US3618852A

US3618852A - Fuel pump register with expanded readout

Info

Publication number: US3618852A
Application number: US875410A
Authority: US
Inventors: William Kes; Lawrence E Hough
Original assignee: Veeder Industries Inc
Current assignee: Veeder Industries Inc
Priority date: 1969-11-10
Filing date: 1969-11-10
Publication date: 1971-11-09
Anticipated expiration: 1988-11-09

Abstract

Register conversion means for modifying the volume and/or cost counters of a fuel pump register for expanding the available readout of the volume counter from 99 9/10 gallons to 149 9/10 gallons and the available readout of the cost counter from $9.99 to $14.99 and which comprises a substitute highest order number wheel bearing the sequence of indicia of 0-14 and having a 30tooth drive gear, a substitute compound transfer gear with relatively large and small eight-tooth gears respectively engageable with the drive gear of the substitute number wheel and the combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment of the adjacent lower order number wheel for indexing the substitute wheel one count for each revolution of the adjacent lower order number wheel, and an auxiliary window mask for the substitute wheel.

Description

United States Patent [22] Filed [45] Patented [73] Assignee Nov. 10, 1969 Nov. 9, 1971 Veeder Industries Inc. Hartford, Conn.

[54] FUEL PUMP REGISTER WITH EXPANDED 114, 1 i5, 108, 144 SM, 133

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,829,833 4/1958 Carbonara 235/1 15 2,932,448 4/1960 Bliss 235/144 3,495,396 2/1970 Funaki 58/19 Primary Examiner- Stephen J. Tomsky Auorney- Prutzman, Hayes, Kalb 5 Chilton ABSTRACT: Register conversion means for modifying the volume and/or cost counters of a fuel pump register for expanding the available readout of the volume counter from 99 9/10 gallons to 149 9/10 gallons and the available readout of the cost counter from $9.99 to $14.99 and which comprises a substitute highest order number wheel bearing the sequence of indicia of 0-14 and having a 30-tooth drive gear, a substitute compound transfer gear with relatively large and small eight-tooth gears respectively engageable with the drive gear of the substitute number wheel and the combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment of the adjacent lower order number wheel for indexing the substitute wheel one count for each revolution of the adjacent lower order number wheel, and an auxiliary window mask for the substitute wheel.

I F/G/ "PATENTEDNuv 9 I97! 3,618,852

SHEET 1 BF 2 INVENTORS WILLIAM KES LAWRENCE E. HOUGH BY 727M,

ATTORN EYS FUEL PUMP REGISTER WITH EXPANDED READOUT BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to resettable registers of the type employed in fuel dispensing apparatus for registering the volumetric and/or monetary amount of fuel dispensed, as for example as shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,932,448 of Harvey N. Bliss dated Apr. 12, 1960 and entitled Resetting Mechanism for Counters" and relates more particularly to a fuel pump register with an expanded volumetric and/or monetary readout.

' The typical fuel pump register has a bank of resettable counters on each of two opposite sides of the register with each bank comprising upper and lower counters for respectively registering the monetary and volumetric amounts of each fuel delivery. Such a register is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,814,444 of Harvey N. Bliss dated Nov. 26, 1957 and entitled Register? wherein both the money and volume counters are shown having three counter wheels for registering the monetary and volumetric amounts of each fuel delivery up to $9.99 and up to 99 9/l0 gallons respectively. However, because of the increasing cost of gasoline and the use of larger fuel tanks, the monetary amount of a fuel delivery may easily exceed the maximum monetary readout of $9.99 provided by the standard three-place register. For example, a delivery of 25 gallons of gasoline having a unit volume price of 45 cents per gallon would cost $11.25, an amount in excess of the maximum monetary readout of $9.99 of the standard register.

It is therefore a principal aim of the present invention to provide conversion means for modifying existing registers to expand the available monetary readout and thereby provide for registering the monetary amount of larger fuel deliveries.

It is another aim of the present invention to provide a new and improved register change kit useful for expanding either the monetary or volumetric readout of a standard register of the type disclosed and described in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,814,444 and 2,932,448.

It is a further aim of the present invention to provide a new and improved register counter having an expanded available readout and yet substantially the same size asexisting register counterssuch that the improved counter may be readily substituted for existing register counters without additional modification of the register.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

A better understanding of the invention will be obtained from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings of an illustrative application of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view, partly broken away and partly in section, showing a top plan view of a standard fuel pump register;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged section view, partly broken away and partly in section, showing a cost counter of the register and additionally showing a tool useable in modifying the cost counter in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a partial elevation view, partly broken away and partly in section, showing the cost counter as modified in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are enlarged side and end views of a compound gear of the modified cost counter of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a section view, partly broken away and partly in section, taken along line 6--6 of FIG. 3.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like numerals represent like parts throughout the several figures, in accordance with the present invention register conversion means is provided for expanding the maximum available monetary or volumetric readout of a standard register 12 of the type shown and described in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 2,932,448.

As more fully described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,932,448 the register 12 comprises a frame with a pair of

sideplates

14, 16 and two banks or pairs of vertically spaced counters having axially shiftable wheel supporting shafts 20 mounted on the

sideplates

14, 16. Three counter wheels are rotatably mounted on each of the shafts20 and the wheels are connected by intermediate eight-tooth transfer pinions 25 rotatable on pinion shafts 26 extending parallel to the wheel shafts20. The upper counter 2 7 of each bank is connected to be driven for registering the cost of the fuel delivered and the lower counter 28 of each bank is connected to be driven for registering the volume of the fuel delivered.

The counter wheels are substantially identical excepting that the lowest order counter wheels 29 of the volume counters 28 are provided on their peripheral rims 32 with the sequence of indicia of zero-tenths through nine-tenths inclusive, whereas the rims 32 of the remaining counter wheels 33 are provided with the sequence of indicia of zero through nine inclusive. Accordingly the cost counters 27 provide for registering the cost of a delivery from $0.00 through $9.99 and the volume counters 28 provide for registering the volume of a delivery from 00 0/10 gallons through 99 9/10 gallons.

Each of the

counters wheels

29, 33 and a hub 36, a 20-tooth drive gear 38 rotatably mounted on one end of the hub (at the right end of the hub as viewing the wheel when reading the counter), and (at the opposite end of the hub 36) a reset gear 42 rotatably mounted on the hub and a combination locking ring and two-tooth gear segment 46 integrally formed with the hub. The transfer pinions 25 are engageably with the drive gears 38 and the combination locking ring and two-tooth segments 46 of adjacent higher and lower order counter wheels respectively for generating transfers from each lower to the adjacent higher order counter wheel. The drive gears 38 of the lowest order counter wheels are connected to be driven to rotate the volume and cost counters to respectively register the volume of the fuel delivered and the cost of the fuel delivered in accordance with the unit volume price of the fuel which is conventionally established by a settable variator (not shown) associated with the register.

The drive gears 38 are formed with serrations 50, and drive pawls 52 pivotally mounted on the wheel hubs and spring biased into engagement with serrations provide for selectively engaging the drive gears. In similar fashion the reset gears 42 are provided with pockets 54, and reciprocable plungers 60 mounted on the wheel hubs and actuated by pivotal pawls 64 provide for selective engagement of the reset gears.

The counter shafts 20 are provided with spaced annuluses 70 which normally receive the inwardly projecting ends of the pawls 52, 64 to provide for engagement of the wheel drive gears 38 and disengagement of the reset gears 42. By axially displacing the counter shafts, the pawls 52, 64 are pivoted to engage the reset gears and disengage the drive gears and thereby condition the counter wheels to be reset to zero with gears 72 meshing with the reset gears 42. The gears 72 are suitably driven to rotate the counter wheels to zero (which is conventionally accomplished between fuel deliveries), and when each counter wheel reaches its zero or fully reset position the inner end of its pawl 64 is received within an axial slot 76 in the respective counter shaft to disengage the reset gear and also simultaneously lock the counter wheel against further rotation. In accordance with the present invention one or both

counters

27, 28 of each bank are adapted to be modified to expand the maximum available readout of the counter. More particularly in accordance with a preferred application of the present invention, the conversion means has special usefulness in expanding the maximum readout of the register cost counter 27.

A standard cost counter 27 shown in FIG. 2 is shown modified in FIG. 3 in accordance with the present invention to increase the maximum available readout of the cost counter from $9.99 to $14.99. The modified cost counter 80 incorporates a substitute highest order counter wheel 82 constructed like

counter wheels

29, 33 excepting that its rim 84 bears the sequence of indicia l4 and comprises an enlarged wheel drive gear 86 rotatably mounted on its hub 36 (not shown). A substituted compound gear 90 is mounted on the pinion shaft 26 for engagement with the wheel drive gear 86 and the combination locking ring and two-tooth gear segment 46 of the adjacent lower order counter wheel 33. The substitute compound gear 90 has a central cylindrical flange 92 and a relatively large.gear 94 (on the right side of the flange 92 as viewed in FIGS. 3 and 4) for engagement with the combination locking ring and gear segment 46. The gear 94 has eight equiangularly spaced teeth with alternate mutilated or shortened teeth 96 adapted to clear the locking ring for engagement by the two-tooth segment 98 only for generating transfers to the wheel 82 as the adjacent lower order wheel 33 is indexed from its 9" to its 0" position. The compound gear 90 comprises a relatively small gear 100 (on the left side of the central flange 92 as viewed in FIGS. 3 and 4) which engages the drive gear 86 of the wheel 82. The gear 100 also has eight equiangularly spaced teeth 102 aligned with the eight teeth of the relatively large gear 94, and the drive gear 86 has thirty teeth to provide for indexing the wheel 82 one digit or one-fifteenth of a revolution when the two-tooth transfer segment 98 engages the gear 94 to rotate the substitute compound gear 90 when the wheel 33 is indexed from 9 to 0.

The standard cost counter 27 may be converted to an expanded cost counter 80 by replacing the highest order counter wheel 33 with the substitute wheel 82. For this purpose a tool 110 (shown in FIG. 2 positioned on the outer reduced threaded end 112 of the counter shaft may be used to facilitate withdrawing the counter shaft 20 (to the right as seen in FIG. 2) sufficiently to permit removing the highest order counter wheel and then installing the substitute wheel 82 on the counter shaft 20 by slipping it along the tool 110. Similarly the pinion shaft 26 may be partially withdrawn to permit replacing the highest order pinion 75 with the substitute compound gear 90. Consequently the cost counter 27 (and/or the volume counter 28) may be readily modified to expand the maximum available readout of the counter as provided by the present invention.

The indicia 0-14 on the substitute wheel 82 have the same height which is preferably sufficiently less than the height of the indicia on the number wheels 33 to provide adequate separation between the indicia 0-14. Also for permitting maximum height of the indicia 0-14 an auxiliary mask insert 120 is mounted within the standard window opening 122 of the register housing 130 to provide a smaller window opening for the shorter indicia on the wheel 82. The auxiliary mask 120 is preferably a single piece of integrally molded black plastic which may be flexed slightly to position the mask within the window opening with its inner

opposed flanges

124, 126 in engagement with the inner face of the sheet metal housing 130. A pair of

side flanges

132, 134 of the auxiliary mask cooperate with the

inner lips

124, 126 to retain the insert in place. Thus, it can be seen that a conversion kit comprising the substitute wheel 82, the substitute compound gear 90 and the auxiliary mask 120 may be readily installed to convert a cost counter or a volume counter of a standard fuel pump register of the type described to significantly increase the maximum available readout. Such a kit may be used in the field to convert existing registers or such parts may be used in the original manufacture to provide for expanding the counter readout without otherwise modifying the register.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, various modifications, adaptations and variations of the foregoing specific disclosure can be made without departing from the teachings of the present invention. We claim:

1. Conversion means solely for use in expanding the readout of a resettable fuel pump register having at least one counter connected to be driven during the delivery of fuel to provide a readout of the amount of the fuel delivery and resettable to zero between deliveries and including a counter shaft, a transfer pinion shaft extending parallel to the counter shaft, at least two counter wheels of ascending order mounted on the counter shaft having outer rims bearing the sequence of indicia of 0 through 9, the adjacent counter wheels of relatively higher and lower order having disengageable reset gears for resetting the counter wheels to zero and having respectively a disengageable wheel drive gear and a combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment, the counter shaft being axially shiftable in one direction for disengaging the wheel drive gear and engaging the reset gears for conditioning the counter wheels for being reset and axially shiftable in the opposite direction for disengaging the reset gears and engaging the wheel drive gear for conditioning the counter wheels for counting, and a transfer pinion mounted on the transfer pinion shaft in engagement with the wheel drive gear and combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment of the counter wheels for generating transfers from the lower to the higher order counter wheel and providing with the transfer segment and drive gear a 1:1 drive ratio between the wheels during transfers; the conversion means comprising a substitute counter wheel for said higher order counter wheel having an enlarged disengageable drive gear, a disengageable reset gear, the disengageable drive gear and reset gear of the substitute counter wheel being selectively engageable and disengageable by the counter shaft by axially shifting the counter shaft in said one direction for disengaging the drive gear and engaging the reset gear for conditioning the substitute counter wheel for being reset and in said opposite direction for disengaging the reset gear and engaging the drive gear for conditioning the substitute counter wheel for counting, and an outer rim hearing the sequence of indicia of 0 through x where x is greater than 10; and a substitute compound gear for the transfer pinion adapted to be mounted on the transfer pinion shaft and having a first relatively large gear engageable with the combination transfer segment and locking ring of said lower order counter wheel and a relatively small gear engageable with the enlarged drive gear of the substitute wheel; the compound gear, two-tooth transfer segment and enlarged drive gear of the substitute number wheel together providing a (x+l ):l0 reduction drive ratio during transfers.

2. Conversion means according to claim 1 wherein x is 14.

3. Conversion means according to claim 1 wherein said higher and lower order counter wheels and the substitute counter wheel have central hubs for rotatably mounting the wheels on the counter shaft and wherein the axial length of the hub of the substitute wheel is substantially equal to the axial length of the hub of said higher order counter wheel.

4. Conversion means according to claim 1 for use in expanding the readout of a register having a counter mask with window openings for the counter wheels respectively for displaying the counter readout, wherein the indicia of the sub stitute wheel have a circumferential height less than the circumferential height of the indicia of said higher order counter wheel, and wherein the conversion means comprises an auxiliary mask adapted to be mounted on the register mask overlying the window opening for said higher order counter wheel for reducing the window size in conformity with the reduced circumferential height of the indicia of the substitute wheel. 5. Conversion means according to claim 4 wherein the auxiliary mask comprises a unitary plastic insert having resilient lips for mounting the auxiliary mask in part within the window opening for said higher order counter wheel.

6. Conversion means according to claim 1 wherein the relatively large and small gears of the substitute compound gear have eight teeth and wherein said relatively large gear comprises alternate relatively long and short teeth such that both the relatively long and short teeth are engageable with the two-tooth transfer segment of the said lower order counter wheel for generating transfers to the substitute wheel and only the relatively long teeth are engageable with the locking ring for locking the substitute compound gear between transfers.

7. Conversion means according to claim 6 wherein the teeth of the relatively small and large gears of the substitute compound gear are in axial alignment.

l R l t II

Claims

1. Conversion means solely for use in expanding the readout of a resettable fuel pump register having at least one counter connected to be driven during the delivery of fuel to provide a readout of the amount of the fuel delivery and resettable to zero between deliveries and including a counter shaft, a transfer pinion shaft extending parallel to the counter shaft, at least two counter wheels of ascending order mounted on the counter shaft having outer rims bearing the sequence of indicia of 0 through 9, the adjacent counter wheels of relatively higher and lower order having disengageable reset gears for resetting the counter wheels to zero and having respectively a disengageable wheel drive gear and a combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment, the counter shaft being axially shiftable in one direction for disengaging the wheel drive gear and engaging the reset gears for conditioning the counter wheels for being reset and axially shiftable in the opposite direction for disengaging the reset gears and engaging the wheel drive gear for conditioning the counter wheels for counting, and a transfer pinion mounted on the transfer pinion shaft in engagement with the wheel drive gear and combination locking ring and two-tooth transfer segment of the counter wheels for generating transfers from the lower to the higher order counter wheel and providing with the transfer segment and drive gear a 1:1 drive ratio between the wheels during transfers; the conversion means comprising a substitute counter wheel for said higher order counter wheel having an enlarged disengageable drive gear, a disengageable reset gear, the disengageable drive gear and reset gear of the substitute counter wheel being selectively engageable and disengageable by the counter shaft by axially shifting the counter shaft in said one direction for disengaging the drive gear and engaging the reset gear for conditioning the substitute counter wheel for being reset and in said opposite direction for disengaging the reset gear and engaging the drive gear for conditioning the substitute counter wheel for counting, and an outer rim bearing the sequence of indicia of 0 through x where x is greater than 10; and a substitute compound gear for the transfer pinion adapted to be mOunted on the transfer pinion shaft and having a first relatively large gear engageable with the combination transfer segment and locking ring of said lower order counter wheel and a relatively small gear engageable with the enlarged drive gear of the substitute wheel; the compound gear, two-tooth transfer segment and enlarged drive gear of the substitute number wheel together providing a (x+1):10 reduction drive ratio during transfers.

2. Conversion means according to claim 1 wherein x is 14.

4. Conversion means according to claim 1 for use in expanding the readout of a register having a counter mask with window openings for the counter wheels respectively for displaying the counter readout, wherein the indicia of the substitute wheel have a circumferential height less than the circumferential height of the indicia of said higher order counter wheel, and wherein the conversion means comprises an auxiliary mask adapted to be mounted on the register mask overlying the window opening for said higher order counter wheel for reducing the window size in conformity with the reduced circumferential height of the indicia of the substitute wheel. 5. Conversion means according to claim 4 wherein the auxiliary mask comprises a unitary plastic insert having resilient lips for mounting the auxiliary mask in part within the window opening for said higher order counter wheel.