Scientific American Supplement, No. 446, July 19, 1884Various
Science
Scientific American Supplement, No. 446, July 19, 1884
Various
Science -- Periodicals
In the Edinburgh case, Sir Frederick Bramwell said: "The variations of
the currents are effected so as to produce with remarkable fidelity the
varied changes which occur, according as the carbon is compressed or
relieved from compression by the gentle impacts of the air set in motion
by the voice."
"The most prominent quality of carbon is its capability, under the most
minute differences of pressure, to enormously increase or decrease the
resistances of the circuit." "That the varying pressure of the black
tension-regulator (Edison's) is sufficient to cause a change in the
conducting power." Sir Frederick also said "he could not believe that
the resistance was varied by a jolting motion; could not conceive a
jolting motion producing variation and difference of pressure, and such
an instrument could not be relied on, and therefore would be practically
useless."
Sir William Thomson, in the same case, said: "The function of the carbon
is to give rise to diminished resistance by pressure; it possesses the
quality of, under slight degrees of pressure, decreasing the resistance
to the passage of the electric current;" and, also, "the jolting motion
would be a make-and-break, and the articulate sounds would be impaired.
There can be no virtue in a speaking telephone having a jolting motion."
"Delicacy of contact is a virtue; looseness of contact is a vice."
"Looseness of contact is a great virtue in Hughes' microphone;" and "the
elements which work advantages in Hughes' are detrimental to the good
working of the articulating instrument."
[Illustration: Fig. 1.]
Mr. Falconer King said: "There would be no advantage in having a jolting
motion; the jolting motion would break the circuit and be a defect in
the speaking telephone," and "you must have pressure and partially
conducting substances."
Professor Fleeming Jenkin said, "The pressure of the carbons is what
favors the transmission of sound."
All the above named scientific men agree that variations of a current
passing through a carbon microphone are produced by _pressure_ of the
carbons against one another, and they also agree that a jolting motion
could not be relied upon to reproduce articulate speech.
Mr. Conrad Cooke said, "The first and most striking principle of Hughes'
microphone is a shaking and variable contact between the two parts
constituting the microphone." "The shaking and variable contact is
produced by the movable portion being effected by sound." "Under Hughes'
system, where gas carbon was used, the instruments could not possibly
work upon the principle of pressure." "I am satisfied that it is not
pressure in the sense of producing a change of resistance." "I do not
think pressure has anything to do with it."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account