US1844863A - Slot machine and attachment therefor - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 9, 1932. E. A. NAHM SLOT MACHINE AND ATTACHMENT THEREFOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 6, 1928 f wwwm mm a mw 5% m w/MH w M in e55 Patented Feb. 9, 1932 EUGENE A. NAHM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS SLOT MACHINE AND ATTACHMENT THEREFOR Application filed August 6, 1928. Serial No. 297,879.

This invention relates in general to coin slot machines and has more particular reference to slot machines of the type used for receiving coins and slugs.

A principal object of the invention is in the provision of means for receiving coins and slugs of a certain size and excluding those of a different or larger size.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of a removable attachment for receiving optionally slugs of different sizes, excluding those of larger dimensions.

A special object of the invention is in the provision of an attachment for fare and fee registering slot machines which may be applied to conventional devices of this kind for accurately registering fares and fees and tending to prevent falsification of the fare and fee returns.

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of a number of removable coin slot attachments, each adapted to receive optionally two or more slugs of different sizes, which may be interchanged for 'varying the rate of fare or fee which the slot machine is intended to receive.

Other objects will appear hereinafter, the drawing illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a coin slotmachine showing this attachment applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the structure of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an end elevation of a coin slot mechanism and this attachment therefor; Fig. 4

is a perspective of the attachment with one of the plates removed; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective of that part of the coin slot mechanism which receives and cooperates with this removable attachment; Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the removable attachment;

Figs. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 are face and elevational views of special tokens or slugs used in connection with the present invention.

In places of amusement such as theaters, halls and shows of various kinds, it is the usual practice to sell tickets at a booth which are subsequently tendered by the purchaser at the entrance of the amusement place where they are deposited or received by an attendant to be. deposited in a suitable receptacle.

In selling and depositin paper tickets, it is sometimes not very di cult to withdraw or withhold some of the tickets tendered, returning them to the cashier for resale, the money received for these tickets being dishonestly shared among those party to the transaction.

The present invention is intended to provide a substitute for tickets by providing tokens or slugs of predetermined value. These tokens or slugs may be operative to ring a bell or cause other visible or audible signs or sounds, indicating that a certain fare has been paid.

In the present invention a coin chute is provided which will exclude all United States coins and will only admit tokens of two species, one of wide face diameter but thin,

and the other comparatively thick and of smaller face diameter. The purpose of this is to enable the management of the amusementplace to provide means for receiving and registering two different fares, as for example a half fare for children and the usual full fare for adults, also to provide a correct check of admission fees received even though the rates of admission are changed at certain hours of the day. A. coin registering mechanism in which a bell or other signalling means gives notice that a token of the proper value has been inserted not only indicates to the patron and the owner of the place of amusement that the fare or fee has been received but it also provides to a certain extent a remedy against collusion between thedoor tender and the cashier.

Referring more particularly to the drawin gs, a coin receiving mechanism A has a casing 15'slidably mounted on rods 16 and 17 secured at their ends in flanges 18 and 19 of a plate 20 which in turn is attached by screw bolts 21 to a double plate 22 having a bracket 23. The bracket provides a mounting for a member 24 pivoted on abar 25 and resiliently actuated by a spring 26. The member 24 c0- acts with a bar 27 pivoted in lugs 28 extending from the slidable casing 15. On another bracket 30 attached to the lower end of plate 22, a rocking member 31 is pivoted having 7 described to provide an operative connection for the coin slot attachment B which is connected to the upper part of plate 22. The plate 22 is provided with adjacent channels 34, 35 of dilferent dimensions which are adapted to register with similar channels in the removable attachment B, those in the plate 22, however, being of a size to rece1ve the largest slugs which are admitted by any of a number of removable attachments B which are applied to the coin mechanism A.

Each attachment B comprises two plates 36 and'37 riveted or otherwise suitably joined together having a pair of pins 38, 39 at opposite ends of a slot formed by two downwardly projecting ends of the plates, the slot being adapted to receive theupper end of the double plate 22, the pins 38, 39 serving as guides to secure the attachment B to the plate 22 which is provided on its upper. end with reduced shoulders 43, 44 for closely receiving the attachment. 7

As shown in Figures 4 and 6, plate 37 has a central recess or channel 40 havingshoulders 41. 42'which provide means for receiving two tokens or slugs, one of a larger face diameter than the other; and the other of greater thickness than the first one. i

' 'The inner wall or channel of the double plate 22, as shown more-clearly in Figure 5,

is also provided with a central channel 34 having side shoulders 46, 47 whereby a wider channel 35 is formed so that when an attachment B is fitted atthe top of the plate 22 the channels of the attachment and plate will register for the proper reception of the special tokens or slugs.

At the top of each attachment B is a curved and bevelled coin receiving recess 50 which nables the purchaser or an attendant to'ins'ert the coins or slugs uickly and accuratelv into the coin chute out, each attachment will receive a coin comparatively thick but of smaller diameter, and a larger one of a comparatively wide-face diameter but relatively thin. The chute ust 'described is intended to exclude all United States coins or coins of other countries as by graduating the sizes of the tokens and correspondingly varying; the sizes of the attachments. One coin receiving mechanism is sutlicient to accommodate anumber of difi'erent admission feescor rates of fare, and these attachments eliminate the possibility-of receivinq' a low rate period token during the high 7 rate period.

The'tokens varyinsize for different values, the larger tokens, as shown byFigures 10, 11 and 12, being larger for each smaller value reversely in accordance with their values as As pointed than it is for larger values, and the small tokens, as shown by Figures 7,8 and 9, varying in the same manner. The amount of variation between the tokensis very slight, being usually but a few hundredths of an inch and not apparent by inspection of these figures without actually applying a scale to them. By providing a separateadapter for the one large token, as shown in Figures 10, 11 and 12 and for one small token as shown by Figures 9,8 and 7 a convenient means is afforded for receiving half fare and full fare at the same time. By varying these adapters the tokens received thereby are also varied; for example, the full fare in an amusement place is fifty cents up to a certain time of day and a dollar thereafter, by making a one dollar adapter for tokens of smaller diameter, the fifty cent tokens cannot be received through the one dollar adapter.

There may be times when it is desirable toreceive United States or other currency, and at such time the channels of the adapter are varied in size accordingly. Generally spea ing the removable attachment of the present invention and the method described is particularly valuable when itis formed to admit tokens or slugs varying in size but herein described and illustrated.

It is obvious that various changes maybe made in the construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example,

each attachment may have channels for a plurality of slugs graduated in diameter and thickness, and slugs may be made with projections ordepressions and the channels formed accordingly so that tokens of more than two different values may be receivedoptionally. I A I claim: 7 i 1. In combination with a coin slot mechanism, of a series of interchangeable attachments therefor, each attachment having a channel shaped'to receive optionally differ entsized slugs, and the channels of the series being relatively graduated in sizereverselv to the value of the slugs. V 2. The combination with a coin slot mechanism, ofa pluralityof separatebut interchangeable attachments therefor, each attachment having a slug opening and the openings of the attachments being relative- 3. A device of the kind described, comprising a coin slot mechanism in combination with a removable attachment therefor, said coin slot mechanism having a part formed to receive said removable attachment, channels in said partregistering with channels in said attachment, said channels being of sizes to optionally receive differently sized slugs insertable Within said channels.

4. A device of the kind described comprising, in combination, a coin slot mechanism having an upper wall recessed to provide adjoining channels; an attachment removably secured to said upper wall, said attachment having channels registering with the channels of the said wall, whereby means are provided to receive slugs of different sizes, while excluding larger and thicker coins and slugs.

5. A two-value admission and prepayment system for tokens representing values graduated in size reversely to the values of the tokens, comprisin a plurality of removable and interchangea le coin slot attachments, each attachment having a single slot shaped to receive optionally two different sized tokens, one representing a full fee or admission charge and the other a partial fee or admission charge, and the difierent attachments having relatively difi'erent shaped slots whereby the admission fees at different times of the day and for difi'erent days may be varied.

6. A two-value admission system for tokens representing values, comprising a fare box having a transmission slot, and a plurality of token receiving attachments therefor which are interchangeable and have relatively differently shaped slots whereby the admission fees at difi'erent times of the day and for different days may be varied.

7. A two-value admission system in accordance with claim 6 in which each of the interchangeable attachments has slots varying relatively in size, reversely to the indicated values of the tokens to be received, whereby tokens of lower value cannot be inserted in slots intended for tokens of larger value.

EUGENE A. N AHM.

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