US2022702A - Typewriting machine - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 3,1935. H. A. AVERY 2,022,702

TYPEWBITING MACHINE Filed March 1, 1955 INVENTOR HENRY ALLEN AVERY ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 3, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TYPE-WRITING MACHINE Application March 1, 1935, Serial No. 8,822

7 Claims. (Cl. 197-123) The invention relates to improvements in typewriting machines, and more particularly to means providing for connecting and disconnecting the line space wheel and platen from each other for fractional or irregular line-spacing, and for readily removing the platen from and replacing it in the platen carriage when desired, and the object of the invention is to provide improved means whereby provision is made both for fractional 1o line-spacing and for ready removal and replacement of the platen.

To the above and other ends which will appear from the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, the invention con- 15 sists of the combinations of devices, features of construction, and arrangements of parts hereinafter set forth and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

20 Fig. 1 is a fragmentary plan view showing the platen carriage, platen, and associated devices, including the line spacing mechanism, of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of.

25 Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 5, the platen being omitted;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

30 Fig. 5 is a front elevation, partly broken away, showing the left hand end of the platen and parts adjacent thereto;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6--6 of Fig. 7; and

35 Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing the platen partly removed from the platen carriage.

The present invention is in the nature of an improvement upon the constructions disclosed in the patents to F. H.Armstrong, No. 1,437,215 and 40 H. A. Avery, No. 1,930,918.

The cylindrical platen comprises a rigid core in having thereon the usual rubber sleeve ll. Housed within the left hand end of the rubber sleeve and abutting the left hand end of the core 45 is a sheet metal cup i2 ailixed to the core by fastening devices l3 (Fig. 6). The platen carriage comprises a base l4 and a. pair of upstanding end plates l5 and IS, the left hand end plate l5 having a cylindrical bore ll therein, and the right 50 hand end plate l6 having therein a slot l8 which extends up and down and is open at its upper end and is contracted at its lower end. A stationary bearing sleeve l9 has its outer end brazed or otherwise fixed to plate I5 in bore i1 and ex- 55 tends inward from said plate. Said bearing sleeve is formed intermediate its ends with an external collar 20 which extends inward from the inner face of plate l5 part way to the inner end of the sleeve.

The platen is rotatably journalled in the car- 5 riage by means of two stub shafts 2| and 22. Stub shaft 22 is rigidly affixed to the platen at the right hand end of the platen for rotation as a unit with the platen and has a reduced cylindrical portion 22- journalled in the contracted lower 10 end of slot l8 in end plate It. The depth of the contracted lower end of slot l8 is equal to about one-half the diameter of portion 22 To releasably hold stub shaft 22 journalled in slot Hi, there is provided a fore-and-aft slidable latch bar 23 slidably guided on two shouldered screws 24 threaded into end plate l6 and passing through a slot 25 in the bar. Latch bar 23 is provided at its rear end with an operating finger piece 23 and at its front end with a finger 23 which lightly contacts stub shaft 22 when the bar is slid forward over the stub shaft into abutting contact of a shoulder 23 on the bar with a stop screw 26 threaded in plate I 6. When bar 23 is slid rearward as far as permitted by screws 24 and slot 25, 25 the slot I8 is opened for lifting of stub shaft 22 out of slot I8. A finger wheel 21 is fixed on the outer end of shaft 22.

The left hand stub shaft 2| is endwisely removable from the platen and the platen carriage and has a finger wheel 28 fixed on its outer end. Shaft 2| is axially slidable in bearing sleeve IS in which it is also rotatably journalled to rotatably support the left hand end of the platen. To prevent accidental withdrawal of the shaft 2|, and at the same time permit limited axial reciprocation of the shaft for the purpose hereinafter described, said shaft has a reduced cylindrical portion 2| between the finger wheel 28 and the end plate l5 of the carriage, which reduced portion forms a wide annular groove in the shaft in which is normally engaged a latch lever 29. Latch 29 is pivoted at 30 at the outer face of end plate l5 and is normally urged against the reduced portion 2| of shaft 2| by a spring 3| anchored to plate l5. At its upper end the latch lever 29 is provided with a suitable actuating finger piece for pushing of the latch lever upward and rearward to release shaft 2|. Preferably a retaining and stop screw 32 is provided for latch lever 29, said screw being threaded into plate l5 and extending through a slot 33 in the latch lever adjacent the finger piece on the lever.

The inner end portion of shaft 2| is flattened, or provided at diametrically opposite 66 points with flat faces, as indicated at 34, this flattened end portion of the shaft having loose sliding fit in an elongated slot formed in the inner end wall of platen cup I 2. The flattened inner end portion of shaft 2| is long enough to engage in slot 35 at both limits of reciprocation of shaft 2| permitted by latch 29 while the latch is engaged with the reduced cylindrical part 2| of shaft 2|, so that while shaftril is latched the platen may be rotated thereby by turning the finger wheel 28. I

Rotatably journalled on the stationary bearing sleeve l9, between collar 20 and the inner end of the sleeve, is the hub 36 of a toothed line space wheel or ratchet wheel 31. A split locking ring 38 of spring wire releasably engaged in an annular groove in sleeve l9 adjacent the inner end of the sleeve abuts the inner end of hub 36 to prevent accidental detachment of the line space wheel from the bearing sleeve. Hub 36 extends inward from the vertical plane of the toothed-portion of the line space wheel and is provided with a narrow cylindrical intermediate reduced portion 39 and a still further reduced cylindrical inner end portion 40, the periphery of portion ,40 being preferably beveled at the inner end edge thereof as shown. Portion 39 projects slightly into, and slidably fits in, the open outer end portion of platen cup I2 and forms a support for the left hand end of the platen.

Portion 40 forms a clutch drum for use in clutching the platen to and unclutching it from the line space wheel. Coactive with the clutch drum are two clutch levers or drum-gripping levers 4| preferably formed of sheet metal which is slightly springy or resilient. The two levers 4| are arranged at diametrically opposite points within the platen about the stubshaft 2| for coaction of inwardly bent inner end portions 4 i of the levers with the diametrically opposite non-flattened surfaces of the flattened inner end portion of'the shaft. The main body portion or inner arm of each lever extends through a notch 35' in one end wall of slot 35, there being one notch 35fin each end wall of the slot 35 in cup |2. The inner arm of each lever, within cup I2 is bent radially outward and at its outer end joins the inner end of a short outer arm of the lever which extends outward and overhangs the cylindrical portion of the clutch drum 39 which it is adapted to grip by means of its notched or forked outer end 4| Each lever 4| is adapted to fulcrum on the annular wall of cup I 2 at the juncture 4| of the inner and outer arms of the lever.

The two levers are detachably held in assembled relation with the platen, for convenient separation from the ratchet wheel hub with the platen and re-connection together with the platen as a unit with the hub, by means of a split retaining ring 42 of spring wire. Ring 42 is of substantially U-shape, its arcuate portion and the ends of its arms frictionally binding against the inner surface of the annular wall of the cup l2, and its arms holding the levers substantially to said wall surface at the .junctures of the lever arms, the outer arm of each lever being confined between said wall surface and an arm of said retaining ring at the juncture of the lever arms. Said ring 42 and the notches 35* serve effectively to hold the levers 4| in assembledrelation with the platen during removal of the platen from, and attachment of the platen to, the platen carriage, and to hold the levers and platen in assembled relation while the platen is removed from the carriage, but permit ready removal of the levers from, and insertion thereof in, the platen when desired.

At its inner end the stub shaft 2|, is beveled to provide a cam portion 2| thereof which is shiftable inward between and past the inner end por- 5 tions 4| of levers 4| to rock the levers on their fulcrums 4| and cause the forked outer ends 4|" of the levers to grip the cylindrical surface of clutch drum 40 to clutch the platen to the line space wheel when the stub shaft 2| is pushed in- 10 ward to the position shown in Fig. 5. In this position of the stub shaft 2| the platen may be mtated for regular line spacing either by finger wheel 21, finger wheel 28, or by a suitable line space lever actuated mechanism which rotates 15 the ratchet wheel. When the stub shaft 2| is pulled outward as far as permitted by latch 23, the cam end 2| thereof is pulled outward to release the grip of levers 4| on the clutch drum portion 40 of the line-space wheel hub, thereby 20 releasing the platen from rotation by the line space wheel and permitting rotation of the platen by either of the finger wheels for irregular linespacing.

The hand-lever actuated line spacing wheel 25 operating means shown is constructed substantially as disclosed in the patent to Avery hereinbefore referred to. It comprises a line-spacing hand-lever 43 pivoted on the carriage II at 44 and connected by a. link 45 to a line-space pawl 30 carrier 45 the lower end of which is journalled on sleeve is between the collar 20 and the outer face of the line space wheel hub 36. Ring 34 holds the pawl carrier and wheel to the collar. The pawl carrieris pivoted at 41 to a line space pawl 48 which carries a projection 49 which rides on and off part 50 of a line space regulator lever 5|. Lever 5| is pivoted on collar 20 of sleeve l3 and is settable to regulate the number of tooth spaces of wheel 31 through which said wheel will be turned by pawl 48 when the line-space lever 43 is actuated, as more fully disclosed in said Avery patent. A spring 52 connects pawl projection 43 to the pawl carrier to urge the nose of the pawl into engagement with the teeth of the line space ratchet wheel.

The platen, together withthe clutch levers and their retaining ring 42, may be readily removed from the carriage as a unit without disturbing the cooperative relation of the pawl and ratchet line-space mechanism. The aforesaid removal is effected in the following manner:

Press back the pivoted latch 23 and withdraw stub shaft 2| with its finger wheel 23 from the platen and carriage by pulling outward on wheel 55 28. Slide rearward the latch 23 to uncover the upper open end of slot l8. Grasp wheel 21 on stub shaft 22 and lift the platen diagonally upward and slightly rightward as indicated in Fig. 7, whereupon the platen may be readily lifted from the carriage. The wider upper portion of slot it facilitates the imparting of the slight rightward movement of the platen above mentioned, said portion of said slot being of a width which is greater than the maximum diameter of the stub shaft 22 as shown most clearly in Fig. 4.

A suitable spring-urged pivoted detent 53. car-. ried by plate I5, is preferably provided for engagement with the teeth of ratchet wheel :1.

What I claim is:

1. In combination, a platen carriage having end plates, a fixed sleeve carried by one of said end plates, the other end plate having a bearing slot therein open at one end only, a plate a platen-carried stub shaft fixed to one end of the platen and journalled in the closed end of said slot, a releasable latch carried by said slotted end plate for releasably holdingsaid platen-carried stub shaft from lifting out of said slot, a second stub shaft axially .shiftable through said sleeve and axially withdrawable from the sleeve and carriage, a-releasable latch for holding said second stub shaft for limited reciprocationof the shaft in the sleeve, a line space ratchet wheel rotatively mounted on said fixed sleeve, and separably engageable clutch means carried in part by said wheel and in part by the adjacent end of said platen and operable by said limited reciprocation of said second stub-shaft to clutch said platen to said wheel and unclutch the platen from said wheel.

2. In combination, a platen carriage having end members and a fixed bearing sleeve carried by and extending through one of its end members, the other end member having a bearing slot therein closed atone end and open at the opposite end of the slot, a roller platen, a platencarried stub shaft fixed to one end of the platen and journalled in the closed end of said slot, a releasable latch carried by said slotted endmemher for releasably holding the platen-carried stub shaft from lifting out of said slot, a second stub shaft extending slidably through said sleeve and axially withdrawable therefrom, a releasable latch carried by the sleeve-carrying end member and coactive with the second stub shaft to prevent axial withdrawal of said stub shaft from the sleeve and permit limited axial reciprocation of said stub shaft while the latter extends through the sleeve, said second stub shaft having an inner end portion slidably and non-rotatably telescoped with the platen and axially separable from the platen and provided with cam means at its inner end, a line space ratchet wheel rotatively mounted on said sleeve and held against axial movement on the sleeve, a handlever-operated pawl mechanism carried by said sleeve and the sleeve-carrying end member for rotating said ratchet wheel, and separably engageable clutch means carried in part by said sleeve-carrying end member and sleeve and in part by the adjacent end of the platen and operable to clutch and unclutch the platen and wheel by said cam means provided on the second shaft upon reciprocation of said second shaft within the limits permitted by said second-mentioned latch.

33. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen, a pair of stub shafts removably :lournalled in the platen carriage to rotate about a common axis and rotatably supporting the platen, one of said shafts being fixed to the platen and the second being axially withdrawable from the platen and carriage, releasable means preventing accidental removal of the first shaft from the carriage, releasable means permitting limited axial reciprocation of the second shaft in the platen and carriage and releasable to permit axial withdrawal of the second shaft from the platen and carriage, a line space ratchet wheel rotatively carried by the carriage to rotate about an axis coincident with the common axis of the shafts,

means carried by the carriage to rotate the ratchet wheel, and clutch means carried in part by the ratchet wheel and in part by the platen and operable by said limited reciprocation of the second shaft to clutch and unclutch the 5 platen and wheel, said separably carried parts of the clutch means being separably associated with each other.

4. A typewriting machine having, in combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen, a pair of 10 platen journalling stub shafts detachably journalled on the carriage, a platenrotating pawland-ratchet mechanism mounted on the carriage independently of the platen, and separable clutch means mounted in part on the ratchet of the 15 pawl-and-ratchet mechanism and in part on the roller platen for clutching the platen to and unclutching it from the said ratchet, one of said stub shafts being axially reciprocable in thecarriage to actuate said clutch means and "being 20 also axially withdrawable from the carriage to permit detachment of the platen fromthe carriage when the other shaft is detached from the carriage, said other shaft being fixed to the platen, means detachably holding the axially 5 shiftable shaft journalled in the carriage and permitting limited reciprocation of said shaft in the carriage to actuate said clutch means, and means detachably holding the other-shaft journalled in the carriage.

5. A typewriting machine according to claim 4, wherein the ratchet is held rotatively journailed on a fixed sleeve element of the carriage by a split spring ring detachably engaged in an annular groove in said sleeve element, and that 5 part of the clutch means carried by the platen is detachably held to the platen by a split spring ring, said rings holding the respective parts of the clutch means to the carriage and platen when the platen is removed from the carriage.

6. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen having journals removably mounted in the carriage, a line space wheel and clutch element iournalled on the carriage to rotate as a unit, and means for gripping said clutch element car- 5 ried by the platen and removable with the platen from the carriage, said means being operable by axial reciprocation of a stub shaft forming one of said journals of the platen, said carriage having a bearing for said shaft in which said shaft 50 is reciprocable axially and from which the shaft is axially withdrawable.

7. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen having. journals removably mounted in the carriage, a line space wheel and clutch ele- 55 ment Journalled on the carriage to rotate as a unit, means for gripping said clutch element carried by the platen and-removable with the platen from the carriage, said means being operable by axial reciprocation of a stub shaft forming one 50 of said Journals of the platen, said carriage having a bearing for said shaft in which said shaft is reciprocable axially and from which the'shaft is axially withdrawable, and means for preventing accidental withdrawal of the platen journals from the carriage.

HENRY ALLEN AVERY.

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