Important Addition to Commercial Facilities Reuter has introduced the ticker machine to Shanghai, where in all probability it is destined to play as great a part in quick news service distribution as-it-new plays in New York and London.
In its simplest form the equipment consists of two machines—a transmitting keyboard, situated in Reuter's office, and a receiving type writer in the office of the subscriber to the service.
In order to facilitate explanation, the operation of an ordinary office typewriter may be conveniently compared with that of the Reuter er. The keys of an office typewriter, through the medium of levers, print direct on to the paper, inserted previously by the typist. The keys of the ticker transmitting keyboard, through the medium ut wires connecting it with the typewriter in the office of the subscriber —one or more as the case may be—print direct on to paper automatically "fed" from a roll as required, and not inserted by hand previous to reception.
One keyboard can be arranged to transmit, or "type," to any number of ticker typewriters, transmission al simultaneous and identical in every respect.
Besides the alphabet, numerals, the ticker keyboard possesses function" keys to. operate the typewriter paper "platen," and when transmission has ceased on the keyboard a special device attached to each typewriter stops the propulsion motor (with a consequent economy in power during idle periods) after a pause of 30 seconds, Subsequent depression of a key. immediately sets the machines in motion ready for further service.
This feature, together with the' automatic control of the working of the type any necessity for supervi part of the subscriber.
The operation of the keyboard and. typewriter is briefly as follows The motion derived from the de jon of a key on thy keyboard translated mechanically into electrical impulses according to the particular letter depressed, each letter having an electrical equivalent In the form of a series of impulses. selected from the 32 possible combinations of five units. These pulses are passed over the wire between Keyboard and typewriter in Reuter's and the subscriber's offices respectively and are translate ed back into mechanical. moti The energy derived from this mechanical motion is used letter-selecting mechanism which prints the required letter.
The speed of operation is that of the keyboard typist. The standard model ticker typewriter as supplied to Reuter by the makers Messrs. Creed & Ca, Ltd, printing telegraph engineers of Croydon, Surrey, England, is capable of a maximum speed of 930 letters per minute, Tt will be noted from the fore-' going description that the ticker Keyboard operates the typewriter through the medium of impulses. These impulses: pass over ordinary telephone. connection wires. The] typewriter also possesses a pro-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.