IMPROVE- MENTS IN OR APPLICABLE TO INVALID COUCHES, CARRIAGES AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES FOR SITTING OR RECLINING UPON
Year: 1884

page_text: I WILLIAM DICKINSON of Manchester in the County of Lancaster Fancy Box
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN OR APPLICABLE TO INVALID COUCHES, CARRIAGES AND OTHER SIMILAR
ARTICLES FOR SITTING OR RECLINING UPON," to be as follows:-
:-
The object of this invention is so to improve an invalid bed that the invalid can
attend to the requirements of nature without being disturbed or lifted up as is the
case when a bed-pan or other receptacle has to be placed beneath him. In carrying
out my invention I form an aperture or opening through the mattress which is
closed by an upholstered pad which when in position in the aperture comes
perfectly flush with the upper surface of the mattress and renders the same as
comfortable as an ordinary mattress. This pad is however capable of descending
into a sliding receptacle beneath the mattress, for which purpose it is guided up
and down in suitable slides which prevent it turning round and is operated by a
toothed rack gearing into a toothed wheel at the extremity of a square shaft.
This shaft is capable of sliding through a bevel pinion gearing in turn into a
corresponding bevel toothed quadrant mounted at one extremity of a shaft. To
this last mentioned shaft a partial revolution is imparted by a lever handle and
thus the sliding shaft is also revolved when it is required to raise or lower the
pad.
The receptacle before mentioned is also capable when the pad is in its lowered
position of sliding sideways in order to bring a bed-pan contained in the same
receptacle under the now open orifice and thus the invalids requirements can be
attended to without his moving at all a convenience of great moment where he is
suffering from extreme weakness or cannot be moved without inflicting much pain
and suffering. One of the sides or ends of the receptacle is suitably hinged so as
to facilitate the removal of the pan. I prefer to operate the sliding receptacle by
a lever arm at one extremity of a transverse shaft having at its other extremity a
toothed segment gearing into a toothed pinion. This pinion carries a crank arm
and thus by means of a connecting rod imparts to and fro motion to the receptacle.
It will be obvious that this sliding receptacle may be operated in any other suitable
manner or instead of sliding sideways the pad might be lowered and the bed-pan
supported upon the top of the pad. These improvements although only described
with reference to an invalid's bed are equally applicable to invalid carriages and to
new or existing bed-steads.

page_text: I WILLIAM DICKINSON of Manchester in the County of Lancaster, Fancy Box
Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of my said invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN OR APPLICABLE TO INVALID COUCHES, CARRIAGES, AND OTHER SIMILAR ARTICLES
FOR SITTING OR RECLINING UPON " and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of this invention is so to improve an invalid's bed that the invalid can
attend to the requirements of nature without being disturbed or lifted up as in the
case when a bed-pan or other receptacle has to be placed beneath him.
The accompanying drawing represents a side sectional view Fig 1 and plan Fig 2
of an invalid bed-stead embracing my improvements.
In carrying out my invention I form an aperture or opening a through the
mattress b which is closed by an upholstered pad c and which pad when in position
in the aperture comes perfectly flush with the upper surface of the mattress or may
be adjusted at any height and thus renders the same as comfortable as an ordinary
mattress. This pad is however capable of descending into a sliding drawer or
receptacle d beneath the mattress for which purpose it is guided up and down in
the compartment e which prevents it turning round.
It is operated or raised and lowered by a toothed rack f gearing into a toothed
wheel g at the extremity of a square shaft h. This shaft his capable of sliding
through and also of being revolved by a bevil pinion i gearing in turn into a
corresponding bevil toothed quadrant j mounted at one extremity of a transverse
shaft. To this last mentioned shaft a partial revolution is imparted by a lever
handle and thus the sliding shaft is also revolved when it is required to raise or
lower the pad.
The receptacle d is also capable when the pan is in its lowered position of sliding
lengthways in order to bring a bed-pan d' contained in another compartment d' of
the same receptacle underneath the now opened orifice and this is effected by
connecting one extremity of a toothed rack m to the receptacle d and gearing the
other extremity which is supported upon a roller n with a quadrant o.
And in order to actuate this quadrant o at the right speed and so as to enable
the receptacle d to travel far enough by turning the hand lever p through only one
quarter of a circle--the shaft q of such hand lever is "speeded" up to the axis of
the larger quadrant o by means of a smaller quadrant r and toothed pinion 8.
Instead of the toothed rack m and quadrant o a crank pin may be substituted on
the same axis as the latter and thus by means of a connecting rod the necessary to
and fro motion could be imparted to the sliding receptacle d or the same may be
traversed by a quick threaded screw-but these I should consider as modifications
of my invention. In this manner the invalids requirements can be attended to if
need be without his moving at all, a convenience of great moment where he is
suffering from extreme weakness or cannot be moved without inflicting much pain
and suffering. One of the sides or ends of the receptacle is suitably hinged say
the end marked t¹ as being most convenient so as to facilitate the removal of the
pan. In order to prevent any escape of effluvia from the compartment & I arrange
a hinged flap t (which is lined on the under side with india-rubber or other suitable
material) to rest upon the top of the sliding receptacle d.
It will be obvious that this sliding receptacle may be operated in any other
suitable manner or instead of sliding lengthways or sideways the pad might be
lowered and the bed pan supported upon the top of the-pad or the same may be
mounted upon a quadrant arm and be moved round a vertical axis.

page_text: These improvements although only described with reference to an invalid's bed
are equally applicable to invalid carriages and to new or existing bed-steads and
other similar articles for sitting or reclining upon.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
The use and application of a sliding receptacle or its equivalent when fitted,
operated and mounted substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described
and illustrated on the accompanying drawing.
Dated this 31st day of October 1884.
JOHN G. WILSON,
71, Market St., Manchester,
Agent for the Applicant.