IMPROVEMENTS IN TELEPHONES OR TELEPHONIC APPARATUS."
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for an Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN
TELEPHONES OR TELEPHONIC APPARATUS." A communication from abroad by
Frederic Allen Gower, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 26th June 1880.
"IMPROVEMENTS
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman.
IN TELEPHONES OR TELEPHONIC APPARATUS."
A communication from abroad by Frederic Allen Gower, of Paris, in the Republic
of France.
This Invention relates to telephones, and it has for its object a combination of
what is known as the Gower telephone with a microphone enclosed in the same
case. This arrangement affords all the advantages obtained by the employment of
a battery for telephonic transmitters, without its accompanying objections and
without destroying the effect of the said telephone when it is employed as a
transmitter in the case of the battery failing to act or becoming exhausted.
In carrying out this Invention a microphone of any suitable construction, but by
preference having at least six contact points, is attached to the upper part of a case,
the lower part of which case is provided with a Gower telephone constructed in the
form of a chronometer. This telephone is provided with a bifurcated acoustic tube,
in order to enable the operator to listen with both ears if required. Suitable
commutators are provided at the side of the case for the purpose of interrupting the
passage of the current from the battery and opening the circuit of the call bells.
After working the apparatus the mouth pieces or ear pieces of the two branches
of the acoustic tube are placed in forks or holders at the side of the case connected
with the commutators, and thereby break the contacts.
An electric call bell is provided underneath the case, and a knob for working the
call bells is placed at the upper part of the apparatus, but these parts may be
otherwise arranged if preferred.

page_text: An induction coil is placed inside the case, and the microphone and the battery
are connected to the principal circuit, whilst the Gower telephone and line wire are
connected with the secondary circuit.
The microphone is attached to the underside of a thin plate or diaphragm of
wood forming the cover of the case, and which vibrates when sounds are produced
in its vicinity in such a manner as to produce undulations of the electric current in
the battery circuit; these undulations are reproduced by induction upon the line
wire communicating with a similar Gower telephone at the receiving station.
The vibrations however when so reproduced are intensified to such an extent by
the great power of the magnet in this telephone, that they act upon the microphone
in the same case with such effect as to set up vibrations in the main circuit at the
receiving station, and these vibrations are again reproduced in the telephone with
increased intensity.
Thus by means of this combination the distinctness of the sound is increased as
well as its loudness.
Moreover, when the diaphragm is provided with a vibrating reed, as is usual in
the Gower telephone, it is simply necessary to close one of the branches of the
acoustic tube with the hand and blow into the other branch in order to cause the
reed to vibrate, and thus produce an intense or rapid vibration of the diaphragm
before the magnet.
This vibration not only produces currents in the coils or the poles of the magnet,
but also acts with great power upon the microphone, the sound being produced in
the same case, and thus doubles the effect of the signal current on the line wire
without exhausting the battery to any greater extent than when speaking in the
usual manner through the apparatus.
By employing this combination of magneto-electrio and electro-magnetic currents,
it is possible to act with great power upon what is known as the "Ader" disc, or
upon any other suitable receiving instrument at the distant station, as well as in
the case of a system worked with a central office, and any suitable arrangement of
the mechanical parts may thus be employed at the receiving station.
By employing this combination it results that a failure of the battery will not
stop the communication, the Gower telephone being always capable of working the
apparatus, whether employed as a receiver or as a transmitter, provided that the
wire is not broken, whilst it is also possible when the Ader signalling apparatus
employed at the central office or other receiving station to transmit a signal
without employing a battery as in the case of the telephone hereinbefore
referred to.
The employment of bifurcated or double acoustic tubes obviates the necessity for
employing a separate instrument as receiver, and thus enables the flexible con-
ducting wire to be dispensed with, which wire contributes one of the principle
objections to the use of telephones in practice.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
tho said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 22nd
December 1880.
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman. "IMPROVEMENTS IN TELEPHONES OR TELEPHONIC APpáratus.”
A communication from abroad by Frederic Allen Gower, of Paris, in the Republic
of France.
The said Invention relates to the combination of what is known as the Gower
telephone with a microphone enclosed in the same case. This arrangement affords
all the advantages obtained by the employment of a battery for the purposes of
telephonic communication, without its accompanying objections and without
destroying the effect of the said telephone when it is employed as a transmitter in
the case of a battery failing to act or becoming exhausted.
And in order that the said Invention may be perfectly understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall refer to
the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the same letters of reference
indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a front elevation of the improved
apparatus, a part of the front of the box being removed in order to show the
position of the commutator.
In this Figure it will be observed that the commutator is not in contact with the
binding post.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of the apparatus partly in section, a portion of the
side of the box being removed in order to show the communication between the
microphone and the principal circuit.
Figure 3 is a plan, the microphone being removed in order to show clearly the
arrangement of all the parts on the interior of the box.
Figure 4 is a plan of the underside of the microphone 'shown in Figure 2. This
microphone is connected with the principal circuit by means of wires a, a', which
are broken off in Figures 3 and 4.
It will be readily understood that when the plate of the microphone is in the
position shewn in Figure 2 so as to close the box, the wire a, Figure 4, is joined
to the wire a, Figure 3, and the wire a', Figure 4, is joined to the wire a',
Figure 3.
In constructing the apparatus according to this Invention a microphone B of any
suitable construction (but by preference having at least six contact points b) is
attached to the upper part K of a box A, the lower part of which box is provided
with a Gower telephone C constructed in the form known as the chronometer
telephone.
This telephone is provided with a bifurcated acoustic or speaking tube D having
two branches D¹, in order to enable the operator to listen with both ears if
required. Commutators E are provided at the side of the box for the purpose of
interrupting the passage of the current from the battery and opening the circuit
of the call bells.
After working the apparatus the extremities d of the acoustic tubes D, D¹, are
placed in holders connected with the commutators E, and the circuit is thereby
interrupted, as shewn in Figure 1, in which Figure the commutator E is shown out
of contact with the binding post e.
An electric call bell F is provided underneath the box A, and a knob G for
working the call bells is placed at the upper part of the apparatus, but this
arrangement is not essential to the working of the Invention.

page_text: An induction coil H is placed inside the box, and the microphone B and the
battery are connected to the primary circuit, whilst the Gower telephone and the
line are connected with the secondary circuit.
In speaking against the upper part K of the box, which part may be of wood,
iron, brass, or other suitable material, and near or upon the under surface of which
the microphone is placed either with or without attaching the microphone to the
box top directly, the sound waves from the voice form electrical undulations in the
primary circuit 'through the action of the microphone, and these undulations are
reproduced in the secondary circuit by induction, and thus repeated in the Gower
telephone at the receiving station.
And I call especial attention to the fact that the microphone in this combination
is not necessarily attached to the box top, but that it may be carried upon a frame
work of wood, metal, or other suitable material attached at any convenient point to
the combined apparatus; and I regard such disposition of the microphone in
combination with a receiving telephone in or on the same box or piece of apparatus
as an element of novelty in this Invention.
The undulations however when so reproduced are intensified to such an extent
by the great power of the magnet in the Gower telephone, that they act upon the
microphone in the same case with such effect as to set up corresponding undulations
in the primary circuit at the receiving station, and these undulations are again
reproduced in the Gower telephone with increased intensity.
Moreover, when the diaphragm of the telephone is provided with a vibrating
reed x, Figure 3, as is usual in the Gower telephone, it is simply necessary to close
one of the branches D³ of the acoustic tube and blow into the other branch in order
to cause the reed to vibrate, and thus produce powerful vibrations of the plate
before the magnet.
These vibrations not only produce currents in the coils or the poles of the
magnet, but also act with great power upon the microphone, the sound being
produced in the interior of the same box, and thus double the effect of the signal
current on the line wire without exhausting the battery to any greater extent than
when speaking in the usual manner through the apparatus.
By employing this combination of magnoto-electric and electro magnetic currents,
it is possible to act with great power upon what is known as the "Ader" disc, or
upon any other suitable receiving instrument at the distant station, as well as in
the case of a system worked with a central office, and any suitable arrangement of
the mechanical parts may thus be employed at the receiving station.
It also results from the employment of this combination that a failure of the
battery will not stop the communication, the Gower telephone being always
capable of working the apparatus, whether employed as a receiver or as a
transmitter, provided that the wire is not broken, whilst it is also possible when
the Ader signalling apparatus is employed at the central office or other receiving
station to transmit a signal without employing a battery, as in the case of the
ordinary Gower telephone.
The employment of bifurcated or double acoustic tubes obviates the necessity for
employing a separate instrument as receiver, and thus enables the flexible con-
ducting wire to be dispensed with, which wire constitutes one of the principal
objections to the use of telephones in practice..
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original,
and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the hereinbefore in part
recited Letters Patent, is,-
First. The combination with a magnetic telephone of a. microphone, the two
instruments forming constituent parts of one and the same apparatus, substantially
as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.

page_text: Secondly. The employment in the said combination of a flexible double tube for
speaking and listening, substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in
the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this my
Specification set my hand and seal, this Twenty second day of December,
One thousand eight hundred and eighty.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.S.)