US1382331A - Computing device - Google Patents

Description

'J. THOMAS.

COMPUTING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 22, mm

Patented June 21, 1921.

W Y Gum,

UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE.

Y MS, OF PITTSBURG, KANSAS, ASSIGNOR TO- MORSE TWIST DRILL MACHINE COMPANY, OF NEW BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

COMPUTING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Pate t d J e 21 1 2 Application filed November 22, 1919. Serial No. 840,026.

To allwhomitmay co'rwem:

Be it known that 1, JAMES THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Pittsburg, in the county of Crawford and State of Kansas, have inventedv certain new and useful Improvements in Computing Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an instrument or device which is employed for computing numbers; and the object of this invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive instrument which can be conveniently manipulated for the purpose of accurately adding cooperate with the counter member.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged edge view showing one of the counter-operating fingers in position beneath the rotatable disk and engag ingjhe rotatable counter.

ig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a modification of the invention. Referring to the drawings, 10 designates a supporting base or back-plate which may be made of any-suitable, rigid material such as wood, cardboard or the like. The face or upper plate 11" of this device is preferably formed of celluloid or other transparent ma terial, the samebeing provided-with a semicircular slot 12 formed through, its surface.

Beneath this face-plate is another plate or sheet 13 having an annular slot 13" therein of substantially the same radius as the semi circular slot 12, and lying beneath it. On the 'outer face of said plate 13 and, preferably, on the outer side of the slot 13 ispro- ,vided a circular graduation 13. This gradnation, consisting of two duplicate scales, m

and 3 progressively extending from opposite sides of a settin point 30, at one end of the semi-circular. s 013 12, to the other end served).

of the said slot 12. The scale 3 adjacent the slot 12 1s what is termed a calculating scale (as the calculations are made with this scale), and the scale a: on the opposite side of theslot is what is termed an indicating scale. as the fractional results of the addit1on is lndicated thereon, as will be later ob- Beneath this,gr'aduated plate. 13 I have rotatably mounted a disk 14 on the pivot pin 15,-wh1ch d1sk is provided with a series of holes "16 formed on a circle whose radius is substantially that of the slot 12 in the outer plate, said holes being for the purpose of receiving the point of an operating instrument 19 such as a pencil or the like as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, whereby the disk may be rotated and these holes are spaced apart so as to register with the numbered .graduations on the member 13.. Two holes 17 and 18 are formed on thedisk on diametrically opposlte sides of the circle and are marked Zero to designate the starting positions of the disk; that is, when starting a computation these zeros 17 and 18 must be at opposite ends of the slot 12, respectively, one lying opposite the setting point 30.

In order that the device may be capable I of adding fractions amounting to more than a whole number, I have provided a counter 20 which is in the form of a disk pivoted at 21 and is provided with teeth or projections 22 on its periphery whereby when the disk 14 has made a one-half revolution, a fingermember 23 on the disk opposite one of the zero points engages the teeth of this counter and rotates it one tooth, thereby causing it to indicate the whole number through .the opening 24 in the outer plate. There is a finger member 23 opposite each of the zero points or indicators 17 and 18.

Another opening 25 has been formed in the face-plate through which the' point of a pencil'or other instrument 'may be inserted to engage the teeth of the counter and rotate it back to zero position ready for another counting operation after having been operated. I

In operating my improved fraction computing device I set the two zero marks 17 and 18 of the disk 14 at opposite ends of the slot 12 formed in thetop plate.- Now if I wish to add 5/8 and 49/64 together I'first place the operating pointer in the hole opposite the 5/8 graduation and rotate the disk downwardly until the pointer engages the end of the circular slot in the outer plate which acts as a stop, and the hole in which it engages is brought in radial alinement with the'zero point 30, preferably positioned at the lower end of said slot. I'then place the pointer in the hole. in the disk opposite the fraction 49/64 and again rotate the disk downwardly until the pointerengages the end of the slot, in the manner above stated. It will be noted that during this second movement the counter-operating finger 23 opposite the zero mark counter 20 and in passing engages a tooth thereof and rotates the counter to bring the numeral 1 into position to be observed through the opening 24 and the zero point 17 is passed along to the graduations on the left half of the circle where it points to the fraction 25 /64, thus showing at a glance that the sum of 5/8 and 49/64 equals 1 25/64. If nowit is desired to add 41/64 to this sum it is only necessary to place the pointer through the slot into the hole opposite to that fraction, then by rotating the disk until the point brings up against the lower end of the slot, the second zero mark 18' with its counter-operating finger 23 has passed the counter to the point 1/32 and as it passed the counter its finger 23 rotated the same one tooth bringing the numeral2 into view through the opening 24, thus the sum of the three fractions equals 2 1/32.

To reset the device to normal it is only necessary to engage the teeth of the counter through the opening 25 and rotate it back to show zero which is observed through the opening 24.

I then rotate the disk 14 so that the two b zeros 17 and 18 are at the ends of the slot 12 when the device is ready for another calculation.

I have shown and described a transparent outer or top plate with a separate sheet, card or member located beneath it carrying the numbered graduations, but I do not wish to be restricted to this particular construction, as the device may be made in the manner shown in Fig. 5 or any other suitable man-. ner which falls within the scope of the ap pended claims. In Fig. 5 the transparent plate 11 is dispensed with, but a projection 31, extending from the edge (if the plate 13, provides a suitable stop in lieu of the lower end of the slot 12, as will be readily understood.

These different superimposed plates may be connected together by other suitable fastenings.

The device is extremelysimple and ine'x- I pensive in construction and practical and eflieient in its operation and by its use frac- .graduations 17 has passed the showing that rivets, pins or any I tions may be quickly added and the result accurately determined.

I claim:

1. A computing device of the character described comprising a plate having numbered arranged in a circle thereon, sald graduations consisting of two duplicate scales progressively extending from oppositesides of a setting point on the plate to a point opposite said setting point, a rotatable disk having graduations thereon spaced to correspond with said first graduation and to register therewith, said disk further having diametrically opposite indicators thereon, one of which initially registers with said set ting point, the graduations on the disk cooperating with one of said scales and said setting point in the calculating operation, and said-indicators successively cooperating with the other of said scales to indicate the fractional results of the calculation, counteroperating members on the disk, and a counter mounted on the device and actuated by said counter-operating members, when b a plurality of movements of said rotary disk in adding fractions, the result is greater than a digit.

2. A computing device of the character described, comprising a back plate, a transparent face plate having a semi-circular slot formed therethrough, numbered graduations arranged in a circle of substantially the radius of said slot, a rotatable disk having openings arranged to coincide with said slot and to receive the point of an operating instrument and spaced to register with said graduations, said openings being engageable through said slot, one end of said slot constituting a setting point and a stop engageable y the instrument for limiting each computing movement of the disk, said disk further having diametrically opposite indicators thereon to cooperate with the graduations for indicating certain results, and one of which indicators is to initially register with said setting point, counter-operating fingers on said disk, a toothed rotatable counter adapted to be rotated by the passage of said fingers thereby, whereby a plurality of movements of said disk to add together two or more fractions, where the sum is equal to or greater than a digit, causes said counter to be rotated to show the whole number and the additional fractions being indicated on the graduations by one of said indicators beyond said stop.

In testimony whereof I afiix in presenceof two witnesses.

JAMES THOMAS.

my signature Witnesses:

F. M. WETZEL, A. C. Sun.

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