An Improved Process of and Apparatus for Covering Articles with a Surface Layer of Celluloid or like Material
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Sept., 1897-Accepted, 11th Dec., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
"An Improved Process of and Apparatus for Covering Articles with
a Surface Layer of Celluloid or like Material."
I, ALBERT AUGUSTUS POPE, of Cohasset, in the county of Norfolk, State of
Massachusetts, United States of America, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to the art of covering articles of wood or other solid substances
with a layer of celluloid or like material which is capable of being made flexible and
also in a measure plastic so that it may be shaped about and united to an irregular
surface; and the object of my invention is to provide a process and an apparatus by
means of which such a layer or film may be intimately and securely united to the
surface of the article in a durable and commercially successful manner.
To this end my invention consists mainly in the use of a protective shield in the
process of securing the layer or film of celluloid or like material to the surface of
the article while under heat and pressure, and it also consists in other steps in the
process and in the apparatus employed, as hereinafter described and more particularly
pointed out in the claims.
Referring to the drawings:-
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tank in which the articles may be heated.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of one form of enclosing air tight bag used in the
process.
Figure 3 is a view of one form of shield continuous as to its surface.
Figure 4 is a view of another form of shield partible along one side where abutting
edges are provided to form a close joint.
Figure 5 is a detail view of a roll of elastic tape used in the process.
Figure 6 is a diagram sectional view through the pressure chamber showing
connected tanks and piping.
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a mud guard such as is used on a bicycle,
overlying the wheel thereof.
Figure 8 is a detail view, on enlarged scale, showing the manner of holding the
layer of celluloid while it is being molded and formed to shape in the heating bath.
Figure 9 is a detail view, on enlarged scale, showing the manner of enclosing the
guard and the formed film-blank thereon within the protecting shield.
Figure 10 is a view, on enlarged scale, in section through the air tight bag and
across the mud guard showing the relative position of the several parts.
In the practise of this improvement the best results are obtained by, and the most
convenient form of apparatus is adapted for the use of water as the liquid agent and
vehicle for the storing and transmission of heat and pressure, and of steain as the
immediate heating medium. My invention is herein described, therefore, in
connection with an apparatus in which such agencies are employed, and it is
illustrated as applied to the production of a mud-guard for a velocipede or bicycle
wheel, although other agencies may be employed as vehicles for heat and pressure
and a large variety of articles may be treated and produced without departing from
the invention, which is not limited to all the specific mediums employed nor to the
shape, form or prospective use of the article produced,

page_text: The apparatus preferably employed is illustrated in one of its forms in Figures 1 to 6
of the drawings. The shallow tank a is adapted to hold water and serve as a bath in
which the articles may be submerged; it has a series of steam-pipes b located and arranged
to conveniently heat the water to the desired degree of temperature and provided with
Buitable valves to control the flow of steam.
The air-tight bag c, preferably of india-rubber, has a valve d as a means of con-
trolling the inflation and deflation of the bag, and a pipe-connection to a vacuum-pump
enables the air to be exhausted from the bag. This bag is of any desired shape and
size to suitably enclose the article to be covered or protected by the layer of celluloid
or like material.
The mud-guard e, Figures 7 to 10 selected to illustrate the practise of the invention,
is of curved outline both lengthwise and crosswise, and to cover such an article with
the layer or film of celluloid, or like material, on the outer face and edges, a strip of
the covering material is cut to proper length and width. This strip or blank f is
placed against and fitted upon the guard and strapped to it by means of the tape g
which is of elastic material, preferably india-rubber; this elastic tape is wound about
the article, as illustrated in Figure 8, and with sufficient tension to bind the film-
blank firmly upon the article.
The article thus bound is placed in the bag c and the air exhausted, and in this
condition placed in the tank a and subjected to a high degree of heat of about
200 degrees Fahrenheit, where it remains for a short time. It is then cooled, preferably
by plunging it into cold water while in the bag, and the air is then admitted to the
bag and the article removed. The elastic strip g is then unwound and the blank of
It may
celluloid or like material will be found shaped to the outline of the article.
then be removed and a number of such blanks made for future use, or the guard (or
other article being covered) is treated with a coating of cement (or the cement may be
applied to the inner face of the film when cement is used, but that is not always
necessary). The blank is then placed upon the article, as the guard, and over this is
placed a shield h preferably of india-rubber, or like flexible and elastic material. This
shield may be continuous as to its surface and open at the ends so that it can he
slipped upon the article, or if the shape of the article requires it, the shield may be of
the form shown in Figure 4 of the drawings, in which the shield is made with a
lengthwise slit along one side but so arranged that the edges will abut and form a very
narrow seam. Such a shield is shown in Figure 4 of the drawings, and also in
Figure 9 where it is applied to the mud-guard.
This mud-guard e with the blank of celluloid or like material closely formed upon
it and with the inner shield h wrapped about it, is put into a bag i and the air
exhausted. The "pull-up" of the bag is located on opposite sides as shown on
the drawings and sometimes a surplus width exists along another portion of the
article, but all parts of the article are wrapped about and enclosed within the hag
which is air-tight, and with the air exhausted therefrom is subject to an exterior
pressure, depending upon the degree of vacuum within the bag.
The bag with the enclosed article is then put within the retort k where it is
The retort may
subjected to heat and pressure in an enclosing liquid, as water.
be of any desired shape and size and has a suitable cover and means for clamping
the cover so as to hold the liquid under pressure.
In Figure 6 of the drawings there is shown a view in vertical section through
the retort and tanks, and a diagram view of the connected piping. By means
of the pump the retort is filled with water, the valve is then closed and
steam admitted through the pipe m into the coils m¹ in the retort, and by this
means the water in the retort is brought to the desired temperature, usually
from 200 to 212 degrees Fahrenheit. By a continued operation of the pump,
pressure may be exerted upon the article and this varies from 75 to 120 pounds
per square inch, more or less, depending upon the article to be covered.
After treatment for the required length of time, depending upon the size and
character of the article, the hot water is pumped out of the retort into the tank n
and from there discharged to the tank o and cold water is then pumped into the

page_text: retort to cool the article, and afterwards discharged, or the article may be removed
from the retort while heated and be cooled in a separate receptacle.
The mud-guard or other article is then removed from the bag aud the layer of
celluloid will be found to be firmly and intimately united with the surface so that it
will not split or splinter off, and it forms a secure protection against the weather and
provides a surface that is easily kept in good condition and one which may be of any
desired color or mixture of colors. The protecting film or layer of celluloid or like
material may
be transparent if desired and thus leave exposed the natural color of the
article on which it is secured.
It is to be understood that this same method or process may be employed in the
production of a wide range of articles, and is not limited to use in connection with a
mud-guard, but may be used with equal success in covering articles of many different
substances, such, for instance, as vehicle-frames, handle-bars, pedals, rims and the
like.
The shield fulfils an important function in this process, as without it any crease,
seam or irregularity in the bag would be transferred to the film and show as an
imperfection which would have to be removed, as by sand-papering and polishing.
By the use of the shield all such imperfections are wholly avoided and an important
gain is made in the commercial value of the article produced by the apparatus and
process.
As already stated, the invention is not limited to the production of the article,
which, for convenience alone, selected as the one in connection with which the
invention is illustrated, but is equally applicable to a wide range and large variety of
articles, and my invention contemplates the application of the process and the use
of the apparatus in the production of articles of wood, metal and other material
covered wholly or in part with a layer of celluloid or like material, a characteristic of
the material being that it is easily bent and becomes in a measure plastic by the
application of heat and is readily moulded to the desired shape by pressure when so
heated.
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 :-
1. The within-described process of providing an article with a protecting layer of
celluloid or like material, which includes as one step the covering of the article and
layer with an inner shield of flexible material and the subjecting of the whole to heat
and pressure, all substantially as described.
2. The within-described process of providing an article of wood or metal with a
protecting layer of celluloid or like material, which includes as one step in the process
covering the article and layer with an inner shield of flexible material and subjecting
the whole, while enclosed in an air-tight bag, to heat and pressure, all substantially as
described.
3. The within-described process of providing an article with a thin surface layer of
celluloid or like material, which includes the alternate heating under pressure and
subsequent cooling of the article with the layer of celluloid protected by an inner
shield of flexible material, all substantially as described.
4. The process of producing an article with a surface layer of celluloid or like
material intimately united to the article, which process comprises as steps therein,
shaping the film or layer to the surface by heat and pressure, then treating the article
or the layer with a coat of adhesive material, then enclosing the article and layer in
an inner shield of flexible material, then placing these parts in an enclosing bag, and
then subjecting the whole to heat and pressure, all substantially as described.
5. That improvement in the art and process of providing an article of wood with a
surface layer of celluloid or like material securely and intimately united to the
article, which comprises the use of an inner shield of flexible and elastic material
about the covered surface of the article while it is subjected to heat and pressure

page_text: within an enclosing bag, and a closed retort filled with liquid, all substantially as
described.
6. The improved process of covering with a thin film of celluloid or like material
the irregular surface of an article, which consists in first providing a film blank of the
size and outline of the surface when developed, and providing for a lap at the seain,
then forming the blank to shape by the application of heat and pressure in a
protecting bag and setting the blank by cooling, then wrapping the formed blank
about the article, then placing thereon an inner shield of flexible and elastic material,
then enclosing these parts in an air-tight bag, and then subjecting the whole to heat
and pressure in a retort filled with fluid and subsequently cooling the article, all
substantially as described.
ALBERT AUGUSTUS POPE.
D. Young & Co.,
11 & 12 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.