Thermostat with overlapped bimetal control strips therein

Claim 2

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like comprising a casing having at least one open end, a bimetal strip extending into the casing as a cantilever, insulation means securing said strip at the initially open end of said casing and sealing said open end and around said bimetal strip, a shunt strip secured as a cantilever extending into said casing and insulated from both said bimetal strip and said casing at the secured end of said shunt strip, opposed contact means on said casing and the free end of said shunt strip and said shunt strip and said casing being adapted to have power leads secured thereto operatively connecting to said contact means, characterized by said bimetal strip being below and shorter than said shunt strip, a second bimetal strip secured at one end to the free end of said shunt strip and extending towards the initially open end of said casing, said second bimetal strip being offset from said shunt strip except for a short distance adjacent its secured end, said second bimetal strip having a free end overlying the free end of said first bimetal strip.

Claim 3

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like as in claim 1 where both of said bimetal strips move upwardly when heated, and where the cycle rate of the thermostat can be varied by changing the respective lengths and compositions of said bimetal strips.

Claim 4

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like as in claim 1 where said second bimetal strip is shorter than said first bimetal strip.

Claim 5

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like as in claim 1 where a current conducting lead extends into said casing and is secured to said shunt strip immediately adjacent to a said contact means.

Claim 6

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like comprising a casing having at least one open end, a bimetal strip extending into the casing as a cantilever, insulation means securing said strip at the initially open end of said casing and sealing said open end and around said bimetal strip, a shunt strip secured as a cantilever extending into said casing and insulated from both said bimetal strip and said casing at the secured end of said shunt strip, opposed contact means being provided within said casing with one of said contact means being operatively secured to the free end of said shuNt strip, and said shunt strip being adapted to have a power lead secured thereto characterized by said bimetal strip being spaced from and shorter than said shunt strip but movable towards said shunt strip when heated, a second bimetal strip secured at one end to the free end of said shunt strip and extending towards said initially open end of said casing, said second bimetal strip normally being offset from said shunt strip except for a short distance adjacent its secured end, said second bimetal strip having a free end positioned intermediate the free end of said bimetal strip and said shunt strip when considering the positions in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said casing

Claim 7

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like comprising a casing having at least one open end, a bimetal strip extending into the casing as a cantilever, insulation means securing said strip at the initially open end of said casing and sealing said open end and around said bimetal strip, a shunt strip secured as a cantilever extending into said casing and insulated from both said bimetal strip and said casing at the secured end of said shunt strip, opposed contact means being provided within said casing with one of said contact means being operatively secured to the free end of said shuNt strip, and said shunt strip being adapted to have a power lead secured thereto characterized by said bimetal strip being spaced from and shorter than said shunt strip but movable towards said shunt strip when heated, a second bimetal strip secured at one end to the free end of said shunt strip and extending towards said initially open end of said casing, said second bimetal strip normally being offset from said shunt strip except for a short distance adjacent its secured end, said second bimetal strip having a free end positioned intermediate the free end of said bimetal strip and said shunt strip when considering the positions in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said casing

Claim 8

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like as in claim 5 comprising a said bimetal strip being spaced from and shorter than said shunt strip but movable towards said shunt strip when heated, and said second bimetal strip which is above said bimetal strip moving toward said shunt strip when heated, the action of said bimetals resulting in a closing action of the contacts at a significantly lower temperature than the temperature at the opening action of the contacts.

Claim 9

A thermostat, thermal protector, or the like as in claim 5 where insulation means are operatively positioned intermediate the free ends of said bimetal strips.

Claim 10

A thermostat, thermal protector or the like as in claim 5 and including a power lead extending into said casing from said open end thereof, said insulation means insulating said power lead from said shunt strip, and an end of said power lead being secured to said shunt strip in the area of the free end thereof.