The Rating and Behavior of Fuse wires

W. M. Stine, H. E. Gaytes, C. E. Freeman
1895 Transactions of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers  
It is witl a certain feeling of lhesitation that the attention of the general engineering profession is again called to a series of investigations relatinig to the well-worn subject of fuse-wires. Withini tlhe past few vears a number of able papers on the subject by Mlessrs. J-ackson and Ochsner, Mr. C. P. MIatthews, and others, have beeni presented to the INSTITUTE. These hlave ablv supplemented the work of Preece and other foreigon irvestigators, and at the samTie timie developed somie
more » ... hitherto neglected. The latest contributor to this subject lhas been Mr. W. E. Elarrington, wlho employed the eircuit-breaker in his tests. The literature of the subject lhas beenr further incr-eased by sev eral excellent theses eanaiiatinig front-oaLr leading technical schlools. The bibliograplhiy, too, of this subject, lhas already been Ireferred to in the TRANSACTIONS of the INSTITUTE. However, the thermnal cut-out is still one of the inost unireliable of the inanv devices employed on electric cireuits. Its use is unliversal, but beyon-d a few practical details the device is but little understood. The blocks in whichl tlhey are used show some slow imiprovement, but most of th-is has been due to the vigilance of insurance boards, anid they are still far fromn perfect. As a souirce of vexation and uncer-tainty, the fuse is probably unilrivaled. An anialysis of the literature of the suLbject shows that the theory of the th-ermal eut-out lhas been thorouglylv investigated. The elements entering its action lhave been carefully studied and iincorporated into fairly satisfactory equlations. Yet all tests and treatments have showni the tlhermiial cut-out to be suibject to such variations and imiodifying influences that but 546 1. For illustrated description of this lamp-rack see Electrical Review, New York, October 24, 1894, p. 201.
doi:10.1109/t-aiee.1895.4763890 fatcat:5swcdjfkxbbk3ofadymyfhmoum