US1653843A - Synchronizing mechanism - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 27, 1927.

T. L. DOWEY SYNCHRONIZING MECHANISM WMM/ry Patented l1927-.

UNITED sTATEsPATENT OFFICE. c

THMAS 'L DOTFEY, 0F NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR lT0 WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, IN CORPOEATED.' 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK.

sYNcHnoNIzING' mncmrsm.

Application led October 16,1924. Serial No. 743,918.

This invention relates to tallring moving picture machines and more partlcularly to a mechanism used in such machines for changing the relativeposition of the film record with respect to the sound record.

The object of this invention is to provide a synchronizing mechanism which will beA efficient, cheap to manufacture and wherein the ilm record may be moved in synchromsm with an associated sound record in a simple and positive manner. l

A feature of the invention is to rovide means adapted to be moved in operab e relation with a gear reversing mechanism for imparting a relativey movement to a film record with respect to an associated sound vrecord in two direct-ions. v

Another' feature is the provision of means whereby the film record is moved sequential ly in synchronism with the sound record.

Another. feature is the provision of means whereby a `lnormally ineffective rotatable member is moved in position to cause the operation ofa Cgear reversing mechanism a dis- Y tance define able member.

Another feature is the provision of means -whereby the gear reversing mechanism is caused to move an angular distance correp-:lnding to the length of a picture on the Other features of invention 'and advanby the movement of the rotattages will appear from the following de- .The synchronizing mechanism shown in A Fig. 1 consists of a driving shaft 10 to which a phonograph record (not shown) may be rotatably connected in anysuitable manner.

This shaft is journaled on bearings 34 and 35 formed integrally with the bracket 26. The pinions 11 and 12 are loosel mounted on shaft 10 and are each provi ed with a toothed clutch portion 13 and 14 disposedin operable relation with clutchportions 15 and 16 with which they are respectively aslsociated. 'The clutches 15 and 16 are s1id.

ably keyed on shaft 10 and are each provided with a forked lever 8 and 9 which are provided for moving them in and out of engagement from the clutches 13 and 14` through the operation of a mechanism that will be hereinafter described. Meshing with pinions 11 and 12 there is provided a inion on one end portion of shaft 21 which is vrotatably mounted in bearing 37 and carries at its opposite end a worm screw 22 disposed in-` operable relation with worm gear 23. This worm gear is securelyv attached to a housing 24' journaled on one end portion of the coaXially disposed shafts 10 and 25 and is provided for housing the diferentialmech'- anism D. M. shown in Fig. 1.

The shaft 25 is journaled in the upper portionof bracket 26 and carries at one end portion a bevel gear 28 which forms part of a differential `mechanism, the function of which will be presently described. The other end of shaft 25 may be operatively connected to any well known type of moving picture 'machine, the picture lfilm of which is to be brought in synchronism'wit-h a sound record which maybe directly connected to the shaft 10. The differential mechanism D. M. generally consists of two beveled gears 27 and 28 r1gid1 secured on the adjacent end portions of s afts 10 and 25 respectively. Each of these gears meshes with two planetary gears 29 and 30 which are freely mounted on studs 31 and 32 se-` cured tothe housing 24.

Levers 8 and 9 are associated with cams 36 and 37 which are adapted for controlling the operation of clutches 15 and 16 respec tively. Cam 37 is rigidly fastened on a. rotatable shaft 38 which may be journaled in any suitable'bearings (not shown). On one end portion lof shaft 38 there is loosely ioo mounted a pinion 39 which meshes with gear 40 secured on the housing 24. This pinion has a toothed clutch portion 41 which engages a toothed c'lutch member 42 keyed on the shaft 38 and held in operable relation with the clutch portion 41 by means of a coil spring 43, which has one end portion in abutment with the collar 44.' On the other end of shaft 38 there is freely mounted a toothed clutch member 45 with which a toothed clutch member 46 is held in operable relation by meansy of coi'l spring 47 which has onel end portion in abutment with the collar 48. Lever 9 and the clutch 16 are normally held in a non-operated position by means of spring 53 which holds the roller 51 in the recess 49 of cam 37 as shown in Figs. -1 and 2. On the clutch member 45 there is securely mounted a handle member 55 adapted to impart a small angular movement to the cam shaft 38 for a purpose that will be hereinafter described.

Similarly, the cam 36 is mounted on the rotatable shaft 56 which is supported and operable in the same manner asthe shaft 38, it being sufficient to state for its operation that the toothed clutch members 57, 58, 59 and 60 carried thereby are made effective in a direction opposite the corresponding clutch members 45, 46, 42 and 41 on shaft 38. The handle levers 61 and 55 are each held in normal non-operative positions against the' stops 62 and 63 by means of their respectively associated springs 64 and 65, shown in f Fig. 2. i

'Ihe operation of the synchronizing device is as follows:

Supposing that the shaft 10 rotates in a counter clockwise direction as indicated by the arrow, the shaft 25 is obviously rotated in a clockwise direction through the differential mechanism D. M. which as stated above includes the bevel gears 27, 28 and planetary gears 29 and 30. VSupposing that it is necessary to move the picture record in synchronism with the sound record -or in other wordsI to change the relative position of Shaft 25 with respect to shaft 10, the handle lever 55, for example, is moved into the position indicated by the dotted liney showny in Fig. 2, against the resistance of retracting spring 65. The movement of handle lever 55 and the toothed clutch 45v in operable relation with its associated clutch -portion 46, rotates the shaft 38 and the cam 37 carried thereby, distance. The movement of cam 37 moves the lever 9 and the continuously driving clutch 16 in operable relation withA the toothed clutch portion 14 of pinion 12.

Pinion 12 is then rotated in the direction ofthedriving shaft 10, which in turn rotates the pinion 17 and the gear 19 in the direction indicated by the arrow. I its movement to gear 20, which in turn,

a small angular Gear 19 transmits 'rotates the housing 24 and the planetary gears 29 and 30 carried thereby in a clockwise direction through `the movement of worm 22 in operable relation with worm gear 23. IVhile the housing is rotated, pinion 27 performs the function of a rack for planetary the relative position of shaft 25 with respect to shaft 10 by advancing the shaft 25, an angular distance equal to twice the movement of housing 24.

The spur gear 40 carried by the housing 24, rotates the pinion 39 which through its engagement with the toothed clutch member 42 keyed on the shaft 38 rotates the Cam 37 until the recess 49 of the cam registers with roller 51 of lever 9 where clutch 16 is disconnected from the tooth portion of pinion 12 through the action of retracting spring 53 thus limiting the angular movement of housing 24 and the relative movement of the shaft 25 with respect to the shaft-10. The lever 55 is returned to its normal position by means of retracting spring 65.

It is obvious that by moving the' clutch 15 in operable relation with the toothed clutch member 13 of pinion 11, the direction of .movement of housing 24 and shaft 25 will thereby he reversed and operated in the same manner as already described for shaft 38. For this reason, it is not thought necessary to explain further the operation of this part of the synchronizing mechanism.

What is claimed is:

1. In a synchronizing mechanism, a driven shaft, a drivingl shaft, a gear reversing mechanism, a pair of independently operable clutches mounted on said driving shaft for actuating said reversing mechanism and a differential mechanism actuated'by said neversing mechanism for changing the relative position of said driven shaft with respect to said driving shaft. Y

2. In a synchronizing mechanism, a driven and driving shaft, a gear reversing mechanism mounted on one of said shafts, a dil'- ferential mechanism actuated by said gear reversing mechanism for changing the relative position of said shafts, and means coin- 1 prising cam shafts, operated by the movement of the differential, and a plurality of levers for controlling the relative angular movement of said shafts.

3. In a synchronizing mechanism, a driven shaft, a driving shaft, a connection between said driving and driven shafts, one set of means cooperating with' the connection for advancing the rotation of, one of said shafts relative to the otherl and a second set of means for retarding the rotation of one of said shafts relative to the other and automatically operable means in each set of advancing and retarding means for limiting the extent of the relative movements.

gears 29 and 30 which change nection between the housing andthe camshafts, clutch shifting leversoperating from the cam shafts to shift the clutch members into engagement with the loose pinion gears, a set of gears to carrymovenient of the loose pinion gears to the connection between the driving and driven shafts and move the housing enclosing the shaft and pinion gears and cause movement ,of the driven shaft with respect to the driving shaft as defined by the extent of movement of the cam shafts.

5. In asynchronizing mechanism for talking moving picture machines, driving and driven shafts, a dierential mechanism for coupling said shafts, a housing enclosing the differential mechanisln, a normally ineffective gear reversing mechanism carried by the driving shaft, cam. shafts, a gear connection between the housing and the cam shafts, levers operating from the cam shafts 'to bringt-he gear reversing mechanism into operation, a gear connection between the gear reversing mechanism and the said differential mechanism to impart movement to the differential gear housing and 'to the driven shaft relative to movement of the driving shaft to a degree defined by extent of movement of the cam shafts.

6. In a synchronizing mechanism for talking moving picture machines, driving and driven shafts, a differential mechanism` for coupling said shafts, a housing enclosing the diderential mechanism, normally ineffective gear changing mechanism carried by the driving shaft, a gear connection between the gear changing mechanism and the said differential housing, cam shafts, a gear connection between the cam-shafts and the differential housing, lever arms from the cam shafts to the gear changing -mechanism to bring the gear changing mechanism into operation to transmit motion of the driving shaft to the differential housing and to l change the speed of rotation of the driven shaft with respectto thev driving shaft; and

manually operable clutches to rotate the cam shafts and predetermine the d1stance the cam shafts will rotate under` the power -transmitted toI them through the gear connection between the differential housing and the camshafts. s v

7. In a synchronizing mechanism, the combination of adriving and a driven shaft, va differential mechanism for coupling said shafts, a normally ineffective mechanism for actuating said differential to impart a relative advance movement to said driven shaft with respect to said driving shaft, anda normally ineffective mechanism for actuating said differential to decrease the velocity of said driven shaft with respect to said driving shaft, separate means for each of the normally` ineffective mechanisms to render each ofthe mechanisms eifectlve, and auto- ;matic means separate for each of said normally ineffective mechanisms vfor controlling the effective movement of each :of said normally ineffective mechanisms.

`8. In a synchronizing mechanism, continuously rotating driving and driven shafts, a normally ineective gear train associated 'with said driven shaft,'cam shafts, and manbers for moving said clutch-'members for causing the operation of said vgear mecha- .nism for changing the position of said driven shaft with respect to said driving shaft in directions defined by said;` means.`

10. In a synchronizing mechanism, the combination of driving and driven shafts, a gear train normally ineffective with respect to said driven shaft, clutch members associated with said gear train and rotating with said driving shaft, mechanism individual to each of said clutch members for moving each of -said clutch members in position to render said gear train effective with respect to said driven shaft, and means individual to each of said clutch members operable for controllin the effective movement of said gear train to impart a limited relative movement to said driven shaft with respect to said driving shaft. A

11. In a synchronizing mechanism, the combination of driving and driven shafts, a

gear reversing mechanism associated with said driving shaft and normally ineffective with respect to said driven shaft, a pair of clutch members carried by said driving shaft of said clutch members into engagement with A v said gear reversing mechanism for causing nn advance movement of said driven shaft v with respectto said driving shaft, manually operable menneI for in'lparting :t preliminary angular movement to the other of Saul Shafts to bring the other of said clutch members of said driven shaft, and indented portions on said 'cams Yfor limiting the advance and reverse-movements of Said driven Shaft. l* In Witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my naine this 10th day of October, A. D.,

THOMAS L. DOWEY.

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