Improvements in Photographic Cameras.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 8th June, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 8th Mar., 1894-Accepted, 5th May, 1894
PROVISIONAL STELLATION.
Improvements in Photographic Cameras.
I, JOHN FEATHERSTONEHAUGH PARSONS, of Siddington House, Kingsdown
Parade, Bristol, Artist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to film-carrying photographic cameras.
According to this invention the films are made up in packs with separate
intervening backing cards or stiffening pieces of special form and made of vulcanite,
celluloid or other suitable substance, there being one such backing card or stiffening
piece behind each film.
Under one form of construction the backing cards have vertical ribs or
corrugations extending rearward and situated at intervals between the sides of the
cards and keeping the films at a definite distance apart. The combined pack of
films and backing cards stands on a shelf provided therefor in the camera.
usual, in film carrying cameras, the pack tends to advance towards the lens by the
action of a spring compressed behind the pack.
As is
Between the front end of the shelf for the pack and the rear end of the top of
the dark chamber is an aperture extending across the camera. Over this aperture
is presented the leading film and its backing card both of which are prevented
from dropping through the said aperture by the action of the spring behind the
pack which spring causes the leading film to be pressed at foot against the top of
the cover of the dark chamber; the top of the cover projecting above the top of the
shelf on which the pack is placed.
The
At the sides the leading film bears against fixed stops and at the top against a
hooked holder extending along the top and recessed at points corresponding to the
ribs of the backing cards. The holder is attached at each end to a flat arm
which is extended down in a groove provided in the wall of the camera.
grooves are covered in by plates slotted to permit the holder to travel vertically.
The flat arms aforesaid are connected at their lower ends by a cross plate, which
the bottom of the camera is grooved to receive. Below the shelf on which the
pack of films and backing cards is placed is a ledge to which is fixed a spring
bearing towards its free end against a plate fitting the dark chamber and capable
of being moved therein. Against the opposite face of this plate bears one end of a
spiral or other suitable spring.
When, after an exposure has been made, it is required to remove the film on
which the photograph has been taken and the backing card behind it, the cross
plate at the camera bottom is drawn down by the operator and the hooked holder
being thus brought down on the top of the film and its backing card they are
pulled down below the top of the dark chamber and are pinched between the
spring situated below the pack shelf and the plate above indicated as being acted
upon on each face by springs. The ribs or corrugations of the backing cards
maintain the films at such a distance apart as to prevent more than one-the
exposed film from being pulled down at one and the same time. A film and backing
card having been drawn down as above described, they are, by the action of the
spring below the pack shelf, forced forward in the dark chamber the said spring
overcoming the slight resistance of the spring situated in advance of the movable
plate. The holder when fully lowered still projects above the pack shelf and acts
as a temporary check to the advance over the aperture aforesaid of the next film
in succession. When the holder is pushed up to its full height the next film and

page_text: its backing card spring forward into the holder the back part of which is shorter
than the front. The sides of the film are brought to bear against the side stops
and the bottom against the top of the dark chamber which top projects above
the level of the pack shelf.
Instead of being provided with a series of hollow ribs or corrugations as above
described, the backing cards may have solid ribs or projections or one central rib
or projection, or they may be otherwise shaped to effect the desired object namely
to maintain the films at such a distance apart as to obviate drawing down more
than the leading film at one time.
Dated this 7th day of June 1802
NICHOLAS WATTS,
Chartered Patent Agent.
Improvements in Photographic Cameras.
I, JOHN FEATHERSTONEHAUGH PARSONS, of Siddington House, Kingsdown
Parade, Bristol, Artist, 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 :-
This invention relates to film-carrying cameras, and consists in certain
improvements therein whereby changing of films is readily effected in a simple
manner.
According to this invention the camera is furnished, as part of its apparatus,
with a set of backing cards or stiffening pieces made of sufficiently stout paper,
cardboard, vulcanite, celluloid or other suitable substance. One such card is placed
behind each film. The cards have vertical ribs extending rearwards. One of these
ribs is centrally situated between the sides of the card and is composed of a strip
of velvet, or other suitably soft material. Towards each side is a rib of com-
paratively rigid substance such as wood, cardboard, bone or the like. In small
cameras no further ribs are requisite, but in larger cameras the number of ribs
may increase in proportion to the size.
Over
The combined pack of films and backing cards are placed on a shelf provided
for the purpose in the camera. As is usual in film-carrying cameras, the pack
tends to advance towards the lens by the action of a spring compressed behind
the pack. Between the front end of the shelf for the pack and the rear end of
the top of the dark chamber is an aperture extending across the camera.
this aperture is presented the leading film and its backing card both of which are
prevented from dropping through the said aperture by the action of the spring
behind the pack which spring causes the leading film to be pressed at foot against
the top of the cover of the dark chamber; the top of the cover projecting above
the top of the shelf on which the pack is placed. At the sides the leading film
bears against fixed stops and, at the top, against a hooked holder attached at each
end to a flat arm which is extended down in a groove provided in the wall of the
camera. The grooves are covered in by plates slotted to permit the holder to
travel vertically. The flat arms aforesaid are connected at their lower ends by a
cross bar which the bottom of the camera is grooved to receive.
In the Provisional Specification left with my application for Letters Patent to
this invention are described means for holding the exposed films and their backing
cards in pack form in the dark chamber; said means consisting of a ledge to
which is fixed a spring bearing towards one end against one face of a plate fitting
the dark chamber, the said plate being acted upon on the other face by a spiral or
other suitable spring. This arrangement, though accomplishing the desired object
quite successfully, I prefer to supersede by the following modification.

page_text: To a vertical plate situated at the entrance to the dark chamber are attached
a pair of springs tending to draw the plate away from the lens end of the camera,
the travel in such direction being limited by a stop plate fixed to the floor of
the camera. Below the pack shelf is a movable platform having inclined arms
one of which is centrally situated and is furnished at foot with spikes.
When, after an exposure has been made, it is required to remove the film on
which the photograph has been taken and the backing card behind it, the cross
bar at the camera bottom is drawn down by the operator and the hooked holder
being thus brought down on the top of the film and its backing card, they are
pulled down below the top of the dark chamber and are deposited between the
vertical plate aforesaid and spring guides carried on the platform situated below
the pack shelf. The ribs of the backing cards maintain the films apart so that
the holder engages with one film and card only at a time and does not carry down
more.
The holder when fully lowered still projects above the pack shelf and acts
as a temporary check to the advance over the aperture aforesaid of the next film
in succession.
The lowered film and card are prevented from rising, as the holder is returned,
by the spikes in the inclined arm of the platform below the pack shelf which
spikes penetrate the rib of velvet at the back of the card and prevent its ascent
with the holder. When the holder is fully raised, the next film and its card spring
forward against the holder, the sides of the film being brought to bear against the
side stops, and the bottom against the top of the dark chamber.
In the accompanying sheet of drawings
Fig. 1 represents a longitudinal section of a film-carrying camera constructed
and fitted in accordance with this invention.
Fig. 2 shows an end view with the end cover removed and the spring for
advancing the films and backing cards taken out
Fig. 3 is a half plan with a part of the top plate a removed.
Fig. 4 is a view of the back of a backing card with a set of which each camera
is, according to this invention, furnished.
Fig. 5 shows, in plan, a pack of films and backing cards somewhat exaggerated
in. size for the purpose of clearer illustration.
Behind each film is placed a backing card c having ribs c¹ c² extending
rearward, of which the ribs care of wood, cardboard, bone or other suitably hard
and rigid substance. The central rib c² is a strip of velvet, cloth or other suitably
soft and yielding material.
When placed in the camera, the pack of films and backing cards stands on the
shelf d, as seen at Fig. 1 in which a few films and cards are shown in position on
the platform, while some are shown lowered into the dark chamber.
At the back
of the pack as it stands on the platform d is a spring e of the kind usually
employed in film-carrying cameras for the purpose of advancing the films towards
the lens. At the front the leading film bears against the side stops f extending
inwards from the sides of the camera. At top, the leading film bears against the
holder which has two hooks h. At bottom, the leading film bears against a strip
of plush covering the end of the top i of the dark chamber which top is above
the front end of the shelf d. The pile of the plush touches the lower part of
the face of the film but does not obstruct the working of the holder When the
latter is fully raised the hooks h are clear of the top of the lealing film and its
backing card which lie immediately under the said hooks. The holder g, which
has a projecting ledge extending from end to end towards the pack, is attached to
vertical arms g' extending down in the walls of the camera and connected across
the bottom thereof by the cross bar g².
9.
The grooves in which the arms g' are situated are covered by plates g' in which
are slots provided to enable the holder g to travel vertically.
After exposure of the leading film, the holder g is drawn down, the hooks /
engage with the top of the said leading film and its backing card, and both are

page_text: drawn down together between the front end of the shelf d and the rear end of the
top of the dark chamber. By the provision of the ribs c¹ c² a space is afforded to
allow the holder g to engage with and draw down one film and its backing card at
a time without engaging with the film and card next in succession. To prevent the
holder g from touching the face of the film next in succession, the holder is
furnished near each end with guards g³ which press back the rest of the pack as the
holder descends and ascends. To prevent the film and card next in succession
from being drawn down, by friction, with the leading film and card, the front of the
shelf d is carried forward to an extent which permits only one film and its backing
card to lie at once over the space between the shelf d and the top of the dark
chamber. The shelf d is recessed at the front edge, as seen at Fig. 6, to take the
ribs of the backing card of the leading film. The ribs prevent advance of the film
and card next in succession clear of the shelf d. The film and backing card next
in succession remain stationary until the leading film and card have been drawn
down and the holder again raised to its full height. Then, by the action of the
spring e, the now leading film and its card are thrust forward into the place
previously occupied by the film and card first pulled down. The lowered film and
card stand on shelves k provided on the floor of the camera and lie against
a vertical plate to which is attached one end of springs the other end being
made fast as at 12 by screws or otherwise. These springs tend constantly to draw
the plate away from the lens end of the camera. The distance to which the plate /
can be drawn by the spring away from the lens end of the camera is limited by
the plate m covering the tongue 13 of the plate 1, as seen at Fig. 1. As each filmi
and its card are drawn down, the plate l'is pressed towards the lens end of the
camera to the extent of the thickness of the film, card and card rib. The films and
cards are guided in their descent below the platform d by the spring guides n
attached to the platform n' which is situated below the shelf d and has arms n²
extending downwards and forwards. The centre arm is furnished with spikes n³
which penetrate the centre rib of velvet of the card and prevent it being drawn up
when the holder is being raised.
l
Other devices may, however, be adopted to restrain the cards from ascending
with the holder. The guides n, being elastic, press the lowered card and film
forward beneath the roof of the dark chamber, when the holder being again raised
releases the said card and film thus preventing them from assuming such a position
as would be liable to obstruct the descent of the next film and card.
The films and cards as they are drawn down are collected in a pack which is
pressed firmly against the plate by the platform n¹ and spikes n³.
The platform is easily slid outwards when the door o of the camera is
removed.
As is obvious, the arrangement may be transposed, the dark chamber being at
the top and the exposing chamber at the bottom. In that case the films and cards
are drawn upwards instead of downwards as in the arrangement above described
and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
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 :-
1. In a photographic camera employing films; backing cards or stiffening sheets
for placing behind the films; the said cards or stiffening sheets being provided
with three or more vertical ribs projecting rearward and extending from top to
bottom for the purpose of keeping the films and cards or sheets at the requisite
distance apart to allow a selecting device to separate or remove them one at a time
(that is to say one film and one card together) one of the said ribs being centrally
situated and preferably composed of velvet or other suitably yielding material
and, of the other ribs, one being situated at each side of the cards or sheets and
composed of wood, cardboard or other suitably rigid substance, substantially as
herein before described.
;

page_text: 2. In a photographic camera employing films; a selecting device such as the
holder g with hooks h, arms gl and cross-bar g², arranged to remove the foremost of
the films and its backing sheet and to convey them to the dark chamber and to act
thus on each film and its backing card or sheet in succession, as hereinbefore
described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
3. The pack shelf d recessed to correspond with the rearwardly projecting ribs of
the backing cards or sheets so that the foremost film and its backing card
are drawn down from the pack by the selecting device, and the next in succession.
prevented from going with them.
4. The sliding plate with springs arranged to act in conjunction with
the guides n, the platform n¹ with spiked arms (or the equivalent thereof) for
piling the films and cards firmly vertically in a pack in the dark chamber
and preventing a film and card returning with the ascent of the holder, as herein
described.
5. The combination of parts constituting the improvements in photographic
cameras, constructed, arranged and operating on a pack of films with intervening
ribbed backing sheets substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
Doted this 6th dor of March 1904
NICHOLAS WATTS,
Bristol, Chartered Patent Agent.