Improvement in Type-setting Machines and Types.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 13th June, 1893-Accepted, 22nd July, 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvement in Type-setting Machines and Types.
We, WILLIAM WILSON BISHOP of Powells Station, in the County of Knox,
and State of Tennessee and JOHN MCELROY BISHOP of Washington in the
District of Columbia, U.S.A. Gentlemen, do hereby declare the nature of our
invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN TYPE-SETTING MACHINES AND TYPES and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to type-setting machines and types to be set thereby, and
its object is to provide means whereby types may be taken from suitable cases by
the action of finger keys at the will of the operator and thence be carried
mechanically to be set in their proper position in line in a suitable stick, and to
provide a type adapted to be thus set.
To this end our invention consists in the construction and combination of parts
forming a "type-setting machine and types" suitable to be set thereby as berein-
after described and claimed reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in
which―
Fig. I, is a transverse vertical section of our type-setting machine.
Fig. II, is an upper side view of the machine looking in the direction of the
arrow 9 at an angle of 45 beyond the section line 8.
and
Fig. III, is a top view of a portion of our type case.
Fig. IV, is a perspective view of a single type on a larger scale.
10 represents the frame of the machine.
11 is the type case.
12 is the stick upon which the type is to be set.
13 is the carrier by which the type is carried from the case 11 to the stick 12,
14 is the key board provided with keys 15 by means of which the operator
indicates the letters and space types which are to be set in the order desired.
The
16 shows the form of the type adapted to be set by this machine.
characteristic difference of this type from those in common use is that the body of
the type is bifurcated or forked to a point which is above its center of gravity, in
order that it may maintain an upright position when placed straddle of a carrier
rail, and this machine will not set any other kind of type.
The type case comprises a series of partitions 17 each made fast at one end to
the side 18 of the case and left open at the other end. Upon the edges of these
partitions the types are mounted; all the A's upon one partition, the B's upon
another partition, and so on throughout the various sorts, including the spaces,
punctuation points, etc, which comprise a font of type.
When it is desired to set
types with this machine, a case 11, containing the kind of type required, is to be
placed in the machine frame in the position shown in Fig. I, with its delivery
edge 19 downward at the upper edge of the carrier 13.
The carrier consists of a series of slanting troughs formed by means of
partitions 20, the center one of which is located above and directly in line of the
stick 12, and the troughs gradually grow shorter each way from the center one,
as shown in Fig. VII, their lower ends being bounded by slanting fences 21.
The partitions 17 of the type case may extend beyond the bottom thereof down
into the troughs 22 so far as to leave only space enough between the partitions
and the bottom of the troughs to permit the type which are mounted upon their
respective partitions to pass one at a time down the trough beneath the end of
the partition. The case thus located on a steep slant say about 45, leaves all the
type contained therein at liberty to slide down their respective partitions, and the

page_text: lowest type on each partition may rest directly upon the bottom of the trough or
upon a spring 30.
23 is a pawl hung upon an elbow-lever 24 with its free end adapted to push a
single type end wise down the inclined trough. The elbow-lever is pivoted at 25
and is actuated by a finger key 15 which, bearing directly down upon the free end
of the lever 24, causes the elbow end with the pawl attached thereto to move in
the direction of the line of the trough.
27 is a spring adapted to return the pawl, lever, and key to their normal
position of rest. Such a pawl, lever and key may be provided to every trough
and there is a trough for every type partition 17. The stick 12 corresponds in
cross-section to the form of the various partitions 17, and to the space between the
legs of the type. This stick can be held in the machine in any suitable manner,
but I prefer to make each partition 35 of the stick a little narrower than the length
of each type leg and to hold the partitions rigidly by one end of each in a side
rail 28 of the stick.
The operation is as follows: A case of type being placed upon the machine the
operator proceeds to strike keys indicating the letters, spaces and punctuation
points in the order which they are to be set. When a key is struck its pawl 23
pushes a type into its trough from beneath the line of types resting upon the
partition 17 containing that letter; and the type thus liberated slides freely down
the trough until it straddles a partition 35 of the stick 12 when it slides down
thereon to its proper place.
If the type which is to be set is at either side of the center of the carrier 13
it runs down its trough to the end thereof and is then directed by the adjacent
fence 21 to the stick partition at the center. Each type slides to its place with
almost the speed of a freely falling body, and it is impossible for the operator to
strike the key so rapidly as to get the types mixed.
The length of stick is arranged to correspond to the length of each line of type
in the width of a coluran, and each time the stick is filled it may be removed from
the machine and the line of type thereon be placed in column upon the imposing
stone or other suitable receptacle.
The free end of each partition 17 may be slanted at 29 a distance equal to the
thickness of the individual types held upon that partition and a spring 30) may
press up against the partition to hold back the weight of the type, then when the
pawl 23 is pressed forward it pushes one type beneath this slanted end thereby
crowding the spring 30 backward and when the type is pushed beyond the spring
it slides down to place as described, the pawl and key being returned to position by
the spring 27, leaving the spring 30 to rise up as a sentinel to hold in check the
type remaining on that partition.
The stick might be provided, like the type case shown, with a series of par-
titions 35 to be moved bodily so as to bring another partition in front of the
carrier when one is filled, each partition holding a line of type.
The keyboard 14 is fitted to slide in ways 26 on the frame to bring the keys
opposite different sets of letters so that one set of keys will answer for upper
and lower case letters. 32 is a lever for sliding the board and 31 a spring to
return it.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim as our invention is :
1. The combination in a type-setting machine, of a frame supporting a series of
carrier troughs set at an inclination of about 45; a removable type case comprising
a series of partitions adapted to serve as rails for bifurcated type to slide upon and
located above and at a right angle with the plane of the carrier troughs, each
partition having an open end over a trough; a type stick provided with one or
more rails adapted for types to be mounted upon and to slide upon, removably
located in the frame below and at right angles with the plane of the said troughs,

page_text: and means for liberating the types one at a time from the carrier to the troughs,
substantially as described.
2. The combination in a type-setting machine, of a series of partitions each
adapted to be mounted by a bifurcated type and to serve as a rail for the type to
slide upon, the said partitions being secured at one edge to a bottom and at one
end to a wall, the said bottom wall and partitions forming a type case which is
open at one end permitting the type to slide freely off from the end of the rail, and
closed at the other end, substantially as described.
3. A printing type bifurcated upward from its feet past its center of gravity,
substantially as described.
Dated this 13th day of June 1893.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40, Chancery Lane, London, Agents