US3063623A

US3063623A - Voting machine

Info

Publication number: US3063623A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1962-11-13
Anticipated expiration: 1979-11-13

Description

Nov. 13, 1962 R. F. SHOUP ETAL VOTING MACHINE Filed Feb. l, 1961 INVENToRS. A/VSOM E M01/P ,47m/@NEX United States Patent Giiiice 3,063,623 Patented Nov. 13, 1962 3,063,623 v VOTING MACHlNE Ransom F. Shoup, Bryn Mawr, and Edward A. Fox, Sr.,

Morton, Pa., assignors to Shoup Research and Development Corporation, Ridley Park, Pa.

Filed Feb. 1, 1961, Ser. No. 86,411 2 Claims. (Cl. 23555) This invention relates to a voting machine of the type disclosed in Shoup et al. Patent No. 2,054,102 of SeptemberY 15, 1936.

One object of the invention is to improve the machine disclosed in said patent.

It will be seen from. line 51, et seq., left, column, p. 3, and in line 17, et seq., right column, p. 5, of said patent, that the machine includes rigid plates (31) and ballot assemblies consisting of ballot protectors (32), ballots (33) and rigid shutters (34) and that the plates and the ballot assemblies are inserted in position, back of vertical bars (30a), through slots (36) formed in the top wall of the casing of the machine. See FIGS. 14, l5 and 16 of the Shoup patent. Partly to avoid having to climb to a point above the top of the relatively high voting machine, and partly because of relatively low ceilings of the rooms where the machines are handled, it has heretofore been the practice to tilt each voting machine on its side to permit the insertion of the plates and protector-ballot-shutter assemblies through slots (36). Tilting the heavy and large machines involves hard work by two, 0r more, persons. A

It is therefore a further object of the invention to produce an improved voting machine of the type set forth in which rigid plates (31) and rigid shutters (34) are not removed and in which the iiexible ballot and its flexible transparent protector can be inserted into position, and removed, without having to tilt the large and heavy voting machines, and without having to climb to a point above the top of the relatively high machines.

A still further object is to produce an improved structure which may be incorporated in the large number of presently existing machines, and in machines of future manufacture, easily, inexpensively, without much skill and without any material interference with the structure, or operation, of the machines, thus facilitating the use of the machines.

Generally speaking, the invention resides in providing a readily accessible opening in the front face of the voting machine, below the top thereof, through which the paper ballots and their exible transparent protectors may be inserted separately, or as assembly units; in providing a removable cover for closing said opening; and in providing means for locking the cover in closing position to prevent access to the ballots as long as the machine is available for use by voters, and for unlocking the cover when the machine is unavailable for use by the voters so as to afford the attending officers access to the ballots and to the vote counters for the purpose of tallying the votes cast for the various candidates and for resetting the machine for the next election.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the following specification and the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. l is a fragmentary, front elevational view similar to FIG. of Shoup patent, and showing the machine in the process of being rendered available for use by the voters, as shown in FIG. 66 of said patent, and showing the cover of this invention in the process of being locked in position.

FIG. 2 is similar to FIG. l5 of said Shoup patent, except for showing the parts in the position in which the machine is locked against use by voters, as in FIG. 65

2 of said Shoup patent, and and the parts are in a position in which the cover of the present invention is unlocked and removed.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, sectional view looking in the direction of line 3 3 on FIG. 1 and showing only as much of the structure of the voting machine as is necessary for understanding the invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view looking in the direction of line r4--4 on FIG. 2 and showing the manner in which the ballot and its protector are inserted in position, or removed. n

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view looking in the direction of line 5 5 on FIG. 2, certain parts being omitted.

In addition to the parts above-mentioned, the voting machine shown in said Shoup patent also includes studs (35) which are carried by shutters (34) and which are engageable with slots (37a) in a xed plate (37) and with slots (lOla) in slide (101) so that, when slide (101) is moved to the right and left, as viewed in FIG. 65 of the Shoup patent, studs (35) will be progressively engaged by cam slots (lOla) to respectively raise and lower shutters (34) in the manner shown in FGS. 65, 66 and 67 of'the said Shoup patent. It will be noted that when studs (35) are engaged by the highest portions of slots (lOla), shutters (34) are raised to expose the vote counters and that, when the studs are engaged by the lowest portions of slots (lOla), the shutters are lowered to cover the vote counters. It will also be noted that, when the vote counters are exposed, the vote casting mechanism is locked and the machine cannot be used by the voters and that, when the counters are covered, the vote casting mechanism is released and the machine can be used by the voters. It will also be noted that, i'n the Shoup patent, plates (31) and the assemblies consisting of protectors (32), ballots (33), and shutters (34), can only be inserted, or removed, when the vertical portions of slots (lOla) in movable slide (101) are in registration with slots (37a) in liixed plate (37), as shown in FIG. 65 of the Shoup patent, and that slide (101) is moved to either of its positions by locks (104) and (105), which are shown in FIG. 14 and 'are described in right column, p. 5, of said patent.

The parts thus far described yform no part of the present invention and have been diagrammatically shown and described only to the extent necessary for understanding the present invention. For convenience of reference, the parts thus far described have been designated by the same numerals by which they are designated in the Shoup patent and, in order to distinguish them from the numerals used in describing the present invention, the numerals borrowed from the Shoup patent have been bracketed.

To carry out our invention, we make plates (31) and shutters (34) non-removable; we provide opening 103 which is located in the front face 107 of the machine below the top (10) thereof and through which the ballots and their protectors may be inserted in the manner shown in FIG. 4; and we provide a removable cover 102 for closing opening 103 to prevent unauthorized access to the ballots (33) and their protectors (32). For economy in structure and operation, cover 102 is operatively connected to main slide (101) of the Shoup patent so as to be automatically locked in position when the machine is in use by the voters and so as to be automatically released when the voting is over and the machine opened for tallying the votes and for re-setting the machine for the next election. As shown, this result is accomplished by providing auxiliary slide 106, which is suitably integrated with slide (101) for joint movement therewith, as by brackets 108, and which is provided with cam slots 110 3 which are similar to slots (101a) in slide (101). Cover 102 is provided with studs 112 which have reduced portions 114, andthe inner ends of which are provided with cross-heads 116. Slots 110 are provided with vertical portions 118, which correspond to the vertical portions of slots (101a) and to slots (37a) of the Shoup patent.

The operation is as follows:

When locks (104) and (105 are actuated to bring main slide (101) to the position of FIG. 65 of the Shoup patent, auxiliary slide 106 of the present invention will be moved to the position of FIG. 2, in which cover 102 can be detached by moving it upwardly until reduced portions 114 of studs 112 clear the vertical portions 118 of cam slots 110. It will be remembered that, when slide (101) is moved to the position of FIG. 65 of the Shoup patent, the vote casting mechanism of the voting machine is immobilized so that no votes can be cast, and therefore the cover may be removed to give the officers access to the ballots (33) and their protectors (32), in the manner shown in FIG. 4. After the machine has been re-set, cover 102 is replaced by inserting reduced portions 114 of studs 112 downwardly through the vertical portions 118 of cam slots 110 in auxiliary slide 106, and the operation of locks (104) and (105) moves main slide (101) and auxiliary slide 106 in a direction to cause studs 112 to enter cam slots 110. It will be noted that when studs 112 are engaged with vertical slots 118, or with cam slots 110, cross-heads 116 will prevent forward movement of the cover, or to the left, as viewed in FIG. 3, and that the engagement of reduced portions 114 of the studs with cam slots 110 prevent upward movement of the cover. By this arrangement, the cover is automatically locked in position as long as the machine is available for use by the voters, and that the cover is released and may be removed when vote casting mechanism of the machine is immobilized and the machine is unavailable for use by the voters.

Instead of being operated, locked and released, jointly with main slide (101), it is within the scope of the invention to eliminate brackets 108 so as to mount auxiliary slide 106 for independent movement. I-f auxiliary slide is mounted independently of main slide (101), it can be moved to its opposite positions and can be locked by locks 126, which correspond to locks (104) and (105), and only one of which is shown in FIG. 1.

By the arrangement described, removal of cover 102 45 as would be necessary in using the machine disclosed in the Shoup patent.

What we claim is:

1. A voting machine comprising a housing, a vote casting mechanism within said housing, said housing having a lower and an upper portion, a shutter vertically movable within said housing in generally parallel relationship with said lower portion of the front wall, a main slide within said housing, said main slide being movable horizontally and being operatively connected to said shutter to move said shutter vertically in synchronism with its own horizontal movement, a space within said housing between said lower portion of the front wall and said shutter, said space being arranged to hold a generally tlat ballot and flexible protector therefor with a plane surface of said ballot generally parallel to said lower portion of the front wall, an opening in said upper portion of the front wall below said top wall and in a vertical plane, said opening being in communication with said space, a removable cover for said opening, an auxiliary slide within said housing, said auxiliary slide being operatively connected to said main slide for simultaneous movement therewith, said cover being connected to said auxiliary slide by a releasable connection, said releasable connection comprising means for releasing said cover from said auxiliary slide when said auxiliary slide is in a predetermined horizontal position within said housing and for interlocking said cover with said auxiliary slide when said auxiliary slide is in all other horizontal positions within said housing.

2. The voting machine of claim 1 wherein said releasable connection comprises a cam slot in said cover and a locking stud on said auxiliary slide engageable with said cam slot, said cam slot having an otset open end portion, and said locking stud being constructed and arranged to enter and leave said cam slot through said open end portion when said auxiliary slide is in said predetermined horizontal position and to lockingly engage said cam slot in other horizontal positions of said auxiliary slide.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 882,160 Newcomb Mar. 17, 1908 2,054,102 Shoup et al Sept. 15, 1936 2,826,356 Shoup Mar. 11, 1958 3,000,554 Shoup Y A Y I Sept. 19, 1961