US3521035A - Release mechanisms - Google Patents

Description

'Y2587 (1R; 39521O35 July 21, 1970 TREHN ETAL 3,521,035

v RELEASE MECHANISMS Filed Nov. 25, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 2

A B C D July 21, 1970 TREHN ET AL 3,521,035

RELEASE MECHANISMS Filed Nov. 25, 1966 5'Sheets-Sheet 2 July 21, 1970 l, TREHN ET AL 3,521,035

RELEASE MECHANISMS Filed Nov. 25, 1966 5 Sheets- Sheet :5

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July 21, 1970 TREHN ET AL I 3,521,035

RELEASE MECHANISMS Filed Nov. 25, 1966 5 sheets sheet 5 Q 5 6 1 f 9 Q J f 11 9 9 0 T 1,

g 1 1 m i w F 3 5v 5 1 fi United States Patent 5,382 Int. Cl. G061: /00, H04q 1/00 US. Cl. 235-6L7 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A mechanism for releasing an operating cycle and in which the release is bound to a particular person comprises a sensing device for a card punched in accordance with a code identifying the person. A manually operated selecting device correlated to the sensing device functions to effect a release of the cycle only when manually operated switches in the selecting device determined by the punched card in the sensing device are actuated in a given sequence, and the mechanism further includes a selective arrangement for changing or preventing the operating cycle with respect to a certain group or groups of punched cards and/or for a certain individual punched card or cards.

This invention relates to a mechanism for releasing a cycle, where the release is bound to a given person. Thus, an automatic check-up of the identity of the person releasing the cycle takes place in conjunction with the release of the cycle. The mechanism can therefore be utilized to advantage for identity check-up on persons entering and leaving a company, plant, factory, establishment etc., and the released cycle may comprise the opening of a shut door or simply the delivery of a signal, the lightening of a lamp etc. The mechanism is also suited for use in other connections such as the clocking-in and clocking-out registration of employees presence check-up, and the opening and closing of electric switches. The mechanism is also useful in cases where goods and services are obtained by self-service, the released cycle and/or other correlated circumstances being registered for later charge to customer accounts. The release of the cycle can thus consist for instance in the starting of a curbside petrol pump, whereupon the amount of fuel, time, place, quality, and of course the customer also is registered.

The mechanism comprises a sensing device for punched cards or the like, and a selecting device including push r buttons or the like, the sensing device being electrically connected to the selecting device in such a way that the release mechanism will release the contemplated cycle only when the selecting device is actuated in a manner determined by the punched cards in the sensing device. According to the invention the release mechanism is equipped with one or more additional units adapted to change or prevent the cycle for a certain group or groups of punched cards and/ or for a certain individual punched card or cards. This is of the utmost importance for safety reasons wherever persons are checked in and checked out by means of punched cards since cards not authorizing the bearer to pass, can be blocked. The same applies when punched cards, such as credit cards and like cards, shall be blocked because the bearer has exceeded his credit.

The above and further features of the invention and the advantages gained thereby will appear from the following specification in which reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating an embodiment, chosen by way of example, of the release mechanism.

In the drawings:

3,521,035 Patented July 21, 1970 FIG. 1 shows one of the relay groups of the circuitry;

FIG. 2 shows a symbolic view of said relay group in the manner in which it is illustrated in the following figures;

FIG. 3 shows the sensing device connected to a registration apparatus;

FIG. 4 shows the sensing device connected to the selecting device;

FIG. 5 shows how the function of the relay groups is varied between the devices shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 for registration and performance;

FIG. 6 schematically shows how some punched cards can be blocked independently of each other by additional units.

The relay group shown in FIG. 1 in the form of a relay tree is adapted to convert binary numbers into numbers according to the decimal system. The relay group thus comprises four relays A, B, C and D, and eleven outgoing leads, ten of which represent digits 0, l, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 while the eleventh lead represents the other possible digits, i.e. 10 to 15, and is designated F In the present instance, the eleventh lead F represents error signals. The conversion of the binary numbers into numbers according to the decimal system will appear from the following table in which 0 means that the relay in the table heading is deenergized whereas X signifiies that the relay in question is energized:

The leads in FIG. 2 corresponding to relays A, B, C and D have been given the same designations, for greater clarity.

FIG. 3 illustrates how the sensing device for the punched cards 11 is connected over four relay groups 12 to a registering apparatus 13. The sensing device preferably is an insertion pocket adapted to receive the punched cards 11 and equipped with photo cells, the holes of said punched cards being arranged on the basis of the binary system, for which reason they can be utilized to advantage for data processing in various connections. Thus, the binary sides of the relay group 12 are connected to the sensing device while the decimal sides of said relay groups are connected to the registrering apparatus 13. The relay groups 12 being four in number, the punched cards 11 can represent four-digit numbers. It is evident that the size of the numbers can vary with the number of relay groups 12 that the release mechanism incorporates.

According to FIG. 4 the relay groups 12 have their decimal sides connected to the selecting device 14 which comprises push buttons or like means, such as the dial of a telephone. The lines P of the relay groups 12 are coupled together to a common line on which an error signal is transmitted if a punched card 11 of wrong nature is used. The relay groups 12 have the lines I, through which the pulses delivered from the push buttons are to pass, coupled to a code unit 15 which is adapted to deliver a signal for releasing the cycle only when the push buttons in the selecting device 14 determined by the punched card 11 in the sensing device are actuated in a given sequence.

The code unit is constituted by a contact group actuated by relays 16 and adapted to deliver a pulse R for releasing the cycle when the current through the lines I passes through the relay groups 12 in a determined order. An error signal F is however, delivered if another order should occur.

Further, the release mechanism is equipped with a code unit 17 adapted to deliver an error signal if the wrong push button is actuated. For this purpose the relay groups 12 are connected through lines L on one side, and the push buttons are connected through lines 18 on the other side to a Wheatstone bridge in the code unit 17. In unbalanced state the bridge is adapted to deliver an error signal F when the wrong push button (digit) is actuated.

The Wheatstone bridge consists of the four resistors R R R and R and of the two transistors T and T which are disposed crosswise at the points of symmetry of the bridge. When the correct push button is pressed the same voltage drop is obtained over resistors R and R The bridge thus remains balanced and no signal is obtained. When the wrong push button is pressed no current is obtained through resistor R and as a consequence no voltage drop across it. On the other hand, a current is obtained through resistor R whereby the voltage drop caused by said current results in an unbalance of the bridge, whereby an error signal F is produced, the current passing through the transistor T In case a card 11 is provided with hole markings corresponding to the same two digits an error signal is obtained acoss transistor T According to the system described a punched card 12 thus must not represent two identical digits.

It appears from FIG. 5 how the function of the relay groups 12 is varied between the devices in FIGS. 3 and 4 for registration and performance.

As shown in FIG. 6 the release mechanism is equipped with one or more additional units 19 which are adapted to change or prevent the cycle for a certain group or groups of punched cards and/ or for a certain individual punched card or cards.

The additional units 19 are constituted by transistors or like elements. Each of the transistors is coupled over diodes to all lines outgoing from the sensing device and having no counterparts in the form of holes in the punched card 11 corresponding to the additional unit 19. For the blocked punched card 11 no current therefore flows through the leads from the sensing device. Due to the voltage applied to the additional units 19 at the insertion of the punched card 11 in the sensing device there is obtained a pulse F On the other hand, the additional unit 19 is always supplied with current through the leads from the sensing device when the latter cooperates with a punched card 11 having another combination of holes, said current preventing the additional unit from delivering a pulse.

As will appear from FIG. 6 the upper additional unit 19 which is adapted to block a punched card bearing the digits 3561, will also block a punched card bearing the digits 2561. This is due to the latter card diifering from the first card only by the fact that it lacks one of the holes of the first card. This shortcoming can be eliminated by avoiding such combinations of holes as may occasion double blocking. The shortcoming can also be eliminated by making use of dummy holes 20. For each card shall have a definite number of holes, the number of dummy holes being dependent upon the number of holes required for the contemplated combination of digits. In the embodiment shown, the holes shall be nine in number, at least one hole always being a dummy hole. The card shall thus have a maximum of eight identity holes, i.e. two holes for each digit, which implies that digit 7 must not ever occur. The card bearing the digits 3561 thus has two dummy holes 20 while the card bearing digits 2561 has three dummy holes 20.

In addition to the hole sensing means which are connected over the relay groups 12 to the selecting device 14, the sensing device has further hole sensing means which are adapted to co-act with the dummy holes 20, said further hole sensing means being six in number, according to the embodiment shown. The lines from these further hole sensing means are also arranged to be connected over diodes to the additional units 19. For the punched card bearing digits 3561 there are thus required four diodes while only three diodes are required for the punched card bearing the digits 2561. As a consequence, there has been provided a difference making it possible to block certain punched cards 11 without resulting in other punched cards also being blocked, which is of the utmost importance.

The dummy holes 20 can be employed to provide other functions also. The number of dummy holes 20 in the card 11 may determine the relative sequence in which the relay groups 12 are coupled to the code unit 15. A reversal of the sequence of the relay groups relative to the code unit 15 may thus be realized by means of the dummy holes 20.

As a rule, the additional units 19 for individual punched cards 11 shall be disposed ahead of the relay groups 12, which FIG. 6 intends to show. On the other hand, group provisos that may have both positive and negative content, shall preferably be placed after the relay groups 12, as these are mostly determined digitally.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A mechanism for releasing a cycle, where the release is bound to given persons having individual identification punched cards, each card being encoded with the identify of a person, comprising a sensing device for sensing a persons punched card, one output line in said device for each possible hole position on such punched cards, means for emitting electrical signals on those of said lines that correspond to holes in a punched card being sensed, a selecting device, manually actuable switch means in said selecting device, comparing means electrically connected to said output lines and said switch means for releasing the cycle concerned Only when said switch means are actuated in a manner determined by the encoded identity of the punched card being sensed, and a number of additional units adapted to prevent the cycle for a certain card group, wherein each additional unit comprises a current controlled means which by means of diodes is coupled directly to and controlled by the signals on all the output lines of said sensing device that have no counterparts in holes in the punched card corresponding to the additional unit, for preventing the cycle solely on the basis of the identification of a punched card by said sensing device.

2. A release mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the sensing device in addition to hole sensing means connected to the selecting device has further hole sensing means adapted to co-act with so-called dummy holes in the punched cards, the lines from these further hole sensing means also being connected over diodes to the additional units.

3. A release mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the sensing device has so many hole sensing means for dummy holes that the number of holes in the punched cards can be kept constant, at least one hole preferably being a dummy hole.

DARYL W. COOK, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 340l49

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