US517046A - Disk-operated game-machine - Google Patents

Description

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J. A. HUN-T.

DISK OPERATED GAME MAOHINB.

No. 517,046. Patented Man-27,1894.

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NIT-ED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN A. HUNT, OF BIN GHAMTON, NEW YORK.

DISK-OPERATED GAME-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 517,046, dated March 27, 1894.

Application filed February 20, 1893- Serial No. 463,084- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN A. HUNT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Binghamton, county of Broome, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game-Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a disk operated game machine the disk to be dropped into the machine and to be automatically delivered by the machine.

The object of my invention is to provide a game machine of novel and attractive features, with which two or more players by taking a determined number of disks may by dropping them into the slot of the machine play an interesting game the player obtaining the largest number of disks being the winner of the game.

To these ends my invention consists in certain features of construction and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and then particularly pointed out in the claims.

In order that my invention may be fully understood,'I will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved disk operated game machine. Fig. 2 is an interior view of the casing in elevation, the front parts being removed. Fig. 3 is a sectional View partly broken away, on line Y, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is asimilar section showing the parts in another position. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view of the mechanism shown in Fig. 3 and 4. Fig. 6 is a view of the disk to be used with the machine.

The casing of the machine has top 1, bottom 2, sides 3 and 4, back 5, and glass face 6, back of the glass face 6 is a plate 12 shown fully in Fig. 2. This plate 12 has a flat even surface with the exception of raised perpendicular bars 15-16171819 and 20. These perpendicular bars are raised from the surface of the plate 12 to a height slightly greater than the thickness of the disks .to be used with the machine, so that when the plate 12 is placed in position behind the glass face and forming compartments 21-22-2324.

2526 and 27, between the plate 12 the glass face 6 and the raised bars 15-l617l8- 19 and 20. I do not place a bar to the right of compartment No. 27 nor to the left of compartment No. 21 because the sides 3 and 4 of the casing retain the disks in those compartments.

The plate 12 has a row of openings 13 one in each compartment 2l-22232425 26 and 27, and extending across the entire width of each compartment also another row of smaller openings 14 below the row of openings 13 in the center of each compartment 212223'242526 and 27 the purpose of these openings will be described hereinafter.

A flat tube not shown in the drawings leads from the slot 47 to the opening 28 in the plate 12 the purpose of this slot and tube is to convey the disk from the outside of the casing dropping it in the way between the plate 12 and the glass face 6. Below the opening 28 is attached to the plate 12 fourcurved springs 2930-31 and 32 these springs are slightly narrower than the way between the plate 12 and the glass face 6 allowing them room to work freely. The purpose of these springs will be described hereinafter.

The glass face 6 has a darkened portion at 7 covering the part of the plate 12 to which the perpendicular bars 15--161718-19 and 20 and hiding from view the compartments 21222324t2526 and 27. The plate 12 ends short of the bottom 2 above an incline 10 which extends just in front of the downwardly extending flange 9, and across the entire width of the casing and permits the disks when falling from the compartments to slide onto the front portion of the bottom 2, against a guard strip 11. The front of the casing over the incline 10 is protected by a shelf 8. The glass face 6 ends short of the plate 12 allowing the disks to turn the angle when dropping from the compartments onto the incline 10, as will be described hereinafter.

At the rear of the plate 12 conforming with the openings 13 of each compartment 21 22--23-242526 and 27 is a backwardly and downwardly extending diskway or chute 44 having a curved rear portion 45. The purpose of these chutes or diskways will be described hereinafter.

A door is fitted into the back of the casing for convenience of getting at the mechanism and removing the disks, and is fitted with a lock 48 in the side 3 of the casing.

Having described the fixed parts of my machine I will now describe the operating mechanism thereof.

At the back of the plate 12 on a line coincident with the center of each of the compart ments 2l22--23242526 and 27, is a small hanging arm 33 swinging freely on pin 35 in a bracket 36 which is attached to the plate 12. The hanging arms 33 have a forwardly extending detent 34 which normally extends through the opening 14 of plate 12 and rests against the glass face 6, these detents 34 prevent the free passage of the disks 46 whenlocked in position as will be described hereinafter. A rocking lever 37 is pivoted at 38 in a bracket 39 which is attached to a brace 40 which is attached to the plate 12. At the end of the lever'37 nearest the dog 33 is hung a counterbalance weight 41 the upper portion of which extends through a slot in the lever 37 and is pivoted at 42. The end of the lever 37 under the rearend of the chute or diskway 44 is provided with portion or pan 43. The inner end of the rocking lever 37 normally rests against the bottom of the hanging arm 33, looking it so that its forwardly projecting detent 34 holds the disks 46 from passing out of the compartments as shown in Fig. 3.

Figs. 3 and 4 show an outline view of the mechanism in the rear of one compartment, it being understood that the mechanism is similar in each, there being seven hanging arms, rocking levers, chutes or diskways, &c., all being alike, and working independently of each other.

The disks Fig. 6 are preferably of metal about seven-eighths of one inch in diameter and about one-eighth of an inch in thickness. However the machine may be constructed to use disks of other sizes.

The construction of my disk operated game machine having been described I will now proceed to describe the operation thereof.

The machine is supposedly in normal position and empty of disks. Two or more persons will take a determined number of disks, say twenty-five each; they will alternate in dropping them into the slot of the machine. Person No. 1 will drop a disk into the slot 47 whence it will roll through a flat tubing and drop through the opening 28 onto the point of the spring 29, the point of this spring 29 being under the center of the opening 28 the disk is liable to fall either to the right or left. Should it fall to the right it will strike on the right wing of the spring 29 and thence rebound onto the spring 32, this spring 32 being of a peculiar shape the disk may be thrown against the spring 30 or may be thrown over the spring 30 to the opposite side against the spring 31, the spring 31 may throw against the spring 30 or may throw it over the spring 30 to the opposite side again. A similar operation might occur should the disk fall to the left and bound onto spring 31. The object of all the springs 29--3031 and 32 is to throw the disks about making it an element of chance as to which compartment they may drop into. After leaving the springs the disk may drop squarely on the end of one of the perpendicular bars and bound toa compartment some distance away. When the disk drops into one of the compartments it slides or falls by the opening 13 by reason of its momentum and is caught and held by the forwardly projecting detent 34 of the hanging arm 33. WVe will say for example that the first disk dropped in the slot by the person or player No. 1 will finally drop into compartment No. 23'between the bars 16 and 17. The person or player No. 2 will now drop a disk in the slot and after bounding about among the springs we will say for example that it will drop into compartment No. 25 between the bars 18 and 19. The next disk we will say for example will also drop into compartment No. 25 when we will have two disks in compartment No. 25 and one in compartment No. 23. When one more disk drops into the compartment No. 25 it will have three disks which will reach as high as the opening 13 and the next disk happening to drop into that compartment will strike on Ithe upper one of the three disks already in that compartment, and tip over through the opening 13 into the diskway or chute 44. This operation is shown in Fig. 3. After the disk 46 falls into the chute it slides down the same and falls onto the pan 43 of the rocking lever 37. The chute 44 is provided at its end with a downward curve 45 to prevent the disk sliding over the pan 43 of the lever 37.

The disk,46 dropping onto the pan 43 of the lever 37, depresses that end of the lever unlocking the hanging arm 33 allowing the disks 46-46-46 to run out of the compartment onto the incline 10 and out on the forwardportion of the bottom 2 against the stop 11, the player who deposited the last disk being entitled to the three which have just fallen out. This operation is shown in Fig. 4. After the disks have run out the hanging arm 33 will resume its normal position by its own weight, and when the rocking lever 37 has reached a more slanting position the disk 46 will slide off from the pan 43 when the lever 37 will by reason of the counterbalance weight 41 resume its normal position, relocking the hanging arm 33 in position until the same operation is repeated. When the disks are all used with which the game was started the player having the greater number is supposed to be the winner of the game, it being understood that the disks which are drawn from the machine shall not be dropped into the machine again during that game. The disks falling off the lever 37 drop into the bottom of the casing, and together with those remaining in the compartments; may be removed by opening the door in the rear of the casing, those disks remaining in the compartments being obtained by depressing the levers 37 by hand or dropping a disk on the pan 43 0f the lever 37.

The machine may be so constructed that a different number of disks would dropinto a compartment before one would fall into the chute, by raising or lowering the position of the opening 13 in the plate 12, and raising or lowering the position of the chute 44 to conform with it. Or the machine may be so constructed as to have the compartments hold different numbers of disks before they would fall into the chute for instance: the opening 13 in compartment 21 might be lowered the diameter of one disk, so that two disks would fill it up to the opening, and the third disk happening to fall in that compartment will fall through the opening into the chute tip the rocking lever and allow the two disks to run out. I Or the opening 13 in the compartment 22 could be raised the diameter of one disk, so that it would require four disks to fill it up to the opening, and the fifth disk would work the lever allowing the four disks to run out. The next compartment might .hold five disks before working the lever, 860.

'The machine illustrated in my drawings has seven compartments. It will be readily understood that a machine may be constructed with a greater or less number of compartments, the same mechanism and principle applying to all.

I do not wish to be understood as confining myself in the use of my invention to the game as described in the foregoing, as other pleasing ways of using my invention may doubtless be devised.

It is evident that my invention is susceptible of slight changes which will readily suggest themselves to skilled mechanics without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a disk operated machine, the combination of a plate, a glass face, springs confined between the plate and glass face for throwing the disks about, bars raised from the surface of the plate, forming compartments into which the disks may fall, substantially as set forth.

2. In a disk operated machine, the combination of the plate, the glass face, springs confined between the plate andglass face for throwing the disks about, bars raised from the surface of the plate, forming compartments into which the disks may fall, pivoted hanging arms, having forwardly projecting detents reaching'through openings in the plate across the Way of the compartments, substantially as set forth.

ing the disks about, bars raised from the surface of the plate forming compartments into which the disks may fall, pivoted hanging arms, having forwardly projecting detents, reaching through openingsin the plate, across the way in the compartments, rocking levers provided with counterbalance weights calculated to lock and hold the hanging arms in position, preventing the downward course of the disks and holding them in the compartments, substantially as set forth.

4. In a disk operated machine, the combination of a plate, a glass face, springs confined between the plate and glass face, for throwing the disks about, bars raised from the surface of the plate, forming compartments into which the disks may fall, pivoted hanging arms, having forwardly projecting detents reaching through openings in the plate, across the way in the compartments, rocking levers provided with counterbalance weights, calculated to lock and hold the hanging arms in position, preventing the downward course of the disks and holding them in the compartments, openings in the plate across the compartments through which the disks may fall, substantially as set forth.

5. In a disk operated machine, the combination of the plate, the glass face, springs confined between the plate and glass face. for throwing the disks about, bars raised from the surface of the plate, forming compartments into which the disks may fall, pivoted hanging arms, having forwardly projecting detents reaching through openings in the plate across the way in the compartments, rocking levers provided with a counterbalance weight calculated to lock and hold the hanging arms in position, preventing the downward course of the disks, and holding them in the compartments, openings in the plate across the compartments, through which the disks may fall, chutes for conveying and dropping the disks onto the pans of the rocking levers tilting them up unlocking the hanging arms allowing the disks to run out of the compartments, substantially as set forth.

6. In a disk operated machine, the combination with a disk receiving compartment of limited capacity, of a pivoted detent normally projecting into it, a chute receiving any extra disk beyond the capacity of the compartment, and a counterbalanced lever normally locking the detents, and closing the discharge end of said chute and adapted to be rocked to retract the detent by the weight of a disk engaging with said lever.

7. In a disk operated machine, a disk receiving tube, a chamber receiving said disks, and springs therein for irregularly throwing the disks about in their descent through said ceiving said disks from said chamber,in comchamber, in combination substantially as set bination. I0 forth. In testimony whereof I a'lfix my signature 1n 8. In a disk operated machine, adisk receivthe presence of two Witnesses. 5 ing tube, a chamber receiving them from the JOHN A. HUNT.

tube, springs in said chamber for irregularly Witnesses: throwing the disks about in their descent W. 1-1. BROWN,

through said chamber, and compartments re- S. J. KELLEY.

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