IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SETTING BUTTONS
Year: 1885

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I WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake and C° Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex do hereby declare the nature
of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SETTING BUTTONS and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:—
This invention relates to improvements in the button-setting instrument for
which Letters Patent of the United States dated October 23 AD 1883 N° 287,389,
were granted to Samuel L. Pratt and Analdo M. English.
The said improvements more especially relate to the spring clamping jaws which
hold the fastener in place while its point is being forced through the leather,
turned and set; and to the construction of the spring which is inserted between the
link and lever which operate the plunger, which spring acts to keep the plunger
raised.
My improvement in the first mentioned, or fastener holding spring consists in its
improved form and the means of attaching it to the lower jaws of the instrument.
I make this spring of a length determined by the necessary amount of play of
its jaws, and make its rear or inner end with a round turn where it is bent, thus
increasing its elastic limit and rendering it much less liable to break in use.
I also change the shape of the jaws so that they press directly, by means of a flat
surface, upon the upper surface of the head of the fastener, and prevent it from
being forced out of position, the whole strain coming by this new construction upon
the spring edgeways, in which direction it possesses great rigidity, whereas in the
old form of construction the jaws of the spring were oblique and rested only against
the edge of the head of the button-fastener, and held the fastener only in place by
the elastic force of the spring. In this old construction, if the plunger did not
strike squarely on the point of the fastener it was liable to be forced to one side
obliquely. By my present invention this is avoided entirely.
To adapt this new form of spring to the button setting instrument previously
mentioned, I make some modifications in the lower jaw and fastener-seat, retaining
the fastener holding-spring in place by different devices which permit its free
action, it being secured only by the two ends of a horizontal pin on which it can
move laterally.

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Another improvement in this fastener holding-spring consists in so constructing
the jaws, with the flange bent obliquely outward, that the plunger descending with
the leather over it, forces the jaws of the spring apart and nearly releases the
fastener after the important work of forcing the point through the leather has been
accomplished.
The jaws of the spring being forced apart allow plenty of room for the leather to
be brought down squarely upon the upper surface of the head of the fastener, and
thus the action of the plunger in setting the fastener is not obstructed.
The improvement in the spring for the purpose of keeping the plunger raised
consists in reversing its position between the link and hand lever, securing it at
one end to the lever and attaching its other end loosely to the links by means of
flanges; by this construction the slip of the spring upon the link is reduced to a
minimum, and much friction being avoided the instrument works more smoothly
than heretofore..
By the improved construction of the lower jaw of the instrument no slot is made
in it and its strength is thereby much increased, the new form of fastener holding,
spring permitting of any required thickness of the jaw.
In the accompanying drawing Figure 1 is a side elevation of the button-setting
instrument embodying this invention, the button and fastener being each held by
its proper jaw, ready for the insertion between them of the material upon which
the button is to be fastened.
Figure 2 is a perspective view showing in detail the lower end of the button-
holding plunger and the fastening-clamp, looking at Figure 1 from the right and
above.
Figure 3 is a perspective view showing in detail the upper side of the lower jaw
of the instrument with the fastener holding-spring removed, exposing the fastener
seat and pin for securing the spring and the shoulders upon which the spring rests
in place.
t
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the improved fastener holding-spring.
;
Figure 5 is an end elevation of a portion of the instrument showing the plunger
raised and the jaws of the fastener holding-spring at their nearest point of
'approach.
Figure 6 is a similar view, the plunger being, however, nearly at the bottom of
the stroke and in the act of pressing the jaws of the fastener spring apart.
Figure 7 is a fastener such as is herein employed.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.
The main portions of the framework and levers of the instrument are the same
as those shown and described in the specification of the said Letters Patent
N° 287,389 and will not be particularly referred to here.
A is the frame, a the guide, h the link, h the hand lever, and m a spring bent
substantially as shown at p, its bent end occupying the space between the upper
ends of the link h and hand-lever h². One lower end of the said spring h³ rests
on a projection or shoulder on the hand lever h²; and the other has two flanges h
upon it, embracing the link h and capable of rocking thereon, and preventing it
from being moved laterally. By this construction there is very little sliding motion
and its consequent friction.
The fastener holding-spring O is best shown in Figure 4. It is bent with a
`semicircular curve at its inner end O¹ and terminates in its outer free end in two
jaws. To produce the jaws t, t the ends of the spring are bent inward on to the
fastener-rest almost at right angles, and then outward at an oblique angle to form
the lips or flanges b, b¹. A little back of the jaws and the lips or flanges 6, 61, on
one side, is the notch's, in which rests the pin c, and which retains the spring in
place, it being free to move laterally along the ends of this pin. The lower part
of the framework.or head and spring-seat consists of the following parts:-Viz, the
flat surface or shoulder f¹ f, upon which the spring rests, having a vertical
tongue fin its centre against which the inner faces of the jaws of the spring O
press. The upper surface of the tongue f is cut into steps, of which the one b
•

page_text: nearest the outer end, acts as the fastener-seat and the other d by its vertical edge,
as a guide for the edge of the fastener-head. A pin c, for retaining the spring O
in place, passes through the tongue fabout midway of its length.
g is the lower end of the plunger for holding the button; 5 is the button and n
the fastener having the head n' and curved point or hook n.
The operation is as follows:-A button-shank having been inserted between the
jaws connected with the plunger g, as in Figure 1, and a fastener having been placed
between the jaws t, t, with the shank of the fastener in line with the opening in
the eye of the button shank, as shown in Figure 1, (this position of the jaw is
indicated in Figure 5), the levers are pressed together, causing the plunger d to
descend carrying with it the button 5, until they strike the material and force it
over the point of the fastener, and consequently the latter through the material
and through the button-eye. The point of the fastener, as it meets the anvil of
the plunger, is bent downward, securing the button; in the meantime, as the plunger
descends it forces the leather or other material down and between the lips b, b₁ of
the spring-jaws t t and forces the latter apart, allowing the leather, or other material,
to come down and lie flat against the fastener-head resting on the seat of the
tongue f, this is illustrated without material in Figure 6.
Some of the advantages of this improved construction in making button-setting
instruments are:-that the spring, when formed as described, is subjected to the
minimum of tension when not in use, and thus its life is much prolonged; that the
jaws being forced apart in setting the button, the fastener is nearly released so that
the material and fastener-head are closely pressed together and can also be easily
removed from the instrument when the work of fastening is completed; and that
the head of the fastener need not be so true and perfect as heretofore as the fastener
holding-spring has a tendency to place the fastener and hold it firmly in position,
thus allowing it to slip into the material without difficulty.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is
First: In an apparatus for setting buttons, and comprising a frame A provided
with a guide a, and a button-carrying plunger, the combination with a lever and
link, of the spring m baving one end resting on a shoulder at the lower end of
the said lever, and the other embracing the said link, substantially as described.
Second: In an apparatus for setting buttons, the lower framework or head
provided with spring rests, a fastener rest or support, and a spring-retaining pin,
in combination with a fastener holding-spring O provided with jaws t t and lips b b',
all arranged substantially as described for the purpose set forth.
Third: In an apparatus for setting buttons, a fastener rest or support, in
combination with a spring provided with jaws and lips, whereby the fastener is
firmly held in position by the jaws and automatically released by the action of the
plunger or button-holding device, substantially as described.
Fourth In an apparatus for setting buttons, a U-shaped fastener holding-
spring provided with jaws, in combination with a fastener rest or support
provided with shoulders, and a pin or lug adapted to carry and place said spring,
whereby the free lateral movement of said spring allows the fastener to centre and
place itself in position, substantially as described.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
For the Applicant.