The Bell Punch Company was a British company manufacturing a variety of business machines, most notably several generations of

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...

ticket machine A ticket machine, also known as a ticket vending machine (TVM), is a vending machine that produces paper or electronic tickets, or recharges a stored-value card or smart card or the user's mobile wallet, typically on a smartphone. For instanc ...

s and the world's first desktop electronic calculator, the Sumlock ANITA.

History

The company was established in July 1878 in order to acquire the patent rights to an American hand-registering ticket punch that was being used by a number of British

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

way companies. By 1884 they had begun development of their own range of ticket printing machines. In 1891 they began supplying ticketing machines for

London General Omnibus Company The London General Omnibus Company or LGOC, was the principal bus operator in London between 1855 and 1933. It was also, for a short period between 1909 and 1912, a motor bus manufacturer. Overview The London General Omnibus Company was fou ...

. From then until its demise, Bell Punch had an unbroken history of supplying successive London bus companies, along with many other bus operators throughout the country.Anita Calculators
''Nigel Tout'' The first half of the twentieth century saw the company expand into different markets, including in cinema and theatre ticketing, horse race

totalisator A tote board (or totalisator/totalizator) is a numeric or alphanumeric display used to convey information, typically at a race track (to display the odds or payoffs for each horse) or at a telethon (to display the total amount donated to the chari ...

ticket machines,

taximeter A taximeter or fare meter is a mechanical or electronic device installed in taxicabs and auto rickshaws that calculates passenger fares based on a combination of distance travelled and waiting time. Its shortened form, "taxi", is also a metony ...

s and mechanical calculators.Bell Punch Co
''Graces Guide - The Best of British Engineering 1750-1960's'' In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

the company developed and manufactured a variety of military equipment, including mechanical aircraft navigation computers and naval gunnery sighting and ranging devices. In 1958 it began development of a desktop electronic calculator, which came to market as the Sumlock ANITA in 1961. The calculator division was established as ''Sumlock Anita Electronics Ltd'' in 1966. It became the largest supplier of calculators in the UK, with sales of £4.5 million in 1971. In 1972 they developed one of the first electronic pocket calculators, but were beaten to the market by

Sinclair Radionics Sinclair Radionics Ltd was a company founded by Sir Clive Sinclair in Cambridge, England which developed hi-fi products, radios, calculators and scientific instruments. History After raising funds to start the business by writing articles ...

due to lack of management enthusiasm for the project. In 1973 Sumlock Anita Electronics were acquired by

Rockwell International Rockwell International was a major American manufacturing conglomerate involved in aircraft, the space industry, defense and commercial electronics, components in the automotive industry, printing presses, avionics and industrial products. R ...

who closed down the operation in 1976. The remainder of the business continued to be owned by the then parent company, ''Control Systems Ltd'' which was acquired by the Swedish ''Incentive Group'' in the early 1980s which resulted in the break-up of the company.

References

Fare collection systems Defunct companies of the United Kingdom {{UK-manufacturing-company-stub