IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANICAL TELEGRAPHS
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Sacheverell Gisborne, of Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, Engineer and Electrician, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANICAL TELEGRAPHS."
Sealed the 19th September 1871, and dated the 22nd March 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Sacheverell
Gisborne at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 22nd March 1871.
I, JOHN SACHEVERELL GISBORNE, of Liverpool, in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer and Electrician, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANICAL TELEGRAPHS," to be
as follows:-
In all kinds of mechanical telegraphs hitherto in use, both those with
double and single line motion communicators, it has been considered
necessary and has been the practice in those cases where it is requisite
or advisable to return replies indicating the particular order, message,

page_text: or signal received, to provide and employ separate motion communicators
for such reply.
1
The object of the first part of my Invention is to dispense with a
separate motion communicator for reply, and to render one double or
single line suitable both for sending and replying. For that purpose I
connect to the motion communicator at the receiving end a transmitter,
and at the sending end a pointer or dial, and fit at both ends corre-
sponding orders, messages, or signals. In illustration, suppose the
officer commanding a ship desires to give the order " slow" to the
engineer, and to receive a reply shewing the order has been received,
he (the officer) brings the pointer opposite "slow" and thereby exhibits
that order on the engineer's indicator, the engineer in his turn brings
the pointer on his transmitter opposite slow and thereby exhibits to the
officer that he has received the order.
The object of the second part of my Invention is to provide more
efficient apparatus than bevel wheels in rod motion communicators.
For that purpose I employ at the angles or points where it is necessary
to divert the line of the rods, pullies and endless chains. The pullies
are fixed on contiguous rods and an endless chain is passed around
each pair of such pullies.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Sacheverell Gisborne in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 22nd September 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
SACHEVERELL GISBORNE, of Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer and Electrician, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of March, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the
thirty-fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said John Sacheverell Gisborne,
Her special licence that I, the said John Sacheverell Gisborne, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
John Sacheverell Gisborne, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and

page_text: -
at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle
of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANICAL TELEGRAPHS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Sacheverell
Gisborne, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed
in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Joseph Sacheverell Gisborne, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom-
panying Sheet of illustrative Drawings, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon, that is to say :-
In all kinds of mechanical telegraphs hitherto in use both those
with double and single line motion communicators it has been considered
necessary, and has been the practice, in those cases where it is requisite
or advisable to return replies indicating the particular order, messuage,
or signal received to employ and provide separate motion communicators
for such reply.
The object of the first part of my Invention is to dispense with a
separate motion communicator for reply, and to render one double or
single line suitable both for sending and replying. For that purpose I
connect to the motion communicator at the receiving end a transmitter
and at the sending end a pointee or dial, and fit at both ends corre-
sponding orders, messages, or signals. In illustration, suppose the
officer commanding a ship desires to give the order "slow" to the
engineer and to receive a reply showing the order has been received,
he (the officer) brings the pointer of the transmitter opposite "slow"
and thereby exhibits that order on the engineer's indicator, the engineer
in his turn brings the pointer on his transmitter opposite slow and
thereby exhibits to the officer that he has received the order.
The object of the second part of my Invention is to provide more
cfficient apparatus than level wheels in rod motion communicators.

page_text: For that purpose I employ at the angles or points where it is necessary
to divert the line of the rods, pulleys, and endless chains. The pullies
are fixed on contiguous rods and an endless chain is passed around
each pair of such pullies.
All the views on the Sheet of Drawings contain modifications illus-
trative of the first part of my Invention. The orders marked on
the several dials are those required between the officer in charge and
engineer of a steam ship, it will be obvious however any required orders,
messages, understood characters, or devices can be used.
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a transmitter, and Fig. 2 a perspective
view of an indicator arranged as delineated with my double linc motion
communicators.
"
a is the transmitter handle fixed to the spindle 6 and giving motion
to the double line communicators c, and the pointer d of the indicator
dial e.
As shewn the officer has just sent the order "slow to the
engineer. To send a reply intimating that the order "slow" has been
received the engineer grasps the handle fand brings it opposito "slow,"
this causes the tell-tale pointer g over the dial to pass from the blank
space to and opposite the word "slow. " By the arrangement of
parts and mode of operation described the officer in command knows
by looking at his dial at anytime whether his order has been replied
to. If it has not, the tell-tale pointer g stands opposite or over a blank
space, if it has the tell-tale pointer stands opposite or over the order.
The engineer in like manner knows by looking at any time whether
he has an order to attend to or a reply to give.
Figs. 3 and 4 are front elevations respectively of so much of a trans-
mitter and indicator provided with a single line motion communicator
balanced at both ends as is necessary to make clear this modification
for sending replies. i is the transmitter handle secured to the spindle j,
carrying the wheel k, to which latter the single line motion communi-
cator is secured. Z is secured to the indicator wheel m, and I and m
are balanced by the chains and weights o; p is the indicator pointer;
q, indicator reply handle; ", tell-tale pointer. In this arrangement the
handles and pointers on the transmitter and indicator dials are not
placed opposite cach other as in Figs. 1 and 2 but have a lead the

page_text: "
one of the other. As shown the officer has just sent the order “stop'
when the engineer replies by bringing q and thereby r opposite
"stop," then the transmitter handle i and indicator pointer p will stand
opposite "slow." This is a simple arrangement, with inexpensive dials,
but it entails in practice the making of almost immediate replies.
Figs. 5 and 6 are front views respectively of parts of a transmitter
and indicator arranged to operate with rods and bevel wheels. Here
the handles and pointers are placed opposite each other as in Figs. 1
and 2, but instead of there being two semicircular bands having
alternate orders and spaces, there are orders merely separated by lines
over the entire extent of semicircular bands. As shewn the engineer
has sent back reply that he received the order "stop. With these
dials it is desirable as in Figs. 3 and 4 that the reply be made shortly
after an order has been received.
""
Figs. 7 and 8 are front views of circular dialed transmitters and
indicators connected by rotating rods coupled at the bends by the
improved combination of parts which constitute the second part of
my Invention. In this arrangement the transmitting handles and
pointers are not placed exactly in the same line; there is a slight lead;
thus as shewn the officer has sent the order "stop. This brings the
engineer's handle and the tell-tale pointer to the line between the two
orders "slow" and "stop. When the engineer replies then the
indicator pointer and officer's handle move into position between two
orders.
"
"
Figs. 9 and 10 show in front elevation parts of transmitter and
indicator connected by an endless wirc. In this arrangement the
spindles of the transmitter and indicator are connected by gearing with
other spindles carrying respectively a pointer and a handle. The handle
has a lead of the pointer, or vice versa, but by the interposition of the
gearing the handle and pointer at each of the ends stand on opposite
quarters. The object aimed at in this modification is the obtaining
two large semicircular bands of the same size for orders.
The second part of my Invention is illustrated by Figs. 7 and 8 where
a are wheels secured on the rotating rods and endless chains. Two
modifications are shown, one connecting two rods running in parallel
lines the other connecting two rods at right angles in a position where
the ends cannot be brought very close to each other.

page_text: Having now described the nature of my said Invention and parti-
cularised the same by practicable and useful details I would have it
understood that what I claim as my Invention is,-
First. Employing the same double or single line motion communi-
cator or an endless motion communicator for sending orders, messages, or
signals, and for replying to such orders, messages, or signals substantially
as described.
Second. Employing pullies and endless chains in rod motion com-
municator of mechanical telegraphs at the angles or positions where
the line of direction has to be altered substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Sacheverell Gisborne, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of September
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
one.
]
JOHN S. GISBORNE. (L.S.)