Cash Register

A cash register, sometimes called a till, is a mechanical or electronic device used to register and calculate transactions at a point of sale, typically including a drawer for cash and, in modern versions, a printer for receipts. An early mechanical cash register was invented after the American Civil War by James Ritty, a saloon owner in Dayton, Ohio, together with his brother John, who built the machine to stop employees from pocketing sales revenue after Ritty was inspired by a device on a steamship that counted the ship's propeller revolutions; Ritty patented his Model I in 1879, and the National Cash Register Company later improved the design with paper roll receipts and internal record-keeping.