Headlamp

“ Powerful ground glass lens, automatic wick lock, and other improvements for ’98 consist of a new thumb-screw bracket fitted with double springs, an improved method of fastening the front and a wide tube burner, which takes a 3⁄4 inch wick and gives a broad, strong light. They also make a lamp called the Leader, which, while not quite so expensive in construction as the Frontlight, is, however, one of the most satisfactory lamps on the market. ”

“ If one lamp went out through the filament giving way, it would not affect the others, so that there would still be a light in the lantern. If, through some breakdown of the engine or dynamo, the electric current were no longer to be had, then it [42] Mast-head light. would only be necessary to withdraw the stand of lamps, and put in the ordinary regulation oil-lamp. The mast-head lamp could also be fitted with the electric light, as indeed has already been done. Arc light should never be used. ”

“ Yes, and that, too, is one of the great reasons why we light the front lamps. If we were to start out on a night journey with no lamps burning, there would be great danger of accident, and especially if we were to meet another automobile which had no lights burning. We would be apt to bump into each other. The law recognizes all this and compels us to keep our automobile lights brilliantly shining.
"Dwight L. Moody, the great evangelist, tells the story that as he was walking along a dark city street one night, he met a man, who carried an object in each of his hands. ”

“ In the case of a glow-lamp, the entire resistance is provided by the filament of the lamp itself, and that is why an ordinary metal or carbon filament lamp, for say 200 volts, has to be manufactured with an extremely long and slender, and therefore fragile, filament, while with an ordinary pocket-torch, which is usually supplied with current from a dry battery of some 3 or 4 volts only, the filament can be short and thick.
Speaking generally, glow-lamps on a low voltage current can be made more efficient than on a high one, and are also longer lived for very obvious reasons ”

“ On passenger steamers, side one blaze of light, and side lights barely visible. but many who have seen a large passenger steamer go past will have noticed how her side was—one, [43] two, or three rows of dazzling bright lights, and will have looked almost in vain for the green or red light dimly visible in the midst of all the bright ones. If bright electric lights, therefore, are shining through the ports, we must have our side lights at least as bright, so as to give them a chance of being seen. If electric lamps are used as side lights, the dynamo must be kept running all night. ”

“ I am aware that arc lamps are used in the Royal Albert Docks, London, in connection with the dock lighting, lamps being carried below when required, with flexible leads attached, and that, in some few steamers, arc lamps have been used in the same manner in connection with their own plant. Arc lamps not suitable. These arc lamps are, I think, not nearly as suitable as incandescent lamps for the purpose of lighting up a ship’s hold; the light is too glaring, and casts deep shadows amongst the bales and cases, besides which, the lamps are large and clumsy. ”

“ For these lamps there is provided a new style of holder, which is at once simple and efficient. Each lamp has its own switch, which is entirely of metal; and it is provided with a lead-wire, which fuses in the event of the current being too strong. In the case of every set of about twenty lamps there is another switch, so that the lights can be turned on and off in groups as well as individually; and another lead-wire, so that the leading wires may be protected from too strong a current. The whole system is such as to preclude the possibility of fire. ”

“ Sometimes two or more lamps are placed in groups between the parallel leads; these are then in series with regard to one another, and can only be turned on or off two or more at a time, in other words, one group at a time. If lamps suitable, each one turns on and off separately. If our dynamo is producing a current of 100 volts E.M.F. when working at its proper speed, and our lamps are 100-volt lamps, we shall be able to turn each lamp [27] on or off separately; but if we want to put in 50-volt lamps, we must place two together, and we shall then have to turn them on or off two at a time. ”

“ A difference of a few lamps, affecting the engine to a small extent only, should be compensated automatically by the governor. If the brightest lamps are not bright enough, the speed should be increased a little, but care must be taken not to overdo it, because if the current is too strong, some of the safety fuses will melt, and the corresponding lamps will go out. It must not be inferred from what I have said, that it is necessary to run the dynamo at first without switching on any lamps. Turn all lamps on, and light up gradually. ”

“ The motor-house is illuminated by means of electric light, connectors are placed in the walls on either side, and also in the pit, for portable electric lamps which are most necessary for making examinations. One of the best forms of lamp and lamp-holder which have ever been devised is that made by the Edison and Swan Company, and intended for the examination of the interior of barrels. The shape of the lamp and the nature of its protection are such that it can be inserted between all parts of the machinery where a couple of inches of space exists. ”

“ The invention and development of the drawn-wire lamp, made by various firms and sold under trade names such as "Osram," "Mazda," and "Z," have made a great saving in the annual bill for electric light, and at the same time have raised the standard of illumination. With the carbon filament, a 32 c.p. lamp would burn for seven and a half hours with the expenditure of one unit of electricity. Now the same light can be obtained for twenty-five hours at the same cost with the metal filament lamp. ”

“ The lamp is, of course, a small incandescent bulb; the battery is the long cylindrical cell cut up into three short ones and carried in the lamp case, as shown. Turning down the handle on top closes the circuit and starts the lamp; lifting the handle cuts the lamp out. The cells are furnished with wire connections on, and the rider does not have to make a single attachment, nor need he have the slightest knowledge of electricity or any conjecture how the lamp operates. He has only to slip his fresh cells (which are joined as one piece) into the case, observing that he puts them right side up. ”

“ Concentrated filament lamps are made for stereopticon and motion picture projection, floodlighting, etc., in sizes from 100 to 1000 watts, for street railway headlights in sizes below 100 watts and for locomotive headlights in sizes from 100 to 250 watts. For series circuits, used in street lighting, lamps are made from 60 to 2500 candlepower. Miniature lamps cover those for flashlight, automobile, Christmas-tree, surgical and dental services, etc. They range, depending on the service, from 1⁄2 to 21 candlepower, and in voltage from 21⁄2 to 24.
92
Standard Tungsten Lamps, 1923. ”

“ These glow-lamps are used for different purposes and ways. They may be used with care, they may be used recklessly; their duration depends a good deal upon the care with which they are used. A practiced eye, one who is accustomed to deal with electric lamps, can tell at a glance when the lamp is raised to a proper incandescence; but there is a point in all lamps that is a sign of danger, and indicates "breakers (or breakage) ahead." Whenever in an electric light installation a glow-lamp begins to show a blue effect, then breakers are ahead; the current must be reduced or other steps taken. ”

“ On no account, however, should an arc light be used, as besides being too dazzling, it is much too uncertain; in fact many other reasons could be given for rejecting it. It is even a question whether it is an advantage to have incandescent lamps for a mast-head light. There is certainly the great advantage of not having to pull the lamp up and down to trim it, a rather risky performance in heavy weather, and also of the light not being affected by any wind that may get into the lamp ”

“ Constant-potential lamps cannot be operated without resistance in the circuit; this resistance may be in the lamp itself or outside.
(6) Never handle high tension lamps without insulating yourself from the ground; and handle live wires only with one hand at a time.
(7) Provide spark arresters for all open-arc lamps in the vicinity of inflammable material.
(8) Never leave a lamp without globes where the wind can strike it. It will be blown out or feed often, thus consuming the electrodes very fast and at the same time yielding a very poor light. ”

“ Lamps not to be run too bright. For the sake of economy, it is well not to run the lamps too bright. Without giving the lamps the maximum current a very good light can be obtained, and they will last all the longer. I need hardly say that there is a medium in this as in everything else, and it does not look well when a candle is placed alongside of an electric lamp to enable a person to read or write in comfort.
All this time the dynamo is running, and we must feel the bearings occasionally to see if they [39] are keeping cool. No trouble with dynamo if oiling is attended to. ”

“ Remove the braid, or covering, of the free ends of the two wires for about two or three inches, and after scraping and cleaning the ends of the wire, twist them tightly with the two wires projecting from the lamp; then all the connections are made. If you now place the zincs and carbons in the solution (which I will presently refer to more particularly) , your battery will produce a current which will make the little lamp give a light as sparkling as a diamond. The lamp is the most important part of the outfit, and cannot be made by amateurs. It must be bought of a dealer. ”

“ In some lamp-fittings the ends of the leads are held in a spring grip in the base of the bracket, and it may happen that they have slipped out, and so broken the circuit, and extinguished the light. In the Swan lamps, and others of a similar pattern, one of the little platinum loops in the base of the lamps sometimes gets broken off; the lamp is then of no further use. Recapitulation. To recapitulate, if a lamp goes out, the first thing is to see if the [41] filament is broken, next if it makes good contact. If it does not then light up, see if there is any current getting to it ”

“ High candle-power lamps, 500, 1000 and upwards, are made by placing in one large glass bulb a number of carbon filaments arranged in parallel between two rings, which are connected with the main leading-in wires. When incandescent lamps are used for optical purposes it is necessary to compress the filament into a small space, so as to bring it into the focus of a lens or mirror. ”

“ Actors have ways of obtaining the light they want by fair means or foul, and it is much better to arrange the lighting so that it will be satisfactory to those using it, than to have it continually tampered with.
A bright illumination is essential for making up and both sides of the face should be fully illuminated. To accomplish this it is necessary to provide [252] at least two lights for each mirror. Every lamp should be provided with a substantial guard which may be securely fastened to the outlet box. ”

“ The size of the various leads depends on the current to be conveyed, and is a matter for the electricians. Main leads and branch leads. On the main-deck of a large passenger steamer, the main leads may be carried along side by side under the upper deck, and from these, smaller ones branch off into the various sets of rooms, smaller ones still going into each room. In each room there will be one lamp with its switch to turn it on or off as desired, and a safety fuse. Lamps held in frosted globes. ”

“ The Microscope Lamp.—The introduction of paraffin into household use has somewhat modified our views with regard to the most suitable artificial source of illumination. Good paraffin burns with a whiter and purer flame than colza oil, and consequently is less liable to fatigue the eyes. The first cost of the lamp is trifling; for a moderate sum a handy form of lamp can be had, mounted on an adjustable sliding ring stand, and with a porcelain, metal 202 or paper shade, to protect the eyes from scattered rays of light. All opticians supply accepted forms of lamps. ”

“ At the hour of dusk the lamp is lighted, so I accompany the keeper (who now begins his watch) into the interior of the glass drum, and observe how, with a spring grip, he raises the lamp-chimney and ignites the wicks; but, being still daylight, the illumination is not brilliant, although it increases in brightness as night comes on. The next proceeding is to wind up the gear which rotates the drums, and as the weight to be lifted is equal to a ton, and the operation lasts about an hour, it is somewhat fatiguing. ”

“ The lamps referred to here are those having a pear-shaped glass bulb, and which are known as incandescent lamps. The kind we see in the streets, giving a very powerful light, are called arc-lights. With this class of lights, however, we will have nothing to do here. The object of this article is to give plain directions for the construction of a battery to light a small electric lamp. Some boys may think that because electricity is something mysterious it must be very difficult to produce ”

“ But friend of S. Sassoon?
“A VEHICLE, TO WIT, A BICYCLE.” (Dedicated, without permission, to my friend P. C. Flowers)
“My front-lamp, constable? Why, man, the moon!
My rear-lamp? Shining there ten yards behind me,
Warm parlour lamplight of The Dish and Spoon!”
But for all my fancy talk, they would have fined me,
Had I not set a rather sly half-crown
Winking under the rays of my front lamp:
Goodwill towards men disturbed the official frown,
My rear-light beckoned through the evening’s damp. ”