US514652A - aroye - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1..

G. W. GROVE.

CASH REGISTER.

No. 514,652. Patented Feb. 13, 1894.

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` 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.- G. W. GROVE.

CASH REGISTER.

(No Model.)

N0. 514,652. Patented Feb. 13, 1894.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

G. W. GROVE. CASH REGISTER.

N0. 514,652. Patented Feb. 13, 1894.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

GEORGE lV. GROVE, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL OASII REGISTER COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CASH-REGISTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 514,652, dated February l 3, 1894.

Application filed September 23, 1893. Serial No. 486.261. (No model.)

To all whom it 11e/ay concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE WV. GROVE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dayton, in the county of Montgomery and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and usefnl Improvement in Cash-Registers, of which the followingis adescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

ro My invention relates to that class of cash registers in which are employed an automatically opening money drawer and a gong or other alarm device sounded at each operation of the machine; and more particularly to ma- 15 chines in which the opening ot the drawer is controlled by a series of keys, whose operations also serve to sound the alarm. In machines of this class it is desirable, for practical reasons which need not be explained in t2o detail, that the adjustment ot the parts be such that the money drawer will be unlocked and the alarm sounded simultaneously, so that the machine cannot be manipulated to open the drawer without sounding the alarm, or to sound the alarm without opening the drawer. To this end it has generally been the practice to endeavor to so adjust the parts that the drawer will be released and the alarm sounded at the extreme limit of the positive 3o stroke of the operated key, so thatvthe two operations will be simultaneous, and in order, also, that the key be compelled to make a full stroke and perform its full duty before the alarm is sounded and the drawer opened. It has, however, been found extremely difficult in practice to so adjust the parts as to bring about this simultaneous operation of the alarm and drawer devices, or to maintain them in such adjustment when the machine is subjected to severe practical usage, and the result has been that in many instances it has been possible 'to so manipulate the machine as to sound the alarm without opening the drawer, or to open the drawer without sounding the alarm.

It is the object ot' my present invention to overcome this difiiculty and to provide means for operating the alarm and drawer releasingr devices which do not require any delicate ad- 5o justment and which always insure their simultaneous operation. In the machine which I have illustrated in the drawings I have accomplished this result by providing means for actuating the drawer-releasing devices not only at the same time that the alarm devices are operated, but by causing the drawer-releasing devices to be actuated by or through the alarm devices, in such manner that when the striker for the alarmgong isthrown against the gongit simultaneously actuates the draw- 6o er-releasing devices. As is usual in such machines the striker for the gong is normally pressed toward the latter by a suitable spring, and at the operation of any key of the machine it is moved away from the gong, against the stress ot such spring, and then released and the spring permitted to throw it quickly against the gong to sound the latter; and in the present machine the drawerreleasing devices are actuated by the gong-striker during 7c3 this movement of it under the impulse of its spring, so that the release ot the drawer and sounding of the gong are necessarily substantially simultaneous.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings, Figure l represents a vertical section of a common form of cash register, looking toward the side of the machine where the alarm and drawer-devices are located, and with the casing removed; Fig. 2 an enlarged detail of 8o those devices; and Fig. 3 a rear elevation of the machine, with the rear side of the casing removed, showing the rear end of the drawer, the spring for throwing it open, the drawerbolt, and the connection ot' the latter with S5 the releasing devices.

The same letters of reference are used to indicate identical parts in all the figures.

The operating keys of the machine consist in the present instance of the usual levers A 9o fulcrumed on a horizontal rod B in the lower forward part of the machine and bearing upon their front ends the usual numbered finger buttons representing the diierent values which the keys are adapted to indicate and register. At their rear ends the key-levers rest in the lower ends of vertical slots in a guide-plate O, while upon the rear ends of the keys rest the usual vertical tablet-rods D passed through and guided in the horizontal roo plates E F and carrying at their upper ends the usual indicators G bearing numbers corresponding to those upon the finger-buttons of the keys. The tablet-rods D are provided with the usual collars or supporting blocks H which are adapted to co-operate with the pivoted wing or supporting bar I. At each operation of the machine this wing, by mechanism intermediate it and the keys, hereinafter referred to, is moved rearward to release any elevated indicator-rod whose supporting collar or block has been resting upon it, and to permit the ascent of the rod corresponding to the newly operated key, and after the supporting collar of the latter rod has passed above the wing the latter is released and thrown forward to normal position by a suitable spring, as-at J, Fig. 3, ready to catch under the collar of the newly lifted rod and support the indicator in exposed position.

Extending across the entire series of keys and resting upon their upper sides is the usual cross bar K of a vibrating frame, composed of said cross-bar and side-arms L pivoted at their forward ends to the side-frames at M and also connected at said ends, if desired,bya second cross-bar N. The cross-bar K which rests upon the upper sides of the key-levers is provided with a rearwardly projecting flange adapted to co-operate with hooks or slotted lugs O upon the upper sides of the key-levers, to couple each operated key to the vibrating frame, in the usual Wellknown manner. v

Pivoted to the inner face of the left hand side-frame of the machine, at P, is a threearmed lever Q, Fig. 2. The forwardly projecting arm R of this lever is slotted at its forward end and embraces a pin S upon the side-arm L of the vibrating frame, so that whenever any one of the key-levers is operated and the vibrating frame lifted the threearmed lever will be rocked upon its fulcrum or pivotal bearing. The vertically extending arm T of the lever carries the usual trip or trigger Ufor actuating the indicator-supporting bar or Wing and the gong-striker, while the rearwardly extending arm V of the lever forms part of the drawer-releasing devices. As seen in Fig. 3 the money-drawer W has secured upon the upperedge of its rear Wall a locking plate X which is adapted when the drawer is closed to tit in a horizontal slot in a guide-plate Y secured to the casing. This guide-plate is provided with a vertical guideway in which tits and plays the drawer-locking bolt Z. This bolt is connected at its upper end to one end of a lever A' which is pivoted near its middle between brackets B' upon the framework or casing and whose'opposite end extends to the right-into proximity with the rearwardly projecting arm V of the threearmed lever Q. A suitable spring, as C', yieldingly holds the right hand end of the lever elevated and its left hand end and the drawer-bolt depressed in position to lock the drawer. The forward side of the lower end of the drawer-bolt is beveled off in the usual manner, so that when the drawer is closed the locking plate X will ride under and lift said bolt until the opening in said plate is brought under the bolt, whereupon the latter will drop andV lock the drawer. A curved spring Y' supported at its middle upon a vertical pivot Z', serves to throw the drawer open when released. In machines embodying this arrangement of the drawer-locking and releasing'devices the right hand end of the lever A' has heretofore been arranged to cooperate directly with the rear end of the arm V of the three-armed lever, or with a set screw passed through the rear end of said arm V, and the endeavor has been .to have the adjustment of the parts such that the arm V will depress the end of the lever A just far enough to lift the drawer-bolt out of engagement with the locking plate at the completion of the positive stroke of the operated key. This adjustment has been possible, though somewhat difficult to effect and maintain. In my present machine the rear end of the lever-arm V does not directly engage the end of the lever A', but has pivoted toit a short lever D' whose rear end rests upon the left hand end of the lever A', Fig. 2. Mounted upon the three-armed lever Q at P, or upon its pivotal support, is a plate or lever E' of approximately bell-crank form, having a vertical portion above its fulcrum and a horizontal portion in rear thereof. This plate is further guided upon the lever Q by means of a curved slot F' through which passes'a stud or screw upon the lever Q. The forward end of the lever D' normally rests upon or adjacent to the upper edge of the rearwardly extending portion of the plate E', being yieldingly held in such position by the action of the spring C" which upholds the end of the drawer-bolt-lever A'. `It results from this construction and arrangement of parts that when any one of the key-levers is operated and the three-armed lever Q thereby oscillated and its rearwardly extending arm V thrown downward the rear end of the lever D' will depress the outer end ofthe lever A' and lift the drawer-bolt, and it will also be seen that if the adjustment of. the parts is such that the full downward movement of the arm V of the lever Q is not quite sufficient to lift the drawer-bolt out of engagement with the locking plate of the drawer the outer end of the lever A may be further depressed and the drawer released by giving the lever-plate E' a slight oscillation upon its fulcrum P; and this IOO IIO

is the method by which the drawer is remeans for giving the plate E this slight movement at the end of the positive stroke of the key may now be described, as follows: At its upper end the plate is provided with a laterally projecting ear Gr', through a central hole in which passes a plunger-rod II whose rear end projects through an opening in the framework at I, Fig. 2. The portion of the front end of the rod which passes through the ear G' is reduced in size, forming a shoulder at .I which bears against the rear side of the ear G and causes the rod to oscillate the plate E when the rod is thrown forward. The rear end of the rod H projects slightly beyond the rear face of the portion of the framework containing this guide-way I', in posit-ion to be struck by the forward side of the indicator-supporting wing I or a projection thereon, in this instance by the head of an adjustable set screw K passed through the wing.

The gongsounding arm or striker L is rigidly secured to the right hand end of the Wing I, Fig. 3. Secured in a bearing upon its forward side is a wiper-block or bearing plate M with which co-operates the trip or trigger U carried by the vertical arm T of the. threearmed lever Q. lVhen said lever is oscillated by the operation of a key the rear end of the triggerU bears against the plate M upon the gong-striker and forces said striker and the wing I rearward against the stress of the spring J, Fig. 3. The adjustment of the parts is such that the trip U, in its rearward and downward movement, will clear the lower end of the plate M just at the end of the positive stroke of the operated key, thereby releasing the gong-striker and wing and permitting the spring .I to throw them forward and cause the striker to sound the gong and bring the wing into position to support the newly lifted indicator. At such release and forward movement of the gong-striker and wing, at the end of the positive stroke of the operated key, the head of the set screw K will strike the rear end of the plunger-rod II and throw the latter slightly forward, thereby vibrating the lever-plate E and causing the lever D to give the lever A a very slight but quick movement and disengage the drawer-bolt from the drawer.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that in my present machine the drawerbolt is disengaged from the drawer by the action of the spring which throws the gongstriker against the gong, so that the release of the drawer and the sounding of the gong are of necessity practically simultaneous. This obviates the necessity for any exact and delicate adjustment of either the gong-sounding or drawer-releasing devices and insures their simultaneous operation at all times. It will also be seen that, owing to the fact that the drawer is released bythe action of the same spring which throws the indicator-supporting wing forward to normal position, the drawer will be released simultaneously with such movement of the wing, so that it will not be possible to manipulate the machine in such a way as to lift an indicator and cause it to be engaged and supported by the Wing, without releasing the drawer, while upon the other hand it will not be possible to release the drawer without lifting an indicator to exposed position and causing it to be caughtand maintained exposed by the wing; and for this purpose my invention may be advantageously employed even in t'ne absence of au alarm device.

So far as I am aware I am the first in the art to release the money-drawer of machines of this class by or through the action of the alarm devices, in any manner or hy any construction and arrangement of the parts, and I therefore desire to secure as my invention the broad modes of operation and combinations set forth in my claims. I also believe myself to be the firstl in the art to actuate the drawerreleasin g devices by means of a spring which is put under tension and released during the positive stroke of an operated key, whether this spring be employed to actuate the gong striker or the indicator-supporting wing, or simplyfor the purpose of actuating the drawer releasing devices.

It will also be understood that my inven" tion, in respect to insuring the simultaneous operation of the gong -sounding and drawer-releasing devices, may be employed in machines in which the operating keys are simply stops or trips and do not directly actuate any of such devices. In many machines an independent driving mechanism is employed andthe gong-striker and drawer-releasing devices are actuated by suitable cams set in motion by this mechanism, and the difficulty heretofore experienced in greater or less degree in adjusting these cams and their co-operating devices to effect the simultaneous sounding of the alarm and release of the drawer would be overcome by the employment of the new mode of operation embodied in my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claiml. In a cash register employing an alarm device and a money-drawer, the combination, with the alarm-sounding devices and the drawer-holding or locking devices, of releasing mechanism for the drawer actuated by or through the alarm sounding devices, whereby the simultaneous sounding of the alarm and release of the drawer are insured, substantially as described.

2. In a cash register employing an alarm gong and a money-drawer, the combination, with the drawer-lock and the gong-striker, of a spring for throwing the striker against the gong, and releasing mechanism for the drawerlock actuated by such spring, substantially as and for the purpose described.

8. In a cash register employing an alarm device and a money-drawer, the combination, with the gong-striker and the drawer-lock, of a spring for throwing the striker against the gong, a series of operating keys, means actu- IOO IIO

ated by the keys for retracting the gongstriker against the stress of its spring and releasing it, and releasing mechanism forthe drawer-lock actuated by the gong-striker spring, substantially as and for the-purpose described.

4. In a cash register and indicator employing a money-drawer and a series of indicators and a movable supporting bar or wing for holding the operated indicator in exposed position, the combination of a series of operating keys for moving the indicators to exposed position, means intermediate the keys and supporting wing for moving the latter to release the previously exposed indicator, a spring for yieldingly holding the supporting wing in and returning it to normal' position, and releasing mechanism for the drawer-lock actuated by such spring, whereby the simultaneous movement of the wing to supporting position and release of the drawer are insured, substantially as described.

5. In a cash register employing a moneydrawer and means for holding the same in closed position, the combination of a series of operating keys, a spring put under tension and released during the positive strokes of such keys, and releasing devices actuated by such spring to release the drawer at the positive strokes of the operated key, substantially as described.

6. The combination of the operating keys,v

' brating frame, the three-armed lever Q con- -nected therewith, the trip carried by said 1ever and co-operating with the gong-striker, the lever-plate E', the plunger-rod co-operating therewith and with the gong-striker, and the lever D co-operating with the plate E and lever A', substantially as described.

GEORGE W. GROVE.

Witnesses:

PEARL N. SIGLER, JOHN M. BUCKLES.

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