US576472A - Telephone signal-transmitter - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

2 Sheets-:Sheet 1. E. G. BOBESF TELEPHONE SIGNAL TRANSMITTER.

N0. 576,472. Patented Feb. 2, 1897.

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2 Shees-Sheet 2,

Patented Feb. 2, 1897;

ikg'ji Inventor,

,(No Model.)

- E. O. ROBES.

'TELE'PHONE SIGNAL TRANSMITTER. No. 576,472.

UNITED STATES PATENT rricn.

ERNEST C. ROBES, OF MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERI- CAN BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

TELEPHONE SIG MAL-TRANSMITTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 576,472, dated Februar e, 1897.

Application filed July 25, 1896. Serial No. 600,477. (No model.)

To aw w/tom it mag concern: r Be it known that I, ERNEST C. ROBES, re-

siding at \Vest Medford, in the county of Middles'ex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Telephone SignaL'lransmitters, of which the following isa specification,

The present invention relates to signalsending devices for electric circuits, and espe- IO cially to a form of signal-transmitter for the subscribers station of a telephone-circuit adapted to automatically send multiple, in-

dependent,- arbitrary, and determinate signals for the operation of a suitable signal-rc- I 5 ,ceininginstmmentand' provided with means for simultaneously setting the signal-sending mechanism and for winding a motor, and also with means actuated by the telephone hook-switch for releasing the signal-sending and the motor mechanism to operate the signal-receiver for closing the circuit at the substation and finally for restoring the mechanism to its normal condition.

, I prefer to describe the invention in con nection with the United States Patent No. 559,367, issued May 5, 1896, to Joseph P. Davis, in which is described an invention which permits a telephone-subscriber to designate to an attendant at a central station a 0 particular group of subscribers among which the desired correspondent may be found.

I may employ any suitable signal-receiver, but a device similar to that described in Patent No. 72,742, issued December 31, 1867, to

S. S. Laws, in which there is a wheel having upon its rim characteristic signalsadapted to be rotated opposite a window or opening by electric impulses from the transmitter, is found to be convenient.

The signal-transmitter maybe inclosed in a case at atelephone-substation, and in circuits of modern arrangement may be placed a normally open bridge between the circuitconductors,with thetelephones. It isbrought into operation by the conjoint action of a turn-wheel and pointer and the automatic hooktelephone-switch. Twoways are provided for connecting the telephone instruments into the ,circuit and for indicating a call to the central-offiee operator: First, by

removing tne telephone from the hook-switch, which closes a circuit at the su bstation around the signal-transmitter and causes the signal receiver at the central office to indicate that a call is made for asub'station-line upon the 5 same switchboard section; second, when a call is to be made for a subscriber whose line terminates upon another section of the switchboard or in another centraloffice the pointer. of the signal-transmitter is turned by means 'of the turn-wheel to the number representing the telephone allows the switch-lever to rise and release the signal-sending mechanism, which is thereupon automatically operated by 'one ofthe said springs, and the impulses sent or successive circuit interruptions cause the signal-receiver at the central stationto indicate the number representing the said desired station, while at the same time the substation-telephones are connected into the circuit through the circuit-breaker contact and break-wheel. 5 8

After the signal'has been sent the apparatus comes to a stop, the circuit is closed, and simultaneously therewith the mechanism is automatically locked and cannot be released except by means of the hook-switch. When 0 the telephone is hung up or replaced on the hook-switch, the latter is depressed and releases a second mechanism operated by the second-spring, and this acts to restore the pointer to its original or'resting position. and 5 brings the instrument into readiness for another call. When a substation is called, the telephone is removed from the hook-switch to answer, whereupon the latter rises and closes the circuit around the signal-trans- Ioo is provided with a lip under which the spring initter to inc ude the telephones, as first described in the. calling of the central office, without in any way affecting the signal-send- .ingportion of the apparatus.

1 will now proceed to describe the invention .in detail in connection with the appended 1 is a front view; Fig. 2, a rear View; Fig. 3,

a top view; Fig.4, a section on line a a of Fig. 2. Figs. 5 and 6, respectively, are sections on lines .2". a: and y 1 of Fig. 4; and Fig. 7 is an end view.

Fig. 1 is on a scale of one-half the size of the other figures,'and shows the supportingplate 2, the turn-wheel 3, pointer 4;, and indear: I), a being the telephone hook-switch, which is represented as being depressed in all of the figures, although the telephone is notshown as being thereon.

The hook-switch c is pivotediby the screw 5 to the plate 2 and is limited in its movenient by the pins 10 and 11. 'It is provided with the pawl-detent l6, pivoted thereto by the screw -18 and held in a downward position by means of the spiraL spring 47, and when the hook switch 0 is depressed the end of the detent 46 is opposite and in the path of the pin 45 on the spur-wheel 18. The turn-wheel 3 is secured to the spindle d, which projects through he plate 2 and supporting bracket or bridge 12 and supports theindex-wheellG,

the spur-u heel 18, the hub 43 ofthe circuitbreaker'contact spring or brusl1,and the breakwheel 25. A flanged annulus 14 surrounds the spindle d and is secured to the plate 2 by screws 15. One end of; a volute spring e is secured to the annulus, its other end being connected to the spindle. The index-wheel 1.6 has-a hollow hub 17, in .which is placed another volute spring f, one' end of which is secured to the hub and the other to the hub h of the spur-wheel 18. The wheel 16 is secured to the spindle d and moves with it, while the wheel 18 isloose upon the spindle (Z. The

spring 2 winds tothe right and the springf to the left.

The wheel 16 has a pin 38 in the path of the pin 37 on the wheel 18, and its periphery is divided into depressions or notches equal in number to the divisions of the index Z) on the front of the plate 2, and in one of these notches the pin 31 on the locking-lever normally rests. The lever .30 is pivoted on the screw 44, and the pin 31 is heldin the depression in the wheel 16by the spiral spring 8. A'second locking-lever 33 is pivoted at 34 to the underside of the hook-switch lever c'and 36 bears, tcnding'to force the lower end'of the lever 33 against the pin 32 in the lever 30, while a pin 60 011 the wheel 16 normally holds the lever 33 away from the pin 82.

The spur-wheel 18 meshes with the pinion 19 on the spindle 20,which also carries a ratchetwheel 21, which is provided with an escapement 23, located on the spindle 22,which has upon one of its ends a retarding-fan 24.

The circuit-breaking contact-spring con sists of the hub 43, secured to the hub 55 of the wheel 18 by the set-screw i, with an arm 42 extending therefrom upon which is secured the contact-spring 41,-the end of which normally restsupon the insulating-pin in the bridge-support 12, which holds it away from contact with the break-wheel '25. The wheel 25 is insulated from the spindle d by the thimble 26 and is secured thereto by the setscrew- 56.

29 is a binding-post insulated from but secured to thebridge-support 12, from which a contact-arm 28 extends to the end of the hub. of the break-wheel.

Fig. 8' shows the signal-transmitter C at a telephone-substation with the telephones T and t in a normally open branch between the conductors and 51, which extend to the central station 0 O.

D is a high-resistance call-bell bridged in between the said conductors. At the central .office the conductors are shown as being provided with a connecting-socket J and a signal-indicator S at one section F of-a switchboard, with connecting-socke't J at another section G thereof and with'a battery E.

' When a subscriber wishes to call the section F or receives a call, the telephone t is removed from the l1ook-switoh c, which rises and brings the spring 8, Figs. 2 and .3, into contact with the spring 9, closing the circuit from A to B, through screw-post 29, spring- 28, hub 27, springs 9 and 8, and plate 2, and including therein the telephones t and T.

If the subscriber wishes to calla substation belongingto another group, or to another section of the switchboard, or to another central office, as the case may be, the wheel 3, with its pointer 4, is turned to the number or other mark of the index Z) by which said section or central office is designated. The rotation of the wheel 3 and, its shaft (1 simultaneously performs several operations. First, it winds up the two volute motor-springs eand f as follows: The spindle d rotates in the direction of the feathered arrow in Fig. 5, and winds the spring 6, its other end being held by the ICC stationary annulus 14. At the same time the end of the spring f moves with the wheel 16 and the hub 17, while its other end is held by the hub h and wheel 18, which in turn is held stationary by the locking-lever 46. Second, as the spindle d is rotated, carrying with it the wheel 16, the pin 31 on the lever 30 is forced down as the successive notches 39 pass over it until the'wheel com s to a stop, when it presses into the resting-notch and prevents the wheel from going backward. Third, at the' same time the min 60 moves away from the edge of the locking-lever 33, so that when the hook-switch c rises its notch 35 will clasp th'e'pin 32-. Fourth, the break-wheel 25 is also rotated in the direction of the feathered arrow,

traced as followsz from A through binding- Fig. 2,'carrying away beyond the bearingpoint of the make-and-break contact-spring 4:1 as many teeth as there are impulses to be sent for the definite signal required. The

l-telephone't is then removed from the switchsupport, which moves up under the influence of'the spring 6, carrying the pawl-detent46 with it, whereupon the spring f is permitted as it moves drops off from the pin Q0 and makes contact with as many of the teeth of the break-wheel as have been moved beyond it, after which the pin 37=on the wheel .18 strikes the 'pin 38 on the wheel 16-, and is thereby brought to a stop. Meanwhile the lever 33 has been forced forward by thespring,

36. until the pin 32 is engaged. by its notch 35, and the mechanism is thereby locked and cannot be operated by the manipulation of the turn-wheel 3 or byany means except by the hook-switch. By this operation, there-1 fore, the signal has now been sent, and the circuit is closed at thesu'bstation, and is post 29, spring 28, break-wheel 25, circuitbreaker 41, and the metal parts mittervto the Wire B. The operatorat the central office seeing the indication on the sigrial-receiver S, whose signal has been stepped round by its electromagnetic mechanism,-aotuated by the successive current-impulses, connects the switch-socket J with the switchsocket, say J f the trunk or circuit represented by the signal by means of the plugs- P and P and their cord-conductor. At the end of the conversation the telephone t is returned to the hook-switch c, pressed, carriesdown the lever 33, now en-. gaging the pin 32 of the lever 30, and consequently the latter lever is likewise depressed against the pull of the spring .9, freeing the pin 31' from its notch in the upon the volute motor-spring e is permitted to react and rotates the wheel 16 and the break- Wheel 25 to the right, restoring the pointer 4 to its unison. At the same time, as the pin 38 on the wheel 16 is in contact with the pin 37 on the wheel 18, the latter, with the contactbreaker41, are also rotated with the wheel 16 and returned totheir normal positions. When the wheel 16 reaches the end of its rotation, the pin forces the lever 33 away from the pin 32, and the pin 31 on the lever 3O enters the last notch 39 on the. wheel 16,

and as the hook-switch comes to rest the locking-lever i6 springs in behind the pin 45. The entire apparatus is thus enabled to resume its normal or'quieseent-condition. The escapement 23 controls and retards the reactionary movements of the motor-springs e and fin a manner well understood. I

Having thus described my invention, I claim-- 1. Asignal transmitterforatelephone-substation circuit adapted to automaticallysend of'the trans which, being de-,

wheel 16, where-.

V multiple independent arbitrary signals, consisting of a motor mechanism, a signal-sending mechanism, a telephone hook-switch controlling the detents. of both, and means for simultaneously setting the required signals,

and winding the actuating power of said mo- 4 tor and s'ignal sending mechanisms; whereby when the signal-sending device is set the motor is-wound up,'when the telephone is removed from the hook-switch the signal is sent to line and the-circuit closed, and when the telephone is returnedto the hook-switch the' apparatus is restored to its normal-condition.

2. A multiple-transmitter signal for a telephone-substation, comprising a motor mechanism' for sending the s1gnal,'a second and independently-actuated mot-or mechanism, a device for simultaneously setting or. deter-.

mining the specific signal for transmission and winding both of the said motors, a releasing device for the signal-sending motor actu-' ated by the movement of the automatic telephone-switch as the telephone is removed therefrom, and a releasing device for the said second motor actuated by the opposite movement of the said telephone-switch as the telephone is replaced thereon, the said second motor being" adapted to restore the signalsetting device to its normal condition.

3. A signal-transmitter in a normally open telephone circuit or branch comprising means forsendingsuccessive independent arbitrary signals, motor mechanism actuatingthesame, a telephone hook-switch controlling the said motor mechanism, means for closing the cir- .cuit round the signal-sending mechanism, and

means for closing it through the said mechanism.

4. The combination in a signahtransmitter organized to automatically send multiple determinate signals from a subscribers station to the central station over atelephone-cireuit, of a signal-sending device comprising a circuit-wheel and associated contact-spring; a

double spring-actuated motor mechanism; a

si naLdetermining device including a turn w eel, index-pointer, and a shaft operated by the said turn-wheel, secured to the circuitwheel and one end of each motor-spring, and adapted to turn the circuit-wheel to any c esired point indicated by the index, andto simultaneously wind both springs; and a telephone switch-lever controlling the said double-motor stop devices, and'adapted on. the

removal of the telephone therefrom to allow the said motor mechanism to be actuated by one of its springs in adefinite direction to move the contact-spring over the advanced portion of the circuit-wheel, and thereby transmit the signal, and on the replacement of the telephone, to permit the said motor mechanismto be actuated by its other spring in a reverse direction, whereby the circuit wheel and index-pointer are restored to their normal position. a

5. The combination in a telephone-circuit of a signal-transmitter and a signal-receiver,

- winding thenlotor; and with means controlled by the hook-switch for releasing the signalsending device and also for restoring the mechanism to its normal condition. I

6. The combination in a telephone-circuit of a signal-transmitterand a signal-receiver, as set forth, the former being adapted to antomatically send and the latter to receive sue 'cessiveindependent arbitrary signals; the

transmitter being provided-with means for simultaneously setting the signal-sendin g device and, for winding the motor, and with means actuated by the hook-switch forreleasing thesignal-sendin g device and actuatin g the signal-receiver, for closing the circuit, and for restoring the mechanism to its normal condition.

'7. A signal-transmitter in a normally open telephone-circuit comprising means for sendin g successive independent arbitrary signals, motor mechanism actuating the same, a telephone hook-switch controlling the said motor mechanism, and means as specified for simultaneously closing the circuit and locking the transmitter mechanism, asset forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification,in the presence of .two'subscribin g witnesses, this 20th day of July 1896.

ERNEST C. ROBES. "\itncsses:

WINFIELD S. HutrcHINsoN 'lHoMAs D. LocKWoon.

Correction in Letters Patent No.-576,472.

. requiring correetion'as follows:

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 576,472, granted February 2, 1897, upon the application of Ernest G. Robes, of Medford, Massachusetts, for an improvement in Telephone Signal-Transmitters, an error appears in the printed specification Iii 11118 81, page 3, the words A multiple-transmitter signal should read A mztltinle signal-trctnsmitter; and.- that the said Letters Patent should be read. tvith this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice.

Signed, eouhtersigned, and sealed this 16th day of February, A. D. 1897.

[SEAL] J N O. M. REYNOLDS.

Assistant Secretary of the Interior. Gountersigned JoHN S. SEYMO R,

Commissioner of lzatents.

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