NEW TOTALISATOR

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 462, 2 July 1937, Page 3

NEW TOTALISATOR

DOMINION INVENTOR Patent Rights Applied For Mbny of the tens of thousands who attend race meetings doubtless wonder who invented the totalisator, without which racing- would be so much less interesting. The “tote” is as necessary at a race meeting as clowns, peanuts and elephants' are essential to a circus. Probably few of the millions who have invested their money on thetotalisator realise that the intriguing pastime of "backing your fancy" by machinery dates back to 1880, when a man named Ekberg, in New Zealand, conceived the idea of automatically recording bets and devised a machine for this purpose. For some time past two men have been, working night and cfiy on a new invention known as the “Telyu” totalisator, a machine that is claimed' to be unique in th'at it will sell at the totalisator windows and at the will of the clerk or operator, tickes of four denominations, a 10s. or .£1 ticket either on the win or place system of betting. So far there is no totalisator in the world that is capable of doing this. The men concerned in this experiment are Mr. T. McCaughan, a Christchurch inventor, who invented an electric system of train control, and Mr. Alexander McDonald Smith, who has bad an almost life-long experience in the installation and working ot totalisetors in Australia and New Zealand.

The ticket selling unit is now/actually working by electricity in a Mount Eden laboratory where, by the simple touch of a small lever, it will sell a ticket for 10s or £l, win oplace. Each window selling unit is so small that it is portable, while one unit can serve either one or two windows. Another interesting improvement is that there is no risk of a breakdown and resultant delay in betting operations, as? each selling unit is independent of the other. The one unit stamps -and ejects the tickets, records each bet and transfers it to the face of the totalisator. The new totalisator invention is said to be so revolutionary that its ramifications may spread all over the world. The world’s patent rights have been applied for by the company sponsoring Messrs. McCaughlin 'and McDonald Smith. The manufacture of the new and improved totalisators in Auckland and other paits of New Ztaknd will probab'y rust that still another new Dominion in<’ustry, employing many hands, will be started. Five Years’ Work. The inventor, Mr. McCaughan, has been working for five years on his new totalisator. With the assistance and advice of Mr. McDonald Smith, as constructional engineer, he considers that he has succeeded in evolving an improved 'totalisator that storee bets mechanically and records them electrically in a way that is entirely new. Mr. McDonald Smith was associated thirty years ago with Mr. George (now Sir George) Julius, working with him in Sydney on the first electrical totalisator ever constructed in the world. He and Mr. Julius' installed the first semi-automatic, “tote” at Ellerslie in 1912, and! the first full automatic totalisator on the same course in 1918. Fifteen years ago he left the pioneer totalisator firm and until the latter part of last year acted as; totalisator manager and supervising engineer to the Jockey Club at Riccarton.