IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR EXHIBITING PHOTOGRAPHIC OR OTHER PICTURES
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Caspar Koch, junior, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of
Prussia, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR EXHIBITING
PHOTOGRAPHIC OR OTHER PICTURES."
Sealed the 11th January 1878, and dated the 23rd July 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Caspar Koch at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd July 1877.
JOHN CASPAR KOCH, junior, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia. "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS FOR EXHIBITING PHOTOGRAPHIC OR OTHER PICTURES."
My Invention relates to a rotary album or apparatus for containing and exhibiting
photographic and other pictures, and consisting of a number of album leaves hinged
and supported in the peculiar manner hereafter described around a horizontal
cylinder fixed on a shaft, the whole being enclosed in a cylindrical casing, of which*
the upper part is transparent, the said shaft passing through the casing at one side,
and being rotated by power applied thereto, either by clockwork or by hand.
The album leaves are hinged or pivoted between two plates fixed on the cylinder,
for which purpose the two corners of the leaves are furnished with metal eyes or
knuckles, which receive pins fixed in holes regularly arranged around the discs near
their edges. The hinged knuckles are formed on plates fixed to the album leaves,
which plates project laterally so as to lie across the edges of the disc, which have
angular projections or teeth opposite the spaces between the holes, each leaf being
free to swing on its hinges between two teeth, its movement being limited and the
leaf being supported by the hinge plates, whilst viewing the picture, the plates
abutting against the teeth. The hinge pins of one of the discs are screwed therein,
and provided with heads for turning them for convenience when inserting or removing.
the leaves.
The shaft by which the assemblage of leaves is rotated and successively exhibited
at the upper transparent part of the casing is prolonged through one side of the
casing, and driven either by a spring barrel and train contained in a small case

page_text: attached to the side of the main casing, or by a hand wheel or handle geared with
the said shaft, a star wheel and jumper spring being provided to arrest the move-
ment each time a leaf arrives in position for viewing the picture it contains.
The upper and lower halves of the casing are hinged together, the upper half
being either wholly or partly of glass, either in one piece like a glass shade, or in 5
plates fitted in a frame.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said John Caspar Koch in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
23rd January 1878.
JOHN CASPAR KOCH, junior, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia. "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS FOR EXHIBITING PHOTOGRAPHIC OR OTHER PICTURES."
My Invention relates to a rotary album or apparatus for containing and exhibiting
photographic and other pictures, the apparatus consisting of a number of album
leaves having openings in which the pictures are received as usual, or otherwise
hinged and supported in the peculiar manner hereafter described around a hori-
zontal cylinder driven by clockwork or by hand, for the purpose of presenting the
pictures successively to view, the whole being enclosed in a cylindrical casing, of
which the upper half is transparent to enable the pictures to be inspected without
uncovering them.
In order that my Invention may be more readily understood, I have illustrated
it in the accompanying Drawings, and will proceed to describe it with reference
thereto.
Figure 1 represents a side elevation of the apparatus or rotary album; Figure 2,
a horizontal section of same on line 1-1, Figure 1; Figure 3, a vertical section on
line 2-2, Figure 1; and Figure 4, a vertical section on line 3--3, Figure 2.
Figure 5 shows on a larger scale details of the way in which the album leaves
are hinged or pivoted.
о
Figure 6 represents in sectional elevation and top view a modified arrangement
of the gear for operating the cylinder which carries the album leaves.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the Figures.
a are the album leaves pivoted between two annular plates or discs b, b', fixed on
a horizontal cylinder c at or near the ends, for which purpose the leaves a are
furnished at two opposite corners with hinge knuckles d, each formed on a metal
strip or plate drivetted to the leaf, as shown in Figure 3. The pair of hinges d
of each leaf work each on a pair of pins e, e¹, fixed in holes f, of which there are
as many as there are leaves, disposed at regular intervals around each of the
discs b, b¹, near the circumference, the pins e projecting from the two inner or
opposite faces of the discs, and the pins in one disc being opposite those in the
other disc. The pins e of the disc b are fixed tightly therein, but those e' of the
other disc and their corresponding holes are screw threaded, and the pins are pro-
vided with milled heads to enable them to be readily screwed into or out of their
holes for inserting or removing a leaf. A second plate is fixed inside plate 6¹ (or
made in one therewith) having semicircular recesses, one just behind each hole f
as shown in dotted lines in Figure 5, by which the hinge at this end is held opposite
the hole whilst the screw pin is being inserted.

page_text: The circumference of the discs b, 61, is formed, as shown in Figure 5, with small
V shaped projections or teeth g opposite the spaces between the holes f, and the
plates of the hinges project laterally beyond the edges of the leaf, so as to lie
across the edges of the discs between two of its teeth. Each leaf is thus free to
swing independently on its hinges, the extent of this movement being limited, and
the leaf being supported in a nearly vertical position whilst the picture is viewed,
by the hinge plates abutting against the teeth at the back of the leaf.
It will be seen on referring to Figure 1 that the leaf containing the picture being
viewed stands at a wide angle to the leaf next in front of it, so that the latter does
not impede the view, the leaves assuming this position in succession.
The cylinder c is fixed on a shaft h, which is mounted to rotate in a metal, wood,
or other box or casing i enclosing the leaves and cylinder, and this shaft is prolonged
through one side of the casing, and driven either by a spring barrel / contained in
a small case attached to the side of the main casing, as in Figures 1-2-3, or by a
hand wheel or handle, as in Figure 6. In the former case a ring of teeth / on
barrel drives a pinion m on the shaft h, a fly n, driven through a train of wheels
from the same barrel as shown, being provided to moderate the speed at which the
assemblage of leaves are carried round and successively exhibited at the upper
transparent part 2 of the casing. In the other case (Figure 6) the hand wheel o on
shaft h turns a wheel p, which gears with a pinion ; 8 is a star wheel turning with
pinion, and provided with a spring jumper, which falls into the notches of the
star wheel, and arrests the movement each time a leaf arrives in position for viewing
the pictures it contains.
The upper half of the case is hinged to the lower half at ², and is made either
wholly or partly of glass, and either in one piece like a glass shade, or of plates fixed
in a frame.
Having described the nature of my Invention and the manner of performing the
same, I declare that what I claim as my Invention to be protected by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
1st. Pivotting the album leaves to a pair of discs mounted on a horizontal axis,
and provided with stops to limit the independent movement of the leaves, substan-
tially as and for the purpose specified.
2nd. The discs between or to which the leaves are pivoted, provided with teeth
around the edges, in combination with the overlapping plates d of the leaf hinges,
substantially as shown and described.
3rd. The combination with the rotary album composed of the leaves, pivoted
to discs fixed on a horizontal axis, as described, of the mechanism for rotating the
album, either automatically or by hand, substantially as shown and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Caspar Koch, junior, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.
JOHN CASPAR KOCH, JR. (L.S.)