Year: 1886

page_text: I ALVA JONATHAN HISCOTT, residing at 144, Myrtle Avenue, Bridgeport in the
County of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, in the United States of America,
gentleman, 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 :-
My invention relates to certain novel and useful improvements in the manu-
facture of dress shields and in the dies for making same, and has for its object to
do away with the crescent shaped dies between which the fabric is shaped and
furthermore to produce a most economical shield which shall also be superior in
finish and durability to any shield at present in the market, and with these ends
in view my invention consists in the method of making seamless dress shields; in
a pair of heated dies, which latter shall be so constructed as to uniformly stretch the
fabric, and to take up the cockles or wrinkles incident to the stretching without
undue strain on the fabric; and in a new article of manufacture; all as hereinafter
fully described.
In order that those skilled in the art to which my invention appertains may
fully understand its construction and operation, I will proceed to describe the
same in detail, referring by letter to the accompanying drawings forming a part
of this specification, in which;-
Figure 1, is a side elevation of the molds.
Figure 2, a central vertical cross section of the molds.
Figure 3, a perspective of the upper and lower molds separated.
Figure 4, shows the dress shield produced by these dies as folded, and in figure 5,
I have shown the same by an isometric view.
Similar letters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing:
A, is the upper mold, and B, the lower.
C, is a shaper of crescent form which depends from the upper mold and D, is a
corresponding depression (see fig. 3.) in the lower mold to which the contour of said
shaper is adapted.
E, are radial corrugations in the lower mold adapted to take up the cockles or
wrinkles in the fabric when the latter has been stretched as will be hereinafter
set forth.

page_text: F, are corresponding depressions in the upper mold to which said corrugations
are closely adapted, and G, H, are the similar counter radial corrugations and
depressions in the upper and lower molds respectively.
Both molds have each a steam or hot air chest, I, (see fig. 2.) supplied by pipe, J.
In carrying out my improved method I proceed as follows,
The fabric (which is preferably rubber faced with stockinet) is placed on the
lower mold and the upper mold brought down. As the shaper, C, forces the fabric
within the depression, D, it will of course stretch, and since the corrugations, E, G,
and depressions, F, H, tightly grasp said fabric, the radial wrinkles in the latter
incident to the stretching will be taken up by said corrugations and depressions
thereby preventing any creasing.
Steam or hot air is now introduced within the molds, and the rubber thereby
vulcanized in the stretched shape.
Prior to my invention dress shields have been formed by forcing the fabric
within a female die by means of a male former made from sheet iron, but owing to
the fact that the external curvature of the edges of the female die determined the
degree of stretching, the fabric was generally distorted and in many instances the
stockinet was torn; furthermore in order to get rid of the wrinkles which form
during the stretching it was necessary that the fabric should draw tightly against
the said edges, and that the male former should force the fabric to a considerable
distance within the female die, and this of course contributed greatly to the
irregular stretching.
'
Also in order to retain the fabric in its stretched shape it has been necessary
hitherto to remove the fabric from the former and fasten it on tin shapers and then
subject it to the action of heat.
By my improved dies the vulcanization is simultaneous with the stretching
which of itself is a great gain of time.
The principle which underlies my improvement is that the degree of stretching
the fabric, so that it will when finished assume the concave shape, increases
uniformly from the center, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, therefore the cockles or
wrinkles will be radial, and accordingly the radial corrugations and depressions
will act as « take ups
for the said cockles, and the fabric can be firmly held
throughout its area, and uniformly stretched without any liability of creasing.
I prefer to keep the molds constantly heated so as to be ready for instant use,
when it becomes necessary to make any considerable number of shields.
"
I am enabled to manufacture dress shields having different styles or degrees of
concavity by using different molds, and it is in some instances more convenient and
advantageous to have more or less corrugations and depressions, and I do not
therefore wish to be confined to any particular number or formation of said
corrugations and depressions.
Also I am enabled to use any suitable material in the manufacture of dress shields
other than rubber faced with stockinet, and is a great advantage, since many fabrics
which are suitable for this manufacture cannot be utilized in the method hitherto
employed owing to the fact that said fabrics will not withstand the strain caused
by forcing and stretching them between them.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
1. As a new article of manufacture, a pair of dies for manufacturing seamless
dress shields, the male die having a crescent formed shaper and the female die a
corresponding depression whereby the concavity is given to the upper edge of the
shield, both dies, being heated and having corresponding male and female corru-
gations and depressions which radiate from a common vertical center, whereby
the cockles or wrinkles incident to the operation of the crescent shaper are taken
up and creasing thereby prevented, substantially as set forth.

page_text: 2. As a new article of manufacture a seamless dress shield formed by pressure
between corrugated dies.
3. The method of making seamless dress shields, the same consisting in com-
pressing the fabric and stretching it into the desired shape between heated dies,
substantially as set forth.
4. The method of making seamless dress shields the same consisting in forming
a concave in the fabric by stretching between heated dies and taking up the cockles
or wrinkles incident to the stretching by means of radial corrugations and corre-
sponding depressions in said dies whereby creasing is prevented substantially as
described.