Electroimpulsive Decimal Counter

Abstract

An electrically driven decimal counter adapted to count motions such as revolutions, and to control various operations in a predetermined number of repeating steps. At least two rotatable counting members are mounted for relative movement along their common axis so as selectively to be drivingly connected and disengaged. One of the counting members carries means for controlling a first switch mechanism for transferring impulses to the next stage of the counter, such switch mechanism also receiving zeroing impulses. The other counting member has a means for controlling a second switch mechanism, which is adapted to be interposed in an electric circuit for a machine. The mechanism for disengaging the one counting member from the second constitutes a mechanical controlling member for the second counting member.

Description

The present invention relates to an electroimpulsive or electrically driven decimal counter, particularly for determining the number of revolutions in machines and working motions of various mechanisms; such counter may also be used for measuring length and especially for controlling various operations in a predetermined number of repeating steps. It permits the program to be changed, as well as preserving the repeatibility of the cycle after zeroing; it constitutes a construction element for integrating assemblies.

The electrically driven or electroimpulsive counters hitherto known, particularly for the purpose of automation technology, are made up of a great number of elements; they record the scanned impulses, and transfer at a given predetermined moment a certain impulse to the next stage of the counter. They also initiate the performing of a certain step by the corresponding device, when the said counter is connected in the control circuit for the device.

In connection with the purpose of the electroimpulsive counter, it is extremely important to be able to adjust easily and arbitrarily the moment at which the received impulse is transferred to the next stage of the counter or directly used for initiating a certain step in the corresponding device. It is also important that the counter be adjusted before beginning a certain function of the counter, the said adjustment or zeroing being made only at a certain basic position of the counter, said position being achieved by zeroing, either mechanically or electroimpulsively.

The common disadvantage of the electroimpulsive decimal counters hitherto known consist in that, as has already been stated before, in the intricate and complicated structure of the inner electric circuits, which in most counters, particularly for the purpose of achieving a minimum size of the counter and for preventing failures, or possibly simpler assembling, are performed by the method of so-called printed circuits and are further simplified by using various semi-conductor rectifying or switching elements, etc. It is obvious, that the production costs as well as the costs for maintenance and exchange of damaged parts of such prior counters are considerable.

The present invention has for its purpose the removing of said disadvantages and in making such a solution that would meet all requirements put on said type of counters by using simple and inexpensive elements. In the counter of the invention at least two counting members are mounted for relative movement along their common axis. One of the said counting members carries means for controlling a contact switch mechanism for transferring impulses to the next stage of the counter; such switch mechanism also receiving zeroing impulses. The counter is provided with a mechanism for disengaging said member from the other counting member; such other member carries a means for controlling the contact mechanism connected in an auxiliary electric circuit, said mechanism for disengaging the one member from the second constituting a mechanical controlling member for the second counting member.

The following specification with respect to the attached drawings, which show an embodiment in form of an example, explain how to construct and operate the counter of the present invention, the features of which as can be seen in the drawings and the specification, form part of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows an overall view in perspective of the embodiment of the electroimpulsive decimal counter;

FIG. 2 shows a front view of the counter with the housing removed;

FIG. 3 is a partial plan view of the open counter as shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view partially in side elevation and partially in section along line 4--4 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view in section taken along line 5--5 of FIG. 3.

The illustrated electroimpulsive decimal counter consists according to the illustrated example of two counting members 1,2, which are constituted by known digit discs, mounted rotatably on a shaft 3, mounted in a frame 4 which has substantially a U-profile.

One of the two counting members, e.g., member 2 is provided with a ratchet wheel 5 which is engaged by a pawl 6, said pawl being controlled in a known manner from the armature 7 of an electromagnet 8. The armature 7 is mounted on a shaft 9 fastened also to the frame 4.

The counting members 1, 2 are provided with selectively engaging driving elements on their adjacent sides, said driving elements being formed, on one hand, by a pair of teeth 10 on the counting member 2, and on the other hand by a ratchet wheel 11, mounted on the member 1, said teeth and ratchet wheel being in engagement during the operation of the counter.

The counting member 1 is positively thrust to the right (FIG. 3) into engagement with the counting member 2 by means of a flat or leaf spring 12 fastened to a bracket 13 affixed to the frame, said spring having a circular recess at its end engaging a ring-shaped recess 14 in the hub 15 of the counting member 1. The counting member 1 may be selectively disengaged from the second counting member 2 by a mechanism which includes a key 16 which is rotatably and traversably mounted in the pair of brackets 13 and 17 and a cam 18 affixed to said key said cam carries a disengaging means formed by a tooth 19, which upon turning of the key 16, as will be explained later, comes into engagement with a radially projecting tooth 20 on the hub 15 of counting member 1.

The mechanism for disengaging the counting member 1 from the second counting member 2 has furthermore a coil compression spring 21 surrounding the shank of the key 16 and being fastened at one end to the cam 18 and at the other end to bracket 13. The said spring 21 exerts a pressing and torsion action upon cam 18.

The rear end 22 of key 16 selectively engages the armature 7 of the electromagnet 8 to thrust it rearwardly, the forward end 23 of key 16, projecting outside the front wall 24 of the counter (FIG. 1), being of L-shape so that it may be grasped to turn it and then thrust it rearwardly. When the handle 23 of the key 16 lies horizontal, the key is axially blocked by the above mentioned flat spring 12 which has a recess the forward wall 12a of which then bears against the rear end of cam 18 (FIG. 4).

The counting discs 1, 2 are provided with radial projections 25, 26, respectively, which coact with respective switch mechanisms 29, 30. As shown in FIG. 4, the switch mechanism 29 comprises three leaf springs 27 mounted insulated from each other on the housing of the electromagnet 8. The outer free ends of the respective leaf springs (in a direction from left to right in FIG. 4) bear contacts 29a, 29b and 29c. Switch mechanism 30 is of similar construction, and is similarly mounted. The contacts on the outer free ends of the three leaf springs 28 (left to right in FIG. 5) are designated 30a, 30b and 30c, respectively. Except when the projection 25 lies in the position of FIG. 4, the contacts 29a and 29b are in engagement and contacts are open; in switch mechanism 30 the contacts 30a and 30b are in engagement and contacts 30b and 30c are open except when projection 26 lies in the position shown in FIG. 5. Contacts 29a, 29b of switch mechanism 29, are interposed in a circuit for receiving zeroing pulses; contacts 29b and 29c are interposed in a circuit for transferring impulses to a next stage (not shown) of the counter. Contacts 30a, 30b may be interposed in a circuit for controlling a first machine (not shown); contacts 30b and 30c may be interposed in a circuit for controlling a second machine (not shown).

The electroimpulsive decimal counter described above operates as follows:

Current impulses fed to the electromagnet 8 cause a motion of the armature 7, said motion being transferred by means of pawl 6 to the ratchet wheel 5 of the counting member 2, which turns at each motion of the said pawl 6 through 36.degree.. The counting member 1 turns with the counting member 2, since these members are then bound together by the driving elements 10, 11.

As soon as the projection 26 of the counting member 2 touches the corresponding bundle 28 of flat springs of the switching mechanism 30, the corresponding contacts 30b, 30c are closed, whereupon a first electric circuit is closed and a first device such as a relay is brought into action which, e.g., switches off a first associated machine or switches on a mechanism of the machine for performing another operation.

The particular impulse fed to the electromagnet 8, at which said contacts 30 are closed, is predetermined by a so-called preselection or initial adjustment of the counter; in such operation the counter is adjusted into a certain basic position, in which the counter is zeroed.

The zeroing of the counter is performed by means of a source of zeroing impulses (not shown), which is brought into action immediately after closing the electric circuit by contacts 30, 30b, 30c whereupon a certain function of the counter is fulfilled. The zeroing impulses are fed through the closed contacts 29a, 29b of the switch mechanism 29 to the electromagnet 8, by which the armature 7 is normally attracted, and thus the counting member 2 is turned.

Simultaneously with the turning of counting member 2, the counting member 1 is turned, since the latter is still coupled to the counting member 2; the whole system of counting members 1, 2 turns until the projection 25 on the counting member 1 touches the corresponding switch mechanism 29, thus opening the contacts 29a, 29b.

By opening the contacts 29a, 29b the circuit of the electromagnet 8 is opened and further motion of the counter is stopped. At the moment, at which the counter is stopped as above described, the counter is zeroed, whereby a certain basic position of the counter is determined. The adjustment of the preselection, i.e., of the number of impulses, which are to be checked by the counter, is started from such a basic position.

The zeroed position of the counter can be advantageously followed optically on the corresponding counting member 1, the mark or digit on its circumference which corresponds to the position of the counter as described above, appears through a lens 31 on the front side 24 of the counter. At that position of the counter, or the counting member 1, respectively, preselection can be performed; this is usually done by the key 16.

When the key 16 is turned clockwise in the direction of arrow "S" in FIG. 7, the tooth 19 of the cam 18 approaches a tooth 20 which is situated on the hub 15 of the counting member 1. Tooth 20 can be caught up by the said tooth 19 only at the basic position of the counting member (shown in FIG. 2). Upon further turning of the key 16, the tooth 19 by co-operation with tooth 20 thrusts the counting member 1 to the left to disengage it from the counting member 2. This also displaces the flat spring 12, which during the pressing of key 16 maintains the recording member 1 in the disengaged position, even after the tooth 19 of the cam 18 has ceased to engage the tooth 20. The spring 12 remains displaced by the cam 18 of key 16 during the pressing of the key, said cam 18 being beside provided on the side thereof which then engages spring 12 with a blocking surface or a recess 32 which receives the edge of the spring 12 and prevents rotation of the key 16 while it is thrust rearwardly.

Engagement of the upper (FIG. 2) edge of spring 12 in recess 32 retains the spring and member in their left hand positions despite axial withdrawal of cam 19 from projection 20.

When pressing the key 16 axially against the action of spring 21, the free end of the key 16 bears against the armature 7 of the electromagnet 8 and thrusts the armature rearwardly against the electromagnet; such mechanical impulses are transferred by means of members 6,5 to the counting member 2. The number of times that the key 16 is pressed determines the number of (checked) spaces or digits through which the counting member 2 is set ahead from its basic position. This, of course, determines the time at which the contacts 30b, 30c of the switch mechanism 30 will be closed to achieve the required action of the further device.

The number of checked impulses is determined by the digits, or other marks, respectively, with which the counting member 2 is provided; this can be followed, upon performing the preselection operation, through a lens 33 on the front side 24 of the counter.

The number of impulses checked by one counter is limited and is actually given by the number of the separate positions which can be taken up by the counting member 2, when a higher number of checked impulses is desired, separate counters are arranged in series, whereupon their output impulses, as will be explained further, are mutually transferred and added.

Let us assume that, with the last described serially arranged counters, during preselection the number of e.g., ten checked impulses to be taken up by the counter is desired, this being e.g., the capacity of the counting member 2. Upon receiving the tenth impulse, i.e., at the moment at which the two counting members 1 and 2 have turned through 360.degree., the projection 25 of the counting member 1 touches the movable part of the spring bundle 27 of switching mechanism 29; this closes the two contacts 29b, 29c. The tenth impulse is transferred by means of said contacts 29b, 29c to the next series connected counter of the same type, where said impulse may or may not be used directly for performing a certain function of the controlled device (not shown). The next higher stage counter, as mentioned above, records and counts the impulses of higher order; even in this following or next higher stage counter and any further counters preselection can be performed in the same manner as described above, assuming that such following or next higher stage counter are of the same construction as that here described.

Although one preferred embodiment of the invention has been described, it will be understood that modifications may be made within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. An electrically driven decimal counter, comprising two coaxial rotatable counting members, means for drivingly connecting the two members, means for selectively disengaging the two members, means for rotatably stepwise driving a first one of said members and the second member when it is connected to the first member, a first switch mechanism associated with one of the counting members, said first switch mechanism being adapted to transfer impulses to a next higher counter stage and also to receive zeroing impulses, means connected to said one counting member for operating the first switch mechanism, a second switch mechanism associated with the other counting member, said second switch mechanism having contacts adapted to be interposed in at least one auxiliary circuit, means connected to said other counting member for operating the second switch mechanism, the said means for disengaging the two counting members forming a mechanical controlling element for said other counting member, the means for drivingly connecting the two counting members comprising interengaging formations on the confronting faces of the two members, and spring means for yieldingly thrusting the two members toward each other, the means for selectively disengaging the two members comprising means for retracting the second counting member from the first counting member against the opposition of the spring means yieldingly thrusting the members toward each other, the means for retracting the second counting member from the first counting member comprising a radial tooth on the second counting member, and a rotatable key having a cam affixed thereto, said cam being able to engage the tooth to retract second counting member is disposed in one predetermined angular position.

2. A counter according to claim 1, wherein the key has a rod-like part mounted for reciprocation as well as rotation, and comprising means for retaining the second counting member in retracted position when the key is moved axially, and means responsive to axial movement of the key for rotating the first counting member relative to the second counting member.

3. A counter according to claim 2, wherein the means rotatably stepwise driving the first counting member comprises an electromagnet, an armature driven by the magnet, and a ratchet and pawl device drivingly connecting the armature and first counting member, and wherein the rodlike part of the key engages the armature when the key is thrust inwardly, whereby to drive the first counting member relative to the second counting member.

4. A counter according to claim 2, wherein the spring means is a leaf spring, and the means for retaining the second counting member in retracted position comprises a second cam on the key, said second cam engaging the leaf spring in the retracted position of the spring upon turning of the key to retract the second counting member.

5. A counter according to claim 4, wherein the leaf spring extends parallel to the path of reciprocation of the key, and the second cam has a valley therein which receives and retains an edge of the leaf spring when the key is turned to retract the second counting member and thrust axially to move the first counting member relative to the second counting member.