tale Apparatus for Use in connection with Billiard Tables
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 6th May 1895
Complete Specification Left. 10th July, 1895-Accepted, 10th Aug 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Tell tale Apparatus for Use in connection with Billiard Tables
I HENRY WILLIAM DOUCIAS of The Hotel Windsor, Victoria Street,
Westminster, in the County of Middlesex, Billiard Markeı, do hereby declue the
nature of this invention to be as follows
The object of this invention is to provide apparatus which will serve as a
storage case or cabinet for billiard balls and which is furnished with means whereby
when the cabinet is unlocked for the purpose of removing the ball, a clock or
other time me isuring mechanism is automatically started and continues to go until
Means are also
the balls are replaced and the case or cabinet locked again
provided to prevent the case from being locked unless the bill are in their places
therein The invention therefore provides reliable record of the period or
length of time during which the billiard ball have been out of their proper places
in the storage case or cabinet, and presumably in play on the billiard table, thus
enabling the proprietor of the table to calculate the sum due for the hire of the
table
Ihe case or cabinet contains the clock or other time measuring mecham m and a
lock-up drawer for the billiard balls, the lock-bolt being provided with an
extension piece by means of which a stop or brake is applied to the clock or other
time-measuring mechanism when the bolt is shot and which is removed when the
bolt is retracted
In one form of my invention the extension piece is made a a toothed nack and
ges with a cog wheel supported in suitable bearings in the cabinet and carrying a
When
riid arm to the other extremity of which is secured a wire or other frame
the loch-bolt is in the shot position this frame catches the end of the pendulum
of the clock mechanism when at one extremity of its ac of swing and holds it
there until the lock-bolt is retracted when the frame is removed out of the path of
the pendulum which is then fiee to swing For sping barrel clock mechanism the
fi ime is replaced by a oi the or pawl which gears with the balance wheel and is
removed therefiom when the bolt is retracted
In another form of my invention the extension piece on the lock bolt may be
linked to or may actuate pawl or brike mechanism which is brought into geai
with the balance wheel when the bolt is shot and removed therefrom when the bolt
is retracted
In yet another form of my invention the extension piece may, in one of its
positions, complete an electrical circuit in which is an electro-magnet which
removes the brake or pawl mechanism from, or places it in position to gear with,
the balance wheel or in the case of a pendulum clock may cause the wire or other
fi me to catch or release the end of the pendulum
To prevent the closing of the drawer when the balls or any of them are not in
their places therein a weighted piece is suspended above each of the compartments
for the balls, in such a manner that when the diawei is partially closed the weighted
piece or pieces will fall into the empty space therein and thus prevent further
closing
100
F W GOLBY,
36 Chancery Lane, London, WC, Patent Agent for the Applicant

page_text: Street,
Tell tale Apparatus for Use in connection with Billiard Tables
I, HENRY WILLIAM DOLGI AS, of The Hotel Windsor, Victor
Westminster, in the County of London, Billiard Marker, 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 relates to certain improvements in the tell-tale apparatus for use
in connection with billiard tables described in my Patent Application No 6742
of 1895 According to the Specification of my sud latent Application the tell-tale
apparatus therein described comprises a case or cabinet having a clock or other
time-measuring mechanism and containing a drawer or other recept icle for billiard
ball and means whereby when sud drawer o recept icle is opened to take out the
balls the clock or other time-me isuing mechanism is stopped or started going and
remains or continues so until the balls are replaced and the drawer o receptacle
properly shut
so that the stopping or the starting of the clock mechanism is
effected by the movemer of the drawer or receptacle
The object of this my present invention is to simplify the construction of apparatus
of the kind above indicated and for this purpose I so construct the apparatus that
the stopping or starting of the clock or other time-measuring mechanism is effected
by the action of unlocking on locking the drawer or other receptacle contuning
the billiard balls
The accompanying drawings show tell-tale apparatus constructed in accordance
with th my present invent on provided with a lever or horizontal movement clock
mechanism and adapted for containing three billiard balls
1igure is a tear elevation with the back of the case removed igure 2 12
sectional side elov tion and Fures 3 and 4 show details of construction
The same letters of reference where they occur ate used to denote the sune or
cone ponding parts in the various figures
in
A is the outer case or cabinet, B the clock, and D lock-up doors or flips
allowing less to the interior of the cabinet when r quirc, the dier,
L' L' the compartments therein, 1 the balls, Gr the bie caps on which
the balls est mud computments and 11 the side lever clip for the balls
puvetted at II', all as de clied in the Specification of my before mentioned Potent
Application except that, for the sake of convenience the computmnts
the drawer are arranged side by side instead of one behind the other and the
lever chips II are counterweighted at their heel ends H³ and are provided it their
other ends with spoons II which project slightly over the bast caps an are
depressed thereinto by the balls when the latter are lying in position in the bise
cups (see Figure 1) In this position the tail or heel end H³ of each clip H les in
an aperture E in the side of the drawer E, but when the balls att removed the
spoon ends H2 are raised under the action of the counterweights and the heels H³
are thereby caused to project through the apertures E to prevent the di wer
from being shut accidentally Ihese counterweighted clips act in the same way
as the spring clips illustrated in the diawings of my before mentioned Patent
Application
Above the compartments of the drawer I a frame cortaining three other
compartments J' J J³ corresponding to the compartments L' E' in the drawer
and in cach of aid compartments is a loose block or weiht K
The com-
partments are so disposed relatively to the compartments L'LL in the
drawer that the latter register with the former when the drawer is par ly open, so
that a fraudulent attempt to close the drawer L when one or more of the balls has
been removed from the compartments would result in the fall of the corresponding

page_text: block or blocks K into the empty space or spaces thereunder when the com-
partments E E2 Es were under the compartments J1 J2 J3, and, as each of the
blocks K is sufficiently large to more than fill the corresponding compartment in
the drawer E, the fall of any one of said blocks would jam the said drawer and
prevent it from being further moved either to an open or closed position The
I emoval of the fallen block or blocks K could only be effected by unlocking the
door or flap C the key of which is intended to be in the custody of the proprietor
of the table or other responsible person
I he
The drawer E is provided with a rear extension E having a roof or cover D
which passes under the blocks or weights K as and when the drawer E is pulled
out and keeps them up in the position shown in Figure 2, and with a slot or
socket L' which comes in line with the bolt L of the lock M when the drawer is
completely closed N is a stop piece fixed to the drawer which abuts against
fixed part of the cast or cabinet A when the drawer is drawn out sufficiently to
allow of the balls being removed and prevents it further withdiawal The
lock M is operated by means of a key P from outside the case or cabinet A
lock bolt L is provided with an extension piece L' which is made in the form of
toothed rack and gears with a pinion Ootating on an axial pin O' fixed to the
case or cabinet A To the pinion O and at right angles to its axis is secured
rod R carrying a rigid arm $ which acts as a brake on the balance wheel U when
the parts are in the position shown in Figure 1 and wire or other frame I
pivotted at T¹ to the rod R and capable of turning through an angle of 90° but
kept normalıy in line with said 1od R by means of a spring 12
asping
ratchet lying in the path of the frame T and secured to some fixed part of the
case or cabinet A (see Figures 1 and 2) This spring ratchet is shown detached
on an enlarged scale in Figures 3 and 4 Figure 3 is an end elevation and
Figure 4 is a section taken on the line a-y of Figure 3 It consists of a ratchet
plate secured to cheeks 2 by pins passed through slots in the ends of the
plate The cheeks v² are connected to the base v³ and in the frame so formed one
or mote springs are secured on which the ratchet plate v rests and on which it
has an up and down motion By this construction the frame T rides over the teeth
of the spring ratchet in one direction pre- ing the ratchet plate down under it,
but when travelling in the opposite direction the square ends of the teeth of the
atchet catch against the frame T and cause it to turn down so as to clear the
tchet and pass under it This position of the frame 1 is chown by dotted lines
in Figure 1
The action of this part of the apparatus is as follows-When the bolt L is
retracted it passes from the full to the dotted line position shown in Figure 1
The rack on the extension piece L¹ rotates the pinion O in the direction shown by
the arrows and the brake arm S is by the rod R removed from the balance wheel U
Me inwhile the frame I rides over the spring ratchet vnd maint uning its noimil
stight position is carried under the balance wheel with which its upper end
makes frictional contact giving it an impulse and passing away clear thereftom
In shooting the bolt the reverse operation of the parts takes place, the fiame 1
being by the sping ratchet turned down on its pivot against the power of its
sping oth it its upper end passes under the teeth of aid spring intchet and
when clear thereof the spring 12 returns it to its normal straight position Mean-
while the brake aim S is brought up to the balance wheel U and stops the sanie
This is the position shown in Figure 1
To a pendulum clock the rod R may carry a frame which when the lock-bolt
is in the shot position catches the end of the pendulum when at one extremity of
its are of swing and holds it there until the lock-bolt is reti icted by which
operation the frame is removed out of the path of the pendulum which is then
free to swing
A similar device for catching the end of a pendulum is described
in my before mentioned Patent Application and by refering thereto the method
of adaptation of this modified form of the present invention will be well
understood

page_text: I wish it to be under-tood that my invention is not limited to the details herein-
before described for starting or for stopping the clockwork or other time-measuring
device as any suitable mechanism which will perform thest functions, under the
action of the unlocking or locking of the drawer or receptacle containing the
billiard balls, may be adopted without departing from the scope of my invention
If desired the mechanism may be arranged so that the clock is going when the
drawer is locked with the balls therein, and is stopped by the unlocking of the
drawer and started again by its locking
,
I or other games played with billiard balls such as pool the apparatus 15
precisely the same as herein before described there being a compartment and a
superposed weight for each ball, and for ordinary or "black pool three separate
cases or cabinets each complete as before described, one case having drawer_with
compartments for six balls, the second having a drawer for thice balls, and the
third drawer for four balls, so that the proprietor or other responsible person
can ascertain how many persons have been playing and at what game
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
-
1 1ell-tale apparatus for use in connection with billiard tables comprising a
cise or cabinet containing a clock work or other time-measuring mechanım, a
lock-up dianer or other recepticle for containing billiard balls, and means con-
nected to the lock of such drawer or receptacle for starting or stopping the clock
mechanism by the action of unlocking or locking the drawer or other receptacle
sub tantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described
2 In combination with apparatus of the hind described in the pieceding claim
means for preventing the fraudulent closing of the drawer consisting of weights or
blocks situated in compartments above the drawer which said weights or blocks
fall into the empty space or spaces in the drawer before the latter is closed and
Jam it in a partially closed position substantially in the manner herein before
described
3 Ihe combination of paits forming my tell-tale apparatus for starting and
stopping a clockwork or other time-mea uring mechanism when a drawer or other
receptacle for containing billiard balls 19 unlocked or locked and for preventing
the fudulent clo ing of the drawer or receptacle, the parts being arranged so as
to operate sub tuntially in the manner hereinbefore described and illustrated in
the accompanying drawings
TY
1
T 1
1037
FW GOI BY,
36 Chancery Lane, London, WC, Patent Agent for the Applicant