US2986084A - Cyclically operated printing machine - Google Patents

Description

May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE 9 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 28, 1959 F/G. 2a

May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT ,9

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Filed April 28, 1959 9 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,935,084

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Filed April 28, 1959 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 4a

75 80 DM 2 E 27 75 39 1 37 44 29 125 38 fig F /G.5

y 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,986,084

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Filed April 28, 1959 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 417

May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,986,084

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE 9 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed April 28, 1959 DMZ May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,986,084

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Filed April 28, 1959 9 Sheets-Sheet '7 CA2 F/G. 73

F/G.74a-

FIG. 74b

y 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,986,084

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Filed April 28, 1959 9 Sheets-Sheet 8 May 30, 1961 P. A. DESCOUVEMONT 2,986,034

CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE 9 Sheets-Sheet 9 Filed April 28, 1959 2 Eli R4 Rlu FIG. 75!) United States Patent 2,986,084 CYCLICALLY OPERATED PRINTING MACHINE Pierre Andr Descouvemont, Bourg la Reine, France, as-

signor to Compagnie des Machines Bull (Socrete Anonyme), Paris, France Filed Apr. 28, 1959, Ser. No. 809,470 Claims priority, application France May 14, 1958 4 Claims. (Cl. 101-93) The present invention concerns improvements in cyclically operable printing machines and more especially in machines of the flying wheel type, in which a wheel bearing a complete set of characters or signs formed in relief on its periphery is actuated with a continuous rotational movement opposite a sheet of paper or other support intended to receive an impression. A striker hammer actuated on an instant depending upon the character to be printed strikes an inked ribbon or a carbon paper against the sheet and the wheel so as to print the selected character on the said sheet. Macln'nes operating on this principle are known which comprise a large number of printing wheels disposed side-by-side and which can simultaneously print line-by-line, at the rate of several hundred lines per minute, data which are transmitted to the machine by analysing means adapted to read punched cards or record tapes, which means transmit the said data synchronously with the mechanisms of the machine.

Machines called translating or interpreting machines are also known, which print on record cards, characters or signs corresponding to data analysed in various columns of the said record cards.

Machines of this type are so designed as to be able simultaneously to translate the data recorded in all, or a large number of, the columns of a record card.

These machines, which are relatively rapid, are provided with analysing, decoding and printing units, the number of which is at least equal to the number of record columns simultaneously dealt with in a record card.

By reason of their complexity, these machines are costly to construct and require delicate maintenance.

Simpler and less costly machines are also known, which comprise only one analysing, decoding and printing unit and which successively translate, column-by-column, the data which are recorded in the columns of a card.

These simplified machines are not generally sufiiciently fast to satisfy the requirements of mechanographical instailations. Intermediate solutions have also been reached, in which a plurality of analysing and printing units simultaneously translates, column-by-column, a plurality of zones of one card.

The present invention concerns more especially improvements in decoding and synchronising systems applicable to printing machines. These improvements have for their object to render possible the construction of rapid, simple machines of economic construction which can operate reliably at very high speeds. The improvements forming the subject of the present invention are applicable to printing machines comprising one or more printing mechanisms. However, the invention will be more particularly described in its application to a machine provided with one printing mechanism, which oper ates column-bycolumn and which translates the cards at a rate of from twenty to twenty-five columns per second.

In accordance with the invention, for this speed of translation the record cards are advanced in the analysing section in a direction perpendicular to the card columns with a continuous movement, so that it is possible to obtain this speed with a simplified construction of the mechanisms for the feed advance of the said cards.

In a cyclically operating printing machine designed in accordance with the invention, coded electric pulses representing character or signs to be printed are trans mitted to decoding relays. The machine comprises preferably one printing wheel rotating with a continuous movement opposite a printing device, its periphery being divided into a number of parts, some of which are each provided with a group of type characters or signs, the contacts controlled by some of the said decoding relays being connected to form a first tree arrangement with as many input terminals as there are of said groups, the contacts controlled by others of the said decoding relays being connected to form a second tree arrangement which has as many input terminals as there are type character positions in any one of said groups, the output of the second treearrangement being connected successively to the inputs of the first tree arrangement and a distributor which sends electric pulses to each of the inputs of the second tree arrangement in synchronism with the passage of each of the character positions of each group of character types, one of the said pulses, applied by the said distributor to an input of the second tree arrangement and selected by closed contacts in series in the two tree arrangements, triggering the printing device for printing the character corresponding to the said pulse.

For a better understanding of the invention, the same will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show more particularly a form of application of the invention to a machine for translating record cards which operates column-by-column. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevational view of the machine embodying the invention,

Figures 2a and 2b, when joined along the lines X-X, are an equivalent elevational view, the removed casings leaving to see the card hopper, the card picking and feeding members, the printing section and the card receptacle,

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken from the arrows 33 of Fig. 2, which shows the mounting of the printing mechanism,

Figures 4a and 4b, when joined along the lines Y--Y, are a plan view of the elements shown in Figs. 2a, 2b, especially showing the gear system for driving the card feed members,

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken through the printing mechanism and analyzing station,

Figure 6 is a sectional view of the pulse distributor taken through the lines 6-6 of Fig. 5,

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken through lines 7-7 of Fig. 5, which shows the hammer control members in the printing mechanism,

Figure 8 shows a fragment of the record card bearing data punched on an alphanumerical code having eleven positions and the translation of these data into printed letters,

Figure 9 is a diagram related to the intermediate coding system of the characters and their combinations of perforations,

Figure 10 shows a detail view of a printing wheel with helically disposed type characters,

Figure 11 shows a modified arrangement with two printing wheels in a translation device for two-deck cards,

Figure 12 shows a cam contact,

Figure 13 is a diagram illustrating the closure of cam contacts for a card cycle,

Figures 14a and 14b, joined along the lines W-W, constitute a diagram illustrating the closing of the cam contacts for a column cycle and the relative positions of the type characters on the periphery of a printing wheel, and

Figures 15a and 15b, joined along the line Z-Z, constitute a simplified diagram of the main electrical circuits of the machine.

The machine in which the invention is embodied comprises devices for feeding and advancing the cards, devices for analysing and decoding the data to be translated, devices for printing in clear the translated data, and devices for mechanically and electrically synchronising the various elements of the machine.

Such devices are well known in punched card machines, and only the particular arrangements concerning the invention will be described in detail.

Cards 20 to be translated are disposed (Figure 1) in a card magazine 21 in which a plate 22 disposed on the cards applies the latter against the base of the magazine, from which they are extracted oneby-one by an extracting mechanism comprising a knife. The cards thereafter pass through an analysing and printing device and are finally ejected into a receiving compartment 23, in which they are stacked. Provided at the front of the machine are three control buttons serving the following purposes: the button 25 for starting (and stopping) the motor of the machine and for applying voltage to the electric circuits, the button 26 for controlling the feed advance of the cards to be translated in the machine, and the button 27 to stop the feed advance of the cards.

The machine is connected by a cable S to an appropriate electric current source. A luminous signal 28 lights up some time after the depression of the button 25 for starting the motor, in order to indicate the instant from which the machine is ready to operate. Casings 33 and 34 conceal and protect the various mechanisms.

The various fixed elements of the machine are assembled and fixedly mounted on a base 35 (Figures 2a and 2b) and the movable members are driven by an electric motor 36 (Figures 3 and 4a). In Figure 3, the location of the motor is only indicated in dash-dotted lines, so as to show the mechanical parts situated behind the said motor.

A pinion 41 keyed on the shaft 30 of the motor rotates a wheel 42 mounted on a longitudinal shaft 43. A column cycle being the time necessary for all the operations relative to the translation of a datum recorded in a card column, at the translation speed of 25 card columns per second, the speed of the machine is one-thousand-fivehundred column cycles per minute and the shaft 43, which turns at the rate of one revolution per two column cycles, rotates at a speed of 750 r.p.m.

The longitudinal shaft 43 is provided with worm gears 46, 47 and 48 (Figure 4a) which rotate card-driving rollers 49, 51 and 52 (Figure Another worm gear through which the shaft 43 drives the roller 50 (Figure 5) is not shown in Figure 4a.

Mounted on the shaft 43 are cams CB which actuate cam contacts. Figure 12 illustrates by way of example a.

cam contact comprising two flexible blades 135 and 136 which are applied by spring blades 137 and 138 against bearing blades 139 and 140 respectively. Fixedly mounted on the blades 135 and 136 are contact studs 141 and 142. The blades 135 and 136 are electrically insulated from one another and from a support bar 146 by means of insulating plates 147. The blade 135 is provided with a shoe 143. Mounted on the shaft 43 is a cam CB of insulating material, which is driven by the shaft 43 by means of a key 145. The cam is provided with two bosses 148 and 149 which bear successively against the shoe 143 and bring into contact the studs 141 and 142, which temporarily close a circuit.

Various cams CB1 to CB7 open and close such circuits in the course of each column cycle, as indicated in the and 14b which, in combination relate to a single column cycle. The shaft 43 drives through a worm gear 45 (Figures 2b and 4b) a wheel fixedly mounted on the shaft 56 for the actuation of a card feeding mechanism. Mounted on the shaft 56, which performs one revolution for each card advanced in the machine, are cams CA1 to CA4, which close and open contacts once per card cycle, as indicated in the diagram (Figure 13). A machine may be designed to translate cards comprising any number of columns, for example cards having 40, 60 or 80 columns. The machine illustrated in the described example is designed to translate cards bearing 80 columns. Since it must be expected that there is some distance betwen two successive cards in the machine, a card cycle comprises, for example, 90 column cycles to each card advanced in the machine. Under these conditions, the shaft 56 rotates at 1500/90=l6.67 r.p.m. so that its revolution requies a time duration of 3.6 seconds. Mounted on the shaft 56 is a crank disc 57 provided with a crank pin 58. This crank pin is engaged in a block 59 sliding in a slot 60 formed in a member 61 keyed on a rocking pin 62 (Figures 2b and 4b). Keyed on the pin 62 is a lever 63 coupled by a link 64 to a sliding block 65 adapted to slide along slideways 66. The sliding block 65 is provided with a knife 67 designed to extract the cards one-by-one from the magazine 21 in known manner.

The motor 36 having been started, the knife 67 is actuated with a reciprocating motion such that, at each advance movement of the said knife, a card is engaged and removed from the magazine through a slot 68, 69 (Figure 5).

The card is thereafter engaged between the feed rollers 52 and 53, which carry it forwards. An electromagnet 70 (Figure 2b) is coupled to a member 71 which pivots under the action of the said electromagnet, when the latter is energised, about a pin 72 and lifts the cards which are in the magazine 21 and maintains them out of engagement with the knife 67. When the electromagnet 70 is no longer energised, the member 71 pivots back to its initial position and the cards are so lowered that the knife 67 can again take them up one-by-one.

The wheel 42 mounted on the shaft 43 (Figure 3) meshes with a wheel 44 (Figures 3 and 5) fast with a shaft 29. Mounted on this shaft is a printing wheel 37. which is driven through a disc 38 pinned on the said shaft. In addition, there is pinned on the said shaft a rotor 39 in the form of a five-branch star (Figure 6) of a magnetic distributor DM (Figure 5). The said distributor comprises an induction coil 75 mounted on a supporting plate 76 of magnetic metal, having a hollow central core 77.

The supporting plate 76 comprises eleven compartments mounted in a concentric circle around the shaft 29. Disposed in nine of the said compartments are induction coils, numbered from 78-1 to 78-9, as indicated in Figure 6. The two compartments 78-10 and 78-0 comprise no coils. The magnetic induction field supplied by the coil 75 could obviously be supplied by a permanent magnet.

, Each induction coil is supported by a magnetic core 79 engaged in a hole in the supporting plate 76. Each magnetic core 79, which may be turned about its own axis and take up a given angular position, is extended on the one hand by a flattened portion 80 and on the other hand by a cylindrical slotted portion 81 (Figures 3 and 5).

The slotted portion permits of adjusting the orientation of the flattened portion of each core so as to give it a particular angular position, in which an edge of the flattened portion has a predetermined position of coincidenc: in relation to the branches of the rotor. At each complete rotation of the rotor, the five branches thereof move past the core of each induction coil and temporarily close the magnetic circuit of each coil five times in succession.

diagram of Figures 14a In Figure 6, the rotor 39 is assumed to rotate in the direction of the arrow F and a branch -R2 of the rotor is shown in coincidence with the magnetic core of the coil 78-2. At this instant, a magnetic flux path is established through the central core 77 of the said coil, the support plate 76,, the core of the induction coil 78-2 and the branch R2 of the rotor. The travel of a branch of the rotor past the magnetic core of an induction coil is very rapid and the variation of the magnetic flux in the core of the said coil induces in the winding an electric pulse which is utilised as will hereinafter be described. In Figure 6, the branch R1 of the rotor has just travelled past the core of the coil 78-1 and the branch R2 is travelling past the core of the coil 7'8-2. Thereafter, the branch R2 of the rotor will travel past the coil 78-3, R4 past 78-4, R past 78-5, R1 past 78-6, R2 past 78-7, R3 past 78-8, R4 past 78-9 and R5 past the position 78-10, at which there is no coil, whereafter R1 travels past the position 78-0. The branch R2 thereafter arrives opposite the coil 78-1 and the cycle recommences. Thus, for each fifth of a revolution of the rotor, all the coils are successively brought into coincidence with one branch of the rotor and for each revolution of the rotor all the coils are brought into concidence with one branch of the rotor five times in succession.

The shaft 29 (Figure 5), on which the rotor 39 of the magnetic distributor and the printing wheel 37 are mounted, is supported in a casing .125, which also supports the driving mechanism for the inked ribbon of the printing mechanism. This mechanism (Figures 2a, 3 and 4a) comprises: a support plate 126, ribbon reels 127a and 12712, a guide 97 for the ribbon (Figures 2a, 5 and 7) and the inked ribbon 96 (Figure 7). The inked ribbon is not illustrated in the other figures. The mechanism 128 (Figure 2a) for controlling the ribbon for the drive and the automatic reversal of the direction of the ribbon is actuated by a small motor 129 (Figures 2a, 3 and 4a).

In order to facilitate inspection and maintenance of the printing wheel and positioning of the inked ribbon in its guide, the assembly formed of the shaft 29, the casing 125, the printing wheel, the mechanism for the feed of the inked ribbon and the magnetic distributor is mounted in a block adapted to be rotated on journals (40, Figure 3) mounted on the shaft 43. This assembly is maintained in the position illustrated in Figure 3 during operation of the machine by means of a bolt 82 which is adapted to rock about a pin fixed to the frame. The said bolt is engaged in a fixing lug 83 secured to the plate 126 and is held fast by means of a wing nut 84. In order that the assembly comprising the printing wheel, the mechanism of the ribbon and the magnetic distributor may be more readily distinguished in Figures 3 and 4a, this assembly is represented by broken hatching. In order to disengage the printing wheel with the mechanism of the ribbon, the wing nut 84 is sufficiently unscrewed and the bolt 82 is rocked in the direction of the arrow F2 (Figure 3). The released assembly can then be rocked in the direction of the arrow F3. An arm 73 which abuts an abutment 74 maintains the unit comprising the printing wheel and the distributor in the raised position.

Figure 8 illustrates a fragment of a record card bearing alphanumerical data recorded in the form of perforations located in accordance with a code hereinafter described, in which one or two perforations may be situated in the recording positions of a column. These positious are numbered on the card 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, l, 0, 11 respectively. The numerical values are recorded in a column by a single perforation formed in the numerical position corresponding to the recorded digit. The alphabetical indications are recorded by the combination in a column of two perforations, one of which has the position 9,8, or 7, while the other is located in one of the other positions of the column, in accordance with one of the code combinations hereinafter indicated.

Nothing o'iNbd Nothing The digits 1 and 0 also serve to indicate the letters I and O.

In the plane of the line 7-7 of Figure 5, as partially illustrated in Figure 7, the machine is provided with a row of eleven analysing brushes (Figure 5). These eleven brushes are disposed (Figures 7 and 15a) in the positions 85-11, 85-0, 85-1, 85-2, to 85-9 for analysing respectively the recording positions 11, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of a column of a card advanced through the machine for translation. The decoding of the analysed combinations of perforations is effected in principle by the known relay contact tree arrangement system but the mere decoding by this process of a code comprising eleven positions would involve the use of a prohibitive number of relays. There has therefore been provided a first decoding stage which is carried out by means of a decoding diode matrix DD (Figure 15a) which by means of diodes d1, d2, d3 converts the 11- position code into a 7-position code. The table of Figure 9 shows the combinations in accordance with which the outputs S1 to S7 of the diode matrix of Figure 15a are placed under voltage in accordance with the various combinations of perforations which are analysed in a column by the brushes. The outputs S1 to S7 (Figure 15a) are connected (Figure 15b) to a system known as tree arrangement of relay contacts, of which the input terminals D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, D6, D7, D8 and D9 are connected respectively to the coils 78-1 to 78-9 of the magnetic distributor.

The relays are disposed in housings BT (Figure 4b) and so arranged as to be interchangeable by plugging into sockets on a panel TB. Other elements of the machine will be described in the course of the following explanation.

The starting of the machine comprises a preparatory phase which is necessary for applying voltage to the electric circuits and the heating of a thermionic tube.

The electric current being led in at S (bottom left-hand corner of Figure 15b), the switch 2'5 on the front of the machine (Figures 1 and 2b) is depressed. The electric current is fed to the motor 36 and, through the lines L1 and L2, to the various feed circuits of the machine.

These circuits, which are of known type and are not shown, convert or rectify the supplied current to give current at various voltages +275 v., +48 v., l0 v. and heating (CH for a thermionic tube TD and two slowacting relays RTl and RT2). The voltage 0 is connected to earth, through which the return of all the circuits except CH is effected. The slow-acting relays R'I l and RT2 (Figures 15a and 15b) close contacts after a time lag necessary for the heating of the triggering thermionic valve TD (Figure 15b).

After this time lag, the contact RTla (Figure 15a) is closed and establishes a circuit which lights a pilot lamp 28 visible on the front of the machine (Figures 1 and 2b). As a result of the closing of the contact RTZa, the voltage +275 v. can be applied later to the anode of the tube TD and enables this tube to operate, its filament being hot, under the control of pulses.

The introduction of cards 20 to be translated into the magazine 21 of the machine results in closing of a contact CM (Figure 15a). This contact is in series with a contact CP, called the full-compartment contact (Figures 5 and 15a) and with a contact 27 (Figures 1, 2b and 15a). V 3

The electromagnet 70 (Figures 15a and 2b) is energised when the machine is inoperative by the following circuit: +48 v., line 100, line 101, closed contact 121a, electromagnet 70 to earth. The energised electromagnets 70 pivots the member 71 (Figure 2b), which maintains the cards 20 in the raised position out of the path of the feed knife 67.

In order to start the card translating devices of the machine, the button 26 (Figure 15a) is depressed and, referring to the diagram of Figure 13, which shows the closing of the cam contact CA in a card cycle, and since the motor 36 and the shaft 43 are rotating, it will be seen that as soon as the contact CA1 closes at the point 6 of the cycle a circuit is established as follows: +48 v., line 100, line 102, cam contact CA1 (closed), contact 26 (closed), relay 121 to earth. The energisation of the relay 121 results in opening of the contact 121a and since the electromagnet 70 is no longer energised the member 71 rocks, the cards are lowered and a card can be removed from the magazine 21 at each advance movement of the knife 67. Simultaneously with the energisation of the relay 121, a relay 122 in parallel is energised and closes a contact 122a through which there is established a holding circuit for the relay 121 by way of a cam contact CA2, as soon as the latter is closed at the between points 16 and 17 of the card cycle (Figure 13). It will be seen that, before the time lag determined by the slow-acting relay RTl, the contact of the slow-acting relay RTlb shunts the contact 121a and that the opening of the latter contact does not deenergise the electromagnet 70, as long as the contact RTlb of the slow-acting relay is not open. Disposed in series with the contact CM, which is closed by the presence of cards in the magazine 21, is a so-called full-compartment contact CP (Figures and 15a). This contact is automatically opened, as will hereinafter be described, to stop the card feed as soon as the receiving compartment 23 is full. A card extracted from the magazine 21 by the knife 67 is fed by the rollers 52, 53, 51 and 54 on to the analysing and printing section (line 77 of Figure 5), whereby a so-called card lever contact LC is closed (Figure 15a). At this instant, a cam contact CA3 (Figures 14 and 15a) is closed. A circuit is established as follows: +48 v., line 100, line 103, contact CA3, contact LC, line 104, relay 110 and earth. The energised relay 110 closes the contact 110a, which is in series with a cam contact CA4. The cam contact CA4 is closed (Figure 13) before the contact CA3 is opened, and the relay 110 is therefore maintained in the energised condition by the contact CA4. The voltage applied to the relay 110 is also applied to a cam contact CB5 (Figure 14a), which is called the column reading contact. This contact applies voltage to the contact plate 116 (Figures 5, 7 and 15a). One card to be translated being, for example, the card illustrated in fragmentary form in Figure 8, which bears the indication MACHINES BULL 94, the recording of the letter M is represented in accordance with the above-mentioned code, in the first column of the card by the perforations 2 and. 8. In the analysing operation, the brushes 85-2 and 85-8 (Figure 15a) will be placed under voltage by the contact plate 116 through the perforations 2 and 8 of the first column of the card The brush disposed at 85-2 being under voltage, the relays R4 and R5, which are connected to the outputs S4 and S5 of the diode matrix DD, are energised and close their contacts R4a and RSa. The brush disposed in 85-8 is placed under voltage through a perforation 8 and energises the relays R1 and R7, which are connected to the outputs S1 and S7 of the diode matrix. These relays close their contacts R111 and R7a.

In Figures 14a and 14b, which show the closing diagram of the cam contacts CB during a column cycle, the duration of a column cycle is divided into five equal periods designated C0, C1, C2, C3 and C4, and each of these periods is in turn divided into eleven equal time 8 l intervals designated 0 to 10. At the commencement of the period C1, a cam contact CB7 is closed, thus establishing the following circuit: +48 v., line 100, contact CB7, line 105 and line 120. The relays R7a, RDS, RD4 and RD1 are energised by the closed contacts R7a, R511, R4a and Rla, and their respective contacts RD7a, RDSa, b, c, and d, RD4a and b, and RDla rock. When, at the end of the point C2-0 of the column cycle, the contact CB5 (Figure 14a) is opened, the relays R7, R5, R4 and R1 are maintained energised by the line 120 through the rectifier elements ER7, ERS, ER4 and ERl respectively. It should be noted that the beginning of the first column cycle (see Figs. 14a, 14b) coincides with the beginning of one card cycle or point 0 of the diagram of Fig. 13.

The contact tree arrangements controlled by relays RDl to RD7 (Figure 1511) includes actually two of them, of which the first is controlled by the relays RD1 and RDZ and the second by the relays RD3, RD4, RDS, RD6 and RD7.

The inputs of the contacts of the first tree arrangement can be sequentially connected (Figure 15b) to the output EP of the second tree arrangement by a group of cam contacts CB1, CB2, CB3 and CB4, of which the closing times are indicated in the diagram of Figures 141: and 14b.

During a column cycle, a card column is shifted with a continuous movement into the analysing and printing position of the machine (line 7-7 of Figure 5) by a distance equal to the width allocated to a column on the card, and the printing of a given character is carried out by the actuation of the hammer 111 (Figure 7) of a striking mechanism 112 (Figures 5 and 7) at a given instant in a column cycle, in accordance with the character to be printed.

During a part of the period C0 of each column cycle, a cam contact CB6 (Figures 14a and 15b) is closed and applies to a condenser 91 the direct voltage of 275 v. through a resistance 91 which limits the strength of the charging current of the said condenser.

The contact RTZa of the slow-acting relay RT2 being closed, this voltage is applied to the anode 92 of the triggering valve TD through the coil 93 of the electromagnet of the striking mechanism (Figures 7 and 15b). The control grid 94 of the valve TD is connected by a line 107 to the output of the first tree arrangement. As indicated in the diagram of Figures 14a and 14b, a voltage pulse successively appears over each of the terminals D1-D9 connected to coils 78-1 to 78-9 respectively, and this five times in each column cycle. When relays RDl to RD7 are energised in accordance with a combination corresponding to a sign to be printed, closed contacts in the tree arrangements establish a chain of contacts which closes a circuit which permits a pulse produced in one of the coils of the magnetic distributor to reach the control grid of the triggering valve TD at an instant which is determined in the column cycle in accordance with the sign to be printed. This pulse triggers the discharge of the condenser into the coil 93 of the electromagnet of the striking mechanism through the triggering tube TD. The current flowing at this instant in the coil 93 produces a magnetic field which attracts the moving armature 95 of the electromagnet and throws the striker hammer 111 (Figure 7) against the record card C. The inked ribbon 96 supported by the guide 97 is disposed between the card C and the printing wheel 37. The actuation of the hammer 111 prints on the card C the character of the wheel 37 which is opposite the hammer at this instant. Since the printing of the characters takes place during the displacement of the card, the type characters are disposed on the wheel in the form of a helix whose pitch is equal to the pitch P of the columns on the record card, as can be seen on Fig. 10. The arrangement of the type characters on the wheel and the instant when, in a column cycle, the various character types of the printing wheel travel past the printing position are indicated in detail in the diagram of Figures 14a and 14b.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the analysis of the card perforations 2 and 8 has energised the relays RD7 and RDS, RD4 and RD1 and that the contact RDla which has rocked establishes communication between the line 107 and the contact RDZb connected (in the inoperatime position) with the cam contact CB3. The line 108 communicates through the contact RD3a (in the inoperative position) with the contact 'RD4a (rocked) which, through the contact RDSb (rocked), communicates with the coil 785 of the magnetic distributor. At the point C3-5 of the cycle (Figure 14b) when the contact CB3 is closed, the pulse induced in the coil 785 of the distributor can be transmitted to the control grid 94 of the triggering valve TD through the following circuit: 10 v., coil 78-5, contact RDSb (rocked), contact RD4a (rocked) contact RD3a (inoperative), contact CB3 (closed), contact RDZb (inoperative), contact RDla (rocked), line 107, control grid 94 of the triggering valve TD and resistance 109 connected to 10 v. The triggering valve TD is fired by the pulse transmitted to its control grid, and the condenser 90 discharges rapidly into the coil 93 of the striking device. The hammer 111 is actuated at the point C3-5 indicated in the diagram of Figure 14b. The coil 93 and the condenser 90 are so designed that the discharge of the condenser takes place through the said coil with damped oscillations. The valve TD which controls the discharge of the condenser also performs a rectifying function and only the first halfcycle of the oscillation can pass into the coil 93. The energy thus transmitted to the electromagnet actuating the striker hammer 111 can be very exactly defined by the charge imparted to the condenser 90. The striker hammer 111 thus actuated is thrown (Figure 7) against the assembly comprising the card C and the carbon ribbon 96 and the printing wheel 37, and then rebounds to the rear position where it is maintained by the action of the springs 113 and 114.

At the end of a column cycle, the contact CB7 (Figures 14b and 15a) is opened, whereby the relays R1 to R7 and RD1 to RD7 are de-energised and the holding contacts Rla to R711 are opened. At the following cycle, the cam contact CB6 is again closed from C0 to C0-6 (Figure 14a) for recharging the condenser 90.

The diagram of Figure 14a indicates by the line B8 the time during which, in the travel of a card column past the analysing brushes 85, one or more of these brushes can make contact, at each column cycle, with the contact plate 116 through perforations in the card, approximately from the point C0-3 to the point C22. The closing of the cam contact CB (Figures 14a and 15a) from the point C0-6 to the point C21 causes current to be fed to the plate 116 to permit the analysing of the perforations of a column to be translated.

In the second tree arrangement, the relays R7 (Figure 15b) and RD7 are energised through the line S7 by the analysing of a perforation 7, 8 or 9 in a column and for all the alphabetical combinations comprising one of these perforations.

However the closure of contact RD7a is effective only for printing of the digits 7, 8 or 9, but it does not in fact serve for the printing of the other characters such as letters.

In the circuit through which the current is fed from the contact CB5 to the contact plate 116 there is provided (Figure 15a) a detachable plug connection 86 which connects the terminals 87 and 88. Cam contacts CA5, CA6, CA7 and CA8 are arranged tobe opened in a card cycle at instants corresponding to columns or groups of columns which it may be desired to prevent from being translated. it is obvious that, with the detachable link 86 withdrawn and the contacts CA5, CA6, CA7 and CA8 connected in series, all the suppressions of translation of the columns which are produced by the opening of each of the said contacts will be rendered effective. Detach- 10 able links disposed between various terminals of the said cam contacts permit various combinations of translation suppression.

The card cycles and the column cycles in the card cycles succeed one another indefinitely as long as there are cards to be translated in the magazine 21 of the machine.

Stopping of the translation, i.e. stopping of the feeding of cards to be translated, may result from various causes. It has been stated at the beginning of the present descrip tion that the introduction of cards into the magazine 21 results in closure of a contact CM (Figure 15a). On the other hand, when the last card to be translated in a stack of cards has left the magazine, this contact is automatically opened and, by virtue of the known arrangement, this results in stopping of the machine under the conditions which will be described elsewhere. The contact CP called the full-compartment contact (Figure 15a) is controlled by a lever 24 (Figures 2a and 5). When this lever is lowered under the weight of a sufiicient number of cards (Figure 2a), the contact CP is opened, whereby the machine is stopped.

The contact 27 .for stopping the advance of cards is in series with the contacts CM and CP (Figure 15a). For stopping the advance of the cards in the machine, the contact '27 is depressed and maintained in the depressed position (open) until, in a card cycle, the contact CA2 (Figures 13 and 15a) is opened. At this instant, the relay 121 is dc-energised, the contact 121a re-closes and the electromagnet 70 is energised by the following circuit: +48 v., line 100, line 101, contact 121a (closed), electro'magnet 70 and return to earth.

If the stopping of the feed of the cards to be translated is produced by opening of the contact GP or of the contact 27, there may still remain cards to be translatcd in the magazine 21. The energisation of the electromagnet 70 (Figures 2b and 15a) causes pivoting of the member '71, which raises the set of cards and brings the cards out of the path traversed by the feed knife 67.

Figure 11 illustrates a modified embodiment including an arrangement of printing wheels adapted for translating two-deck record cards. The printing wheels 131 and 132 are shown motmted on the same shaft as that of a magnetic distributor DMZ. Each wheel is provided with a ribbon guide 133-134, the ribbons and the mechanism by which they advance, not being shown. The recording code illustrated on the card is a six-position code by means of which digits or numbers from 0 to 15 can be represented by a combination of perforations representing respectively, according to the positions in which they are recorded, the values 1, 2, 4, and 8. Two other record positions 0 and Y are provided to receive perforations which, in combination with the perforations 1, 2, 4, 8, permit more than sixty different combinations.

In the arrangement illustrated in Figure 11, a card is advanced in the direction transverse in relation to the columns, i.e. in the direction of the arrow F5, and all the recording positions of one column are simultaneously analysed.

For this purpose, the machine is provided with two separate analysing, decoding and printing units which simultaneously translate the data recorded in the two stages of a column. The magnetic distributor DMZ may be common to the two decoding devices. In orderto translate the six-position co'de illustrated in Figure 11, an intermediate decoding matrix comprising diodes (Figure 15a) is unnecessary, and an adaptation will be readily conceivable in which the analysing brushes are directly connected to the relays of the decoding tree =arrangments, the brushes which analyse the recording positions 0 and Y being connected to the terminals S1 and S2, and the brushes which analyse the positions 1, 2, 4, 8, being connected to the terminals S3, S4, S5 and S6 of the relays controlling the two tree arrangements. The magnetic distributor comprises a number of induction coils 11 determined by the number of inputs employed in the second tree arrangement of decoding contacts.

In the arrangement illustrated in Figure 11, the axis of rotation of the printing wheels is in the directio'n of the record columns, and the character types are there fore not disposed helically on the periphery of the said wheels. This wheel arrangement is also suitable for a printing mechanism designed to translate cards of the type illustrated in Figure 8.

It is obvious that the present description of an application of the invention to a translating machine for record cards has no limiting character and that any modifications may be made to adapt the invention to high-speed multiple-wheel printing machines controlled by coded electrical pulses obtained by the analysing of record cards or tapes or by any other means, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In a cyclically operable printing machine controlled by record cards, a printing wheel which turns with a continuous rotational movement opposite a printing device at the rate of one revolution per cycle, said wheel being divided on its periphery into a number of equal parts, some of which parts are each provided with a group of type characters or signs, means for analysing column-bycolumn coded marks corresponding to data, disposed in columns on said record cards, means for decoding the analysed data comprising first and second relay sets having relay contacts, a first set of the said relay contacts being connected to form a first tree arrangement, of which the input is connected to the printing device, and having a number of inputs equal to that of the said groups of type characters, the second set of said relay contacts being connected to form a second tree arrangement with a number of inputs corresponding to that of the type characters in each of said groups of type characters, the analysing of marks in a record column establishing a chain of contacts between the output of each tree arrangement and one of its inputs, switching means which, in the course of each cycle, successively connect the output of the second tree arrangement with each of the inputs of the first tree arrangement, a pulse distributor which successively applies electric voltage pulses to each of the inputs of the second tree arrangement, in synchronism with the travel of each of the type characters of each group of type characters of the printing wheel past the printing device, a pulse applied by said distributor to an input of the second tree arrangement being selected by the closed contacts in series in the two tree arrangements and actuating the printing device at a predetermined instant in the cycle depending upon the character to be printed.

2. In a cyclically operable printing machine controlled by record cards, a printing wheel which turns with a continuous rotational movement opposite a printing device at the rate of one revolution per cycle, said wheel being divided along its periphery into a number of equal parts, some of which parts are each provided with a group of type characters or signs, means for analysing column-by-colurnn coded marks corresponding to data disposed in columns on said record cards, means for decoding the analysed data comprising first and second relay means having relay contacts, a first set of said relay contacts being connected to form a first tree arrangement of which the input is connected to the printing device, and having a number of inputs equal to that of said groups of type characters, the second set of said relay contacts being connected to form a second tree arrangement with a number of inputs corresponding to that of the type characters in each of said groups of type characters, the analysing of marks in a record column of one card establishing a chain of contacts between the output of each tree arrangement and one of its inputs, switching means which, in the course of each cycle, successively connect the output of the second tree arrangement with each of the inputs of the first tree arrangement, a pulse distributor which successively applies electric voltage pulses to each of the inputs of the second tree arrangement in synchronism with the travel of each of the characters of each group of characters of the printing wheel past the printing device, said pulse distributor being an inductive distributor which comprises windings each connected to one input of said second tree arrangement, an inductive rotor which rotates synchronously with the rotation of the printing wheel and successively induces in each winding an electric current pulse at an instant corresponding to the travel of a character type position, in each group of characters of the printing wheel, past the printing device, a pulse circuit path from said distributor to the output of said first tree arrangement being selected by the closed contacts in series in the two tree arrangements for transmitting a pulse and actuating the printing device at a predetermined instant in the cycle, depending upon upon the character to be printed, whereby said characters will be printed in the card column just analyzed.

3. In a cyclically operable printing machine controlled by continuously fed record cards, a printing wheel which turns with a continuous rotational movement opposite a printing device at the rate of one revolution per cycle, said wheel being divided along its periphery into a number of equal parts, some of which parts are each provided with a group of type characters or si ns, means for analysing column-by-column coded marks corresponding to data, disposed in columns on said record cards, means for decoding the analysed data comprising first and second relay sets having relay contacts, a first set of said relay contacts being connected to form a first tree arrangement of which the input is connected to the printing device and having a number of inputs equal to that of said groups of type characters, the second set of said relay contacts being connected to form a second tree arrangement with a number of inputs corresponding to that of the type characters in each of said groups of type characters, the analysing of marks in a record column establishing a chain of contacts between the output of each tree arrangement and one of its inputs, switching means which, in the course of each cycle, successively connect the output of the second tree arrangement with each of the inputs of the first tree arrangement, an inductive pulse distributor which successively applies electric voltage pulses to each of the inputs of the type second tree arrangement, in synchronism with the travel of each of the characters of each group of the printing wheel past the printing device, said inductive distributor comprising a star-shaped rotor which rotates synchronously with the printing wheel, the said rotor being provided with a number of branches equal to the number of parts of the printing wheel and being arranged in such manner that one single coil of the distributor at a time supplies at each rotation of the said rotor a current impulse upon the passage of one position of character type on the printing wheel past the printing device, a pulse applied by said distributor to an input of the second tree arrangement being selected by the closed contacts in series in the two tree arrangements and actuating the printing device at a predetermined instant in the cycle depending upon the character to be printed.

4. A printing machine according to claim 3, wherein the rotor of the inductive distributor is keyed on the shaft which supports the printing wheel and rotates at the same speed as the said wheel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,757,605 Dumey Aug. 7, 1956 2,776,618 Hartley Jan. 8, 1957 2,787,210 Shepard Apr. 2, 1957 2,799,222 Goldberg July 16, 1957 UNITED STATES PATENT'OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,986 O84 May 30 1961 Pierre Andre Descouvemont It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 11 lines 31 and 65 and column l2 line 34 for "input", each occurrence, read output Signed and sealed this 10th day of April 1962,

(SEAL) Attest:

ERNEST w. SWIDER DAVID L. LADD Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer

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