IM- PROVEMENTS IN REGISTERING THE NUMBERS OF PASSENGERS AND THE FARES AND IN SIGNALLING THE STAGES OF JOURNEY AND FARES FOR SAME ON TRAMWAY CARS AND OTHER VEHICLES, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR."
Year: 1877

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Patrick Joseph Doherty at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 3rd August 1877.
PATRICK JOSEPH DOHERTY, of Breslanstown, in the County of Meath. "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN REGISTERING THE NUMBERS OF PASSENGERS AND THE FARES AND
IN SIGNALLING THE STAGES OF JOURNEY AND FARES FOR SAME ON TRAMWAY CARS
AND OTHER VEHICLES, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR."
I propose by this Invention to correctly register for the vehicle to which it is
attached the number of passengers carried on each journey, the fares payable by
them at their exit, the amount which the conductor received, or which he should
have received for the journey, even if there be several different divisions and cor-
respondingly different fares on such journey; also to signal the rates or fares at
which the vehicle engages to carry passengers, and the particular division or stage
of journey being traversed. For these purposes I propose to use or employ a com-
bination or arrangement of turnstile with registering and signalling apparatus, and
tokens or tickets, as follows:-At the entrance to such vehicle I place a turnstile
with jointed or sliding arms so as to take up but little space in its revolutions. The
upper portion of turnstile axis I arrange to conneet with and actuate the
registering apparatus by suitable means. The lower portion of axis I have in
connection with suitable locking apparatus, which prevents inward or outward
movement of turnstile, except by corresponding movement of handle or lever under
control of conductor.
The registering apparatus, which may be placed in any suitable convenient
position above turnstile (and in a case or box having lock and key), consists of
à cylinder or drum on a revolving axis, two piercers or markers, with the necessary
levers and springs, and suitable mechanism to give motion, as required, to the
different movements. The cylinder revolves with its axis, but can be removed to
receive the paper for registering. The axis of cylinder has at one end a ratchet
wheel which is actuated through the inner or outer quarter movement of turnstile

page_text: by suitable mechanical means to give it a forward motion, and a spring pawl
keeps it in position while required; but by connection from, or movements of sig-
nalling apparatus, this pawl can be taken out of gear to allow cylinder to reset at
beginning of each new division or stage of journey, such resetting of cylinder to be
accomplished by a spring in connection with cylinder or its axis. The same quarter
movements of turnstile gives the necessary backward motion to one or other of the
two piercers' frames (which are pressed forward by springs), and then releases it,
which causes piercer, by impact on paper on cylinder, to register or pierce holes in
the proper places, or say, to register the entrance or exit of a passenger.
The piercers will be capable of sliding on their two frames transversely in front
of cylinder, said sliding motion to be given to the piercers by the setting of the
different signals so as to place the piercers opposite the divisions on registry paper
corresponding with the stage of journey being traversed and the signal exhibited.
The signals or semaphore I propose to. use in pairs, and will show the rate or fare
at which the vehicle engages to carry passengers, on one, while the other will show
the particular division of journey being travelled over. Those signals I propose to
use as transparencies, the ones for rates or fares to show opposite the red lamp at
end of vehicle, the other to be over door or entrance. The latter I arrange to show
on both inside and outside of vehicle to notify to both passengers and the public,
either by day or night, the very necessary and useful information of the particular
part of journey being traversed, so that passengers may not over-ride their proper
destination.
I also arrange by suitable mechanism a large bell or gong to be struck or
sounded at each change of signals to notify to passengers the change of fare and
division of journey, and also to be thereby a check on the conductor performing the
change at the proper place. These different movements, i.e., the changing of the
two signals, the sliding of piercers into their proper corresponding positions, the
resetting of cylinder, and the sounding of bell, I propose to connect by suitable
mechanical means so as to be all performed by movement of a single handle, or
lever, or key, under the control of the conductor.
I also propose to have differently colored and numbered tokens or tickets, each
color and number corresponding with a certain portion of the journey, and also
with a like color and number exhibited by the signals, that is to say, if, for instance,
there are three divisions or fares, say, fare for whole journey be 44.; for two-thirds
journey, 3d.; and for one-third, 2d. Now, at first commencement of journey (and
up to the beginning of next stage) the "red lamp" signal exhibits the sign 4.
and the signal over door (which also tells the division or stage of journey) is, say,
"blue."
A passenger entering now without having to pay anything, gets a blue
ticket stamped 4d. During second stage the lamp signal is 3d; and door
signal, say, "green," passengers entering now, as before, gets a green ticket stamped
3rd. During third stage lamp signal shows 2d, and door signal is, say yellow;
passengers entering now get a yellow ticket stamped 2d. Conductor has supply of
these tokens or tickets in convenient place. Now, if a passenger leaving at third
stage presents a blue ticket the conductor knows he has travelled from the first
stage, and should therefore pay 4d.; if he presented it at the previous stage he
would only pay 3d, and so on for all the stages. By means of these tokens the
conductor cannot make any mistake regarding the fare payable by each passenger
at his exit; he does not require to know where any passenger came in, or to enquire
where they are going to alight, nor to take any notice of the time of entry of any
particular person, nor has he need to collect fares, no matter how many stages,
except as the parties are going out.
If season tickets are used by travellers on the conveyance I provide instead that
tokens or counters be used, i.e., if a person wish to get a pass at a reduction for,
say 30 journeys, I provide that he get instead 30 counters or tokens at the

page_text: reduction, and for each journey he delivers up one of these counters instead of cash,
for which it is to be considered an equivalent in receiving proceeds of journey from
conductor. The papers for register I have bound in books, with counterfoils,
numbered consecutively, and stamped with stamp of owner of vehicle, so that none
other may be substituted. They are placed on cylinder, or removed by an official
for that purpose, who has key to open box or case.