Patent GB-376895-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to record-card controlled statistical machines
Filed: 1931-05-22
Abstract: 376,895. Statistical machines. BRITISH TABULATING MACHINE CO., Ltd., Victoria House, Vernon Place, Southampton Row, London.-(Assignees of Peirce, J. R.; 33, Riverside Drive, New York, U.S.A.) May 22, 1931, No. 15145. Convention date, May 24, 1930. [Class 106 (i).] In a record-card-controlled statistical machine of the pin-box type having electromechanically controlled card-feeding, counting and other mechanisms and control circuits for the normal running of the machine, there is provided automatic group control mechanism in which the pin-box card-reading mechanism is combined with comparing mechanism which is operated from the pin-box to compare mechanically group number-holes in two cards and is adapted to give a mechanical response to non-identity of the cards, such response actuating an electrical contact device (435) to interrupt the normal operations of the machine (e.g. to perform total-printing). There is a card comparing unit for each of a number of card columns and the contact devices of the units may be selectively disabled. Minor and major total-printing is initiated automatically or manually. Final total-printing is initiated manually. The invention is applied to a machine for reading code cards, Fig. 53, having an upper and a lower field. The upper field has six hole positions in each column and is used for printing digits and letters (type-bars 150, Fig. 27) ; the lower field has four hole positions for printing digits (type-bars 170, Fig. 26). Card-feeding mechanism.-This is driven from a shaft which is continually rotated by the machine motor. The cards 50 are fed from magazine 51, Fig. 7, by a picker 53 through a micrometer slot to rollers 69. The picker is driven by cams which are connected by a clutch to the said constantly running shaft. The card is held between plates 71, 72 by a gate 73 for reading by the six upper field pins 100, 100x, 100y and by the four lower field pins 100. The gate is actuated by a cam integral with the cams driving the picker 53. After reading, rollers 80, 80a feed the card to a curved guide-plate and the clips of a rotary card stacker 81 which pulls the card into the discharge pocket 85. The inner rollers 80a are not positively driven, but are rotated by being pressed against the card. Rollers 80a are on arms loose on shaft 75 and are normally lightly pressed against the card by springs. When the gate 73 is removed, arms 87 rigid on shaft 75 rotate counter-clockwise and engage pins on the roller-carrying arms so as to press the inner rollers firmly on to the card. A magnet 93, Fig. 50, when energized, clutches the card feeding devices to a constantly running part of the machine. Statistical cards.-Each code card, Fig. 53, has a lower field (four-point code) for digits and an upper field (six-point code) for digits and letters. In the upper field each combination of perforations A .. D in zone 1 is repeated in each of zones 2, 3 and 4 of the card. In zones, 2, 3, 4, however, the A .. D holes are accompanied by a perforation in position 1, or position 2 along the column, or both. This gives sufficient combinations to cover the digits 0 .. 9 and the alphabet. Card-reading devices.-The card in the plates 71, 72 is read by pins 100, 100x, 100y which slide to the left in plates 72, 101, 102, Figs. 7 and 51, when permitted by holes in the card and by the movement to the left of a reciprocating restoring plate 104 which engages collars on the pins. Plate 104 is driven from a constantly running shaft, and there is an interlock between the drive for this plate and the drive for the picker blade 53. The pins 100 of the upper and lower card fields have blocks 119 which actuate arms 120 carrying the brushes 121a .. 121d of lower commutators 122, 123 and upper commutators 123, 124. The translator devices of which these commutators form part are constructed as described in Specification 365,169 and give the appropriate timed impulses to the adding or printing magnets 300, 192, Fig. 50a. In the upper card field, the additional holes in the " 1 " and " 2 " position control the alphabet printing as follows. The four pins 100 of each column of the upper field already control the translators as above, but the extra pins 100x, 100y carry blocks 152, 153 having lateral pins adapted to swing a lever 154. Block 152 has a vertical lug in the path of block 153. According to whether one or both of pins 100x, 100y read card holes, the blocks 152, 153 swing the lever 154 into one of three positions over shoulders on a zone selector 155. The lever 154 and selector 155 thus have four positions. In these positions a slider 156 on selector 155 contacts with one of four bars 157 .. 160 ; slider 156 also contacts in all positions with a bar 161. Vertical reciprocation of member 155 is controlled by a bar 162. This zone selection is used to control the type bars 150, Fig. 27. As the latter rise in synchronism with the rotation of the translator commutators, the zones 1 .. 4 of the type respectively pass the printing line during the first and second half of the first revolution of the commutators and during the first and second half of the second revolution. There is an interlock between the drive for the bar 162 and the drive for the card-feeding picker 53. The above construction and action of the zone selector and type bars are identical with those described in Specification 376,302. Printing mechanism. Each numerical typebar 170, Fig 26, for the lower card field, is raised by an arm 172 pivoted at 173 and pulled upwards by a spring 174, in synchronism with the lower translator commutators 122, 123, Fig. 7. Arm 172 and the type bar are subsequently restored downwards by bar 175 actuated by linkage 176, 177, 178, 179, 180 183, 181 and cams 185 from the printing shaft 35. Energization of a printing magnet 192 permits a pawl 188 to arrest a rack 187 rigid with the type bar. Pawls 188 and latches 190 are subsequently restored positively by means of bails 195, 196, Fig. 24. Bail 195 is connected by link 197 to an arm secured on shaft 198. Bail 196 has a pin which is acted on by an arm 198a rigid with shaft 198. This shaft has a third arm 199 rigid therewith which is actuated by linkage 200 .. 203 from a constantly rotating shaft 16. A subsidiary latch 199a pivoted to bail 196 is actuated by the return of bail 195. This maintains the bail 196 latched against restoration until bail 195 has fully restored pawls 188. The alphabetical type bars (upper cam field) 150, Fig. 27, are similarly controlled, corresponding parts having the same reference numerals with the suffix " a " The numerical type bars 170, in addition to acting for the lower card-field, are also employed to print totals under control of the counters. Card-group comparing mechanism. Automatic control is on main groups and sub-groups. In the upper card-field reading device, Figs. 7 and 51, the four levers 120 of each card column used for group designation, coact with the four pins 100 and with four combs 430. The combs slide on cross-bars 431 which are mounted in a vertically-moving frame 432. This frame is spring-pressed downwards and is raised, but only at total-taking, by links 458 and bell cranks 456, 456a connected by a link 457; crank 456 is rigid on shaft 455. Each comb 430 has a pair of lugs 433 and an aligning lug 434. A pair of contacts 435 is provided for each set of four combs. During the previous totaltaking, frame 432 is moved upwards to remove combs 430 from levers 120 and the combs are aligned by two bars 436 which move towards each other to align the lugs 434. In this position the notch between each pair of lugs 433 is opposite an angle-piece attached to the lower blade of the corresponding pair of contacts 435. While the combs are up, pins 100 read the card column and move levers 120 according to the group number, and latches 131 lock the levers 120. The combs are then lowered and remain so until the next totaltaking. The lower edge of each comb 430 has two notches to coact with the end of the corresponding lever 120. The four combs will have been lowered in alignment and one or other of each pair of under-notches on a comb will house the end of its lever 120 according to whether that lever has been moved by the card reading. Levers 120 are then released by latches 131 and levers 130 which have been moved (by their pins 100 entering card-holes) will be spring - restored counterclockwise, moving their combs 430 to the left out of alignment. When the next card is read by pins 100, certain levers 120 will be rocked, moving their combs to the right. If the same levers are rocked as for the previous card, this will bring all the combs 430 back into alignment. Following this, all the contacts 435, which are mounted on bars 437 pivoted at 438, Fig. 6, are rocked so that their angle-pieces move down into the notches between lugs 433. As the combs are in alignment, the contacts remain open and the machine's normal operations proceed. If, however, the group holes in two successive cards differ, a different set of levers 120 is rocked and either (1) a comb 430 previously moved to the left fails to return or (2) a comb previously unmoved is moved to the right. In either case a lug 433 will be under the angle-piece of its contacts 435 and when the latter are rocked the lug will close the contacts, causing the machine to stop or commence total-taking. The pivots 438 for rocking the frames 437 of the contacts 435 have coacting bell cranks 439, one of which is rocked by linkage 441, 442 and cam 443 on a continuously running gear 65. To raise and lower the comb-frame 432 at total-taking, the shaft 455, Figs. 51 and 6, is rocked by a magnet 444, Figs. 6 and 50, energized only at total taking. The armature 445 of this magnet engages a clutch 446, 447 so that a continuously running gear 67 drives the cams 448, 449 ; cam 448 actuates linkage 452, 453, 454 to rock the shaft 455 ; cam 449 actuates linkage 459 .. 463 to