Improvements in Apparatus for Playing Games with Balls,
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Oct., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 24th July, 1900-Accepted, 27th Oct., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Playing Games with Balls,
I, CHARLES HERMANN MULLER, Director of The New Polyphon Supply Com-
pany, Limited, of 137, Oxford Street, London, W., do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to bagatelle or Tivoli billiards and similar games in
which a ball thrown through the intervention of a player may secure a prize or
other advantage.
In such a game the ball, which has fallen down during playing, rolls on the
oblique lower wall of the play board box towards the side wall of the throwing
shaft and remains there on a sliding piece which forms at this place a part of
the bottom of the box. If the sliding piece is pulled, the ball thereon falls into a
chamber thereunder and thence into the flowing shaft, after a flap or similar
device, which allows access thereto, has been opened by the player through
operating a handle.
When the sliding piece has been pulled forwards, to set free the ball, it simul-
taneously closes the throwing shaft so that the ball cannot be thrown until the
sliding piece has been released, thus closing also the bottom of the play-board
box. Therefore, the ball can only be thrown, when the sliding piece is released.
In consequence the insertion of a coin allows only such balls to be thrown, which
have passed into the said chamber by the pulling of the sliding piece. The
illegitimate jamming or arrest of the sliding piece in the position when pulled
out, will not help any dishonest player, because the throwing shaft will still
remain closed.
To prevent any person from withdrawing the coin, which he has used for the
operation of the sliding piece, for instance by tying a string through a hole in
such coin, the sliding piece is provided with a knife, which is adapted to
coact with a second knife arranged on the wall of the apparatus, to form scissors
or shears for cutting any thread over the coin, in case of such an attempt for the
withdrawal of the latter.
D
1000
improvements in Apparatus for Playing Games with Balls,
I, CHARLES HERMANN MULLER, Director of The New Polyphon Supply Com-
pany, Limited, of 137, Oxford Street, London, W., do hereby declare the nature
[Price 8d.]

page_text: 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 relates to improvements in apparatus for playing games with
balls, known as upright bagatelle or Tivoli billiards, which consist of flat cases
or boxes covered by a glass plate and in which the play takes place in the follow-
ing manner: A ball is thrown upwards in a shaft by means of a spring adapted
to be put ready by a handle. The action of the spring on the ball is sufficiently
strong to throw the ball over the top of the shaft, so as to fall down in the box.
This fall is retarded by pins which divert it sideways, or may hold it between
them. The places where the ball may thus be held by pins have numbers which
indicate the value of the throw.
This invention has for its object the construction of such a bagatelle Tivoli
billiard device in which the playing balls contained therein are set free by the
insertion of a coin for playing a single game.
In order that this invention may be the better understood I now proceed to
describe the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the
letters and figures marked thereon.
Figure 1 is a front view of the lower part of such a bagatelle or Tivoli billiard
device.
Figure 2 is a similar view, the playing board being removed.
Figure 3 shows a horizontal section of the device and
Figure 4 shows a detail on an enlarged scale.
The apparatus is divided by a playing board p into two box-like receptacles,
see Figure 3; the playing balls move in the front part or receptacle, the rear
part or receptacle being designed to receive the mechanism for the operation
of the apparatus.
"
The front part or playing box b is closed below by an oblique bottom c, Figure 1,
with which is connected at the lowest part a straight board, formed by a plate
or board d¹ made in one piece with a slide d adapted to move in the rear part
or receptacle. Under the playing box 5 is situated a chamber f closed also by an
oblique wall, and divided from the throwing shaft a by a flap g.
The slide d is locked by a balance beam o which rests against a steps on its rear
end, Figure 2. The front part of the balance beam e ends in a fork el, which
surrounds two cheeks t t¹, provided at both sides of the slot u made in the slide d
for the passage of the coin. The coin inserted falls on the fork e¹ of the balance
beam a between the cheeks t t and by the preponderance of its weight it raises the
other end of the beam, thus setting free the slide d so that it may be drawn out.
When the slide d is drawn forwards, the cheeks t t carry the coin situated
between them, until the front end of the fork e¹ leaves the balance beam and the
coin falls through the slot u of the slide into the coin receptacle.
⋅
Before the commencement of the game the playing balls rest partly on the
wall and partly on the plate d¹, Figure 1.
When the slide d is drawn, the balls in the playing box fall into the chamber f
and roll from there into the lower part of the throwing shaft, after the opening
of the flap g by the player by means of a handle not shown in the drawings. Only
one ball is allowed to reach a throwing cup h, any other ball is pushed back into
the chamber by the flap g which has to be returned into its former position as
shown in Figure 1.
When the slide has been drawn forwards for setting free the playing balls,
the plate d' closes the throwing shaft a Therefore the ball falling in the throwing
cup cannot be thrown up until the slide d has been released by the player and
returned into its former position by a spring k, in which position. the plate d
again closes the playing box at the bottom. Therefore the player has at his
disposal only the balls which have entered the chamber f, for single use. Every
ball which have been played remains in the playing box 6 and does not re-enter
the chamber till fresh coins have been inserted.

page_text: If the player should not release the slide d, intending to use the balls again,
and for this purpose prevent the slide from returning into its former position by
holding or jamming the same, he could not obtain his object, because in this
position of the slide d, the plated closes the throwing shaft a.
To prevent dishonest persons withdrawing the coin which has been used for
disengaging the slide d by perforating the coin and attaching thereto a thread, a
knife is attached to the slide d, Figure 4, which knife i coacts with a second
knife provided on the wall of the apparatus, thus forming a pair of shears, which
would cut the thread above the coin when the slide is drawn out, Figures 2 and 4.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is:―
1st. An arrangement for controlling the playing balls in upright coin freed
bagatelle or Tivoli billiards consisting of a slide d having a plate or board
adapted to close a playing box b and a throwing shaft a when drawn out, but
permitting the playing balls to fall from the playing box into a chamber f for
transmission to a throwing cup h means for locking the slide by coin freed
mechanism and a flap g adapted to control the feed of the balls from the chamber f
to the throwing shatte, substantially as and for the purpose described.
2nd. In such an arrangement as claimed in Claim 1, the provision of a lower
knife on the slide d adapted to co-act with an upper knife on the wall or casing
of the apparatus to form a pair of shears, substantially as and for the purpose
described.
Total this 24th day of Tul, 1000
FELL & JAMES,
Agents for the Applicant.