IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WATERCLOSETS AND IN THE MODE PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATIONULATINGPLY TO
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Blundell, George Thomas Blundell, and
James Walter Blundell, all of Limehouse, in the County of
Middlesex, Engineers and Coppersmiths, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WATERCLOSETS AND IN THE MODE
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Blundell,
George Thomas Blundell, and James Walter Blundell at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the
26th February 1872.
We, THOMAS Blundell, GEORGE THOMAS BLUNDELL, and JAMES
WALTER BLUNDELL, all of Limehouse, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineers and Coppersmiths, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WATERCLOSETS AND
IN THE MODE AND MEANS OF REGULATING THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO THEIR PANS,"
to be as follows:-

page_text: watercloset used above water line on board ship. In these closets the
pan is secured to the top of a chamber called the container. The com-
munication between the closet pan and the container is an opening of
about three inches diameter which is closed by a door or valve fixed
upon a spindle. This spindle can be turned upon its axis. The con- t
tainer is situated above and communicates with a second chamber.
The opening between the two chambers is supplied with a valve and
spindle similar to that in the opening between the pan and the container.
One end of both of the spindles on which the aforesaid valves are fixed
projects through the side of its respective chamber, and is furnished with
a lever by which the valve upon it is opened or closed. The handle by
which the mechanism of of the closet is actuated communicates with a
main lever which has two studs or pins upon it. One of these studs or pins
passes through a slot in the lever of the upper valve spindle. The other
stud or pin passes through a slot in the lower lever of the valve spindle.
The slots in the levers on the valve spindles and those levers themselves
are so arranged that when the closet handle is down in its usual position
the upper valve is locked shut and the lower valve is locked open.
When it is desired to discharge the contents of the pan the closet
handle is raised, and by it the main lever is raised. The lever on the
lower valve spindle is at the same time moved by the stud passing
through it. The upper valve is not yet actuated because the slot in the
lever upon its spindle is at this part an arc of similar radius to that
described by the stud passing through this said lever. The upward
motion of the handle being continued the lower valve is closed and the
end of the curved slot in the upper valve lever is reached. By a further
motion of the closet handle upwards the upper valve lever is acted on
by the stud passing through its slot and the upper valve is opened.
The contents of the pan then fall into the upper chamber or container
in which they are retained by the lower valve. This continued upward
motion of the handle and of the lever carrying the studs would have
strained the lower valve spindle were it not that its lever is also formed
with a slot which is an arc of similar radius to that described by the
stud passing through it. It will be seen that by the use of these slotted
levers either the upper or lower valve must be locked shut, and that one
of these valves cannot be opened until the other is first closed and
locked. The soil pipe is connected to the lower chamber, and is
continued to the outside of the ship. This arrangement of valves and

page_text: levers is for the purpose of preventing any of the water in which a ship
may be floating from being forced up the soil pipe to the inconvenience
of persons using the closet.
Our improvements are applicable to other double valve waterclosets
as well as to that herein-before described. These improvements consist
as follows:-
:―
Firstly. In so arranging the lower valve, its seating, and spindle that
they can be inserted through an opening or openings in the chamber in
such manner as to obviate the hitherto existing necessity of inserting
this valve before the closet was fixed and of removing the pan and
container, or of taking down the whole closet to inspect this valve.
Secondly. In so arranging the cock or valve through which the water
passes to flush the closet that this said cock or valve is actuated by the
movement of the lower valve spindle, by which means this valve or cock
is opened when the lower valve is shut, and shut when the lower valve
is opened. Thus before the upper valve is opened the water is turned
on, and commencing to run into the pan continues turned on all the
time that the upper valve is opened, and is not turned off until after
the upper valve has been closed. A thorough flushing of the
closet is thus obtained and the pan is left with a proper supply of water
in it.
Thirdly. When a valve having an india-rubber surface is used to
regulate the supply of water for flushing the closet we prefer to make its
seat of lead or other suitable material not acted upon chemically by the
combined action of the sea water and the india-rubber, ordinary gun
metal or brass valves or seats being very quickly spoilt by the above
mentioned combined chemical action.
Sometimes we make the valve with a surface of lead, or excepting
glass and wood of some other suitable material, not subject to the
before-mentioned chemical action, and we make its seat of india-rubber.
We make the seating of this valve of such form that it fits a recess
between two parts of the valve casing, which two parts are secured
ogether by any simple mechanical means, thus by merely seperating
hese two parts a new seat can quickly be inserted if required.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Blundell, George Thomas Blundell, and
James Walter Blundell in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 23rd
1080
August 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, THOMAS
BLUNDELL, GEORGE THOMAS BLUNDELL, and JAMES WALTER BLUNDELL,
all of Limehouse, in the County of Middlesex, Engineers and Copper-
smiths, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Thomas Blundell, George Thomas
Blundell, and James Walter Blundell, Her special licence that we, the
said Thomas Blundell, George Thomas Blundell, and James Walter
Blundell, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said Thomas Blundell, George Thomas Blundell, and James
Walter Blundell, our 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 THE CONSTRUCTION OF WATERCLOSETS AND
IN THE MODE AND MEANS OF REGULATING THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO THEIR PANS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Thomas Blundell,
George Thomas Blundell, James Walter Blundell, our executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, 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 same was to
be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Thomas Blundell, George Thomas
Blundell, and James Walter Blundell, do hereby declare the nature of
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed,

page_text: to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, that is to say :-
These improvements relate more especially to that description of
watercloset used above water line on board ship. In these closets the
pan is secured to the top of a chamber called the container. The
communication between the closet pan and the container is an opening
of about three inches diameter, which is closed by a door or valve fixed
upon a spindle. This spindle can be turned upon its axis.
The con-
tainer is situated above and communicates with a second chamber. The
opening between the two chambers is supplied with a valve and spindle
similar to that in the opening between the pan and the container. One
end of both of the spindles on which the aforesaid valves are fixed projects
through the side of its respective chamber, and is furnished with a lever
by which the valve upon it is opened or closed. The handle by which the
mechanism of the closet is actuated communicates with a main lever
which has two studs or pins upon it. One of these studs or pins passes
through a slot in the lever of the upper valve spindle. The other stud
or pin passes through a slot in the lever of the lower valve spindle. The
slots in the levers upon the valve spindles and those levers themselves
are so arranged that when the closet handle is down in its usual position
the upper valve is locked shut and the lower valve is locked open.
When it is desired to discharge the contents of the pan the closet
handle is raised and by it the main lever is raised. The lever on the
lower valve spindle is at the same time moved by the stud passing
through it. The upper valve is not yet actuated because the slot in the
lever upon its spindle is at this part an arc of similar radius to that
described by the stud passing through this said lever. The upward
motion of the handle being continued the lower valve is closed and the
end of the curved slot in the upper valve lever is reached. By a further
motion of the closet handle upwards the upper valve lever is acted upon
by the stud passing through its slot, and the upper valve is opened. The
contents of the pan then fall into the upper chamber or container
in which they are retained by the lower valve. This continued upward
motion of the handle and of the lever carrying the studs would
have strained the lower valve spindle were it not that its lever
is also formed with a slot which is an arc of similar radius to that
described by the stud passing through it. It will be seen that by the
use of these slotted levers either the upper or the lower valve must be

page_text: locked shut, and that one of these valves cannot be opened until the
other is first closed and locked. The soil pipe is connected to the lower
chamber and is continued to the outside of the ship. This arrangement
of valves and levers is for the purpose of preventing any of the water in
which a ship may be floating from being forced up the soil pipe to the
inconvenience of persons using the closet.
Our improvements are applicable to other double valve waterclosets
as well as to that herein-before described. These improvements consist
as follows: -
Firstly. In so arranging the lower valve, its seating, and spindle that
they can be inserted through an opening or openings in the chamber, in
such manner as to obviate the hitherto existing necessity of inserting
this valve before the closet was fixed, and of removing the pan and
container or of taking down the whole closet to inspect this valve.
Secondly. In so arranging the cock or valve through which the water
passes to flush the closet that this said cock or valve is actuated by the
movement of the lower valve spindle, by which means this valve or
cock is opened when the lower valve is shut, and is closed when the
lower valve is reopened. Thus before the upper valve is opened the
water is turned on, and commencing to run into the pan continues
turned on all the time that the upper valve is opened, and is not turned off
until after the upper valve has been closed; a thorough flushing of the
closet is thus obtained, and the pan is left with a proper supply of
water in it.
Thirdly. When a valve having an india-rubber surface is used to
regulate the supply of water for flushing the closet, we prefer to make
its seat of lead or other suitable material, not acted upon chemically by
the combined contact of the sea water and the india-rubber, ordinary
gun metal or brass valves or seats being very quickly spoilt by the
above-mentioned combined chemical action.
Sometimes we make the valve with a surface of lead, or excepting
glass and wood of some other suitable material not subject to the before-
mentioned chemical action, and we make its seat of india-rubber. We
make the seating of this valve of such form that it fits a recess between
two parts of the valve casing, which two parts are secured together by
any suitable mechanical means, thus by merely seperating these two
parts a new seat can be quickly inserted if required.

page_text: Fig. 1 represents a front elevation of our improved double valve closet,
and shews the valve for regulating the supply of water to the pan partly
in section; Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the closet.
A is the pan; B is the container; C is the door or valve for closing
the opening between the pan A and the container B. The valve C is
fixed upon its spindle D. E is the second chamber upon which the
container B is situated; F is the valve for closing the opening between
the container B and the second chamber E. The valve F is fixed upon
its spindle G. H is the slotted lever with which the spindle of the upper
valve C is furnished; I is the slotted lever with which the spindle of the
lower valve F is furnished; K is the rod connecting the handle to work
the mechanism of the closet with the main lever L, which has two
studs M and N upon it, which studs pass through the slots of the
levers H and I respectively; O is the opening to which the soil pipe is
connected; P is the seating of the lower valve F; Q is the opening
through which the valve F with its spindle G and seating P are inserted.
The necessary joints at the cover of the opening Q and for bedding the
seating P against the container are all closely secured by the stud and
nut R. S, S', are the two parts of the valve casing through which the
water passes to flush the closet; V is the regulating valve with its
spindle passing through a small packing box; T is a pin fixed in the
lever I eccentrically with the centre of the spindle G. The valve V is
actuated through the pin T. W is the replaceable surface of the valve V ;
X is the replaceable seating fitting a recess between the two parts of the
valve casing S and S¹.
Having thus described the nature of our said Invention, and the
manner of performing the same, we would have it understood that we
make no claim to any of the mechanical parts seperately, nor do we
confine ourselves to the precise details; but we claim,―
Firstly. So arranging the lower valve of a double valve closet, its seat
and spindle, that they can be easily put in their place or removed
without having to seperate the pan from the container, the container
from the lower chamber, or the lower chamber from the soil pipe.
Secondly. So arranging the cock or valve through which the water
passes to flush a double valve closet that the said cock or valve is moved

page_text: simultaneously with the lower valve, which is between the container and
the soil pipe.
Thirdly. When a valve having an india-rubber surface is used to
regulate the supply water for flushing a watercloset, and the said closet
is placed in such position that salt or sea water has to be used for
flushing the said closet, we claim making the seating of this said valve
of lead or other substance that will resist the combined chemical action
of the water and india-rubber.
Fourthly. When the seat of the valve for regulating the supply of
water for flushing the closet is made of india-rubber, and the closet is
placed in such position that salt or sea water has to be used for flushing,
we claim to make the valve of lead or other substance, excepting glass
or wood, that will resist the combined chemical action of the water and
india-rubber.
And we would further have it understood that we claim to use these
our improvements either in combination or singly in any one closet as
we may desire.
In witness whereof, we, the said. Thomas Blundell, George Thomas
Blundell, and James Walter Blundell, have hereunto set our
hands and seals, this Twenty-first day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
GROMAN DLUNDELL
(L.S.)
Witness,
THOMAS WILKINS,
Patent Agent,
THOMAS BLUNDELL
(L.S.)
GEORGE THOMAS BLUNDELL. (L.S.)
JAMES WALTER BLUNDELL.
52, Gracechurch St.,
London, E.C.
(L.S.)