Improvements in Apparatus for Checking the Time at which Employés Enter or Leave Factories and the like.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Nov., 1891-Accepted, 23rd Apr., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Checking the Time at which
Employés Enter or Leave Factories and the like.
1, JAMES JOHN STOCKALL of 6 and 8 Clerkenwell Road, London E.C. Watch
and Clock Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement:-
My invention relates to apparatus for checking the time at which employés enter
or leave factories, workshops and the like, and has for its object further improve-
ments in the apparatus described in the Specification of Letters Patent No. 9073
granted to John Leber and John Henry Leber the 20th of July 1889, and sub-
sequently assigned to me.
My improvements refer chiefly to the extension of the operation of the apparatus
over a period of 24 instead of 12 hours as heretofore to an improved arrangement
whereby the apparatus is operated by mechanism independent of the clock work
proper although acting in conjunction therewith, the simultaneous use of the
apparatus as a tell-tale for watchmen for instance, to a modification whereby the
apparatus may be used to indicate the time at which domestic servants or others
arise in the morning, and lastly to various alterations in the details of the
mechanism, the principal of which has for its object to indicate when required in an
opening formed in the dial of the clock the time selected for the apparatus to
operate.
In the accompanying drawings
Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a portion of the clock with mechanism for carrying
out my first improvement.
Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a modification of the apparatus for carrying out the
same improvement, the dial being omitted.
Fig. 3 is a plan of the same arrangement, the clock work being omitted.
Fig. 4 is an end view partly in section on line of Fig. 3.
Fig. 5 is a section through the clock work mechanism showing only so much
thereof as is needed for the understanding of this part of the invention.
Fig. 6 is a separate view at an enlarged scale of the snail mechanism and of the
upper end of the lever operating the sliding bar.
Fig. 6A is a section on line of Fig. 6.
Fig. 7 is a view at right angles thereto.
Fig. 8 is an end view of the snail spring.
Fig. 9 illustrates at an enlarged scale the upper part of one of the shutter discs,
and the means for operating the same.
Fig. 10 is a plan of a portion of the upper and of the sliding plates through both
of which slots are formed for use when the apparatus is intended as a tell-tale for
watchmen, Fig. 11 being a longitudinal section thereof.
Figs. 11 & 11 are a front and an end view of the double snail.
Fig. 12 shows a modification of the apparatus used for indicating the time at
which domestic servants and others arise in the morning.
Fig. 13 is a modification of the mechanism of the checking apparatus for the
purpose of showing on the dial of the clock the hours at which the said apparatus
operates.
Fig. 14 is an end view of the same and
Fig. 15 a front view of the revolving dial.
Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
In carrying my first improvement into practice, I replace the mechanism for
actuating the sliding bar F of Fig. 4 of the drawings accompanying the Specification

page_text: of my former Patent by the mechanism represented in Fig. 1. The same consists
of a came mounted on the axis of the 24 hour wheel W and gearing with a pin d
fixed upon the upper part of the sliding bar which is slotted as shown to allow for
the passage of the said axis. As the wlieel W revolves the cam c comes to hear
upon the pin and gradually raises the vertical bar, the projection bearing
successively upon each step to open the corresponding slot in the manner described
in the said former Specification. When the bar has been raised to its highest
extent, the slide S is moved back as in the former arrangement and the bar & drops
down to its previous and initial position.
In the arrangement shown in Figs. 2 to 9 I use in combination with the ordinary
clock work special mechanism to actuate the slide S directly, the said clock work
being merely used to impart a motion to the former. The wheel w is mounted on the
rbour A of the hour hand and accomplishes one revolution in 12 hours; the same
gears with a toothed wheel W mounted on the arbour B and having twice the
number of teeth of the wheel , thus revolving once in twenty four hours.
Upon the arbour B is likewise mounted a snail or notched cam s engaging at
suitable intervals with the pino of the lever L which is pivoted at to the front
plate a of the clock work. The lower end of this lever is forked to engage with
the pin y fixed to the slide S which is arranged to move on rollers between the
guides secured to the slotted steel plate fixed below the top board of the
frame, the latter being provided with four or more slots corresponding with
those of the plate. and with a similar number of slots = formed in the slide S.
The slide S is drawn to the left by the spiral spring so as to keep the pin o of the
lever L in contact with the periphery of the snails. The same slide is furnished
with four knife edges g' bearing against the triangular pieces y (Fig. 9) for the
purpose of raising the shutters as shown on the left hand end of Fig. 2 and of
disclosing the under and fixed discs bearing the hours at which the slots are
opened for the insertion of the tickets or tokens. The shutters are furnished at
the top with a slot in which enters a pin i fixed to the lower part of the piece y.
which is pivoted to the same axis as the upper part of the discs or shutters on the
brackets e screwed to the plate k, an opening being formed between the brackets
and the plate k to allow for the free motion of the knife edges g'. The snail s is
provided with step like notches arranged according to the times of opening or
closing the slots; it is further furnished with a springs on one part of its periphery
having for its object to receive the pin o after it has been pushed away from the
smallest part of the snail, wherewith it is in contact as shown in Fig. 6, and thus to
prevent the same pin from returning thereon and impeding the further motion of
the said snail. The latter which is shown at an enlarged scale in Figs. 6, 64, & 7
may be formed of one piece of metal or of several superposed plates to allow of the
times of opening or closing the slots being readily changed. The end of the
spring which projects beyond the solid part of the snail is bevilled as shown in
Fig. 8 to allow the pin to pass readily under and to receive the same in order to
pass it onto the largest part of the snail. In case the mechanism was out of order and
to prevent under such circumstances the clock work from being stopped, the said
snail is furnished with a bevilled portion (Fig. 6A) to force the upper part of the
lever L towards the plate a and prevent the free motion of the wheel W from being
interfered with. As the snail turns slowly round and acts by its notches upon the
pino the slots are successively disclosed by the slide S to allow the tokens
to be dropped by the workmen arriving at the hour to which the apparatus is set
such time being indicated by the raising of the shutters until the last slot has been
opened and the slide S having assumed its extreme position on the left hand side,
must now be brought back to its starting position on the right hand side, this being
effected by the escapement mechanism shown in Figs. 4 and 5.
ck
Within the frame
of the clock work is fixed on a suitable axis the pin wheel w³ mounted in front of
the spring barrel C, and gearing with the pinion p mounted on the same axis as
the wheel to which meshes with the pinion p fixed on the same arbour as the
wheel w² and contiguous thereto. The mechanism is set in motion by the pin u

page_text: fixed to the inner face of the wheel W acting on a stud t¹ projecting from the
detent. As the wheel W rotates the pin a bearing against the stud t pushes the
detent out so as to unlock a pin fixed to the wheel to and bearing against
the pin t on the detent thus freeing the train of wheels www. As the latter
wheel rotates one of its pins m comes to bear upon the arm M fixed upon the
axis of the lever L, whereby the lower end of such lever is moved to the right
hand side carrying with it the slide S which is thus brought back into its original
position. To prevent the wheels from turning when the pin u is engaged with the
stud another pin arranged on the opposite side of the wheel w and further
from the centre thereof comes into gear with the stud t and is held in this position
until the detent is released from the pin u of the wheel W and pushed by the
spring sufficiently towards the centre of the wheel w² to allow its two pins to
pass. When the wheels have turned sufficiently to allow one of the pins m acting
on the arm M to escape therefrom the pin n' which revolves once for each motion
of one of the said pins m acts on the bevil portion of the lower end of the detent /
thereby moving it so that the stud t comes underneath the pin g and thus stops the
mechanism.
r
In order to use my apparatus as a tell-tale for watchmen at night as well as for
time checking purposes in the day I have devised the alternative arrangements
shown in Figs. 10, 11, 11, and 11. The first arrangement consists in forming
additional slots v¹ (Fig. 10) in the top board of the frame F and the steel plate k
between the slots used for the day part of my checking apparatus. Motion is
imparted to the slide during night time by another snail 2 formed in one piece with
the snails which acts in the day time. These snails s' and although of different
configuration act in a similar manner on the lever L for the purpose of moving the
slide S and of thus closing and disclosing either set of slots or at the times
determined by the special arrangement of notches formed on the respective snails,
(Fig. 10), or in the case of the second arrangement of closing and disclosing the
slots and of locking or unlocking the drawers D, this being effected in the
following manner (Fig. 11). The slide S is furnished with pins H acting, when
the former is moved, upon the tumblers G mounted on axes E, in such a manner
as to withdraw the bolts I and thus unlock the drawers D for the watchman to
remove therefrom on his round a token previously deposited in the said drawers
by a foreman for instance who unlocks cach drawer for this purpose by means
of a key.
The arrangement shown in Fig. 12 illustrates the manner in which the apparatus
may be utilized for indicating at the same time the hour at which servants or other
persons rise in the morning. In this case motion is obtained directly from the
clock work to operate the lever L' similar in some respects to the lever L of the
arrangement hereinbefore described. A notched cam s³ is mounted on the shaft B
of the large wheel W which is operated by the toothed wheels 10 to to which a
motion is imparted by the wheel mounted on the arbour of the hour hand of
the clock. The upper end of the lever L pivoted at bears against the periphery
of the cam being kept in contact therewith by means of a spring y, while the lower
end of the said lever extends down into a box K arranged in the frame F, and
provided in front with slots this lower end being connected to a slotted sliding
plate S and actuating the same for the purpose of closing or disclosing the slots t
The lever is operated by the notched cam & in the same manner as the lever L
is operated by the snails in the arrangement above described.
Figs. 13, 14, and 15 show an arrangement whereby the time at which the
workmen place their tokens in the slots is indicated on the dial N of the clock
instead of on the discs f¹ (Fig. 2). This dial is provided with a recess ☐ wherein
successively appear the hours marked on a revolving dial P moving upon the
dial N and mounted upon the axis A of the clock work. The wheel W is provided
with a number of pins which correspond to the number of slots required to be
opened. These pins act upon a detent J pivoted at to the front plate a of the
clock. is a spring clip or pawl pivoted to the detent J and engaging with the

page_text: ratchet teeth of a wheel K fixed to the back of the revolving dial P. As the
wheel W turns and raises the detent J, the pawl is lifted and engaging with
the teeth of the wheel K turns the dial P by reason of the backward motion of the
detent J under the action of the spring j
The figure representing the hour will remain visible in the recess () until the
next pin corresponding to the next slot about to be opened strikes against the
detent and gives a further impulsion to the dial. Q is a steadying pin attached
to the fixed dial and bearing upon the revolving dial Pso as to hold the latter in its
time indicating position.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what 1
claim is.―
1. In a time checking machine the cam mounted on the axis of the 24 hour
wheel for the purpose of actuating the notched vertical sliding bar substantially as
herein described and shown in Fig. i of the drawings.
2. In a time checking machine the mechanism for opening or closing the slots
wherein the tokens are deposited operated by means of a separate train of wheels
receiving a motion from the clock work substantially as herein described and
.shown.
3. In a time checking machine the arrangement of a snail or notched cam
actuating a vertical lever for the purpose of opening and closing the slots aforesaid
for a period of 24 hours substantially as herein described and shown in Figs. 2
to 9 of the drawings.
4. In time checking machines the escapement mechanism for bringing the slide S
back into its initial position, substantially as herein described and shown in Figs. 4
& 5 of the drawings.
5. In time checking machines the mode of operating the shutters by the slide
bar S, substantially as herein described and shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings.
6. The combination with the checking machine above claimed of mechanism
whereby the same may be simultaneously used as a tell-tale for watchmen,
substantially as herein described and shown in Figs. 10 & 11 of the drawings.
7. The combination with the checking machine above claimed of mechanism for
indicating the time at which servants and cthers arise in the morning, substantially
as herein described and shown in Fig. 12 of the drawings.
8. In time checking machines the mechanism whereby the time at which the
slots are to be opened is indicated on the dial of the clock substantially as herein
described and shown in Figs. 13 to 15 of the accompanying drawings.
Doted this bith 1...
JAMES STEVENSON,
Gray's Inn Chambers, 20, High Holborn, London, W.C., Agent for Applicant.