Part 2

To state which of these two types of machines is the more useful would cause a shower of comment, and has nothing to do with the object of this article. Suffice it to say that where a printed record of items added together with their answer is required for filing purposes, or to bring together loose items like those in your bank statement, the recording-adding machine serves; but when rapid calculation in addition, multiplication, subtraction or division, or when combinations of these forms of calculation are required, the key-driven calculator is the practical machine for such work.

Although the key-driven calculator is generally not so well known, it is, as stated, the oldest of the modern accounting machines, and its usefulness places it in the accounting room, where it is oft-times found employed by the hundreds in figuring up the day’s work of accounting.

The purpose of this book is based wholly upon showing the validity and priority of invention which constitute true contributions to the Art of these two types of modern accounting machines; to place the facts for once and all time before the public in such a way that they may judge for themselves to whom the honor is due and thus settle the controversy that exists.

The quibbling of court contests over the terminology of claims of patents owned by the various inventors have been set aside and only the true contributions to the Art which pertain to the fundamental principles that have made the modern machines possible, are here dealt with.

The dates of patents on inoperative or impractical machines have from time to time been held up to the public as instances of priority of invention; but when the validity of these patents, as furnishing any real contributions to the Art, is questioned, they are not found to hold the theme or principle that made the modern machines possible, and as inventions, fade into obscurity.

The Art of either the calculating machine or the adding-recording machine is not new; it is, as a matter of fact, very old. As before stated, the Art of “accounting machine” dates back to the tenth century, but the first authentic evidence of a working machine is extant in models made by Pascal in 1642 (see illustration).

THE PASCAL MACHINE

Referring to the illustration, Fig. 1, of Pascal’s machine on the opposite page, it will be noted that there are a series of square openings in the top of the casing; under these openings are drums, each numbered on its cylindrical surface.

As the machine illustrated was made to figure English currency, the two right-hand wheels are numbered for pence and shillings, while the six wheels to the left are numbered from 1 to 9 and 0 for pounds.

The pounds register-drums, or numeral wheels, are each operated by a train of gearing connecting them with a ten-armed turnstile wheel which form the hub and spokes of what appears to be a series of wheels on the top of the casing. While the spokes and hub are movable, the rims of these wheels are stationary and are numbered from 1 to 9 and 0.

The geared relation between the turnstile wheels and the numeral wheels is such that rotating a turnstile will give like rotation to its numeral wheel.

Assuming that the numeral wheel of any one of the different orders registered 0 through its sight opening and the turnstile of the same order was moved one spoke of a rotation, it would move the wheel so that the 0 would disappear and the figure 1 would appear; now if we should move the same turnstile three more spokes the numeral wheel would move likewise three spaces and the 4 would appear.

A stop in the form of a finger reaching over the spokes is provided to stop the turnstile at the right point so that the figures on the numeral wheels may register properly with the sight openings in the casing.

The figures on the wheel rims fast to the casing are arranged anti-clockwise to register with the space between the spokes, the 0 registering with the first space, the 1 with the second space and so on around the wheel. Thus by use of the finger or a stylo inserted in a space opposite the number to be added, the operator may move the spoked wheel or turnstile clockwise until stopped by the stop finger. By repeated selection and operation for each figure to be added, the wheels will be revolved through their cycles of rotation caused by the accumulation.

As the numeral wheels complete each rotation the 0 will appear, so that a registration of the tens must be made. Pascal provided for the accumulation of the tens by automatically turning the wheel of next higher order one point through the action of the lower wheel.

The novel means employed for this transfer of the tens consisted of a one-step ratchet device operated by a pin in the train of gearing connected with the lower numeral wheel, which, as the lower wheel passed from 9 to 0, forced the lever to which the ratchet pawl was attached in a direction to cause the gearing of the higher numeral wheel to be ratcheted forward far enough to add one to the higher numeral wheel.

The direct actuation of a numbered wheel through its various degrees of rotation and the secondary feature of effecting a one-step movement to the numbered wheel of higher order (which seems to have been originated by Pascal) is the foundation on which nearly all the calculating machines have since been constructed to calculate the combinations of the Arabian numerals represented in Addition, Multiplication, Subtraction and Division.

In Fig. 2 of the illustration of Pascal’s machine, the machine has been reversed, and the bottom of the casing, which is hinged, thrown back, showing the numeral wheels and gearing of the different orders and the transfer levers for the carry of the tens.

The Art of the modern machines is far removed from the older Art by its greatly increased capacity for rapid calculation which is found emanating from the provision of keys as the means of manipulation.

To the unsophisticated, such a simple thing as applying keys to the ancient type of calculating machines that have been made and used for centuries, would seem but a simple mechanical application that the ordinary mechanic could accomplish. But it was too great a problem for the many renowned inventors of the older Art to solve.

Even though the use of depressable keys was common to many machines, especially the piano, they knew that the organized make-up of their machines could scarcely stand, without error, the slow action received from the crank motion or other means employed as manipulating devices. To place it within the power of an operator to operate their machines at such a speed as would obtain in the sudden striking of a key would result in chaos.

There is no room for doubt that some of these early inventors had the wish or desire to produce such a key-driven machine and may have attempted to produce one. But as they lacked the advantage of an institution like the Patent Office in which they could leave a record of their inoperative inventions, and in view of the fact that they were dependent on producing an operating machine for credit, there is no authentic proof that they made attempts in this line.

The Early Key-Driven Art

M. Le Colonel D’Ocagne, Ingénieur des Ponts et Chaussées, Professeur à l’École des Ponts et Chaussées, Répétiteur à l’École Polytechnique, in his “Le Calcul simplifie,” a historical review of calculating devices and machines, refers to the key-driven machine as having first made its appearance in the Schilt machine of 1851, but that the Art reached its truly practical form in America. In the latter part of his statement the professor is correct, but as to the first appearance of the key-driven machine the U. S. Patent Office records show that a patent was issued to D. D. Parmelee in 1850 for a key-driven adding machine (see illustration).

THE PARMELEE MACHINE

By referring to the illustration of the Parmelee machine reproduced from the drawings of the patent, the reader will notice that the patentee deviated from the established principle of using numeral wheels. In place of numeral wheels a long ratchet-toothed bar has been supplied, the flat faces of which are numbered progressively from the top to the bottom.

As shown in Fig. 2 of these drawings, a spring-pressed ratchet pawl marked k, engages the teeth of the ratchet or numeral bar. The pawl k, is pivoted to a lever-constructed device marked E, the plan of which is shown in Fig. 3. This lever device is pivoted and operated by the keys which are provided with arms d, so arranged that when any one of the keys is depressed the arm contacts with and operates the lever device and its pawl k to ratchet the numeral bar upwards.

Another spring-pressed ratchet pawl marked m (see Fig. 2) is mounted on the bottom of the casing and serves to hold the numeral bar from returning after a key-depression.