Gunning gas-controller

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Gunning gas-controller
Manufacturer	Gunning
Production years	20th century
Production location	(unknown)

This clockwork device, patented by Gunning in 1897, was designed to be wound up by the lamplighter at dusk in the act of turning on the gas, and itself turned off the gas automatically a given number of hours afterwards, so that a second daily visit form the lamplighter during the night or early morning was rendered unnecessary.

[edit] How it works

Each evening at dusk the lamplighter pulled down the chain; this action rotated a pulley-wheel in an anti-clockwise direction, thus winding up the driving spring of the clock mechanism, which then commenced to drive the wheel slowly in a clockwise direction. This device was soon superseded by the fully automatic controller exhibited adjacently.

[edit] Memories

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[edit] In the Science Museum's Records

Inv. No: 1938-462