IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ISSUING TICKETS AND RECORDING THE NUMBER OF TICKETS ISSUED IN PUBLIC CONVEYANCES AND AT PLACES OF AMUSEMENT."
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Nevil Maskelyne, of the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly,
in the County of Middlesex, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR ISSUING TICKETS AND RECORDING THE NUMBER OF TICKETS
ISSUED IN PUBLIC CONVEYANCES AND AT PLACES OF AMUSEMENT."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Nevil Maskelyne at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th March 1880.
JOHN NEVIL MASKELYNE, of the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly, in the County of
Middlesex. IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ISSUING TICKETS AND RECORDING
THE NUMBER OF TICKETS ISSUED IN PUBLIC CONVEYANCES AND AT PLACES OF
AMUSEMENT.”
The object of this Invention is to prevent fraud on the part of the persons in
charge of public conveyances, or of those who are employed to take money at
places of amusement by providing a simple and portable apparatus from which
tickets or tokens may be issued, and which will at the same time register the
number of such tickets or tokens issued.
The apparatus consists of a metal tube of any suitable section and length to
contain tickets or other tokens. The top of this tube is closed by a fixed plate,
and the tickets are pressed up against the underside of this plate by a coiled
spring.
In the top and on one side of the tube and immediately below the top plate is
made an opening or slot of a width and depth corresponding to the width and
thickness of the ticket or token it is intended to employ. The ticket or token next
to the top plate is partly pushed out at this opening or slot by a pusher plate or bar
which works in guides or a slot in the opposite side of the tube, and is connected
to one end of a spring lever that is pivotted to the tube, and is worked by the
conductor or other person who presses in the lever with his thumb.
This lever is also in connection with and actuates a counting mechanism by
which the number of the tickets or tokens issued can be readily ascertained at any
moment. This counting mechanism is enclosed in a box which is to be locked and
may be sealed to prevent its being tampered with, and the end of the tube is closed
by a cover which is also locked and sealed.

page_text: When all the tickets in the tube have been issued the lever will become locked,
and will prevent the counting mechanism registering more tickets than have been
actually issued.
The issuing of the tickets or tokens may be made audible by connecting the lever
with the air reservoir of a small metallic reed apparatus.
Where, as in tramcars or omnibuses, there are fares of different values.to be
taken, I place two or more, as required, of these tubes with their accessories side by
side, and to render them more portable they may be provided with a chain or strap
by which they may be slung from the neck of the conductor.
In this case the reed apparatus may be so arranged as to sound one, two, or more
notes according to the amount of the fare paid.
For theatres and other places of amusement the apparatus may be provided with
feet to stand on a table or counter, and may be worked by the foot of the money
taker by any convenient mechanical means.
It will be seen that by the use of this apparatus the issuing of old tickets will be
prevented, as it will be quite unnecessary for the person in charge to touch the
tickets or tokens, for the passengers as they pay their fares can themselves take
their tickets as they are partly pushed from the apparatus.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Nevil Maskelyne in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 17th
September 1880.
JOHN NEVIL MASKELYNE, of the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly, in the County of
Middlesex. 'IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ISSUING TICKETS AND RECORDING
THE NUMBER OF TICKETS ISSUED IN PUBLIC CONVEYANCES AND AT PLACES OF
AMUSEMENT.”
The object of this Invention is to prevent fraud on the part of persons in
charge of public conveyances, or who are employed to take money at places of
entertainment.
This I effect by means of a simple and portable apparatus from which tickets or
tokens are to be issued, while at the same time the number of the tickets or tokens
issued is registered.
The apparatus consists preferably of a metal tube of any suitable cross section
and length, and in which the tickets or tokens are placed. This tube is closed at
top by a fixed plate against which the tickets or tokens are pressed by à coiled
spring. The fixed plate is recessed to receive one ticket at a time, as well as a
pusher plate by which the ticket is pushed out of the apparatus. The pusher
plate is connected with a lever which is actuated by the person in charge. The
actuating of the lever will work a registering apparatus and also cause a gong or
other audible signal to sound.
In order that my Invention may be more clearly understood, I will proceed
to more fully describe it, reference, being made to the accompanying Drawings
and to the letters and figures marked thereon. Fig. 1, Sheet I., is a side elevation
of my improved apparatus for issuing tickets as arranged for a single_fare or a
single price of admission, and Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same; Figures 3
and 4 are plan views showing the apparatus in two positions, and Figures 5, 6,
and 7, Sheet II., show a rear elevation, side elevation, and plan view of an
arrangement of apparatus for issuing tickets for two rates of fares. The same
letters of reference represent corresponding parts in all the Figures. A is a metal
tube containing tickets or tokens B. The cross section of this tube may be of any
form to suit the ticket used. The top of this tube is closed by a fixed plate C
which is recessed on its underside (see Fig. 1º) sufficiently deep to receive one
ticket or token and a pusher plate D. This recess is extended to the front edge of
the plate C to form an opening for the discharge of the uppermost of the pile of
tickets contained in the tube. The pusher 'plate is maintained in position by a
slotted guide plate C¹, which is secured by brazing or other convenient means to the
underside of the fixed top plate C and to the tube A; E is a vertical lever which
is pivotted at its lower end to a projection F at the back of the tube A. The free
end of this lever passes through the slotted guide plate C¹ and enters a hole either
in the pusher plate D or in a lump or projection formed on the underside thereof,
so that on applying pressure to the lever (at or about the middle of its length) the
pusher plate D will be driven forward and caused to push out a ticket or token from
the tube.
The return motion of the lever and the pusher plate is effected by a flat spring E¹
placed between the tube and the lever; Ĝ is a coiled spring which is placed inside
the tube A and serves to keep the pile of tickets or tokens placed in the tube in
constant contact with the fixed top plate C; G is a disc of metal of greater thickness
than the tickets or tokens, and which is placed in the tube A between the spring G
and the pile of tickets B. This disc, which I prefer to secure in some suitable
manner to the spring G, is intended to take the place of the last ticket of the pile
of tickets discharged from the tube, and as it will be too thick to pass out through

page_text: the ticket opening it will prevent the plate D from being pushed forward and thus
will stop the further working of the apparatus.
The tube A is charged with tickets from its lower end, and it is then closed by
a cap A which is to be secured in place by a padlock or otherwise before the
apparatus is sent out. This cap will also serve as an abutment for the coiled
spring G.
Attached to the upper part of the tube A and by the side of the lever E is a
closed box H which contains the registering and audible signal apparatus.
The registering apparatus may be described as an ordinary counting apparatus
with dials representing units, tens, and hundreds. This counting apparatus is
actuated by a spring pawl a carried by the lever E, and from the same lever projects
a pin which trips the tail of the hammer of a gong J at every inward thrust of
the lever. The portion of the box H in which the registering apparatus is placed
is provided with a flap or cover which may be secured when closed by sealing or
in any other convenient manner.
For single fare apparatus it is desirable to provide means to prevent the insertion
of old or used tickets in the discharge opening with intent to defraud.
The means which I employ to effect this object consist of a pair of jaws g, g,
which are pivotted to the top plate C (see Figures 3 and 4). The ticket as it is
pushed out (by pressing on the lever E) into the position shewn at Fig. 4 thrusts
open the jaws g which hold it until it is taken by the passenger, each jaw being
provided with a flat spring g¹ to give the necessary pressure.
The tendency of these springs is also to close the jaws g when the ticket is
withdrawn and the jaws are locked in the closed position by a pair of fingers h, h,
with turned-in ends, and rigidly attached to the lever E. These fingers h, h,
project forward on opposite sides of the tube A and their ends are caused to bear
against the moveable jaws by the action of the spring E¹ on the lever E.
It will now be understood that it will be impossible to open the jaws g, g, (with
a view of surreptitiously re-inserting an issued ticket) without first pressing
forward the lever E, and thereby actuating the registering apparatus and striking
the gong.
In adapting my apparatus to the issuing of tickets representing two rates of fares
I place two tubes A with their accessories side by side. In order however to
lighten the weight of the apparatus I prefer to make the ticket receptacle of wood
with a central longitudinal division plate or partition, and I place the registering
apparatus for both tubes or compartments between the two levers E, and I enclose
both registering apparatus and levers in a box or cover provided at back with a
glass H through which the register may be read. The registering apparatus I
also slightly modify, the figures being engraved on rings attached to the dials
instead of on the faces of the dials for convenience of reading, the box containing
the apparatus being open at the back instead of at the side as in the single fare
apparatus.
In this arrangement of apparatus the means for closing up the ticket opening
may be dispensed with as the person in charge will not know what fare the
passenger is about to pay and will therefore be unable to insert an old ticket into
the opening without instant detection.
In this arrangement I provide for holding the ticket until it is taken by the
passenger by means of the springs i, i, (see Fig. 7). The ends of these springs are
turned down and enter recesses cut in the face of the box or tube A, but the pushing
out of the ticket will raise the spring which will hold the ticket firmly until taken
by the passenger. Each of these springs carries a pin ; which projects through
the top of the box into a slot formed in the pusher plate. Should the pusher plate
at any time miss a ticket the spring i will not be raised and the pusher plate will
strike against the pin ;, thus the lever E will be prevented from actuating the
registering apparatus.
When it is considered necessary as an additional precaution to use tickets
numbered consecutively a disc of glass may be let into the top plate so that the

page_text: number of the top ticket may be ascertained before commencing the day's work, and
thus an extra cheque is provided.
By the use of my improved apparatus it will be quite unnecessary for the person
in charge to touch the tickets (and he should be prohibited from doing so) as the
passenger will take the ticket direct from the apparatus after it is pushed out, and
thus a ready source of fraud will be removed.
The apparatus may also be provided with a chain or strap by which it may be
slung from the ueck of the person in charge.
For theatres and other places of entertainment the apparatus may if desired be
secured to a table or counter, and worked by an arrangement of levers actuated by
the foot of the money-taker, but as I lay no claim to any particular arrangement of
levers I do not consider further description necessary.
Where there are more than two rates of fares I make the ticket receptacle of
wood divided up into the requisite number of compartments, each compartment
being provided with its own discharge mechanism and registering and audible
signal apparatus.
For the protection of the conductor I provide means for marking the particular
stage at which a ticket is issued, so shat should a passenger be disposed to dispute
the distance he can travel for the fare he has paid it may be readily decided at
which stage he entered the vehicle.
Means for effecting this object are shown at Fig. 8, Sheet II. This Figure
represents in front view a ticket receptacle for three fares. The marking apparatus
consists of a lever k which is pivotted at one end ke' to the receptacle A, the other
end being connected with a rod k² provided with a finger hook by which the
rod, and with it the lever k, can be drawn down. The lever k carries a slide
which is provided on its under edge with points or punches m for punching the
issuing ticket. The lever is graduated to correspond to the divisions A, B, C, D, E,
on the ticket (see Fig. 9), and at each stage the conductor will move forward the
slide a corresponding distance and secure it in the new position by means of the
thumb screw. In this manner the particular stage at which a ticket was issued
can be marked on the ticket and thus a ready means for settling disputes respecting
the distance to be travelled is provided. A spring is provided to raise the lever
after the punching operation.
Having now described my Invention of "Improvements in Apparatus for
Issuing Tickets and Recording the Number of Tickets Issued in Public Conveyances
and at Places of Amusement," and explained the manner of carrying the same into
effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in part recited Letters
Patent I claim,-
First. The arrangement of apparatus, substantially as herein shewn and described,
for issuing tickets or tokens, whereby the necessity for handling the tickets or
tokens before the issue by the person in charge will be avoided, as set forth.
Second. The combination of a ticket issuing apparatus as above described with a
registering apparatus, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Nevil Maskelyne, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Seventeenth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty.