US2273388A - Copyholder - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 17, 1942. c. w. STEVENS GOPYHOLDER Filed July 16, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l dharle/a Kite/vans ATTORNEYS Feb. 17, 1942.

c. w. STEVENS COPYHOLDER Filed July 16, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS Patented Feb. 17, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to copyholders, and its general object is to provide a copyholding device that is primarily designed for use with a "Linotype machine or the like, to enable the operator to read the copy with minimum eyestrain and fatigue, in that my device exposes to view only one or several lines at a time, it

depending upon the space between the lines on the copy, and the latter can be easily and expeditiously fed through the holder as it is being read, thus it will be seen that my holder brings about a material increase in speed in the setting of the type, as well as reduces the liability of errors.

A further object is to provide a copyholder that includes a pair of companion rollers, one acting to feed the copy through the holder and the other not only holds the copy on the feed roller, against any possibility of displacement, but acts as a guide to facilitate reading the lines on the copy.

Another object is to provide a copyholder that includes a hand operated lever to bring about a step by step movement of the feed roller, and the throw of the lever can be readily adjusted to vary the movement of the roller, in accordance with the width of the spaces between the lines on the copy.

A still further and important object is to provide a copyholder that includes roller holding means for copy and means for holding copy fiat, and while each of said means is used separately on simple line copy, and the latter preferably with copy containing a few lines, both means can be advantageously used together with difficult tabular copy, such as matter in columns of various widths in accordance with a unique method I have devised and which will be later described in detail, but it might be mentioned at this time, that my method materially simplilies the setting of type from tabular copy, as it entirely eliminates guesswork, as well as the necessity of the operator endeavoring to remember the width of the columns, or the number of quads and spaces per column.

Another object is to provide a copyholder of the character set forth, that is simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and extremely efficient in operation, use and service.

This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts, to be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like. or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of my holder.

Figure 2 s a view looking toward one end of the holder.

Figure 3 is a view looking toward the opposite end thereof.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken approximately on line i4 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken approximately on line 5-5 of Figure l, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken approximately on line 65 of Figure 5, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure '7 is a sectional view taken approximately on line 'l'i of Figure 4, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawings in detail, it will be noted that my holder includes an elongated shell like body or housing that is made up of plate like end walls I and 2 provided with enlarged v rear portions 3 and formed on or otherwise secured to the outwardly rounded rear edges of the portions 3 is a rear wall 4 that is substantially semicircular in cross section. The rear wall is provided with an upturned flange 5 along its upper edge and a downturned flange 6 along its lower edge. Secured to and between the upper edges of the end walls is a flat top wall 1 having a front wall 8 formed thereon and which includes angle portions secured to the front edges of the end walls, as best shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The top wall i has its inner edge spaced from the flange ii to provide a sight opening or slot throughout the length of the holder, and fixed to the inner face of the rear portion of the end wall 2 which is thicker than the end wall I, is a plate Q for a purpose which will be later described.

Extending along the length of the housing for disposal partially within the curvature of the rear wall 4 but spaced therefrom, is a relatively large feed roller It which may be made from any suitable material and may have a covering of rubber thereon, but in any event the roller is provided with trunnions l 1 extending centrally from the ends thereof and through bearing openings in the rear portions of the end walls, for rotation therein, as will be apparent. Secured to the outer ends of the trunnions H are knobs l2 which are tapered and knurled, to facilitate rotating the roller.

Cooperating with the feed roller Ill to hold copy sheets thereon for feeding the same through the holder, is a relatively small pressure roller that includes a rod 13 having mounted thereon a cylindrical roller body Id of rubber or the like. The ends of the rod 13 are journaled in the upper ends of the short upturned arms I5 of bell crank levers l 6 that are pivotally connected to the end walls I and 2 at the juncture of the short arms with the long arms thereof, as best shown in Figure 5, and the pressure roller is held against the feed roller by coil springs ll that have one of their ends connected to the end walls, and their opposite ends to the outer ends of the long arms of the bell crank levers.

Removably fixed to the end of the feed roller that faces the plate 9, as well as to the trunnion is a ratchet wheel [8 that is formed with relatively fine teeth It on the outer lateral face thereof and directed at an angle to bring about rotation of the feed roller in a clockwise direction. The outer periphery of the wheel 18 is smooth, and in order to prevent casual rotation of the feed roller, I provide a bracket 20 that includes an arm having a bearing collar 2| formed on one end and mounted on the trunnion or shaft of the feed roller, as best shown in Figure 7, the arm being fixed to the plate 9 and its opposite end portion being bent at right angles to the remaining portion, to overlie the outer periphery of the ratchet wheel. Secured to the right angle bent end of the bracket is an arcuate leaf spring 22 that has its outer end curved toward the wheel and engaged therewith for the purpose set forth.

The ratchet wheel of course, is a part of the mechanism to bring about a step by step movement of the feed roller and cooperating with the wheel is an operating lever that includes an upright portion 23 mounted for pivotal movement in a bore extending perpendicular through the plate 9, as shown in Figure 5, and from the upper end of the portion 23, the operating lever is bent at right angles thereto and thence directed laterally and upwardly in curved formation to provide a handle portion 24 that has an arcuate finger piece 25 secured to the outer end thereof, midway its ends, a best shown in Figure e. The portion 23 of the operating lever extends through a transversely disposed slot 25 in the plate 9, and the slot registers with a smaller slot 21 in the end wall 2, as shown in Figure 6.

Extending through the slots 26 and 2'! for 0scillatory movement therein is a ratchet pawl that includes a tubular body 28 having a collar 29 formed thereon, and the collar is removably fixed to the portion 23, so that upon swinging movement of the operating lever, the pawl will be moved accordingly. The outer end of the body 01' casing 28 is closed, and extending through the open end thereof is a spring pressed tooth member 30 that has a beveled outer end engaged with the teeth of the ratchet wheel and is urged and held accordingly, as will be apparent upon inspection of Figure 6. The pawl is urged and held in its normal position of that figure by a coil spring 3! sleeved on a stem 32 that is fixed to the body 28 and mounted for slidable movement through an aperture in a bracket 33, the latter being secured to the outer face of the end wall 2, and the spring 3! has its end convolutions engaging the bracket and an abutment collar 36 on the stem. By that construction, it will be seen that when the operating lever is moved to the right in Figure l, by the finger piece 25, the lever will be swung on its pivoted portion 23 and carries the pawl, for the latter to move the feed roller through the medium of the tooth member 39 and the ratchet wheel, and such movement is accomplished merely by a flick of the operators finger against the piece 25, which when released, the lever and pawl are returned to their normal position by the action of the spring 3!, thus the feed roller can be actuated in a step by step movement for feeding the copy accordingly through the device.

In order to limit and adjust the throw of the operating lever, to vary the movement of the feed roller in accordance with the width of the spaces between the lines on the copy, I provide a flat faced finger like lug 35 formed on and extending laterally from the operating lever and engageable with an abutment lug 36 formed on and rising from the rear end of a strip plate 31 that is mounted on the end wall 2 for slidable adjustment along the length thereof, by a set screw 33 that extends through a slot 39 disposed longitudinally of the plate 31, as best shown in Figure 3. The strip plate is adjusted by a screw bolt it having a serrated head and threaded in a collar it formed on the inner face of the front end of the plate, the shank of the bolt and collar being mounted in a groove 42 in the end wall 2, and the h ad in a recess which fittingly receives the same to allow free rotation thereof but to prevent endwise movement of the bolt, and the latter is fastened to the end Wall by a U-clamp 23. A spring member :54 is secured to the end wall to bear against the head, so as to prevent casual turning of the bolt, as will be apparent.

A triangular shaped ear is formed on the strip plate adjacent to the forward end thereof, to provide an indicator pointer 45 that overlies the top wall I for cooperation with numbered graduations ts on the top wall to bring about the desired setting of the lug 36 relative to the lug 35. It will be noted that the graduations are shown as being numbered respectively from the bottom to the top, by numbers 6, 8, 10, l, 2 and 3, and it might be mentioned that the numbers 6, 8 and 10 are used for copy which is termed reprints and clippings, printed in the corresponding point solid type, while the numbers 1, 2 and 3 are used for typewritten copy having single, double and triple spaced lines.

It is believed that the use of the device so far described will be obvious, but it might be mentioned that in order to load the same, the lower edge of a copy sheet is mounted between the rollers and the feed roller is turned counterclockwise in Fig. 3 by either knob I2 until the top of the sheet can be inserted under the flanged upper end of the rear wall or cover 4. The pointer 45 is then set to bring about the movement of the feed roller in accordance with the spacing of the lines on the copy, and the latter is fed by the operating lever to bring the lines into view, in the space between the top wall I and the flange 5. The copy is preferably arranged so that when the lines come into view, the bottom of each line to be read is flush with the top of the pressure roller for the latter to act as a gauge to facilitate reading the lines, as will be apparent.

The top wall 7 acts as a support for what is termed flat copy and is preferably used with copy having only a few lines, when not used in combination with the rollers when carrying out my method which will be later described.

In order to hold a sheet of fiat copy on the top wall I, there is provided a gauge and holding strip having a toothed lower edge 48 engageable with the copy, the strip 41 being spring pressed for that purpose and has one end twisted for disposal at right angles to the toothed portion and fixed to a spring clip 49. The spring clip includes a finger engaging plate 50 having secured to the under face thereof, a coil spring 5| that is sleeved on a guide rod 52, the latter being secured to and extending along the length of one end of the top wall. The spring has its ends bearing against the top wall and the plate 50, as indicated in dotted lines in Figure l, to urge and hold the strip 41 against the copy. By that construction, it will be seen that the strip 41 can be moved transversely of the top wall, but is held against casual movement by the spring 5|.

While the fiat copyholding means and the roller means are used separately for simple line copy, they are used together for setting difficult tabular composition, by my method previously referred to. In carrying out the method, and as suming that it is necessary to set composition that includes seven columns of figures, with each column being of a different width, a strip A of paper or cardboard as shown by dotted lines in Figure 1 is placed upon and across the copy which is ruled with lines between the columns. strip is then marked or ruled with perpendicular lines B aligned with the lines of the copy, and thence the operator calculates the width of each column on the copy in picas or quads and spaces, and writes the figures as the result of the calculation in the spaces C between the lines B. The copy is then inserted between the rollers in the usual manner, and the strip A is applied and clamped to the top wall I, with the lines B aligned with the lines on the copy, so that the calculations will be arranged directly below the columns on the copy. The operator in setting the type, can then glance at the calculations, thus eliminating the necessity of remembering the widths or the number of picas or quads and spaces remade in the construction and in the combination 2.

and arrangement of the several parts, provided that such changes fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a copyholder, an elongated body including end walls, said body having an opening along the length thereof for copy to show through, a feed roller including trunnions journaled in the end walls, knobs secured to the trunnions, a pressure roller for holding a copy sheet against the feed roller, means for rotating the feed roller in a step by step movement and including a manually operated lever, a lug formed on the lever, a strip member secured to the outer face of one end wall for adjustment along the length of the upper edge thereof, an abutment lug formed on the strip member and disposed in the path of the first lug to limit the throw of the lever, threaded means for adjusting the strip member, a top wall included in the body, said top wall having numbered graduations thereon, and a pointer carried by the strip member for cooperation with the graduations to indicate the adjustment of the strip member.

2. In a copyholder, an elongated body including end walls, said body having an opening along the length thereof for copy to show through, a feed roller journaled in the end walls, operating knobs for said roller, a pressure roller for holding a copy sheet against the feed roller, means for rotating the feed roller in a step by step movement and including a manually operated lever, a lug formed on the lever and extending laterally therefrom, a strip plate secured to the outer face of one end wall for adjustment along the length of the upper edge thereof, an abutment lug formed on the rear end of the strip plate and disposed in the path of the first lug to limit the throw of the lever, a collar formed on the forward end of the strip plate, the latter end wall having a recess therein, a headed screw bolt threaded in the collar for adjusting the strip plate, means for fastening the screw bolt in place with the head thereof mounted in the recess to prevent endwise movement of said bolt, a top wall included in said body, said top wall having numbered graduations thereon, and a pointer formed on the strip plate and overlying the top wall for cooperation with the graduations to indicate the adjustment of the strip plate.

3. In a copyholder, an elongated body including end walls, said body having an opening along the length thereof for copy to show through, a

feed roller journaled in the end walls, a pressure roller for holding a copy sheet against the feed roller, means for rotating the feed roller in a step by step movement and including a manually operated lever, a plate fixed to the inner face of one end wall and having a slot therein intersecting a perpendicular bore through said plate, the latter end wall having a slot therein and registering with the first slot, said lever including an upright portion pivotally mounted in the bore, a handle portion formed on said upright portion, a finger piece secured to the handle portion, a ratchet wheel fixed to the feed roller, a pawl secured to said upright portion and including a tubular member mounted in the slots for disposal therethrough, a spring pressed tooth member slidably mounted in the tubular member and held against the teeth of the ratchet wheel, means carried by the tubular member for urging and holding the lever to and in its normal position, and adjustable abutment means for the lever to vary the throw thereof and the movement of the feed roller.

4. In a copyholder, an elongated body including end walls, said body having an opening along the length thereof for copy to show through, a feed roller journaled in the end walls, bell crank levers pivoted at the juncture of the arms thereof to the end walls, each bell crank lever including a short arm and a long arm, a pressure roller journaled in the outer ends of the short arms, springs connected to the side walls and the long arms for urging the pressure roller toward the feed roller to hold a copy sheet against the latter, means for rotating the feed roller in a step by step movement and including a manually operated lever, a plate fixed to the inner face of one end wall and having a slot therein intersecting a perpendicular bore extending through the plate, the latter end wall having a slot registering with the first slot, said lever including an upright portion pivotally mounted in the bore, a ratchet 5 wheel fixed to the feed roller, a pawl secured to said upright portion and mounted in the slots, a spring pressed slidably mounted tooth member

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