Patent GB-190815728-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in Sound Recording and Reproducing Machines
Inventor: OULTON GEORGE
Filed: 1908-07-24
Granted: 1909-05-27
Abstract: 15,728. Oulton, G., Ablett, C., and Lightfoot, W. E. July 24. Gramophones.-A gramophone turntable is rotated at a constantly increasing or decreasing speed from a constant-speed spring, electric, or weight motor by the interposition of a differential gear consisting of a fusee and drum with a flexible band. A spring motor 1, Fig. 1, rotates a drum 14 through gears 2, 3, and also a governor 9 through a worm-wheel 5, worm 6, another worm-wheel, and a worm 8. A cam 11 controls the brake lever 10 for the governor disk 9. A flexible inextensible band 27 fixed at 29 to the drum 14 is wound round the fusee 22 mounted on a winding-shaft 21. As the drum 14 is rotated in the direction of the arrow by the motor, the fusee turns and rotates the turntable at a gradually increasing rate by a pawl 23, ratchet-wheel 25, and gears 20,18, 16. In order to permit the band 27 to be wound again on the fusee, and the motor to be wound up simultaneously without the retarding-gear or governor being turned, a ratchet-wheel and pawl 30 are provided between the shaft 4 and the worm-wheel 5. The other ratchet-wheel 25 and pawl 23 prevent the table from being turned when winding back the band. An indicating-device 32, driven by worm-gear 34 from the fusee, is used to show how far the band is to be wound up on the fusee for differently sized records to obtain the correct starting speeds. Fig. 3 shows a modification having additional gearing for enabling ordinary records to be used as well. The drum 14 is loose upon the shaft 4, and a spur-wheel 39, in connexion with the turntable through a gear 42, is also loose upon the same shaft. A sliding clutch 41 is adapted to lock either the drum 14 or the wheel 39 to the shaft 4 for running the turntable at an increasing or at a constant speed respectively. In this modification, the motor 1 is wound up by a winding-shaft 50 and gears 51, 52, and the fusee 22 is wound up by a shaft 45 carrying a spur-wheel 46, engaging a spur-wheel 43 on the fusee shaft and a spur-wheel 44 on the shaft 4. A leatherfaced contact-piece 47, pressed out by springs 48 from the drum 14, engages the spur-wheel 44 as the fusee is being wound up and puts a slight tension on the band 27. The clutch 41 may be actuated automatically by the motor, as by a finger on the shaft 34 disengaging it from the drum 14 and engaging it with the spur - wheel 39. In another modification, a flat band is used passing round and secured to two deeply flanged drums. An intermediate sprocket-wheel engages holes in the band, and is geared to the turntable spindle through a ratchet device. To prevent the table from overrunning the fusee or drum, the turntable spindle may be braked by a fibre or leather washer or by an ordinary brake applied to the turntable periphery. The apparatus may be adapted to record-disks commencing at the centre by securing the band to the large end of the fusee, so that the convolutions commence to unroll at the small end and produce a decreasing speed of the turntable. Instead of rewinding the band by hand, a coil spring may be used which is put in tension as the band unwinds.