Evening star., 1893-12-04
SETTING TYPE BY WIRE,
An Electric Invention by Which Type
| fs Set in Distant Places

Is Set In Distant Places.
From the New Orleans Picayune.
Donald Murray, a newspaper man q
Sydney. New South Wales, employed on tn
Sydney Morning Herald, has invented anC
patented. in this and other countries. a de
vice which bids fair to revolutionize meth
DDS Of newspapers all the world over.
by this Invention an operator in New
York, with a keyboard before him. lik,
that Of an ordinary typewriter, can no
only produce typewriter COPY in New
orleans, but. it is claimed. can operate q
typesetting machine here and deliver hi.
matter thus in lead ready for the forms
| Not only that, but the same operator, b,
using number Of telegraph lines can SCI
up the same copy simultaneously in a. dozer
| different places. In this operation onl,
ordinary telegraphic currents are used, such
| as are capable of being relayed, and are
subject to all conditions of ordinary tele.
| graphy. The work can be done with the
same speed as an ordinary typewriter is
| operated, and dispenses with ali clockwork
| mechanism, synchronously moving type
wheels and other cumbrous devices. 1t is
said to be capable of manipulating some
eighty different characters
The invention consists of two very sirnnle
elements. One is transmitter and trans.
mlts certain combination of five short
| positive and negative currents The Other
| Is an interpreter, by the passage through
which of certain combination of positive
ana negative currents lever is relea sed
and makes electrical contact, thus energiz.
Ing particular electro-magnet, which oper.
ates type key. A given combination of
currents only unlocks certain correspond
ing key. The transmitter consists of thir-
ty-two elements, arranged, like the KEYS of
a typewriter together with Ea1y
rangements, similar to those on the type
writer, and the interpreter is equipped to
correspond.
The Scientific American gives the follow
Ing description of the mechanism and use
of the invention: The transmitter has a
series of keys, each consisting of a rod
operating a peculiarly constructed pole
changer. and comprises commutator hav-
ing on the side parallel rows of stationary
contacts connected in parallel with the line
and having a portion of the connection
crossed, the comrhutator having its top sur
| race inclined, and it's lowe- surface inclined
at right angles to the inclination of the ton
surface, a key sliding adjacent to the COM
mutator, and contact block having a
spring connection with the key CARRYING
contacts adapted to connect with a surface
of electricity, the contact block being ar
ranged to move downward on one side of
the commutator, and to slide inward and
move upward. so as to make contact with
the contacts or the commutator
The Interpreter comprises series of
electro-magnets adapted to connect with
line through mechanism for printing a
character Or operating a key of the key
poard machine, each quadrant having a
series of teeth in a different combinat ation
from the teeth of any other quadrant in the
series. Swinging detents adapted to be
actuated by the magnet engage the teeth
or the quadrants, and electrically and au-
tomatically rotated shafts adapted to be
set in motion by the closing of the circuit
in which the quadrants are arranged to
carry mechanism to return the auadrants
TO locked position. One of the transmtter
keys operates the space key of the type
writer, and three other transmitter KEYS
operate the shift key mechanism shifting
the capital, lower case or figures
When the paper carriage of the tyne
writer comes to the end of a line 1t NAV
be returned by the attendant at the receiv-
ing station or by an automatic mechanism
provided for this purpose. The galvanome-
ter on the main line at each station indi-
Gates when current is passing. When
the instruments are not in use the bells
are put in circuit and, when the interpre-
ters are left in circuit, the operator at
either station can send a message to the
other station, where il will be recorded on
the typewriter. without attendant being
present. the process being automatic, and
1t being only necessary to provide sulfi-
cient amount of paper in the typewriters to
receive the message.