Year: 1886

page_text: I. GEORGE ANDREW MACBETH of Glenisla, Ealing in the County of Middlesex,
Outfitter do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
--
My Invention relates to apparatus for automatically retailing or delivering articles
or goods in exchange for coin consisting essentially of a closed receptacle or box
containing a supply of the goods, a delivery drawer or slide to which the articles are
separately supplied and which is locked in its closed position, and mechanism for
releasing the drawer on the introduction of a coin of the proper denomination to
enable the goods to be obtained.
The object of my Invention is to simplify the construction of such apparatus and to
provide means for preventing the fraudulent abstraction of the goods either by the
introduction of a coin other than one of the proper value or by continuing to operate
the mechanism after the article for which payinent has been made has been obtained.
My Invention has further for its object to avoid the necessity of constantly
replenishing the apparatus with goods; and to this end it consists in the employment
of a hopper or receptacle for the goods which is operated by the apparatus in such
manner that when one compartment of the receptacle is empty another is automatically
brought into position for supplying the drawer.
In the apparatus of my Invention, the drawer is held closed against the stress of a
spring by a weighted catch, one end of which, when the drawer is in the closed
position, drops in front of a rib or projection on the drawer and prevents the drawer
from being opened, while the other end projects in front of, and is adapted to be
struck by, a finger carried by a slide which is operated by a push piece through the
intervention of the coin. The slide is contained within a fixed tube into which the
push piece extends, and it is forced outwards by a spring which is caused to yield
when pressure is applied to the push piece, and the coin of the proper size is held
between the end of the push picce and a lip or flange on the forward end of the slide.
In operation, the coin is held between the push piece and the lip, and pressure
applied to the push piece, so as to force the slide backwards and raise the catch and
release the drawer which is forced open by the spring.

page_text: In order to prevent the fraudulent abstraction of goods the push piece is provided
with an arm which is struck by a projection in the drawer as it opens, and causes the
unfailing release of the coin which drops into a receptacle provided for the purpose.
The hopper containing the supply of goods is of cylindrical form and is mounted
so as to rotate on a vertical axis above the forward end of the drawer. It is divided
by partitions into a number of separate compartments, each of which is furnished
with a weight which rests on the supply of articles. This weight, when the
compartment from which the supply is being drawn is exhausted moves a catch
which retains the hopper, and the latter is caused by suitable mechanism to revolve,
and bring a full compartment into the place of the empty one.
LADY
G. A. MAC
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Apparatus for the Delivery of Prepaid Goods.
I, GEORGE ANDREW MACBETH of "Glenisla" Ealing in the County of Middlesex
Outfitter, 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 :-
My Invention relates to apparatus for automatically retailing or delivering articles
or goods in exchange for coin; the said apparatus comprising a rotating magazine or
multiple hopper containing a supply of the goods, a delivery drawer or slide by which
the articles are withdrawn singly from a hopper of the magazine, and mechanism for
locking the delivery drawer or slide each time it is pushed in or closed and for
releasing the drawer on the introduction of a coin of the proper denomination, to
enable the goods to be delivered.
The object of my Invention is to simplify the construction of such apparatus and to
provide means for preventing the fraudulent abstraction of the goods, either by the
introduction of a coin other than one of the proper value, or by continuing to operate
the mechanism after the article for which payment has been made has been delivered
to the purchaser. By the employment of a rotating magazine or multiple hopper as
herein described any one of the hoppers may be brought into position for delivery,
and consequently if goods of different kinds be placed in the different hoppers a variety
of goods may be delivered by the same apparatus at the option of the purchaser, and
when one compartment or hopper of the magazine is empty another may be brought
into position for delivery.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this
specification, wherein figure 1 is a perspective view (partly broken away to shew the
interior) of the automatic delivery apparatus. Figure 2 is a horizontal section on
line 1-1 figure 1 (drawn to a larger scale.) Figure 3 is a perspective view of the
drawer or slide and its locking and releasing mechanism, the magazine and its case
being removed. Figure 4 is a vertical section on line 2-2 figure 5, through the tube
in which the releasing push piece is received. Figure 5 is an end view of the same
tube. Figure 6 is an underside view of part of the magazine taken on line 3-3
figure 7, the outline of the delivery drawer or slide which comes beneath it being
shewn in broken lines. Figure 7 is a vertical section through one hopper of the
magazine and delivery drawer or slide on line 4-4 figure 6. The same letters of
reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
The magazine containing the supply of goods consists of a rotating drum composed
of an assemblage of vertical tubes or hoppers A rotating on a vertical axis B within
the upper part of the casing of the apparatus, the axis being mounted in a bearing at
the top of the casing and in a step bracket at the lower end. The hoppers or
tubes A are of a form (usually rectangular in cross-section) corresponding to the form
and size of the packets in which the goods are made up for delivery. CC' is the
delivery drawer, fitted to slide in and out of the casing immediately beneath the

page_text: magazine, the drawer being slotted, as shewn in figure 3, to permit of the magazine
axis passing through the drawer without interfering with the sliding motion of the
latter.
The hoppers or compartments of the magazine are arranged around the axis, as
shewn in figures 2 and 5, the one from which it is desired to withdraw an article being
situated for the time being inmediately over the delivery part of the drawer or
slide. Each hopper or compartment has a through radial slot in the bottom from
front to back, the slot opening at the inner end into a circular cavity a about the
axis B and common to the slots of all the hoppers. In the front side of the hopper
immediately above the bottom thereof, is an aperture a of the full width of the hopper,
and of such a height as to permit of the lowermost only of the pile of articles (which
are superposed within the hopper in the manner of tickets in ticket delivery
apparatus) being withdrawn at a time. This withdrawal is effected by means of a
lug or finger c projecting from the upper surface of the drawer C and sliding in the
slot above mentioned, the range of motion of the drawer being so limited in the
forward or outward direction that the lug c will not pass beyond the position shown
in dotted lines in figure 7, so that it never passes from beneath the pile of goods in
the forward direction. The cavity a is formed in the bottom of the centre part or
boss by which the hoppers are carried, and the front face of the lug c is curved to
correspond to the periphery of the cavity. In the rear or innermost wall of each
hopper is a central vertical slot a² extending the whole height of the hopper in which
slides a filling piece or rib d carried by a weighted follower D which presses on the
pile of goods in the hopper, the filling piece d being curved on its face to correspond
with the periphery of the cavity a so that when a hopper is empty the weight will be
at the bottom and the piece d will fill up the lower end of the opening a² and completo
the wall of the cavity at that part so as to prevent the lug c entering the slot in the
bottom of the hopper. The magazine must then be rotated by means of the mechanism
hereafter described in order to bring a full hopper into position for the delivery of its
contents.
The rotation of the magazine is effected by means of a pinion 6 fixed to the lower
end of the axis B and a rack b¹ gearing therewith and sliding along guides 62 fixed
transversely within the lower part of the casing and operated by a thumb knob b²
passing through a slot in the front of the casing and provided with a pointer shewing
on an adjacent scale when each particular hopper of the magazine is in position for
delivery. By means of this mechanism, any one of the hoppers may (at any time
whilst the delivery drawer or slide is in its locked position) be brought by the
purchaser into position for delivery, the nature of the contents of the different hoppers
being indicated at the different points of the scale with which, when the hoppers are
respectively in position for delivery, the index coincides. In the front of the casing
is an aperture to which the delivery apertures a¹ of the hoppers come opposite, this
aperture corresponding in size to the apertures a¹ and being closed, when the drawer
is pushed inwards, by a flange c' at the front end of the drawer or slide. Immediately
above this aperture there is in the front of the casing a glazed window e through
which is visible a label e¹ on the front of the hopper denoting the nature of its contents,
said label occupying the upper half of the window, and being immediately above an
aperture in the front of the hopper at which the word "Empty" carried by the
weighted follower D above mentioned appears when the follower has descended to the
bottom in consequence of that particular tube or hopper of the magazine being
magazine so that an intending purchaser may know that it is necessary to rotate the
magazine so as to bring another hopper or tube into position for delivery before a
further delivery can be made.
The delivery drawer or slide is constructed of an upper portion which slides
through the front of the casing, and a lower portion C₁ which slides between
guides fixed to a horizontal division F of the casing and also through a transverse
vertical division F. This portion of the slide is also slotted longitudinally to permit
of the passage of the magazine axis B, and the drawer has a constant tendency to be
forced outwards by the tension of a strong spiral spring Cattached at one end to a

page_text: fixed point and at the other to a hook attached to the underside of the slide Cand
working in a slot in partition F.
The locking mechanism by which the drawer or slide is held closed consists of a
locking lever G at right-angles to the line of motion of the drawer, said lever being
pivoted at g in a bracket fixed to the partition F. The one end of this lever carries
an anti friction roller g' which plays in a slot formed in a bracket H fixed on the
slide and coinciding in direction with the line of motion thereof. This slot is
curved downwards at its front end to form a notch in which the end of the lever
will engage in such manner as to act as a stop to lock the drawer or slide in the closed
position, as hereafter described. The slot is curved at this point to the arc of a circle
of about sixty degrees, so as to present the working faces of the slot at such an angle
as to tend to cause the lever to engage in the notch on the completion of the inward
movement of the drawer and to lift it out therefrom on the commencement of
the outward notion of the drawer. This disengagement of the lever from the
downwardly curved portion of the slot is however prevented by an anti-friction
roller g at its other end bearing upon a bracket i projecting from the side of an inner
tube 1 through a slot in an outer fixed tube J in which the tube I is fitted to slide.
The drawer cannot therefore slide out for the purpose of delivering an article from
the hopper until the stop is removed from beneath the roller g2 at the end of the
lever G so as to permit of the roller g at its other end rising into the horizontal
portion of the slot h. Immediately, however, this stop i is withdrawn the lever G is
oscillated and the drawer is shot out rapidly by the action of the spring C², the
finger pushing out the lowermost packet of goods contained in the hopper which is,
at that moment situated above the drawer C, the same being thereby delivered to the
purchaser through the aperture in the front of the casing and on the fore part of the
drawer, as represented in figure 7. This withdrawal of the stop i is effected by a
push piece K acting on the end of the tube I through the intervention of a coin Z
placed between the push piece K and the tube I in such position as to close the end of
the tube which corresponds in diameter to the diameter of the coin which bears
against an inwardly projecting flange or lip i¹ on the end of the tube and extending
around the upper half only of the circumference of the tube. The push piece enters
the tube freely and without acting on it when the coin is absent. The push piece K
slides through and is guided by the front of the casing and the partition F and is
forced outwards by a spiral spring K interposed between the partition F' and a
shoulder or pin on the push piece.
The relocking of the lever G is effected by a spiral spring L forcing the tube I
outwards and so carrying the bracket i again under the end g² of the lever G
immediately the delivery drawer has been pushed in. The lever cannot become
relocked by the bracket i until its other end has engaged in the notch h¹, as the two
ends of the lever cannot rest at the same time on the two respective planes formed
by the lower face of slot h and the face of bracket i.
=
The coin is dropped into operative position in front of the push piece K through a
slot in the top of the lower part of the casing, the conducting channel for the coin
being formed immediately beneath said aperture in the rear side of the partition F¹.
The tube J extends forward at the lower side slightly in front of the tube I (whose
motion is limited by the bracket i) so as to form a resting place j₁ to support the coin
in position between the push piece and the tube I. The tube J has an opening J¹
immediately in rear of this ledge of a size to allow the coin to fall through when
released by the return or outward motion of the push piece, and the inner tube I is
entirely cut away to the extent of the lower half of its circumference at the front end,
as shewn, so that should a coin of less than the proper size be inserted it will be
pushed off the ledge j¹ and fail to act on the tube I.
All coins fall through an aperture f¹ in the partition F, down a shoot into a
receptacle M in the lower part of the apparatus. On its way to the receptacle M, the
coin is arrested opposite a glazed aperture N at which the coin remains visible until
the apparatus is again operated the object being to enable bystanders to detect any

page_text: attempt to use dummy coins. The coin is removed from the window and transferred
to the receptacle M by a finger 2 carried by the tube I which pushes the coin off the
ledge by which it was arrested at the next time the apparatus is operated. is a
shutter working across the entrance for the coin and carried by a forked arm or yoke
fixed to the upper side of the tube I and working through a slot in the tube J, as
shewn in figures 3 and 4. This shutter closes the entrance for the coin so long as the
tube I has not returned to its forward or locking position, so that a second coin cannot
be introduced until the apparatus is reset for another delivery by the action of closing
the drawer.
To prevent a second delivery of goods by the drawer C for a single operation of the
unlocking mechanism, checking devices O and Pare provided to prevent the partial
inward and outward motion of the drawer. The lever O pivoted at o presses by one
end against a cam on the push piece, and its other and heavier end o' is lowered
(so long as the push piece K is not allowed to come forward) into the path of a stepped
rack on the side of the slide C₁ whereby inward motion of the slide or drawer is
prevented except when the push piece is at the outer end of its stroke. The latch lever P
pivoted at p drops into the path of a stepped rack fixed on the slide ( but when
the slide is pushed quite in, the latch lever P comes in front of a pivoted switch p²,
up the inclined surface of which the end of the lever rides on the next forward motion
of the slide or drawer, whereby the lever is carried clear of the rack. On the next
inward motion of the slide the lever passes beneath the switch p³ in position to engage
with the rack and prevents any outward motion of the drawer before its inward
motion is completed. The door Q at the back of the casing permits of the partition F
and the mechanism carried thereby being withdrawn in case of need. R is a circular
flange fixed on the partition that separates the lower from the upper part of the casing
within which the magazine rotates, said flange coming opposite the delivery apertures
at the lower ends of the hoppers and preventing the contents flying partially out
therefrom by centrifugal action should the magazine be very rapidly rotated, the flange
terminating, as shewn in figure 6, at either side of the delivery drawer.
The operation is as follows-The purchaser drops a coin of the proper size into the
slit and then pushes in the push piece thereby forcing back the inner tube I
through the intervention of the coin, whereby the lever G is unlocked and the
drawer C instantaneously released and automatically forced forward carrying with it
one of the packets from out the hopper above. The push piece must then be released,
(thus allowing the coin to fall into its receptacle) before the drawer can be pushed in,
and the drawer must be closed and the whole mechanism reset before another delivery
can be effected, either from the same or a different hopper of the magazine. Should
an intending purchaser find the drawer C in any position but the locked position he
will be unable to drop a coin in the slit z on account of the shutter closing it,
consequently he must push the drawer right in before he can purchase.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I am aware of the
several Letters Patent respectively granted to J. G. Sandeman and P. Everitt
No. 2033 of 1883, to P. Everitt No. 10,406 of 1885, and to C. F. B. Birchall and
E. Beckley No. 14,452 of 1885, and I make no claim to any of the inventions the
subjects of the said several Letters Patent, but what I claim is;-
1. In an automatic delivery apparatus, a revolving magazine for the goods to be
delivered consisting of vertical tubes or hoppers mounted on a vertical axis in
combination with a single spring actuated delivery slide or drawer provided with a
finger or lug working in a slot in the lower end of the hopper and received when the
magazine is being rotated in a central cavity in rear of the hoppers, as described.
2. In an automatic delivery apparatus, a revolving magazine for the goods to be
delivered consisting of vertical tubes or hoppers mounted on a vertical axis in
combination with pinion rack and index gear for bringing any one of the tubes or
hoppers into position for delivery, and with a single spring actuated delivery slide or

page_text: drawer provided with a finger or lug working in a slot in the lower end of the hopper
and received when the magazine is being rotated in a central cavity in rear of the
hoppers, as described.
3. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with a revolving magazine
or multiple hopper, a delivery drawer or slide working beneath the magazine and
engaging by its lug or finger in the bottom of one of the tubes or hoppers, as
described, and of a weighted follower in each of the tubes or hoppers acting as a stop
to prevent the outward motion of the delivery drawer or slide when the mechanism is
unlocked and that particular tube or hopper which is in position for delivery is empty.
4. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with the revolving
magazine or multiple hopper and delivery drawer or slide engaging by a lug or
finger in the bottom of one of the tubes or hoppers, as herein described, of locking
mechanism consisting of a rocking lever at right angles to the direction of motion of
the drawer, said lever engaging by one end in a longitudinal slot on the slide, said
slot having a curved or angular portion forming a notch at its forward end and by its
other end with a movable stop so situated as to engage with and lock the lever when
its other end is engaged in the notch aforesaid, as specified.
5. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with the revolving
magazine, the delivery drawer or slide working beneath the magazine and with-
drawing goods therefrom, as described, the rocking lever engaging by one end in a
longitudinal slot carried by the slide and having a curved or angular notch at its front
end, a movable stop engaging with and locking the lever, as specified, and springs
tending constantly the one to force out the drawer or slide and the other to move the
stop into operative engagement with the locking lever, substantially as specified.
6. In automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with a spring actuated delivery
slide or drawer and with spring actuated locking mechanism engaging with the slide
or drawer, as described, of releasing mechanism consisting of a sliding tube carrying
the locking stop of the locking mechanism and so formed at the front end as to form
an abutment for a coin, in combination with a sliding spring push piece in alignment
with the open end of the sliding tube, and in combination with a transverse channel
and resting place for the coin, the push piece forcing the tube inwards when the end
of the tube is closed by a coin of the proper size intervening between the tube and
push piece as described, and being free to enter the tube without operating it when no
coin of the proper size intervenes between them.
7. In automatic delivery apparatus comprising a spring actuated delivery slide or
drawer, spring actuated locking mechanism engaging with the slide or drawer, as
described, releasing mechanism acting on the locking mechanism, as described, and
consisting of a sliding spring actuated tube, constructed as described, sliding push
piece, adapted to act on said tube through an intervening coin, as herein described,
the combination with the drawer and push piece of a check lever acted on by a cam
on the latter and engaging with a step rack on the former in such manner as to
prevent inward motion of the drawer whilst the push piece is pressed in, for the
purpose specified.
8. In automatic delivery apparatus comprising a delivery slide or drawer, locking
and releasing mechanism, as herein described, the combination with the said drawer or
slide of a check lever, a rack, and a pivoted switch piece adapted to carry the lever
clear of the rack when the slide or drawer is moved outwards from its extreme inward
position, but to permit of its engagement with the rack on the inward motion of the
drawer, as described.
G. A. MACBETH.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Sept., 1886.
Complete Left, 14th Dec., 1886.
Complete Accepted, 18th Jan., 1887.
RESERVI
1, GEORGE ANDREW MACBETH of Glenisla, Ealing in the County of Middlesex,
Outfitter do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to apparatus for automatically retailing or delivering articles
or goods in exchange for coin consisting essentially of a closed receptacle or box
containing a supply of the goods, a delivery drawer or slide to which the articles are
separately supplied and which is locked in its closed position, and mechanism for
releasing the drawer on the introduction of a coin of the proper denomination to
enable the goods to be obtained.
The object of my Invention is to simplify the construction of such apparatus and to
provide means for preventing the fraudulent abstraction of the goods either by the
introduction of a coin other than one of the proper value or by continuing to operate
the mechanism after the article for which payment has been made has been obtained.
My Invention has further for its object to avoid the necessity of constantly
replenishing the apparatus with goods; and to this end it consists in the employment
of a hopper or receptacle for the goods which is operated by the apparatus in such
manner that when one compartment of the receptacle is empty another is automatically
brought into position for supplying the drawer."
In the apparatus of my Invention, the drawer is held closed against the stress of a
spring by a weighted catch, one end of which, when the drawer is in the closed
position, drops in front of a rib or projection on the drawer and prevents the drawer
from being opened, while the other end projects in front of, and is adapted to be
struck by, a finger carried by a slide which is operated by a push piece through the
intervention of the coin. The slide is contained within a fixed tube into which the
push piece extends, and it is forced outwards by a spring which is caused to yield
when pressure is applied to the push piece, and the coin of the proper size is held
between the end of the push piece and a lip or flange on the forward end of the slide.
In operation, the coin is held between the push piece and the lip, and pressure
applied to the push piece, so as to force the slide backwards and raise the catch and
release the drawer which is forced open by the spring.

page_text: In order to prevent the fraudulent abstraction of goods the push piece is provided
with an arm which is struck by a projection in the drawer as it opens, and causes the
unfailing release of the coin which drops into a receptacle provided for the purpose.
The hopper containing the supply of goods is of cylindrical form and is mounted
so as to rotate on a vertical axis above the forward ond of the drawer. It is divided
by partitions into a number of separate compartments, each of which is furnished
with a weight which rests on the supply of articles. This weight, when the
compartment from which the supply is being drawn is exhausted moves a catch
which retains the hopper, and the latter is caused by suitable mochanism to revolve,
and bring a full compartment into the place of the empty one.
6. A. MACBETH.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53; Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for the Delivery of Prepaid Goods.
I, GEORGE ANDREW MACBETH of "Glenisla" Ealing in the County of Middlesex
Outfitter, 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
My Invention relates to apparatus for automatically retailing or delivering articles
or goods in exchange for coin; the said apparatus comprising a rotating magazine or
multiple hopper containing a supply of the goods, a delivery drawer or slide by which
the articles are withdrawn singly from a hopper of the magazine, and mechanism for
locking the delivery drawer or slide each time it is pushed in or closed and for
releasing the drawer on the introduction of a coin of the proper denomination, to
enable the goods to be delivered.
The object of my Invention is to simplify the construction of such apparatus and to
provide means for preventing the fraudulent abstraction of the goods, either by the
introduction of a coin other than one of the proper value, or by continuing to operate
the mechanism after the article for which payment has been made has been delivered
to the purchaser. By the employment of a rotating magazine or multiple hopper as
herein described any one of the hoppers may be brought into position for delivery,
and consequently if goods of different kinds be placed in the different hoppers a variety
of goods may be delivered by the same apparatus at the option of the purchaser, and
when one compartment or hopper of the magazine is empty another may be brought
into position for delivery.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this
specification, wherein figure 1 is a perspective view (partly broken away to shew the
interior) of the automatic delivery apparatus. Figure is a horizontal section on
line 1-1 figure 1 (drawn to a larger scale.) Figure 3 is a perspective view of the
drawer or slide and its locking and releasing mechanism, the magazine and its case
being removed. Figure 4 is a vertical section on line 2-2 figure 5, through the tube
in which the releasing push piece is received. Figure 5 is an end view of the same
tube. Figure 6 is an underside view of part of the magazine taken on line 3-3
figure 7, the outline of the delivery drawer or slide which comes beneath it being
shewn in broken lines. Figure 7 is a vertical section through one hopper of the
magazine and delivery drawer or slide on line 4-4 figure 6. The same letters of
reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
The magazine containing the supply of goods consists of a rotating drum composed
of an assemblage of vertical tubes or hoppers A rotating on a vertical axis B within
the upper part of the casing of the apparatus, the axis being mounted in a bearing at
the top of the casing and in a step bracket at the lower end. The hoppers or
tubes A are of a form (usually rectangular in cross-section) corresponding to the form
and size of the packets in which the goods are made up for delivery. CC¹ is the
delivery drawer, fitted to slide in and out of the casing immediately beneath the

page_text: magazine, the drawer being slotted, as shewn in figure 3, to permit of the magazine
axis passing through the drawer without interfering with the sliding motion of the
latter.
The hoppers or compartments of the magazine are arranged around the axis, as
shewn in figures 2 and 5, the one from which it is desired to withdraw an article being
situated for the time being immediately over the delivery part C of the drawer or
slide. Each hopper or compartment has a through radial slot in the bottom from
front to back, the slot opening at the inner end into a circular cavity a about the
axis B and common to the slots of all the hoppers. In the front side of the hopper
immediately above the bottom thereof, is an aperture a' of the full width of the hopper,
and of such a height as to permit of the lowermost only of the pile of articles (which
are superposed within the hopper in the manner of tickets in ticket delivery
apparatus) being withdrawn at a time. This withdrawal is effected by means of a
lug or finger c projecting from the upper surface of the drawer Cand sliding in the
slot above mentioned, the range of motion of the drawer being so limited in the
forward or outward direction that the lug c will not pass beyond the position shewn
in dotted lines in figure 7, so that it never passes from beneath the pile of goods in
the forward direction: The cavity a is formed in the bottom of the centre part or
boss by which the hoppers aro carried, and the front face of the lug c is curved to
correspond to the periphery of the cavity. In the rear or innermost wall of each
hopper is a central vertical slot a² extending the whole height of the hopper in which
slides a filling piece or rib d carried by a weighted follower D which presses on the
pile of goods in the hopper, the filling piece being curved on its face to correspond
with the periphery of the cavity a so that when a hopper is empty the weight will be
at the bottom and the piece d will fill up the lower end of the opening a² and complete
the wall of the cavity at that part so as to prevent the lug c entering the slot in the
bottom of the hopper. The magazine must then be rotated by means of the mechanism
hereafter described in order to bring a full hopper into position for the delivery of its
contents.
The rotation of the magazine is effected by means of a pinion & fixed to the lower
end of the axis B and a rack b¹ gearing therewith and sliding along guides b² fixed
transversely within the lower part of the casing and operated by a thumb knob b²
passing through a slot in the front of the casing and provided with a pointer shewing
on an adjacent scale when each particular hopper of the magazine in position for
delivery. By means of this mechanism, any one of the hoppers may (at any time
whilst the delivery drawer or slide is in its locked position) be brought by the
purchaser into position for delivery, the nature of the contents of the different hoppers
being indicated at the different points of the scale with which, when the hoppers are
respectively in position for delivery, the index coincides. In the front of the casing
is an aperture to which the delivery apertures a³ of the hoppers come opposite, this
aperture corresponding in size to the apertures a¹ and being closed, when the drawer
is pushed inwards, by a flange c¹ at the front end of the drawer or slide. Immediately
above this aperture there is in the front of the casing a glazed window e through
which is visible a label e¹ on the front of the hopper denoting the nature of its contents,
said label occupying the upper half of the window, and being immediately above an
aperture in the front of the hopper at which the word "Empty" carried by the
weighted follower D above mentioned appears when the follower has descended to the
bottom in consequence of that particular tube or hopper of the magazine being
exhausted, so that an intending purchaser may know that it is necessary to rotate the
magazine so as to bring another hopper or tube into position for delivery before a
further delivery can be made.
The delivery drawer or slide is constructed of an upper portion C which slides
through the front of the casing, and a lower portion C which slides between
guides fixed to a horizontal division F of the casing and also through a transverse
vertical division F. This portion of the slide is also slotted longitudinally to permit
of the passage of the magazine axis B, and the drawer has a constant tendency to be
forced outwards by the tension of a strong spiral spring Cattached at one end to a

page_text: fixed point and at the other to a hook attached to the underside of the slide Cand
working in a slot in partition F.
The locking mechanism by which the drawer or slide is held closed consists of a
locking lever G at right-angles to the line of motion of the drawer, said lever being
pivoted at y in a bracket fixed to the partition F. The one end of this lever carries
an anti friction roller g¹ which plays in a sloth formed in a bracket H fixed on the
slide and coinciding in direction with the line of motion thereof. This slot is
curved downwards at its front end to form a notch h¹ in which the end of the lever
will engage in such manner as to act as a stop to lock the drawer or slide in the closed
position, as hereafter described. The slot is curved at this point to the arc of a circle
of about sixty degrees, so as to present the working faces of the slot at such an angle
as to tend to cause the lever to engage in the notch on the completion of the inward
movement of the drawer and to lift it out therefrom on the commencement of
the outward motion of the drawer. This disengagement of the lever from the
downwardly curved portion of the slot is however prevented by an anti-friction
roller g at its other end bearing upon a bracket i projecting from the side of an inner
tube I through a slot j in an outer fixed tube J in which the tube I is fitted to slide.
The drawer cannot therefore slide out for the purpose of delivering an article from
the hopper until the stop i is removed from beneath the roller g' at the end of the
lever G so as to permit of the roller g³ at its other end rising into the horizontal
portion of the slot . Immediately, however, this stop i is withdrawn the lever G is
oscillated and the drawer is shot out rapidly by the action of the spring C2, the
finger c pushing out the lowermost packet of goods contained in the hopper which is,
at that moment situated above the drawer C, the same being thereby delivered to the
purchaser through the aperture in the front of the casing and on the fore part of the
drawer, as represented in figure 7. This withdrawal of the stop i is effected by a
push piece K acting on the end of the tube I through the intervention of a coin Z
placed between the push piece K and the tube I in such position as to close the end of
the tube which corresponds in diameter to the diameter of the coin which bears
against an inwardly projecting flange or lip on the end of the tube and extending
around the upper half only of the circumference of the tube. The push piece enters
the tube freely and without acting on it when the coin is absent. The push piece K
slides through and is guided by the front of the casing and the partition F and is
forced outwards by a spiral spring K interposed between the partition F and a
shoulder or pin on the push piece.
The relocking of the lever G is effected by a spiral spring I forcing the tube I
outwards and so carrying the bracket again under the end of the lever G
immediately the delivery drawer has been pushed in. The lever cannot become
relocked by the bracket until its other end has engaged in the notch ', as the two
ends of the lever cannot rest at the same time on the two respective planes formed
by the lower face of slot and the face of bracket i.
The coin is dropped into operative position in front of the push piece K through a
slot z in the top of the lower part of the casing, the conducting channel for the coin
being formed immediately beneath said aperture in the rear side of the partition F".
The tube J extends forward at the lower side slightly in front of the tube I (whose
motion is limited by the bracket ) so as to form a resting place to support the coin
in position between the push piece and the tube I. The tube J has an opening J
immediately in rear of this ledge of a size to allow the coin to fall through when
released by the return or outward motion of the push piece, and the inner tube I is
entirely cut away to the extent of the lower half of its circumference at the front end,
as shewn, so that should a coin of less than the proper size be inserted it will be
pushed off the ledge and fail to act on the tube I.
All coins fall through an aperture in the partition F, down a shoot into a
_receptacle M in the lower part of the apparatus. On its way to the receptacle M, the
coin is arrested opposite a glazed aperture N at which the coin remains visible until
the apparatus is again operated the object being to enable bystanders to detect any
attempt to use duinmy coins. The coin is removed from the window and transferred

page_text: to the receptacle M by a finger carried by the tube I which pushes the coin off the
ledge by which it was arrested at the next time the apparatus is operated. is a
shutter working across the entrance for the coin and carried by a forked arm or yoke
fixed to the upper side of the tube I and working through a slot in the tube J, as
shewn in figures 3 and 4. This shutter closes the entrance for the coin so long as the
tube I has not returned to its forward or locking position, so that a second coin cannot
be introduced until the apparatus is reset for another delivery by the action of closing
the drawer.
To prevent a second delivery of goods by the drawer C for a single operation of the
unlocking mechanism, checking devices O and P are provided to prevent the partial
inward and outward motion of the drawer. The lever O pivoted at o presses by one
end against a cam k¹ on the push piece, and its other and heavier end o¹ is lowered
(so long as the push piece K is not allowed to come forward) into the path of a stepped
rack o on the side of the slide C¹ whereby inward motion of the slide or drawer is
prevented except when the push piece is at the outer end of its stroke. The latch lever P
pivoted at p drops into the path of a stepped rack pl fixed on the slide C¹ but when
the slide is pushed quite in, the latch lever P comes in front of a pivoted switch p³,
up the inclined surface of which the end of the lever rides on the next forward motion
of the slide or drawer, whereby the lever is carried clear of the rack. On the next
inward motion of the slide the lever passes beneath the switch p2 in position to engage
with the rack and prevents any outward motion of the drawer before its inward
motion is completed. The door Qat the back of the casing permits of the partition F
and the mechanisin carried thereby being withdrawn in case of need. R is a circular
flange fixed on the partition that separates the lower from the upper part of the casing
within which the magazine rotates, said flange coming opposite the delivery apertures
at the lower ends of the hoppers and preventing the contents flying partially out
therefrom by centrifugal action should the magazine be very rapidly rotated, the flange
terminating, as shewn in figure 6, at either side of the delivery drawer.
The operation is as follows;-The purchaser drops a coin of the proper size into the
slitz and then pushes in the push piece K thereby forcing back the inner tube I
through the intervention of the coin, whereby the lever G is unlocked and the
drawer C instantaneously released and automatically forced forward carrying with it
one of the packets from out the hopper above. The push piece must then be released,
(thus allowing the coin to fall into its receptacle) before the drawer can be pushed in,
and the drawer must be closed and the whole mechanism reset before another delivery
can be effected, either from the same or a different hopper of the magazine. Should
an intending purchaser find the drawer C in any position but the locked position he
will be unable to drop a coin in the slit z on account of the shutter ³ closing it,
consequently he must push the drawer right in before he can purchase.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is;—
1. In an automatic delivery apparatus, a revolving magazine for the goods to be
delivered consisting of vertical tubes or hoppers mounted on a vertical axis in
combination with a single spring actuated delivery slide or drawer provided with a
finger or lug working in a slot in the lower end of the hopper and received when the
magazine is being rotated in a central cavity in rear of the hoppers, as described.
2. In an automatic delivery apparatus, a revolving magazine for the goods to be
delivered consisting of vertical tubes or hoppers mounted on a vertical axis in
combination with pinion rack and index gear for bringing any one of the tubes or
hoppers into position for delivery, and with a single spring actuated delivery slide or
drawer provided with a finger or lug working in a slot in the lower end of the hopper
and received when the magazine is being rotated in a central cavity in rear of the
hoppers, as described.
3. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with a revolving magazine
or multiple hopper, a delivery drawer or slide working beneath the magazine and
engaging by its lug or finger in the bottom of one of the tubes or hoppers, as

page_text: described, and of a weighted follower in each of the tubes or hoppers acting as a stop
to prevent the outward motion of the delivery drawer or slide when the mechanism is
unlocked and that particular tube or hopper which is in position for delivery is empty.
4. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with the revolving
magazine or multiple hopper and delivery drawer or slide engaging by a lug or
finger in the bottom of one of the tubes or hoppers, as herein described, of locking
mechanism consisting of a rocking lever at right angles to the direction of motion of
the drawer, said lever engaging by one end in a longitudinal slot on the slide, said
slot having a curved or angular portion forming a notch at its forward end and by its
other end with a movable stop so situated as to engage with and lock the lever when
its other end is engaged in the notch aforesaid, as specified.
5. In an automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with the revolving
magazine, the delivery drawer or slide working beneath the magazine and with-
drawing goods therefrom, as described, the rocking lever engaging by one end in a
longitudinal slot carried by the slide and having a curved or angular notch at its front
end, a movable stop engaging with and locking the lever, as specified, and springs
tending constantly the one to force out the drawer or slide and the other to move the
stop into operative engagement with the locking lever, substantially as specified.
6. In automatic delivery apparatus, the combination with a spring actuated delivery
slide or drawer and with spring actuated locking mechanism engaging with the slide
or drawer, as described, of releasing mechanism consisting of a sliding tubo carrying
the locking stop of the locking mechanism and so formed at the front end as to form
an abutment for a coin, in combination with a sliding spring push piece in alignment
with the open end of the sliding tube, and in combination with a transverse channel
and resting place for the coin, the push piece forcing the tube inwards when the end
of the tube is closed by a coin of the proper size intervening between the tube and
push piece as described, and being free to enter the tube without operating it when no
coin of the proper size intervenes between them.
7. In automatic delivery apparatus comprising a spring actuated delivery slide or
drawer, spring actuated locking mechanism engaging with the slide or drawer, as
described, releasing mechanism acting on the locking mechanism, as described, and
consisting of a sliding spring actuated tube, constructed as described, sliding push
pieco, adapted to act on said tube through an intervening coin, as herein described,
the combination with the drawer and push piece of a check lever acted on by a cam
on the latter and engaging with a step rack on the former in such manner as to
prevent inward motion of the drawer whilst the push piece is pressed in, for the
purpose specified.
8. In automatic delivery apparatus, comprising a delivery slide or drawer, locking
and releasing mechanism, as herein described, the combination with the said drawer or
slide of a check lever, a rack, and a pivoted switch piece adapted to carry the lever
clear of the rack when the slide or drawer is moved outwards from its extreme inward
position, but to permit of its engagement with the rack on the inward motion of the
drawer, as described.
G. A. MACBETH.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.