Improvements on Printing Telegraphs.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 24th July, 1889
Complete Specification Left, 22nd May, 1890-Accepted, 28th June, 1890
Improvements on Printing Telegraphs.
We JOHN EDWARD WRIGHT of the Bedford Hotel No. 93 Southampton Row
Bloomsbury in the County of Middlesex Electrician, and JOHN MOORE of No. 95 Barry
Road East Dulwich in the County of Surrey Journalist do hereby declare the nature
of this Invention to be as follows:-
Our Invention relates to that class of printing telegraphs in which the result of
the operation of the receiving instrument is a printed page in lines of any desired
lengti. Instruments of this class have been fully described by us in our previous
Patents No. 17641 of 1887 and 10437 of 1888
The object of this Invention is to achieve a further accleration of speed combined
with a more perfect record, which will admit of the universal application of one
form of machine to various uses, such as stock-quotation, general news and parlia-
mentary reporting. By means of our proposed improvements we shall be able to
print in lines, in page form, ordinary words composed of the usual characters and
all the numerals and fractions, subdivided into eighths, thus . Previous column
or page printers have printed the fractions by means of three impressions, thus §, 3.
Our fractions are printed at one impression.
In order to accomplish this result, we employ two or more type wheels fixed on
the same shaft, or one wheel with two or more rows of characters revolving in a
plane parallel with the width of the paper in place of at right angles to it as here-
tofore. The two type wheels may be progressed sidewise in front of the paper by
the same means which we at present einploy, or in other suitable manner and receive
their revolving motion by being geared with a shaft similar in formn to that employed
in our present machines and which is parallel with the pad or 1oller over which the
paper to be printed on is led.
On the penphery of one type wheel are placed the letters, on the other the
numerals and fractions. When the wheels are in a normal position the letter wheel
only presents a character to the paper surrounding the printing pad or roller, the
figure wheel being beneath it and below the line of the pad. In this position the
letter wheel may be revolved to any desired position and words printed at will.
When it is desired to print a numeral or fraction the type wheels are caused to be
raised so that the letter wheel is thrown out of line and the figure wheel takes its
place, ready to make impressions in proper line.
In order to prevent blurring of the characters a light metal shield of suitable
forin may be interposed between the type wheels and the paper, the shield being
carried along with the type wheels in their lateral movements.
The shaft by which a revolving motion is transmitted to the type wheel shaft may
itself obtain its rotary motion from the action of an ordinary propelling escapement,
or from a clock train released by an anchor escapement of any well known form, oi
it may be revolved by a new method which we prefer and which we will herenfter
describe.
On the shaft is a boss or sleeve which slides freely endwise, but because of the
form of the shaft and the manner of fitting the sleeve the Intter turns with it. On
the periphery of the sleeve is fixed a bevilled toothed or other gear wheel which
engages at right angles with a sunilar wheel fixed to the upright shaft wheleon are
fixed the type wheels.
When one type wheel has to be brought into position for printing instead of another
the escapement shaft may be revolved to a pre-determined position whereat a pin
fixed in the shaft is brought opposite one end of a rocking lever loosely connected to
the printing lever, or an extra lever connected with the printing magnet arbor may

page_text: be used. When the rocking lever is lifted by the printing level, or extra lever, at
the above indicated position the pin on the escapement shaft impinges on one end of
the rocking lever tipping its other end which in turn lifts a smooth bar running
parallel to the escapement shaft on which the lower end of the perpendicular type
wheel shaft rests, and so when the bar is raised the type wheel shaft is raised
with it.
When the smooth bar is raised it is caught and held in position by means of a
spring catch which retains it until it is released by means of another pin on the
escapement shaft suitably placed or by the return of the type wheels to their initial
position.
We have described-two type wheels revolving Interally in front of the paper to
be printed upon, but we do not confine ourselves to this form.
Two type wheels sliding sidewise on their own shaft but revolving with it, as is
the case with the single wheel in existing machines, may be used and interposed
between the type wheels and the paper may be a shield which will cover up the
numerals while the letters are being printed and vice versa. The shield can be shifted
from one position to the other by means of a long locking bar engaging with
a T piece attached to the upright holding the shield which bar is controlled by
means of pins properly placed on the type wheel shaft. Or the two type wheels,
or one wheel with two or even more rows of character may be disposed in other
suitable manner.
Our second improvement is designed with a view to obtain an increase in speed
of working and it may be applied to any step-by-step printing telegraph.
In ordinary step-by-step type painting telegraphs, the escapement wheel and type
wheel are mounted on one shaft both being fixed thereto and both revolving simul-
taneously. In our arrangement we mount the escapement wheel on a sleeve which
runs loosely on the type wheel shaft, so that during the revolution of the escape-
ment wheel and sleeve the type wheel shaft may remain stationary The sleeve at
the end nearest the type wheel we form with a pin standing out at ught angles
from it. When the escapement is operated the pin is brought into any one of a
number of positions coresponding with the number of letters, on the type wheel.
Sliding endwise on the type wheel shaft in close proximity to this pin we place a
sleeve carrying a cam which is shaped somewhat in the form of a pen nib. This
sleeve is keyed to the shaft in any convenient manner so that it evolves with it
Each time just before punting takes place the cain is by the action of the printing
magnet forced laterally along the shaft in the direction of the above mentioned pin
on the escapement sleeve.
As one or other of the inclined sides of the cam comes against the pin it is
revolved and in revolving it carries the type wheel with it to a position which is
pre-determined by the position of the pin. The operation then is this:-The escape-
ment wheel with its sleeve and pin is tevolved to a desired position in which it may
be firmly held by a pawl and ratchet wheel, or otherwise. The operation of the
printing magnet forces the cam upon the pin and the cam impinging on the pin
revolves the type wheel until the proper position determined by the pin is reached.
Thus the type wheel instead of being revolved into its proper position by the
direct action of the escapement is really forced there by the action of the printing
magnet.
In ordinary printing telegraphs, high speeds are chiefly hindered by the inertia
of the type wheel, which materially impedes rapid revolution by direct action of the
escapement, whether the latter be of the propelling or anchor and clock tiain form.
By means of the above device we minimize the merta and therefore reach a given
position at a higher rate of speed, the more powerful effort of the printing magnet
overcoming the inertia without difficulty

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements on Printing Telegraphs.
We, JOHN EDWARD WRIGHT of the Bedford Hotel, No. 93 Southampton Row,
Bloomsbury in the County of Middlesex, Electrician, and JOHN MOORE of No. 95,
Barry Road, East Dulwich in the County of Surrey, Journalist, do hereby declare
the nature of this Invention and in what manner the saine is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:
-
Our Invention relates to that class of printing telegraphs in which the result of
the operation of the receiving instrument is a printed paper in lines of any desired
length.
Instruments of this class have been fully described by us in the Specifications of
our previous Patents No. 17641 in the year 1887 and No. 10137 in the year 1888.
The objects of the Invention are to achieve a further acceleration of speed and also
to render one form of machine applicable to various uses such as stock-quotation,
general news and parliamentary reporting
To attain these results we employ two or more type wheels or rings of type on the
same axis. The characters on the two wheels or rings are of different sorts, usually
one will be suitable to print letters and the other to print figures and fractions. The
type wheels evolve in planes parallel to the width of the paper in place of as hereto-
fore at right angles thereto. The axis of the wheels is moveable longitudinally to
bring one wheel or the other into position for printing and it is mounted in a
carriage which travels step by step across the paper to be printel and then returns.
The axis on which are the printing wheels is geared with an escapement or propel-
ment shaft at right angles to it and movement is given to this shaft in the usual
manner in order to rotate the printing wheels to bring round the required letter or
figure. When the wheels are placed the operation of the printing mignet brings
the paper into contact with the type wheel and the printing is effected
When the line is completed the carriage in which the printing wheels are mounted
is brought back to the commencement of the line whilst the paper itself is moved the
distance between line and line; all this is done by usual means.
When it is desired to change from one type wheel to another the escapement or
propelment shaft is 1otated, until a pin upon it is brought to a prearranged position
and the printing magnet is then caused to operate. A rocking lever is thus brought
up to the pin and the movement thus imparted to the lever is com.nunicated to the
axis of the type wheels by a suitable connection. When the type wheels have been
thus changed a spring catch retains them and the wheel newly brought into action
will continue to print to the end of the line. When the cantage cariying the axis of
the type wheel returns at the end of a line it strikes out the spring catch and the first
type wheel again comes into position to print.
Sometimes in place of the arrangement above described we employ two type wheels
say a letter wheel and a figure wheel arranged to travel along an escapement or
propelment shaft parallel to the line of the printing and we employ a shield to prevent
either one or the other of the wheels fiom marking the paper.
hifted when required by the operation of the printing magnet and of a pin on the
This shield 18
escapement or propelment shaft in a similar way to that in which in the arrangement
previously described, the printing wheels themselves are changed.
Thus at the commencement of a line the letter wheel prints and the figure wheel is
covered and this continues as long as may be required; then the shield is shifted to
cover the letter wheel and the figure wheel prints and continues to do so until the end
f the line. The return of the carriage with the type wheels to the commencement of
line again reverses the position of the shield.
Another improvement relates to the method in which the rotation of the type wheel
r wheels is obtained. Heretofore the arrangement has been such that the type
heel must rotate with the escapement or propelment wheels and the movement of

page_text: Figure 1 is a plan. Figure 2 is an end elevation, and Figures 3 and 4 are vertical
sections and show the parts affected by our Invention of a receiving instrument which
prints in column; the parts not shown may be arranged as described in the Speci-
fications of our former Patents above referred to or in other known manner.
Figures 5 and 6 show another anangement for the use of two type wheels when
printing in column. Figure 5 is a fiont view and Figure 6 is a side view of the type
wheels with some other parts.
In Figures 1 to 4 aa is a frame in which is mounted an axis b, this axis gives
movement to the axis c of the type wheels c¹ and c² by means of the gear wheels with
oblique teeth d d.
The axis c, and the wheels d d, are mounted in a carriage e. f is the roller over
which the paper to be printed passes. The carriage e by the means described in our
former Specifications or by other known means is made to travel step by step as the
printing continues along the front of the roller f, and at the end of the line is brought
back to return to the starting point. g is a sleeve on the axis b, carrying the escape-
ment or propelment wheels g¹ g¹ and these are caused to rotate in the usual manner
when suitable electric curients are transmitted through the line wire. ² is a pin on
the sleeve c. There is another sleeve h on the axis b which can slide longitudinally,
This sleeve has an inclined or can like
but cannot turn independently of the axis.
end and this when thrust against the pin g causes the axis 6 to rotate, until the pin
enters a notch at the bottom of the incline in the cam.
i is a forked lever, which embraces the sleeve in a groove formed around it.
is the armature of the printing magnet, and h, is the axis which carries it. L² is
an arm on the axis k. When the aimmature ¹ is drawn down by the attraction of the
printing magnet, the arm k² moves the lever e, and the cam is made to advance up to
the pin. Thus the type wheels are rotated at one move to a position corresponding to
that previously given to the wheels gl the printing at once takes place by the advance
of the roller towards the type wheels, and when the armature is released the cam
sleeve h, and the paper roller f return to their previous positions. The paper roller
is mounted in a rocking frame to which the printing roller imparts movement.ns
heretofore. The method above described for placing the type wheel, when the
escapement or propelment wheels have been previously set is applicable to other
The axis which is operated by the printing
punting telegrapli instruments.
magnet is provided with another arm and upon this 18 pivoted the small lever
having its fulcrum at . The lever has rods m and n jointed to it, one at either
end. Immediately above the 10d n, is the bar o, it is fixed to the auns o¹ o' upon the

page_text: axis op is a spring catch, and 62 is a pin projecting radially from the axis b.
When the printing magnet operates at such a time that the upper end of the rod m
comes to abut upon the end of the pin 61, no printing occurs, because the completion
of the printing movement is thereby prevented, but the rod n thrusts against the
under side of the bar o and lifts it until it is caught by the catch p which serves to
retain it in its elevated position.
Now the axis c is able to slide in its bearings in the carriage e and also through the
boss of the gear wheel d which drives it, and its lower end is supported upon the
bar o
Hence when the bar o is lifted the axis c is also raised and the lower type
wheel c is thereby brought into position to print. The wheel will remain at work
until the carriage e returns to the commencement of the line, and then a projection
upon it striking the catch p, releases the bar o and it descends and with it the type
wheels.
In Figures 5 and 6 the type wheels q¹ and qª are mounted in a carriage on the
escapement or propelment axis 8 and travel along it When the paper is brought into
contact with these wheels, one of them only prints because the screen is interposed
between the type on the other wheel and the paper. 'The screen is on an arm
pivoted to the carriage . When the figures are required to print the bar u (which
is arranged in the manner already described in respect to the bar o in Figures 1 to 4)
is raised and the screen is shifted from wheel to wheel as is indicated by dotted lines
in the figure. When the bar u descends on the return of the carriage the small
spring t² brings back the screen. v is an inking roller.
Ifaving now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. A punting telegraph instrument, in which there are substantially as described,
two type wheels or rings of type, which revolve in planes parallel to the line of the
printing or the width of the paper, and are upon an axis which is shifted endwise to
bring one or other of the wheels or rings of type into the working position.
2. A printing telegraph instrument in which substantially as described the escape-
ment and propelment wheels 1otate independently of the type wheels, and the latter
are brought to accord with the position of the escapement or propelment wheels after
these have been previously set.
3. A printing telegraph instrument in which there are two type wheels or rings on
a carriage which traverses across the paper to be printed, and a screen which by
means substantially as described is interposed between one or other of the wheels or
rings and the paper, so that either of the wheels or rings may be caused to print
whilst the other is inoperative.