US548027A - Telephone attachment - Google Patents

Description

PATENT Enron.

CHARLES H. BERNHARD, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

TELEPHONE ATTACHMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 548,C27, dated October 15, 1895.

Application filed March 15, 1894:- Serial No. 503,699. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES H. BERNHARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Telephone Attachments; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to telephone attachments; and the object of the invention is to provide a telephone with means whereby the phone shall be in electrical connection with the central office when the receiver is taken from the switch or fork and hangs suspended at the side of the phone-box exactly the same as it is when resting on the switch and out of personal use. It frequently occurs that one person responds to the phone call while the call is for another person not immediately present. Awaiting the coming of such person there is liable to be considerable delay during which the phone-receiver usually is left hanging on its connecting-cord instead of being placed back on the switch, and when this occurs the switch is thrown out of electrical contact, and there can be no ring ing up from Central or other communication therefrom. Now, this is objectionable and should be overcome, for the reason that frequently the party waiting at the other end of theline becomesimpatient and wants Central to repeat the call, so that the party with whom communication is sought may be re minded of the delay and brought to the phone. Such call from Central cannot, however, be made if the receiver be removed from the switch, and the central office is powerless to help the waiting customer; but with my improvement, communication with Central is kept open and a call can as well be made when the receiver hangs loose at the side of the phone as when it is on the switch. This,

' of course, takes the Weight of the receiver off the cord carrying the conducting-wires and transfers it to the suspensory mechanism con nected with the switch substantially as shown.

The invention therefore consists in the con struction and combination of parts, substan tially as shown and described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a telephone box or casing, showing my attachmentin position thereon and with the telephone-receiver suspended as it appears when the attachment is in service. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of the attachment itself.

A represents the telephonebox or casing, which is of the usual standard character, and is shown here simply to illustrate the object and use of the invention in connection therewith.

B represents the usual pivoted switch or fork, through which electrical connection is made inside the box when the said switch is depressed by the weight of the receiver C.

D represents the cord having the usual wires in duplicate for conveying the current and attached to the posts E in the box. Obviously, if there were no other means than the cord D for supporting the receiver the re ceiver would hang suspended not only upon the said cord but upon the posts or studs E. Now, as a matter of fact, it is a very common experience for the receiver to be dropped when this occurs. It is also very common to have the fall thereof pull out the studs E or to pull out the studs G in the receiver itself, and this entails considerable expense for repairs. However, while my invention overcomes this objection and protects-the connections at both ends and prevents the pulling 0d of the receiver by reason of its falls, it is a mere incident of the invention to thus protect said parts, and the real merit of the invention resides in the further fact that it maintains a close circuit on the phone when the phone hangs in the manner shown in the drawings. To the end that this may be accomplished I employ a connecting attachment comprising a double wire hook H at one end, or its equivalent, adapted to engage over the fork of the receiver B, and having a twisted shank of more or less length'made out of the same material and connected to a spirallywound body made of small spring-wire. At the other end of said attachment is the spring clasp or clamp L, adapted to engage upon the cord D at any point where such engagement is desirable to be made, and having a keeper N adapted to slide down over the parts of the clamp and cause it to engage firmly upon the cord.

This particular construction of attachment and support is an exceedingly-convenient one in every respect and admirably serves my purpose. The hook H is easily engaged and disengaged with the forked switch B, and the clamp L is easily attached or removed from the cord. Then, by reason of having a spring body K, there is just enough yielding in the attachment to accommodate it to this use. Thus, having connected the attachment with the switch and the cord, as shown in Fig. 1, and assuming that the receiver falls or is allowed to drop from the hands, the spring K will break the fall and prevent strain at any point and thereby prevent pulling out of parts and possible breakage of the receiver when it falls on the floor. The spring also serves to make the connection flexible instead of rigid, and this is desirable in the use of the phone. Obviously, the attachment shown may be materially modified throughout and yet serve the same purpose, the idea in any case being to suspend the receiver when off the switch from the switch itself by means of a flexible medium and thereby still suspend the receiver from the switch instead of suspending it upon the cord D alone, as hitherto.

When the receiver is suspended, as in Fi 1, the cord D is relieved of all strain above the point of engagement therewith. The hook II may be on the switch without interfering with placing the receiver thereon, as usual, and the attachment permits as free a use of the phone as without it, while at the same time it affords the advantages which have been described.

If for any reason the receiver were allowed to hang off the switch, as frequently occurs, my attachment leaves the phone operative exactly as if the receiver were placed where it belongs. Then the moment it is raised for use the switch is relieved and electrical connection is temporarily broken.

By my peculiar construction of clamp I both clasp the cord or combined wires D and at the same time lock the clasp-sections against each other at 4, which helps to prevent the cord from pulling out when the receiver is dropped. The clasp is made of spring metal and holds the cord firmly at any point of engagement.

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

The combination with a telephone switch and receiver, of a support for the receiver constructed at one end to engage upon the fork of the switch and at the other end to engage the cord of the receiver and having an elastic body, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand to the foregoing specification.

CHARLES II. BERNIIARD.

\Vitnesses:

H. T. FISHER, GEORGIA SGHAEFFER.

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