Patent GB-545581-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to statistical machines
Filed: 1940-12-07
Abstract: 545,581. Statistical apparatus. REMINGTON RAND, Inc. Dec. 7, 1940, No. 17407. Convention date, Dec. 21, 1939.. [Class 106 (i)] In a machine for sensing and comparing master and detail record cards for effecting the selective control of various machine operations such as feeding cards, sorting, punching or stopping the machine means are provided to increase the flexibility of the feeding means. Thus in operations where the number of groups of detail cards are in excess of the number of master cards the means described prevents the feeding of more than one master card after the sensing of the first disagreement following an agreement and effects detail card feeding after each succeeding cycle in which a disagreement is sensed as well as after cycles in which agreements are sensed. A manual control device is also provided to control selectively the feeding operations in the event the number of master cards are in excess of the number of groups of detail cards. The invention is shown applied to the type of machine described in Specification 546,590 wherein the mechanisms for effecting the various machine operations as the result of an agreement or disagreement are actuated under the control of individual control cams rendered effective by a manual selecting means and operated in a step by step manner by a common actuating means. One control cam 750, Figs. 1, 2, 7 and 8 is shown and this cam is utilized to cause detail card feeding only on agreement and master card feeding on disagreement. The control mechanism associated with this cam comprises a manually set disc 758, levers 754, 752, link 755 and a rock shaft 650. The cam 750 as well as the other control cams are mounted on a sleeve 600 provided with two ratchet wheels co-operating with pawls 608, 618 pivoted on levers 610, 620 operated by a push rod 625 under the control of a cam 630 on a shaft 40. The ratchet mechanism is so arranged that during machine cycles following those in which an agreement was sensed the pawl 608 registers with a blank space on its respective ratchet wheel whereas pawl 618 is in position to register with a tooth on the other ratchet wheel. In the lowermost position of levers 610, 620, however, a pin 623 on pawl 608 renders pawl 618 inoperative. The movement of the levers 610, 620 is further controlled by a latch arm 641 secured to a shaft 638 and by a link 636 attached to a bell-crank 637 loose on the shaft 638 and resiliently connected to the arm 641. The shaft 638 carries a bail 640 the movement of which or blocking of which is dependent upon the setting of the comparing mechanism slides 470. The cam 750 has high and low dwells, each high dwell is arranged to prevent detail card feeding and to retain the usual card stop in effective position ; each low dwell is arranged to prevent master card feeding and to prevent operation of the retract mechanism in the master card reading retaining mechanism. The cam 750 rocks the shaft 650 in one or other direction and raises or lowers a link 647 to cause the shaft 195 to raise or lower the disabling latches 194, 305 to prevent operation of the detail or master card feeding mechanism slides 179, 301. The rock shaft 650 operates a lever 649 to arrest an arm 281 on the shaft 270 whereby the card stop 265 in the detail-card sensing chamber is held in closed position and the operating mechanism including cam 280 and linkage 276 moves idly. The rock shaft 650 also operates a lever 655 to release a latch 416 from an arm 418 to allow the arm 418 to be lifted by the action of the push rod 422 and cam 160 without raising the plate 415 to which the latch is pivoted thereby preventing rocking of the shaft 412 and operation of the linkage 410 so that the retract bar 405 is not displaced thus retaining the master card setting in the pinbox 395. Card feeding mechanism, modified control.- In accordance with the present invention to ensure proper operation when groups of detail cards are present for which there are no agreeing master cards the lever 752 of the control mechanism is connected to the link 755 by an L-shaped slot and an extension 855 on the link with a finger 856 co-operates with a bail 857, Fig. 2, pivotally mounted on the end of an arm 859 fixed to the rock shaft 296 of the master card feeding mechanism. With this arrangement when an agreement is sensed the finger 856 is below the bail 857 whereas when a disagreement is sensed the finger is raised into the path of movement of the bail 857. In the first position master card feeding is prevented, the retract bar 405 is inoperative and detail card feeding operates during the next cycle. In the second position detail card feeding is prevented, the detail card stop 265 is held in closed position and master card feeding operates during the following cycle. This form of modified control may be rendered ineffective when, as in the Specification referred to, it is desired to compare a pile of master cards with a pile of groups of detail cards in which the number of master cards is in excess of the number of groups of detail cards. For this purpose a manual lever 850, Figs. 1 and 2, has an arm 870 which, when raised to its upper position coacts with the bail 857 to raise it to ineffective position. A detent plate 866 and arm 867 hold the lever 850 in one or other of its adjusted positions. Further card feeding operations may be performed by off-setting the cam 750 through 45 degrees as described in the Specification referred to.