Electric ignition devices

Claim 1

IN AN ELECTRIC IGNITION DEVICE, AN IGNITER HAVING A PAIR OF IGNITION ELECTRODES RELATIVELY MOVABLE BETWEEN CLOSED AND OPEN POSITIONS, BIASING MEANS URGING SAID ELECTRODES TO THE CLOSED POSITION, ELECTRIC ACTUATING MEANS FOR DRIVING THE ELECTRODES FROM THE CLOSED POSITION TO THE OPEN POSITION AT A SELECTED FREQUENCY TO PROVIDE AN INTERMITTENT ARC ACROSS THE ELECTRODES, CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTING SAID ELECTRODES AND SAID ACTUATING MEANS IN SERIES CIRCUIT, SAID ACTUATING MEANS WHEN ENERGIZED CAUSING SAID ELECTRODES TO BE DRIVEN TO THE OPEN POSITON PROVIDING AN ARC AND BREAKING SAID CIRCUIT ALLOWING SAID BIASING MEANS TO CLOSE SAID ELECTRODES AND REENERGIZE SAID CIRCUIT, AND AN AUXILIARY CIRCUIT MEANS FOR ENERGIZING SAID ACTUATING MEANS UPON FOREIGN MATTER PREVENTING THE ELECTRICAL CLOSING OF SAID ELECTRODES, SAID AUXILIARY CIRCUIT MEANS BEING CONNECTED IN PARALLEL TO SAID ELECTRODES AND IN SERIES WITH SAID ACTUATING MEANS AND FORMING AN ELECTRICAL PATH FOR INTERMITTENTLY ENERGIZING SAID ACTUATING MEANS WHEN SAID ELECTRODES FAIL TO CLOSE NORMALLY.