US142002A - Improvement in legislative voting apparatus - Google Patents

Description

j A CRISWELL SShees--SheetL Legislat-vel Voting Appratus. 142,002. Patented August19,1873.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. A. CRISWELL. Legislative Voting Apparaus. 142,002.

Patented August 1&3. 1873.

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Patented August 19, 1873.-

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UNITED STATES PATENT .EEICE JAMES A. GRISVELL, OF MIFFLINTOVN, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN LEGISLATIVE VOTING APPARATUS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 142,002, dated August l5), 1873; applic-ation tiled December 2e, i872,

To all whom it may concern.: s

Be it known that I, JAMES A. GarswELL, of Miftlintown, in the county oi' Juniata and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and valuable Improvement in Voting, Ste., Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings making a part ot' this specification, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon.

Figure l of the drawings is a representation of my machine for voting in position. Fig. 2 is a side view of same. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section of my voting machine. Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 1l are details of same.

This invention has relation to a legislative vote -register, the action ot' which depends upon the use, as voting mediums, of white and black balls, the former color, for instance, representing aye, and the latter nay;77 and consists in the construction and arrangement ot devices whereby the aye and nay votes and the total are severally indicated upon separate dials, the mechanism appertaining directly to which is operated by the weight of the balls, the same being transferred, by suitable tubes, from the members7 desks to receptacles suspended from said mechanism. The novelty consists in the con struction and arrangement of devices whereby the balls, after being weighed and the desired result obtained, are transferred from their weighing-receptacles, located below the assembly-room, tothe keeping and control of the assembly-clerk present in the assembly-room, to be redistributed among the members. The novelty also consists in the construction and arrangement of the parts of the clerks distributing-desks essential to the proper distribution of the balls, and of the parts of the members7 desks provided for the casting ot' the votes.

rlhe apparatus which constitutes the present invention depends for its operation and utility upon the use by voters of balls of any suitable material possessing readily calculable weight. The balls are all of equal weight. Some of the balls are white and others black, the white representing aye,77 and the black, nay Each member is furnished with a requisite number of balls, to contain which his desk is provided with a drawer. The distribution ot' the balls takes place at the clerks desk, the latter being provided with a number of drawers, A, which respectively correspond to a members desk, each drawer being numbered according toits destination. The clerk having in charge the white and black balls dis` tributes them in 4equal proportions tothe drawers A, through the tubes B, which extend from the top of the elerks desk to the several drawers, in the manner clearly shown in Fig. 1l ot' the drawing. After being supplied, the drawers A are transferred to the members desks and substituted for the empty drawers thereof, which are made to take the places in the clerks desk of the drawers for which they have been exchanged. The portion of the clerks Vdesk facing the clerk is provided with other drawers, to suit the requirements of th at officer.

The clerks desk may be located in any oon venient part of the assembly-hall. The most appropriate position, however, is as close as possible to the elevator l), so that he may control the latter.

In Fig. 1 ot' the drawin gs, which is a plan view of an assembly-hall, E designates the clerks desk, and F that of the chairman or presiding officer. G G1 G2 designate the registering-ii struments, of which the first is used to indiA cate the number of aye votes, the second the number oi' nay 7 votes, and the third the total ot' votes cast during a single ballot. Each ot' these registering-instruments is provided with one or more graduated dials, H, upon which the condition ot' the ballot is indicated by means ot' a revolving hand or pointer, h. The registering-instrunients are similar to the or dinary springdial balances ot commerce. To the depending beam of the register G"2 are attached the laterally-extending arms h', which support at their extremities the registers G Gl, or are connected to the vertically-moving beams ofthe latter. The registers G G1 support, as shown, the boxes I l1, which receive the votes or balls as they pass from the voters desks through the inclined tubes l2. The number of balls deposited is determined by their weight, which so controls the registers asto cause them to indicate the inimberotvotes cast. The collective weight ot' the white and black balls is brought to bear on the register G2, throrigh the medium of the arms i, causing said register' to indicate the total vote cost. A beam, e', ofthe form of aninverted T, srispends each of the boxes I Il from its respective regis ter. The horizontal feet of these beams are pivoted to ears at the sides of the boxes, allowing the latter to be tilted toward an inclined way, l, which leads to the base of the elevator. After each ballot the balls are dumped from the boxes I Il, upon the way K, which has a cliauiiel in one side to receive and condrictthe balls to an opening, l', in the side ofthe elevator. The elevator is designed for the purpose of transferring the balls from the inclined way to the asseinbly-room. This apparatus consists of an ripright rectaiigrilar tribe or casing, containing a carrier, k1, of a three-quarter cylindrical form, its mouth facing the opening 7.'. A bail, ha, hinged to the sides of said carrier, has attached to it a rope, k, which passes upward and over a windlass-shaft, kt, located at the top of the elevator'. By means of said windlass and rope the carrier is raised and lowered. Into this carrier the balls are received from the inclined way and raised to the proper height. The elevator has near its top a facial extension, L, into which slides a drawer, L1, corresponding to one or more drawers in the clerks desk, and interchangeable therewith. From the sides ofthe carrier project the centrally-located strids or arms L2, which hold the bail k2, and travel through the slots L3 crit in the sides of the elevator. The upper parts of these slots terminate in quarter-circles, which, as the strids L2 pass through, tilt the carrier forward and over the drawer L1, causing it to deposit its contents -therein. Ilivoted to the sides of the elevator,

at the points from which the quarter-circle curves are described, are the arms M, notched in their under sides to receive the strids L2. when the latter reach the proper elevation, These arms move with the studs. Springs M', suitablyT arranged, tend to force said arms downward; hence, when the windlass is released, they throw the carrier back to its original position, from which it has been tilted. The carrier then descends for another load, and when near the bottom ofthe elevator, its studs L2 press upon the L-shaped levers L4, which are connected to a sliding gate, L5, which covers the opening. By this pressure the gate is raised, and the balls from` the inclined way allowed to roll into the carrier. As soon as the latter is raised the gate falls, preventing the balls from passing into the base of the elevator. At the lower ends of the slots L, Iiidiafrribber cushions N are placed, to deaden the sound of the arms or studs L2 as the carrier falls. The elevator is under the control of the assembly-clerk.

When the drawer Ll is filled it is transferred to the clerks desk, and an empty drawer taken from the latter placed in the elevator. To the rear ends ofthe boxes I Il are attached the vertical plates r', having pivoted to their upper ends the segmental bars il, having the slightly curved extensions 2. These bars pass through slots 3 in the beams z, and are notched at it, so that when the boxes are in position the segmental bars will drop and engage with the beams z. Pins i", at the upper ends of the bars Q71, prevent the boxes from tilting rearwardly. Pivoted to lrigs projecting from the plates at the rear ends of said boxes are triggers P, by raising the handles of which the extensions 'i2 are act-ed upon, the segmental bars raised and disengaged from the beams z, and the boxes tilted. The front ends of the boxes are so inclined as to allow the balls to fall out easily when the boxes are tilted. Q designates a horizontal rotary shaft, armed with two L-shaped rods, Qf, which project, as shown, behind the boxes I Il, and rinder the triggers I). By properly turning said shaft these rods are raised so as to actriate said triggers. The shaft Q holds also two prilley-wheels, R, around which are wound cords It', which are thence curved forward and upward and attached to sliding spring rods S, by pulling which the shaft is turned. The spring-rods may be attached to one of the registers, or to the clerks desk.

The drawers and various receptacles for the balls should be lined with cloth or other suitable material to deaden their sound.

The mouths of the tribes should be made flaring, so that the balls will pass out easily.

The balls n are all appropriately numbered or marked to correspond to the desks to which they respectively belong, so that the names of the voters with the character of their vote may be readily ascertained.

Each members desk is provided with two tubes, leading from the top of the desk to the boxes I Il, one tribe being designed for black, and the other for white balls. All the white balls pass into the box I, while all the black balls pass into the box Il. Each tribe has at its ripper end a crip, T, having a spring-slide, T', at its bottom, which holds the ball durin g the deliberation ofthe voter.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Iatent, is-

1. The elevator D and connections, in combination with the vote-registering apparatus, substantially as specified.

2. The improved distributing-desk, having the drawers A and distributing-tribes B, sribstantially as and for the prirpose specified.

In testimony that I claim the above I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

Witnesses:

J osEPr-:r ARD, J. MIDnoGH.

JAS. A. CRIS\VELL.

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