THE MECHANICAL CHIROGRAPHER, OR MACHINE FOR DELINEATING LETTERS, FIGURES, AND OTHER CHARACTERS
Year: 1846

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, the said
BENJAMIN VICKERS, of Sheffield, in the County of York, Merchant, send
greeting.
WHEREAS, in consequence of a communication made to me by a Foreigner
residing abroad, I am in possession of an Invention called "THE MECHANICAL
CHIROGRAPHER, OR MACHINE FOR DELINEATING LETTERS, FIGURES, AND OTHER
CHARACTERS" And whereas Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by
Her Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Fourteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-six, in the tenth year of Her reign, did
give and grant unto me, the said Benjamin Vickers, my exors, admors, and
assigns, Her special license, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said Benjamin Vickers, my exors, adñññors, and assigns, by myself or by
my agents, deputies or servants, or such others as I, my exors, admors, or
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thercafter during the term of years therein mentioned, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within that part of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her Dominion
of Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, the said Invention; in
which said Letters, Patent there is contained a proviso, that I, the said Ben-
jamin Vickers, shall particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instru-

page_text: ment in writing under my hand and seal, to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as, reference being
thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Benjamin Vickers, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following instrument in writing under
my hand and seal, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings making
part of this Specification, in which Figure 1 is a perspective representation of a
machine simply adapted to the formation of three letters or characters, as from
these the manner of adding the other letters will be obvious; Figure 2 is a
side elevation; Figure 3 a back elevation; and Figure 4 a transverse vertical
section taken at the line (20) of Figure 3. The parts which are not visible
in these Figures will be represented separately and referred to in their appro-
priate places. Like parts are indicated in all the Figures by similar letters.
The principle or character of this Invention, and what distinguishes it from
others, consists in communicating to a pen or pencil holder the motions neces-
sary to delineate any and all letters or other characters by motions at right
angles to each other obtained by sets of cams, each set being so formed as to
combine the right angle movements, and thus generate the vertical, horizontal,
oblique, and curved lines required to delineate the letters or characters. Each
set of cams is actuated by a separate and distinct lever or handle, as in a
pianoforte, and the table with the paper, &c. caused to move forward the
required distance at the termination of each letter or character by the return
motion of the lever or handle.
In the accompanying Drawing (A) is a frame properly adapted to the
reception of all the mechanism. The pen or pencil holder (a) is on a lever
(6) jointed to a vertically siding frame (B) within a horizontally sliding frame
(C) working on the standing frame (D). These two frames sliding at right
angles to each other present the means of communicating to the pen or pencil
a vertical or horizontal movement or any compound of them, by which any
diagonal or curved line can be generated, whilst by its jointed connection with
the frame the pen or pencil can be pressed against the paper by a small spring
(c). The sliding frrame (B) is kept up by the tension of a helical spring
(d) attached to it and to the horizontally-sliding frame (C), and this latter is
in like manner drawn to the left by the tension of another helical spring (e)
attached to it and to the main frame of the machine, for the purpose of com-
municating the downward movements to the vertically sliding frame (B). An

page_text: arm (f) projects from it, and extends to and under a horizontal bar (g)
attached to 2 arms that turn on stud pins on the standards (h, h), the bar (9)
resting on a roller (f) on the end of the arm (f), so that the frames may
move endwise freely whilst the bar (g) rests on the roller. This bar (g) is
provided with studs (i), one for each set of cams or for each character the
machine is intended to make. The upper edge being properly formed to
receive the action of the cams, to be presently described, the horizontally
sliding frame (c) is permanently connected with a sliding bar (j') by means of
a brace bar (k), and this sliding bar is provided with a set of studs (1) having
one side properly formed to be acted upon by face cams to communicate the
horizontal movements. The series of cams are mounted on a horizontal shaft
(E) sustained on the standard (F, F). All the cams in each set are attached
to and move together on the shaft between collars (m, m), each set being
provided with a ratchet wheel (n) and a spring hand (n¹) on a drum wheel
(o), around which a cord (p) is wound, and carried to a lever (q), by the
depression of which the canis are carried around one entire revolution, and
these retained by the friction of a spring (2) whilst the drum and lever are
drawn back by a volute spring within the drum, as represented in section at
Figure 5. There must of course be one set of cams, and a corresponding
ratchet drum and lever for each character intended to be formed; and one
revolution of these cams forms a letter. In the example given in the Draw-
ings there are but 8 sets represented, as this number is deemed sufficient to
enable any one skilled in the arts to increase the number at pleasure by simply
changing the form of the cams. The cams (8, s, s¹) are for communicating
the vertical motion to the sliding frame (B) by acting on the studs (i, i, i),
the cam forms being on the periphery; and the cams (t, t, t",) are those for
communicating the horizontal movements by acting on the studs (1, 7), the
cam forms in these being on their face; and it is obvious that a line or curve
can be made in any direction by compounding these two motions. The shapo
of the first set (s) and (t), to form the Roman capital B, are projecter in
Figure 5, and illustrate some of the varieties of motion of which the pen is
susceptible. The first motion of the pen being vertical, to form the upright
bar of the letter, it is therefore given by the cam (s) only, which gradually
swells out from the point (1) to the point (2), which bears down the stud (i)
on bar (9), and causes the frame (B) to fall during this part of the revolution.
The cam (t) is straight on its face, as shewn at (3), Figure 5, and then these
semicircles, which being compounds of both motions are given by the two
cams (s) and (1) acting at the same time, the cam (s) gradually decreasing, so
as to let the frame (B) rise, while at the same time the projections (4), on

page_text: the cam (t), cause the frame (C) to move horizontally with a velocity so pro-
portioned to the descent of the frame (B) as to make the pen describe two
semicircles or other shaped curves suitable to form the loops of the letter B.
The second set of cams (s', t',) for the formation of the Roman capital W
are projected at section, Figure 6, and this letter being formed of 4 diagonals,
the 4 strokes of the pen are produced by compound action of the two cams,
both acting at the same time, each with relative force proportioned to the
obliquity of the stroke. The third illustration for the formation of the Roman
capital I, which requires only a vertical stroke, consists of a single volute
cam (s). It will at once be seen that all letters are formed either of perpen-
dicular, horizontal, or oblique strokes or curves, or their compounds, and each
of these is illustrated in the above description. Their application to other
letters than those described would be manifest to any competent workman.
For the purpose of removing the pen or pencil from the paper, at the end of
each letter, there is a frame (G) turning on stud pins at (u, u), with a bar
(v) in front of the penholder, and another bar (w) at the back, provided with
studs (x, x, x), similar to those on the bars of the sliding frames, which are
borne against the peripheries of cam wheels (y, y, y,) attached to and moving
with cach set of cams (s, t,) by springs (2, 2), so that at the end of every
revolution of each set of cams these studs fall into recesses in the peripheries
of the wheels (y, y, y), by which the pen or pencil is drawn back to relieve
the point thereof from the surface of the paper whilst it is moved forward,
preparatory to the commencement of another letter; but the frame (G) is
moved forward by the rotation of either of the sets of cams, and the pen-
holder is thus liberated and pressed against the surface of the paper by the
spring (c).
In the parts above described the arber on which the cams are strung may
be made to turn either continuously or at intervals by the hand, foot, or other
power by any of the common devices well known to mechanics, and cither of
the cams may be coupled with the arber by touching the key connected there-
with, the coupling being thrown out on the completion of one revolution.
One method of effecting this is shewn at Figure 7. (H) represents the arber
on which there is a projecting stud (n), and revolves in the direction of the
arrow. The set of cams is represented by the circles (s, t), on the face of
which there is a right-angle lever (n³). One arm of this lever, shown hori
zontal in the Figure, has a hook in it that can be brought down so as to catcl
on the stud (n). This is borne down by a spring (s). The vertical end o
the lever rests against the key (9), which is a lever of the first order. Whe
the outer end of the key is borne down, the end of the lever (n¹) is relieve
'

page_text: from the end of the key against which it has rested, and allows the hook to
fall into the stud (n), which couples the cam with its arber, and it makes one
revolution; the key in the meantime being released falls into position, to catch
the lever as it comes round, releases it, and stops the cam. The various
devices that might be used for coupling the cams with a revolving arber are
so manifest and well known to machinists, that I deem a description of them
unnecessary.
The sheet of paper, or rather substance to be written upon, is attached to
a frame (a), which slides vertically in a frame (6), that runs horizontally
between two ways (c, c²), attached to standards (c, d). The back of the
frame () is provided with a rack (e), the teeth of which receive the threads
of an endless screw (f³) on the shaft of a cog wheel (g), which receives its
motion from another cog wheel (*) that turns freely on a stub pin (), and is
provided with a racket wheel (, ) on each side, the one (³) to receive
a pall (F), to prevent the cog wheel from moving back, and the other (³) for
the band (m³), joined to a drum (n²), to act upon, so that by the turning of
the drum (n) by means of a lever a horizontal motion is communicated
through the whole train to the paper on the descent of the lever, but not on
its ascent, this being prevented by the pall (7). The lever (s) is in the usual
form of a treddle, extends entirely across the machine and under the series of
levers (7, 9, 9), and has an arm (7, 9) at each end, only one of which is
visible in the Drawings, that turn on stud pins at the back of the frame, so
that the lever or treddle (s) is set in motion by either of the levers (7); and
the lever or treddle (s) is further provided with a set screw (p³) for each
lever (7) to act upon, so that the spaces between each letter can be regulated
at pleasure, some requiring the paper to be moved more than others in pro-
portion to their width. The shaft of the endless screw (f) is hung on a
shipper lever (o), for the purpose of throwing the screw out of gear, to permit
the paper to be moved back at the end of each line; and in this back move-
ment the paper is moved up the width of one line by means of the lever (t³)
provided with a spring catch (²), that takes into ratchet teeth (w³), on a
vertical bar (), on the back of the frame to which the paper is attached.
As the paper moves forward the lever descends, and the catch falls in below
one tooth, and when it is moved back the end of the lever runs up an inclined
plane () attached to the frame which carries up the paper. By reference to
the Drawings it will be seen that the slides work on rollers for the purpose of
reducing friction; but these may be dispensed with, and the slides constructed
and arranged in any manner best suited to the judgment of the constructor.
Various modes of applying the principle of this Invention have been

page_text: contemplated, such, for instance, as hanging each set of cams on a separate
axle instead of one common axle. The face cam for giving the horizontal
movements may be dispensed with, and a cam on the periphery substituted!
therefor, by interposing a lever arrangement to change the vertical into a
horizontal movement, an arrangement well known to machinists, and which,
therefore, needs not to be represented, employing a rack on each lever (1),
the teeth of which take into cogs on a cog wheel to be substituted for the
drum and cord described above, or a segment rack may be attached to an
elbow lever, or to the end of the lever, to take into the teeth of the cog wheels
that actuate the sets of cams; or, instead of having the cams separate from
the levers, and turning on separate centres, the cams may be attached to the
end of the lever, and so arranged as to act in the sliding frames, in manner
substantially similar to the cams above described, except that in this case the
cams will be projected on a segment instead of an entire circle. The frame
that carries the paper may be carried by a pinion instead of an endless screw,
or by a toothed belt; for the sliding frames levers may be substituted to form
the connection between the cams and the penholders to give the requisite
movements to the pen; but in this case it will be necessary to reverse the
form of the cams, as the motions will necessarily be reversed. In short, all
these movements may be effected by any of the known mechanical equivalents,
or such as may be hereafter invented, as the substitution of these equivalents
one for another are matters well known to those skilled in the mechanic arts,
and the selection of any or either of them must be governed by the judgment
of the constructor. The principle and the mode of application as it has been
essayed being fully described above, any skilful machinist will have no difli-
culty in substituting any of the equivalents of the movements described. It
will be obvious that, by lengthening out the machine to carry two, three, or
more pens and a corresponding number of sheets of paper that any desired
number of copies may be made at one and the same operation without
changing the parts of the machine which produce the movements.
Having pointed out the principle of my Invention, and the manner of con-
structing and using the same, and indicated some of the variations in construc-
tion which may be made without changing the principle or character which
distinguishes it from all other things before known, what I claim herein as
my Invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is communicating the
motions to the pen or pencil by means of cams acting on frames, so that the
vertical and horizontal strokes can be given by separate movements, and
the oblique and curved strokes by the combined action of the two, substan-
tially as herein described.

page_text: And I also claim giving to the sheet of paper or other substance to be
written upon a horizontal movement for spacing off the letters, and a vertical
movement for the lines in combination with the movements of the pen or
pencil, substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Vickers, have hereunto set my
band and seal, this Ninth day of June, One thousand eight hundred
and forts covon