US521606A - Stamp-canceling and postmarking machine - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

M. V. B. ETHRIDGE. STAMP GANGELING AND POSTMARKING 111110111113.

No. 521,606. Patented June 19,1894.

(No Model'.) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

.M. v. B. ETHRIDGE.

STAMP GANQELING AND POSTMARKING MACHINE.

No. 521,606. Patented June 19, 1894.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

MARTIN V. B. ETHRIDGE, OF EVERETT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN POSTAL MACHINES COMPANY, OF PORTLAND, MAINE.

STAMP-CANQELING AND POSTMARKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 521,606, dated June 19, 1894. Application filed February 18, 1891- Serial No- 381,883- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARTIN V. B. ETHRIDGE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Everett, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stamp-Canceling and Postmarking Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and ex act description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My present invention has reference to certain improvements in machines for stamp canceling and post marking letters, cards and other mail matter, and delivering the same for sorting and distribution to the mails by one continuous series of appropriate mechanical operations, and the invention consists in novel andimproved means for transmitting the letters, cards or other pieces of mail matter along the moving carrier and delivering them to the printing rollers or marking and canceling devices.

The invention further consists in certain details in the construction, arrangement and combination of the several parts, substantially as will be hereinafter described and claimed. I

In the annexed drawings illustrating my invention: Figure l is a top plan view of a portion of a stamp canceling machine provided with my present improvements. Fig. 2 is a partial front elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail side elevation of the carrying belt, together with the friction rollers and flat spring arm which carries them and keeps them constantly bearing upon said belt and revolving by the friction therewith, said rollers constituting a part of my present improvements. Fig. 4 is a detail view of the escapement which forms a part of the counting mechanism. Fig. 5 is a partial rear elevation of the machine showing the trip lever and parts of the mechanism operated thereby. Fig. 6, is a partial bottom plan view.

Like letters of reference designate like parts throughout all the different figures of the drawings.

The present improvements are designed for application and use with a stamp canceling machine of the kindshown and described In the general form of stamp-canceling machines to which the present improvements are applicable there is a moving carrier or support for conveying the letters and other pieces of mail matter to the post marking and stamp-canceling mechanism, which moving carrier preferably comprises a shouldered belt or its equivalent situated vertically and passing around rollers which support and actuate it. With a belt of this kind the mail matter is caused by gravity to assume an upright position on the shouldered edge. There is also a printing or marking roller or stamp canceling or postmarking cylinder, as it may be indifferently termed which has its face situated in close proximity to the moving belt and directly opposite to one of the band rollers which serves also as an impression roller. Either the printing roller or the impression roller is yieldingly arranged so that one of them will have an oscillatory or vibratory motion while the other will have no motion except its ordinary rotary motion. The oscillating roller is so held by suitable mechanical appliances that when no letter is passing it will be out of contact with the conveying belt and thus the conveying belt will not be soiled or otherwise defaced but when aletter does pass, the restraining action upon the oscillating roller will cease to operate and the printing roller will occupy a position close enough to the belt to print the mail matter which may be passing.

In the drawings C, designates the vertical belt having the shoulders c c on its lower edge; C one of the supporting rollers for said belt which roller serves also as the impression roller, E the printing roller or marking device which is located directly opposite to the impression roller C, G the inking roller suitably supported in convenient position to bear upon the marking roller and distribute ink thereupon, F the controlling lever or releaser or tripper which projects into the letter path and acts in conjunction .with each passing piece of mail matter, the lever being thereby depressed to cause the printing roller to assume the position wherein it is operative to impress the registration, cancellation or post-mark upon the passing letter.

Adjacent to the roller G in Fig. 1, I have represented a shield G the purpose of which is to cover and protect said roller as well as the other mechanical parts near it. It is unnecessary to describe the shield at any length however.

0, c and 0 denote converging letter de' fleeting springs or guides arranged to project from opposite sides of the letter hopper into the letter path eontiguously to the conveying belt, the ends of which springs are closed together as shown in Fig. 1. These springs act to lift the letter away from the belt and guide its forward end surely without regard to the thickness of the letter or other piece of mail matter to a yielding timing lever d that is pivoted to a suitable supportand provided witha springd' by which it is returned to its obstruct.- ing position in the letter path after the letter has passed. Each piece of mail matter as it is carried forward by the belt is stopped by the contact of its forward end with the timing lever 01 and the letter remains in this retarded position until the rotation of the type or printing cylinder E has brought its type or canceling die nearly to the point where the impression is to be made and then the transmitting or gripping devices catch the letter, pull it forward, throwing the timing lever out of the way and delivering the letter to the printing mechanism. In my former machines I have ordinarily employed what I have termed clamping feet, being devices connected to the printing roller and projecting into the letter path and acting to catch the letter and assist it past the timing lever. I now substitute however in lieu of the clamp devices, certain other devices operating to accomplish the same result in adifferent way which devices I will presently proceed to describe.

I have thus in ageneral manner delineated certain of the essential elements of mechanism which may be found in the pending application hereinabove alluded to and it will be observed that I do not. intend herein to make any claim to these general combinations of mechanisms but only to the special improved combinations which I will now proceed to describe.

A A denote two horizontal friction rollers carried by their shaft a which is supported in the end of the horizontal spring arm A which is secured at its other end by means of screws or other attaching devices to the part B of the main frame of the machine. These friction rollers A A of which obviously there may be any number, one, two or more, as the case may be are located at a point between the timing lever d and the printing mechanism and they are kept constantly in contact with the vertical face of the belt 0 and revolve by the friction of said belt against them. In Fig. 3 I have represented these frictional rollers A in side elevation as they appear against the belt 0 and carried by their supporting arm A, said arm being simply a flat spring the tension of which keeps the rollers against the belt C, and in Fig. l the rollers A are seen in plan view.

I designates a horizontal lever which is pivoted at J to a fixed part of the main frame B. The free end of lever I is situated above the printing roller E and is provided prefer ably with a pin or roller which rests in contact with the periphery of the cam 0 carried on the shaft of the printing roller E. Springs P P are connected to the upper and lower sides of lever I as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and they are also connected to points on the stationary main frame and they act to pull the lever normally toward the main frame and thus to keep the free end of the lever I in contact with the cam 0. As the earn 0 retates obviously the lever I will be moved or oscillated. The lever I is slotted or otherwise suitably shaped to permit another horizontal lever K to be pivoted therein at some suitable point as L. A spring M is secured to lever I and bears firmly against the lever arm K, said spring being simply a flat spring and acting to push the lever K in the direction of the belt 0. Said leverK is keptfrom going too far inward toward the belt by means of a stop K formed in the lever I. This step K acts as a positive means for withdrawing the roller carried by lever from the belt when the lever I is moved outward.

N N denote two loose wheels carried by the shaft 11. which is supported in the end of the lever K. These wheels N are adapted to come into contact with the carrying or conveying belt 0. At each revolution of the cam O the springs P P will cause the lever I to move sufficiently far toward the belt 0 to carry the lever K and the wheels N near enough to belt 0 so that said wheels N will be clamped upon the belt. The flat spring M by bearing upon the lever arm K permits the loose wheels N to have a yielding movement for different thicknesses of letters which may pass between them and the belt, while the leverI which carries arm K has a positive motion consequent upon the action upon the end thereof of the cam O.

In Fig. A I have represented an escapement device which forms a part of the counting attachment. In Fig. 1 the counter is shown as consisting of the dial faces R, R R R R, R It is unnecessary to explain the detailed construction of this counting or registering apparatus inasmuch as it may be of any suitable and usual construction having a sufficient number of dials or pointers to permit the indication thereon of the number of pieces of mail matter which pass through the machine.

ICC

The .escapement consists of the usual toothed lever S' which is pivoted adjacent to dial R and has its teeth workin g in a ratchet, located beneath the dial, while aspring sbears upon the lever S. Said lever S is slotted to receive a pin 25 carried by a lever T which is bent through a stud D and has its end resting against the tripper or releaser F which is located in the letter path. When the tripper is thrown down or deflectedfrom the letter path by the passing of a letter, card, newspaper or other piece of mail matter, the wire rod or arm T is vibrated and the escapement operates, the lever S engaging one tooth of the ratchet and imparting thereto the fraction of a rotation sufficient to mark one on the dial. This movement continues so long as the stamp canceling machine is in operation and the passage of a letter or other piece of mail matter is accordingly registered by the counter.

Pivoted to shaft Jand controlled by means of spring E is the oscillating arm E, carrying at its opposite end the printing roller E. This arm E in its normal position is held out of contact with the revolving band C by means of the arm Il, pivoted at H and connected by the link 11. with the trip leverF. Thus it will be seen that upon the passage of a piece of mail matter along the trip lever F and the consequent inward pressure on the same, the

arm H is caused to move forward in the direction of the printing roller E, a distance sufficient to encounter the notch e in the oscillating arm E and to allow the roller at tached thereto to be brought in contact with the letter or other matter to be post-marked. As soon as the piece has been marked and has passed from the trip lever F, the arm H, by means of spring E is caused to fly back and thereby tolraise the arm E and cause the roller to assume its normal position. The

backward movement of the arm H is checked by the pin or lugfprojecting from the upper side of arm E.

I will now proceed to describe the operation of my'present improvements as applied to a stamp-canceling or post marking machine. When a letter passes between the lifting springs c and the adjacent springs c c and advances its forward end against the timing lever or stop 01, it will remain there until the two loose wheels N N are brought down thereupon by the action of the two spiral springs P l? in drawing upon the lever 1 whenever the low point of the cam 0 comes opposite the free end of said leverI which operation takes place just immediately before the stamp canceling and post marking dies reach the point where they are ready to imprint their regis-' try upon the passing letter. The letter now passing is forced down by the loose wheels N N on to the carrying belt which belt immediately forwards the letter under the friction rollers A A before the two loose wheels can become lifted oi the letter by the revolution of the cam O which acts to vibrate the lever I.

Said friction rollers A A in thus bearing yieldingly upon the letter cause it to be transmitted with a fixed positive delivery between the printing and impression rolls and they assist therefore very materially the letter in working the trip lever F, performing in this way substantially the same function as is performed in certain other of my machines by means .of the pivoted clamping feet which are carried by the printing roller. The letter being now between the printing and impression rollers with the stamp canceling dies at the proper point to print, the stamps will be canceled and the post-marks imprinted and the letter will then be carried forwardvout of the machine.

Referring again to the trip lever F which acts as a releaser or controller operating upon mechanism beneath so as to cause the printing roller to assume its printing position, it will be noted that said lever F is pivoted in a chair f formed in the main frame .and is connected with a supporting post H by means of a rod a which is loosely pivoted at both ends, that is to say at one end to alug on the post H and at the other end to a lugor projection on the lever F, said trip F and supporting post being held in direct position by means of the tension of thespringVasshown in Fig. 1. The supporting post H, operates to hold the printing roller out of printing position at certain times. Said post vibrates whenever the trip lever F in the letter path vibrates consequent upon the passage of a letter which moves it. When the post H is thrown out from contact with the frame carrying the printing roller, then the printing roller is allowed to assume such aposition as that it may register its impression upon the passing letter.

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

1. In a stamp-canceling and post-marking machine, the combination with theletter-con- Veying belt, a tripper in the letter-path and the timing stop in the letter-path, of means for causing the letter to pass the timing stop, a friction roller or rollers supported in the end of the spring arm, whose other end is supported by the main frame of the machine, said friction roller or rollers being kept constantly in contact with the vertical surface of the letter-conveying belt, substantially as described.

2. In a stamp canceling and post marking machine, the combination of the letter-conveying belt, the impression and printing rollers, a releaser or tripper in the letter-path, a timing lever a friction roller or rolls carried by a spring arm whose other end is secured to the main frame of the machine, said friction roll or rolls being located at a point between the timing lever and the printing mechanism and kept constantly in contact with the vertical face of the letter-conveying belt and another friction Wheel or wheels supported in a vibrating frame together with a cam on the printing roller shaft, which acts in conjunction with the said frame, substantially as described.

3. In a stamp-canceling and post-marking machine, the combination with the letter-conveying belt, a tripper in the letter-path and a timing stop in the letter-path, of the printing mechanism, a friction roll or rolls carried by a spring arm and adapted to bear frictionally upon the letter-belt at a point near the timing and trip levers and means for causing the letter to pass the timing stop, substantially as described.

4. In a stamp canceling and post marking machine, the combination of a letter conveying device, a printing roller and an impression roller, a timing lever in the letter path and also a tripper in the letter path which releases the printing roller and a wheel or wheels supported yieldingly in a rocker frame or arm, together with a cam on the printing roller shaft operating in conjunction with said arm to cause said wheel or wheels to be brought temporarily in contact with a passing letter, substantially as described.

5. The combination in a stamp-canceling machine, of the letter-belt, the impression roller, a printing roll, a timing stop, a cam on the shaft of the printing roll, a lever pivoted to the main frame and having its free end in contact with the periphery of said cam, and

a loose wheel or wheels carried by said lever adapted to be in contact with the letter belt at certain times, substantially as described.

6. The combination of a letter conveying belt, a printing roller and an impression roller, the timing stop in the letter path and also a tripper in the letter path, a friction roller or rollers A A carried by a spring arm A and bearing against the letter belt, an arm or frame I pivoted at J to the main frame and having its end operated upon by the cam 0 on the printing roller shaft, the arm K pivoted in the lever I and the wheels N N supported in the arms K, all operating, substantially as described.

7. The combination with the letter-conveying belt, the printing and impression rolls, of the arm I pivoted to the main frame, the cam 0 upon the printing roller shaft and operating against the end of arm I, the arm K pivoted in arm I the wheels N N supported in the end of the lever K and the springs P P connected to the lever I and also to the main frame and the timing stop in the letter-path, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MARTIN V. B. ETIIR-IDGE.

Witnesses:

OHAs. HALL ADAMS, G. W. TROWBRIDGE.

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