AN IMPROVED ATTACK- MENT FOR DOOR KNOBS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Wilkes, of Rue St. Honoré, Paris, in the
Empire of France, but now residing at Wimpole Street, in the County
of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED ATTACK-
MENT FOR DOOR KNOBS."
Sealed the 17th February 1868, and dated the 20th August 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Wilkes at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 20th
August 1862.
I, SAMUEL WILKES, of Rue St. Honoré, Paris, in the Empire of France,
but now residing at Wimpole Street, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED
ATTACHMENT FOR DOOR KNOBS," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to simplify the attachment of door knobs, or
handles, to their spindles and at the same time allow of pairs of such knobs fitting
varying thicknesses of doors. To this end I tap the angles of a square
spindle to which the fixed knob is secured in any well known and approved
manner, and I also tap the removeable knob to receive the tapped square
spindle in the way commonly practised. The removeable knob having been
brought up to its required position on the spindle, I lock the two together in
the following manner :-On the neck of the knob, I form two projections of the
width of the spindle, and when these are brought into line with two sides of
the square spindle, I drop over them a slotted plate or clamp which embraces
both the projections and the square spindle and locks the knob to the spindle.
This slotted plate may be retained in position and also hidden by the rose or
washer which is usually introduced between the door and the knob.

page_text: This improvement is applicable not only to metal but also to wooden,
earthenware, and other knobs, a metal tube being introduced if thought
desirable into the neck of such knobs to carry the projections. Instead of
forming projections on the neck of the loose or removeable handle, a recess
may be formed in the neck to receive a projection on the locking plate, and
the same result will be obtained as that above described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Samuel Wilkes in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
20th February 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SAMUEL
WILKES, of Rue St. Honoré, Paris, in the Empire of France, but now
residing at Wimpole Street, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Samuel Wilkes, Her special license that I, the said Samuel Wilkes, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Samuel
Wilkes, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter
during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exer-
cise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "AN IMPROVED ATTACH-
MENT FOR DOOR KNOBS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Samuel Wilkes, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to
be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Samuel Wilkes, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The object of this Invention is to simplify the attachment of door knobs to

page_text: their spindles and also allow of pairs of such knobs being fitted to doors of
different thicknesses. In carrying out my Invention, the angles of the square
spindle to which the fixed knob is secured in any well known and approved
manner are tapped so as to form a male screw. The removeable knob is also
tapped so as to form a female screw to receive the tapped square spindle in the
way commonly practised. The removeable knob having been screwed on to
the spindle, and brought up to its required position thereon, the knob and the
spindle are locked or secured together in the following manner :-On the neck
of the knob two projections of the width of the spindle are formed, and when
these projections are brought into line with two sides of the square spindle a
solid plate or clamp having a slot cut therein, is dropped on and embraces
both the projections on the knob, and the square spindle, and thereby securely
attaches the knob to the spindle and locks the two parts together. This slotted
plate may if desired be retained in position, and also hidden from view by
the rose or washer which is usually introduced between the door and the knob.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 is an elevation of a pair of door knobs
attached to a door according to my improved plan; Fig. 2 is a sectional
elevation, a, is the door; b, a knob fixed in the ordinary manner to the square
spindle c, partly shewn by dots in Fig. 2; is the removeable knob which is
represented in the Drawing as made of wood, porcelain, or other hard substance
in the neck of which is fitted a screwed cylinder or box e, the outer end
of which has two projecting pieces ¹ made thereon, so that they will project
beyond the neck of the knob. That part of the square spindle c which enters
the cylinder or box e, is screwed at the angles so that the screwed box e with
the knob d may be turned round thereon in order to screw up the knob.
Fig. 3 is a transverse section shewing the square spindle c in its place, and the
two projecting pieces e¹, e³, of the cylinder or box e in a position coincident
with two sides of the square spindle, so that the slotted locking plate f shewn
detached at Fig. 4 may be placed thereon as shewn in the transverse sectional
view Fig. 5.
In adapting my improved attachment the square spindle with the fixed
knobb thereon is passed through the lock and door, and the removeable
knob & is then screwed on to the square spindle c until the projecting pieces e², 6¹,
of the screwed cylinder or box e are brought up against the side of the door
and coincident with the sides of the spindle as shewn at Fig. 8. The slotted
locking plate f is then dropped over the projecting pieces e', e', and the square
spindle c, as shewn in Fig. 5, and the two parts (that is to say), the spindle c
and the knob d, will be securely attached together, and the knob cannot-be-
unscrewed until the locking plate f is removed. A rose plate or escutcheon g,

page_text: may then be placed over the locking plate f as shewn at Fig. 2, and indicated
by dots in Fig. 1, so as to hide the locking plate and prevent it from being
removed. Fig. 6 represents another form of locking plate in which the slot is
not open at the end. When a locking plate of this form is employed it must
of course be placed on the spindle c before the knob d is screwed on. The
circular part of the slot will admit of the knob being turned round on the
spindle until. the projecting pieces e¹, e, are brought flush up against the door.
The straight part of the slot is then allowed to drop over the pieces e¹, e¹,
and the spindle, and will securely attach them together as in the former
instance.
This improved mode of attaching door knobs to their spindles is applicable
to metal knobs, in which of course the female screw to receive the thread of
the square spindle would be cut, and to wooden, earthenware, and other knobs.
A metal tube should be introduced into the neck of such knobs as shewn in
-the Drawings, in order to carry the projections e', e¹. It will be evident that
as the knob d may be screwed up to any extent on the square spindle, provided
the latter be screwed at its angles for a sufficient distance, my improved
mode of attachment will admit of the knobs being adapted to different
thicknesses of doors. I would remark that instead of forming projections on
the neck of the loose or removeable bandle d a recess may be formed in the
neck to receive a projection on the slotted locking plate f, and the same result
will be obtained as that above described.
Having now described my improved attachment for door knobs, and having
explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I claim as the Inven-
tion secured to me by Letters Patent as aforesaid the mode herein set forth
of attaching the knobs of doors to their spindle.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Wilkes, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Nineteenth day of February, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Wittness,
JAMES GAIRN,
WILLIAM FOWLER.
SAM. WILKES. (L.S.)