CERTAIn Im- PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SPRING MATTRESSES, SEATINGS, AND A A SINTLAD NATURE.
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Francis Taylor, of Westfield, Higher Broughton,
in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of “CERTAIn Im-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SPRING MATTRESSES, SEATINGS, AND
A
A
SINTLAD NATURE.
"
Sealed the 15th September 1871, and dated the 23rd June 1871.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Francis Taylor at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 23rd June 1871, pursuant to the 9th Section
of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FRANCIS
TAYLOR, of Westfield, Higher Broughton, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, send greeting.
.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SPRING MATTRESSES, SEATINGS, AND OTHER
ARTICLES OF A SIMILAR NATURE," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant
unto me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters
Patent for the same, and have made solemn Declaration that I am the
first and true Inventor thercof.
.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Francis Taylor, do hereby declare
that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal,
fully describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following
statement and accompanying Drawings, that is to say :—
The Invention relates more particularly to further improvements upon
Letters Patent granted to Henry Gardner and others on the First day of
February One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, Number 276,
for "Improvements in Spring Mattresses and other Articles for Sitting
and Reclining upon," the nature and construction of which consisted 1
in composing a metallic mattress of helical or spiral springs joined or
connected together by means of coupling wires or bars, the whole of
which when complete and connected to a framework form a yielding
elastic bed or surface.
The present Invention relates more particularly to any square or 18
rectangular framing or stretcher between which the metallic yielding
surface is extended, and is designed for the purpose of providing a
framing that can be employed as a stretcher for extending or diminishing
the area of the yielding surface.
The improvements consist in providing a framework for the yielding 20
metallic medium that can be readily expanded so as to stretch the com-
bined springs and coupling wires to any degree of tension required.
The arrangement of mechanism forming the subject of these improve-
ments may
be constructed in various ways, so as to extend the springs
and wires forming the yielding surface when connected to the framing 25
in a direction longitudinally and transversely, simultaneously, or in one
direction only, the medium through which the stretching process is trans-
mitted may be effected by screws and nuts, worm or pinion, and rack or
other well-known equivalent employed for distending angular junctions
or couplings, for example, the side framings of the mattress to which 30
the yielding surface is connected may be composed of tubing or bars,
the terminations of which form screws which pass through slots or holes
formed in the ends of the transverse stretchers or bars forming the top
and bottom of the mattress, and to which the yielding metallic surface
is also secured, the said screws forming the termination of the side 35
framing are provided with nuts which occupy places on the said screws,
when the same are passed through the slots of the top and bottom
stretchers one on either side of such stretchers, the purposes of which
".

page_text: according to the position they are caused to occupy upon the screws
increase or diminish the tension of the yielding surface, or the top and
bottom stretchers at their intermediate distance may be provided with
a telescopic or sliding joint, in a manner that will admit of the same
being adjusted to any width required within the dimensions of its over-
lapping joint, the terminations being provided with holes or slots through
which the screw terminations of the side framings can pass for the
purpose of distending through the medium of the nuts the top and
bottom framing in the manner as horcin-before described; these improve-
ments may be employed in the construction of separate mattresses, or
may be adapted or connected to ordinary iron, brass, or wooden bed-
steads, scatings, and other articles of a similar nature, through the
medium of scrows and nuts, racks and pinion, or other equivalent, which
will allow when secured or attached to a permanent outside framing of
the internal area of the yielding surface being readily distended to any
degree of tension required, and may be applied in the construction of
the framework of such ordinary bedsteads.
In order that the Invention may be better understood and explained
in detail I havo hereunto attached a Sheet of Drawing made upon a
scale of about one and a half inches to the foot, similar letters of reference
being marked upon all the figures alike.
Fig. 1 represents a plan view of one arrangement of expanding
adjustable frame in which is shewn the elastic expanding surface or
metallic mattress or bed attached thereto, in this view the head and foot
of the bed form the expanding mediums.
In Fig. 1 the metallic yielding mattress a, a, is attached by the rings.
and hooks b, b, and 6', 6', to the side frame or longitudinal bars c, c, and
by the hooks 61, 61, to the top and bottom stretchers d, d; when first
attached the top and bottom stretchers d, d, are in their contracted or
nearest distance to each other, at which time the metallic yielding
surface a is at its minimum amount of tension, in order that the said
surface a may be stretched so as to receive a desired and requisite
amount of tension it will be seen that the two side frames c, c, are
provided at their terminations with screws e, e, which pass through slots
or holes formed in the top and bottom stretchers d, d, the said screw on
either side of the stretchers d, d, being provided with the nuts ff, thus
when it is desired to regulate the amount of tension desired to be given to
the metallic elastic surface a, a, after having been attached to its framing

page_text: as before described, the inside nuts f,f, are turned so as to press against
and force the stretchers d, d, outward from each other until the amount
of tension required is obtained, at which time the nuts f¹, f¹, are screwed
up into contact with the said stretchers, maintaining thereby the dis-
tended position and tension of the metallic surface. Fig. 2 represents a
detached similar view to the last with this exception, that the top and
bottom stretchers d, d, are provided with a transverse expanding joint
or overlap g which is employed for the purpose of enabling the width of
the mattress to be adjusted before being stretched longitudinally by the
screws and nuts f,f, in the manner as described in Fig. 1.
Figs. 3 and 4 represent respectively a transverse section and plan view
of another modification or arrangement of securing the separate junctions
or angles of the coupling bars of the elastic metallic surface a, to the
outside framing, this is accomplished by providing the angles of contact
of the coupling wires at their termination or points of contact in con-
nection with the framing with nuts through which screw bolts i, i, from
the outside permanent framing h, 'h, are passed, by this means any one
or more portions of the mattress requiring its tension adjusting, the
same is readily accomplished by screwing any one or more of the
attaching bolts i, i, more or less through the said nuts.
Figs. 5 and 6 represent respectively a plan and sectional view of an
arrangement of stretching frame adapted to an ordinary iron brass or
wooden bedstead, in this view the stretchers d, d, are placed inside the
ordinary permanent framing of the bed, a', being attached thereto by the
screw bolts i, i, these bolts when tightened up through the medium of 2
the bolt heads f,f, so as to regulate the distension of the elastic surface
as required, and Fig. 7 represents a detached sectional view of a similar
adaptation of the expanding frame in which the tension of the metallic
expanding surface a is obtained through the medium of the rack and
pinion m, if desired a screw may be substituted for the pinion m, the 3
action of which may be caused to work in unison by securing the worms
or pinion actuating the racks, so as to give a uniform distension to the
stretchers, by securing both pinions on one shaft and giving motion
thereto for actuating both racks simultaneously.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention together with 3
the method of carrying the same into practical effect, and having shewn
several arrangements and modifications of the various means I employ
for stretching the elastic metallic mattress forming the subject of the

page_text: herein-before recited Letters Patent, I would wish it to be distinctly
understood in conclusion that I claim more particularly the novel
arrangement, construction, and employment of the peculiar construction
of adjustable stretching frame for the purpose as herein-before described
either as an independent mattress.or adapted to and in conjunction with
ordinary bedsteads, seatings, and other articles of a similar nature, as
herein-before described, set forth, and fully illustrated in the Drawings
attached, or any slight modification thereof so long as the essential
features of the Invention are retained.
'
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, the
Twenty-second day of June, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-one.
Witness to the signature,
WILLIAM SPENCE,
8, Quality Court,
Chancery Lane.
FRANCIS TAYLOR. (L.S.)