Improvements in the Means for Automatically Closing Vestibule. and other Doors and Gates, and in Attachments therefor.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Mar., 1897-Accepted, 17th Apr., 1897
COME IN DIMITTUATION.
Improvements in the Means for Automatically Closing Vestibule.
and other Doors and Gates, and in Attachments therefor.
I, THOMAS LITTLE of 7 Cooke Street Stretford Road, Hulme, Manchester,.
in the County of Lancaster, Cabinet Maker, 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 an improvement in the means for automatically closing-
vestibule and other doors and gates, and in attachments therefor.
The objects of this invention are to obtain by automatic action an easy and
perfect closing of swing doors and gates that open in either direction, or in one
direction only.
I attain these objects by the means hereinafter described and as shown in the-
accompanying sheet of drawings, in which
Fig. 1 is a side view partly in section of the mechanism constructed according
to this my invention for automatically closing vestibule or other doors and gates.
that are required to open in either direction.
Fig. 2 is a front view and Fig. 3 is a plan of the same.
Fig. 4 is a plan representing like mechanism for closing a door or a gate that
opens in one direction only.
Fig. 5 shows a front view of my improved attachment for securing the upper-
portion of the door to the door frame, and
Fig. 6 is an edge view of the door and attachment.
Fig. 7 shows the application of my invention.
In these views similar letters refer to similar parts.
In this invention I construct a lever arrangement as shown in Figs. 1 to 4 on.
the accompanying drawing for connecting to the bottom of a door or a gate.
a is a box in which the lever mechanism is contained, and is intended to be sunk
in below the surface of the floor of or the ground and under the back edge b¹ of
the door or the like: a vertical spindle c upon which the back edge of the
loor b or a gate rests is fitted in a socket d in the base of the aforesaid box a and
is supported by a bracket as e but is free to revolve in either direction. f is a lever
that is fitted on said spindle and projects therefrom in the same plane as the door-
or gate: vertical guides 9 and j that are formed on or attached to said lever are
placed so as to move around on either side of a semi-circular inclined roller path k,.
the lowest point of said roller path being centrally situated and in the same plane
as the door or gate: a roller that may run either on a flange or in a groove as m
between flanges q formed on said roller path is placed on a spindle n, the ends of
said spindle being retained in the aforesaid vertical guides g and j: weights as p
are placed on the spindle n on cach side of the roller path k said weights being
sufficiently heavy to counteract the resistance of the door or gate. In order to.
attach the herein before described mechanism to the door or gate a metallic socket
is fitted in the underside of the bottom rail at the back edge of the door or gate,.
said socket being formed to fit on the upper end c¹ of the spindle c and the door or
gate to rest thereon. For affixing the upper part of a door to the door frame an.
eyebolt or piu u is inserted in a slot v. The door is placed in position and said pin
s then pushed up into a socket fitted in the door frame t and secured by the bolt
or screw. By these means door hinges are dispensed with and doors and gates.

page_text: that are required to open and close in either direction or in one direction only are
caused to close automatically.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1st. Automatically closing vestibule and other swing doors and gates by the use
of a horizontal lever as faffixed to a vertical spindle as e in combination with a
semi-circular inclined roller path as k, a weighted roller as l and vertical guides
as g and j all substantially as herein before described.
2nd. In vestibule and other swing doors the mechanism for supporting said doors
in lieu of hinges substantially as hereinbefore described.
3rd. In vestibule and other swing doors the combination of the mechanism
for automatically closing said doors, and the mechanism for connecting said
doors to the door frame substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
described.
Dated this 15th day of March 1897.
THOMAS PRESCOTT,
53 Arcade Chambers, St. Mary's Gate, Manchester,
Agent for the Applicant.