US2373633A - Combination billing and marking machine - Google Patents

Description

Aga'il m 1945. M. sELmN 293739533 COMBINATION BILLING AND MARKING MACHINE Filed Feb. 24. 1941 3 Sheets- Shem l INVENTOR. I I 0K5) 55mm: 13 /Z 1 COMBINATION BILLING AND MARKING MACHINE Filed Feb. 24, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

April 10, 1945.

M. SELDIN COMBIfiATION BILLING AND MARKING MACHINE Filed Feb. 24, 1941 EIH- a ooiooooo l oniooooo IIQVENTOR Mom 3r 55mm.

- TOR/V6753 Patented Apr. 10, 1945 COMBINATION BILLING AND MARKING MACHINE Morey Seldin, Indianapolis, Ind. Application February 24, 1941, Serial No. 380,090;

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a marking system suitable for laundry and dry-cleaning establishments and their affiliated collection agencies.

' In the garment dry-cleaning business, by way of example, the garments to be cleaned and pressed are either picked up at the household by trucks and delivered to pressing establishments or are delivered directly to the cleaning establishments for both cleaning and pressing. Garments also are brought in by the customer to the pressing establishment or the collection and delivery truck of the pressing establishment picks up the garments, as aforesaid. These garments then are sent to the central cleaning station, cleaned-and returned to the pressing establishment, and then are picked up therefrom bythe customer or are delivered by the delivery service of that pressing establishment. Usually threeday service is customarythat is, the clothes left one day are returned in cleaned and pressed condition on the third day.

Each pressing establishment marks the garments either on the pocket of the trousers, the sleeve of the coat, the lining of the vest, or marks a tag which is suitably secured to each garment. The tag indicates the number of pieces to the garment and also the arbitrary number assigned to the garment, as well as the symbol or letter or number of the agency transmitting the garment to the cleaning establishment.

The pressing establishment or the cleaning and pressing establishment makes out the bill to the customer and attaches it to the cleaned garment. This contains the name and address of the owner of the garment r householder or customer, together with a designation of the garment and the price of the service rendered.

It will be quite apparent that with this system of marking that the opportunity for error is many fold and it is a well known fact that the present normal loss in this industry incident to errors in marking by reason of transposition of numbers, data and the like, is'about one-half of one percent.

The present invention, therefore, is directed to the elimination of this error and the impossibility ofmaking the same. and also, is directed to asimplification of the present system of marking garments.

The industry at the present time marks certain garments that are to be cleaned and pressed and returned the same day or in two days with a certain designation. Flor example, regardless of the day sent, Monday is designated as the first 1d the following Tuesday.

' The present invention is directed to a systemof marking which is relatively automatic in a certain sense and which is foolproof, which is expeditious and which is soarranged it can selectively designate the several collection agencies.

The chief object of the invention is to provide a marking system, whereby all the aforesaid disadvantages of the present garment marking systems are eliminated and all of the advantages as hereinafter pointed out are obtained.

The chief feature of the invention consists in providing a marking arrangement operatively interconnected with a manifolding or billing arrangement which upon actuation for or in sheet movement, automatically advances the marking arrangement in accordance with billing arrangement operation and which marking arrangement is manually repetitiously operated, if desired, all without advancing, thereby permitting the clerk 349 to make a complete billing record and of the desired number of copies for all concerned, including the customer, and simultaneously permit the marking of all the garments with the desired legending to prevent loss or mixup of said gar- 35 ments by reason of erroneous marking.

Other objects and features of the invention will be set forth more fully hereinafter.

The full nature of the invention will be undenstood from the accompanying drawings and the .40 following description and claims:

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevational View of one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view thereof.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged side elevation of the garment marking advanceable mechanism, the inking mechanisnnand the manifold device operable connection to the advanceable portion of the marking mechanism; a portion of the inking mechanism and a portion of the manifold device casing being shown in section, dotted lines indicating the retracted position of the actuating ortion of, the inking mechanism, the view being 66 taken on line" 4-4, Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a view of the paper sheet (top perro-' rated type illustrated in Fig. 6).

, Fig. 8 is a similar view of 'a side perforated type of paper sheet.

In the drawings, it indicates an openwork frame having a table or platform H at the top thereof which supports or to which is suitably secured a billing or manifolding device. Herein 12 indicates the outer cover or casing of such a conventional device. Also it indicates the cover exposed portion of the usual manually operable crank of such a device, one oscillation of the crank simultaneously ejecting the several copies of the invoices, the paper for which is normally exposed through the opening it, see i s. 2 and 3, in said cover.. The paper roll supply and the details of the feeding mechanism associated therewith and operable by the handle l3 are intentionally omitted since this billing or manifolding arrangement is of conventional character.

Sufiice to state, however, there is included either as a part of the billing and manifolding arrangement or as an addition thereto, if not provided therein, a wheel 85, see Fig. 1. This wheel is the power source for the advancing of the marking device step by step advanceable portions in accordance with handle operation.

As it is well understood in the billing and manifolding art, one operation of the handle it will simultaneously eject a previously recorded sheet or duplicate sheets exposed through the opening l4 and will position a'second record receiving I sheet arrangement of singular or multiple character for subsequent data reception. The billing paper and the like, usually is serially numbered for each invoice as is well understood in the billing and manifolding art and the number of copies madeare from two to five, or as many as is necessary.

In the present form of the invention, see Fig. l,

. the wheel 35 is provided with an eccentric pin 56. A rod H has one end connected to pin is so that the rod is reciprocated in the usual manner upon oscillation of the eccentric 'pin. The rod opposite end is pivotally connected to one end of a bell crank it pivoted at 19. Every time the handle I3 is actuated, the rod II will be actuated for advancing the marking device step by step ,advanceable portion or portions one number or step.

Reference now will be had more particularly to Figs. 4 and 5. The casing or 'cover I! is extended forwardly as at lid and includes a sight opening 20 and terminates. at 2| forming an numeral 1 of one wheel is positioned for printing at opening 22, thelegend 1" of the same wheel simultaneously is exposed at the sight opening 20. Any suitable number of printing wheels may be utilized and as shown in Fig. 5. The five central wheels are printing wheels operable by the advancing mechanism.

Numbering devices include a plurality of axially aligned wheels, such as 23 in Fig. 4, and coaxial therewith is a ratchet 26. This ratchet is rigid with the"unit wheel so that as the wheel and advances it one-tenth of a revolution.

In turn when'the tens wheel is advanced from 9 to 0 simultaneously with the advance of the units wheel advancing from 9 to 0 the hundreds Wheel is advanced from 0".to' "1 or one-tenth of a revolution. The successive wheels, of which five are illustrated, are similarly advanced. Naturally, when an wheels print 9 an additional advance will rotate all wheels to 0 and this completes the series. Another advance then prints 1 prefixed by the number of naughts equal to the number of wheels less one. Thereupon additional advance repeats the numbering series as described. The actual connections for effecting wheel to wheel advance is not illustrated herein for it is well known in the numbering device art.

and ratchet 26 and is suitably supported and in turn oscillatably supports an arm 21 which is mounted coaxially with said printing wheels. .It

extends toward the bell crank lever l8 and mounts a pin 28 which rides in an elongated slot 29 of said lever l8. Spring 30 is secured at 3| to the free end of arm 21 and terminates at 32 in operative relationship to the ratchet 25; ,gg Whenever the counterclockwise a like amount.

In the clockwise movement of the bell crank IS, the relative stifi spring 3|] is forced downward, see Fig. 4, which causes the ratchet 26 to rotate an amount equal to one tooth only because of the lost motion connection between the bell crank i8 and arm 21. Upon cessation of clockwise tilting of the bell crank, the spring tooth or dog passes over the tip of the next ratchet tooth and seats in the root thereof, as shown in Fig. 4. Therefore, the ratchet and the unit printing wheel is advanced but one number or digit.

The operatorof the manifold device, 'when a I new supply of paper is supplied to the device, observes the number on the invoice then exposed through the opening l8 and then sets the:

printing wheels to accord with that number. In other words, the invoice number and the printing wheel numbers are alike. Then as each invoice is made out and manually ejected and a new invoice sheet is automatically presented for record filing, the printing wheel, or wheels, are advanced so that the number to'be printed always corresponds to the invoice number exposed through the opening 14. It, therefore, will be apparent that these wheels require adjustment or setting for example, only when a new paper supply is made to the billing and The common shaft A'. see Figs. 4, 5 and 5A, is rigid with the units wheel manifolding portion ofthe invention, or when due to the operator's negligence in entering a new supply to the housing,- or when and if a break occurs in the continuous forms when successive forms are serially numbered, that is continned from one supply to the successive supply.

The method of advancing whereby the tens wheel is advanced one number for each revolution of the unit wheel and the means whereby each succeeding wheelthat is, the hundreds, thousands and tens of thousands wheel is advanced one number per each revolution of the adjacent lower order wheel, has been briefly described hereinbefore and an illustration of the carry over mechanism between wheels is intentionally omitted herefrom since this is an old and well known arrangement in a counting mechanism.

It, however, is to be observed the present invention does show a number at 28, see Fig. 5, which is the same number for printing purposes that is exposed at the opening 22. Some record paper is not numbered consecutively for sequentially connected sheets, so that when such paper, in sequentially connected sheet form or in single continuous strip form, is utilized in the manifolding device, the operator each time an invoice is to be made out must look at the number iii. The free end of the treadle includes a foot I operable portion 31. The spring 38; having one end connected to the treadle as at 39 and the other and upper end connected to the frame l8 as at '38, normally holds the treadle in elevated relation as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Depending from the treadle is a tail portion .M and associated therewith is an apertured plate resting on the upper end of a cushion structure 43 in the form of a coil spring, the

purpose of which will be hereinafter set forth. An anchoring eye portion 44 on treadle 35 and located within the frame but adjacent the foot operable portion 3! is pivotally connected as at 45 to an adjustable connection carried by the lower end of the connecting rod or pull bar 41, the upper end of which is pivoted as at 48.

to a lever 49, in turn pivoted at 58 upon an inwardly directed boss 5| of the frame I8.

The lever 49 extends rearwardly from its pivoted connection to the rod and terminates in a bearing of eyelet character and indicated by the numeral 52. Slidably and rockably mounted in said bearing is a connecting rod 53 which, above the bearing, adjustably mounts a stop member 54. The lower, end of the rod 53 is provided with a pair of nuts 55 for adjusting the tension of a concentric spring 56. This spring normally tends to pull down on the rod 58 by hearing against the underface of the eye- -let portion 52. The upper end of the rod 53 is pivotally connected as at 51 to one arm of a bell-crank 58 pivotally mounted as at59, see Fig. 1, upon a bracket portionlfl', see Fig. 4, on the frame I 8 and immediately below the table portion H as shown.

' The forwardly directed end 60 of the lever 49,

brush roll always will clear the inking pad 78, as

rod 82.

pivoted at 58 on the frame it as aforesaid, is slidably associated by its angular end bl with a push This push rod at its lower free end mounts an adjustable stop 58 below end BI and thereabove in spaced relation on rod 62 is an adjustable stop 64. Concentric ,with this push rod between'the stop 84 and the lever end portion 8! is the cushion spring 65. The lower end of the spring 55 bears against a member 66 carried by rod 52. The upper end of the push rod 82 includes an adjustable connection as at 67 with a member 88.

Reference now will be had more particularly to Figs. 4 and 5 wherein-the member 68, the upper ends of the connecting rods 53 and 62 of the previously described structures are illustrated. Between these two rods there is rigidly mounted upon the frame ID the housing and bracket arrangement 18 having a pair of spaced forwardly directed wings ll closed by an end plate 12 constituting a tubular guide for aplunger l3 pivotally connected at its lower end as at M to the aforesaid member 58. The upper end of this plunger is laterally enlarged as at T5 and thereon is mounted a pressing member 16, as shown in Fig. 4. 'i5l6 indicate the platen and 16a a tag or material or garment guard, preventing such tag, material or garment from extending inwardly toward the ink pad in an amount sufficient to have engagement.

Adjacent the reciprocable plunger and platen (ES-i5 respectively) there is mounted a yielding retainer structure Ti which mounts an inking pad it normally constrained upwardly by the spring 39. This inking pad is longitudinally received by the retainer arrangement 11 and the pad face is exposed upwardly. The other arm of the bell crank 58 extends upwardly as indicated in Fig. 4 and is operatively associated with a cleaning and inking structure by means of an elongated, longitudinal slot M in the upper end of member 80 and in which is mounted a transverse connecting member 82 supported by a carriage structure for reciprocation thereof.

This transverse connecting member 82 connects two side members 83 together at their rearward ends. These two members 83 in effect constitute channel members as indicated at 84 in Fig.

5, and the two oppositely and outwardly directed channels slide on the tongues 86 which are in-- wardly directed and are carried by frame portions 81 integral with or rigid with the entire bracket structure 10, previously described and shown most clearly in Fig. 4. The forward ends of members mounts a cylindrical brush 89. This is for type. cleaning purposes.

This brush is smaller than the inking roll 98 carried by the shaft 9i which forms one forward connection between the two members 83. The shaft 88 is mounted in a plane above that of the shaft 5| so that the smaller shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 4, when the ink ing roll andthe brush roll are retracted into dotted line position, which is the position corresponding to when the printed impression or record is made and the inking roll 98 is to be reinked.

The forward end 'of this carriage structure mounts a guard 92 and the purpose thereof is to prevent any garment or record arrangement from "accidentally contacting the inking roll during the lines Fig. 4, and thus completely blocks ed the inking mechanism from the garment, etc., subsequently inserted at opening 22 between the printing wheels and platen, the latter elevating the garment to the wheel for printing.

Observe that when the platen is in the normal, lowered, or retracted position, guard 16a. thereof does not project sufilciently high to interfere either with roll 90 or guard 92 passing thereover for reinking and protection purposes. The curvature of portion We also is such, that as plunger 13 is elevated, it will clear the forward face of guard 92 when the latter is retracted for roll reinking and printing purposes.

When the carriage structure is fully retracted, it will be noted the rearward end 83a of the same engages the stop 93 which stop in effect is an angle member, as shown also in Fig. 1. When the carriage is retracted, the platen I3'I5 with the face 76 thereon is projected upwardly. Any garment or record receiving slip, tag, or the'like, which then is on the platen, will be legended with the number set up on the several printing wheels. Referring more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, it will be noted that upon initial depression of the treadle 35 by foot engagement at 31, there isno compression of cushion 413 until predetermined lowering movement of thetreadle occurs. ing this initial movement of the treadle the lever arm 39 moves downwardly and counterclockwise, see Fig. 1, and the lever arm forward portion 60 and end 6 I moves upwardly counterclockwise.

During this initial movement of treadle 37, it will be observed that lever 60 does not engage the member '66 on rod 62 and hence the platen is not elevated. On the initial lowering movement of the arm 49, the Spring 56 is compressed which pulls down on the rod 53 to rotate the bell crank 58 counterclockwise, which tends to draw the carriage rearwardly into stop 93 engagement.

In this particular travel, see Fig. 4, it will be noted that the brush 89 engages the printing portion 24 of the wheels 23 to clean same and then the inking roller 90 follows and inks that printing Dur-- platen pressure force against printing portion 26 v will not be sufiicient to perforate the garment by portion 24. So that, when the carriage is reriage movement is effected. I I

It will be noted that the time cycle of operation is such that no printing record can be made while the carriage is projected forwardly because then the guard 92 prevents presentation of the garment tag, or the like to the record making elements. Also, it will be noted there is no interference between the platen and the carriage movements as well as between the pad and carrlage.

It will be noted the force of the spring 65 may be so adjusted by adjusting stop 64 so that only a'printing impression will be obtained and the Reference now will be had more particularly to Fig. 5. In the upper portion of this figure, it

will be recalled that there are five number wheels 23 illustrated and that to the left thereof two additional wheels I00 and IM are illustrated. To the right thereof two additional wheels I and I5I are illustrated. These are mounted coaxially wtih the number wheels and are similar thereto for printing purposes.

Wheel IOI has rigid connection with a shaft arrangement I02 having the outer hand wheel I03 thereon and wheel I00 has rigid connection with an encircling shaft portion ms, the outer end of which supports a hand wheel portion I05. Shaft I04 is rotatably supported in stationary portion IZa and the casing is recessed at I2b to nest the hand wheels I03 and I05, same being of dissimilar diameter to facilitate selective manual engagement.

' In like manner, wheel I50 is rigid with the shaft I52 and the outer end thereof mounts the hand wheel I53. The wheellSI is rigid with an ene:

longitudinally of each other and are exposed inv theopposite indented portion IZb of the casing I2 and the forward extension I2a thereof, as shown in Fig.5. The purpose of these four wheels is as follows: I

Hand wheel or knurled knob I58 controls wheel I50 and determines the position of the same. It may be manually adjusted, as desired, such adjustment being observed through the sight opening 20, since the wheels are of the same simul- I I taneous printing and indicating character as the printing wheels 23. In like manner, the knurled In this continued lowering movement of the treadle 35 and now in opposition to the cushion 43, the lever arm 60 end Siengages member 56 slidable on rod 62 and carried by the spring 65 and since the stop on member 62 is rigid there with, spring 65 is compressed and the platen la-4t is elevated but such elevation is of course subsequent to carriage withdrawal. Any garment placed on the platen 16 or any tag, ticket or the like, will, when the .treadle 35 is depressed sumciently, be printed. Upon release of the treadle,

' the platen is retracted or lowered and the garment is removed andthen the carriage is proiected forwardly for wheel cleaning and inking.

hand wheel I55 adjusts the position of the wheel I5I, hand wheel I05 adjusts wheel I00 and hand to '7 need only be used.

Normally this setting is not changedfor a long run, for example, all work received one day would b marked for delivery on a laterpredetermined date. Should a garment be specially expedited naturally an earlier date would be set up on the wheel, the garment or tag printed-jand the pre-- vious wheel setting restored.

asvacss it also will be remembered that each driver of the delivery truck or of the establishment which collects the garments and presses the cleaned garmentswill have a number and this number may be set up in the left hand portion with respect to wheels I and iii! If the routes are numbered and there are no more than nine and each route has no more than nine pressing stations or establishments, then the first wheel illl can be used to designate the route and the second wheel llll'l can be used to designate the pressing station or establishment.

If each pressing establishment, as distinguished from the master cleaning station, is provided with a marking and billing device of this character, the operating attendant will, when making out the master invoice to the customer, designate the number of the route by which the pressing establishment is served from the master station and the allocated number of that pressing establishment and also the date the goods are to be returned or delivered to the customer together with the customers number as shown on the invoice made contemporaneously.

It will be apparent under these circumstances that the left hand wheels require no adjustment as long as the several pressing establishments is but one driver for each division and the driver so designates, can be utilized to indicate whether account is a cash or charge account.

The operator of the marking device, as stated, makes out the bill, which is a, complete itemization of all garments, for any one customer and all the garments for that customer may be marked either directly on the garment, ii possible, or upon linen tags, pinned or clipped-to the garment, regardless of the number of garments. Then when a succeeding customers garments are to be invoiced, the first customers billing is ejected, the number is automatically advanced and the bill sheet is automatically advanced to correspond. Then the garments of the second customer are marked accordingly and the second customer's invoice prepared. Shaft 252 is rotated step bystep manually if desired, or in any other manner conventional to the manifolding art.

In Fig. 6 there is illustrated a modified form of power or automatic advancing arrangement. In general use today is a billing sheet arrang ment, see Fig. 7, with a plurality of holes at ill near the top of the sheet for filing purposes. The sheets are sequentially connected together and progressively exposed at opening it in cover 2 for data reception.

are not renumbered or the routes are not renum- I bered, and the invoices are made out at the pressing establishment instead of at the central cleaning plant. Naturally the garment, etc., is ink marked at the same time as described aforesaid when the invoice is made out.

The two wheels ltd-45! to the right are adjusted each day for the customary delivery date but in special cases for web work these wheels may be manually readjusted to indicate rush work. Following marking of the rush work garmerits, these wheels are readjusted for the conventional delivery date then being utilized. Such adjustment does not affect the series numbering.

This manual adjustment of wheels ,iEfi-itl may be made for rushing any one of a number of garments ii" a number of garments be presented by the same customer and then the readjustment of said wheels can be made to designate normal working, 'all without any advance of the printing wheels.

It is only when the complete invoice is made up and the invoice is discharged from the manifolding device that the advance automatically occurs to bring up another number for the next customer but this does not disturb the settings of the four wheelsiflaiiii, i511 andlii.

Insofar as the central cleaning and pressing establishments use of the invention is concerned, if it is assumed that the area served by the same is divided into not to exceed nine division and that certain delivery trucks operate in each di- 4 vision, then when the drivers bring in garments which they have collected at the households, each garment or group of garments, will have attached thereto a memorandum as to the number of garmerits, name and address of the customer, the work to be performed, and when the same is to be delivered.

The marking operator and bookkeeper at such central cleaning and pressing establishment then sets up the territorial division and driver's number and runs through all the garments brought in by that driver, giving to each customer a definite number, as before stated, insofar as the garments are concerned, making the wheel shift for the delivery date in question, if necessary for. special work. One of the right hand wheels, if there In the form of the invention illustrated in Fig. the paper is understood to be side edge perforated, this being a patented paper, see Fig. 8 for a simplified disclosure thereof. When handle 13 is actuated, the paper is fed and digit wheel advance automatically follows.

In the manifolding device of the general form, of which Fig. 6 is but a partial representation, it will be observed that A designates the paper sheeting of any number of thicknesses required by the number of copies desired, the same passing around a driving roll H5 having a plurality of diametrically opposed pins H511 thereon to seat in holes'provided near the top of the sheet A, see also Fig. 7, the holes being designated by the letter C and the semi-separation between the sheets being designated, by the letter B.

A. sprocket chain indicated at 250 is engaged with a sprocket wheel 256 rigid with the shaft 252 of the paper feeding drum lit. A crank handle on a casing exposed end of shaft 252 will insure form (paper) advanceor other hand drive will suii'ice.

of the manifolding device to the extent of a single manifolding sheet or ticket, the same usually being sequentially numbered although such numbering is not necessarily essential for reasons previously assigned.

In the present form of the invention, the lever H8 of hell or angle type is pivoted as at H9 on a stationary part of the manifolding device, and not shown, and a spring H1 normally constrains the lever in counterclockwise tilted relation so that it bears against a stop Illa carried by a stationary part of the device and not shown. Spring in. has one end, not shown, secured to a stationary part of the device, also not shown, and the other end is secured at H811 tothe actuated arm portion of bell crank lever H8. The forward v and lower end of the lever i8 is identical to the forward and lower end of lever 18 shown in Fig. 4 and is similarly associated with the advancing and printing wheels 23 in the same, manner as lever 58 and wheels 23 are shown associated in It will be apparent, therefore, thatfor each- Fig. 4, although any other form of power transfer device may be utilized to secure step-by-step advance of the units digit wheel 23 whenever an additionally numbered manifold sheet is presented for date reception at opening it in the manifolding device proper.

Herein the drum H5 preferably midway be= tween the paper hole seating pins 5a. is provided with two longitudinally extending pins H6. Whenever the sprocket chain 250 is actuated for paper feeding, each of the pins H6 for each half revolution of the drum and midway between said half revolution picks up the free and upper end of the lever H8 and tilts the lever clockwise and downwardly, and in the continued movement of the drum to complete the half revolution the then lever engaged pick-up pin H6 or power element permits the lever l l8 to escape from such engagement which releases it to its constraint ill to cause the lever I it to return to the position where it engages the stop 5 Ila, thus returning the lever to its original or idle position. In this clockwise tilting of lever N8, the unit wheel I 23 of the number wheels is advanced in the same manner as wheel 23 in Fig. 4 is advanced.

It is briefly pointed out that should the operator slightly underfeed or overfeed any particular sheet, which is quite possible, the position of the pins M6 on the feeding drum is such that number wheel advance only occurs at the middle of the feeding movement of the sheet. Therefore such possible and customary under or overfeeding of the sheet has no efiec't on the advancing operation. In other words, there must be a feeding of more than half a sheet or substantially com- 1.. plete feeding of a sheet before number wheel advance automatically occurs.

The two embodiments of the invention herein described, it is believed, include the entire range of present standard manifold sheeting applications, the two types generally being the paper side edge perforated type and the top perforated type. the latter perforationsbeing for subsequent binding purposes, as aforesaid.

In Figs. 6 and 7 the top edge perforated sheet A is separable by tearing along lines Band has top perforations C. In Fig. 8 the sheet A is separable by tearing along lines B and has side perforations C These are available for subsequent binding purposes.

While the invention has been illustrated and describedv in great detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character.

The modifications illustrated herein as well as others which will readily suggest themselves to persons. skilled in this art, are considered to be within the broad scope of the invention, reference being had to the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a combined manifolding and marking machine, the combination of means for advancing step-by-step consecutively numbered forms, similarly numbered, step-by-step advanceable printing wheels, a printing platen therefor. means for effecting pressure movement between the platen and wheels for number printing,.and means inter-connecting the step-by-step advancing means and the printing wheels-for corresponding advance of the latter in accordance with the form advance and the form number.

2. Structure as defined by claim 1 wherein the pressure movement efiecting means is discrete from said interconnecting means whereby repetitious printing may be efiected while the number remains unchanged and the form remains stationary.

3. Structure as defined by claim 1 wherein the interconnecting means includes a bell crank rockable for each form advance, an oscillating arm having an axis coincident with the wheel axis, a ratchet coaxial therewith and connected to a-wheel for step advance thereof, pawl means carried by the arm and oscillatable therewith and having engagement with the ratchet for step advance thereof for each oscillation of said arm,

"and means operatively connecting said bell crank and arm for ratchet advance with form advance.

MOREY SHJDIN.

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