Improvements in Coin-freed Winding Mechanisms for use in Mechanic- ally-operated Instruments, such as Polyphones and the like.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in Coin-freed Winding Mechanisms for use in Mechanic-
ally-operated Instruments, such as Polyphones and the like.
We, HAYDON & URRY, LIMITED, Manufacturers, and GEORGE HAYDON, Engineer,
all of 353, Upper Street, Islington, in the County of London, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to winding mechanisms adapted for use in mechanically-
operated instruments of the coinfreed type, such as polyphones, autocosmoscopes,
kallopscopes and the like, wherein after the insertion of a coin the operating
mechanism can be wound up or actuated in some way by the operator so as to
set the instrument in action for a predetermined period of time. The object
of our invention is to provide means for restricting the winding up or rotary move-
ment, in order to render it impossible to overwind the spring if used, and also to
provide simple and efficient mechanism (where a spring is not used) for regulating
the amount of rotation and the consequent length of time during which the
mechanism will continue to operate. Our invention lies in the mechanical
arrangement of parts and in certain modified forms of mechanism hereinafter set
forth. In carrying out our invention as applied for example to polyphones, we
mount adjacent to the casing containing the usual coin-freed clock-work
mechanism of the instrument, a large toothed wheel which may be fitted with a
suitable clutch arrangement adapted. to gear up the mechanism when required.
On this wheel are formed teeth adapted to gear with a pinion fast on a spindle
suitably mounted in bearings and rotatable by a handle or key from outside of
the casing.
According to our invention we form in the circle of the said teeth a gap of
sufficient length to allow the said pinion when occupying such gap to be rotated
freely and idly in either direction, and at a certain position on said wheel we
fix a projecting finger. On the pinion spindle is fixed a disc or receiver having
a recess adapted to partly receive and hold the inserted coin in such a position
as to project slightly above the same so that when the handle is turned, a part of
the coin will be brought into contact with and move the said finger upon the peri-
phery of the large toothed wheel and so cause same to partly revolve thereby
bringing the tooth, immediately following the said gap, into engagement with the
pinion. After performing the above function the coin becomes disengaged from
the fixed finger and may fall into any convenient money receptacle. Continued
turning of the handle will then rotate the larger wheel which serves either to
wind up a spring for setting the mechanism in motion or move the apparatus as
required, until the gap above mentioned is again reached, when the operation is
completed and the apparatus comes to rest. In the case of a spring, to obtain
sufficient clearance from its recoil (which would prevent the pinion freeing the

page_text: last tooth of the wheel before the gap) we mount this particular tooth in such a
way as to be withdrawable through a slot in the wheel and normally retracted
by a suitable spring out of the line of the other teeth. For pressing same into
its proper place to engage the pinion teeth at the right time we employ a cam or
stop adjacently disposed in the proper position. This serves to maintain the loose
tooth in engagement with the pinion until the teeth of the larger wheel are clear,
when the spring automatically withdraws said loose tooth from engagement with
the pinion, which is thus left free to be rotated inoperatively in either direction.
The operation may then be renewed on the insertion of another coin. For instru-
ments such as autocosmoscopes and the like wherein no spring operated mechanism
is used we have designed a modification of the above described apparatus which
consists of two pinions placed side by side on a spindle; to one of these the
operating handle is connected and to the other the mechanism to be operated.
Adapted to engage with both of these pinions. is mounted a spur wheel having
a gap formed in its tooth circle but only in the line of its engagement with one,
viz., the first of the pinions described, and in this gap the said pinion lies when
the mechanism is at rest. The spur wheel is brought into engagement with this
pinion by means of the inserted coin which is supported in a suitable receiver
fixed to the spindle of the spur wheel and adapted to be partly revolved, through
the medium of the coin, by a pin or cam fixed to the spindle of
that pinion which is rotated by the handle. On continued rotation
the coin disengages and falls out into a receptacle. The first pinion and the spur
wheel are thus geared and the latter being already geared with the second pinion,
the mechanism can be operated by the handle or key as above described, until the
aforesaid gap is reached when the whole mechanism is thrown out of gear and
the handle is again free to rotate inoperatively. We have referred to two arrange-
ments and functions of our novel winding mechanism but it is to be understood
that with but slight modifications it may be applied and with great advantage to
many other types of coin-freed apparatus whether operated by a spring or other-
wise.
Dated this Twenty-fourth dor of Nov 1808
Improvements in Coin-freed Winding Mechanisms for use in Mechanic-
ally-operated Instruments, such as Polyphones and the like.
We, HAYDON & URRY, LIMITED, Manufacturers, and GEORGE HAYDON, Engineer,
all of 353, Upper Street, Islington, in the County of London, 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:-
1
Our invention relates to winding mechanism adapted for use in mechanically
operated instruments, of the coinfreed type, such as polyphones, autocosmoscopes,
kalloscopes and the like, wherein after the insertion of a coin the operating
mechanism can be wound up or actuated in some way by the operator so as to
set the instrument in action for a predetermined period of time. The object
of our invention is to provide means for restricting the winding up or rotary move-
ment, in order to render it impossible to overwind the spring if such is used, and
also to provide simple and efficient mechanism (where a spring is not used) for

page_text: regulating the amount of rotation and the consequent length of time during which
the mechanism will continue to operate. Our invention lies in the mechanical
arrangement of parts and in certain modified forms of mechanism hereinafter set
forth.
In describing our invention we will refer to the accompanying drawings, in
which Fig. 1 is an inverted plan of our improved mechanism showing the
winding mechanism thrown out of gear. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the
mechanism, and Figs. 3 and 4 are similar views at different stages of operation.
Fig. 5 is a plan of a modification of the invention and Figs. 6 and 7 are sectional
elevations on lines 1-2 and 3-4 respectively of Fig. 5, and Fig. 8 is a view of
the spur wheel illustrating the gap formed therein for the purposes hereinafter
described.
Referring first to Figs. 1 to 4. In carrying out our invention as applied for
example to polyphones, we mount adjacent to the casing S containing the usual
clock work mechanism of the instrument, a large toothed winding wheel T. which
may be fitted with a suitable clutch arrangement adapted to gear up the
mechanism when required. On the underside of this wheel are formed teeth t
adapted to gear with a pinion, P fast on a spindle suitably mounted in
bearings and rotatable by a handle H or a key from outside of the casing.
According to our invention we form at a certain place in the circle of the said
teeth ta gap G of sufficient length to allow the said pinion P, when occupying such
gan. to be rotated freely and idly in either direction, and at a certain position on
said winding wheel T we fix a projecting finger B. On the spindle of the pinion P
is fixed a disc or receiver D) having a slot, groove, or recess d adapted to partly
receive and hold the inserted coin C, after passing through the openings in the
frame S, in such a position as to project slightly above the same so that when the
handle H is turned, a part of the coin will be brought into contact with and move
the said finger B, upon the periphery of the large toothed wheel T, and so cause
same to partly revolve, thereby bringing the first tooth t immediately following
the said gap G, into engagement with the pinion P. After performing the above
function the coin becomes disengaged from the fixed finger B and may fall into
any convenient money receptacle. Continued turning of the handle will then
rotate the larger wheel which serves either to wind up a spring supplying the
power required for setting the mechanism in motion, or to move the apparatus as
required, until the gap G above mentioned again arrives above the pinion P, when
the operation (which has been paid for) is completed and the apparatus comes to
In the case of a main spring being used to operate the apparatus, to obtain
sufficient clearance from its recoil (which would or might prevent the pinion P
freeing the last tooth of the winding wheel T before the gap G) we provide a
safety arrangement which consists in mounting this particular tooth, which is
marked on the drawings, in such a way as to be withdrawable through a slot
in the wheel and normally retracted by a suitable spring out of the
line of the other teeth. For this purpose the tooth is fixed to one end of
a spring carried by the upper side of the wheel T which spring always tends to
hold up the tooth out of line with the other teeth t, but when the pinion P is
in the act of passing over it the said tooth 2 is forced down into line with the
other teeth (and so becomes operative) by means of a stationary inclined stop
piece J fixed in the part S, but immediately the pinion has passed over it, it is
released and springs up and out of gear with the pinion, thus leaving same free
to be rotated idly in the gap G until such time as another payment has been made
and the operation described is again performed.
rest.
For instruments such as autocosmoscopes and the like wherein no spring operated
mechanism is used we have designed a modification of the above described
apparatus which is illustrated in Figs. 5 to 8 of the drawings. This consists
cf two pinions A and A¹ placed side by side on separate spindles A2 A3; to one of
these spindles A2 the overating handle H is connected and to the other A³ the
mechanism, to be operated which is all carried by the frame work S or otherwise

page_text: suitably. The pinion A has a bearing a in the pinion A' and in the position
shown in the drawings it is free to rotate in either direction independently of the
pinion A. Adapted to engage with both of these pinions A A¹ is mounted a spur
wheel T¹ having
a gap G (Figs. 7 and 8) formed in its tooth circle but only in that
part which is the line of its engagement with one, viz., the first A of the pinions
described, see Figs. 7 and 8 and in this gap G which is of such size as to 'freely
admit it, the said pinion A can rotate, and lies when the mechanism is at rest.
On, the spindle A³ of the pinion A and rotating with it we fix by a collar or
.otherwise, a projecting pin B. Also, upon the spindle of the spur wheel T" we
attach a disc arrangement I) such as shown or of any suitable form
for the reception. of a coin C within the slots or guides formed
therein. Upon the insertion of a coin it is held in said guides and
slots d in the line of travel of the pin B, which pin being rotated
by the handle H, engages therewith and so moves the spur wheel T as to cause the
tooth immediately following the gap G to engage with the pinion A so that upon
continued turning of the handle the spur wheel T is rotated and consequently
transmits its rotary movement to the pinion 'A' which operates the mechanism.
The further rotation of the disc arrangement D allows the coin to fall out of
engagement with the slots or guides into any convenient money receptacle, but the
whole mechanism can still continue to be rotated by means of the handle H until
the gap G above described has been reached, when the whole mechanism is thrown
out of gear and the handle H can again be rotated idly.
The advantage of our improved winding mechanism will readily be seen since
it obviates all risk in polyphones and the like of overwinding the spring
mechanism, and by its use the spring need only be wound to equal the force
required to operate the mechanism for a fixed and definite time. This will do
away with the necessity of so strong a spring as heretofore in use, and will limit
the continuance of the music or the like to a fixed and definite time. We have
described our invention as applied to polyphones and our modification as applied
to kalloscopes, but it is easy to conceive of their adaptation to many types of
coinfreed mechanism operated by a spring or otherwise.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. A winding mechanism for use in coinfreed polyphones, kalloscopes and other
mechanically operated instruments, in which the winding wheel (T) of the main
spring is formed with a gap (G) in its tooth circle and is brought into engage-
ment with its driving pinion (P) through the action of a coin inserted into a slotted
receiver or disc (D) on the pinion shaft, so that by turning the handle (H) of such
shaft the periphery of the coin is caused to act against a pin (B) on the periphery
of the wheel (T) thereby bringing the first tooth (t) following the gap into gear
with the pinion, thus enabling the winding wheel (T) to complete one revolution
and the spring (S) to be wound up, substantially as described and illustrated in
the drawings.
2. In a winding mechanism for coinfreed apparatus such as above referred to,
the combination of a safety arrangement for preventing the operating pinion (P)
engaging with the last tooth (12) of the gap in the winding wheel (T) under the
pressure of the spring (S), said safety arrangement consisting in making the
tooth (2) loose in its wheel (T) and controlled by a spring which tends to withdraw
the said tooth on the wheel having completed its revolution, while a fixed
incline (J) presses the said tooth into engagement until the completion of a revo-
lution of the wheel (T), substantially as described and illustrated in the drawings.
3. The modified arrangement of mechanism in which two pinions (AA¹) are
arranged side by side on shafts disposed in axial alignment with an operating
handle (H) to one of the shafts, both adapted to gear with a spur wheel (T) having
a gap (G) adapted to come into the path of the pinion' (A) so rendering the latter

page_text: inoperative until a coin is inserted into the receiver or disc (D) to enable the
pin (B) to strike against it and so rotate the wheel (T) and bring the first tooth (¹)
into engagement with the pinion (A), substantially as and for the purposes herein
described and illustrated.