Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Mar., 1887.
Specification Accepted, 22nd Apr., 1887.
I, JEAN BILLON-HALLER, of Geneva, in Switzerland, Engineer, 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, reference
being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon, that is to say :-
My Invention consists of a stop mechanism acting upon the spring barrel of
musical boxes, in place of stopping the fly-wheel of the same, as is now usually
the case.
The object of my Invention is to enable the cylinder of musical boxes to be very
easily changed for the purpose of changing the airs, without increasing the price of
the instrument.
The owner of a musical box, constructed on my system, may purchase as many new
airs as he may desire, as soon as they are published. As every cylinder carries 3
or 4 airs, each air will not cost more than the perforated card discs employed for
changing the airs in those musical boxes or organs called "Aristons."
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1, is a plan view of the mechanism of a
musical box, provided with my new stop mechanism. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the
latter after removing the plate bearing the other parts of the mechanism. Fig. 3, is a
section taken on line Y, Z, of fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a section, taken on line W, X, of
fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a section on line U, V, of fig. 1 shewing the arrangement of the
stop lever.
In all the figures similar letters indicate similar parts or pieces.

page_text: A double armed lever D, affixed to the plate A, by means of a pivot-screw d, may
be displaced in the plane of A, that is to say, perpendicularly to the plane of motion
of the rack B. One arm of this lever D, forms a hook , and the other arm is
provided with an inclined plane d, having a projection d. A spring E causes the
lever D to remain in the position shewn in figures 2, 4 and 5, in which the hook d', is
engaged in the notch f, with which the rim or flange of F is provided the end of the
rack B is pressed by the spring G upon the lower part of the inclined plane d.
In this position of the rack, its teeth are engaged in the toothed range of the barrel 1,
and prevent the rotation of the latter.
If the stop lever H (Fig. 5) be displaced from its position of repose, into the
position corresponding with the playing of the instrument, (shewn by dotted lines in
the drawings) the lower end of the stop lever of E. striking against the projection d¹¹
throws the lever D into the position shewn by the dotted lines in Figures 2 and 5.
At the same time the end of the rack B, is lifted by the inclined plane d", into the
position shewn by dotted lines in Figure 4, in which the rack B, is out of gear with
the barrel I. The hook having at the same time been released from the notch f, the
instrument begins to play.
If the lever H be restored to its first position, during the playing of the instrument,
the projection is released by H, and the lever D will fall back into its first position
as soon as the book engages the notch f, that is to say, at the end of the air. At
the same time the rack will fall into gear with the barrel I, and the mechanism will
be stopped independently of the cylinder and regulator, that is to say, the cylinder, the
regulator or the movers of the latter may be withdrawn in that position of rack B,
although the mainspring would be wound up.
The first advantage arising from my Invention, is that the cylinder may be changed
for another with great facility, and the second is, that if it happen that an
inexperienced workman removes the regulator, or some parts of the same, whilst
the main spring is wound up, no accident will happen, as would be the case in a
musical hox with a stop mechanism acting upon the regulator, in which, in such a
case, the cylinder would revolve with great velocity, breaking the key board and the
pins of the cylinder.
With a view to easily withdraw the cylinder, its pivots are maintained in the
bearings J and K, by means of the moveable levers j and k (Fig. 1). After having
turned the latter into the position shewn by dotted lines, the cylinder can be withdrawn
with great facility. As it may happen that the lever might be turned in the said
position by inadvertence during the playing of the instrument, whereby the cylinder
would be thrown out of the instrument, I have combined with the herein described
stop mechanism, a safety mechanism composed of a forked lever L, affixed by
bearing, of the plate A, provided with a pin M, which traverses the bearing J, and
engages in a hole j¹, of lever j, as long as rack B is out of gear, that is to say, as
long as the instrument is playing.
L
A pivot N, affixed to B, displaces the fork L, and causes the pin M to leave the
lever, as soon as B falls into gear with I. The lever k, is of a peculiar form, and
is combined with a pin o of lever O, so as to withdraw the latter automatically when
the lever k, is turned with a view to remove the cylinder.
Having now described my Invention, and in what manner the same may he
performed, I declare that I claim :-
First. In musical boxes, the use of a stop mechanism acting directly upon the
barrel, substantially as herein described.
Second. The combination with the toothed range of the barre of musical boxes, of
a rack B acted upon by any mechanism, for the purpose of stopping the working, as
'described.
Third. The stop mechanism composed of the rack B, lever D, provided with

page_text: hook d, inclined plane and projection d¹, springs E, G, and lever H, substantially
as shewn and described.
Fourth. In musical boxes, the combination of the cylinder F, with the bearings J
and K having moveable levers j and k, substantially as shewn and described and for
the purpose specified.
Fifth. The combination of the above described stop-mechanism with the pivot N,
forked lever L, pin M, and hole j¹ of lever j, as shown and described and for the
purpose specified.
Sixth. The combination of the lever with pin o of the lever O, as shewn and
described and for the purpose specified.