US2231253A - Inking device - Google Patents

Description

H. W. CLARK INKING DEVICE Feb. 11, 1941.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed June 8, 1959 Feb. 11 1941. H w, CLARK 2,231,253

INKING DEVICE Original Filed June 8, 1939 2 Shets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 11, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE INKING DEVICE corporation of Ohio Original application June 8, 1939, Serial No.

278,091. 12, 1940, Serial No. 32

Claims.

The invention relates to cash registers and similar calculating machines, and the present application is a division of my co-pending application Serial Number 278,091, filed June 8, 1939,

5 and relates more particularly to a novel type of inking device.

It is a very convenient and desirable feature for cash registers and similar machines to be provided with two paper strips for recording transactions upon the machine, one strip forming a record or detail strip which is automatically rewound within the machine so as to be normally inaccessible, the portion of the other strip upon which each transaction is printed being adapted to be torn or cut off after each transaction providing a receipt to be given to the customer.

Attempts have been made to provide paper equipment for producing the above results by passing two strips of paper one across the other at substantially right angles to printing position; and also to obtain the desired result by passing two superimposed strips of paper upward between the usual printing mechanism and the platen roll, but there are certain objections to such methods as they require more or less complicated mechanisms and in some cases result in a considerable waste of the paper.

An object of the present improvement is to provide a new and novel type of inking device especially adapted for use in a duplicate printing machine which overcomes the objections to the type of paper feeding and printing mechanism above referred to.

Another object is to provide an inking device which will operate effectively to ink type segments or sectors formed upon or rigidly attached to the bell cranks which operate the conventional type carriers.

A further object is to provide a substantially rectangular frame movable in unison with one of the type bars and carrying an ink ribbon having an area substantially equal to thatof the type bars.

A still further object of the invention is to provide such a rectangular ink ribbon carrying frame having a lug operatively engaging one of the type bars.

Still another object is to provide such a rectangular frame resting by gravity and movable in unison with one of the type bars.

Another object is to provide such an ink ribbon frame curved to conform to the curvature of the type bars.

A further object is to provide pivotally mounted, curved arms and means for detachably Divided and this application April ing description, or which may be later referred 5 to, may be attained by constructing the improved inking device in the manner hereinafter described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional View through the rear portion of a cash register embodying the invention;

Fig. 2, a fragmentary sectional elevation of the rear portion of the cash register;

Fig. 3, a fragmentary elevation viewed from the opposite side of the machine from Figs. 1 and 2, of the pawl and ratchet mechanism for rotating the platen for the duplicate printing mechanism;

Fig. 4, a detached perspective view of one of the type segments for the duplicate printing mechanism;

Fig. 5, an enlarged fragmentary sectional elevation taken transversely through the machine showing the bell cranks which position the conventional type carriers for printing and the type segments for the duplicate printing carried upon said bell cranks;

Fig. 6, a perspective view of the bracket carrying the printing ribbon which cooperates with the type segments, showing the printing ribbon carried thereby; and

Fig. 7, an elevation of the printing ribbon and removable frame by means of which it is attached to the bracket shown in Fig. 6.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The invention is shown as applied to a Mc- Caskey cash register of the general type disclosed in Johantgen Patents No. 1,306,112 and No. 1,336,840, the general calculating machine structure being substantially as shown in said patents, and therefore, the same will be described only briefly herein and only insofar as it relates to the duplicate printing mechanism to which the present application pertains, reference being made to said Johantgen patents for further disclosure thereof.

It should be understood that the disclosure herein is one embodiment of the invention which may be carried out in other forms and upon other well known types of calculating machines and that the invention is equally applicable to the hand operated type of cash register or the motor driven type of register in which a motor key or bar is substituted for the hand lever to operate the main shaft of the machine to record each item or total of a transaction or a grand total of all transactions.

The machine illustrated is adapted to be controlled in customary manner by the usual depressible amount keys, not shown, by the operation of which the various items are set up in the machine in usual manner, the machine being operated to print each item and enter it into the accumulating mechanism by operation of the hand lever or depression of the item key H as the case may be, all as in usual and well. known practice.

As in usual practice, the main shaft, not shown, may be operated either by the usual hand lever or the usual motor key for operating the machine after the proper amount keys are depressed for each item to perform the usual adding and. printing operations in usual and ordinary manner to record each item or total, as the case may be.

As is customary in machines of this type, the main shaft, not shown, may be operatively connected to the yoke l5, pivoted as at [8 upon a stationary part of the frame of the machine, such as the bracket l9.

Means not forming a part of this invention, and therefore not illustrated, may operatively connect the yoke Hi to the usual platen roll 24, so as to rotate said platen roll step by step in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1.

A rocker arm 48 is fixed upon the rocker shaft 49, which is journaled transversely through the machine, and a spring 50 is connected to the stud 5! upon the free end of said rocker arm and to the yoke It at a point above and in rear of the pivotal point l8 thereof. A pull spring 52 is also connected to the stud 5| and to the base 53 of the machine.

The usual bell crank levers 5 3, common in ma chines of this type, are journaled upon the transverse shaft 55 in well known manner and a type carrier 55 provided with a type bar 5-! is pivotally mounted upon each bell crank, as at 58, and the arms 59 of the bell cranks are pivotally connected as at 60 to the usual links 6! by means of which the bell cranks are operated in customary manner to properly position the type bars 51 in order to print upon the receipt strip 52 as it is moved around the platen 24.

A segment 63 is fixed to or formed upon each bell crank 54 and extends rearwardly therefrom and is provided with an arcuate type bar 54 corresponding to the type bar 5!- associated with the same bell crank 54 and so arranged that it will always assume the position relative to the platen that the corresponding type bar 51 assumes relative to the platen 24.

The ribbon 6B is located between the type bars 64 and the platen 65, and is carried in a flexible frame 61 detachably connected to the curved arms 68 which are journaled upon the transverse shaft 55.

Means is provided for selectively positioning the ribbon carrying frame 6! so that different portions of the ribbon 55, from top to bottom thereof, are successively moved to printing position relative to the several type on each type bar, so that all portions of the rectangular ribbon are used to substantially the same extent.

This means may be controlled by the type bars themselves, and as shown in the drawings, the ribbon carrying frame is selectively moved by the type bar 64 for the tens of cents column. In practice it has. been found that in total operations of a calculating machine the digits in this particular column are more uniformly distributed from 0 to 9 than in any other column, and since the duplicate printing mechanism to which this application pertains is shown as adapted to print only the totals upon the record or detail strip, this particular type bar is selected to operate the movement of the printing ribbon.

For this purpose a lug 63a, upon the cross bar 682), of the arms 68, rests upon the type bar 64 for the tens of cents column, so that the arms and frame 6.! will move downward by gravity with said type bar, and will assume a selective printing position corresponding to the printing position of said type bar.

As the particular type bar, which controls the movement of the ribbon 66, may be moved to any one of ten pro-determined positions with each operation, and as each of the other type bars 55 may assume any one of ten different positions, it will be seen that due to this chance selection of printing location the entire area of the rectangular ribbon 66 will be substantially uniformly used for printing, thus permitting one ribbon to be used for a considerable length of time before it becomes so badly worn that a good impression cannot be obtained.

For the purpose of easily attaching and detaching the ribbon, notches 59 may be formed in the upper portion of the flexible frame 61 through which the attaching screws 15 may be located after the projections H at the lower end of the flexible frame are engaged under the lugs l2 upon the curved arms 68.

The rear platen 65 is carried in a U-shaped frame comprising the depending arms 13 and rigid cross bar M, the arms being pivoted at their upper ends in the rear of the bar 74 to the frame as indicated at 15 so that the platen may be swung toward or from the type bars 64.

One end of the shaft 16 of the platen 65 is extended into a block H which is pivoted as at 78 to the slotted plate 79 the other end of which plate is pivoted upon the stud 5| on the rocker arm 48.

A cam slot 85 is formed in the plate 19 and receives the stud Bl upon the arm 82 of the yoke 16. This slot has a lug 83 projecting into its lower forward corner for a purpose to be later described.

A backing up roller 84 is journaled upon a shaft 85 fixed to the lower ends of the links 86 which are pivoted at 15, and springs 81 between the links 85 and arms 13 of the U-shaped frame normally hold the backing up roller 84 against the platen 65,

The stock roll for the record or detail strip may be placed within a suitable holder or container in the lower rear corner of the case 95 of the machine, the record strip 9| passing upward therefrom behind a bar 92 in the case located adjacent to the hinged door 53 on the back of the case by means of which access may be had to the record strip by an authorized person.

The record strip then passes over the roller or rod 94 then down between the backing up roll 84 and platen 65 and under and around said platen and then up and around the rewinding spool 95 which has frictionally connected thereto a sprocket wheel, not shown, connected by sprocket chain 9'! with a sprocket wheel, not shown, upon the shaft 23 of the conventional platen 24; whereby the rewind spool 95 will be automatically operated by rotation of the platen 24 to rewind the record strip and keep the same under tension at all times.

A ratchet wheel I l l is fixed to the platen shaft 16 on the end thereof opposite to the block 11 and is engaged by a holding pawl H8 pivoted as at H9 upon the frame 31 and held in engagement with the ratchet H1 as by a spring I20.

An operating pawl [M is pivoted intermediate its ends at I22 upon the frame 3! and held in operative position relative to the ratchet as by a spring I23.

In the operation of the machine, as each item is set up and recorded, the machine will operate in usual and well known manner to print the item only on the receipt strip 62 by means of the type bars 51.

For the purpose of causing the type 64 to print upon the record strip 9!, means, disclosed in detail in my co-pending application, Serial No. 278,091, of which this is a division, may be provided for rotating the rocker shaft 59 forwardly, raising the rocker arm t8 and with it the adjacent end of the plate 19, locating the projection 83 in the slot 89 of said plate in the path of the stud 8! upon the arm 82 of the yoke 16, so that clockwise movement of said arm will engage the stud 8! with the projection 83, sliding the plate 19 forward, or to the right as viewed in Fig. 2 and pulling the platen 65 against the type bars 64, so as to print the same total upon the record strip 9i which the type bars 51 print upon the receipt strip 62.

As the platen shaft 76 is pulled forward, a tooth of the ratchet wheel ll'l thereon, as shown in Fig. 2, will ride over the operating pawl Hi, and upon return movement of the platen shaft 16, the ratchet II? will be rotated one tooth, so as to space the record strip 9! ready for the next printing operation thereon.

I claim:

1. In a key-set calculating machine having independently movable type bars and an operating mechanism therefor and a platen adapted to receive the impressions of the selected type of the type bars, a substantially rectangular frame movable in unison with one of said type bars and an ink ribbon carried by said frame and having an area substantially equal to that of the type bars.

2. In a key-set calculating machine having independently movable type bars and an operating mechanism therefor and a platen adapted to receive the impressions of the selected type of the type bars, a substantially rectangular frame movable in unison with and having a lug operatively engaging one of said type bars, and an ink ribbon carried by said frame and having an area substantially equal to that of the type bars.

3. In a key-set calculating machine having independently movable type bars and an operating mechanism therefor and a platen adapted to receive the impressions of the selected type of the type bars, a substantially rectangular frame resting by gravity upon and movable in unison with one of said type bars and an ink ribbon carried by said frame and having an area substantially equal to that of the type bars.

4. In a key-set calculating machine having independently movable curved type bars and an operating mechanism therefor and a platen adapted to receive the impressions of the selected type of the type bars, a substantially rectangular frame movable in unison with one of said type bars and curved to conform to the curvature of said type bars, and an ink ribbon carried by said frame and having an area substantially equal to that of the type bars.

5. In a key-set calculating machine having independently movable type bars and an operating mechanism therefor and a platen adapted to receive the impressions of the selected type of the type bars, a substantially rectangular movable frame, an ink ribbon carried by said frame and having an area substantially equal to that of the type bars, and means for selectively moving the frame to a plurality of positions relative to the type bars.

HAROLD W. CLARK.

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