US395120A

US395120A - Phonographic notation

Info

Publication number: US395120A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1888-12-25
Anticipated expiration: 1905-12-25

Description

nnI STaTns .IOIIN S. (ABIIBELL, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

PHONOGRAPHlC NGTATlON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 395,120, dated December 251, 1888.

* Application led January 8, 1887. Serial No. 223,762. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, JOHN S. CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cincinnati, Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Phonographic Notation, of which the following is a specilication.

My invention relates to the art of writing or printing' language, its prim ary object being to provide a system of notation adapted for use upon the ordinary type-writers by which spoken words and sentences may be printed in abbreviated forni, thereby facilitating the recording of speech directly in and by the use of such type-writers in lieu of employing or dinary systems of phonography by hand-writing.

The geiieral object of my invention is therefore to provide a system of recording language in the use of the type-writers which shall lessen the labor of the operator7 but which shall enable the operator to record speech directly from dictation at the ordinary speed of vocal delivery.

To this end my invention consists in a system of abbreviation `in which the letters, signs, and characters ordinarily placed, or` which may be provided on type-writing machines, are employed lwith certain additional powers or functions and in a new relation, whereby language may be recorded in the ordinary printed characters, but in abbreviated form.

In order to describe and explain the system most conveniently with a view to ils adaptation to the existing conditions and Vln notions of the ordinary type-writer mechanism, I append to this sirecilicaiion, in the 'lorm ol" a drawing, certain i llnstrations or li} ;'11res"7 numerically designated, of the principal marks, positions, letters, numerals, and signs employed in carrying out the system of notation, together with a brief extract from the wellknown soliloquy from Shakespeares play of Hamletf7 as produced upon the typewriter by my system.

The numerically-desienated ligl'lrcs of the drawing will be used as a means ot' reference and illustration in the course of the following description, it being impracticafblc lwillniut much useless repetition to describe in the ordinary brief the contents of the drawing separately as a whole.

In carrying out my invention as practically adapted to and used in the operations of typewriting I classify t-he vowel and dipthong sounds of the English language into three positions, representing sound-values, and employ three characteristic signs or marks in connection with the essential letter or letters of a word or syllable to indicate the position or characteristic vowel or dipthong sound heard in pronouncing such word or syllable, according to a predetermined system of classification of such sounds. For present purposes I have adopted substantially the system of classification commonly used in phonography, as follows: First position sound: a in armg a in at; o in 10st, o in 011; au in aught; oi or oy as in boil orboy; ou in plough, i in pike. Second position sounds: a in ateg e in nietg o in note; u in up Third position sounds: e in feetg i in ping oo in food; u in putg en in feudg iew in view The marks or signs indicating these positions I term indicators and by form and position relative to the letters of the word or syllable they denote the vowel or dipthong sound to be given in connection with such letters (as based upon the classification described) according to the context. Thus, the character V (that is, the parenthesis mark used horizontally convex downward) placed before and opposite the upper limit of the letter or letters, as shown in Figure l of the drawings, as an indicator' of tlie-rst position, and denotes that the accented vowel or dipthong heard in the word or in. connection with the letter, sign, tigure, mark, or cliaracter to which it is prefixed is a vowel or dipthoixg fsound of the first position. For example, Vrin (ar1n,) Vt (aught,) Vmt (mat.) The character (that is, the short dash) placed before and 0pposite the middle limit of the letters or letter, as shown in of the drawings, is an indicator of the second position, and denotes that the accented vowel or dipthong heard in the word or in cimnec'livion with the letter, sign, tigurc, mark, or character to which it is prefixed is a vowel or dipthongsouiul of the second position. For example, -l (ale,) -nt (note.) The character A (that is, the parenthesis mark used horizontally, convex upward) placed before and opposite the lower limit of the letters or letter, as shown in Fig. 3 of the srs IOO

drawings, is an indicator of the third position, and denotes that the accented vowel or dipthong heard in the word or syllable or in connection with the sign, ligure, mark, or character t which it is prefixed is a vowel or dipth ong sound of the third position. For example, ea in eatg oo in f'tood; iin pim oo in foot;7 iew in view as, for example, ^ft (feet,) ^fd (feed or feud.)

The use of the indicators, as above explained, while it constitutes one of the important fea-tures of my invention would be incomplete as a system without the addition of certain other features,whieh I will proceed to explain. The first of these consists in employing, in connection with the indicators, certain letters, figures, signs, and cha 'acters which have no power ot' their own to express sounds in a distinctive relation in which an arbitrary function of sound expression may be given th ein-to wit:

First. C, as illustrated in Fig. l, of the drawings, to which isassigned the sound and power of ch, as in check, or tch, as in 1natch,7 and which may be named chay Second. $5, (the dollar sign,)y illustrated Y in Fig. 5 of the drawings, to which is assign ed the sound and power of the letter n, as heard in ink, or ng,` as heard in spring, and which may be called ing Third. n, (the underscore,) illustra-ted in -Figl 6 of the drawings, to which is assigned the sound and power of con, cum, co1n, 0011, or cog, as the context may require, and may be used alone or placed under another letter or character. In the latter case it prefixes its characteristic sound to that of the character under which ift is written.

Fourth. V (the first position indicator) illustrated in Fig. 7 of the drawings, prefixed to any one of the indicators proper, or wh'en terminatingl a word (indicated by the ordinary spacing' left after it) shall have the force of to, too, or two. For example, V d I to die or to add; V- l to-(flay, At" I into. A

A third feature oli' the complete system consists in en'lploying certain figures (numerals or digits) in connection with the indicators, for the expression of ceri ain sounds arbitrarily assigned. 'lhus:

The numeral 2, illustrated in Fig. S of the drawings, ha-s the sound an d power of th, as in thinln i The numeral 3, illustrated in Fig. 9 ot' the drawings, has the hard sound ot' th, as in breathe, thou.

The numeral 4, illustrated in Fig. l0 of the drawings, has the sound and power of s, as in sure, or sh, as in shun lThe numeral 5, illustrated in Fig. lll of the drawings, has the sound and power of z, as in azure,7 or s hard, as in vision.

The numeral 6, illustrated in Fig. l2 of the drawings, has the sound and power of ter, tr, orthr, and der or dr, as in truth, through, drake.

rlhe numeral 7, illustrated in Fig. 13 of the drawings, has the sound and power of st, sd, or zt, Zd, as in strengtln &c.

The numeral S, illustrated in Fig. ll of the drawings, has the sound and power of s or z combined with tr or dr, as str in street.

The immoral. ll, illustrated in Fig. l5 of the drawings, has the sound and power of shun, (tion, sion,) as in motiom mansion, &c.

ln the use of numerals for arbitrary-sound expression, it should be also explained that when the numerals stand alone or in isolated groups, or standing at least one letter-space from the malgin, they represent simply thei r numerical power; but when used adjacent to other letters o r ind i cati n g-marks th ey have 1 h e phonographic power and function before explained. `Likewise all the letters of the alphabet have their proper naines and sounds, except as before explained, with the exception that g always has the hard sound, and with the further exception that the letter a, written with the indicator of the first position, thus: f a shallbe read as an or and, while the letter e, written with the indicator of the third position, thus: e shall be read as the or thee lt will be observed that in the arrangement of the foregoing system l have selected as indicating marks and characters those which already exist in type-writing machines for the ordinary purpose of notation, and it will be found in applying the system that the additional functions and values assigned to certain of them are such as to avoid any confusion or uncertainty in the application of these additional functions and values. The additional object in view is to avoid the necessity of increasing the number of keys and characters used in the ordinary type-writers in order that the system 'may be conveniently engrafted, both in its mental and mechanical aspects, upon the ('mlinary type-writer operations.

Byy way of illustrating, the mode of operation of my improved system I have given as Fi g. 1G of the drawin an illustration of an extract from llamlets Soliloquy, taken from Shakespeares play of Hamlet A detailed explanation would be prolix and unnecessary.

Full text To be, or not to be, that is the question. Abbreviation: AT Ab, "r/nt ^t^b, V3l; ^z ^e qsou Abbreviation: ^T^b,"r"11t^t;\b,\3t^z^e-qsoit Full text: Whether tis nobler in the mind, to suffer Abbreviation: HWS jtz -nblr ^n Ae Vmud ^t --sfr Abbreviation: -HwBAtzv-nbhkn^e"1nnd^t-sl`r Fulltext: The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Abbreviation: Ae Aslz Va Vrz Vv Vtrjs `vf1-en, Abbreviation: ^e^s1zvavrzvvvtrjsvfrcn,

Full text: Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, Abbreviation: Vr At tk Vrmz -gnz a ,s Vv -ti-blz, l Abbreviation: Vrt-tk'mz--gnza, `s"v-trblz,

Full text: And, by opposing end them? to die, to sleep. Abbreviation: VA, Vb -pz$ -nd -3xn ^t Vd, At slp. Abbreviation: VA,"b-pz--nd---3inif ^t"d, At slp.

Suffice it to say that in addition to the drawings, Fig'. lG, there is given. above, first, the

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full line as ordinarily printed; second, the sound abbreviations beneath each word or syllable without reference to spacing; third, the abbreviation correctly written according to the system hereinbefore set forth.

In line 3 ot' each group it will be observed that the indicators are used in the spaces ordinarily occurring between words, and this I regard as an important feature of the system in its application to type-writing, inasmuch as in type-writing the spacing requires a distinct act of striking the spacing-key, which is thus saved. The indicators, when used as such, always denote the beginning ot a word as written, and no uncertainty or confusion can arise.

l claim as iny invention and desire to secure by Letters ot' the VU nited Statesl. The improvement in the art of recording speech by tyIm-writing, consisting ot' abbreviating words and syllables by printing .first a prefix-niark (ilesignating the class or group to which the leading vowel sound of the word or syllable vis assigned, and following said mark with the leading consonantal letters of such word or syllable in ordinary close succession itroin lett to right.

2. The improvement in the art ot' recording` speech by type-writing, consisting in preiixing in the ordinary spacing between words an arbitrary mark, indicating' by torni or position, or both, the leading vowel sound heard in connection with the consonantal. letters immediately followingl to constitute a word or syllable.

The system or inethod of abbreviating printed speech, consisting', essentially, in writing or printing the consonantal skeleton of a word or syllable in ordinary line succession. from left to right, prefixed by an arbitrary niark, indicating the general character of the vowel. sound of said word or syllable, said niark occupying the ordinary spacin gbetween words, substantially as set it'orth.

ln testimony whereotl l have hereunto set my hand in the presence ot' two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN CAMPBELL.

Vitnesses:

L. M. HosEA, C. D. KEER.