Two-direction carry mechanism for an amount accumulator

{
  "publication_number": "US3570760A",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "A",
  "title": "Two-direction carry mechanism for an amount accumulator",
  "abstract": "In a calculating machine, an amount accumulator having a single set of accumulator wheels is provided with reversible bias means responsive to the add or subtract nature of an accumulating operation. This reversible bias means is effective for producing tens transfers in either an add or subtract direction according to the direction of bias established prior to an initial carry stage thereof, such initial carry stage being followed by a completed carry in which adjacent higher order accumulator wheels are rotated by said bias means in a direction consistent with the predetermined direction of rotation of the accumulator wheels during add or subtract operations.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A device for reversibly biasing an actuating member, said member having an actuating portion, a yoked portion, and a connecting web portion, said device comprising: a. a mounted first shaft rotatably supporting said actuating portion and said yoked portion; b. a U-shaped spring having a pair of parallel spaced-apart extremities and a plurality of coils loosely wrapped around said first shaft in interposed relationship with said actuating portion and said yoked portion, said spaced-apart extremities assuming a straddling relationship with said web portion of said actuating portion; c. a movably mounted second shaft interposed between said spaced-apart extremities of said U-shaped spring in contiguous relationship to said web portion; d. means for selectively moving said second shaft into forcible contact with either of said extremities of said U-shaped spring, said forcible contact of said second shaft against one of said extremities causing the opposite extremity thereof to exert a corresponding biasing force against said web portion, said biasing force representing a selected potential motivating force for rotating said actuating member in a predetermined direction, said forcible contact of said second shaft against the opposite of said extremities causing a selected potential motivating force for rotating said actuating member in an opposing predetermined direction; e. latchable means for limiting said actuating member against said selected biasing force and against said corresponding potential motivating force; and f. means associated with said latchable means and effective for releasing said actuating member to said selected potential motivating force.",
    "2. The reversible biasing device defined in claim 1 wherein said means for selectively moving said second shaft into forcible contact with said extremities of said U-shaped spring additionally comprises: a. a rotatably mounted third shaft; b. a pair of links fixed to said third shaft in spaced-apart relationship, said pair of links being rigidly connected to the ends of said second shaft; and c. means for selectively rotating said third shaft a predetermined distance in opposing directions.",
    "3. The reversible biasing device defined in claim 1 wherein said latchable means for limiting said actuating member against said selected biasing force additionally comprises: a. an offset projection fixed to said actuating member; and b. a biased latched member rotatably supported by a mounted fourth shaft, said latched member having a notch formed therein and being normally biased such that said notch is cooperably engaged with said offset projection of said actuating member.",
    "4. The reversible biasing device defined in claim 3 wherein said means for releasing said actuating member to said selected potential motivating force additionally comprises: a pawllike latch release member timingly coordinated with the need for actuating said actuating member, said latch release member being effective to rotate said latch member against its said normal bias to thereby disengage its said notch from said offset projection of said actuating member.",
    "5. The reversible biasing device defined in claim 3 and additionally comprising: means for restorably rotating said actuating member subsequent to the application of said selected potential motivating force thereto, said restorable rotation of said actuating member being effective to reengage said offset projection thereof with said notch formed in said biased latch member.",
    "6. The reversible biasing device defined in claim 5 wherein said means for restorably rotating said actuating member additionally comprises: a. an enclosed cam portion forming a part of said actuating member, said cam portion having a pair of spaced-apart internal camming surfaces; b. a movably mounted fifth shaft disposed within said enclosed cam portion; and c. means for moving said fifth shaft into camming contact with one or the other of said pair of internal camming surfaces of said enclosed cam portion.",
    "7. In a calculating machine having drive means, operation control means, a plurality of actuating sectors, and at least one accumulator comprising a plurality of ordinally arranged accumulating gear wheels in association with a plurality of carry pawls and carry sectors, an improved tens transfer device effective for transferring both add and subtract carries into adjacent higher order accumulating gear wheels, said tens transfer device being characterized by: a. carriage means supporting said accumulating gear wheels and said carry pawls, said means being responsive to said drive means and effective for rockably engaging and disengaging said gear wheels with and from said actuating sectors; b. means responsive to the add or subtract rotation of said accumulating gear wheels and effective for resiliently activating said carry pawls; c. reversible bias means responsive to said operation control means and effective for selectively biasing said plurality of carry sectors in opposing rotational directions; and d. resilient means for latchably securing said plurality of carry sectors in said selected biased condition, said means for resiliently activating said carry pawls cooperating with said resilient latchable securing means in response to said disengageable rocking of said carriage means to release said carry sectors to the control of said selected bias, said latter bias thereby producing a one unit advancement of said accumulating gear wheels cooperably associated therewith in a rotational direction corresponding thereto, said one unit advancement occurring in accumulating gear wheels of adjacent higher order to said gear wheels producing said resilient activation of said carry pawls.",
    "8. The improved tens transfer device defined in claim 7 wherein said carriage means for rockably engaging and disengaging said accumulating gear wheels with and from said acTuating sectors comprises: a. a first shaft rotatably supporting said plurality of accumulating gear wheels; b. a pivotally mounted second shaft rockably responsive to said drive means of said calculating machine; c. a pair of spaced-apart members fixed to said second shaft and rockably supporting said first shaft, each of said frame members having a vertical slot of predetermined length formed therein; d. a third shaft fixed to said pair of frame members; e. a fourth shaft floatingly disposed in said pair of slots formed in said pair of frame members, said fourth shaft being biased upwardly in said pair of slots; and f. a first guide comb fixed to said pair of frame members, said guide comb having a plurality of longitudinally disposed slots formed therein, each of said slots serving to rockably and translatably house a corresponding one of said carry pawls.",
    "9. The tens transfer device defined in claim 8 wherein said means for resiliently activating said carry pawls comprises: a. a slot formed in each of said carry pawls, said slot being cooperably associated with said third shaft; b. a forwardly extending depending projection formed on each of said carry pawls in contiguous relationship with said slot; and c. a spring connecting said depending projection of each of said carry pawls to said first guide comb, said spring serving to rotatably bias said carry pawl in a predetermined direction on said third shaft and to translatably bias said carry pawl in a predetermined direction in said corresponding longitudinal slot formed in said first guide comb.",
    "10. The tens transfer device defined in claim 9 wherein said means for resiliently activating said carry pawls additionally comprises: a. a rearwardly extending projection formed on each of said carry pawls adjacent said forwardly extending depending projection; b. a first and a second latching step formed on each of said carry pawls, said latching steps being cooperably associated with the rearmost extremity of said corresponding longitudinal slot formed in said first guide comb; c. a foot portion formed on the rearmost extremity of each of said carry pawls; and d. a camming surface formed on each of said carry pawls in cooperating relationship with a corresponding one of said plurality of accumulating gear wheels and more particularly with a wide tooth formed thereon, the camming contact of said wide tooth on said camming surface of said carry pawl, during said rotation of said gear wheel in either an add or subtract direction, serving to rotate said carry pawl on said third shaft against said bias of said spring and to thereby release said carry pawl from its normal latched position defined by said first latching step, said spring thereupon translating said carry pawl to a latched position defined by said second latching step, said foot member of said carry pawl being disposed in its maximum spaced-apart relationship with said first guide comb when said carry pawl is located in said latched position defined by said second latching step.",
    "11. The tens transfer device defined in claim 10 wherein said plurality of carry sectors are rotatably supported by a mounted fifth shaft, and wherein each of said carry sectors comprises an actuating portion and a yoked portion, said yoked portion being connected to said actuating portion by means of a web member, said actuating portion of each of said carry sectors additionally comprising: a. a toothed portion cooperably associated with a corresponding one of said accumulating gear wheels; b. an offset projection formed on one of the side surfaces thereof; and c. an enclosed cam portion having a pair of spaced-apart internal camming surfaces.",
    "12. The tens transfer device defined in claim 11 wherein said reversible bias means for selectively biasing said plurality of carry sectors in opposing rotational directions comprises: a. a plurality of U-shaped springs, each of said springs having A pair of parallel spaced-apart extremities and a plurality of coils loosely wrapped around said fifth shaft in interposed relationship with said actuating portion and said yoked portion of a corresponding one of said carry sectors, said spaced-apart extremities assuming a straddling relationship with said connecting web member of said carry sector; b. a movable sixth shaft interposed between said spaced-apart extremities of said U-shaped springs in contiguous relationship to said web members of said carry sectors; and c. means for selectively moving said sixth shaft into forcible contact with either of said extremities of said U-shaped springs, said forcible contact against corresponding ones of said extremities causing the opposite corresponding extremities thereof to exert a corresponding biasing force against said web members of said carry sectors, said biasing force representing a selected potential motivating force for rotating said associated accumulating gear wheels a one unit distance in a predetermined direction, said forcible contact of said sixth shaft against said opposite corresponding extremities of said U-shaped springs causing a biasing force representing a selected potential motivating force for rotating said associated gear wheels a one unit distance in a predetermined opposite direction.",
    "13. The tens transfer device defined in claim 12 wherein said means for selectively moving said sixth shaft into forcible contact with either of said extremities of said U-shaped springs comprises: a. a rotatably mounted seventh shaft having a blank member fixed to one end thereof, said blank member serving to rotatably support a first and a second roller; b. a pair of links fixed to said seventh shaft in spaced-apart relationship, said pair of links being rigidly connected to the ends of said movable sixth shaft; c. a rotatably mounted multiple-shaft assembly having a central supporting eighth shaft; and d. a bellcrank fixed to one end of said eighth shaft, said bellcrank being connected at one end thereof to said operation control means of said calculating machine, the opposite end thereof being disposed in cooperating relationship with said first and said second rollers supported by said blank member of said seventh shaft, said bellcrank being bidirectionally rotatable a predetermined distance by said operation control means such that said opposite end thereof cammingly activates said first or said second roller, said camming activation of said first roller serving to rotate said seventh shaft in such manner that said sixth shaft applies an add bias to said carry sectors through said U-shaped springs, and said camming activation of said second roller serving to rotate said seventh shaft in such manner that said sixth shaft applies a subtract bias to said U-shaped springs and to said carry sectors.",
    "14. The tens transfer device defined in claim 13 wherein said resilient means for latchably securing said carry sectors in said selected biased condition comprises: a. a mounted ninth shaft; and b. a plurality of pairs of carry latches rotatably supported by said ninth shaft, each of said pairs being guidably supported by a corresponding slot formed in a mounted second guide comb, and being also latchably associated with said offset projection of a corresponding one of said carry sectors, each of said pairs of carry latches being normally biased into activated latched relationship with said corresponding offset projections, and each latch of said pair being selectively unlatchable from said corresponding offset projection by the rotation of a 10th shaft of said multiple-shaft assembly, each latch of said pairs of latches having a surface disposed in cooperable relationship with said foot portion of its corresponding carry pawl, said foot portions of said carry pawls which have been resiliently activated to their latched positions defined by their said second latching steps being effective, during said disengageable rockIng of said carriage means, to cammingly release said activatably latched carry latches from said corresponding offset projections of said carry sectors, and to thereby release said carry sectors to their said selected potential motivating force.",
    "15. The tens transfer device defined in claim 14 wherein each latch of said pairs of carry latches additionally comprises: a. a pair of vertical steps disposed in cooperable relationship with the said offset projection of said corresponding carry sector; and b. a depending projection disposed in cooperating relationship with said 10th shaft of said multiple-shaft assembly, said carry latch being spring biased in such manner as to straddlingly engage said pair of vertical steps with said offset projection of said corresponding carry sector, a first of said pair of steps serving to blockingly secure said carry sector against its said selected bias and a second of said pair of steps serving to limit said rotational movement of said carry sector when released to said selected potential motivating force, said first and said second steps of each pair of carry latches being oppositely arranged relative to one another.",
    "16. The tens transfer device defined in claim 15 wherein said rotation of said 10th shaft to thereby selectively unlatch one of each pair of carry latches from said offset projections of said corresponding carry sectors is accomplished by means of: said bidirectional rotation of said bellcrank by said operation control means of said calculating machine, said bidirectional rotation serving to correspondingly rotate said central eighth shaft of said multiple-shaft assembly of which said 10th shaft forms a part, said rotation of said bellcrank in such manner as to cammingly activate said first roller serving to unlatchably activate said carry latches comprising said vertical steps for blockably securing said carry sectors against said subtract bias, and said rotation of said bellcrank in such manner as to cammingly activate said second roller serving to unlatchably activate said carry latches comprising said vertical steps for blockably securing said carry sectors against said add bias, said unlatchable activation of said carry latches being sufficient to disable said vertical blocking steps without disabling said vertical steps for limiting said rotational movement of said carry sectors when released to said selected motivating force.",
    "17. The tens transfer device defined in claim 14 wherein: a. said carry pawls which have been rotatably and translatably activated to their said latched positions defined by their said second latching steps are restored to their said latched positions defined by their said first latching steps by said drive means of said calculating machine in cooperation with said carriage means during said rockable engagement of said accumulating gear wheels with said actuating sectors, said restoration being accomplished by the camming contact of said fourth shaft against said rearwardly extending projections of said translatably activated carry pawls; and b. said carry sectors which have been rotatably activated by said selected potential motivating force are restored to their said latched relationship with their said corresponding pairs of latchably biased carry latches by said drive means of said calculating machine during said rockable engagement of said accumulating gear wheels with said actuating sectors, said restoration being accomplished by the camming action of an 11th shaft associated with said drive means against said internal camming surfaces of said enclosed cam portions of said carry sectors."
  ],
  "cpc": [
    "G06C 15/26"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "G06C 15/26"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Burroughs Corp"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Donald R Crain",
    "Edward R Huber"
  ],
  "filing_date": "1969-04-09",
  "publication_date": "1971-03-16",
  "grant_date": "1971-03-16",
  "priority_date": "1969-04-09",
  "application_number": "US-3570760D-A",
  "family_id": "25218057",
  "cited_by_count": 2,
  "citations": [
    "US2221861A",
    "US2555740A",
    "US2981469A",
    "US3420438A",
    "US3472450A"
  ]
}