Push rod mechanism with accumulative lock apparatus

Claim 1

IN A PUSH ROD MECHANISM FOR USE IN ELECTRIC SWITCH GEAR OR THE LIKE, THE COMBINATION OF A PAIR OF GENERALLY FLAT, RIGID SUPPORT PLATES, MEANS FOR SECURING SAID PLATES IN OPPOSED SPACED RELATION SO THAT ONE PLATE HAS ITS FACE OPPOSITE THE FACE OF THE OTHER PLATE, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SUCH FACES CONSTITUTING THE SPACING BETWEEN SAID PLATES, A PLURALITY OF SIMILAR FLAT DISCS DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID PLATES, SAID DISCS BEING LATERALLY OFFSET FROM EACH OTHER AND HAVING A THICKNESS SMALLER THAN THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID OPPOSED PLATES, MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID DISCS SO THAT THE CENTERS OF SAID DISCS EXTEND ALONG A STRAIGHT LINE AS VIEWED IN PLAN, SAID DISC SUPPORTING MEANS PERMITTING MOVEMENT OF SAID DISCS ALONG SAID LINE OF CENTERS, A PLURALITY OF LATERALLY OFFSET PARALLEL RODS SUPPORTED FOR LIMITED LONGITUDINAL TRAVEL ALONG LINES PERPENDICULAR TO THE LINE OF CENTERS OF SAID DISCS, AT LEAST CERTAIN OF SAID RODS HAVING ACTIVE END PORTIONS WHOSE WIDTHS TAPER FROM NORMAL WIDTH DIMENSIONS TO POINTS AT THE VERY TIPS OF SAID RODS, THE WIDTH DIMENSIONS OF SAID ACTIVE ROD PORTIONS BEING PARALLEL TO THE PLANE OF SAID DISCS AND THE RODS BEING SO ORIENTED THAT THE THICKNESS OF SAID ACTIVE ROD END PORTION IS DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID SUPPORT PLATES, THE ACTIVE ROD PORTIONS TAPERING IN WIDTH FROM SAID POINTS TO PROVIDE CAM EDGES EXTENDING FROM SAID ROD TIPS TO THE SIDE EDGES OF SAID ACTIVE ROD PORTIONS, THE CAM OUTLINE BEING DETERMINED BY THE TAPERING WIDTH OF THE ACTIVE ROD PORTIONS AND BEING INDEPENDENT OF THE THICKNESS THEREOF, MEANS FOR BIASING AT LEAST CERTAIN OF SAID RODS TO EACH OF TWO END POSITIONS DEFINING THE RANGE OF ROD MOVEMENT, ONE POSITION CORRESPONDING TO THE IN ROD POSITION AND THE OTHER CORRESPONDING TO THE OUT ROD POSITION, SAID ACTIVE ROD