US365597A - Letter-file - Google Patents

Description

(ModeL) 0. W. HAWKS & G. H. WARREN.

LETTER FILE.

Patented Jun e 28, 1887.

n. rzfzns. mun-Wm. Washington. a. c,

U ITED STATES PATENT QFFI E.

CHARLES w. HAWKS AND GEORGE H. WARREN, or SHELBURNE FALLS, MASSACHUSETTS.

LETTER-FILE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 365,597, dated June 28, 1887.

Application filed August 31,1883. Serial No.10ii,253. (Modeh) To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known'that we, CHARLES WV. HAWKS and GEORGE H. WARREN, bothof Shelburne Falls, in the town of Shelburne, in the county of Franklin and State of Massachusetts, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Letter-Files, whereof the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in'which- Figure 1' shows a view in elevation of our letter-file with its cover in the closed position. Fig. 2 shows a vertical. section taken through the line 00 w of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows a punching mechanism attached to the base-board of the file. Fig. 4. shows in elevation the base of the file holding the upright receiver on which letters are placed. Fig. 5 shows a letter or paper punched for filing. Fig. 6 shows in elevation the hinged. plate, to which letters are transferred to remove others from underneath them.

The several figures are not drawn to the same scale, but similar letters denote the same parts.

Attached to the base-board A is thebase B, which is preferably a metallic casting on which is cast the boss a, and in which are two opposite chambers, b b, which hold the hinge-plate O by its projections c 0' in bearings d d in the chambers. The motion ofthe hinged plate is limited to the play allowed between the sides e e of one or both the chambers. Into the base Bis permanently fastened the stationary plate or receiver D, so called because it receives the letters to be filed. The hinged plate 0 is held up into plate by the fiat spring E, which is preferablymadeo'f thin sheet springsteel, and is placed in a seat cast in the base B, and fastened by the rivet a, passing through a hole made in it for the purpose. The end f of the hinged plate works upon the spring E, and the bearings d d are so located relative to said spring that the part of the plate between the bearings and the spring is in theshortest radial distance from the bearings as a center when said plate is midway between the two positions shown in Fig. 2, whereby when it passes that position the spring aids in driving it toward and holding it in either of said two positions toward which it may be passed.

ing corner on said lever on the other side of the part one or more .of which corners act like cams to depress said spring when said lever is turned in either direction. Said lever I is hinged into the casting G, as shown, and its arm N is serrated with notches r3 2', 850. The punch g is stationary and has its top constructed with cuttingedges and curved, as shown,

whereby when a letter is placed in the punching mechanism between thespring-plates Hand Z and the lever depressed a shearing-cut, 7c, is made in it. The upright part and its opening are of such shape as to out a hole in the letter of such form that when the receiver -D enters it fits the same, and by reaction against one or more of the sides of the hole prevents the paper from swaying or sidewise motion and holds it firmly in place.

Underneath the spring H is a supplementary sheet-metal spring, Z, which is turned down at its front end and guides the paper over the upright cutter or punch g and into place for punching, the arms on m of the casting G acting as stops to hold the paperin proper place for punching. The arm N of the lever is held in the upright position Shown in Fig. 2 by the reaction of the spring-plate H upon the square face it h. In Fig. 2 areshown the sheets K in place filed.

To the base-board is attached, by the long spring plates 12 n, a cover, L. Said springs are made in two parts, which are hinged together at their junction, as shown, and are attached to each of the boards far enough from their junction to allow the cover to be raised a considerable distance above the base-board for the insertion of letters between them, and yet to hold said cover by springpressure down upon the letters.

If the arm N be moved forward or backward slightly, it will be replaced by the springplate H, acting on its square face h h. To the lower end of the cover is affixed a metallic plate, 0, through which (and through the cover, if projecting so far as shown) is an opening, located in position, when the cover is brought down upon the letters, to strike its front edge upon the inclined face q ofthe arm N and drive said arm back slightly and pass down over the similar inclined faces of the notches i iuntil it rests upon the letters, when the spring-plate H drives forward the lever-arm N, and the plate 0 is caught in one of the notches if, whereby the cover is fastened in place, as bya spring-catch. Through said opening is then passed the arm of a small padloclg s, if it is desired to lock the letters from inspection, which prevents the metallic plate 0 from being detached from the notch in which it may be.

The opening or passage in the groove I, be tween the curved edges and side of the receiver D, is continued through the base B, and may be continued through the base-board, if desired, and is for convenience of passing a string, ribbon, or metallic binder through the papers filed while in place on the receiver to no or bind them for filing away.

The purposes of the receiver are, first, to hold a paper filed on it from motion of the whole sheet separately from the receiver in any direction in its own plane, and, second, to hold 1t from rotation in its own plane about the re ceiver. These purposes maybe accomplished with various forms of the receiver and of the perforation in the paper through which it passes. A relative construction of the two elements only is required, which is shown in our device. Thus the first purpose is accomplished by constructing the perforation and the receiver relatively to each other, so that the perforation is large enough to admit the receiver, and when the receiver is in place in it, and the paper is filed thereby, the material at the side or sides of the perforation must fit upon the contour of the cross-section of the receiver taken in the same plane as that of the ad acentpaper in place filed upon it, and cover with fitting surface three or more bearingpoints on said contour located in position to prevent motion in either direction in the plane of thepaper, freedom enough being allowed of course to permit the easy filing and removal of the sheets. Receivers having some forms of contour of the cross-section require bearingsurfaces covering four bearing-points, regular quadrilaterals, for example, requiring one on each side. And the second purpose is accomplished when the paper is on the receiver filed if some part of the contour of the receiver against which the paper at the side of the per- The hinged transfer-plate C has a like contour, to prevent rotation out of place of papers thereon. The fiat or plate form of the plates C and D is adopted because it is substantial, cheaply made by punching from sheet metal and striking up the edges, and affords the greatest width for resisting rotation or other motlon with the least possible material, and consequently the least possible perforation of the filed papers. D

Some files have been have made with receivers to hold papers which are filed upon them by the process of passing the receiver through the paper, the perforation being thereby made by the receiver itself, which is sharpened or pointed to penetrate it, of which receivers the cross-section has the required form to prevent rotation when in an aperture fitting them; but this process of making a perforation without a separate punching mechanism often leaves it ragged at the edges, tearing the paper sometimes enough so that the receiver is inoperative to prevent rotation. The addition to the same base-board as part of the operative ma chine of a punching mechanism adapted to punch a perforation having the relations described to the contour of the cross-section produces better results. In such receivers also which have a suitable form to prevent rotation the necessity of a pointed or sharp end necessarily small to perforate the paper with the expense of constructing an interior passage in the form other than circular while an external groove would be inoperative because the paper would be cut in form to fill it, have rendered impracticable the construction of a longitudinal passage through which to pass the ribbon or binder while the papers are in place filed. But in our file the receiver has a groove, P, making a longitudinal passage through the receiver and base combined with the contour of cross-section described, a cross-section of which passage is indicated by the interior edge of the upper end of the receiver and the dotted line connecting the curved edges thereof. The opening in the papers filed will occur if the perforation is larger in some part than the cross-section of the receiver, provided the receiver and perforation are constructed, as deseribed, to prevent motion or rotation of the paper; but it is preferable that it should be protected by the curved edges, as in this case.

Another element of this invention is the construction of the punching mechanism. with its notched lever and its attachment to the baseboard to provide a spring-catch for the cover.

\Vhat we claim as our invention, and for which we pray Letters Patent, is

1. In a letter-file, the base B, mounted on the board A, and having attached to it a receiver, D, of elongated form, for the filing of sheets of paper by its insertion through perforations thereof, as described, combined with a punch mounted on the same base-board A, and adapted, as described, relatively to said receiver as formed to punch in a sheet to be filed, and a perforation coincident therewith having sides fitting on said inserted receiver at a sufficient nu mber of salient points to prevent rotation of the filed sheet upon the receiver.

2. In a letter-file, the base B, base-board A, punch F, and the receiver D, attached to the base B, and having the longitudinal passage I, all said parts being constructed and arranged to operate substantially as described.

3. 'A letter-file having a receiver for the filing of letters by its insertion through perforations thereof and attached toabase-board, combined with a cover hinged to the same base-board andva punch adapted to punch said perforations and attached to the same base-board, and having alever-arm for the purposes of its actuation, notched,as described,against which arm a spring attached to said punch bears, as described, said spring and lever-arm arranged relatively to said cover and constructed, as

described, to act as a spring-catch to engage and hold the cover in place in different-positions on the filed letters.

4B. In a letter-file, the cover L, hinged to the attached to said base-board, as described, all 0 said parts being-constructed and arranged substantially as described.

CHARLES W. HAWKS. GEORGE H. WARREN.

In presence of" H. H. MAYHEW, A. K. HAWKS.

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