Patent GB-236943-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to record card-controlled statistical machines
Filed: 1925-07-08
Abstract: 236,943. British Tabulating Machine Co., Ltd., (Assignees of Peirce, J. R.). July 9, 1924, [Convention date]. Void [Published under Sect. 91 of the Act]. Statistical machines.-In a pin-box machine in which the cards are fed through in groups, the sensing pins, on reading the group control number of the first card of a group, coact with special control pins to lock this reading in a group number control device controlling the operation of the machine whereby totalling takes place when a card arrives at the sensing pins differing in group number from the group number thus set up and locked. The enlarged ends 6 of the sensing pins 7 are guided in plates 4, 5 and have lugs 13 coacting with control pins 14, and collars 10 on the pins 7 coact with a perforated bar 9 on a member 8 which withdraws the pins to the left from the card 11 at the proper times. The control pins 14 are held upwardly by springs 16 in their frame 15 which is attached at 17, 17<1>, to levers 18, 18<1>, fulcrumed at 19, 19' to the rear and front stationary frames 3, 2. Pin and slot connected to levers 18, 18', are toggles 20, one being connected by link 23' to lever 8 so that when this lever moves to the right the toggles are broken, permitting springs 23 attached to ears 24 on frame 15 and to stationary frames 2, 3, to raise frame 15 and pins 14, some of which latter engage lugs 13 and are held from rising. When the first card in the machine is read the pins 14 are locked to their frame 15 by lugs 26 on them and by plates 25 sliding laterally in the frame 15. The pin 14 being locked in the frame and, in some cases, prevented from rising by the lugs 13, the frame 15 is held from rising, when frame 15 rises. An arm 28 is rocked clockwise by bell-crank 26<1> and pin-and-slot connection 27 into the path of the end 29 of a lever 30, Fig. 1, loose on shaft 36 and connected to a link 31 having a pin 32 which engages an arm 33 of a bell-crank 33, 34. Keyed to shaft 36 is a lever 37 connected by spring 38 to lever 30. The shaft 36, rocking during normal operation of the machine, depresses link 31, but when frame 15 rises the lever 28 blocks the end 29, holding the link 31 stationary and extending spring 38. If. however, lever 28 does not hold the end 29, then depression of link 31 rotates bellcrank 34 clockwise, whereupon a pin 40 thereon wipes past a flip arm 41, rotating a lever 42 clockwise and unlatching lever 43 connected by links 44, 45, 46, and 47 to the start key 49. When, therefore, this key is pressed to the right, lever 43 is locked in its dotted line position and the machine commences to accumulate. When the group number of the first card is read, the locking plate 25 is to the left, lugs 52 on it hold lugs 26 on the control pins 14, and since the latter are held by lugs 13 on the sensing pins 7 the frame 15 cannot rise. The lever 28, therefore, remains out of the path of lever 30, link 31 is depressed and pin 40 and lever 42 unlatch lever 43, stopping the machine ready for total-taking; the shaft 53, Fig. 1, rocks counterclockwise and remains thus during total-taking. The rocking of shaft 53, through linkage 54 - - 59, rocks cams 60 and 60<1> clockwise 80. An outer cam surface 62 of cam 60<1> operates linkage 63 - - 67 to move the plate 25 to the right and unlock the control pins 14. Immediately afterwards, and as the machine is taking its second reading of the card at the reading position, cam groove 61<1> raises stud 17<1> and frame 15. Certain pins 13 and 14 move sideways and upwards respectively, Fig. 3, according to the group number of this card, which is the first card of a new group. Subsequently, flipper 63 rides down from cam face 62 and the plates 25 are restored to the left, locking the new group number into the device, and cam grooves 61' depresses stud 17<1> and frame 15. During the counterclockwise return stroke of cams 60, 60<1> the flipper 63 is moved, but stretches its spring 72, thereby not affecting the remainder of the linkage 65, 67. Cam surface 73 of cam 60, however, operates linkage 74 - - 77, 67 and 67<1> to move the plates to the right, unlocking the pins 14, and cam groove 61 raises frame 15. Flipper 74 rides down from surface 73 and plates 25 return to the left and relock the pins 14; and frame 15 is lowered. At each subsequent reading which agrees with the reading set on the pin 14, the frame 15 is allowed to rise. causing lever 28 to pass into the path of lever 30, thereby maintaining the card feeding and accumulating operations, but when a card is read disagreeing with pins 14, frame 15 is held down, link 31 is now depressed and the machine is stopped ready for total-taking. There is a separate set of pins 14 and a separate locking plate 25 for each of the columns used for the group control number.