US2566610A - Aggregating and displaying device, particularly applicable to totalizators - Google Patents

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4 1951 Sept J. HANDLEY 2,566,610

AGGREGATING AND DISPLAYING DEVICE, PARTICULARLY Filed July 20, 1948 APPLICABLE TO TOTALIZATORS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 e i; k: E

Q I N w I V Sept. 4, 1951 J. HANDLEY 2,566,610

AGGREGATING AND DISPLAYING DEVICE, PARTICULARLY APPLICABLE TO TOTALIZATORS Filed July 20, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Sept. 4, 1951 AGGREGATING AND DISPLAYING DEVICE,

PARTICULARLY APPLICABLE TO TOTAL- IZATORS John Handley, Purley, England, assignor to The Union Totaiisator Company Limited, Glasgow, Scotland, at company of Great Britain Application July 20, 1948, Serial No. 39,618

In Great Britain December 5, 1947 2 Claims.

This invention relates to an aggregator of the type in which escapement wheels are biased to rotate by slipping clutches or other means when released by electrically and mechanically operated escapement levers or pawls.

More particularly, the invention is concerned with improvements in devices of the type set forth in my prior patent application No. 723,532 dated January 22, 1947.

The present invention has for its object to 3 enable the aggregator to operate at much higher speed than previously, without undue strain to the moving parts which are subjected to intermittent movements.

There are already known systems in which electromagnets are used for counting, by operating escapement pawls which release ratchet wheels whose movements are combined by differential gearing and urged by spring drive, but there is considerable inertia in the differential gears which limits the speed of counting, and throws heavy strain on the armatures of the electromagnets each time the drive is arrested.

In the present invention there is a light spiral spring associated with each escapement wheel, and the wheels are as light as possible, so that when an armature of an electromagnet operates, the wheel follows up instantly. The movements of, say, three escapement wheels are combined to a single driving arm by two differential gears, though it will be apparent that any desired number of escapement wheels may be employed. The driving arm is urged by a spring just heavy enough to overcome the thrust of the light springs in the three escapement wheels. This heavy spring is anchored at its other end to a driving gear, urged to rotate by a slipping clutch drive, and coupled to the general transmission of the aggregator.

The driving gear also carries a pawl which engages a fixed ratchet wheel when the driving arm is arrested, so that the thrust of the driving gears slipping clutch and the inertia of the general transmission of the aggregator will also be taken on the fixed ratchet wheel after each movement released by the escapement wheels. This ratchet wheel and the pawl carried by the driving gear are of robust section, but do not affect the counting speed by their inertia.

To protect them as far as possible, however, the ratchet wheel is loosely mounted on an adjustable boss, and the inside of the wheel and the outside of the boss each have a protruding tongue, these tongues being urged together by a heavy spring, so that the shock of arresting the driving gears is taken by the spring.

To release the pawl easily from the fixed ratchet wheel, the driving arm carries a roller, which nestles under the edge of the pawl, which overhangs the ratchet wheel at one side. Therefore when it i moved by the driving arm this roller lifts the pawl out of engagement with the minimum effort as soon as the arm starts to move in response to release on the escapement Wheels.

An aggregating device according to the inventicn is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 shows a side view of an aggregator counting unit according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a left hand elevation of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of part of Fig. l with certain parts omitted; while Fig. i is an end view derived from Fig. 3.

An aggregator according to the present invention is driven by a motor which drives it through a series of gears and shafts. Such an aggregator comprises three counting units and four transmission units for carrying out transfer to the next higher order of counting and for controlling an indicator.

, spring casing 31 is bolted to a crown wheel 52,

the first wheel in the gear train. Corresponding equipment associated with the relays 29 and 30 is generally similarly arranged.

Between the crown wheels 52 and 53 are placed two pinions ltii and lill carried by a spider 5d. The spider 54 is keyed to the shaft 55 (see Fig. 3) to the other end of which is keyed a spider 56 carrying pinions # 39, 49a, placed between the wheels 58 and 50. Thus, two differential gear boxes are formed. The crown wheel 59 (the final wheel in the gear train) is carried on the extreme end of the shaft 5|, which abuts against the end of the shaft 55.

It will be observed that the sleeve 5% keyed to the shaft 5! (to which the crown wheel 56 is bolted) has a portion of its bore adapted to re ceive the end of the shaft 55. The object of this is to ensure correct alignment of these shafts.

3 It should be noted that the ratchet wheel 36 (the five unit wheel) rotates in the opposite direction to the other two ratchet wheels, whereby additive summationpnto the crown wheel 53 occurs. It will be understood that the numbers of teeth on the ratchet wheels are dependent on the number of units to be recorded thereby; thus, the

ratchet wheel 36 has one fifth as many teeth as the wheel 34, so for one received impulse -it revolves five times as far as d'oes the wheel 34. Similarly, the wheel 35 has half as many teeth as the wheel 34. V I 7 The opposite end of the shaft 5L (Fig.8) to that to which the wheel 5|] is fixed, passes through a block I on which the driving geargti is freely mounted, and a fixed ratchet wheelfil. At its extreme end is mounted an arm 43. The

driving gear 26 is driven by the electric motor through a gear train and slipping clutch in knownmanner. To "one "end of the 'arm 33 is attached a spring '42, 'theother end of which is anchored to the driving gear 25. Also mounted on the driving gear '26 is a pawl 40 held in engagement with a fixed 'ratchet'wheel 4| by a spring 41. 'It'will be'observed that, in order to avoid confusion, the fixed ratchet 4| and the pawl 40 are not'shdwn' in Fig.3. The spring 62 urges the shaft 5| to rotate in the direction of the arrow A (Fig.4), butthis cannot occur since the gear 26 (and hence the shaft 5|) is held stationary by the pawl 40 engaging the fixedratchet 4|.

Also mounted'on'anothcr' leg of the arm 43 is a roller 44 adapted when the 'arm 43 rotates to lift the pawl "40 *(whose'toe'overhangs the fixed wheel 4|) and permit'th'e'driving gear 2% to be driven from the"slip'clu'tch"and to move the arm 43 (and the shaft 5|) 'Iintil'the roller-4.4 permits the pawl 40 to re-engage the ratchet 41.

The action of 'the'counting unit will now be described withparticularreference to thesingle unit relay 28.

When the relay'28'receives an impulse which is characteristic of one unit, itrocks'its armature 3|. The'double=endedpawl am carried by i this armature permits theratchet wheel 34, to

turn one tooths distanceunder control of the spring 31a. Mounted 'o'n.;thespr ing casing 31 is a pin 45 'which norniallyengages a pin 46 on the ratchet wheel 34. .When the wheel 34 moves, these pins are'therefore separated. The

crown wheel 52 'is therefore releasedby .the escapement action "of :the ratchetiwhe'el, There- I fore, throughthe pinions I andJili, the shaft 55, the spider :55 and the'pinions 49 and-tea, the

crown wheel|l"is'free..to rotate. Asthis is attached to the'shaft'SL-the arm 43. is free to rotate, and does so under :tension of thespring 42.

This carriestheiroller 4'4 with it a sufficient distance to disengage the pawl 49: from the ratchet wheel 4|. Therefore, the wheel 26 is freed'and is driven round by the motor through the slip clutch driveandrpulls theshaft 5| with it until the movement; of the escapement wheel has been absorbed. Whenthis occurs the pin 45 on the spring casing 31 engages the pin 46 on the wheel 34 which stops the ratchet wheel and. through the gear train described above stops the shaft}; I.

The drivin'ggear 26 overruns slightly, carrying the pawl with it until its toe is just clear of the roller 44. The pawl 40 then re-engages the fixed ratchet wheel 4|, stopping the wheel 25 and leaving the spring 42 in tension, whereby the unit is ready to record the next impulse. When the iii) 4 pins 45 and 4B re-engage as the ratchet wheel 34 and the crown wheel 52 have resumed their initial position relative to one another, it is apparent that the springf31a is r-tensioned.

It will be clear thatcp'erationof theaggregating equipment in response to reception of two unit and five unit impulses is generally similar to that for single unit impulses except that greater distances are moved by the wheels.

Simultaneous aggregation from two or three escapement wheels can also occur when neces- 'sary.

In order'to'pievent the arm 43 rotating too far "when it first moves, a stop 42a on the wheel 26 is provided-so placed that the arm rotates a sumci'ent distance for the roller 44 to lift the pawl before it reaches said stop.

' On the inside of the ratchet wheel 4| is a tongue 51 (Fig. 2). The wheel 4| is located on large boss '58 having 'a tongue 59. These two tongues are-urged tog'therby a c shaped spring "53. This sprin gis apable of slight fiexure soas to absorb th'ejshock when the -:pawl"4fi engages the ratchet wheeflli at highsp'eed. F q The transfermechanism and the transmission units of the aggreg'atorf are described in detail in my prior U. sfspe'cific'ation 'No. '7233532 ofJanuary 22, 1947.

Whatis "claimed is: '1, An electromechanicalaggregator a'dapted'to respond to "electricalimpulsesreceived atvery high speed frc'rna plurality-of'sources, comprising a plurality of spring=driven escapement wheels, means-for applyingsaid 'impu'lses to said spring-driven escapement wheels, a common shaft, a plurality of differential 'gears'between said escapement wh'celsand said common shaft for aggregating the movement of said escape- 'inent wheels ontosaid-common'shaft, rotatable means co axial with said common shaft, driving nieans for said rotatable means, a further spring- 7 driven escapement deviceadapted to permit said rotatable means to rotate when said common {shaft commences to'moveand-to arrest the mo- 1 tion 'of said-rotatable meanswhen' said rotatable means has move'd a'sufficient' distance to absorb the motion of said common shaft, said further "spring drivenfescapement device comprising a f'fixed ratchet "wheeL a pawl mounted on said" rotatable 'meansand"adapted to eng'age said fixed ratchet wheel;- and riie'ans-responsive to motion "of said common shaft 'to.disengage said ratchet wh'e'el and'said pawhand to causesaid pawl to "engage said ratchet wheel to arrest-the motion of saidrotatable means. V

'2. An electromechanical 'aggregator as claimed *in claim 'l,'in"which"said fixed ratchet wheel is provided with a shocl -absorbing device-adapted to take the shockof arresting transmission when engag'e'd'by said-pawl.

"JOHN "HANDLEY.

. REFERENGESEETED 1 The 'fo-libwiii rfriles a'ie-"of" record in the

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