IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED FOR REMOVING PROPERTY INTO AND OUT OF STRONG ROOMS, AND IN THE MODE OF SECURING SUCH PROPERTY FROM FIRE OR THEFT
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Longsdon, of Queen St. Place, New Cannon
Street, in the City of London, Architect and Civil Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED FOR REMOVING
PROPERTY INTO AND OUT OF STRONG ROOMS, AND IN THE MODE OF SECURING
SUCH PROPERTY FROM FIRE OR THEFT."
Sealed the 1st February 1856, and dated the 21st August 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Longsdon at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
21st August 1855.
I, ROBERT LONGSDON, of Queen Street Place, New Cannon Street, in the
City of London, Architect and Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of
the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS TO BE USED FOR REMOVING
PROPERTY INTO AND OUT OF STRONG ROOMS, AND IN THE MODE OF SECURING SUCH
PROPERTY FROM FIRE OR THEFT," to be as follows:-
The description of strong room to which this Invention more particularly
applies are those used by bankers and merchants for the security of their books
and property during the night, and such rooms being often placed below their
offices or on the basement floor, it becomes necessary to raise the books, &c.
for use during the day and to lower them again for security. To effect this,
instead of the cranes or other similar mechanical contrivances now in use, I

page_text: employ the hydrostatic pressure of a column of water from a cistern placed at
as great a height above the apparatus as the public supply of water or the
building will conveniently admit of; or in some cases the apparatus may be
connected direct to the public supply pipes, thereby the pressure in the said
pipes being used instead of the elevated cisterns of water.
In carrying my said Invention into operation, I construct a metal cylinder,
into which a ram is fitted, similar to those used in the hydrostatic press, and of
such a length as to raise the various articles from one floor or position to
another. It is essential that the ram should be made hollow, and as light as
possible, so that the pressure of water obtained by the above means may be
available. The cylinder or outer casing of the ram is connected by a pipe
to the cistern or public main, as before referred to, for the purpose of raising
the ram, and also provided with a waste pipe for discharging the water and
lowering the ram, the descent of which should be made to close the aperture.
The cocks for regulating the raising and lowering the apparatus I place where
most convenient of access to the parties using such strong rooms, and are
secured by locks or other convenient means. The cistern used for this purpose
I construct sufficiently large to hold a supply of water equal to working the
apparatus for several days, so that any temporary cessation of the supply will
not cause any inconvenience.
Upon the top or head of the ram I fix a box or case of any convenient form
to contain the books or property required to be raised; the top of such case I
prefer to make of two thicknesses of wrought iron, with the space between
them filled with fire brick, or other bad conductor of heat, already practised
in the construction of fireproof safes. This fireproof cover falls into a rebate
in a stone or iron curb built into the brickwork of the strong room, thereby
securing the entrance to the chamber below.
In many cases it is of great importance to secure the description of property
herein-before referred to from the attempts of burglars during the night. To
effect this purpose I place a cistern in the strong room, in the inside of which
I have two copper vessels, which are fixed to the ends of two metal arms at
right angles. to each other; the metal arms are mounted on an axis, which
communicates with a catch or bolt, by which the ram is prevented from rising.
The highest of the two copper vessels receives a supply of water when the ram
is discharged, and allows it to run slowly into the other, so that after an
interval of a certain number of hours the water in the lower vessel will over-
balance the upper one, and cause the axis to move round and set the night
bolt at liberty. The vessels will then discharge themselves, and may be restored
to their original position by a counterbalance weight.

page_text: Although I have herein described the particular way by which the night
bolt may be retained in its position, I wish it understood that several modifi-
cations of this part of my Invention may be readily applied, the object. being
to secure, by means of an hydraulic apparatus, the strong room from access
during a certain period of time.'
Although I have only mentioned the pressure of the column of water being
obtained from an elevated cistern, fed by the public supply of water, or from
the public supply pipes themselves,. in some cases it.is.desirable to effect the
rise of the ram, by connecting it to a force pump direct, or to a raised cistern
kept supplied with water by the said force pump..
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Longsdon in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
21st February 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
LONGSDON, of Queen Street Place, New Cannon Street, in the City of London,
Architect and Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Robert Longsdon, Her special licence that I, the said Robert Longsdon,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Robert
Longsdon, niy 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, exercise;
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPA-
RATUS USED FOR REMOVING PROPERTY INTO AND OUT OF STRONG ROOMS, AND IN THE
MODE OF SECURING SUCH PROPERTY FROM FIRE OR THEFT," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Robert Longsdon, my executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the saine was to be performed, and cause the
saine to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Robert Longsdon, do hereby declare the
nature of the 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 thereof, that is to say:-
The description of strong room to which this Invention more particularly
applies are those used by bankers and merchants for the security of their books
and property during the night, and such rooms being often placed below their
offices or on the basement floor, it becomes necessary to raise the books, &c.
for use during the day and to lower them again for security. To effect this,
instead of the cranes or other similar mechanical contrivances now in use, I
employ the hydrostatic pressure of a column of water from a cistern placed at
as great a height above the apparatus as the public supply of water or the
building will conveniently admit of; or in some cases the apparatus may be
connected direct to the public supply pipes, thereby the pressure in the said
pipes being used instead of the elevated cisterns of water..
In carrying my said Invention into operation, I construct a metal cylinder,
into which a ram is fitted, similar to those used in the hydrostatic press, and of
such a length as to raise the various articles from one floor or position to
another.
And in order that my said Invention may be more fully understood, I have
hereunto annexed a Sheet of Drawings; in which, Figure 1 represents a vertical
section, taken through the apparatus and the strong room in which it is placed;
Figure 2 is also a vertical section of the same, taken at right angles to
Figure 1.
a, a, is a metal cylinder, in which the ram b is free to move up and down.
It is essential that the ram should be made hollow, and as light as possible, so
that the pressure of water obtained by the above means may be available. The
cylinder or outer casing of the ram is connected by a pipe to the cistern or
public main, as before referred to, for the purpose of raising the ram, and also
provided with a waste pipe for discharging the water and lowering the ram,
the descent of which should be made to close the aperture, to prevent in some
cases the apparatus being stopped too suddenly. The upper part a* of the
cylinder is bored out truly, so as to fit accurately the ram b, and thus form a
guide for it, and insure its steady motion up and down without the use of any
other guides. A channel is formed around the lower part of the cylindrical
piece a, into which a double cup leather s is fitted, in the manner commonly
practised in the construction of hydrostatic presses, and by means of which the
leakage of water around the ram is prevented. The cock or cocks for regu-
lating the raising and lowering the apparatus I place where most convenient of

page_text: access to the parties using such strong rooms, and are secured by locks or other
convenient means. The cistern used for this purpose I construct sufficiently
large to hold the supply of water equal to working the apparatus for several
days, so that any temporary cessation of the supply will not cause any
inconvenience.
Upon the top or head of the ram I fix a box or case of any convenient form
to contain the books or property required to be raised. The top of such case
I prefer to make of two thicknesses of wrought iron, with the space between
them filled with fire bricks or other bad conductor of heat, as already practised
in the construction of fireproof safes. This fireproof cover falls into a rebate
in a stone or iron curb built into the brickwork of the strong room, thereby
securing the entrance to the chamber below. The upper end of the ram is
formed with a flange, to which the safe or arrangement of shelves before
referred to is affixed, so that it may move up or down with the ram. I prefer
to make the shelves or safe of malleable iron, as represented at c, with
numerous divisions for containing such, books, papers, or other property as
may be required to be moved into or out of the strong room d, which room or
chamber may be constructed in stone or brickwork, so as to be perfectly fire-
proof. It should be situated, by preference, in the basement story of the
building, and have a communication with the ground floor e, by an opening
formed between the walls f,f. Upon these walls a stout iron curb g is securely
bolted; the upper angle of the curb is splayed, and is made to fit accurately to
the covering plate c* of the safe c, which is also bevilled to fit
thereby facilitate the sinking down of the safe into its seating.
plate ca lock may be fixed, if thought desirable, and used as
security to the mode of securing the same by the hydraulic apparatus, herein-
after described. Beneath the plate c is placed a layer of fire bricks h, or the
space occupied by them may be filled with any other slow conductor of heat.
Upon the floor e I construct a chamber or case of sufficient size to receive the
safe or shelves c when raised, so that whenever the doors are opened, access
may be had to the shelves, which will be arranged therein for the time being,
like the shelves in an ordinary bookcase, and in which any of the books or
papers or other property not required during the day may remain without
inconvenience.
the curb, and
Beneath the
an additional
In many cases it is of great importance to secure the description of property
herein-before referred to from the attempt of burglars during the night. To
effect this purpose I place a cistern in the strong room, in the inside of which
I have two copper vessels, which are fixed to the ends of two metal arms at
right angles to cach other. The inetal arms are mounted on an axis, which

page_text: communicates with a catch or bolt by which the ram is prevented from rising."
The highest of the two copper vessels receives a supply of water when the ram
is discharged, and allows it to run slowly into the other, so that after an
interval of a certain number of hours the water in the lower vessel will over-
balance the upper one, and cause the axis to move round and set the night
bolt at liberty. The vessels will then discharge themselves, and may be
restored to their original position by a counterbalance weight.
Although I have herein described the particular way by which the night
bolt may be retained in its position, I wish it understood that several modifica-
tions of this part of my Invention may be readily applied, the object being to
secure, by means of an bydraulic apparatus, the strong room from access
during a certain period of time.
On the annexed Sheet of Drawings I have shewn at Figure 3 a vertical
section of an apparatus for preventing the removal of property from the strong
room during the night. j is a cistern, having an axle k passing across it, and
supported at each end in suitable bearings attached to the inside of the cistern:
On the axis k there is a lever 1, bent at right angles, one arm having attached
to it the copper vessel m, and the other arm carrying the vessel n; the axis k
also supports the lever o and counterbalance' p. There is a sliding bar or
bolt q, having a stud r at one end, and the other forming a bolt, like a
common lock, made to enter into a staple or recess.formed at any convenient
part of the apparatus, so as to prevent the upward movement of the ram
when the bolt q is shot forward, but the ram is set at liberty when the bolt q
is drawn back.
The hydraulic lift having been constructed in the manner herein-before
described, its action will be as follows:-Water from an elevated reservoir, or
from the high service main of any water company, is conducted by the pipe t
as far as the cock u, where it may be stopped or allowed to flow, as required.
The cock u is so constructed as to open a communication between the pipe t
and the pipe v, which passes downwards and enters one side of the cylinder a;
or the cock u may be made to cut off the communication with the pipe t, and
open a communication between the pipes v and w, the latter of which leads
into a drain or into a cistern, so that the water may afterwards be applied to
other purposes. The cock u may be secured by a lock and key in any suitable
way, or it may be enclosed in a small iron chest placed in any convenient
part of the offices.
Whenever the cock u is opened, and a communication
established between the elevated cistern or water main (before referred to),
and the cylinder of the ram, the hydrostatic pressure of the column of water
will cause the ram 6 to rise steadily upwards, until the flange 6* at the bottom

page_text: of the ram comes in contact with the upper part a* of the cylinder a, which
will prevent its farther motion upwards, as shewn in Figure 2 of the annexed
Drawing, and thus the safe c with its contents will have been raised into
the case i on the floor above, and will there remain supported by the pressure
of the water so long as the cock u is left in the same position; when the safe
requires to be lowered down again, the cock u is to be reversed, whereby the
water contained in the cylinder a will be at liberty to flow, by means of the
pipes v and w, into the drain; the pressure of the column of water in the pipe t
no longer supporting the ram, it will by its own gravity sink down, discharging.
the water in so doing through the pipes v and w, as before described.
The safe having descended into the strong room may be there secured by
a lock attached to the under side of the covering plate c*, or it may be
secured by the hydraulic apparatus herein-before described, for which purpose
the pipe w, instead of leading direct to the drain, is brought over the vessel m,
Figure 8, into which the water contained in the cylinder will flow; but as
the vessel m is much too small to hold the whole of it, the surplus quantity,
after filling the vessel m, will fall into the cistern j, and be conveyed froni
thence by the pipe x into the drain. y is a small pipe, having a screw plug
or cock upon it to regulate the quantity of water flowing through it into the
vessel n. The action of the apparatus is as follows:-The bolt q having been
shot so as to secure the strong room, and the vessel m having been filled
with water in the manner described, it will commence to flow very slowly
through the pipe y into the vessel n; when the greater part has passed
into the vessel n, it will gradually sink downwards, bringing the counter-
balance p nearer to the vertical position. In this position of the counter-
balance, its power to support the accumulated water in the vessel n will be
lessened, and at a certain moment the equilibrium will be so far destroyed as
to pass the counterbalance over the centre, when it will fall further over with
increased force, assisted by the full unbalanced weight of the water in the
vessel n.
In this movement of the apparatus, the lever o will come in contact
with the stud r and draw back the bolt q, and once more render the strong
room accessible. The position of the apparatus after falling over is shewn in
Figure 4. The hour at which the bolt is liberated may be regulated by the
screw plug or cock on the pipe y, and thus the strong room may remain secure
5 against all external efforts until the appointed time. This apparatus may be so
constructed as to secure not only the hydraulic ram in its position, but at the
same time fasten and secure any other means of access to the strong room, all
of which bolts may be simultaneously set at liberty by the falling over of the
counterbalance weight, as.before described:

page_text: I have herein-before stated that the object of that part of my Inven-
tion which relates to the securing of property by hydraulic apparatus may
be variously modified. I will therefore proceed to describe other modifi-
cations of the said apparatus whereby similar results may be obtained. One
of these is shewn at Figure 5 of the annexed Sheet of Drawings, which
is a vertical section; Figure 6, a cross section of the same; and Figure 7,
an elevation thereof. A is a small brass cylinder, in which the bolt B
slides freely; the central part of the bolt has a small piston B formed
upon it, with a packing ring around its edge, so as to form a water-tight
joint; A is the cylinder cover, having a recess formed in the centre,
which serves to guide one end of the bolt, while the other end passes out
through the stuffing box and gland C; the cylinder has cast upon it on
one side a stout flange D, by means of which it may be firmly secured by the
bolts E to the door post of the strong room, or to the ram or safe, or other
part required to be bolted or rendered secure. The apparatus is put in action
in the following manner:-The cistern F is placed in an elevated position, and
the pipe G (shewn broken off) leads from it to a private or secure room on
the premises in which the cock H is situated, and which may be secured by a
case or cover of any convenient form, or it may be contained in an ordinary
iron chest of small dimensions. From the cock H there proceeds downwards
two pipes I and J, which are connected to opposite ends of the cylinder A; a
communication is opened between the pipe G and I, whereby the hydrostatic
pressure of the column of water in these pipes will act on the piston B*, and
force it in the direction shewn in the Figure, in doing which the end of the
bolt B will be made to enter the staple-piece L, and thus secure the door,
after the manner of an ordinary bolt, except that the bolt is to be attached to
the door post or other fixed part, while the staple is attached to the moveable
In pressing forward the bolt in this position, the water contained on
the opposite side of the piston is caused to rise up the pipe J, pass through
one side of the two-way cock H, and be discharged at K, where it may be
received in a small cistern or vessel placed there to receive it; the attendant
on turning the cock II will by the discharge of the water be made aware of
the movement of the bolt, however far it may be situated from the cock H.
Whenever it is desired to draw back the bolt, it will be only necessary to
reverse the cock H, when the superior pressure of the water in the tank F
will cause it to flow down the pipes G and J, and force back the bolt, mean-
while the water previously contained in the cylinder will rise up the pipe I,
and be discharged by the pipe K, as before described. It will be obvious that
the pipes I and J inay be made to branch off to any number of bolts situated
one.

page_text: at different parts of the premises, the whole of which will be simultaneously
acted upon by the turning of the cock H. In some cases, however, I construct
the hydraulic bolt so that the pressure of the column of water is made to act
only in one direction on the bolt, the reverse motion being effected by a spring.
In Figure 8 this arrangement is shewn; N being a section of a spiral spring
surrounding the bolt P, and by means of which the bolt is pushed into the
staple Q. When it is required to be forced back, water from an elevated tank
is allowed to flow through the pipe R, and thus compress the spring and with-
draw the bolt; or, in lieu of this arrangement, the spring may be made to act
on the bolt, as shewn in Figure 9, so as to retain the bolt within its cylinder
except when forced outwards by the pressure of a column of water, as
described in reference to Figure 8. In both these latter modifications a small
hole should be made at that end of the cylinder where the spring is situated,
so that any drops of water that may pass the piston may escape, and not
obstruct the movement of the bolt. Although I prefer that the bolt should be
provided with a piston, as described, it will nevertheless be understood that the
movement of the bolt through the short distance required may be effected
by using an elastic diaphragm, or a tubular piece of any suitable elastic
material, without departing from the general principle of my Invention.
Although I have only mentioned the pressure of the column of water being
obtained from an elevated cistern, fed by the public supply pipes themselves,
in some cases it is desirable to effect the rise of the ram by connecting it to
a force pump direct, or to a raised cistern kept supplied with water by the said
force pump.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, I would have it under-
stood that I do not confine myself to the precise details herein specified so
long as the peculiar character of my Invention is retained; but what I do
claim is,―
Firstly, the raising from and lowering into a strong room or chamber, books,
papers, and other property, by hydraulic apparatus placed therein, and actuated
by the bydrostatic pressure of a column of water supplied from an elevated
cistern or reservoir, or by the force exerted by water under pressure in the
service pipes used for the supply of towns with water.
Secondly, I claim the combination of the ram or plunger of the hydraulic
apparatus with a safe, case, or chest, having suitable compartments therein
for receiving the articles or property to be moved, so that the whole may be
raised or lowered simultaneously.
Thirdly, I claim the use of the guide piece forming the upper part of the
hydraulic cylinder, whereby the use of other guides is avoided.

page_text: Fourthly, I claim the. protection of property in strong rooms or chambers
during the night, by means of a bolt or fastening, actuated by water power,
and not otherwise capable of being unfastened or removed by any force applied
exterior to the said room or chamber.
In witness whereof, I, .the said. Robert Longsdon, have hereunto set my
hand and seal; this Twenty-first: day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witness,
B. GOBEY.
ROB LONGSDON. (L.S.)