US1046054A - Cash-register. - Google Patents

Description

T. CARROLL. CASH RGISTBR. APPLIOATIONIILBD DB0. 29, 1897.

1,046,054.' L Patented B60411912.v

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

'Thomas Camz?.

T. CARROLL.

CASH REGISTER. APPLICATION FILED DEG. 29, 1897.

1 ,046,054, llatef-Led Deo. 3, `1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

l l Thomas A ffm/WE? j T. CARROLL.

CASH 'REG'ISIERI f 'APPLIUATloNyILED 3110.29, 1897.

1,046,054. Patented Dee; 3,1912.

a sEnETs-sHET a.

fum'

WITNESSES:

J VENTOR,

A TT ORNE Y .UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS CARROLL, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0 THE NATIONAL CASH REGISTER COMPANY, OF DAYTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION 0F OHIO,

(INCORPORATED IN 1903.)

CASH-REGISTER.

Application mea December 29, 1897.' serial Nofeezee.

To all whom i may concern: Y

Be it known that I, THOMAS CARROLL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dayton, in thel county of Montgomery and State of OhioT have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cash-Registers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a' full, clear, and' exact description of the invention.

This linvention relates to that type of cash registering and indicating machines in which the pressing in of amount keys sets up stops to limit the movements of stepped segments having compounded them with certain yoles Wherewith cooperate concentrically pivoted pawl-carrying arms, the latters pawls engaging the teeth of registering wheels which are also mounted concentrically with the segments and yokes. Such a general type of machine is illustrated and described in Patent 'No 570,141 issued Oct. 27, 1896', on the invention of John H. McCormick. The particular construction to which the present invention is applied, however, differs somewhat from the construct-ion lshown in this McCormick patent. lIn the latter the registering wh ls are turned bythe downward swing of he pawl-carrying armspermitted by the dropping of the yokes, whereas in the later construction to which the present invention more particularly relates, this downwardswin of the pawl-carrying arms simply-carries t e pawls back over the numbers efateeth of the registering wheels corresponding with the amount keys de- Y pressed, and the saidwhels `are not turned to make the registration until the yokes and arms are ,restored to. their normal positions.

Inthe interest of securing accurate movements of the registering 'wheels it .was found to be desirable to. lock the pawls to the wheels-duringthe registering movement and in the construction above referred to this wasl accomplished by' means of certain weighted arms pivoted concentrically with a the pawl-carrying arms and arrangedto drop Vinto engagement with the respective pawls after the latter had all been carried .back over the teeth of the registering wheels the distance determined by the depressed keys. A well known defect which as tobe guarded ,against a machines of this character is that of overthrow of the registering wheels as a result of energetic operation of theA machine. The locking of the pawls tothe registering wheels in the .manner above' (indicated was expected to prevent such defective action but inasmuch` as a disengagement of `the weighted arms from the pawls took place as the pawl-carrying arms were restored'to theirl normal upward positions it has been found to be still possible to overthrow the registering wheels `by a violent operation.

The prime object of the presentinvention is to etlectually overcome this diiculty Patented Dec. 3, 1912.

and in a construction'such4 as that above indicated7 this is accomplished by providing not only for the pawls being locked in engagement withthe registering wheels at the commencementI of the registering move# ments and until such movements have ceased, but furthermore to provide fo-r maintaining this locked relation until a subsequent operation of the machine. This is found to efectually cure the defectabove noted.

Nith this and incidental objectsin view,

the invention consists in certain novel fea# tures of construction and combinations of parts, the essential elements of which areA lset forth in appended claims and a preferred form of embodiment of which is hereinafter specifically described with reference to the drawings which accompany and form part of this specification. Y

Of said drawings: Figure 1 representsa cash registering and indicating machine of the type above mentioned in vertical section from front to rear, the present invention being shown ap lied thereto. Fig.. 2 is a top plan view o themachine. F ig'. 3

represents in perspective and on an enlarged'V scalethe pawl-locking devices employed in the. construction` hereinbefore mentioned as having followed that shown in the McCormick patent. Fig. 4 represents in 'a similar manner devices also used insaid known coi struction for effecting a transfer from one registering wheel to thenext higher wheel;`

and Eig. 5 represents in perspective some of the'devices providedl by the present inven- .tion to overcome. the difficulty already menn itiened, e

j .ivi

Y Inasmuch as the vkeyboard and devices directly controlled thereby do notmaterially ,differ from those shown in'said McCormic patent, no detailed description or illustration of the 'same yishere attempteda'nd for the same reason the ydrawer-releasing and key-detentdevices are not speclcally described. None of these things are essential to a complete understanding of the devices -o the present invention. Inasmuch how-` ever as the later construction alluded 'to is not villustrated in any prior patent it Will be described more in detail --than Would other- Wise' be necessary.

The numerall 1 designates the main 'supporting frame of the machine; 2 the registering ratchet wheels mounted to turn independently upon a ixed shaft 2a; 3 the pawl-carrying arms which are also indem pendently j ournaled upon said shaft 2 and carry the pivoted pawls 4 for engagementV .with the teeth of the Wheels 2; 4f the yokes 'which arc also journaled upon the shaft 2` and upon which rest depending curved abutf ments of the said arms 3a; and 5 the Weighted arms or locking levers' also journaled upon the shaft 2a and formed )Vith noses 4c which are adapted to engage 1n notches4b of thefpawls 4 for the purpose of locking the latter to theh registering Wheels. .The devices for controlling these Weighted arms 1n the known construction heretofore mentioned comprise a substantially semi. cylindrical frame 6 journaled upon a shaft- 7 fixed in the ymain Jframe-Work 1, said frame 6 having a longitudinal shoulder 7' on which the rear ends of the weighted armse Would normally rest; a spring 13 coiled about the shaft 7 and fastened at one end to the main framev and at the other to the journaled frame 6 so `as to tend to turn the latter in a direction to arry the shoulder 7 back from under the ends of the weighted arms 5 and permit the latter to drop; a latch lever 21 pivoted to a fixedarx'nlf)a of the main frame and adaptedito enga-ge a shoulder 7b. of the journaled `frame 6 .for the purpose of restraining the spring 13; and a link 21a vconnecting said yokes 4? are upheld by a main lever .2Oa which is compounded With ayoke 20, said lever and yoke ibeing jo-urnaled upon the latch-lever 21 toa tappet lever 21". In this 'already knowlr construction' the several central' shaft 2 and the lever co-acting with he cash 'drawer so as to be elevated by the closing fof' the latter. The operation of the yrelease. key and thc opening of Vthe drawer .fare accompanied by-,the4 dropping of this dropping of the yok-es is aocompaniedfby the dropplng of pawl-oarrying arms resting l upon them and which are to operate in the return movementsv to make the registration. It is provided that at the conclusion of the dropping.A movement the Weighted levers 5 shall be releasedso' as to drop into engagement with the pavvls and look the latter to i y.the registering-Wheels as the 11p-stroke commences. Hence the main lever 20i1 has compounded with it an arm 21 which. acts against the aforesaid tappeti-lever 2lb to disvengage the latch lever 21l from 'the shoulder of the spring-actuated frame 6 'at the proper time. Now in this already-known construction, the normal latched adjustment vof the spring-actuated frame 6 was such that the shoulder". 7a held the Weighted arms 5 elevat-ed and theirl noses 4 disengaged, from the notches 4b of the pawls so as to leave the latter free to drop, from which it will be understood that at the conclusion of any operation of t-he machine these weighted levers would be disengaged from the pavvls. Notwithstanding that the locked relation between the pawls and the Wheels obtained during the entire registering stroke and was not destroyed until that stroke had been concluded, it Was nevertheless found that an overthrow of the registering wheels might still take place in a violent operation of the machine.

By the present invention, means are rovided whereby the locked relation of t ese parts'will continue after -a complete operation of the machine has been made and will not be disturbed until a subsequent operation. ,According to the present invention, therefore, the said spring-pressed frame 6 stands normally in a position which permits engagement between' the noses 4c of the weightedarms 5 and -the notches 4b of the parvis 4 and in fact the shoulder 7 of said frame is entirely removed from the path of the said arms. The-present invention there- 'ore provides for turning the frame in a direction to lift the Weighted arms 5, at the very outset of an operation of the machine instead of at the conclusion of an operation. Hence the latch-lever 21 does not normally engage the shoulder 7b of the said rocking frame 6 as in the previous construct-ion.'

And such engagement `does not result until an operation of the machine has been started, and then at the conclusion of the vreparatory or downward swing of the yo esland paWl-carrying arms the frame is released in the manner heretoforedescribed so as to permit the falling of the Weighted arm into engagement with thepawls.

The means shown in the present case for carrying out the invention comprise a gear wheel or pinion 8 fixed to one end of the rocking frame 6; a toothed segment or rack f and :termed with an elongated hubor sleevey 1.0 journaled upon a cross-rod 11 of the 1 ,canoas 9 in mesh with said gear wheel. or pinion main trame between collars 12 xed to said rod (Fig'Q) and a triangular plate 14E pivoted to the side of said segment and drawn by a spiral spring 15 against a stop-pin 16 on said segment, the said spring being connected atone end to the forward corner of saidtriangular plate and at'the other end t'o a pin on the segment and-the lower corner of said triangular plate being formed with a nose 1'? to engage said pin 1G. lVhen the parts are in normal relation, theupper side or edge of the said plate is substantially horizontal. The main yoke 2O heretofore mentioned has an upward projection at one side in the nature of a weight as shown in Fig. 5 and there projects from the top of this portion an angular arm 18 whose horizontally extending upper end-portion over'- lies the triangular plate 14, normally engaging the upper sidev or edge of the latter as clearly illustrated in said figure. It vwill now be seen that upon the lowering of the main yoke, this arm 18 will act against said plate to the rear of its pivot and so long as the plate does notyield by turning on its pivot, the segment .9 will be swung downwardly, and consequently the pinion 8 and the frame 6 will be turned against the tension of the springl. This is exactly what takes place at the commencement of ,an operation of the machine with the result that the said frame 6 lifts the weighted levers 5 out of engagement with the pawls 4 and said .traine is latched in its new adjustment by engagement of the lever 21 with the shoulder 7*. As the main yoke descends the point ot' Contact of the angular arm 18 with the plate 1a shifts to the rear, or to the right in Fig. 1,

I this shitting being due, of course, to the fact that the pivot rods 29 and '11 ofthe yoke and the segment gear 9, are on opposite sides 'of the point ot Contact of the angular arm 18 with the plate 14, the linejoining the said pivot rods being below the said point of contact in the normal position of the parts. Therefore, the angular arm 18 will soon pass to the rear of the plate le, thereby releasing the plate and the segment gear, and said gear will be in'lmediately latched'by the latch arm 21, thereby holding the shoulder 7" in elevated position. 4As the main yoke with its lever 20 reaches the limit 'of its downward swing, the tappetarm 21C encounters the tappet lever 2lb and the latch lever 21 is thereby disengaged from the shoulder 7.1

of the frame 6 and the spring 13 immediately turns said frame back and removes the shoulder 7 from beneath the weighted levers 5 whereupon the latter drop into engagement with the pawls il. turning et the ti under the inuence f course this backward,

of its spring 13 restores the gear 8 and segment 9 to normal position. This normal relation of these parts whichpermits the locking levers 5v to remain engaged with the pawls l is not disturbed by the return of the main yoke and its arm 18, for the latter simply slides along the inclined rear edge ot the plate 14 displacing the same against the tension of the spring 15 until theupper end portion of said arm 18 passes by the rear upward corner `of the triangular plate whereupon the latter resumes its normal positionwith its top edge under the horizontal end portion oic the said arm 18, and its nose 17 abutting the pin 16.

lt will be seen that the construction above described as carrying out the present invention thoroughly'fulfils7 thepriniary objects stated. However, it .is to be understood that this object can be carried out by othery means within the scope of the Apresent invention.

As `already stated, the present invention provides for leaving the pawls lockedto the registering wheels at the end of an opera` V` such means being those which in said former 4 construction simultaneously disclose to view the registering wheels and disablethetransfer mechanism. In order that the transfer devices here referred to may be fully understood, a briet' description will be given of the mechanism of the already-known construction, with reference more particularly to Fig. 4. A series of shafts 2,5d are arranged to be successivelyrocked uponthe opening ot the drawer by an arm of the leverfZOa, said shafts 25d having for this pur'- pose a series of tappet projections on their lower sides; they also have slotted arms on their upper sides engaging respectively with Apins on levers 25C journaled upon the central shaft 2u, and carrying pivoted to them the several transfer' pawlsQa which have `overhanging lingers 25h. Pivoted to the rear poi'-v tions of the levers'C are latches 525f which ens gage noses 25e on the transfer pawls to hold 'f the latter normally elevated out of operative adjustment, the rearends of said pawls being connected by spiral springs with said latches 25f so that such' springs serve the-double purpose of impelling the pawls into operative position and bringing about engagement between the latches and the noses of said pawls... The rear ends of the latches have laterally projecting pins 25g which are engaged by the rear ends of trip levers 25h whoseforward ends rest upon peripheries of mick patent.

the registering Wheels. These latter are provided at intervals of ten teeth-With transfer projections 25i 'which acting upon the forward ends of levers 25h cause their rear ends to disengage the latches 25f' from the noses 25e of the transfer pawls. The operation. of this transfer' mechanism Will be sufliciently obyious Without further description. lVhen it is desired to turn the Wheels to zero, a cover-plate 22 (Fig. 1) hinged to the main frame is draivn down to expose the Wheels and this action disables the transfer -pawls through the medium of a rod'24 joined to an arm 23 on the pivot of 'the cover-plate 22, said rod 24 acting against an angular plate 25 which is fastened to a rock shaft and extends below the over-hanging fingers 25*i of the transfer pawl's so that when elevated it willl prevent said pawls from dropping. Thisy plate serves primarily to reset the transfer pawls, being rocked for this purpose at each operation of the machine through a crank and link connection With the tappet lever 21b heretofore described. 25

It is also utilized in the manner above indicated to hold out of operative position the transfer: pawls when the wheels are to be turned to zero.' Y

The present. invention provides for unlockingthe pawlsby the opening out of this cover-plate 22', the same being eiiected through the follovvingmea-ns: A rod 26 is loosely engaged with the rod 24: at the point of union of the latter with the arm 23 and this rod 26 is coupled at its rear end to one arm of a bell-crank leveli` 22'-4 pivotedon a cross-rod of the main fraineand having its other arm coupledby a slot and pin connection 28-30 to a vertically extending bar 29, Which at its upper end is pivotally connected with the segment 9. Itnvill be seen that the opening outwardly of the cover# plate 22 will draw forward the rod 26 and thereby depress the arwardly extending l arm of the bell-crank 27vvhich will have the eect of drawing down the/segment 9 and from vthe pawl 4 the same as when th main lever 20t operates.

There are numerous devices iiiand about the machine which are not described because they have no direct connection with the present invention, such for example, 'as they indicators 3 which operate practical] the same as those shown and described in t e McCor- It is. believed that ample illustration and `description will be afforded by the specification to clearly explain theiinvention and one specific mode of carrying it out. It is of course to be understood that the articular construction here\.shown is Simp y a` preferre'd Way ofembodying the invention and the latter isnot limited to this particular form of embodiment but .may be lcarried out in many other Ways.v Having thus described my invention, What I claim is,-

1. In a cash register, thecombination with a register, of operating paWls for the same, locking levers for said pavvls, a movable frame adapted toraise said levers, a' pinion on said frame, a rack engaging said pinion, and means for operating ther-'ack from the movable parts .of the machine.

2. In a cash register, the combination with a register comprising a plurality of regis. tering wheels, 'of operating aWls for said Wheels, locking levers for sai pawls, a movable frame for operating'said levers, a gear connected to said frame, and a rack engag ing said gear and connected to .the movable parts of the machine.A i

3. In a cash register, 'the combination with a register comprising a plurality of registering wheels having ratchet teeth on their peripheries, of operating pawls- Vfor said wheels, locking levers for said pawls, a rock frame for raising said levers, a latch for said frame, a s ring connecting said frame with the main rame, a pinion on said rock frame, and a pivoted rack meshing with said pinion and adapted to be operated by the moving part-s of the machine.

5. In a cash register, the combination with a register, of operating pawls for the'same, locking devices for said pavvls, a pivoted operating rack, means connected to said rack for operating the said locking devices, and a pivoted spring-pressed plate mounted on the rack and/adapted to be struck by a projection on one ofthe moving parts of the machine.

6. In a ca sh registdr, combination with a re ister, of operatngpwlazforfthe same, locking devicesfor. said pawls` for holdinv them. positively engagement/ with sai f register, a' movable registenshield, and-` menns connected to said shield and locking devices for mowing the latter o1`1t..of ..eoperation .with the operatingpawls" when said shield is moved.

-7. In acash register, the combination with a re ister, ofv operating pawls for the same, locking devices for 'said pawls, transferring pawls for said register, and a register shield connected to both the transferring pawls and the locking devices so as to disable them simultaneously upon said shield being moved.

8. In a cash register, the combination .Wlth

a register, of opentng' pawls for he same, In vtestimony whereof I nx my signature, lockmg levers for szud paws, a rock frame m presence of two wltnesses.

for 0 Jeratnff said levers. a rack for o Jeratf ing slaid rane, am arm lmolmie pn ne of FHQMA'S CARROLL' 5 th moving parts of the machine for opverat- Witnesses:

ing said rack, a regisier guardfplate, and F. B. BARNARD,

means connecng said plate with the rack. Ilm BERKSTRESSER.

Gooies ofthis patent may be obtained lfor 4ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

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