IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CARRYING MONEY AND OTHER ARTICLES IN STORES
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I, HARRIS HASKELL HAYDEN, of the City, County and State of New York,
United States of America, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of said
invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CARRYING MONEY AND OTHER
ARTICLES IN STORES, to be as follows:-
•
This invention has for its object to convey money and small parcels automatically
from the salesmen in stores to the cashier's desk, and to carry the change or other
matter from said desk back to and deliver it automatically at the station from
which it was sent.
The invention consists in connecting the cashier's desk with various stations or
counters, by means of ronds or ways on which carriers move from the main desk
to the various counters; and by roads or ways on which the carriers move back
from the stations to the cashier's desk.
The carriers may be carriages or divided hollow balls in which to put the money
or tickets, and the clerk at the desk places the carriers on the road along which
they travel towards the stations.
The ways are preferably inclined so that the carriers travel by gravity, and may
be suspended by wires, or otherwise supported. The ways may be rods but are
preferably parallel wooden rails.
The ways are branched or forked to lead in different directions, and there is a
switch at each fork, and the carriers are of different sizes or forms so that those
which travel the main way will not operate the switch and those that are to pass
to the branch way move the switch by contact with an arm that operates the
switch, through the medium of a weighted rock shaft, and levers, all supported by
a frame.
The difference in the sizes of the carriers is also the means of discharging each at
its proper station.
The discharging device consists of connected pivoted rail sections, constituting a
drop switch, and a locking device.
The locking device is a pivoted lever, catching under a lip, of the drop switch so
as to hold it in line with the track. A post supports a lever, carrying an arm, and
connecting with the lever, so that when the arm is struck by a ball, the lever will
Price Bd. 1

page_text: release the drop switch and it will tilt as the ball passes on it and deliver that ball
to a short receiving track below.
Each arm is adjustable so that it may be set to be struck only by the balls that
are to be delivered at that point.
The receiving track consists of light wires, and guard wires.
The wires are spread or opened at the lower end so that a ball may pass freely
between them into a basket or receptacle, susponded in any suitable manner so
that it is retained in place until it receives a carrier when it will descend, either by
the weight of the carrier, or by being drawn down by a cord.
A cord passing over pulleys and having a counter-weight at the end may be used,
but I prefer to employ one or more drums, each containing a coiled spring which
will turn the drum to wind up the suspension cords to lift the basket, but will
yield to permit the latter to be drawn down.
The spring drums may be at each side of the way, or one drum may be arranged
horizontally beneath the track, two cords extending over guide pulleys.
As one or more carriers will sometimes pass to the track while one is in the
basket, it is necessary to provent those on the track from dropping through the
opening when the basket is drawn down. This I effect by means of a stop device,
which consists of a pendant swinging yoke and notched lever, in the notch at the
end of which the cross piece of the yoke catches, being thereby held so as to
prevent the balls from passing beyond the position desired. An arm extends
from the shaft supporting the lever, to a position to be struck by the basket
when it is at its upper position, to thereby lift the catch lover, release the detent,
that it may swing to the position and permit the ball to pass into the basket.
At the terminal stations the carriers drop into baskets suspended by cords,
winding on spring drums, the baskets descending under the weight of the carriers.
Dated this 19th day of March 1984

page_text: I, HARRIS HASKELL HAYDEN, of New York, United States, Gentleman, do
hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR
CARRYING MONEY AND OTHER ARTICLES IN STORES, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
This invention has for its object to convey money and small parcels automatically
from the salesmen in stores to the cashier's desk, and to carry the change or other
matter from said desk back to and deliver it automatically at the station from
which it was sent, and the invention consists of devices and apparatus fully
described hereinafter and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Fig 1, is a side elevation of part of the return way at one of the stations of a
store service apparatus.
Fig 2, is a part plan of Fig 1.
Fig 3, is a sectional elevation of Fig 1.
Fig 4, is a side elevation showing a modification.
Fig 5, is a sectional elevation of Fig 4, showing the parts in a different
position.
Fig 6, is a perspective view showing the track and switch operating mechanism.
Fig 1b, is a perspective view illustrating the system.
Fig 2b, is a perspective view of part of the switch device.
Fig 3, is a diagram illustrating the principle of the invention.
Fig 4 and 5, show different forms of carriers.
Fig 1, is a perspective view showing the device for lifting the carriers.
Fig 2, the same showing the carrier about to bo discharged.
Fig 3, is a side view of part of the device.
The object of this invention is to facilitate the conduct of business in crowded
stores and to avoid the necessity of sending messengers froin the selling stations to
the main desk.
"
As illustrated in diagram 3b, A³, is the cashier's desk of a store; A³, are the
various stations or counters; A, represents roads or ways on which carriers move
from the main desk to the various counters; A*, are roads or ways on which the
carriers move back from the stations to the cashier's desk.
The carriers may be carriages as at 5b, or divided hollow balls in which to put
the money or tickets as at Fig 4b, and the clerk at the desk A³, places the carriers
on the road A, along which they travel towards the stations.
The ways are preferably inclined so that the carriers travel by gravity, and may
be suspended by wires 5, or otherwise supported.
The ways may be rods but are preferably parallel wooden rails, as shown in
Fig 1b.
The ways are branched or forked to lead in different directions, and there is a
switch b, Figs 1b and 2b,.at each fork, and the carriers are of different sizes or
forins so that those which travel the main way will not operate the switch and
those that are to pass to the branch way move the switch by contact with an
arın c, that operates the switch b, through the medium of a weighted rock shaft o¹,
and levers c, c, all supported by a frame D, as shown.
The difference in the sizes of the carriers is also the means of discharging each
at its proper station.
The discharging device is shown in perspective at U, in Fig 1b, and in Fig 6,
and consists of connected pivoted rail sections B, constituting a drop switch, and a

page_text: The locking device is a pivoted lever a, catching under a lip b, of the drop
switch so as to hold it in line with the track. A post c, supports a lever d, carrying
an arm f, and connecting with the lever a, so that when the arm f, is struck by a
ball, the lever a, will release the drop switch and it will tilt as the ball passes on
it, as in Figs 1 and 6*, and deliver that ball to a short receiving track A¹, below.
Each armf, is adjustable so that it may be set to be struck only by the balls that
are to be delivered at that point.
The receiving track consists of light wires j, and guard wires h and i, Figs 1ª to 5º.
The wires are spread or opened at the lower end so that a ball may pass freely
between them into a basket or receptacle D, suspended in any suitable manner so
that it is retained in place until it receives a carrier when it will descend, either by
the weight of the carrier, or by being drawn down by a cord k.
A cord passing over pulleys and having a counter-weight at the end may be used,
but I prefer to employ one or more druins E, each containing a coiled spring, (shown
in dotted lines Fig 1) which will turn the drum to wind up the suspension cords
to lift the basket, but will yield to permit the latter to be drawn down.
The spring drums may be at each side of the way, as in Fig 2º, or one drum may
be arranged horizontally beneath the track, two cords 1, extending over guide
pulleys, as shown in Figs 4 and 5º.
As one or more carriers will sometimes pass to tho track A', while one is in the
basket, it is necessary to prevent those on the track from dropping through the
opening when the basket is drawn down. This I effect by means of a stop device,
which as shown consists of a pendant swinging yoke F, and notched lever G, in the
notch at the end of which the cross piece of the yoke catches, being thereby held so
as to prevent the balls from passing beyond the position shown in Fig 3. An arm m,
extends from the shaft supporting the lever G, to a position to be struck by the basket
when it is at its upper position, to thereby lift the catch lever G, release the detent,
that it may swing to the position shown in Fig 1º, and permit the ball to pass into
the basket. The weight of the ball holds the yoke as shown in Fig.1ª, when
the basket is drawn down the yoke swings to the position shown in Fig 3º, and
prevents the passage of another carrier until the basket again rises.
In Fig 4 and 5, the yoke F is normally horizontal, the balls striking its cross
piece, and a pendant arm is struck by the basket when the latter rises to lift the
yoke to the position shown in Fig 5%, out of the way of the carrier entering the
basket.
To the basket is pivoted a lever H, which when the basket is at its upper
position falls to a horizontal position, the ball then passing over it, and into the
basket, thereby turning the lever to a vertical position (dotted lines Fig 5), so that
its upper end will prevent the next ball from passing inward while the yoke F,
is lifted.
By this means the carriers are taken from any part of the main track without
obstructing the latter, several carriers belonging to one station are received at once
and each is delivered directly into a movable receptacle below the receiving track,
thereby avoiding all projections at the sides of the track, the whole apparatus
occupying no more room than the width of the track.
By making the receiving track of wire, the weight resulting from the use of other
materials and noise are avoided, and the apparatus is less prominent to the
cye and
therefore less objectionable than if more bulky materials were employed.
The spring drums are effective in clevating the basket but are sinall, light and do
not add materially to the bulk of the structure.
It will be apparent that where different forms of ways and carriers are employed
the receiving way and movable receptacle and detents will be varied accordingly.
At the terminal stations the carriers drop into baskets D¹, Fig 1b suspended by
cords ', winding on spring drums E', the baskets descending under the weight of
the carriers.
The return ronds or rails A, extend past the various stations to the clerks
desk Aª, and each salesman puts the money or goods into one of the carriers, places

page_text: the same on the return rails, on which it travels to the desk A³, where the money
is taken out, the sale recorded, and the proper change put into the carrier and the
latter put on the rails A, along which it travels until it stops automatically at the
counter from which it was sent.
As the return road or track A', is at a considerable height above the counter's
there must be a means for elevating the carriers from the stations and putting
them on the road.
Such means is shown at V, Fig 1°, and in Fig 1 to 3º.
The elevator consists of a tilting basket or recoptacle, suitably guided so as to
rise and fall vertically between the track and counter, and swinging, when in an
elevated position, in such manner as to discharge the ball at an angle upon the
track in the direction in which it is to travel, thereby carrying it laterally to the
track and projecting it with an impetus which greatly facilitates its movement.
The receptacle consists of a basket C, of any suitable shape, and the guide
consists preferably of a single adjustable rod E, to which is adapted the slide F',
the basket being hinged at the edge to the upper end of the slide, and the hinge
being so set that the basket when turning theroon, will move in a plane at an
angle to the track, so that the ball discharged from the basket is projected at an
angle towards the track, instead of being thrown in the line across the latter,
reducing the liability of throwing the ball over the track. The adjusting
connections for the guide E, consists of a cross plate 1), carrying a hollow sleeve b,
and secured to the rails at the under side, the sleeve receiving a pin d, projecting
from a lug e, at the upper end of the guide E.
By swinging the guide upon the pin d, it may be brought to any desired angle
to the way, and at any desired height thereto, and there secured by means of set
screws i.
The basket is provided with a spring plate H, extending from the bottom in a
plane parallel to that of the upper edge of the basket, and a lip n, upon the said
plate H, catches in the notch m, in a projection upon the sleeve, thereby holding
the basket in the position shown in Figs 1° and 3º, the end plate H, is forked so as
to extend past the sleeve on both sides, that one of the fingers may when the
basket reaches the upper position, strike a suitable stop, for instance, the end of
the pin d, thereby throwing the lip n, out of the notch, and releasing the basket,
so that it can swing upon its pivot.
The vertical movement of the slide and basket and the swinging of the latter,
may be imparted by different appliances, I prefer, however, to use a yoke or bail I,
pivoted to the sides of the basket and a cord J, extending from the bail over a
guide pulley K, and downward to the operator's station.
By these means the operator drawing upon the cord J, lifts the slide and basket
until the plate H, strikes the stop d, when the basket will be released and swinging
upon its pivot, will discharge the ball upon the track at an angle thereto.
Upon releasing the draft upon the cord, the slide and basket will fall until the
slide strikes a stop pin 8, when the basket will again take the position shown in
Fig 1° and 3°.
A guard T, at the side opposite that from which the ball is discharged prevents
accidents.
Where one or more branches A, connect with the delivery way A*; that takes
the carriers to the cashier's desk, as in Fig 1b, a switch tongue i, is used as shown,
and a bent spring rod n, which tends to keep the tongue in line with the main
rails. Carriers from the branch Aº, strike the rod n, and throw the tongue out so
that they can pass on to the main track.
-
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. The combination with the main way and switch of a store service apparatus
of a receiving way arranged below the main wav and a movable recontaala

page_text: arranged below the receiving way to receive the carriers passing vertically from
the latter, substantially as set forth.
2. The combination of the main way and switch, and a receiving way having an
opening whereby the carriers may descend vertically, a vertically moving receptacle
below. the receiving way. and a detent whereby the carriers are retained on the
receiving way until the receptacle is at its highest point, substantially as
described.
3. The combination of the main track and switch, receiving way, having the
tracks spread at the delivery end, detent, and receptacle or basket arranged below
the opening in the track, and connected to cords and counterbalanced, substantially
as specified.
4. The combination of the main track and switch, receiving way, basket,
suspension cords, and one or more spring drums, upon which said cords are wound,
substantially as described.
5. In a store service system, a return way provided with a series of switches and
appliances whereby each switch is unlocked by its proper carrier, and a receiving
way below each switch, and a movable receptacle and appliances whereby the
carriers on the receiving ways may be successively carried downward to the
operator's station, substantially as specified.
6. The combination with the way of a store service apparatus, of an elevator for
the carriers, provided with a receptacle, connected and arranged substantially as
described to discharge the carrier upon the track at an angle thereto, for the
purpose set forth.
7. The combination in an elevator for store service apparatus, of a vertical guide,
a receptacle for the carriers, pivoted to a slide moving upon said guide to swing at
an angle to the way, substantially as specified.
8. The combination of the guide rod, slide moving thereon, basket pivoted
thereto, and an elevating cord for moving the parts vertically upon the guide,
substantially as set forth.
9. The combination with the slide and vertical rod and basket, of a catch device
for retaining the basket horizontally in connection with the slide, and a stop
arranged to be struck by the catch, to release the basket and permit it to turn upon
its pivot, substantially as set forth.
10. The combination of the guide, slide, pivoted basket, catch device and cord
connected to the basket, substantially as specified.
11. The combination with the way, of a pendant guido rod, carrying a slide, to
which the receptacle is connected, and adjusting means for securing the rod
adjustably to the way, substantially as specified.
12. The tongue 2, and spring arm n, combined with the way A', and its branch Aº,
substantially as described.