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US3795006A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Seismic shock recorder and annunciator system
Assignee: Individual
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Filing: 1973-05-17
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Granted: 1974-02-26
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Expires: 1993-05-17
Abstract
Abstract A seismic shock recorder and annuciator system for installation in locations where effects of earthquake or other shocks may be of critical importance, e.g., at nuclear power plants. The recorder is a sealed, passive instrument employing a set of resonant cantilever reeds provided with styli which emboss linear records on stationary record plates. The plates, as in my prior U. S. Pat. No. 3,683,397, may have special surface coatings which make detectible the individual excursion peaks of the motion of the styli, permitting the computation of the acceleration vs. time curve, as well as the response spectrum, even though the record plates do not move. The reeds are provided with novel improved damping and support means. The annunciator system signals the deflections of reeds beyond predetermined points, by means of contacts and novel electronic circuitry.
Inventors
- 👤 A Russell
- 👤 P Engdahl
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 07:21
CPC Classifications
G; G01; G01P; G01P1/00; G01P1/12; G01P1/127; G01H; G01H1/00; G01H1/04; G01H1/06; G01V; G01V1/00; G01V1/24; G01V1/242
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim
123 words
An instrument and annunciator for recording transient seismic accelerations, comprising: an array of substantially coplanar resonant reeds of progressively graded natural frequencies; a mass, a stylus suspension spring, and a stylus on the free end portion of each said reed; and a separate stationary, substantially rigid, record plate disposed in mechanical recording relation to each said stylus and substantially parallel to its plane of oscillation; at least some of said reeds being long and thin enough to experience substantial transverse inertial twisting when deflected with consequent secondary deflections normal to said plane; the free end portions of such reeds being provided with rollers disposed to roll along portions of said record plates to support said reeds against and to limit said secondary deflections.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
123 words
An instrument and annunciator for recording transient seismic accelerations, comprising: an array of substantially coplanar resonant reeds of progressively graded natural frequencies; a mass, a stylus suspension spring, and a stylus on the free end portion of each said reed; and a separate stationary, substantially rigid, record plate disposed in mechanical recording relation to each said stylus and substantially parallel to its plane of oscillation; at least some of said reeds being long and thin enough to experience substantial transverse inertial twisting when deflected with consequent secondary deflections normal to said plane; the free end portions of such reeds being provided with rollers disposed to roll along portions of said record plates to support said reeds against and to limit said secondary deflections.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
44 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 1, wherein: each said roller is positioned outward beyond each said stylus in a position to intercept the intrusion of human fingers, tools, or the like, and protect said stylus suspension spring and stylus from damage therefrom.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
55 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 1, wherein: said rollers are sized to allow small predetermined clearances between them and adjacent record plates, and said stylus suspension springs are pre-bent to a deflection larger than said clearance, whereby each said stylus is constrained to remain always in recording contact with each said record plate.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
62 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 1, further comprising: viscous elastomeric damping means on said reeds, said damping means comprising at least one strip of metal foil bonded to portions of each said reed with a layer of an elastomeric material, deflections of said reeds straining said elastomeric material in shear to impose viscous damping on the oscillations of said reeds.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
62 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 1, further comprising: stylus damping means on at least a portion of each said stylus suspension spring and comprising a strip of metal foil bonded thereto with a layer of adhesive elastomeric material, deflections of said stylus suspension springs straining said elastomeric material in shear to impose viscous damping and prevent chattering of said stylus.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
100 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 1, further comprising: reed contacts on the free end portions of said reeds, and stationary electrical contacts adapted to be engaged thereby upon deflections of said reeds to predetermined amplitudes; said stationary contacts being connected to flip-flop circuits to change their states upon engagement of said stationary contacts by said reed contacts, output connections from the outputs of said flip-flop circuits to the inputs of display device driving circuits, and electrically-actuated display devices actuable from said driving circuits, said display devices displaying the fact of said engagement and retaining their actUations until reset.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
110 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 6, wherein: each said flip-flop circuit has an output terminal and each said driving circuit comprises an input transistor, a diode is connected between said output terminal and the base of said input transistor, and the emitter of said input transistor is connected to a point of constant potential, a state-setting current path being defined from said point through the base-emitter junction of said input transistor and through said diode to said output terminal, whereby each said flip-flop circuit is automatically set to a predetermined state wherein its output terminal is at the potential of said point when the system is turned on.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
53 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 6, further comprising: a reset bus, connections from said bus to one input terminal of each of said flip-flop circuits, and a manual reset switch to connect said bus momentarily to a point of predetermined potential to reset all said flip-flop circuits to a predetermined state.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
68 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 6, further comprising: a test bus, an individual diode connected between the base circuit of each said input transistor and said test bus, and a manual test switch connected between said bus and a point of predetermined potential, closure of said test switch causing each said input transistor to conduct and thereby activate said driving circuits and energize said display devices.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
33 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 6, wherein said flip-flop circuits have input impedances greater than 107 ohms, thereby being actuable by said contacts even in the presence of high contact resistance.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
124 words
An instrument and annunciator as in claim 6, wherein: said flip-flop circuits are made up of interconnected pairs of integrated gate circuits, a plurality of said gate circuits are contained in a single package and a plurality of said packages comprise a portion of said annunciator, at least two pairs of said stationary electrical contacts are provided in contactible relation to each said reed contact, each contact of a pair being located at opposite points corresponding to substantially equal deflection of said reed contacts, and each contact of each said pair is connected to input terminals of flip-flop circuits in separate packages, whereby failure of a said package will cause loss of annunciation at one end of said deflection, but not at the other.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1977-02-25 | 1977-08-27 | 1978-02-26 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-02-25 | 1981-08-27 | 1982-02-26 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-02-25 | 1985-08-27 | 1986-02-26 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |