Patent GB-392558-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to record-card-controlled statistical machines
Filed: 1931-11-17
Abstract: 392,558. Statistical machines. BRITISH TABULATING MACHINE CO., Ltd., Victoria House, Vernon Place, Southampton Row, London. Nov. 17, 1931, No. 31896. Convention date, Nov. 18, 1930. [Class 106 (i).] Total and sub-total taking ; adjusting for computing or recording only ; statistical cards.- In record-card-controlled statistical machines having a counter for the items on the cards, recording mechanism, and stop-card-operated means for causing the recording mechanism to record the total on the counter, the zeroizing mechanism for the counter is normally in- -operative and is made effective by a special hole in the stop card. The invention is illustrated as applied to an electrical tabulator as in Specification 247,200, [Class 106 (i), Calculating &c.], but having reading-out mechanism as in Specification 356,304. Statistical, or detail, cards as shown in Fig. 3 are grouped into main groups according to the store number (columns 10-13) and each main group is then subgrouped according to floor numbers (column 30). Each main group is preceded by a master card as shown in Fig. 2 and followed by a special stop card with the zeroizing-initiating hole in it ; in each main group the sub-groups are separated by ordinary stop cards having a portion cut out of one edge (as indicated at 83, Fig. 2) where the card lever normally coacts. Each main group running through the machine prepares an invoice as shown in Fig. 1; the data from the master card being recorded on the first line of the invoice and then the items from the detail cards with the sub-totals as the end of each sub-group is reached. At the end of the main group the total is printed and the counters cleared by the special stop card. Certain columns of the detail cards, Fig. 3, are used to coact with alphabetic type ; as there are only ten hole positions in each column, the letters are allotted arbitrarily to the hole positions, contractions and phonetic spelling being used. Some of the data on the invoice is repeated on the right of the sheet which may later be severed. The detail cards have duplicate fields for " Retail Price," " Retail Exten," and " Cost Exten," and the fields on the right are normally perforated with the data ; but if the price changes after the card has been prepared, the new data are entered in the left-hand fields and a special " X " hole 128 is used to cause the machine to read the left-hand part of the card and to disregard the right half. The machine is driven by tabulating motor TM, Fig. 4, for adding and listing and by reset motor RM during total-taking, the cards passing upper and lower brushes UB, LB. The lower brushes actuate counter magnets 10 and/or printer magnets 11. The invoice sheet, Fig. 1, is inserted with the first line in printing position and the cards are placed in the magazine with a master card in front of each main group. Coils 70 (contacts 70a) and 68 (contacts 68a) being energized from the last operation of the machine, start key 73 is closed to initiate cardfeeding. When the usual unperforated stop-card at the end of the first sub-group reaches the lower brushes, owing to the cutaway portion of the card, card lever contacts CL1 open when contacts L3 are open, de-energizing relay 80 ; the contacts 80a of the latter then open to de-energize relays 68, 70. Contacts L15, however, maintain motor TM until the end of the card cycle to feed the stop card completely past brushes LB. If a switch 84 be open, the machine stops ; if closed, automatic sub-total taking occurs, the circuit being 67, RM, 85, reset clutch magnet 86, contacts 87 (closed when magnet 75 is not energized), L1, 84, 78, 79, 66. The counters are not zeroized. The special stop card at the end of each main group has a perforation in the " 11 " or " X " position of a predetermined column. This hole is read by the lower brushes to form a circuit 66, 82, CL1, 88, 89 (an impulse distributer), 90, LB, 91, 92, L4, 93, 94, 67. Contacts 93a of relay 93 provide a holding circuit. Relay 94 closes contacts 94a to form a circuit 67, 85a, zero button magnets 96, 94a, 95, 66. Magnets 96, one for each counter bank, will in well-known manner clutch the counter wheels to a reset shaft so that the counters are zeroized. After total taking and resetting the card feed is resumed if auto-restart switch 73a be closed. There are four listing banks, indicated at the foot of Fig. 4. Banks 1, 4 are the usual listing banks and during adding these banks are connected through commutator 102 to line 67. Banks 2, 3 have in series with their printer magnets 11, contacts 103a controlled by a magnet 103. Contacts 103a are closed during listing, and open during adding. When the machine is set to list, contacts 104 are closed and each closure of contacts L5 energizes magnet 103 to close contacts 103a. There are also three counter banks A, B, C, Fig. 5, having counter magnets 10 and also printer magnets 11 which may be connected through contacts 50 to plugs 112 and through contacts 51 to the bars 18 of the reading-out mechanism. The master card controls listing across the entire top of the invoice and to prevent the addition of any of these items on to the counters, the latter are plugged up through a distributing device. Information in columns 30 .. 59 of both master and detail cards are printed on the invoice by the same printing banks and in the same order (namely, banks 1, 2, 3)-sockets 91, Fig. 4, for these columns are therefore plugged direct to the sockets 107, 108 of the printer magnets 11. Lower brushes for columns 60 .. 63 are connected to the printer magnets of bank 4 and of the left half of counter B. At the foot of Fig. 1 are shown the banks or counters through which the data are printed. Sockets 91 for lower brushes reading columns 64 .. 75 are connected to sockets 122 ; and for columns 14 .. 25 to sockets 123. Sockets 122 are connected to normally closed contacts 124 and normally open contacts 125. The centre blades are plugged through sockets 126 to sockets 113 for counter magnets 10 of counters A, B and left half C. Contacts 124 are moved from the position shown by a relay 127 which is energized by the hole 128, Fig. 3, which indicates that the left half of the detail card is to be entered. The plug 118 (upper brushes, Fig. 4) of the column which contains this hole is plugged to a socket 129 in circuit with relay 127. Sockets 91 for columns 76, 77, 78 are connected to the printing and counting sockets 112, 113 of the right half of counter C. When the master card has holes in columns which, in the detail cards, contain data to be accumulated, it is necessary to disconnect the brushes for these columns from the counters when the master card is at the lower brushes. This is achieved through contacts 110, Fig. 5, and relay 115 which is energized by a special " X " hole 116 on the master card and read by the upper brushes. For this the socket 118, Fig. 4, for this column is connected to socket 119 in series with relay 115. Nine columns in the master card allotted to " date " are punched 123456789 and the date to be printed is selected by plugging up the necessary columns. After the first sub-group of cards has been read, the stop card initiates sub-total taking. During this phase, counters A, B, C will print the sub-totals if their switches 135 be closed. At sub-total taking, magnets 56, Fig. 5, are energized ; these close contacts 51 and open contacts 50 so that the printer magnets are disconnected from the lower brushes and connected to the commutator bars 18. Each counter wheel drives a pair of brushes 16 relatively to a bar 18 and a row of conductor segments 15. When a total is to be read out, each brush will rest on a segment corresponding to the digit on the counter wheel. A brush 46 driven by the reset motor RM makes the connections to the segments 15 in succession so that the correct types are arrested at the printing line at times according to the positions of the brushes 16 on the segments 15. Printing special marks.-The " 9 " segments 15 are connected, Fig. 5, by a wire 142 in each counter to contacts 51a (closed by the magnet 56) and printer magnet 11a. The latter controls a type-bar with an asterisk at the " 9 " position, so that an asterisk is printed to denote a total or sub-total.