IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF PRODUCING INSTANTANEOUS IGNITION
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Eleventh day of August, in the seventh year of His
reigu, and in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty-
six, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Newton, His especial license, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said William Newton, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Newton, my executors,
administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also in all His Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MEANS OF PRODUCING INSTANTANEOUS IGNITION," being a communication from a
Foreigner residing abroad; in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso.
obliging me, the said William Newton, by an instrument in writing under
my hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of the said:
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the
same to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, 1, the said
William Newton, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following description thereof, reference being
had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say):-
These Improvements in the Means of Producing Instantaneous Ignition
consist in the peculiar construction of receptacles in which matches are to be
placed, in order that on drawing out each match it may become instanta-
neously ignited by the friction produced in its passage from the interior of the
receptacle. The principal feature of this improvement is the manner in which
two rough surfaces are placed nearly in contact in connection with the recep-
tacle of the matches. By this contrivance the explosive end of a match,
when the match is withdrawn from the receptacle, is caused to pass between
the two rough surfaces, and by means of the friction so produced to become
immediately ignited. The match may be made of wood, paper, wax taper, or
any other suitable material of which matches have been usually or may be
made, and they may be primed at the end with any of the known inflammable
I make no claim to any novelty
mixtures which become ignited by friction.
in the production of matches. The form of the receptacle for containing the
matches may be varied according to taste; but the essential features of novelty
in its construction, and that which constitutes the Invention claimed by me
under the above-recited Letters Patent, are as follows:-
I construct a box or receptacle having series of small tubes or compart-
ments, each of which compartments is intended for the reception of one of
the matches; and above these compartments I place strips of card or other
suitable substance coated on their faces with sand paper or other similar rough
material. The matches having been properly primed, are severally placed in
the compartments, their primed ends downwards, and the stems of the matches
extending upwards between the rough surfaces of the strips of card sufficiently
far to allow of their ends being taken hold of conveniently by the fingers and
thumb, for the purpose of being drawn out. The strips of card at top of the
receptacle are then slightly pressed together and confined, in order that the
primed ends of the matches, as they are severally drawn upwards out of
the receptacle, by passing between the rough surfaces, may be sufficiently
subjected to friction to produce ignition by the pressure of the rough sides of
the cards acting upon the explosive priming.
The principles of the Invention having been described, I will proceed to
shew a convenient mode of carrying them into execution.

page_text: In the accompanying Drawings Fig. 1 represents a series of tubes or recep-
tacles for the matches, constructed of card. I first provide two flat pieces of
card of a rectangular form. I then take another piece of card, crimped, or
corrugated, or formed into flutes or tubes a, a, a, and attach it between the
two former, by glue or otherwise, as shewn in the horizontal section Fig. 2,
and in the vertical section Fig. 3. I then attach to the cards above the tubes
strips of sand paper b, b, for the purpose of producing the required friction. I
then introduce into each of the tubes a primed match, and after that has been
done, bring the flaps, with the surfaces of the sand paper b, b, close to the
stems of the matches, by binding thread round the flaps, or by any other con-
venient means, so as to confine them. When this is done, the matches being
severally drawn out, the priming will, by the friction between the sand paper
surfaces b, b, become exploded, and instantly ignite. These receptacles for
the matches may be made in various ways, and combined in various forms,
without in any degree deviating from the principle of the improvement set
out above. For instance, several of these series of receptacles with primed
matches may be combined and enclosed within a small pocket-book, which
will require merely to be opened, and a match drawn out smartly, when the
priming will instantly explode, and the match become ignited. Such a small
pocket-book, about two inches long, three eighths of an inch thick, and two
inches deep, would enclose a series of receptacles capable of holding fifty
matches; and when these are all used, the paper case of receptacles may be
withdrawn, and on removing the binding threads, so as to allow the flaps to
open, as at Fig. 3, a set of fresh matches might be introduced, and the flaps
bound up again, as before, when the apparatus would be ready for use.
small box, as Figs. 4, might be adapted to receive a quantity of the primed
matches, a being the receptacle for a store of matches to be set upright, the
priming downwards; b, a socket for a wax candle; c, a recess, in which is
mounted a pair of plates with roughed internal surfaces d, d, pressed together
by a spring. Between these roughed plates d, d, a series of the matches are
to be placed, the primed ends downwards. They may be readily introduced
by pressing back the stude of the spring, which will open the plates, and
when released, the spring will cause the plates to hold the matches firmly.
When any one of the matches is drawn out, the priming, in passing between
the rough surfaces, will, by the friction, become exploded, and the match
ignited.
A
Figs. 5 shew another box or receptacle for matches. The back and front
fall down on hinges, for the purpose of introducing the matches into the recep-
tacles a, a, and b, b, are the friction surfaces. When the back and front are

page_text: closed up, they are held fast by pins c, c, pressed down and passed into sockets
d, d, which confine them, and the matches, on being severally drawn out,
explode by the friction in passing between the surfaces.
Figs. 6 exhibit another construction of box in an octagon form, the sides of
which, a, fall down on hinges, for the purpose of introducing the matches into
the receptacles 6; the friction surfaces are at c, c, and the sides, when closed
up, are confined by an octagonal casing. The interior of the box may contain
a spirit lamp and a drawer below for a store of fresh matches. These, how-
ever, are only shewn as examples, as it will be obvious that the receptacles
may be made in a great variety of tasteful forms embodying the same prin-
ciples of construction, viz, the cells, sockets, or receptacles for the matches,
with the friction surfaces above.
Lastly, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself to any par-
ticular forms, or to any materials of which the receptacles shall be made; and
as to the friction surfaces I make them of sand paper, or of card, or leather,
or of any other suitable material coated with sand or any other fine grit
attached to the surfaces by glue or other means.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Newton, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Tenth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven.