Improvements in the Construction of the Poles or Supports for Bell and other Tents.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 14th July, 1887
Complete Left, 14th May, 1888
Complete Accepted, 29th June, 1888
Improvements in the Construction of the Poles or Supports for
Bell and other Tents.
We BENJAMIN GIBBONS of Edgbaston in the County of Warwick Gas Engineer
and GEORGE GLYDON of Birmingham in the said County of Warwick Brassfounder
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Hitherto Bell and other tents have been supported by one or more poles the
first of them having a pole in the centre and the latter by one or more poles along
the centre.
In both these cases the poles are often found to be inconvenient and take up the
room in the best part of the Tent.
In our improved pole or support we provide two or more tubes or rods of wood
metal or other suitable material these are sufficiently long to reach from the ground
(near the wall or curtain of the tent) nearly to the top and they are at their top end
hinged or otherwise secured to a ring or socket specially constructed for the purposo,
into this ring or socket is fitted a short length of wood or or other suitable materiaĺ
which is for the purpose of taking into and supporting the top of the tent.
This short length may be raised or lowered at pleasure from within the tent by
a screw rope or other suitable mechanical means.
The advantages of our invention are first, that the centre pole being removed there
is much more room in the tent, and second that the top or peak of the tent may be
raised or lowered by the means above described, and so any contraction or expansion
of the tent can be counteracted without loosening or tightening the runners or ropes.
Dated this 12th day of July 1887.
BENJAMIN GIBBONS.
GEORGE GLYDON.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Construction of the Poles or Supports for
Bell and other Tents.
We BENJAMIN GIBBONS of Edgbaston in the County of Warwick Gas Engineer
and GEORGE GLYDON of Birmingham in the County of Warwick Brassfounder do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
Hitherto Bell and other tents have been supported by one or more poles the
first of them having a pole in the centre, and the lattor by one or more poles along
the centre. In both of these cases the poles are often found to be inconvenient
and take up the room in the best part of the tent.
In our improved pole or support we provide two or more tubes or rods of wood, 1
metal, or other suitable material, these are sufficiently long to reach from the ground
(near the wall or curtain of the Tent) nearly to the top, and they are at their
top end hinged or otherwise secured to a ring or socket specially constructed for the
purpose.
Into this ring or socket is fitted a short length of wood, or other suitable material 1
which is for the purpose of taking into and supporting the top of the tent.
This short length may be raised or lowered at pleasure from within the tent by a
screw, rope, or other suitable mechanical means.
The advantages of our invention are First that the centre pole being removed,
there is much more room in the tent, and Second, that the top or peak of the tent 2
may be raised or lowered by the means above described and so any contraction
or expansion of the tent can be counteracted without loosening or tightening the
runners or ropes.
It will be understood that the short length of wood or other suitable material
herein before referred to may be raised or lowered by any suitable mechanical means, 2
but by preference we employ a screw having a slot therein, into which takes a suitable
projection from the bracket (to prevent the said screw revolving) which said screw is
actuated by a small pair of bevilled wheels, motion being transmitted to these by an
endless cord running over a suitable pulley.
That our invention may be better understood we have annexed drawings thereof 3
which we will now describe.
Similar letters of reference denote similar parts in every figure in which
they occur.
Fig. 1 is a section of a "bell" tent constructed according to our invention.
Fig. 2 is a side view of the upper or adjusting part of our improved support drawn a
to an enlarged scale.
Fig. 3 is another side view of the same, drawn to the same scale as fig. 2 and taken
at right angles with it.
Fig. 4 is a section through the screw showing the slot.

page_text: a a are the supporting rods which may be solid or tubular, they fit into sockets b² b¹
in the piece 6 or they may be hinged thereto, c is the short length of wood or other
suitable material which takes into and supports the top of the tent g₁, it is screwed
at c¹ and is, or may be, provided with a ring at its lower end. The screwed part c¹
has a slot in which works a projection 6 on the bracket to prevent the screw from
rotating when the nut d is rotated by means of the bevil wheels d¹ and d. The bevil
wheel has a pulley d³ affixed to it and they revolve on the pin e in the projection 68
on the bracket b. Motion is given to the pulley d³ by a suitable endless cord or
chain (figs. 1 and 3) passing over it; this endless cord is within easy reach of the
hand. It will readily be seen that when the pulley d³ is rotated in one direction the
support c will be raised and the covering g of the tent will be stretched.
When it is rotated in the other direction the covering 9 will be allowed to
collapse.
Having now particularly described the nature of our said invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, and without limiting ourselves to the precise
details hereinbefore described as these may be varied or modified without departing
from the nature of our said invention we declare that what we claim is :-
The contrivance or means for supporting the peaks or tops of Bell or other tents
by two or more tubes or rods which rest upon the ground near to the wall or curtain
of the tent in combination with a suitable mechanical contrivance for raising or
lowering the tent from the top or peak by which means the expansion or contraction
of the tent may be readily allowed for; substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated
Dated GIS I Wenth day UI May 1808.
Dated GIS I Wuth day UI ULBY LOOO
BEN. GIBBONS.
GEORGE GLYDON.
Witness,
EMERY DAVIES,
Solicitor,
Birmingham.