Improvements in Self-registering Money-tills or Automatic Cash Registers.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Aug., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 18th May, 1896-Accepted, 15th Aug., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Self-registering Money-tills or Automatic
Cash Registers.
I, ANTON MNISZEWSKI, Manufacturer, of Theaterstrasse, No. 3 Düsseldorf, in
the German Empire, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This apparatus differs in the following particulars from those generally known:
1. The apparatus has for every assistant or employé a separate till or money
receptacle accessible to him alone.
2. The act of opening any one till or money receptacle closes all the others, so -
that only one at a time can be opened.
3. The apparatus indicates which particular employé has set it in motion.
4. The apparatus not only indicates and prints the amount paid, but prints it
also on a column specially allotted to the employé concerned.
5. The apparatus marks the exact time a payment is made, on a travelling strip
of paper propelled by clockwork.
Consequently, the apparatus not only indicates any error in the amount, but also
the particular person who has committed it.
The rear part of the apparatus contains two horizontal shafts (hereinafter
called 1 and 2), oue of which revolves round its axis, while the other slides
longitudinally in a pair of sleeves.
Shaft 1 carries levers (3, 3) which are drawn against the shaft (2) by a spring (5)
applied to an outer lever (4). One of the inner levers acts at the same time as a
click on the sliding shaft (2) which has a series of teeth (6º, 6b, and 6°) at the places
where the said inner lever presses against it (Fig. 4). The opening of any one of
the tills (A, B or C) moves, by means of its back-edge, the corresponding inner
lever (3) (which projects into the till) a short distance forward, in such a way, that
the click is lifted out and shaft (2) is drawn to its extreme right hand position by
a helically coiled spring (7). On opening the till farther, another lever (9) is
driven sideways by a pin (8) attached to the rear end of every till, whereby a
lever (10) mounted on the same vertical axle as (9) imparts the necessary lateral
movement to the sliding shaft (2) by means of a pin (11).
Through the lateral pressure on the sliding shaft (2) an alphabetical indicator
plate (13) mounted on a horizontal shaft (12) in the upper part of the apparatus is
also set in motion by means of a lever (14). The stroke of the levers 9-10 is so
regulated, that on opening a till, the letter corresponding to it appears in an
opening (15) at the head of the apparatus."
If, for example, the till or money receptacle C be opened, its rear side moves the
lever 3 with it, whereby the lever 3*, situated on the same shaft and acting at the
same time as a click, sets the shaft 2 free, which latter is then drawn back into its
original position by the coiled spring 7, mentioned above.
On opening still wider, the pin (8) strikes against the lever 9, and thereby the
shaft 2 is driven by the lever 10 so far to the left that the click 3* falls in front of
the tooth 6. Through this pressure on shaft 2, the alphabet plate 13 is likewise
driven, by means of lever 14, so far sideways (but to the right), that the letter C
becomes visible in the opening 15 already mentioned. As on opening any till by
means of the lever 3, the alphabet plate is moved back to A, the double lever 9-10
for the till A is superfluous.

page_text: In the front part of the apparatus, on a suitable frame, are 5 guide rods (15),
each with a slide attached; each of these 5 slides (16) has on its front side a
button (18) provided with an index finger (17), the button projecting through one
of the slits in the front part of the apparatus.
The above mentioned slits are furnished with a scale graduated from 0-9, the
divisions of which correspond precisely with those of the 10 notches on the back
of the guide rods (15). Small springs fixed on the slides, fall into these notches.
On a horizontal shaft in the upper part of the apparatus there are mounted
5 co-axial hollow shafts, each carrying at one end one of the 5 numerical discs (22)
and at the other end a chain wheel (24). 5 tubes or concentric shafts 26 revolving
within one another are also mounted on a horizontal shaft (25) situated in the
lower part of the apparatus; they support at one end the 5 stamping wheels (27)
and at the other 5 chain wheels (28) corresponding to the wheels (24) mentioned
above.
To each of the slides (16) there is fastened an endless chain 29 which causes the
number discs 22 and the stamping wheels 27 to turn on their respective axes as
soon as the slides 16 are moved. To give these chains a direction parallel to the
guide rods 15, they are carried over the guide wheels (30). The number discs 22,
as well as the stamping wheels 27, are attached in such a way to the corresponding
.hollow shafts, that the figures on the number discs 22 appearing before the
opening 31 correspond with those of the stamping wheels standing before the
printing place.
A printing apparatus 33 adapted to slide axially on horizontal spindle 32 is
rigidly connected with the shaft 2 by a connecting rod 34 (Fig. 3), so that the
printing apparatus with the paper roll 35 must precisely follow the movements of
the shaft 2. The column of the paper strip 35, corresponding to the till or money
receptacle opened, stands therefore always before the types (28) of the stamping
wheel 27, as well as the corresponding letter before the opening 15ª (Fig. 1). On
closing a till, the paper strip is pressed against one of the types 28 of the stamping
wheels 27, and thereby an impression is produced on the paper. As shown by Fig. 6
on a larger scale, the printing apparatus (33) mounted on a horizontal shaft (32)
has a slotted plate 37, which, when the said apparatus is acting upon the type
wheel, grips one of the types and holds it fast, together. with the type wheel and
chain (29). Consequently, the type wheels 27, slides (16) and numbering discs (22)
are locked fast, until the printing apparatus recedes from the type wheel, which is
effected by a properly adjusted chain 39 adapted to draw the printing apparatus
into the position shown by dotted lines, when the next till is being opened. At
every opening of a till, the paper strip 35 is drawn forward a corresponding distance
by means of known mechanism.
"
When the lever 33 carrying the guide rollers m, n, n¹ of the paper strip 35
recedes from the type wheel, the lever a, which supports the inking roller b, and
which had previously been held by a friction roller c of the lever 33, drops down
by reason of its own weight, so that the inking roller runs over the face of the
printing type and charges it with ink.
To provide, that in opening any till or money receptacle the 5 number discs, as
well as the stamping wheels 27 and slides 16 connected with the same by the
chains 29 will return to their zero point, slotted levers (42) pivoted on a horizontal
shaft 41, are attached to the slides 16; they are partly supported by a bent arm 44
fixed on a horizontal shaft 43, which revolves in the sides of the apparatus and
carries for every till an arm (45) projecting into it.
On opening a till, the rear part of the same carries with it the corresponding
arm 45 and moves the bent arm 44 in an upward direction; the bent arm 44 lifts
the 5 levers (42) and brings the slides (16) together with the number discs 22 and
the stamping wheels 27 back to zero point. In order to mark on the paper strip
of the recording clock 46 the exact time any payment was made, the marking
pin (47) of the clock is provided with a lever like continuation 48, and the lever 3
also with an upward elongation 49. On opening any till, the shaft 1, as already

page_text: mentioned, is made to revolve by the lever 3 belonging to it, and simultaneously
the lever 49 whereby the pin 47 is moved and the time is noted on the strip in
the clock.
The closing of the rest of the tills or money receptacles, when one is opened, is
effected by a flat plate 50 fitted to the locks of the tills. Each bolt of the locks
has a pin (51) which catches in a dove-tailed recess 52 of a plate (50), as shown in
Fig. 1; these recesses 52 have different inclinations, so that when, on the downward"
motion of the bolt, its pin 51 urges the plate 50 sideways, this lateral movement has
a different length at every till. Notches 53 are cut in the plate 50, through which
the two sides 54 of the till to be opened can pass, if the plate 50 has received the
requisite impulse from the bolt. Through this pressure on plate 50, the notches in
it are displaced with reference to the other tills in such a manner, that the sides 54
strike against the plate 50.
Dated this 15th day of August 1895.
FAIRFAX & WETTER,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Self-registering Money-tills or Automatic
Cash Registers.
, ANTON MNISZEWSKI, Manufacturer, of Theaterstrasse No. 3, Düsseldorf, in
the German Empire 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 differs in the following particulars from those generally
known:
1. The apparatus embodying my invention has for every assistant or employé a
separate till or money receptacle accessible to him alone.
2. The act of opening any one till or money receptacle bars or fixes all the
others, so that only one at a time can be opened.
3. The apparatus indicates which particular employé has set it in motion.
4. The apparatus not only indicates and prints the amount paid, but prints it
also on a column specially allotted to the employé concerned.
5. The apparatus marks the exact time a payment is made, on a travelling, strip
of paper propelled by clockwork.
Consequently, the apparatus not only indicates any error in the amount, but also
the particular person who has committed it.
In the drawings filed with the Provisional Specification,
Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of an automatic cash register embodying my
invention;
Fig. 3 is a vertical section along line A-B of Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a horizontal section along line C-D of Fig. 1; and
Figs. 2, 5 and 6 represent details of construction.
The rear part of the apparatus contains two parallel horizontal shafts 1 and 2,
shaft 1 being adapted to revolve on its axis, while; shaft 2 is capable of sliding
longitudinally in a pair of sleeves (Figs. 3 and 4).
Shaft 1 carries levers (3, 3), which are drawn against the shaft (2) by a
spring (5) applied to an outer lever (4). One of the inner levers acts at the same
time as a click on the sliding shaft (2), which has a series of teeth (6*, 6b and 6°)
at the places where the said inner lever presses against it (Fig. 4). The opening
of any one of the tills (A, B, or C) noves, by means of its back edge, the

page_text: corresponding inner lever (3) (which projects into the till) a short distance
forward, in such a way that the click is lifted out and shaft (2) is drawn to
its extreme right hand position by a helically coiled spring (7). On opening
the till farther, another lever (9) is driven sideways by the pin (8) attached
to the rear end of every till, whereby a lever (10) mounted on the same
vertical axle as (9) imparts the necessary lateral movement to the sliding
shaft (2) by means of a pin (11).
Through the lateral pressure on the sliding shaft (2) an alphabetical indicator
plate (13) mounted on a horizontal shaft (12) in the upper part of the apparatus
is also set in motion by means of a lever (14). The stroke of the levers 9-10 is
so regulated, that on opening a till, the letter corresponding to it appears in an
opening (15) at the head of the apparatus.
If, for example, the till or money receptacle C be opened, its rear side moves
the lever 3 with it, whereby the lever 3*, situated on the same shaft and acting at
the same time as a click, sets free the shaft 2, which latter is then drawn back into
its original position by the coiled spring 7, mentioned above.
On opening still wider, the pin (8) strikes against the lever 9, and thereby the
shaft 2 is driven by the lever 10 so far to the left that the click 3ª falls in front of
the tooth 6. Through this pressure on shaft 2, the alphabetical indicator plate 13
is likewise driven, by means of lever 14, so far sideways (but to the right) that
the letter C becomes visible in the opening 15° already mentioned. As on opening
any till by means of the lever 3, the alphabetical plate is moved back to A, the
double lever 9-10 for the till A is superfluous.
In the front part of the apparatus, on a suitable frame, are 5 guide rods (15),
each with a slide attached; each of these 5 slides (16) has on its front side a
button (18) provided with an index finger (17), the button projecting through one
of the slits in the front part of the apparatus.
The above mentioned slits are furnished with a scale graduated from 0-9, the
divisions of which correspond precisely with those of the 10 notches on the back
of the guide rods (15). Small springs fixed on the slides, fall into these notches.
On a horizontal shaft in the upper part of the apparatus there are mounted 5
co-axial hollow shafts, each carrying at one end one of the 5 numerical discs (22)
and at the other end a chain wheel (24). tubes or concentric shafts (26) revolving
within one another are also mounted on a horizontal shaft (25) situated in the
lower part of the apparatus; they support at one end the 5 stamping wheels (27)
and at the other end 5 chain wheels (28) corresponding to the wheels (24) mentioned
above.
To each of the slides (16) there is fastened an endless chain 29 which causes the
numerical discs 22 and the stamping wheels (27) to turn on their respective axes,
as soon as the slides (16) are moved. To give these chains a direction parallel to
the guide rods (15), they are carried over the guide wheels (30). The number
discs (22), as well as the stamping wheels (27), are attached in such a way to the
corresponding hollow shafts, that the figures on the number discs (22) appearing
before the opening (31) correspond with those of the stamping wheels which face
the printing place.
A printing apparatus (33) adapted to slide axially on horizontal spindle (32)
is rigidly connected with the shaft (2) by a connecting rod (34, Fig. 3), so that
the printing apparatus with the paper roll (35) must precisely follow the movements
of the shaft (2). The column of the paper strip 35, corresponding to the till or
money receptacle opened, stands therefore always before the types (28) of the
stamping wheel 27, as well as the corresponding letter before the opening 15*
(Fig. 1). On closing a till, the paper strip is pressed against one of the types (28)
of the stamping wheels (27), and thereby an impression is produced on the paper.
As shown by Fig. 6 on a larger scale, the printing apparatus (33) mounted on a
horizontal shaft (32) has a slotted plate (37), which, when the said apparatus is
acting upon the type wheel, grips one of the types and holds it fast, together
with the type wheel and chain (29). Consequently, the type wheels (27),

page_text: slides (16) and numbering discs (22) are locked fast, until the printing apparatus.
recedes from the type wheel which is effected by a properly adjusted chain (39),
adapted to draw the printing apparatus into the position shown by dotted lines,
when the next till is being opened. At every opening of a till, the paper strip 35
is drawn forward a corresponding distance by means of known mechanism.
When the lever 33 carrying the guide rollers m, n, n¹ of the paper strip 35.
recedes from the type wheel, the lever a, which supports the inking roller b, and
which had previously been held by a friction roller c of the lever 33, drops down
by reason of its own weight, so that the inking roller runs over the face of the
printing type and charges it with ink.
To provide that in opening any till or money receptacle the 5 number discs, as
well as the stamping wheels 27 and slides 16 connected with the same by the
chains 29 will return to their zero point, slotted levers (42) pivoted on a horizontal
shaft 41, are attached to the slides 16; they are partly supported by a bent arm 44
fixed on a horizontal shaft 43, which revolves in the sides of the apparatus and
carries for every till an arm (45) projecting into it.
On opening a till, the rear part of the same carries with it the corresponding
arm 45 and moves the bent arm 44 in an upward direction; the bent arm 44 lifts
the 5 levers (42) and brings the slides (16) together with the number discs 22 and
the stamping wheels 27 back to zero point. In order to mark on the paper strip
of the recording clock 46 the exact time any payment was made, the marking
pin (47) of the clock is provided with a lever like continuation 48, and the lever 3.
also with an upward elongation 49. On opening any till, the shaft 1, as already
mentioned, is made to revolve by the lever 3 belonging to it, and simultaneously
the lever 49 whereby the pin 47 is moved and the time is noted on the strip in the
clock.
The barring of the rest of the tills or money receptacles when one is opened, is
Each bolt of the
effected by a flat plate 50 fitted to the locks of the tills.
locks has a pin (51) which catches in a dove-tailed recess 52 of a plate (50),
as shown in Fig. 1; these recesses 52 have different inclinations, so that when, on
the downward motion of the bolt, its pin 51 urges the plate 50 sideways, this
lateral movement has a different length at every till. Notches 53 are cut in the
plate 50, through which the two sides 54 of the till to be opened can pass, if the
plate 50 has received the requisite impulse from the bolt. Through this pressure
on plate 50, the notches in it are displaced with reference to the other tills in such
a manner, that the sides 54 strike against the plate 50, and the motion of the other
tills is thereby prevented.
It is evident, that the mechanisms for performing the functions described above
may be modified in various ways, without departing from my invention, and I wish
it to be understood that I do not claim the special printing mechanism, as devices
for printing figures from type discs on intermittently travelling strips of paper are
well-known; for the same reason they do not require a detailed description.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. An automatic cash register or registering money till having a series of money-
tills or drawers corresponding to the number of employés, each drawer being
provided with a separate lock and adapted to act by its opening or closing motion
on the inner mechanism of the apparatus, comprising an automatically adjustable
printing or recording device, an automatically adjustable alphabetical indicator, a
recording clockwork, and a device for automatically barring the other drawers
or money tills, in such a manner that each employé may be checked as regards the
use of his money till and each particular amount received by him.
2. In an automatic cash register or registering money till having a series of
money drawers, a device for automatically barring the other drawers, when one of
them is being opened, substantially as described.

page_text: 3. In an automatic cash register or registering money till having a series of
money drawers, the combination of automatic mechanisms adapted to perform the
operations described.
Dated this 16th day of May 1896
FAIRFAX & WETTER,
433, Strand, London, Agents.