US2043526A - Automatic telephone apparatus - Google Patents

Description

June 9, 1936. A, B E 2,043,526

AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE APPARATUS Filed May 31, 1933 '5 Sheets-Sheet l ass 226 r94 H250 Bow:

A TTOB/VEYS June 9, 1936. BQYE 2,043,526

AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE APPARATUS Filed May 31, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 9, 1936. AMBQYE AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed. May 31, 1935 l/vl /vrog 9 50 50 ml:

I9 770/? NE Y5 Patented June 9, 1936 UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application May 31, 1933, Serial No. 673,686 In France June 4, 1932 4 Claims.

This invention relates to a device designed to be utilized in automatic telephony for making calls, which comprises a rotary switch hereinafter called the short circuit switch movable upon its shaft, which operates when coming in engagement with teeth and the like carried upon stationary crowns in order to set free electric current impulses which are sent in the line by means of a second switch operating at a regular cadency in order to compose the call signal of the station to be connected.

The present apparatus is characterized firstly in that the toothed crowns consist in a plate made in one piece having a circular recess provided on its edge with the teeth required for making up the call signal of the desired station, and with a large opening ending in said recess to allow the passage of a movable device, integral with a runner that controls the movements of the short circuit switch upon its shaft.

Another feature of this invention consists in that the aforesaid plates which are hereinafter called the call plates are engaged in vertical parallel slots provided in a box which is removable from the apparatus frame, said box being provided with a front opening which allows its adjustment through a simple sliding movement along the shaft upon which the short circuit switch is mounted, thus allowing the box to be removed without any dificulty, for example for changing the table of the calls, it being then looked in position by means of springs integral with the frame of the apparatus. Each call plate may be provided with two side pawls acting as springs which engage in the horizontal slots in the aforesaid box, so as to lock said plate vertically.

Another feature of the present invention consists in the provision of one or a plurality of supplementary vertical slots which allow of adding one or more call plates and of changing them frequently in order to increase and modify the extent of the table of calls, the slot or slots being formed in a stationary or a slidable part forming the bottom of the aforesaid plate box.

Another characteristic consists in that the short circuit switch and its operating finger are mounted in a kind of drum which is slidably mounted upon a rotary shaft and is provided with a slot. A fork integral with the runner placed upon the upper surface of the apparatus engages said slot.

Still another feature of the invention consists in that the finger operating the short circuit switch is arranged so as to actuate another contact for shortcircuiting the microphone and the receiver when the electric current impulses are sent in the line.

The invention has also for its object a modification in which the apparatus has only one single vertical slot for one single plate which may be replaced at will, this allowing of having a switch which is fixed in the longitudinal direction and also of greatly reducing the size of the apparatus.

The invention has lastly for its object another modification in which the contact of the short circuit switch and the contact for short circuiting the microphone and the receiver are made stationary upon the apparatus and operated by a sleeve concentric with the driving shaft of a part which carries the finger which engages with the teeth provided upon the call plates, said sleeve being provided with notches upon one edge of which said finger acts when it is pushed back by the teeth so as to produce a longitudinal component which causes the sleeve to slide upon the shaft in the required direction for operating the contacts. 5

The appended drawings show by way of example, one mode of execution of the various modifications of the apparatus hereinbefore mentioned.

Fig. 1 is a part sectional view of a first mode of execution.

Fig. 1a is a separate view of the female part of a multiple contact plug for connecting the apparatus with the telephone station.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the plane A-A of Fig. l, supposing the switch to have been displaced of a turn relatively to the position shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is another section taken on the plane B--B of Fig. l in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a diagram of the electric connections.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation drawn on a smaller scale.

Fig. 6 is a sectional plan view of the modification in which the contacts are fixed upon the apparatus and are driven by a sleeve concentric to the driving shaft.

Referring now to the drawings it will be seen that the apparatus comprises a frame 200 which carries a clockwork motor 29! wound up by depressing a hand lever 2S2. This movement causes a, pinion 28 l keyed upon the motor shaft 20] to slide under a pawl 25 integral with a driving wheel 29 i so that when the hand lever is set free the pinion 29W returning in the opposite direction draws the pawl and the driving wheel 2M along. This wheel drives by the intermediary of suitable gears the shaft 203 of a cam 204 which as it rotates at a constant speed opens at a regular cadency a contact 295-406 as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. The wheel 26F also drives a shaft 23'! carried upon the frame and provided with a long extension outside said frame. Four bus-bars 2e9 2e9 2l0 -2l (i are fixed between two arms 22B upon said extension these bars beingin parallel and located in the same plane that passes through the axis of the shaft 201.

A drum 213 is slidably secured upon the shaft 221, and a radial finger 2M slidably mounted in a boss of said drum, is forced outwards by two spring blades H5 226 of which the first constitutes with another blade 2l5 the short circuit switch, the second constituting with another blade 2H3 the switch designed for shortcircuiting the microphone and the receiver during the call. When inoperative, the contact 2 l 5 -2 i 5 is closed and the contact 2I6 2l6 is open.

These blades are all adjusted in the drum 2I3 and by their extremity opposite to the contact are in frictional engagement as follows:

The blade 2l5 upon bar 283 blade 2l5 upon bar 239 blade 2i6 upon bar 2N and blade Zlii upon bar 2H9; the four bars 209 229 2W 2W passing through a large opening 2l3 in said drum. As they rotate with the shaft 201, the bars frictionally engage with four concentric crowns 2H 2|1 218 H8 embedded in, the outer wall of frame 260.

Considering the diagrammatic View in Fig. 4, it will be seen that said crowns are connected by wires 219 M9 220 220 to the four plugs b b b 1) of a male contacting element 22], the female element of which carries four contact pieces a a2, a 11 The contact pieces al, a are mounted in series in the telephone line L through the conductors 223 223 and the contact pieces a a are shunted at the terminals of the microphone M and of the receiver B through the conductors 224 224 It will also be seen in Fig. .4 that the contact piece 235-266 actuated to produce the opening through the cam or breaking device 2% is shunted upon the conductors 2l9 2I9 and therefore relatively to the short circuit switch H5 2!? and vice versa. When the apparatus is inoperative, both contact pieces 295203 and 2E 5 2l5 are closed.

Referring again to Figs. 1, 1w, it will be seen that the male contacting element 22! is secured upon one side of the frame, and that the female part 222 is removable and is connected with the station through the conductors 223 223 224 224 The contact pieces al at which are materially constituted by blades and are provided with pins 0 c which enter in the block 222 and engage the groovesd d of the corresponding plugs 12 b when in their position of engagement are maintained by said pins out of contact with a small conducting bar e. On the contrary, when the female part is taken out, said contact pieces engage the small bar e and in this manner the interruption in the line between d a disappears and the station is restored to its normal state, the contact pieces a a being shunted and having no longer any action to perform.

In this mode of execution the call plates 225 are made in one piece provided with a middle recess 225 carrying along its edge an interrupted row of teeth designed to force back the finger 2 M in order to open the contact H5 215 so that the interruptions produced by the cam 204 which opens the contact 205-226 are felt along the line. Consequently the row of teeth comprises several portions each extending upon an arc of a circle having a predetermined length in function with the number of interruptions to be allowed. In Paris for instance where the teeth in each plate comprise I arcs of a circle corresponding to three letters and four digits required for making up the call signal of the called station, for example TRU 529l, there is one plate for every station to be called and the apparatus comprises for instance 50 plates composing the table of the calls most frequently asked by the user. These plates are inserted in vertical slots 226 following one another made in a box 221 which is also provided upon its sides with two horizontal slots 22s. The plates are each provided with two suitable pawls 229 which when at rest before being engaged by the groove 226 are slightly deviated relatively to the plane of the plate. When the plate reaches the end of its stroke in its slot the pawls 223 which are in the horizontal slots 228 return to their inclined position thus preventing the vertical displacements of the plate.

The plates are adjusted in the box 221 before mounting the same upon the apparatus; they are provided with a wide notch 230 ending in the recess 225 which allows of putting it in position by moving it lengthwise upon a bed Zllll of the frame 200, the recess 225 being of a suitable size to allow the passage of the drum M3, the notch 238 being also sufficiently large to allow the passage of the body of a runner 231 which by the intermediary of a fork 23E entering in a groove 213 in said drum, serves to move the latter and consequently the short circuit switch. When the box has been completely engaged it is locked in position by springs 232 mounted upon the frame 200 by means of pins 233 which engage a vertical slot 234 in said box as will be seen in Figs. 1 and 5.

A part 235 presenting a bearing surface 236, for the end of the shaft 20'! is removably mounted in any suitable manner at the end of the box 22?. This part is also provided with a groove 23'! which allows the adjustment of any supplementary call plate which is not recorded in the ordinary table of calls. This call plate will be taken from a case in which the user keeps in store a certain number of plates corresponding to calls that are seldom asked for. The user may however have a plurality of boxes 22! for difierent classes of callers; customers, tradesmen, etc.

The box 221 is also provided with a horizontal plate 238 (Fig. 5) forming a cover which is slit to allow the movement of the runner 23! which carries the table of the telephone subscribers corresponding to the various call plates contained in said box. The runner is provided with indexes 239 which allow of stopping exactly upon the various marks drawn upon the plate 238.

The mode of operation is as follows;

The operator takes hold of the runner knob b clockwork motor transmits. its movement to the shaft 20'! and the cam 204 which rotating at a constant speed owing to a speed regulator 246, opens at a regular cadency the contact 205-205. The drum 2l3 being drawn by the shaft 201, the finger 2% comes in engagement with the teeth 225 of the call plate and is pushed inside. Consequently the finger 2M closes the contact 2|5 -2l 6 which short-circuits the microphone and the receiver and opens the contact 2 |5 --2 I5 so that according to the length of the row of teeth upon which said finger passes, a certain number of interruptions and electric current impulses, caused by the operation of the contact 205206 are produced in the line. The finger 2M thus passes over the various portions of the row of teeth ('7 for Paris as already mentioned) making a complete turn equal to one revolution at the end of which the preliminary operations before obtaining the connections are ended. Before the end of this turn the abutment 240 frees the lever 24! which under the action of its return spring 241, looks the disc 244 and the cam 25% as soon as the turn is ended.

It will easily be understood that the apparatus could be reduced so as to comprise one slot only for one single removable call plate, which would be taken from a separate case. The short circuit switch would then be fixed in the longitudinal direction and the runner as well as the fork would not be necessary. The aforesaid slot could then be made in a projection of the frame itself, the box 221 being omitted.

In a modified mode of execution shown in Fig. 6, the shaft 201 is provided with a concentric sleeve 2&8 which may slide by means of a key 249 engaged in a slot provided in the sleeve. The latter carries at one end a crown 250 which, when the sleeve slides upon the shaft compresses the spring 25L thus opening the contact 2l5 2 l5 and closing the contact 2l6 -2I6 A part 252 provided with a slot 253 which may be moved by means of a fork in the same manner as the drum 2 I3 in the apparatus previously described is engaged upon the sleeve 248. This part 252 is caused to rotate with the sleeve 248 by any suitable means. A long rod 254 integral with the crown 259 and passing through the part 252 may be provided to this end. A small radial cylinder 255 in which a finger 256, substituted for the finger 2M in the previously described apparatus is secured upon the part 252. The finger 256 is acted upon by a spring 251 designed to cause the outer end of said finger to project out of the cylinder. Its other end is suitably bevelled at 256% and, when inoperative is always opposite a notch 248 in the sleeve 248 but its back edge is slightly out of position relatively to the edge of said notch, so that when the teeth 225 of a call plate 225 engage the finger 256 as the latter rotates and forces it back, the bevel 256 will press upon the notch 248 and cause it to move slightly back. The sliding of the sleeve which results will cause the above mentioned operations to take place, i. e. the opening of the contact 2l5 2 E5 and the closing of the contact Nth-#58 which have the same functions as in the apparatus first described.

This new mode of execution will have the important advantage of avoiding the use of the bars 2t9 -2 E0 and of the crowns 2I'l 2 I8 and consequently of every frictional contact.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An apparatus for making calls in automatic telephony, comprising a frame, a rotary shaft carried by said frame, a switch slidable with respect to said shaft and rotatable therewith, a box carried by said frame, a plurality of parallel plates situated within said box, each plate being provided with a central opening and a notch per-- mitting the passage of said switch through the plate, the longitudinal axis of said shaft coinciding with an axis passing through the middle of the central openings, each plate being provided with teeth formed on the circumference of the central opening and adapted to engage said switch, the teeth of each plate being adapted to actuate said switch a predetermined number of times to call a station corresponding to a certain plate, an interrupter adapted to be rotated at a constant speed, and a contact interposed in a telephone line and actuated by said interrupter, the terminals of said switch being shunted with respect to the terminals of the last-mentioned contact.

2. An apparatus for making calls in automatic telephony comprising a frame, a rotary shaft carried by said frame, a switch slidable with respect to said shaft and rotatable therewith, a box carried by said frame and having a plurality of parallel slots, 'a plurality of plates, each plate being situated in a separate slot, said box being provided with at least one longitudinal slot intersecti-ng the first-mentioned slots, at least one separate pawl carried by each plate and adapted to engage the last-mentioned longitudinal slot, each plate being provided with a central opening and a notch permitting the passage of said switch through the plate, the longitudinal axis of said shaft coinciding with an axis passing through the middle of the central openings, each plate being provided with teeth formed on the circumference of the central opening and adapted to engage said switch, the teeth of each plate being adapted to actuate said switch a predetermined number of times to call a station corresponding to a certain plate, an interrupter adapted to be rotated at a constant speed, and a contact interposed in a telephone line and actuated by said interrupter, the terminals of said switch being shunted with respect to the terminals of the last-mentioned contact.

3. An apparatus for making calls in automatic telephony, comprising a frame, a rotary shaft carried by said frame, a drum keyed upon said shaft and slidable with respect thereto, a forkshaped member engaging a slot formed in said drum, a runner-knob integral with said member and adapted to move said drum with respect to said shaft, a switch carried by said drum, a box carried by said frame, a plurality of parallel plates situated within said box, each plate being provided with a central opening and a notch permitting the passage of said switch, said drum and said runner-knob through the plate, the longitudinal axis of said shaft coinciding with an axis opening through the middle of the central openings, each plate being provided with teeth formed on the circumference of the central opening and adapted to engage said switch, the teeth of each plate being adapted to actuate said switch a predetermined number of times to call a station corresponding to a certain plate, an interrupter adapted to be rotated at a constant speed, and a contact interposed in a telephone line and actu ated by said interrupter, the terminals of said switch being shunted with respect to the terminals of the last-mentioned contact.

4. An apparatus for making calls in automatic telephony, comprising a frame, a rotary shaft carried by said frame, a switch slidable with respect to said shaft and rotatable therewith, a driving finger connected with said switch, a removable and replaceable plate carried by said frame, said plate being provided with a central opening and having teeth formed on the circumference of said opening and adapted to operate said finger a predetermined number of times to call a station corresponding to said plate, an interrupter adapted to be rotated at a constant speed, and a contact interposed in a telephone line and actuated by said interrupter, the terminals of said switch being shunted with respect to the terminals of the last-mentioned contact.

ALFRED BOYE'I.

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