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Description
Japanese typewriter manufactured by Nippon Typewriter Co., Ltd. of Tokyo and Osaka, Japan. Japanese Patent #27877 in 1915 and USA Patent #1,245,633 on Nov. 6, 1917. A: Iron base with black metal frame holds a metal tray of 2450 Kanji characters and symbols on rollers. Also holds the movable typing mechanism which moves on rails on the sides of the base. B: Iron frame that rolls on base, holds the typing mechanism and provides a track for left to right movement. C: Operating mechanism holds the paper, moves left to right, selects the typeset from a tray and strikes the paper. D & E: Metal trays of changeable Japanese charecters. The tray fits in the base under the operating mechanism and contains the charecters to be typed. Each tray holds 2450 Kanji characters and other symbols. F: Wooden box of Japanese charecters with room for 2475 metal Japanese characters. This typewriter was invented by Kyota Sugimoto in 1915. Sugimoto worked in a printing office and his invention shows that influence with the lead type characters in a large tray. Sugimoto partnered with Ohtani to start the Nippon Typewriter Co. in 1917 and began manufacture of this new typewriter. Nippon Typewriter Co. is now part of Canon, Inc. In 1985, Sugimoto was honored by the Japanese government for having one of the top 10 Japanese inventions. This typewriter originally sold for 180 yen in 1917, which is equivalent to $1.80 today. Currency comparisons across decades and countries is not exact, but 180 yen in 1917 was equal to $90. Comparing the price of goods in 1917, the $90 is equivalent to $1700 today. So this was a relatively expensive typewriter and was used by highly paid operators. This typewriter is serial number 12-55833, which is cast on the metal frame opposite the data plate. The data plate shows that it was manufactured in the year 12 of the Emperor Taisho, which means 1923. The model number is H.30554 and the model matches the 1917 USA patent drawings. Later models, starting in 1927, have longer cylinders to accomodate larger paper and other cosmetic differences. The metal tray of characters holds 2400 Kanji characters and 50 punctuation marks, numbers and other special characters. This metal tray was called a "type-nest" in the patent description and the most frequently used characters were selected. A second type-nest fits in the rear of the base for another 2450 kanji characters, if needed. A Japanese high school student is required to learn about 2400 characters, so this typewriter will suffice for most written documents. A trained operator could type at a speed which was equivalent to an English language typewriter when comparing information content. The type-nest is on rollers which move left and right. The operating mechanism is also on rollers, moving left and right or up and down. The operating mechanism cannot reach the far right or left characters, so the type-nest is on rollers to allow the mechanism to be positioned over those characters. The operating mechanism holds the paper in a large cylinder, which will accomodate a 9.5" X 11.5" size paper. It is quite a complex mechanism which pushes up a lead type character, pushes it against an ink roller, strikes the paper and then returns the type to the type-nest. After the character is printed, the roller moves down one character space. The typewriter types characters from top to bottom and from right to left, in the customary Japanese style. The bell will ring near the bottom of the page and there is a lever to move the paper to the next line to the left. This lever can be set for 2, 3 or 4 lines. The striker has the word "Hobun" engraved on the side, which means Japanese language.
Type
image
Identifier
60CA4A56-BC32-419C-96B8-221143678766 1991-207a-f
Subject
Typewriters Japanese language Nineteen twenties (LCSH)
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