An Improved Automatic Counting Attachment for Type and other Writing Machines, to Record the Number of Words and Folios Written.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Dec., 1895-Accepted, 22nd Feb., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Automatic Counting Attachment for Type and other
Writing Machines, to Record the Number of Words and Folios
Written.
I, ROBERT THORN HAINES, of 26 Lorne Street, East Prahran, in the Colony
of Victoria, Australia, Law Clerk, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention consists of mechanism which may be attached to some convenient
part of a type or other writing machine, and which will automatically count and
record the number of words and other characters which are required to be counted
as words, and also the number of folios typed or written by such machine, in such
a manner that persons using such machines, who are paid according to the number
of words or folios typed or written, and others who may for any purpose require to
estimate their work will be saved the trouble of counting the words and computing
them into folios after the work has been performed.
In order to count the number of words typed or written, I place in contact with
some part of the writing machine that is moved after each word typed or written
such as a part of the space har or something connected therewith a lever which
either directly or by a series of other levers and rods, when the machine is operated
actuates a pivoted bar carrying a pawl, which engages with a toothed wheel, in
such manner that each time such bars or levers are depressed such wheel is caused
to rotate through a space corresponding to the length of one tooth.
In order to record the number of words so counted I combine the aforesaid
toothed wheel with one or more toothed wheels, each carrying a suitable pointer,
which indicates and records upon suitably arranged dials the number of words so
counted.
It being a common practice of typewriters to count certain characters such as
numerals each as a word, in order to do this I arrange that the aforesaid toothed
wheels may also be operated as follows;-I provide under or near the operating
bars or levers of the machine a rock shaft provided with a series of projecting
arms one of which corresponds to the operating bar or lever of each character
that it is desired to count as a word, in such a manner that when such operating
bar or lever is depressed the corresponding projecting arm is moved so as to
partly rotate the rock shaft, which motion is communicated by one or more levers
to the pivoted bar and pawl above described and so operates the toothed wheels
above mentioned.
In some typewriting machines certain letters such as 1 and o are also used as
numerals in which case they are counted each as a word, whereas when used as
letters they are not so counted. In order that this may be done I fit upon the
rock shaft a sleeve or alternatively a bar which carries projecting arms, corre-
sponding to the operating bars or levers of such letters, but normally held out of
engagement therewith by a spring, which sleeve or bar may be made to move
along the rock shaft by pressing a knob which is connected by a rod to such
sleeve or bar, so as to bring the aforesaid projecting arms in contact with the
operating bars or levers of such letters whenever it is desired to count such letters
as words.

page_text: Referring now to the accompanying drawings which form a part of this
Specification—
Figure 1 is a general view of a typewriting machine shewing one of the ways in
which my mechanism may be attached thereto.
Figure 2 is a vertical section taken across the lower part of one form of
typewriting machine, showing the levers of the keys and of the space bar in
section, the counting and recording contrivance being in elevation.
Figure 3 is a horizontal section thereof on line 2-2 in Figure 2.
Figure 4 is a front elevation of the counting and recording contrivance with the
front removed.
Figure 5 is a front elevation of the first toothed wheel shewing the manner in
which it is actuated.
Figure 6 is a vertical transverse section on line 5-5 in Figures 2 and 3.
Figure 7 is a view of an alternative arrangement attached to the rock shaft for
counting certain characters as words when required.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
A and A' represent the sides of the framing of a Remington typewriter, to
which for the sake of convenience I have illustrated my invention as being fitted ;
B the side levers which are actuated by the spacing bar, and C some of the various
levers which are struck by the operator in order to print any required character.
Below these levers is arranged a rock shaft D, which may be mounted in bearings
in the framework of the typewriting machine, and which is provided with a number
of projecting arms d, there being one of these for each numeral or other character
which is required to be counted as a word, and also one marked a corresponding
to the space bar lever.
This rock shaft D is also provided with a projecting arm or lever m, to the end of
which is connected a rod e, the other end of which is connected to one end of a
lever E. This lever E is pivoted at its other end to some part of the counting
and recording contrivance, and also carries a pawl P. The latter is so placed that
it engages with the teeth of a toothed wheel or disc Q, which has a spindle p.
P is kept in its proper position by a spring S which also acts to again raise the
lever E. after the same has been depressed. Upon p is secured a hand or
pointer pin such a manner that when the wheel Q revolves, p¹ will indicate
upon a dial t the number of times the wheel has been actuated, and hence the
number of words (or characters required to be counted as words) which have been
typed or written.
In order to record a number of words or folios greater than the total number which
can be indicated upon the single dial t, one of the methods which I adopt is as follows.
Upon the spindle p is secured a toothed pinion f the motion of which is commu-
nicated by similar toothed gearing to the spindles of other pointers each having a
dial, the number of such dials depending upon the total number of folios which it
may be desired to record at one time. The gearing may be arranged so that the
first wheel Q has a number of teeth (such as seventy-two) corresponding to the
number of words in a folio-which number, varies in different countries-and
the remaining wheels may be arranged in ratios of ten revolutions to one, enabling
tens, hundreds and thousands of folios to be recorded.
Instead of a train of gearing above described I may prefer to place upon pa
second toothed wheel similar to Q but having its teeth of a different form and to
have both wheels so arranged that P actuates the second wheel once only during
every complete revolution of Q. The train of wheels above described may if
desired be geared to this second wheel instead of to Q. This alternative
arrangement is not illustrated upon the drawings.
In order to throw P out of gear with Q whenever it is desired not to use the
counting contrivance I provide a lever I so arranged that when one end of it is
moved in the required direction its other end comes in contact with and
disengages P from Q.
As it may be sometimes necessary to record words as having been written

page_text: without actually operating the typewriting machine; I provide a lever G pivoted
at one end, having at its other end a knob or key g, and carrying a pawl Pu
engaging with the teeth of Q and kept in its proper position by a spring S¹, in
such manner that when the key g is pressed, Q is caused to rotate through a space-
corresponding to the length of one tooth, and S' acts to again raise G, after it has.
been depressed.
In order to enable certain characters (such as I and o) to be counted as words at
the will of the operator I arrange upon D a sleeve H having projecting arms h h,.
with which the levers operating these characters will engage when depressed
provided that said sleeve has been previously moved along said rock shaft, so
as to bring hh under the levers which operate these characters. Such movement.
may be effected by securing H to the end of a rod ' which passes longitudinally
through D (made hollow for this purpose) and which carries at its other end a
knob H' to be pressed by the finger of the operator. The spring K brings h h
normally out of engagement with the letters to which they refer after the operator
has ceased to press B.
If preferred however to bring into contact with the levers of the letters E
and o I employ the arrangement shewn in Figure 7, which consists of a flat bar N
carrying projecting arms a, and provided with slots m', through which are passed
set screws to retain the bar N in position on D, while at the same time leaving it
free to be moved endwise so as to bring the arms n n into position beneath the
levers of the characters desired to be counted, together with a conveniently
arranged spring to keep such arms normally out of engagement with these
characters in a manner similar to the arrangement with the sleeve H above-
described and illustrated in Figure 3.
The operation of my invention is as follows ;—
Whenever the key or lever of the spacing bar is depressed, or whenever a
character which is required to be counted as a word is struck, by the operator, one
or other of the projecting arms is depressed, and causes D to partially rotate and
by means of the arin m and the rod e the lever E is drawn down carrying with it
the pawl P which engages with Q and extends the spring S. When the pressure-
upon the spacing bar or upon the keys ceases, the spring S raises the pawl P to its
original position and causes the wheel Q to rotate one division or tooth which is
indicated by the pointer p' upon the dial t, and since the wheel Q is in gear with.
the remaining toothed wheels, the number of revolutions of each wheel, and hence
the total number of words and folios is counted and recorded.
In the case of letters which are sometimes used as numerals (such as 1 and o) the
operator must while striking the keys on the levers or bars of such letters, also
press the knob H₁ so as to bring the arms into engagement with the levers
or rods of such letter or letters, thereby causing the mechanism to operate as.
before.
If preferred all the arrangements above described can be reversed, the
mechanism being operated by the upward instead of by the downward movement
of the rod e.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
First. An automatic counting and recording attachment for type and other
writing machines used in contact and in combination with those parts of the
machine which are moved after each word is typed or written and those parts
of the machine which are moved when certain characters required to be
counted as words are typed or written substantially as and for the purposes
hereinbefore described and explained and as illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Second. In an automatic counting and recording attachment for type and
other writing machines the combination of ¡the spacing board of said machine

page_text: with a lever E carrying a pawl P engaging with a toothed wheel Q having a
spindle p, carrying a pointer pl and operating other similar pointers, also the
employment of a rock shaft D having projecting arms d to correspond with the
levers of such characters as are required to be counted as words said rock shaft
being connected with the wheel operating the pointer p' and other similar
pointers to indicate upon the dial t and other similar dials the number of words
and other equivalents typed or written, substantially as and for the purposes
herein before described and explained and as illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Third. In an automatic counting and recording attachment for type and other
writing machines the combination with a rock shaft D which operates recording
pointers of a sliding sleeve H or a sliding bar N, carrying projecting arms n
adapted to be operated and brought into position in contact with the levers of such
characters as are sometimes required to be counted as words, also the employment
of a lever G adapted to be operated so as to cause the mechanism to register
extra words when required also the employment of a lever I in combination
with a pawl P adapted to be operated so as to put the mechanism out of gear
and prevent it from counting when desired substantially as and for the purposes
herein before described and explained and as illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Dated this 18th day of November 1895.