Improvements in Stove or Furnace Pipes for Tents and similar Structures.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Jan., 1894-Accepted, 10th Mar., 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Stove or Furnace Pipes for Tents and similar
Structures.
1, ROBERT HARGRAVE MARTIN, residing at No. 97, Columbia Heights,
Brooklyn, County of Kings, State of New York, United States of America,
Manufacturer and Merchant, 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 an improvement in store or furnace pipes for tents and
similar structures, which are intended to be taken down, transported and erected at
intervals; and it consists in supplying such structures with a flexible stove-pipe or
smoke stack. Although I have adapted my invention especially to tents as above
stated, I do not limit myself to its use in connection with such structures only,
because it may be used on permanent buildings, also aboard ship &c.
In practising my invention, I make the stove-pipe of asbestos cloth, and provide
it with a supporting rod or rods in conjunction with proper devices whereby the
pipe is maintained in a distended or open condition, and also in an erect or
standing position. I also provide means so that it may form an integral part of
the structure, such as a tent, in order that it may be easily transported with such
structure, and I also provide special appliances whereby it may be connected to
the stove, or furnace. When the invention is employed upon structures other than
tents, certain parts of my improvements will not be employed.
In the drawings hereof,
Figure 1, illustrates an open end view of an ordinary army tent, a portion of it
being broken away to show the stove in the interior.
Figure 2, is an enlarged sectional view of the stove-pipe.
Figure 3, is a plan view of the distending ring at the top of the stove-pipe.
Figure 4, is a plan view of the distending ring at the base of the stove-pipe.
Figure 5, is a vertical sectional view of modifications.
A is the tent. B are the stay ropes fastened to stakes C. D and -E are the
frame which support the tent. All these parts are as usual. F is the stove-pipe.
It is made of asbestos cloth, preferably a closely woven and firm variety. G is a
disc of heavy asbestos cloth, which is stitched at its edges to the canvas of the
tent. This disc may be a foot or more in diameter. The stove-pipe passes
through it. The stove-pipe may be a half foot in diameter, more or less. H is
the stove.
I is a section of ordinary iron stove-pipe, preferably of such length as
that during transportation, it may be placed inside of the stove. In order to
sustain the flexible asbestos pipe in a vertical position and with requisite rigidity, I
attach to the interior of the upper end of the same, a ring or spider J (see
Figs. 2 and 3). This spider has preferably a number of grooves made upon its
periphery, so that the asbestos stove-pipe may be firmly bound by wire or otherwise
band and a recessed
to the spider. The spider is composed of an exterior ring or
hub b, and a few arms or spokes C, which have very little thickness or width
horizontally, but considerable vertically, so that they have the necessary strength,
but do not materially, in fact practically not at all interfere with the draft. The
hub on the under side is recessed as at d.
At the bottom of the stove-pipe there is a similar spider K, composed of a rim,
a hub band spokes or webs c, which are or may be, in all respects, the same as
those of the spider J, with the exception that the interior of the hub is threaded
as at e. Lis a rod of steel or iron, so tempered as to be stiff and rigid, and it
may well be made of gas or like pipe, because, being tubular, it will be rigid, yet

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light, and also if the pipe is of different diameters, they may be easily made into
a rod of the desired length, by screwing smaller sections into larger ones. That
is to say, the lower short section of the pipe marked M (see Fig. 2) is somewhat
large, and is threaded on its outside to coincide with the threads e in the hub of
the spider K. Above it there is a section of a smaller pipe marked N, which
extends upwardly to about the place where the canvas disc G is secured to the
tent as at O. Above that proceeds a still smaller section P, the upper end of
which engages in the socket d in the under side of the upper spider. On the
shoulder rests a disc Q which is somewhat smaller than the interior diameter
of the stove-pipe, say about a quarter of an inch smaller, and the hole through its
centre is somewhat larger than the section of the rod marked P, so that the rod,
when withdrawn from the stove-pipe may be easily pulled through this washer or
disc Q, and it being smaller than the interior of the stove-pipe, can be readily
shaken, or may by its own weight drop to one end or the other of the pipe, and
rest upon either the spider J or the spider K, as the case may be, but cannot
escape from the interior of the pipe. The lower end of the large threaded
section M of the rod is squared, as at R, so that it may be turned by any suitable
wrench. The canvas of the stove-pipe F, projects three or more inches below the
lower spider K, so that it will lap on the section of the metallic stove-pipe I, and
make a sufficiently good joint to prevent smoking.
has
The operation of the device is as follows: When the tent is spread upon the
ground prior to erecting it, the rod L is introduced through the lower
spider K and care is taken that the small end of the rod passes through the
disc Q. Thereupon the rod, carrying the washer Q, which engages with the
shoulder O, is shoved through the stove-pipe, until the lower end of the rod
enters the socket d in the upper spider. By the time the rod has been thus
far introduced into the pipe-the threads on the larger section M of the rod will
have engaged with the threads e in the hub of the lower spider K. I prefer to
make the threads both in the hub and in the rod quite coarse, and of not very tight
engagement, so that the rod can be easily turned by the hand until the pipe
been practically stretched, and then a turn or two with a wrench or other suitable
tool will give it a tensely distending condition, and it will of course be tubular in
form, and the disc Q, coming to about the point where the asbestos disc is sewn to
the tent, the pipe cannot tip over because it is fastened to the metallic section of the
stove-pipe at its lower end, and any deflection from the vertical line will be arrested
by the impingement of the disc Q against the inside of the pipe, adjacent to the
stiff and practically rigid asbestos disc G, and in this manner, the pipe will be
maintained permanently in a vertical and distended condition, I prefer to provide
suitable clips or other fastening devices, whereby the metallic section I, will be
clamped to the body of the stove when in use. Such devices are already well-
known and do not require description. During transportation the staying rod L
is removed by a simple reversal of the acts necessary to insert it and then the
central disc Q, either drops by its own weight or is positively moved to one end or
the other of the stove-pipe, where it rests upon either the spider J or K, as the
case may be; this central disc is very thin vertically, as are also the spiders.
They need not be more than half an inch thick, and the disc Q not more than one
quarter of an inch thick; thereupon the stove-pipe is simply folded in zigzag
fashion, and laid flat upon the canvas of the tent, the spiders and disc Q also lying
flatwise. The cloth of the stove-pipe will readily bend to permit this to be done
without injury. Thereupon the tent, stove-pipe and all are folded over and over,
and made up into a bundle for transportation.
It will be evident to those who are familiar with this art, that various modifica-
tions may be made in the details of construction of my invention and yet its
essentials be employed. Particularly the devices which support the stove-pipe may
be on the outside instead of the inside of it, and may be of wood, if preferred, and
rings or metallic spirals may be used instead of the spiders, either on the inside or
outside of the pipe; also the spiders, rings or discs which distend the pipe may

page_text: be rigidly attached to the staying rod, if preferred; these modifications are
illustrated in Figure 5. In it, the tent is lettered A, the attaching piece G, and
the pipe F, the same as before, but instead of the central rod and spiders, I show
in this figure, an exterior rod a which may, if preferred, be made of wood and
rings b, which are attached to the rod by means of bolt and nut. c, d are rings or
eyes, sewed to the stove-pipe and e are wires of asbestos cord, which pass over the
rings b and are laced through the eyes d, so as to hold the pipe distended and
against the rings. f is a spiral of very resilient wire, which distends the pipe
where it passes through the attaching piece G, if any such means is necessary, and
will not ordinarily be the case. It will be seen that the pole or rod a passes
through the attaching piece near the pipe. In fact a number of other modifications
may be made. I therefore do not limit myself to the details shown.
Some of the advantages arising from my invention are the following: The
advantage of flexibility, compactness, non-corrosive character, and lightness, are
obvious; beyond these are the following-greater strength than in any other pipe
known to me cannot be injured by moisture, acids, knocks, indentions or other
rough usage. The pipe is capable of exterior decoration, it can be more easily
repaired under all circumstances or conditions than any other stove or furnace
pipe, and the pipe can be made continuous from end to end without separate joints.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :
I claim :-
1st. A stove or furnace pipe made of non-inflammable cloth, and a ring or
spider attached to the pipe, and a staying rod adapted to pass through the pipe
and engage with the rings or spiders, substantially as set forth.
2nd. A stove or furnace pipe made of non-inflammable cloth attached to the
structure by an interposed non-inflammable piece of material, a ring or spider at
or near each end of the stove-pipe, and a distending rod, which engages with
them, to put the pipe under tension, substantially as set forth.
3rd. A stove or furnace pipe made of non-inflammable cloth, a ring or spider
at or near each end of the stove-pipe, and a distending rod, adapted to engage
with them, and a disc or plate which engages with the rod and is supported by
it on the interior of the pipe between the rings or spiders, substantially as set
forth.
4th. A stove or furnace pipe made of asbestos cloth, having a distending ring,
spider or similar device at or near its end and a distending rod which engages with
the ring spider or like device substantially as set forth.
5th. A stove-pipe made of flexible asbestos cloth and a rigid rod supplied with
devices to distend the pipe, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 30th day of January 1894.
GEORGE BARKER,
77, Colmore Row, Birmingham, Agent.