US2533877A - Radio time tuning device - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 12, 1950 cf- 2,533,877

RADIO TIME TUNING DEVICE Filed April 1, 1946 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Z5 AINTHONY OHIKAN BY [3 2/ Z3 Z5 Z/ 22 2a Z3 2 26 W Z4 7 M r w 1 A ORNEY Dec. 12, 1950 A. CHIKAN 7 2,533,877

RADIO TIME TUNING DEVICE Filed April 1 1946 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 K \i k Z INVENTOR ANTHONY GHIKAN ALMA.

ATTO R N EY Dec. 12, 1950 A. CHIKAN 2,533,877

VRADIO 'IVIME TUNING DEVICE Filed ApIil 1, 1946 s Sheets-Sheet s INVENTOR ANTHONY CHI KAN Patented Dec. 12, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RADIO TIME TUNING DEVICE Anthony Chikan, New York, N. Y. 7 Application April 1, 1946, Serial No. 658,613

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in radio devices and has particular reference to a time-controlled switching device for radio sets.

An object of the invention is to provide a simple, eflicient, easily operated, economically manufactured device whereby at any suitable intervals throughout the day any one or more stations may be selected to be automatically tuned in as desired and permit the settings or selections to be made in advance for the full twenty-four hours.

A further object is to provide a device in which set switches will, when they make contact, cause the operation of solenoids to actuate tuning devices or buttons or the like on the radio sets.

A still further object is to provide a device wherein although a station switch may be set, the radio may be turned on or off regardless of the setting of the time switch. I

Further and more specific objects, features, and advantages will more clearly appear from a consideration of the specification hereinafter set forth especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a present preferred form which the invention may assume and which form part of the specification.

Briefly, and in the most general terms, the invention concerns the combinationwith a clock mechanism having a dial, of an annular disk or plate surrounding the dial and a sweep arm actuated by the clock. The disk has for each radio station involved a ring of manually operable switch levers arranged in a circle around the dial and positioned at regular circumferential intervals therearound such as represented by every fifteen minutes. Each manually operable lever when actuated depresses a contact plunger which is adapted when thus positioned to engage with a contact on the clock-operated sweep or switch arm disposed below the disk to make contact and establish a circuit to a relay or solenoid which, thus energized, will operate an arm on the radio set or push a button to bring in the desired station at that particular time. Since each station has a ring of operable elements at every interval, they can be set to keep that station on the air all day, if desired. On the other hand, as many station rings can be provided with switch levers as the radio set has push buttons by which to bring the stations in and, therefore, any desired sequence of stations throughout the twenty-four hours may be selected.

Another feature of the invention is to provide with each radial line of switch levers an On switch lever and an Oil lever so that when any station is picked to be tuned in at a given time, the On button is operated to turn on the power to the set at the same time. If the Off button is operated, however, no station will be tuned in even though the selector switches have been set for that time and that station. I

The present preferred form which the invention may assume is shown in the drawings, of which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the device.

Fig. 2 is a partial vertical section through the selector disk and selector switches.

Fig. 3 is a partial inverted plan view of the device.

Fig. 4 is a partial vertical section through the clock, the selector disk and the rotating switch arm.

Fig. 5 is a detail of the contact device drawn to an enlarged scale.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a detail of the manually operable switch element.

Fig. '7 is a circuit diagram of the device.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged partial elevation of the operated solenoids.

The preferred present form which the inven tion may assume is shown in the drawings and includes a clock mechanism I0 having a clock face I l marked in the usual manner. The hour hand shaft [2 has connected thereto at the bottom a switch or sweep arm l3 having a counterweight I311 and which rotates with the hour hand within a casing l4 and beneath a thick cover plate or disk l5 in which the clock mechanism in is also housed, as shown in Fig, 4.

The cover plate or disk is provided with a series of bores such as 16, in which are slidable contact blocks or plungers I'l. These bores. are arranged in radial rows, as shown in Fig. 1, and these rows are disposed at regular intervals radially of the clock dial, as for example, in Fig. 1, for clarity on the drawing, the interval is every half hour, though, obviously, the 15-minute interval would preferably be used. Any particular bore in any particular radial row is only one of a series of bores, therefor, disposed in a circle at a given radius from the center of the clock. Therefore, the circular rows of bores represent each a different radio station and the separate bores in each circle represent the periods of times at which said station can be tuned in if the power is on. The two outer rings of bores are for "On and Off switches as will be explained later.

Pivoted on the cover plate over each bore I6 is a manually operated switch lever IS in the form of an arm, the upper end of which extends above the cover plate or block it to be manipulated by the finger, and the lower end of which bears on the top of contact block or plunger I I. The plungers are normally held up in the bores l6 by means of springs l9 disposed between the top of the plungers and the top plate 20 of the block l5. As shown in the Fig. 2, when the levers I8 are in one position, the plunger is pulled up but when they are moved to the other position, then the lever ends thereof force the plungers down. The lower faces of the plungers or contact elements are provided with metallic contact pieces 2| which are preferably formed with a cam face or slope and when depressed, will lie in the path of raised contact pieces or projectionsv 22 disposed on the rotating switcharm l3 beneath each radial bore as the arm rotates so as tomake contact between these two metallic elements and thus close a circuit in which they are disposed. It will be understood. that the contact elements 2 22- are so adjusted that they'remain incontact for the shortest-possible time to reduce the heat generated in the solenoid. To this end, the rearward side. of thecon-tact 2t is formed with an offset it to allow for a quick break between the contacts 2l-22'. Itwill be seen in Fig. 2', that: each contact piece 22 on the arm I3 is connected. by a wire 23 with. a common conductor 24 running along beneath the arm 13. To con-- ductor 24 may be secured coil spring 24a which rides in contact-terminalMb to which is secured lead 240 from the powersource. The contact piece 2 on the bottom. of each plunger is connected by a conducting pig tail 25 to a circular wire 26:. In other words, each contact. piece2l in-a circular. row of plungers is connected by its pig tail to the common circuit wire 26 which. is. connected to'aprcper solenoid- 28- to operate the proper push button on the radio set.

A'sshown in- Fig. the contact block i! may engage the contact piece on the radial rotating arm 13 and this is shown in this figureto be a turned up-lip 22' of flexible metal. As shown in Fig. 6, the manually operable switch levers Iii The two outer circular wires 26-are connected to wires 3i and til'which lead to oppositely dis posed coils 33 and of plunger solenoids which: in a well-known manner can respectively operate the On and Off switch 35 of the ra'dio'setv Itwill beobvious froman inspection of thisfigure that when the switch arm i3 is rotated by the clock sliaft, it will move its contacts slowly around and they willrespectivelycontact with any contactpieces on blocks i? which may have'beenmoved" down by the manipulation of theswitch: levers l8. The current will travel. from one side of the line through the wire 2%: to a:' contact piece 22, thence: through the contact piece 21 which may be dtspressedthrough its wires 25 to" the common wire 26, through the respective to the coils solenoid 28 and then back to the other side of the line. At the same time, the radio set is placed in On or Off condition for any given position of the rotating arm l3 by means of the two outer switch levers IS in each radial row of such ele ments. These may be operated to energize either one of the solenoids 33 and 34 to either open or close the switch 35 to the radio set. Therefore, it is apparent that no matter how many of the levers H! are operated to depress their respective plun-gers I1, and although theraidio set may thus be tuned to a particular station, the station will not come in unless the switch lever l8 marked On has been operated to place the power of the line on' the set.

Thus, it can be observed that one can set the manually operated levers l8 for every interval during the entire twenty-four hours if that is the desire, and can also determine whether for any of these settings the set will come On by determining the position of the On and Off" switches for each radial column representing each interval of time. Of course, the cover plate 26 of the block or disc l5 can be suitably marked ason the raised annuli ll to denote the various radio stations represented by each circular series manual devices and the number of each time interval may be marked thereon for convenience.'

Whilethe inventionhas been described as applying to a radio set, it will be understood that the various circles of switch levers I 8 may bei rogular preselected times, and for predetermined intervals; iti's merely necessary to add additional circles of switch levers l8 for that purpose, and

corresponding solenoids, as for example to operate' a phonograph, or a perfume sprayer, or an air humidifier, etc., at different times for definiteintervals.

While the invention has been described in detail and with respect to present preferred forms which it may assume-itis not to be limited to such details and forms since many changes and modifications-may be made in theinvention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest aspects. Hence, itis desired toc'ove'r any andall forms and modifica tions of the=inventior1 which may come within t'he language or" scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters" Patent is:

A radiotiine' tuning device adapted foruse'in' association with a radio receiver having push button-tuners'for a'plurality'ofstation's and comprising a time clock having a dial, a circular block disposed therearound', said block having a pluralityofrows of radially disposed bores-there inand disposed at suitabletime intervals around the-dial, a spring'retracted non-metallic plunger slidably positionedi'n each saidbore, amanually operable cam leveracoessible from the top oi theblo'ck" and pivoted in each bore in a position to depress it'scorr'esponding plunger agai nst the tension of its spring, and to hold the plunger'in' said position until I manually released, an electric contact element on the lower face of each plunger, the forward s'ide ofsaid contact being beveled. as a cam and it's rearward side being: sharply offset to provide for a quick electrical circuit break, an electrical conductor connected to said electnic I contact element and a-lso connected to oneof the solenoids corresponding t a particular station, an arm rotated beneath said circular block by the clock mechanism, contact pieces of flexible metal on said arm adapted to contact with the lower faces of such plungers as have been depressed by the cam levers to close a circuit, a solenoid in said circuit and armatures actuated by the solenoids to depress selected station push buttons at preselected times.

ANTHONY CHIKAN.

6 REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,948,672 Purdy Feb. 27, 1934 2,346,623 Stewart et a1. Apr. 11, 1944 2,385,840 Owens Oct. 2, 1945

Images