ULTRA SPEED MECHANISM

Bell & Howell Company, Chicago, Illinois 1924 - 1956

Introduced by December, 1924 as their Ultra Speed Mechanism, Bell & Howell's high-speed movement for their 2709 35mm motion picture camera would later be referred to as the Check Pawl Super-Speed Movement and the Ultra-Speed Attachment in company advertisements and literature. Nearing the end of its production run, it was also being referred to as the "check-pawl ultra-speed mechanism" in Camera Equipment Company's Catalog of Motion Picture and Television Equipment for 1956.

The movement's gear-driven design was covered under Patent No. 1,509,556 granted to Albert S. Howell of Chicago, Illinois on September 23, 1924 and assigned to the Bell & Howell Company. The patent's application was filed for on September 8, 1921, indicating that the design was conceived at least three years prior:

Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office