Patent GB-271935-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in and relating to statistical, calculating and like machines controlled by mechanical records
Filed: 1926-02-08
Abstract: 271,935. Thomas, A., and Accounting & Tabulating Corporation of Great Britain, Ltd. Feb. 8, 1926. Printing totals.-In a record-card-controlled statistical machine operating upon grouped cards, the cards before passing through the ordinary tabulator pin-box 4, Fig. 8, are passed through a separate designation-sensing pin-box 5, Figs. 2 and 4, which may be embodied in the machine or may be an attachment. The invention is illustrated as applied to the machine described in Specification 26896/13. The designation pin-box is adjustable horizontally and vertically in order that it may co-operate with any field of the cards, and has a capacity of ten rows, each of twelve pins. These pins are guided in plates 20 - - 24 and each comprise three parts; the lower part 25 terminates in a flange resting on top of the plate 23, the intermediate part 26 rests normally on this, flange and extends through the plate 22, and has also a shoulder resting upon a resetting plate 30; the top part 27 rests on the part 26 and has a collar 28 and spring 29. Collateral with each row of pins is a row of setting-retaining members 45, one to each pin, which rest on the plate 30. These members 45 have lugs 46 co-operating with a locking plate 48 and lugs 47 coacting with notches 61 in the pins 26 and with a testing bar 49. Each bar 49 may be connected by a pawl 44 to a bar 54 which is moved bodily to the left, Figs. 2 and 8, once each card cycle. The resetting bar 30 has lugs 31 engaged by teeth 37. Fig. 4, on triangular plates 32, one at each side, and spaced by bars 42, 43. These plates are raised by roller 34, arm 35, and pin 65 only at the end of a total-taking operation. The bars 42, 43 in rising, rock bell-cranks 57, Fig. 2, moving the locking bars 48 to the right to unlock the members 45. Plates 30 and 48 are therefore, only operated after totalling. Considering one column, at the first card of the first group the totalling mechanism functions idly and plate 30 rises. The pin-box 5 in being lowered has allowed pins " 6 " and " 7," say, to pass through holes in the card. The other pins are raised by the card, so that only for pins " 6 " and " 7 " are lugs 47 and notches 61 in alignment. The plate 30, then rising, lifts all the setting-retaining members 45 and also pins 26 for the "6" and "7" positions since the shoulders still rest on plate 30. Testing plate 49 then moves to the left to lock all the lugs 47 into their notches 61 and plate 30 is lowered. Only for the "6" and "7" positions do the locked pins 26 and members 45 move fully down since these pins 25 are through holes in the card. Locking plate 48 then moves to the left and all the raised members 45 have their lugs 46 locked into notches: For the " 6 " and " 7 " positions the lugs 46 are locked below the plate 48. Plate 49 is then returned. For each succeeding card of the same groups the pins 25 - - 27 are set to align with their lugs 47 and the testing bar 49 can be moved to the left. When a card of another group is read in the pin-box 5 the notches 61 and lugs 47 do not register and the bar 49 cannot move to the left. If, for instance, there is a hole at the " 2 " position the pin 26 moves through the hole in the card and the notch 61 is below its locked-up lug 47 fouling the bar 49; and if there is no hole at " 6," the pin 26 is raised by the card so that its notch 61 is above the locked-down lug 47, again fouling the bar 49. When this latter bar is able to move to the left, totalling is inoperative, but when the bar is fouled, totalling occurs as follows. The pinbox 5 is reciprocated up and down by rods 70, Fig. 5, eccentrics 71, pinion 73 and quadrant 74 pivoted at 75 and having a projection 76 coacting with a roller 77 on a crank 79 rigid with a shaft 79 which rotates once per card cycle. Another rod 90 and eccentrics 89 operate the card feed. The quadrant is thus rocked first clockwise and then counterclockwise once each cycle. A shaft 88 is rotated only at totalling and when this occurs a cam 87 thereon rocks a lever 84 into the path of a pin 83 on the quadrant, thus stopping card-feeding and the pin-box reciprocation. A pinion 92 on the shaft 79 meshes with a wheel 93 on the shaft 88 so that the latter rotates once in two card cycles. This wheel 93 has two teeth missing, and in the gap is a finger 94 attached to the wheel and coacting with a projection 95 on a lever 96 pivoted to a cam 98 on the shaft 79. The finger lies in the path of the projection 95. When the testing bars 49 are free to move to the left a lever 105, 101 is moved counterclockwise and its lower end moves the projection 95 radially inwards so that it misses the finger 94. When, however, a new group is sensed by the pin-box 5 and the bars 49 are fouled, the lever 101, 105 does not move and the projection 95 striken the finger 94 and brings the wheels 92 and 93 into mesh. The shaft 88 thereby rotates once until the gap in the teeth again reaches the meshing point. When the shaft 88 rotates, a cam 135 thereon operates the totaltaking lever 119 by means of a rocker arm 136. Towards the end of the rotation of the shaft 88 a cam 138 thereon rocks a lever 140 to raise a link 141 so that pin 65 is lifted, thereby raising the triangular plates 32, the resetting plate 30 and the locking plate 48, which all operate to lock in the group reading of the new card which caused totalling. Also at total-taking a cam 132 on shaft 88 operates to remove rollers 121 in order to interrupt reciprocation of the ordinary pin-box 4. Specification 104,703 also is referred to