Patent GB-358105-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to record-card controlled calculating machines
IPC: G06F7/46
Filed: 1930-07-04
Abstract: 358,105. Statistical-apparatus. BRITISH TABULATING MACHINE CO., Ltd., Victoria House, Vernon Place, Southampton Row, London.-(Assignees of Bryce, J. W. ; Bloomfield, New Jersey, and Daly, G. F. ; Johnson City, New York, both in U.S.A.) July 4, 1930, No. 20307. Convention date, July 5, 1929. [Class 106 (i).] In a record-controlled machine of the type described in Specification 307,025, [Class 106 (i), Calculating &c.], having means for reading the representations of two factors on a card, obtaining the product thereof, and perforating the result on the card means are provided for obtaining the products of two or more pairs of factors punched in a card separately but during a single operation. The multiplicand set-up devices are divisible into groups and automatic means are provided for selecting the appropriate group to control the operation of the multiplying mechanism. The multiplying mechanism is of the type described in Specification 308,977, [Class 106 (i), Calculating &c.], but, in place of the commutators, selectively operated relays are employed to establish the circuit cross-connections between the multiplicand and product lines. Means are also described for controlling the denominational entry of the partial products and for controlling the number of operative cycles. As shown in Fig. 19, the machine is provided with several registers disposed to the left and right of a vertical drive shaft 52. The registers A, A<1> are connected together by a transfer mechanism and constitute a single counter for receiving the right-hand component of the partial products. The registers B, B<1> are similarly arranged and receive the left-hand component of the partial products. The registers C, C<1> are adapted to receive the multiplicands entered into the machine and the register D receives the entry of the multiplier. Driving-mechanism. The vertical shaft 52 is driven by worm gearing from a main shaft 50, Figs. 5 and 19, driven by a motor M. The shaft 52 through worm gearing drives the register operating shafts 54 .. 57 and a shaft 59 for the card feeding and punching mechanism. A gear pump 60 on the shaft 52 delivers oil from a sump 61 to lubricate the parts. Each register drive shaft carries a gear 63 and a broad gear 65 driving gears 64, 66 respectively. The shaft 54 of the register D drives a shaft 82 carrying the sets of cams " C " which control the various circuits. The reading out mechanism for the registers A, A<1>, B, B<1>, is of the well-known type and is operated from the shafts 84, 85, Fig. 4. The shaft 84 is provided with an arm 86 co-operating with the forked end of an arm 87 on a shaft 88 which carries a second arm 89 co-operating with a cam 90. This cam forms one element of a one revolution clutch adapted to be coupled to the other member, viz. the disc 96, Fig. 19, by energizing an electromagnet 99 the armature of which releases a pawl 97 pivoted on the cam 90 and permits it to engage a notch on the disc 96, the rotation of which, through gearing 94, 95 from the shaft 59, is imparted to the cam 90 and shaft 84. A similar arrangement of members is provided at the opposite end of the shaft 59 to operate the shaft 85. The reset mechanism, which is of known form, is actuated from the gear 65. Each gear 65 meshes with a gear 68 secured to a disc 69 forming the driving element of a one revolution clutch and loose on a shaft 70, Figs. 4 and 19. The shaft 70 has secured thereto an arm 71 carrying a pawl 72 normally held out of engagement with a notch in the disc 69 by an arm 73 on the armature of an electromagnet 74 A-D. When a magnet is energized the corresponding arm 71 is coupled to the disc 69 and the shaft 70 rotated to drive the reset shaft through the gears 75, 76. Totalizing registers. The registers are of known type and electrically controlled as described in Specification 131,277, [Class 106 (i), Calculating &c.]. The registers are provided with set-up devices comprising a commutator, Figs. 13 and 14, with a strip contact 116 and stud contacts 117 adapted to co-operate with bifurcated brushes 114, 115 mounted on gear wheels 113 and driven through idler gears 112 from the clutch gear of the corresponding denominational elements of the register. Transfer-mechanism. This mechanism is of usual construction excepting between the two sections of the registers A, A<1>, and B, B<1>. A transfer lever 105, Fig. 8, is latched by a member 104 associated with the next lower denomination and when a member 104 is rocked by the passage of its wheel to zero the lever 105 is released and at the end of an operation is restored by a bail 105a and at the same time advances its wheel a unit distance. The members 104 for the right-hand wheels of the register sections A, B are adapted to be rocked by electromagnets 103, Fig. 20d, under the control of the two left-hand wheels of the sections A<1>, Bl. The highest wheel of these sections carries a commutator 370, Fig. 9, co-operating with brushes 372, 374, 376 and by means of their transfer lever 105 and a rod 106 control contacts 107 adapted to be closed when the highest but one wheel passes from " 9 " to " 0." If the two highest wheels, viz. the seventh and eighth stand at 9 and a unit is added to the seventh wheel the contacts 107 are closed and the magnet 103 will be energized to effect a transfer. If an amount is added directly to the eighth wheel to cause it to pass to zero, relay magnets 380, 382, Fig. 20d, are energized to close contacts and establish another circuit for the magnet 103. Card-reading and punching-mechanism. The card-reading means comprises a rotatable contact roller 151, Fig. 11, and a row of brushes 152. The card is fed from a magazine 144 by a picker 143 to pairs of feed rollers 145 .. 148. The drive for the picker and feed rollers is derived from a shaft 137 operatively connected through gearing and Geneva mechanism to a shaft 128, Figs. 10, 11, and 12. This shaft 128 carries the pawl element 124 of a one revolution clutch, which when released by the energization of an electromagnet 126 engages the driving element of the clutch, viz, a notched disc 122 driven by gearing from the shaft 59. The shaft 128 through the gear wheels 125, 127 rotates a cam 160, and through arms 161 and linkage 163, 164 reciprocates a cross-head 166. The cross-head is slidably mounted in guides 167 and has pawls 168 engaging selector members 169 to cause the members to move therewith. The ends of the selectors slide over rows of punches 170 and their movement is arrested by pawls 172 tripped, by the energization or corresponding electromagnets 171, to engage serrations on the upper surface of the selectors. After selection a shaft 158, driven from the shaft 128 through Geneva mechanism, effects the rotation of cams 180 to raise a die plate 153 and a stripper plate 154 so as to effect the punching operation. The card is aligned between the plates by fingers 155 actuated by a linkage and follower 156 co-operating with a cam 157 on the shaft 158. The punch selectors for columns in which punching is not desired are locked against movement by the operation of fingerpieces 182 which are manipulated to engage notches 181 in the selectors. The electromagnets 171 are mounted in a frame 184 transversely slidable on guide-rods 185. At the end of a punching operation the pawls 172 are restored to latched position by a bail 225 operated by a bail 224 carried by arms 226 on a shaft 227 which is rocked by an arm 228 and a cam 229 on the shaft 158. Impulse emitter. The gear wheel 68 of the register A<1>, which rotates constantly, meshes with a gear 241 on a shaft 242, Figs. 19 and 25, carrying an insulating cylinder 243 with contact studs 243a and conducting segment 288. The studs and segment cooperate with brushes 328, 290 and the shaft 242 carries contact timers or make-and-break devices 244,246 operating in synchronism with the passage of a card through the reading section and with the operation of the reading-out mechanism. Circuit arrangement. A suitable source of current is connected to earth and to a main line 274, Fig. 20d, and the closure of a switch 272 starts the motor M. The reading brushes 152 are connected to plugs 278 while the counter magnets of the registers D, C, C<1> are connected to plug sockets 281, 280 respectively. The sockets are connected to pairs of counter magnets 284 so that the multiplicand can be set up in duplicate. The diagrams, Figs. 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d, show the cam controlled contacts, CA &c., CC1 &c., CX1 &c., actuated once durmg each counter cycle and contacts PMA &c., mounted on a shaft 230 rotated during the card-reading and punching operation. After starting the motor the machine is made to operate by depression of the start key 286 and an operation of the card feeding and punching section is initiated through energization of the electromagnet 126. The lowermost card is fed passed the brushes 152 and the factors are entered into the registers C, C', D, to set the brushes 114, 115, of the respective commutators 322 LH, 322RH, 320. The means for controlling the number of cycles in the operation comprises a number of multiple contact electromagnetic relays. These relays are shown in Fig. 20c being designated by their contacts N1-N8, S1-S8, T1-T8, CS1-CS8, V1-V8. During an operation the closure of a circuit through the CS1 contacts permit a current to pass through the commutator brushes 115 to one of the lines 326 to energize a relay magnet X. Energization of this magnet closes two groups of contacts X and one of the contacts XA, Fig. 20a. The closure of contact XA connects the positive lead 274 to a brush 290 on the impulse emitter 240. The contact studs of the impulse emitter co-operate with brushes 328 on product lines 330 one for each digit. These lines are connected by cross connections 333, 343, in accordance with the units and tens of the partial products, to multiplicand lines 332, 342 connecte