This is one of several pages relating to the history of the automatic tote, its invention in 1913, the inventor George Julius and the Australian company he founded in 1917 which became a monopoly in this field ( later an oligopoly ). This page contains several extracts from company magazines and brochures including Tote Topics which was the Automatic Totalisator's quarterly magazine. If you wish to start from the beginning then go to the index

Tote Topics was the name of the company's quarterly magazine. Some extracts from these and other company magazines follow. They give some further insight into the company's business activities.

We are now generally known as a technology company, and this is indicative of the tremendous advances made in the racing industry over the last several years. Microprocessors and computers are now an integral part of the sport. The same technology we use on the racetrack can be applied to other areas of money handling or revenue control, such as automatic fare collection on railways, car parking fee control, etc. and these are the areas into which ATL is expanding, in both the U.S. and Australasia.

Other applications for our technology are being developed - for example we have currently manufactured and released the 4800 Visual Display Unit described in this issue. As a general purpose computer terminal, it has many features that are new and innovative. As well, our U.S. company is developing a non mechanical printing technique which will have wide application in on and off track betting terminals, and in other ticketing functions.

These and other developments will ensure that ATL continues to be a leader in technology, thus continuing the traditions established sixty years ago.

Autumn 1977 Tote Topics - Greyhounds head for Guam

With them in the Cathay Pacific freighter went $A400,000 of computerised totalisator equipment supplied by Automatic Totalisators Limited which will handle the betting operations for the company.

Three of Automatic Totalisators technicians from Australia were already in Guam ready to receive and help install the new "tote" and train the operators.

General Manager Mr. Norm Smith is a breeding expert and was formerly President of the Greyhound Breeders and Owners Association in Sydney.

The immediate role of the dogs will be to race but they will also provide the basis for a future breeding stock. To give the dogs time to become accustomed gradually to the new environment the Boeing also carried food and powdered milk to keep them going for a month.

This is not the first export of Greyhounds from Australia overseas but it is the first time such a complete cargo has gone to its destination non-stop with cargo and passengers all ready to go.

Thoroughbred racing commenced in Teheran on 22nd June, 1978 at Farahabad Racecourse. Built in a natural bowl set on the desert fringe of the snow capped Alborz Mountains, about 15 kilometres from the centre of Teheran, the racecourse has a crowd capacity of 30,000 patrons, with a three-decked grandstand to accommodate 12,000.

The members' area is air-conditioned throughout and provision has been made for luxuriously furnished private boxes, including a huge private area for the Shah.

The 1,600 metre track has a river sand surface with well graded turns adequately accommodating fields to 14 starters.

A large number of Australians are involved in the forty million dollar venture.

A leading trainer in South Australia and Victoria, is racing consultant to the Company and A former Adelaide racing Journalist, is the Racing Manager. In addition, Veterinary Surgeons, Stipendiary Stewards, Trainers Jockeys and the Deputy tote Manager are Australians.

Staff, trainers and jockeys are housed in 72 apartments alongside the racecourse. There are stables for 500 horses and above the stables are grooms quarters for 300 stableboys.

250 thoroughbreds from Australia, New Zealand and England were air lifted in by charter flights for racing. This number will increase to 400 thoroughbreds and 100 Turkomans - a pony sized Middle East breed - within 18 months.

Evening racing has been conducted during the summer months. This will change to afternoons as the weather cools.

An ATL Mobile Totalisator is installed so that as other racetracks open it can be moved to service each new location. It is a computerised system using J17 TIMS.

Initially Win, Place and Quinella pools are operating and Doubles and Trifecta pools will be introduced as patrons become accustomed to the facilities.

The ATL Manager Australasian Operations was seconded to the new club for a period to train local people in the operation of the totalisator systems. 250 local people were trained in selling/paying, banking and overall totalisator operations in 10 weeks.

The picture taken by the Operations Manager gives an idea of how the new racecourse looked just before the opening meeting.

The ATL manager mentioned above Bruce Rutter, later became General Manager of ATL. He had a suitcase which he took on each of his numerous overseas business trips. After seeing some remnant luggage tags left on the handle he decided to leave them there in future as a gauge of the amount of travelling he was doing. Eventually the case boasted so many remnant destination tags it started to become difficult to carry. The case made a statement, "this case belongs to a very frequent traveller". He carried it with pride. He was horrified when a well meaning secretary cut them all off. Reduced to the status of ab initio traveller. The amount of required travel was a problem that applied to many of the staff, spending large amounts of time away from home.

The Singapore Turf Club and Automatic Totalisators Limited were associated with one another long before the computer tote was ever thought of. That association goes back as far as 1926, in the days of the T-model ford, when the club commissioned A.T.L to install its first Electro-mechanical Totalisator. As the popularity of racing in Singapore grew, so did the demands on the Club's totalisator operations and over the years additional equipment has been installed to keep its on-course betting service to the public continuously updated.

Last year, when the progressive Singapore Turf Club decided to go electronic and install a Totalisator System with a capacity to meet its rapidly growing turnover in betting it selected A.T.L's newest computer system.

The A.T.L Computer Totalisator System using two Digital Equipment Corporation PDP 11 Computers is flexible and capable of any required expansion to meet future growth.

The Singapore computer tote caters for standard betting pools, Win, Place and Forecast with a current capacity of 256 Ticket Issuing Machines.

The Computer Room in Singapore

I recall a trip to Singapore to assist with a Totalisator demonstration to be conducted on Digital Equipment Corporation's premises. We organised a taxi on the day of the demonstration, the Research and Development Manager, Phil White sat in the front and the Marketing Manager John Pickering and myself sat in the back. The R&D manager delivered a greeting to the taxi driver followed by a suburb name. This was met by silence and an expressionless face. The taxi driver could not speak English and did not recognise the suburb. The R&D manager gave a street name with the same result. The company's frequent travellers generally prided themselves on their knowledge of these foreign ports and the R&D manager took on the challenge of conveying to the taxi driver our destination. He tried neighbouring suburbs and roads near the destination without any response. He remembered a large hospital across the road from our destination however after naming it, the drivers expressionless face and silence persisted. The R&D manager really thought he had solved the problem when he remembered the Ferrari dealer on the ground floor of the building we needed to get to. Surprisingly the name Ferrari did not solicit any recognition. Finally after ten minutes of grappling with the problem, in desperation, the R&D manager turned to us and gasped "I don't think we are ever going to get to Digital". The taxi driver's head swung around, his eyes ablaze he exclaimed "Ah you want go Digital"!

Each Club has installed the PDP 11 Computer Totalisator System which is handling its present totalisator turnover speedily and reliably.

A new betting Pool was introduced with the installation of their computer totes. Betting requirements are 14 starters, Win, Place, Quinella and Doubles.

New Style J11 and J17/3 ticket issuing machines are used in conjunction with their existing J10 machines.

The computer systems at San Lazaro and Santa Ana have both been expanded since their initial installation.

Both clubs have a projected plan of growth which is ideally catered for by the modular expansion concept of the A.T.L. computer tote.

Both clubs are associates of A.T.L from as far back as 1937 when the company installed the first totalisator equipment in the Philippines. New equipment was installed at both Courses soon after the war ended, as popularity of racing widened, the equipment of the club has been continually updated to handle new pools and increased betting turnover.

With the installation of computer totes, the clubs have further expanded their facilities and are both in a unique position to meet the growing demands of the Philippines racing public.

Note - May 1998, I have just returned from an installation in Manila, where I heard the following story.

Doug Nichol was an installation engineer sent to Manila by Automatic Totalisators to install electro mechanical totalisator systems at the Manila Jockey Club and the Philippine Racing Club prior to World War Two.

During the Japanese occupation, he was released from internment during the week ends, so that he could operate the totalisator system.

He lived the rest of his life in the Philippines, never returning to Australia. He was virtually adopted by the Manila Jockey Club which looked after him in his old age.

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Melbourne

Melbourne, Australia's financial capital and home of its richest horse race, the Melbourne Cup, is the first city in the southern Hemisphere to have its racecourses, tracks and paceways served by a mobile computer totalisator system.

A.T.L has designed a comprehensive Mobile Computer Unit which handles the complete on-course betting operations of the seven turf, trotting and greyhound venues which serve the Melbourne metropolitan area. There are -

• Victorian Racing Club's Flemington Racecourse
• Victorian Amateur Turf Club's Caulfield and Sandown Racecourses
• Moonee Valley racing Club's, Moonee Valley Racecourse
• Sandown Greyhound Company's Racetrack
• Melbourne Greyhound Racing Association's Olympic Park Racetrack
• The Trotting Control Board's Showground Paceway

Eventually the modern and versatile mobile computer tote system will also serve surrounding provincial racing clubs. Like A.T.L's PDP 11 fixed totalisator installations, described herein on other pages, the mobile computer tote unit will be capable of meeting future growth requirements of the network of racing clubs it will serve.

The revolutionary new mobile and interchangeable electronic totalisator system for Melbourne comprises 2 Mobile Computer Units, each van being identical and containing 2 computers.

As well as providing increased benefits for existing Pools the new computer tote enables the introduction of automated Trio betting to Australian racetracks.

Trio is the selection of the first three horses in one race.

Each mobile unit is capable of providing betting accommodation for Win, Place, Quinella, Doubles and Trio for up to 24 starters.

Melbourne's new computer tote system involves the use of up to 192 J8 ticket issuing machines - 128 J10's and 64 new J18/3 ticket issuing machines for Trio betting and multi value betting on standard Pools.

A smaller version of the mobile computer tote unit has been successfully introduced to the Hawke Bay circuit in New Zealand.

It introduced greyhound racing in the state of Western Australia in a very special way...at a track served entirely by an on-course Computer totalisator System designed and installed by Automatic Totalisators Limited. No bookmakers. It is the first major track in Australia to be designed exclusively for greyhound racing in conjunction with a computer totalisator operation.

The Cannington central racetrack, newest showplace of Australian greyhound racing, provides modern and unique facilities for the public. One special feature is the " showcase " computer room, designed to give the public a view of the computer totalisator system in operation.

Another feature is the impressive computer control lampbox indicator which will show up to the minute odds, results and dividends within viewing distance of almost every part of the track.

The Cannington computer tote will cater for ten starters, Win, Place and Quinella. The system involves the use of A.T.L.'s J8 and J10 ticket issuing machines with an immediate capacity of 128 machines.

A $40,000 building, a unique design and access to the best totlaisator facilities in the State of Western Australia ...........(So says the "Sunday Independent" in December 1976).

The fully computerised totalisator system, with its $180,000 indicator board is years ahead of its rival racing bodies.

A two year tax free government loan and the recent introduction of Trifecta betting has ensured the club will be able to pay its own way.

The Canning Greyhound Association is looking for a solid base - a gradual improvement based on a long-term future.

With this in mind the centre oval has been prepared and leased on the W.A. Rugby Football League where matches will be played each Sunday during the season.

When the first trifecta dividend at Cannington Central paid $1076.10 it guaranteed the success of the new novelty betting. It opened the gate to the rainbow which has attracted thousands of punters, big and small, to a form of novelty betting unequalled in the State.

The Managing Secretary Mr. Lew Dorsa is most enthusiastic about the development of this project and judging by the crowds at each meeting it really fulfills an entertainment gap.

With a ten race program starting with the first race at 7.40 pm the concluding race is timed to start at 10.40 pm.

Visitors marvel at the magnificent appointments in the stand and the club claims to have the finest illuminated track in Australia specifically designed and built for dog racing.

The Grandstand has a capacity for 5,000 people, three modern fast-food outlets, a 300 capacity, fully tiered a la carte restaurant, an excellent committee room with private bar and a pleasureland for children.

A.T.L's Computer Totalisator System is built around the concept of total service to the betting public. It fulfils this concept with the ultimate in speed, accuracy and reliability. A.T.L's Totalisator Systems reach out to the racecourse public through a superb range of display equipment. A.T.L Odds Indication equipment provides up to the minute betting information instantaneously, clearly and with the complete precision necessary to build up the billion dollar turnover which the combined A.T.L computer systems around the world handle each racing season.

Automatic Totalisators Limited has developed three main types of Odds Indicators:

• Lamp Displays
• Seven Segment Displays
• Closed Circuit Television

A.T.L Lamp Box Indicators, the most suitable form of indication for mass public viewing are attractive landmarks among the top racecourses of the world.

Intensive racecourse surveys by A.T.L technical staff ensure they are strategically situated for the maximum convenience of the public and where they will blend most effectively into the course surroundings and traffic pattern.

Indicator at Wentworth Park Greyhound Racetrack Sydney

A.T.L Seven Segment and Closed Circuit TV indicators provide an efficient and economical display in confined areas such as betting halls, and restaurants.

A.T.L's Computer Totalisator Systems demand the most speedy, reliable and accurate indication possible to meet the greatly increased turnovers they can handle.

That is why the Company developed its own display equipment.

After 58 years of indicator design and production it continues to have the best.

Experience has shown that only the best is good enough.

Automatic Totalisators Limited is responsible for the efficient performance of the hundreds of Totalisator Systems it has installed at racing venues around the world. Because of the Totalisator Systems each Club using them can in the future, as in the past, bank on continued efficient and uninterrupted betting operations. This is not only because of good design. It is also because of the smooth and instantaneous after-sales service and maintenance which the Company offers along with its product. A.T.L recognises its responsibility to see there is no hold up to the multi-billion dollar world racing industry its systems serve. It ensures having spares and spare parts available to every Club using its equipment. Those parts and specialist Totalisator Engineers are available immediately when and where required.

Components for all A.T.L installations are held at the Company's Research and Main Manufacturing Division at its Sydney headquarters where the plans of over 200 local and overseas Totalisator Systems are held and can be used to pinpoint a technical problem anywhere in a system, anywhere in the world.

There is another unique after sales service offered by A.T.L. It trains Totalisator management and , in many places, A.T.L staff handle the entire race-day Totalisator operation.

A.T.L service and maintenance experts have learnt a lot by operating their own equipment. In so doing the Company's policy is reflected: "It is only good enough for our customers if it's good enough for us to use ourselves."

A.T.L's staff involvement with racecourse Totalisator operations has also stood it in good stead in keeping pace with pari-mutuel betting trends.

The skilled technology and in depth A.T.L research are behind every one of its many installations. They have kept services and maintenance to a remarkable minimum.

One of the most graphic examples of this is the 46 year old A.T.L Totalisator System at the French Longchamps Racecourse...still going strong and never one serious mechanical interruption on a race-day.

Automatic Totalisators Limited is an international pioneer in the design and production of ticket issuing machines for betting systems of every kind.

Today there are over 15,000 A.T.L designed ticket issuing machines in use throughout the world's racecourses, paceways racetracks and jaialai frontons. And practically every ticket issuing machine made by A.T.L is still in service. Their service record highlights the two main characteristics of the A.T.L ticket issuing machine - reliability and efficiency. Automatic Totalisators Limited firstly developed for use with computer totalisators, the J11 ticket issuing machine and, since then, the J17, the J18 and the J20. The latest styles incorporating up to the minute electronic techniques, like their predecessors, maintain the company tradition of reliability and accuracy.

The versatility of A.T.L's ticket issuing machines is underlined by the fact that those currently in use with an electromechanical system can be integrated into a computer Totalisator System without modification.

Research, meticulous care in design and long experience are not the only qualities behind the A.T.L ticket issuing machine. Another is thorough product-testing. Every ticket issuing machine undergoes an exhaustive test for operational reliability and is then tested in the field by A.T.L staff.

The reliability of A.T.L's ticket issuing machines is enhanced by the overall security of the Company's ticket issuing system which protects against forgery. A.T.L supplies ticket paper to race clubs throughout the world which use its equipment. A.T.L's ingenious pattern of ticket markings and the use of special inks for printing ticket backgrounds protect the Totalisator System against the counterfeiter.

A.T.L has over five decades of experience behind it in providing complete security for the multi-billion dollar turnover of its customer clubs.

ATL did the job, its tenth successful Electronic installation since Aqueduct. This year there will be 89 race meetings at Harold Park, 47 of them for trotters and 42 for greyhounds. All will attract huge crowds, for this racecourse is the most important venue of its kind in Australia.

The N.S.W. Trotting Club, the company controlling Harold Park, at the moment can boast of having the most modern Totalisator facilities anywhere in the trotting world.

Acknowledgements

• Thanks to A+B+C Graphics for the background.
• Information has been extracted from Automatic Totalisators company magazines and documents.
• Thanks to Merv Cathcart and Ron Hood for the complete set of latest Tote Topics magazines.
• Thanks to John Pickering for the story about Doug Nichol.
• Thanks to Ian my 11 year old son (1997) for the great help with the typing, the HTML and the images.
• Thanks to Matthew Martin, Ian's friend, for the help with the text, the HTML, and the images.

Comments and suggestions welcome to totehis@hotmail.com

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