Year: 1896

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 11 of the Patents, &c. Act, 1883) as required by
the decision of the Chief Examiner of the 22nd day of February 1898.
Date of Application, 23rd Oct., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Aug., 1897-Accepted, 23rd Oct., 1897
I, ERNEST SIMPKINS, of 87 Wool Exchange, in the City of London, Gentleman,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to coin freed gas meters, that is to say, to gas meters that
are provided with mechanism for enabling a predetermined quantity of gas to be
supplied for the consumer's use, after the insertion of a proper coin or coins
through a suitably arranged slot.
According to my invention I provide a screw threaded spindle carrying a toothed
wheel which can revolve and travel thereon like a nut. This toothed wheel gears
with and is driven by a long pinion forming part of a train of geared wheels which
may be actuated by some moving part of the meter mechanism through the inter-
vention of a pawl and ratchet wheel or other appropriate driving device. The
screw threaded spindle is furnished with a handle for enabling it to be revolved
at the proper times by the user; when the spindle is so revolved the said toothed
wheel does not itself revolve but travels along the screw threaded spindle for a
distance depending on the number of revolutions performed by the said spindle.
The screw threaded spindle is normally held stationary by means of a locking
device which acts in conjunction with a sliding plate or drawer in which is formed
the slot for the reception of the coins to free the mechanism and allow the plate
or drawer to be operated by the user. The locking device for preventing the
revolution of the said spindle, may consist of a collar fixed to the spindle and
having on its periphery a spiral flange the end of which is adapted to come against
the sliding plate or drawer, when the latter is in its closed position and thereby
act as a stop to prevent the revolution of the spindle. When however a coin is
inserted through the slot in this sliding plate or drawer, suitable locking
mechanism for releasing the plate or drawer is thereby operated and permits it
to be withdrawn. The act of withdrawing the plate or drawer brings
a notch or recess therein, opposite the end of the said spiral flange,
whereby this flange no longer acts as a stop but will permit the
screw threaded spindle to be revolved when its handle is operated by the user.
When the spindle is thus operated the spiral flange works in the notch in the
plate or drawer causing the latter to be pushed in and at the same time causing
the toothed wheel to move laterally on the screw threaded spindle. The said
toothed wheel is furnished with means for causing a valve in the meter to open
and allow gas to flow through the meter, when the said toothed wheel shifts its
position on the spindle as above stated. The opening of this valve causes or
allows the meter mechanism and the train of wheels driven thereby to work;
the aforesaid toothed wheel is thus revolved by the long pinion and during its

page_text: revolutions gradually resumes its original position on the screw threaded spindle
which at this time is stationary. As the aforesaid toothed wheel reaches its
original position it causes the gas valve to be closed and the apparatus then ceases
working.
The means I employ for operating the said gas valve may consist of a pivoted
rod or lever one end of which carries the valve and the other end of which is
acted upon by a lateral stop or projection on the toothed wheel, which stop acts
to keep the valve closed so long as the latter remains in its normal position, but
when the said toothed wheel alters its position on the screw threaded spindle, the
lever is released and opens the said gas valve.
By inserting several coins through the slot, the said sliding plate or drawer can
be repeatedly operated and a number of successive revolutions can be imparted to
the screw threaded spindle by its handle thereby shifting the toothed wheel farther
and farther from its position of rest. It will be understood that a coin has to be
inserted through the slot once for each revolution of the handle and spindle and
that the greater the number of revolutions given to the spindle the more will the
toothed wheel be shifted laterally on its spindle and the longer will it take to regain
its normal position.
In order to provide extra security for ensuring that the door of the money
receptacle shall not be surreptitiously opened by unauthorized persons, I provide
a pivoted or other appropriate catch which normally occupies a position to restrain
the said door from being opened. This catch is so arranged that on inserting a
coin through the slot in the plate or drawer and withdrawing the latter as above
stated, the said catch will be turned about its pivot by a projection on the plate
or drawer coming against an incline on the said catch. The catch will thus be
disengaged from the door and permit the latter to be opened. So long as the said
plate or drawer is shut, the catch will not allow the drawer to be opened.
Instead of forming the aforesaid collar on the screw threaded spindle with a
spiral flange, I may form it with a spiral groove and in such case the sliding plate
or drawer in place of being provided with a notch would be provided with a pin
or projection to engage with the said groove.
Dated this 23rd day of October 1896.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
I, ERNEST SIMPKINS, of 87 Wool Exchange, in the City of London, Gentleman,
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 improvements in coin freed gas meters, that is to say
to gas meters that are provided with mechanism for enabling a predetermined
quantity of gas to be supplied for the consumer's use after the insertion of a proper
coin or coins through a suitably arranged slot.
According to my invention I provide a screw threaded spindle carrying a toothed
wheel which can revolve and travel thereon like a nut. The spindle is normally
locked, but can be released on the insertion of a coin and can then be given a
single complete turn after which it again becomes locked. In this turning move-
ment the wheel travels along the spindle for a certain distance without being
rotated. When the gas meter is at work, the wheel is caused to rotate on the said
screw threaded spindle and travel back again along the spindle in the opposite

page_text: direction and eventually shut off the gas supply from the meter by acting upon
suitable mechanisms.
A number of coins can be inserted successively by giving the spindle a turn
after each insertion, and thus the wheel can be caused to travel completely to one
end of the spindle. When in this position it actuates a device for temporarily
preventing the insertion of any more coins.
In order that my said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried
into effect I will proceed to describe the same more fully by the aid of the accom-
panying drawings in which:-
Figure 1 is a plan of a gas meter with my improvements applied thereto, the
upper part of the outer casing being removed for the sake of clearness.
Figure 2 is a side view and Figure 3 is a cross section of the coin freed
mechanism.
Figures 4 and 5 are respectively a side view and an edge view of one of the
parts of the said coin freed mechanism hereinafter referred to.
Figure 6 is a sectional detail view shewing a counting device for indicating the
amount of the money that has been inserted into the apparatus.
is the screw-threaded spindle, and 6 is the toothed wheel thereon, the hub b
of which wheel forms as it were a nut for the spindle. This wheel b engages
with and is driven by a long toothed pinion c which is in gear, by means of a pair
of toothed wheels d, with a shaft e driven by a crown wheel and pinion arrange-
ment f from one of the spindles g of the gas meter mechanism. h is a milled head
or knob with which the spindle b is furnished for the purpose of enabling it to be
turned a complete revolution by hand as above mentioned after the insertion of
each coin, this turning being in a right hand direction as shown by the arrows.
On the aforesaid spindle is arranged a set of discs i,,, of which i and are
separated by a space sufficient to allow a coin to enter between them as indicated
by the circle (Figure 3) the coin resting with its periphery on a pair of pins or
rollers . The disc 22 is of larger diameter than the other two discs and has a
notch for the purpose hereinafter mentioned. The aforesaid discs are con-
nected together so as to form one piece.
The screw threaded spindle is normally held stationary or restrained from
turning in either direction by means of a pair of oppositely arranged pawls kl,
which are caused by springs to engage in notches formed in the disc, and
thereby act as a device for locking the spindle a. These pawls are so set however
that they allow a small amount of play, as seen more clearly in Figure 3, where
the play is apparent between the left hnd pawl and its notch. The purpose of
this is to allow the coin between the discs to exert a wedging action on the
pawl to disengage the same at the commencement of a rotation, as hereinafter
explained.
is the coin slot which is formed in a plate beneath which is arranged a
sliding plate or drawer m carrying a coin shoot n. This shoot has a tail or exten-
sion extending downward to the dise and of such a length that it will only pass
the said disc at the notch o is a stationary guide or shoot which extends
downwards from a plate or platform o' and serves to direct the coin into the space
between the discs, . When the parts are in the position shown in Figure 2
and a coin is inserted into the slot 1, it falls into the shoot n and rests upon the
platform and is thus prevented from passing out of the said shoot until the
plate m is drawn to the left and the shoot brought over the guide o The coin
then immediately falls down the said guide and lodges between the discs
As the tail n¹ of the shoot n can only pass through the notched part 2 of the disc 2
it will be seen that it is impossible to move the plate or drawer m as described
and to drop a coin into the guide o until the discs secured to the disc are in
a position to receive the said coin.
.
The device for preventing the insertion of any more coins than the full number
the meter is adapted to receive in succession comprises a lever p forked at its
lower end and pivoted at p, its upper end being provided with a pin p which is

page_text: adapted to enter an aperture in the side of the shoot n as indicated by dotted lines
in Figure 2, thereby preventing the insertion of a coin into the same. The
lever carries also a pin 7 against which the wheel b bears when moved laterally
into its extreme left hand position as indicated by the dotted lines in Figure 2
thereby causing the lever to turn on its pivot and press the nin p³ into the coin
shoot. The said pin then acts as a stop to resist the insertion of a coin into the
apparatus.
is the stop valve of the meter the stem of which is connected to an arm r¹ on
a spindle passing through a stuffing box r³. The said spindle is furnished with
a crank pin, with which a lateral stop 68, on the toothed wheel b engages when
said wheel bis in its normal or extreme right hand position, and thus keeps
the valve r closed. When however the wheel b is rawn back by revolving the
spindle a, the crank pin is released and the gas valve is free to open. The return
of the said wheel to its normal position by the working of the meter brings the
stop 68 again into engagement with the pin and re-closes the valve r.
In order to prevent fraud I may provide in connection with the coin-freed
mechanism a counting device for indicating in pounds, shillings, and pence the
total value of the coins inserted into the apparatus (see Figure 6).
This device is permanently enclosed in a casings and consists of three
axles a¹ a² and a arranged one above the other and provided with discs or
dials aa a bearing graduations representing pounds shillings and pence
respectively.
The axles a a¹ and a are provided with fingers a as a which are adapted to
give a step by step rotation to toothed wheels ao al al with which the said
axles a aa are respectively furnished. As these wheels revolve they bring the
graduations on their discs opposite to fixed points £. 8. d. and thus indicate the
total amount of the coins inserted. In order therefore to continue the supply it
is necessary either to prevent the wheel reaching the end of its right-hand travel
or to withdraw it therefrom if it has reached such position. For this purpose a
coin is inserted in the slot and allowed to fall into the position shewn by the dotted
circle Figure 3. As the discs 12 and the spindle a have a small amount of
play allowed them by the pawls k k as already stated, a slight turning movement
can be imparted to the spindle, and the parts are so arranged that the coin (say a
penny), will in this slight movement have its edge inserted beneath the pawl k
and so raise the said pawl, thus allowing the turning motion of the discs i
and the spindle a to continue. When the coin has been carried round beneath
the spindle by the discs it falls out from between then into a coin hopper, pro-
vided for its reception and therefore when the spindle has made one complete
revolution the pawl k will again engage with the dises as shown in Figure 3, and
prevent further continuation of the rotation until another coin has been inserted
in the slot. During this single rotation however the wheel b will have been drawn
towards the left for a distance equal to one screw-thread on the spindle a and the
pinion c is so geared with the meter mechanism that it will require the con-
sumption of a penny-worth of gas to cause the wheel to resume its former
position.
As already stated several of coins may be placed successively in the meter and
the wheel brought into its extreme left hand position if desired so that a con-
siderable quantity of gas can be prepaid, and the meter will not require the
insertion of more coins until this quantity of gas has been consumed. For
example the meter may advantageously be arranged to take 12 coins in succession
when pennies are employed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I would state that I
am aware that coin-freed gas meters have been provided with mechanism in which
there is employed a screw-threaded spindle adapted to be operated after the insertion
of a coin and which carries a toothed wheel caused to travel in one direction by the

page_text: revolution of the spindle and in the other direction by the revolution of an elongated
pinion gearing therewith and operated by the meter register, the travel of such
toothed wheel being utilized for the purpose of controlling the gas supply valve,
and to such per se, I make no claim but what I do claim is :-
(1) The combination of a normally-locked screw-threaded spindle having at
one end an external finger piece for revolving it by hand, and of a toothed wheel
provided with a lateral stop or pin which at the commencement and completion
of a to-and-fro movement of the wheel on the spindle momentarily actuates the
stop-valve mechanism of the meter by a rectilinear movement to permit the
valve to open and by a rotary movement to close it, substantially as described.
(2) In a coin freed gas meter provided with mechanism in which there is
employed a screw threaded spindle carrying a toothed wheel, the combination herein
described of the sliding drawer m, the coin shoot », the revolvable coin recep-
tacle located upon the spindle a and the device p which is acted upon by the
wheel b for preventing the insertion of more than a pre-determined number of coins.
Dated this 23rd day of August 1897.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.