US312753A - Store-service apparatus - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

E. P. o sGooD. STORE. SERVICE APPARATUS.

Patented Feb. 24, l1885;

VIA

7th day of June last.

' .STATES ATEN 1 To all whom it may concern.

V Be it known that I, EDWIN P. Oscoop, of Malden, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Cash-Cars; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and:` exactdescription of the same. LVMyinv'entionrelatesy to cash-car systems, and is an improvement'upon the apparatus shown'in' the application liled by me on .the In that apparatus a cashcar` system consisted of a horizontal Wire stretched between ixed supports, and having a car suspended upon tracks adapted to run vupon the wire traclgthe car being simply a receptacle or boX adapted to receive packages, change, memorandum-books, and the like. Inconvenience sometimes occurs in i the use of such carsf, arising from the elevated position of the wire, the car being out of the. reach of some of the attendants. It is necessary that the wire or wires should be placed to a sufficiently elevated position so as not to be in the way.

The principal object of my present invention is to provide means whereby the car, or that part of it which receives the packages, change, Src., may be drawn down in order to receive such articles and then returned to its position; and my invention consists, principally, of a car adapted torun upon an elevated track, and to be drawn Vdown to receive the articles to be conveyed, and then to return to its normal position in preparation for starting upon its movement ou the track.

It also consists of some details of construe" tion relating to the car and to the track, all of which are hereinafter explained, and indicated in the claims.

It will be understood that the apparatus is designed for use in stores and similar places.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a car mounted upon its wire and closed in readiness for propulsion. Fig. 2 is a similar view with the car open. Fig. 3 is an end viewl Fig. 4 is a perspective view. Fig. 5 is a plan view of a terminal station for the radial conductors. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail view of the end of one of the' conductors and its connections; Fig. 7, a sectional detail.

`sToaE- seuvlcia APPARATUS.

FEACIIVIQTONfrming part of Letters Patent No. 312,753, dated February 24, 1885.

` i Application sied Jury 2o, less. (N0 monti.) y

In these drawings, G represents a part ofthe l I wire track, which is suspended at the ends horizontally, when drawn ,taut by any suitaable means. Upon the track is suspended a platform, E, by means of hangers e and wheels F. I have shown two wheels, this being the preferred number, but do not limit myself to this particular number. The hangers e are i'iXed at their lower ends in the platform E, and

are preferably forked, as shown inFig. 3, the

wheels being placed Ibetween the forks,. and being adapted to turn ontheir pivots, `which, pass through the upper ends of the prongs of the hangers. rlhe `wire G passesalso between the hangers, and the wheelsv bear directly upon the wire. In this way the car is bal-` anced accurately upon the wire, as the hang ers are placed on the central longitudinal line of the platform, and the car is adapted to` run' freely in either direction by a push. The tray a, which receives the articles to be carried, is suspended underneath the platform E by means of straps C C. The principle of my invention requires that these straps shall be elastic, or shall be connected to some elastic mechanism, so that the straps or their connections will yield when the tray ais drawn down,

an'd when the tray is released will automatically draw it up again to the platform E.

I have shown the straps CC as attached to arms c c on the standards just above'the platform E; but they may be connected directly to the platform itself. They are rigidly attached at their upper ends, and, as herein shown, are composed of flat spring metal. They extend downward., as shown in Fig. 2, and pass through slots in the tray a, and are attached at their lower ends to grooved pulleys on the ends of a roller, B. (Shown in Figs. l, 4, and 7.) rIhe springs are made ina coiled form, so that when the tray is released after being drawn down the springs will coil themselves upon the roller and of their' own force raise the tray and bring it up against the under side of the platform E. It will be understood, therefore, that these springs automatically coil upon the roller, and as the tray is pulled down they are uncoiled and eX- tended; but I may also place within the roller a spring, d, and coil it about a shaft, f, in the same manner as the ordi-nary spring of a cur- IOO tainroller is coiled and attached, so l'that the uncoiling of the spring d will turn the roller and wind up the strap, the spring being` again coiled when the tray is drawn down. hen this spring is used, the strips may be of any flexible material. It will be understood that the roller B is mounted iu bearings attached to the bottom of the tray. The bearings, as shown in Fig. 7, consist in this case of brackets g, the upper ends of which are secured to the under side of the tray.

This tray may be grasped by the hand in any convenient place; but I have shown a strap or handle, D, fixed to the bottom of the tray and surrounding the roller. rIhis affords a convenient handle.

# The tray may be provided with a ange, h, extending either all around it or only upon one side and the ends. The latter construction is the :more convenient,-as the articles may be more conveniently removed when one side is left open; but in this respect my invention may be varied without departing from the spirit thereof.

The articles are held securely in place while the car is in motion, either by the flanges or by the pressure of the tray against the platform E.

I am aware that cash-cars have been hereto fore known with expansi ble receptacles adapted to receive different sizes of bundles or bundles of irregular shape; and I wish to distinguish myinvention fromany such cash or parcel carrier, the purpose and result of mine being entirely different-that isto. sayfinyif'apparatus is to provide a car which shall be adapted to run upon an elevated way, so as to pass above the heads of the persons in the store, and which shall yet be capable of being drawn down into convenient proximity to the salesman or cashier.

I therefore claiml. A car adapted to run upon an elevated wire way provided with a tray or lower part connected to the upper by spring mechanism and by strapsupports,` :and :adapted: to be drawn down within convenient proximity to the cashier or salesman and to return to its elevated position when released, substantially as described.

2. In a carrier for cash systems, the combi nation ot' a body, E, supporting-wheels F, a tray, a, roller B on the tray, and springs connecting the'roller and tray to the body E, as described.

3. A carrier for store cash systems, `consist ing of a body and supporting-wheels, a platform connected to such body by extensible supports, and a spring-roller, all substantially as described. Y v

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification :':i the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LDV/'IN I). OSGOOD.

Witnesses:

S. T. PENNEY, C. L. FEssENDEN.

Images