A Process for Imparting a Wavy Appearance to Feathers and Feather Trimming.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 24th May, 1892
Complete Specification Left, 10th Feb., 1893-Accepted, 1st Apr., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A Process for Imparting a Wavy Appearance to Feathers and
Feather Trimming.
We SIGISMUND COHN and JULIUS COHN, both of 50 Leipziger Strasse Berlin,
Germany, Manufacturers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
This invention consists of a new branch of the feather industry and relates to
giving a permanent wavy appearance to feathers or the combination of feathers
known as feather trimming or edging. This invention permits of the said feathers
being "waved" singly or in the strips already mentioned or in bunches.
Our process is performed by thoroughly damping the feathers, or strips of
feathers, so as to render them quite limp or soft, and laying them between two
corrugated plates, in which the size of the corrugations are made to accord with
the size of the wave it is required to impress on the feathers. These plates are
then subjected to pressure until the feathers dry naturally, or the process can be
hastened by artificial heat.
The feathers can be moistened in any of the well-known ways, such as for instance,
sprinkling, soaking in water or by means of steam.
In "waving" feather trimming the back cloth binding that holds the feathers
together, is excluded from the plates, so that the feathers only receive the effects
of the process.
In larger feathers such as those of the peacock, the size of the corrugations are
made to correspond to the size of the feather.
The pressure can be applied to the plates by means of levers, weights or screws
or by any other device which provides a uniform and continuous pressure. The
feathers are then allowed to dry, as before stated, either naturally or by artificial
means, but it has been found from experience that their beauty is enhanced by slow
rather than quick drying.
When the plates are unfastened and the feathers taken out, it will be found
that they possess a beautiful wavy appearance of a very enduring nature.
The plates may be irregularly or fancifully corrugated. For instance a graduated
corrugation, diminishing in size may be employed and the plates may possess pro-
jecting flat edges or lips so as to protect the cloth binding from injury when heat
is used in drying. A weight or overplate with level upper surface but possessing
projecting ribs which fit into the concave curves of the corrugations may be used
for applying pressure. This would relieve the convex curves of the corrugated
plates from receiving a disproportionate amount of pressure at the expense of the
lower or concave curves, as would be the case if a flat weight or overplate were
used for this part of the process and pressure were applied through it to the convex
curves only.
11
1
M1000

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A Process for Imparting a Wavy Appearance to Feathers and
Feather Trimming.
We SIGISMUND COHN and JULIUS COHN both of 50 Leipziger Strasse, Berlin
in the German Empire, Manufacturers, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to the production of a new article of manufacture con-
sisting of feathers to which a permanent corrugated form is given.
These feathers may be furnished with corrugations before being subjected to
further operations or the previously prepared feather fur may be corrugated
afterwards according to the same process.
To impart a corrugated form to the feathers in their natural state or in the form
of feather fur strips, tufts, bunches and the like they are laid in a damp state
between platens or gratings of suitable section and dried while under pressure in a
press by the action of air or heat.
The accompanying drawings illustrate the mode of carrying this process into
practice.
The feathers or feather fur strips are first moistened in order to soften the
material; this softening may be effected in any suitable manner, the feathers being
for instance merely moistened with water or treated in a steam bath.
The feathers thus treated are laid in a damp state between the two platens a a
Fig. 5 which are provided with corrugations.
In the drawings the feathers are shown with their quills laid in the direction of
the corrugations, but they may be placed between the platens in any other suitable
position especially in the case of plumes with wide feathers or eyes such as the
tail feathers of peacocks. The two platens with the feathers laid between them
are now subjected to continuous pressure in any suitable press or screw clamp, or a
number of these platen couples may be piled on the top of one another and loaded
with weights. The platens or plates holding the feathers are subsequently exposed
to the action of dry air or heat in any suitable apparatus such as a drying oven,
drying chamber or the like.
The slower and the more thoroughly the feathers are dried the finer they
will be.
When the drying process is terminated the platens are separated and the
feathers removed, the latter presenting now a fine appearance and a permanent
corrugated shape, Figs. 1 and 2. The platens or plates may be made of any
suitable material and provided with corrugations of any desired outline or form;
Figs. 3 and 4 show a platen the corrugations of which have a serpentine or wavy
shape. The feathers or feather fur strips may be placed either directly between
the plates or between intermediate layers of any suitable light fabric in order to
prevent, in the latter case, the feathers from coming into direct contact with the
metallic platens and the latter from acting injuriously on the feathers when they
are dried at a high temperature so as not to burn them.
The compression of the feathers may be carried out between trellis plates or
gratings as shown in Figs. 6, 7 and 8 of the drawings.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A process for the manufacture of corrugated feathers or feather fur strips
whereby the moistened material is compressed between platens of suitable section
or form and subsequently dried substantially as herein described and shown.

page_text: 2. As an article of manufacture, feathers or feather fur strips provided with
corrugations according to the process above claimed substantially as herein
described and shown.
Dated this 10th day of February 1892
S: S. BROMHEAD,
97, Newgate Street, E.C., Patent Agent.

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