Self-registering Lineal Measure for any Distance.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Jan., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 8th Oct., 1896-Accepted, 14th Nov., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Self-registering Lineal Measure for any Distance.
BERTRAM VALLANCE 27 Romford Road Stratford Essex Civil Engineer do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention consists of a drum, upon which is wound any length of wire or
other material. One end of the wire is attached to the drum, the other end passes
round a smaller secondary drum, either with one or more turns, thence the wire
passes through an opening in the case in which the whole machine is enclosed.
The secondary drum is connected by means of gearing with one on more hands,
which indicate upon a dial, in feet, inches and parts of an inch or in any other
terms of measurement, the exact amount of wire which has passed out of the
machine.
The purposes for which this invention is to be used, are for measuring distances
ou land, in air or in water.
Dated this 7th day of January 1896.
BERTRAM VALLANCE.
BERTRAM VALLANCE Civil Engineer 27 Romford Road Stratford Essex 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 consists of a drum or reel upon which is wound a length of wire
or other suitable material. One end is fastened to the reel, the other end passes
round a wheel with one or more complete turns and thence out of the case which
encloses the mechanism.
This wheel, which I call the measuring wheel, is connected by means of gearing
with one or more hauds or pointers, which indicate upon a dial the exact length of
wire that has passed out of the case.
As the wire is drawn out of the case it causes the measuring wheel to revolve
and at each revolution, a length of wire equal to the circumference of the
said measuring wheel must necessarily have passed out. Any tendency to slip is
counteracted by means of a number of rollers which, by means of springs, are
made to press the wire close down upon the surface of the wheel.
The motion of the measuring wheel is transmitted by pinions and toothed wheels
to the hands or pointers.
All measurements are taken between the upper surface of the nozzle through
which the wire passes out of the case, and the under surface of a ring piece which
is attached to the free end of the wire.
The drum or reel upon which the whole length of the wire is wound has a handle

page_text: fixed upon it whereby the operator can wind the wire in, after taking a measure-
ment. This drum is prevented from unwinding the wire too freely by means of a
spring, which is inserted between the flange and the side of the case.
The annexed drawings show a measure constructed as described above.
Fig. I. represents the instrument with the front plate removed. a is the drum
or reel around the circumference of which the wire is wound. One end of the wire
is fastened securely to this reel while the free end passes between the two guide
pulleys and thence round the measuring wheel d from which it is prevented from
springing loose by the rollers e, which are made to exert a constant pressure upon
the wire by the two springs f. Thence it passes over the guide pulley c and through
the nozzle g. This nozzle has a hole through it of slightly larger diameter than the
wire. The hole is widened out at the bottom to allow the wire to enter freely. As
the wire is drawn through the nozzle, all kinks are removed and the tendency to
curl up is counteracted. By this means I ensure the wire being in a perfectly
straight line as it is pulled out.
A toothed wheel i is fixed to the shaft which bears the measuring wheel
(see Fig. 1), and gears with the large toothed wheel k, concentric with and fixed
to which is the pinion 1, which gears with the toothed wheel m, conceatric with an I
fixed to which is the pinion n, which gears with the toothed wheel o, which is
concentric with, but not fixed to the large toothed wheel k.
To the shaft of the touthed wheel & is attached the hand p (see Fig. III), which
revolves once for each foot of measuring material, measured between the upper
surface of the nozzle g and the under surface of the ring piece h. The smaller
hand p' is attached to the shaft which bears the toothed wheel o, and revolves once
for every hundred feet measured as before.
The drum or reel a is not connected with the gearing, and consequently has no
effect upon the hands or pointers. The shaft which takes the drum or reel a,
passes through the plate r, and has a handle s attached to enable the operator to
wind in the wire after taking his measurements.
The bearing on the right hand side of the drum or reel a is formed by drilling a
hole in the centre of the drum, into which projects the pin t which is fixed to the
middle plate and upon which the drum turns. The drum is thus left free to
revolve, but in order to keep a certain amount of tension on the wire, between the
measuring wheel and the said drum a, a spring v is interposed between the drum a
and the plate r².
A handle u is attached to the measure for convenience in carrying and
manipulating it.
The whole of the recording mechanism, the measuring wheel with its attendant
rollers and springs, the drum a, upon which the wire is wound and in fact every
part with the exception of the ring piece h and the handles & and the
hands p&p and the glass or transparent celluloid which protects them, are
enclosed between the back and front plates, which form what I call the case. The
sides of the case which for the sake of clearness I have left out in the drawings
would be made of leather or some similar material, to the exact nature of which I
do not bind myself.
I do not bind myself to the above method of arranging the working parts of the
machine exactly as stated, but prefer to leave myself free to modify thein as
experience may dictate.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
(1.) A measuring instrument in which a wire or other suitable material is led
trom a reel, around the circumference of a wheel upon which it is kept tight by a
number of rollers which are made to exert a constant pressure by means of one or
more springs.
(2.) A nozzle, so constructed as to straighten the wire as it passes out of the

page_text: machine and between the top of which and the bottom of a ring-piece attached to
the free end of the wire, all measurements are taken.
(3.) Carrying the reel of wire, the measuring wheel, the recording mechanism,
and the dial together with all accessories, in one case.
(4.) Measuring apparatus constructed substantially as herein before described.
Dated this day, the 7th October 1896.
BERTRAM VALLANCE,
Applicant.