Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Apr., 1887.
Complete Left, 10th June, 1887.
Complete Accepted, 12th July, 1887.
1 WILLIAM BLIZARD WILLIAMSON of the firm of W. B. Williamson and Sons of
Providence Works in the City of Worcester Manufacturers do hereby declare the
nature of this Invention to be as follows:- .
My invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described in fastenings for
metallic and other travelling trunks portmanteaus bags and boxes whereby the lid of
the trunk portmanteau bag or box is very effectually bound to the body of the article
without the use of the ordinary internal bolting mechanism.
I will describe my invention as applied to a metallic travelling trunk but my said
invention is also applicable to metallic portmanteaus and boxes as well as to wood or
non metallic trunks portmanteaus bags and boxes.
Instead of using the ordinary hasp by which to fasten the lid to the body of the
trunk I employ a long clamping plate or bar which I hinge to the lower edge of the
lid the said hinge being connected to the lid by two or more knuckle plates or ears.
The said long clamping plate or bar has a trough figure in cross section so that when
the lid is shut down and the clamping plate or bar is turned down upon its hinge the
said plate passes on to and clips or embraces the moulding at the top edge of the body
of the travelling trunk. In the lower flange or edge of the clamping plate and at its
middle a hole is made and a similar hole is made in the lower edge of the moulding.
When the clamping plate is shut down upon the moulding after the lid has been
closed, the two holes described are coincident and through them the bolt of the lock
(the said bolt having a vertical motion) is shot to fasten down the said clamping plate
and the lid to which it is hinged. When a clamping plate say of about eight inches

page_text: in length is used a single bolt at the middle of the trunk is employed but when
additional security in the fastening is required a longer clamping plate than that
described may be used. In this case the clamping plate is fastened at its ends as
well as at its middle by fastenings of any desired kind.
When the upper edge of the body of the trunk is flat that is without a moulding
the hinged clamping plate is also flat and the lower edge of the flat clamping plate is
furnished with one or more staples at right angles to the said plate. When a single
staple is used at the middle of the clamping plate it is locked by the bolt of a lock
working in the inside of the body of the trunk and when a long clamping plate is
used a staple at each end and one at the middle are employed. For fastening the
end staples of the clamping plate spring bolts vertical or horizontal in the interior of
the body of the trunk are used the said spring bolts being pushed in by the end
staples on shutting down the lid. On the lid being completely shut down the said
spring bolts snap into the end staples on the clamping plate and hold it securely
down at its ends the middle of the clamping plate being locked by the lock before
described.
In place of spring bolts for fastening the end staples of the clamping plate
sliding or button bolts in the interior of the trunk operated by hand may be
employed.
Dated this First day of April 1887
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in Fastenings for Metallic and other Travelling
Trunks, Portmanteaus, Bags, and Boxes.
I WILLIAM BLIZARD WILLIAMSON of the firm of W. B. Williamson and Sons of
Providence Works in the City of Worcester Manufacturers do hereby declare the
nature of my 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 consists of the improvements hereinafter described in fastenings for
metallic and other travelling trunks, portmanteaus, bags and boxes, whereby the lid
of the trunk, portmanteau bag or box is very effectually bound to the body of the
article without the use of the ordinary internal bolting mechanism.
I will describe my invention as applied to a metallic travelling trunk but my said
invention is also applicable to metallic portmanteaus and boxes as well as to wood or
non metallic trunks, portmanteaus bags and boxes.
Instead of using the ordinary hasp by which to fasten the lid to the body of the
trunk employ a long clamping plate or bar which I hinge to the lower edge of
the lid, the said hinge being connected to the lid by two or more knuckle plates
or ears.
The said long clamping plate or bar has a trough figure in cross section so that
when the lid is shut down and the clamping plate or bar is turned down upon its
hinge the said plate passes onto and clips or embraces the moulding at the top edge
of the body of the travelling trunk. In the lower flange or edge of the clamping
plate and at its middle a hole is made and a similar hole is made in the lower edge of
the moulding. When the clamping plate is shut down upon the moulding after the
lid has been closed the two holes described are coincident and through them the bolt
of the lock (the said bolt having a vertical notion) is shot to fasten down the said
clamping plate and the lid to which it is hinged. When a clamping plate say of
about eight inches in length is used a single bolt at the middle of the trunk is
employed but when additional security in the fastening is required a longer clamping
plate than that described may be used. In this case the clamping plate is fastened at
its ends as well as at its middle by fastenings of any desired kind.
When the upper edge of the body of the trunk is flat, that is, without a moulding
the hinged clamping plate is also flat and the lower edge of the flat clamping plate
is furnished with one or more staples at right angles to the said plate. When a single
staple is used at the middle of the clamping plate it is locked by the bolt of a lock
working in the inside of the body of the trunk and when a long clamping plate is used
a staple at each end and one at the middle are employed. For fastening the end
staples of the clamping plate spring bolts, vertical or horizontal, in the interior of
the body of the trunk are used the said spring bolts being pushed in by the end

page_text: staples on shutting down the lid. On the lid being completely shut down the said
spring bolts snap into the end staples on the clamping plate and hold it securely
down at its ends, the middle of the clamping plate being locked by the lock before
described.
In place of spring bolts for fastening the end staples of the clamping plate sliding
or button bolts in the interior of the trunk operated by hand may be employed.
I will now describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in
which my invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation and Figure 2 in cross section and Figure 3
in horizontal section, a metallic travelling trunk containing a fastening constructed
according to one of the arrangements of my invention.
a is the body of the travelling trunk and b the lid ; c is the moulding at the top
edge of the body a; d is the long clamping plate or bar which I use for fastening
the lid to the body a. The clamping plate or bar which I use with a single middle
fastening I ordinarily make about eight inches in length and the clamping plate
having end fastenings as well as a middle fastening I ordinarily make about sixteen
inches long but I do not limit myself to any particular length of the clamping plate
or bar. The clamping plate or bar d is hinged to the lid by the knuckle plates or
ears d², d², d² and the said clamping plate or bar has a trough figure in cross section
as represented in Figure 2 so that when the lid b is shut down and the clamping plate
or bar is turned down upon its hinge, the said plate or bar passes onto and clips or
embraces the moulding at the top of the body a of the trunk as seen in the cross
section Figure 2. The clamping plate or bar d is fastened down at its middle by the
external lock at e the vertical bolt of the said lock passing through a hole or
opening in the lower flange of the clamping plate d and through a similar hole or
opening in the lower edge of the moulding (see the cross section Figure 2).
The middle part of the clamping plate d may be provided with a box or cover for
covering the outside and edges of the lock e when the clamping plate is shut
down as represented in Figure 4 where the lock cover or case on the plate d is
marked d³.
Figure 5 represents in front elevation and Figure 6 in cross section a portion of a
travelling trunk in which the lock 9 is situated inside the moulding c and the bolt
of the lock engages by a horizontal motion with a staple i on the inner face of the
clamping bar d as best seen in the cross section Figure 6: Figure 7 represents in
front elevation and Figure 8 in cross section a portion of a travelling trunk in which
the middle of the clamping plate or bar d is furnished with a double staple plate d¹
with which the bolt of the outside lock e engages to fasten down the clamping plate
or bar d.
Figure 9 represents in front elevation a portion of a travelling trunk to which, a
longer clamping plate or bar than those already described is applied, the said longer
clamping plate or bar having end fastenings as well as a middle lock fastening.
The lock fastening at the middle of the clamping plate consists of a staple plate d
and lock e as described with respect to Figures 7 and 8. Each end fastening consists
of a jointed spring clasp m (shown separately drawn to a larger scale in Figure 10)
having an opening n in it for taking upon or engaging with a projection p on the
piece at the end of the clamping plate or bar 1. The said clasp m is held in its
7
open and closed positions respectively by the spring made from the fixing plate s
bearing against the heel of the clasp. When the clasp m is turned up into its
fastening position it engages with the projection p and holds down firmly the end
of the clamping plate or bar.
Figure 11 represents in front elevation and Figure 12 in vertical cross section
a portion of a travelling trunk in which the body a of the trunk is without a moulding
and the clamping plate or bar t is flat. I prefer to use an inside lock u with the
flat clamping plate t the said flat clamping plate having on its inner side a staple (*
for the bolt of the inside lock u to engage with as represented in the cross section
Figure 12.
Figure 13 represents in front elevation; Figure 14 in cross section and Figure 15

page_text: in horizontal section, a portion of a travelling trunk in which a long flat clamping
plate or bar is used, which plate or bar is fastened at its middle by an inside lock u
as described and represented with respect to the shorter clamping plate or bar
Figures 11 and 12 and is fastened at its ends by spring clasps m of the kind herein-
before described taking upon projections p on the clamping plate or bar.
Figure 16 represents in front elevation; Figure 17 in horizontal section and
Figures 18 and 19 in cross section a portion of a travelling trunk in which the
clamping plate or bar is fastened to the body by a middle lock and end sliding or
button bolts in the inside of the body of the trunk taking into horizontal staples on
the inner face of the clamping plate. The cross section Figure 18 is taken through
one of the end sliding or button bolts and the cross section Figure 19 is taken through
the middle lock. In this arrangement the clamping plate t has three horizontal
staples t³, t³, t. Into the middle staple 3 the bolt of the lock u in the interior of
the body a is shot and into the end staples t², 2 the sliding or button bolts, æ are
shot to fasten down the clamping plate t as represented. The sliding end bolts x, i
are worked by buttons a² ² on the outside of the body a of the trunk:
In place of the sliding or button bolts a internal spring sliding bolts either
working vertically or horizontally may be used. When the clamping plate t is shut
down the said spring bolts are pushed back by the action of the end staples t², t upon
them and when the said end staples have been fully pushed home the spring bolts
snap into the said end staples on the clamping plate and fasten the said plate at its
ends. To release the ends of the clamping plate, the spring bolts are withdrawn
from the end staples by acting on buttons or projections on the outside of the body a
of the trunk.
The sliding and spring bolts described for fastening down the ends of the clamping
plate may be applied to a trough shaped clamping plate used with a moulding on the
body or to a flat clamping plate used without a moulding and to clamping plates of
any length; and in place of an external or internal lock for fastening the middle of
the clamping plate a staple may be used on the middle of the body of the trunk for
the clamping plate to pass over and the clamping plate be fastened to the said staple
by a padlock.
I apply my improvements to fastenings for portmanteaus bags and boxes whether
metallic or non metallic substantially in the manner herein before described and
illustrated with respect to a metallic travelling trunk.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as my
Invention of "Improvements in fastenings for metallic and other travelling trunks
portmanteaus, bags and boxes,"
Fastening and effectually binding the lid to the body of the trunk or other article
by means of a trough shaped or flat clamping plate or bar hinged to the lower edge
of the lid the clamping plate or bar when trough shaped clipping or embracing the
moulding at the top of the body and when flat bearing against the flat top of the
body, the said clamping plate or bar being fastened at its middle to the body of
the trunk or article or both at its middle and at its ends in the manner and by means
of fastenings substantially of the kinds herein before described and illustrated in
the accompanying Drawings.
DN: 1
1007
WILLIAM BLIZARD WILLIAMSON.