Improvements in Apparatus for Holding Telephone Receivers, and for Placing In or Out of Circuit either the Call or the Transmitting Apparatus.
Year: 1891

page_text: C
Date of Application, 6th June, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 7th Mar., 1892-Accepted, 9th Apr., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Holding Telephone Receivers, and
for Placing In or Out of Circuit either the Call or the
Transmitting Apparatus.
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A communication from abroad by SIGMUND STEIN, Junr., of Stuttgart, in the
Kingdom of Wurtemberg, Merchant.
31341
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street,
Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, and 323, High Holborn, in the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion to be as follows:-
A troublesome drawback in connection with telephonic apparatus is the necessity
of having to hold up the receiver which consequently becomes fatiguing to the arm
when the apparatus is used for any length of time.
By this invention, not only is this objection removed, but also it becomes
superfluous to have to take up and down the receiver for the purpose of bringing
the bell conductor into play.
The construction of this improved support allows of the receiver being easily
brought into a suitable position for hearing with and it can be left there, so that it
will only be necessary to place the ear thereto without having to use the hand or
arm and thus tire the same.
For this purpose, the carrier or support is made adjustable so that it can be
placed at any suitable height and can also be easily adjusted sideways.
The bell conductor can be disconnected and also the telephone connected with
the conductor automatically as soon as a person's.a
.arm is rested for the purpose of
writing, etcetera, on the movable writing desk fitted to the apparatus, whilst, when
the conversation is ended and the arm removed from the desk, the disconnection of
the telephone and the connection of the bell conductor will be also automatically
effected.
As will be seen from the annexed drawing, the telephone receiver is not suspended
as has been hitherto the case on the connecting hook p, but it rests on-the-forked
holder a, Figures 1 and 2; or, when a so called spoon telephone is employed, on the
holder a', Figures 3 and 4. The forked holder rests on the spindle c provided with
projections c¹ and combs c² (see Figure 7) which is adjustable in a vertical direction
in the socket d' of the hinged arm d, and may be adjusted to any desired height by
the pawle which engages between the cones of the spindle by means. of its.hook e¹.
The spindle c may be easily pushed upwards by pressure from below, as thereby
the hook e', which is pressed in between the projections c' by the spring e², is pressed
back from the conical surfaces of the cones whilst it can only be lowered by
releasing the hook e'; Figure 7.
Thus any unintentional lowering of the spindle with the forked holder is entirely
prevented.
14'
The hinged arm d is attached to a short rod g placed vertically in the socket (1
of the wall plate, f, and is movable in a horizontal direction. At the lower end of
the rod g, a ratchet -, Figure 5, movable. in one direction only, is placed on a
sexagon, in the teeth of which the pawlth', of the bell-crank, lever attached to
the plate, engages, which latter is pressed firmly against. the ratchet by the
spring .
The hinged mechanism. can therefore be only turned to the left by
pressing the lever i thereby releasing the pawl and so the arm would be, secure
against being unintentionally turned or pushed to the left which would otherwise

page_text: most probably take place through the head or ear being placed against the
receiver.
When, the arm is wanted to be placed against the wall, such can be done by
turning it to the right without releasing the pawl.
To allow of the arm d being lengthened or shortened by a suitable angular
position, or to allow of the distance of the receiver from the wall being altered at
pleasure, the hinge K, Figure 6, is made use of. Here, instead of the usual flat
contact surfaces of the hinged parts, they are both provided with teeth K, by the
engagement of which with one another the actual position is immovably fixed,
without its being necessary to firmly screw up the winged nut K2 which causes the
connection as is the case with smooth contact surfaces. On the release of the
winged nut, the parts of the hinge may be freely moved as the lower part drops
down and therefore the teeth no longer engage.
The disconnection of the bell and the connection of the telephone with the
conductor are effected in this new apparatus by resting a person's arm or by exerting
pressure on the writing desk which is placed under the transmitting apparatus,
Figure 2. The latter is, for this purpose, movably attached to the telephonic
apparatus by means of the hinge l, a second fixed desk m is situated under the
desk which serves as a support for the latter when pressed down. A short arm n
is firmly attached to the latter on which a lever arm o, pivoted at n' and which is
movably hinged, is fixed. This lever is also connected with the lower desk m by
means of an arm t hinged on a pivot which forms the axis of the lever.
The lever o is further connected by means of the rod q with the disconnecting
hook p.
A weight suspended on the lever o draws the latter and with it the
disconnecting hooks downwards, whereby the connection of the bell conductor is
brought about. The upper desk is then pushed up by the rising lever end which
is connected with the arm n.
If the bell conductor is to be disconnected and the telephone to be connected, it
will be sufficient if the arm or hand be placed on the upper desk and so the same
be pressed downwards, the other end of the lever will be thereby pressed up,
whereby the rod y, which is connected with the disconnecting hook p, is simul-
taneously elevated and with it the latter also and the disconnection is thus brought
about. On the removal of the arm or hand from the desk when the conversation
is ended, the weight draws the lever arm o together with the rod and discon
necting hook p again downwards, thus automatically again connecting the bell
apparatus.
Dated this 5th das of June 1801
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Holding Telephone Receivers, and
for Placing In or Out of Circuit either the Call
Transmitting Apparatus.
or the
A communication by SIGMUND STEIN, Junr., of Stuttgart, in the Kingdom of
Wurtemberg, Merchant.
J, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, 6, Bank Street, Man-
chester, both in the County of Lancaster, and 323 High Holborn, in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, 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 :-
A troublesome drawback in connection with telephonic apparatus is the necessity
of having to hold up the receiver which consequently becomes fatiguing to the arm
when the apparatus is used for any length of time.

page_text: By this invention not only is this objection removed, but also it becomes
superfluous to have to take the receiver up and down for the purpose of bringing
the bell conductor into play.
The construction of this improved support allows the receiver to be easily brought
into a suitable position for hearing with and it can be left there, so that it will only
be necessary to place the ear thereto without having to use the hand or arm and
thus tire the same.
For this purpose the carrier or support is made adjustable so that it can be
placed at any suitable height and can also be easily adjusted sideways.
The bell conductor can be disconnected and also the telephone connected with
the conductor automatically as soon as a person's arm is rested for the purpose of
writing etcetera on the movable writing desk fitted to the apparatus, whilst when
the conversation is ended and the arm removed from the desk, the disconnection of
the telephone and the connection of the bell conductor will be also automatically
effected.
As will be seen from the drawing on Sheet I which was filed with my Provisional
Specification the telephone receiver is not suspended as has been hitherto the case
on the connecting hook p, but it rests on the forked holder a, Figures 1 and 2, or
when a so called spoon telephone is employed on the holder a Figs. 3 and 4. The
forked holder rests on the spindle c provided with projections c¹ and cones c² (see
Fig. 7) which is adjustable in a vertical direction in the socket d' of the hinged
arm d, and may be adjusted to any desired height by the pawl e which engages
between the cones of the spindle by means of its hook e'.
The spindle c may be
easily pushed upwards by pressure from below, as thereby the hook e which is
pressed in between the projections c¹ by the spring e³, is pressed back from the
conical surfaces of the cones c whilst it can only be lowered by releasing the hook e¹
Fig. 7.
Thus any unintentional lowering of the spindle with the forked holder is entirely
prevented.
The hinged arm d is attached to a short rod g placed vertically in the socket"
of the wall plate f and is movable in a horizontal direction. At the lower end of
the rod ga ratchet Fig. 5 movable in one direction only is placed on a sexagon,
in the teeth of which the pawl h of the bell crank lever i attached to the plate f
engages, which latter is pressed firmly against the ratchet by the spring. The
hinged mechanism can therefore be only turned to the left by pressing the lever i
thereby releasing the pawl and so the arm would be secure against being
unintentionally turned or pushed to the left which would otherwise most probably
take place through the head or ear being placed against the receiver.
When the arm is wanted to be placed against the wall, such can be done by
turning it to the right without releasing the pawl.
To allow of the arm d being lengthened or shortened by a suitable angular
position or to allow of the distance of the receiver from the wall being altered at
pleasure, the hinge K, Fig. 6, is made use of. Here instead of the usual flat
contact surfaces of the hinged parts, they are both provided with teeth K, by the
engagement of which with one another the actual position is immovably fixed,
without its being necessary to firmly screw up the winged nut K2 which causes the
connection as is the case with smooth contact surfaces. On the release of the
winged nut, the parts of the hinge may be freely moved as the lower part drops
down and therefore the teeth no longer engage.
The disconnection of the bell and the connection of the telephone with the
conductor are effected in this new apparatus by resting a person's arm or by exerting
pressure on the writing desk which is placed under the transmitting apparatus,
Fig. 2.
The latter is for this purpose movably attached to the telephonic apparatus
by means of the hinge l', a second fixed desk m is situated under the desk which
serves as a support for the latter when pressed down. A short arm is firmly
attached to the latter on which a lever arm o pivotted at n' and which is movably

page_text: 1
hinged is fixed.. This lever is also connected with the lower desk m by means of
an arm hinged on a pivot which forins. the axis of the lever.
4
The lever o is further connected by means of the rod with the disconnecting
hook p. A weight r suspended on.ther lever ordraws the latter and with it the
disconnecting hooks downwards whereby the connection of the--bell. conductor is
brought about. The upper desk is then pushed up by the rising lever end which
is connected with the arm n.
If the bell.conductor is-to be disconnected and the telephone to be connected, it
will be sufficient if the arm or hand be placed on the upper desk and so the same
be pressed downwards, the other end of the lever will be thereby pressed up,
whereby the rod which is connected with the disconnecting hook p is simultaneously
elevated and with it the latter also and the disconnection is thus brought about.
On the removal of the arm or hand from the desk when the conversation is ended,
the weight draws the lever arm o together with the rod 7 and disconnecting
hook again downwards, thus automatically again connecting the bell apparatus.
By means of the pressure on the writing table the call bell in telephonic apparatus
provided with batteries is simultaneously set in motion as will be seen from the
construction shown on Sheet. II of the two sheets of drawings filed herewith. On
this sheet the outer end of the lever is not fixedly connected with the writing desk a
but there is a small desk c with which the bolts ff' screwed into the writing table a
have connection.
י
C
Between the desks a and c and inserted over the bolt there is a spiral spring g
which presses upwards the plate a. The lever d is drawn down behind by means of
a suspended weight whilst the front end and the desks cand a connected therewith,
are pressed upwards.
On the writing table a there is a rod i which extends through a hole in the bottom
of the box enclosing the telephonic apparatus and by means of its up and down
movement, arising from the motion of the writing desk a the contact between the
bell conductor is effected. For this purpose the contact spring & which is fastened
on the upper clamp o is provided with a nose extending from above to below,
above which; when the conductor is at rest, there stands a wedge m of indiarubber
or any other non-conductor material, fixed on the rod i. When the rod i is drawn
down by means of a light pressure on the desk a, the wedge m slips over the nose
and presses, when it has reached the highest point, the spring k against the contact
pin m of the lower clamp o', producing the connection and placing the call bell in
motion.
By this light pressure on the desk a the spiral spring g is moved, so far thereby,
that the wedge m remains on the highest point at 1. The bell therefore sounds as
long as this light pressure is continued. Owing to the pressure being slight there
will be no effect exercised on the lever d. This is first effected by means of an
increase of pressure on the desk a until it rests on the plate & in consequence-of
which there are raised the weight with the rear end of the lever, and simul-
taneously the rod p attached in a jointed manner on the same and which is coupled
with the switch hook of the telephone conductor..
The bell conductor is thereby cut off and the telephone conductor switched in,
i.e. the call bell is placed out of action since on the further pressing down of the
plate a, or the rod i, the wedge m.is brought under the nose of the spring k this
springs back and comes out of connection with the contact.pin .
When the conversation is finished.the cutting out of the telephonic conductor
and the switching in of the bell conductor is effected by the cessation of pressure
on the desk a as well as by the.descent of the rod p that is to say by means of the.
switch hook; as through the rising of the plate a or of the rod i, the ringing off is
automatically effected since the wedge m on the rod i on the elevation of the nose!
passes the spring & and so for a short time owing to the contact being established
the call bell is placed in motion:
In order to set in operation the actuating mechanism of the bell call in telephone

page_text: apparatus which are provided with induction call-apparatus also by a single move-
ment without using the hands, the device shown on Sheet III of the accompanying
drawings is affixed to the apparatus. In this case a ratchet wheel a is arranged on
the outside, on the armature spindle of the inductor, which (ratchet wheel) engages
with the toothed rod b which is coupled to the foot plate d. Under the case fa
spindle is situated in bearings gg having arms i and I firmly attached to its ends.
The former rests in a guide slot k of the rod 6 whilst the latter rests against the
lower end n' of a movable switch lever n in bearings in the upper end n of which
lever is in contact with the operating button o.
The following is the mode of action of this apparatus. If pressure be applied
to the foot-plate d the rod is drawn downwards together with arm i resting in the
slot k of the same, whilst by means of the revolution of the spindle caused thereby,
the arm is moved upwards putting on the switch lever n and thus the button o is
pressed inwards by the same and the contact is produced. A movement of the
armature of the inductor takes place simultaneously therewith by means of the
action of the ratchet bar on the ratchet wheel a and the bell is thereby
actuated.
When the pressure on the foot-plated ceases the normal position is once more
automatically brought about through the action of the spiral springs e and on the
rodbor switch lever n respectively. The device may be also connected with the
writing desk.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion as communicated to nie by my foreign correspondent, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is,-
In telephonic apparatus
b
1. An adjustable carrier for the receiver, consisting of the hinged arm & provided
with forks a', which by means of a sleeve e is arranged vertically adjustable
on the angle rod d, movably attached to the plate e, and in which the rod is fixed
by means of a clamp device substantially as shown on Sheet I of the accompanying
drawing.
2. A movable writing desk for automatically connecting the telephone and bell
conductors, in combination with lever h, rod p, and counterweight pf substantially
as shown on Sheet 1 of the accompanying drawing.
3. In combination with the writing desk serving for effecting the connection, a
switch-device operated by means of pressure on the former, for actuating the bell
in telephones where batteries are employed substantially as shown on Sheet II of
the accompanying drawings.
4. An operating mechanism for the bell call in induction telephone apparatus, in
which the movement of the inductor armature is brought about simultaneously with
the establishment of the contact by means of one movement of a combined lever,
and ratchet bar mechanism, in combination with a foot-plate, or writing desk, or
the like, substantially as shown on Sheet III of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 7th day of March 1892.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.