves are fixed, for instance by means of screws 5, to said collar 3 at diametrically opposed points. The lower ends 4' of said leafs are bent so as to fit within the annular groove 1 of the coil housing in order to hold it in the holder. The upper ends of these leaves are provided with the terminals 7 for the feed wires, as Well as with flexible contacts 6 fixed to said terminals. The leaves 4 are electrically insulated from the terminals 7 and the contacts 6. The housing 1 has some vertical guiding protuberances on the outside of the upper part of its wall, so as to facilitate insertion into the holder or sup port in the right position and to prevent rotation of the housing in the holder.

it will be quickly understood that for removing the housing 1 from its holder, it will only be necessary to disconnect the high tension cable from the terminal 1" and to pull the housing 1 from the holder by overcoming the resistance of the flexible ends 4 of the holding leaves 4. In the same way and with the same rapidity a new housing can be inserted into the support, which remains fixed. The embodiment shown in Figure 3 is further improved by the fact that the collar 3 is provided on its front with an arm 8 which carries the terminal for the high tension cable, as well as a contact 10 connected to said terminal. The upper part of the housing 1 also carries a contact, as shown in Fig. 3, so that when the housing is inserted into the holder, the said contacts 10 are touching each other. In such way both the feed wires and the high tension cable are permanently fixed to terminals located on the support, and the housing can be removed from its support 3, 4, 4, 8, and a new housing can be inserted, without any other operation of disconnecting wires, cables or other parts.

It is understood that the feature of this invention, consisting broadly of a removable coil housing and a fixed support therefor, can be realized in other ways than those described and illustrated in the annexed drawings, without departing from the limits of this invention.

The removable ignition coil housing and fixed support therefor, according to this invention, offers the following advantages: Ability to store a reserve coil housing on the car because of the absence of any encumbering projection. Possibility of controlling the motor when it does not start, in order to determine whether the defect depends upon the coil, by quickly changing the coil. Ability to remove the coil and housing in order to prevent theft of the car. Quick changing of the coil when it has become hot after a long running. Exclusion of electric discharges from the high tension cable terminal to the feed wire terminals, because of the larger distance between them.

What I claim is:

l. in an ignition coil mounting assemblage, a strap like holder having means for fixedly securing it to a support, a housing of insulative material having exteriorally disposed and axially extending electrically conductive contact strips, said housing being axially slidable into the holder and embraced and held thereby, yieldable cooperative means carried by the holder and housing for releasably securing the housing within the holder, said holder having electrically conductive spring contacts extending transversely thereof and insulated therefrom and slidably engageable with said contact strips, and feed cable con-- nections connected to said spring contacts.

2. An ignition coil mounting assemblage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said yieldable cooperative means in eludes spring fingers carried by the holder and extending transversely thereof and having inwardly curved free ends, said housing having a groove arranged transversely of the contact strips and in which the free ends releasably fit, said spring' fingers carrying the spring contacts and the feed cable connections.

3. An ignition coil mounting assemblage as claimed in claim 1, including means for orienting the contact strips and the spring contacts for relative axial movement and for preventing rotation of the housing in the holder.

4. An ignition coil mounting assemblage as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contact strips are arranged on diametrically opposite points on the housing.

5. An ignition coil mounting assemblage as claimed in References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,415,945 Gilson Feb. 18, 1947 2,462,490 Hallett Feb. 22, 1949 2,512,796 Hartzell June 27, 1950 2,701,345 Henry Feb. 1, 1955

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