US2171556A - Record sheet for statistical purposes - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 5, 1939. H. |-|v HIGGINBOTTOM ET AL I 2,171,556

RECORD SHEET FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES Filed Aug. 21,1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 1

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IIII IIII IIIII Jofin C. -Peferaon Patented Sept. 5, 1939 PATENT OFFICE RECORD SHEET FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES Harold H. Higginbottom, Manhattan, Kans., Hans J. Peterson, Hattiesburg, Miss., and John 0. Peterson, Manhattan, Kans.

Application August 21, 1933, Serial No. 685,999 /z 5 Claims.

Our invention. relates to machines for counting, tabulating, sorting, or otherwise statistically treating data contained on various record sheets and documents by electro-mechanical means. More'particularly, our invention relates to the original record sheets themselves which contain the data orinformation that is to be tabulated,

analyzed,.or otherwise treatedby the machine.

Such record sheets, may be in the form of sales records, examination papers, ballots, census reports, or any other known information-bearing sheets or cards from which information is to be taken by such machines. Once information is placed upon these cards, they are inserted or fed into these machines and the machines themselves will analyze and give off the-desired information or answer.

One object of our invention is to provide a par ticular form of record sheet which lends itself more particularly for obtaining data of the kind for which data sheets of the type used heretofore have not been readily adaptable.

Another, object of this invention is to provide a particular form of record sheet which is more serviceable than current forms of record sheets for the collection, tabulation, transfer, evaluation or other statistical treatment of the data.

Another object .of this invention is to provide a record sheet upon which data may be accurately recorded by relatively inexact marks or indications made without the extreme care usually required in making exact records.

Another object of this invention is to provide a means for accurately and rapidly transferring .data collected from various sources tothe perforated' card type of record used in many conventional tabulating and sorting machines. For this purpose the machine may beset up to perforate a card at places corresponding to each location,- tact, or datum indicated on the original record sheet by a conducting deposit.

In accordance with one form of the present invention, the record sheet or document may comprise a sheet of paper or cardboard or other suitable insulating material upon which are previously printed, or otherwise disposed, areas of electrical conducting material, at a plurality of locations on the sheet, the arrangement of which depends upon the nature of the information to be recorded. These locations, or areas, are usually disposed in pairs, and may be of the na ture of squares, circles, rectangles, columns, lead-. ers, or of any other suitable geometrical configuration. These pairs of areas are properly indexed on the sheet and upon selecting the proper pair of areas, a mark is made, thereby conductively connecting the two areas of a single pair. Such marking is done with a lead pencil or some other instrument for depositing suitable conducting material.

For a better understanding ofthis invention, reference may be made to the accampanying drawings, of which Figure 1 shows one form of a record sheet, illustrating, particularly, pairs of conducting areas, some of which have recordings .made between them, and

Figure 2 which is another form of arecord sheet having conducting areas of a different configuration.

As shown in Figure 1, it will be noted that the recording areas are in the form of pairs, and the squares of each pair are spaced a very short distance apart as indicated at a, yet not so near together that there may be any possibility of conductivity between the squares of any single pair. These areas are previously printed or impregnated on the sheets, or otherwise rendered conducting with materials hereinafter mentioned, the sheets being of paper constituency or any non-conducting material.

To illustrate more clearly the sort of information that mightbe recorded on these sheets, an explanation of how these cards may be used in giving school tests or examinations will be helpful. The record sheets, as shown in the figures, are madeup particularly for such purposes; it shall be understood however that they may be made up in other forms, depending on the nature of the information to be recorded.

The name of the person taking the examination, the date of the examination, the subject upon which the examinationis being given, or other similar desired information may be written on the sheet by the student. Assuming that there are ten questions, as indicated by ten horizontal rows of conducting areas, the questions being propounded orally, or by the use of a blackboard or upon printed, typewritten, or mimeographed paper, the student will have the choice of four pairs of areas across the sheet. He selects his choice of the four answers, such answers being also given on the typewritten question sheet, and places a mark with a pencil so as to connect the selected pair of areas representing the answers which he desires to make. When all ten questions are answered, the record sheet is returned to the instructor and is then ready to be put through the machine to determine the students grade. While this record sheet is shown as one adapted for only ten questions, it can readily be understood that a different number of questions or answer pairs may be included on a single sheet, and the conducting areas may be positioned in any fashion.-

The machine, as mentionedabove, is an electromechanical device having pairs of electrical terminals or contactors, as indicated at b, which register with conducting areas when the card is set up, and timed, that when a mark, as indicated at 0, occurs between the proper pair of conducting areas, it will register the presence of a proper answer or selection of pairs of areas that have been marked. For this form of card, four pairs of contactors would be used, corresponding to the four vertical columns of pairs, and the sheet will be run endwise into the machine. If more optional answers were included, additional contactors would be provided for each additional option.

In Figure 2, another form of record sheet is shown. This form shows a set of ten horizontal primary leaders, d, all of which connect a master leader, e. By the use of such a leader system, the arrangement of the contactors of the machine does not necessarily have to be in pairs. In this form, the set of ten leaders covers ten questions, and the student would have. the choice of eight answers, instead of four as shown in the other sheet, as indicated at f, by making a conducting mark at one of the eight locations disposed in a row parallel to the horizontal leaders as shown at g.

A machine for tabulating data for this form of record sheet would have a. contactor, as indicated at h, that would register with the master leader and a series of eight minor contactors that would register, respectively, with the eight dots. After the number of proper registrations on the sheet are counted by the machine, the number so determined will indicate the grade of the student,

Avariety of conducting substances may be used in printing or impregnating the record sheets. Some commercial inks are sufliciently conductive for our purpose or they may be made to have more conductivity by adding calcium chloride or some substance which will absorb moisture to thereby insure the conductivity of the areas. The

conducting properties of inks may also be improved by'the addition of finely divided conducting materials such'as graphite, aluminum, copper or other metals. In general, the mediums in which the pigments of the usual printing inks are suspended are not as suitable as some of the water soluble gums frequently used for adhesive compounds. Also, we may use metallic foils pasted in areas or other known conducting substances. As for the material utilized in connecting two conducting areas, an ordinary graphite pencil gives good results.

While the explanation of this information has been carried on in reference to record sheets used particularly in tests and examinations, it will be readily understood that these record sheets may be easily adapted for use in making sales records, ballots, censusreports, and the like. Or, they may be used in making the transfer of data from one sheet to another, or in transforming one kind of record over to another, as for example, from printed characters to perforations.

We claim as our invention:

1. An article adapted for recording data comprising a sheet of material which is substantially an electrical non-conductor, a series of data indicating characters located on said sheet, and.

distinct preformed areas of electrically conductive material located adjacent to each other on the surface of said sheet in such a manner that a plurality of said areas correspond to each indieating character, said character areas being so formed as to provide for readily recording data by a modification of the electrical conductivity of the surface of the paper in the intervening area.

2. An article arranged to form a data. record I from which electrical indications of several data items may be obtained by the use of electrical contacts corresponding to each data item, said article comprising a sheet of material which is substantially a non-conductor, preformed areas of conducting material located upon the surface of the sheet in position to be engaged by the contacts corresponding to each data item, said areas being separated by an intervening surface area forming a part of a current path between said contacts, the electrical conductivity of which isnon-conductor, said preformed areas corresponding to each data position being separated from each other by areas the surfaces of which have a predetermined electrical conductivity, and indicating data items on the sheet by a modification of the surface conductivity of the area intervening between the preformed areas at the positions corresponding to the data items of the record being made.

4. An article adapted for recording data comprising a sheet of material which is substantially an electrical non-conductor, said sheet being arranged to provide for a series of data indicating positions and distinct areas of electrically conductive material preformed upon the surface of said sheet and so located with relation to each other that at each data position a plurality of areas separated by an intervening area of said paper surface correspond to the position, said areas at each of said positions being so'formed and disposed in relation to each other and the data position as to provide for. readily recording data by modification of the electrical conductivity of the surface of the paper in said intervening areas.

5. An article adapted for recording data comprising a sheet of material which is substantially an electrical. non-conductor, said sheet being arranged to provide for a series of data indicating positions and distinct areas of electrically conductive material preformed upon the surface of said sheet and so located with relation to each other that at each data position a plurality of areas separated by an intervening area of said paper surface correspond to the position, said areas at'eachof said positions being so formed and disposed in'relation to each other and the data position as to provide for readily recording data by modification of the electrical. conductivity of the surface of thepaper in said intervening areas, said modification being'eradicable in order to restore the conductivity of said latter areas to substantially their original condition.

HAROLD H. HIGGINBOTTOM.

HANS J. PETERSON. JOHN C. PETERSON.

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