IMPROVE- MENTS IN APPARATUS OR MEANS FOR CLOSING THE MOUTHS OF BOTTLES AND OTHER LIKE RECEPTACLES"
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Edward Henry Cheswright of Leith Villa
Parkhurst Road in the County of Middlesex for an Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN APPARATUS OR MEANS FOR CLOSING THE MOUTHS OF BOTTLES AND
OTHER LIKE RECEPTACLES"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Edward Henry
Cheswright at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th July
1882..
CHARLES EDWARD HENRY CHESWRIGHT of Leith Villa Parkhurst Road in the
County of Middlesex "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS OR MEANS FOR CLOSING
THE MOUTHS OF BOTTLES AND OTHER LIKE RECEPTACLES
"
This Invention has partly for its object the closing of the mouths of bottles and.
other like receptacles of the ordinary make provided with an external flange in a
simpler and more economical manner than heretofore and at the same time
effectually securing or holding in position the cork or other stopper employed
without the necessity for wiring.
According to one mode of carrying out my invention as applied for example to
an ordinary wine or beer bottle I apply round the neck of the bottle either under
or upon or sunk into the flange a conical or parallel sided ring or collar of metal
or other suitable material split or divided longitudinally in one or more parts of its
circumference to allow of its being readily fitted onto the bottle neck the said ring
or collar being made with an external screw thread and provided or not with an
internal flange fitting under the bottle flange when the said ring is made to
surround the flange of the bottle. When the said ring fits under the bottle flange
the internal flange of the ring serves to bring the screw thread about flush with the
exterior surface of the flange on the bottle. On this ring or collar I screw a metal
or other capsule having a corresponding internal thread at the lower part thereof
suitable holding strips or projections being provided on the said ring for holding
it stationary by hand whilst the capsule is being screwed on. Inside the top of
this capsule I place a disc of cork rubber or other suitable elastic material or a

page_text: disc of wood porcelain or other hard substance backed or not as required with
india rubber to afford yielding pressure and covered with cork veneer in those
cases where the contact of the rubber with the contents of the bottle would be
objectionable. When the capsule is made of rigid metal or other rigid material its
top is made convex on the underside so as to bear more effectually upon the
stopper or cork when the capsule is screwed tightly down over the before
mentioned collar or ring. In the case of using flexible or soft metal capsules the
top thereof may be left flat and a disc of comparatively rigid material bombed or
made convex on its under side dropped therein so as to press upon the cork or
stopper when the capsule is screwed home. In order to hold more firmly.the
screwed part of the capsule against the screwed collar I may in some cases apply
an outer ring of wire or a band internally screwed over the lower screwed part of
the capsule. By using a disc of cork or a cork lined disc of any other material
pressed upon the lip of the bottle in the manner above described in lieu of the
usual cork inserted into the neck I am enabled to close effectually and with
considerable economy of cork, the mouths of any ordinary bottles formed with the
usual external flange on the neck. In order to ensure the destruction of the
capsule if required. when opening the bottle the holding strips or projections
attached to or forming part of the ring or collar can be broken or torn off leaving
the ring free to turn along with the capsule which in that case could only be
removed by destroying the same for which purpose I prefer to make slits or
openings round the upper part of the capsule thereby enabling the top to be
readily cut or twisted off.
According to another arrangement I make an internal annular groove or one or
more recesses in the neck of a bottle and I place therein an internally screwed
split ring or segments of a ring of metal wood or other suitable material. Into
this internal ring I screw the shank of a glass or other stopper having a corre-
sponding screw thread formed thereon. The head of this stopper is enlarged to
the size of the exterior of the lip of the bottle and between it and the lip I
interpose a ring or washer of cork rubber or other suitable yielding material, which
is pressed tightly down upon the lip by screwing home the stopper.
According to another arrangement I take a short tube of metal the exterior
surface of which has a screw thread formed thereon and I form an internal flange
at each end of such tube and cut the tube longitudinally in one or more pieces so
that it may be readily fitted onto the bottle neck round the flange thereof, having
previously placed over the cork a flat (or by preference inwardly bombed) disc of
tin plate or other rigid material which is held down by the upper internal flange
in the before mentioned tube the lower flange engaging under the flange of the
bottle. The whole of the parts are kept together by an outward band with
internal thread screwing down the outside of the cut or divided and externally
threaded tube. The advantage of this screwing down of the band is that it is no
longer liable to fall off or become knocked off as heretofore which rendered all
previous arrangements of this kind worthless

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Charles. Edward Henry Cheswright in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 20th January 1883.
CHARLES EDWARD HENRY CHESWRIGHT of Leith Villa Parkhurst Road in the
County of Middlesex IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS OR MEANS FOR CLOSING
THE MOUTHS OF BOTTLES AND OTHER LIKE RECEPTACLES."
My said Invention has for its object the closing of the mouths of bottles and
other like receptacles having an external flange or enlargement formed round the
lip thereof in a simpler and more economical manner than heretofore and at the
same time effectually securing or holding in position (without the necessity for
wiring) the cork or other stopper or closing appliance employed whether inserted
inside the neck or mouth as a plug, in the usual manner or used simply in the form
of a flat disc pressed down and held upon the edge of the lip or mouth of the
vessel to be closed whilst in some cases the means employed for securing the said
stopper or closing appliance also serves the purpose and presents the general
external appearance of the well known bottle capsules.
And in order that my said invention may be fully understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to
the several figures on the explanatory sheet of drawings hereunto annexed the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 of my drawings represents in half elevation and vertical section (full
size) one of my improved modes of closing or stopping bottles and securing the
stopper as adapted to ordinary wine and beer bottles and figures 23 and 4 are
separate details of some of the parts employed therein.
a is the bottle neck. 6 the external flange or enlargement usually formed round
the lip thereof. c a ring or collar of metal or other suitable material split or divided
longitudinally at one or more parts of its lircumference in order to allow of its
being expanded or opened slightly as a split ring and being fitted or sprung in one
piéce onto or around the external flange b; or to allow of its being fitted round
the said flange in two or more separate or loose parts as shown in figures 2 and 3..
In figure 3 the right hand half of this split collar c is shown in section. This ring
or collar c whether made in the form of a split ring or divided into two or more
parts or segments is formed with an external screw thread and with an internal
projection flange or shoulder at d which fits under the lower side of the external
flange or enlargement b on the neck of the bottle.
On this split or divided ring or collar (shown in detail at figures 2 and 3) I
screw a metal or other capsule e (see detail figure 4) having a corresponding
internal thread at. the lower part thereof. Suitable holding strips tongues or
extended parts f f which may be rendered elastic by being slit so a to adapt
themselves to different sized bottle necks are provided on the split or divided ring
or collar c for holding it firmly by hand whilst the capsule e is being screwed on
such capsule serving to secure or hold the split or divided ring or collar (whether
composed of one or more parts) close round and under the lower edge of the said
flange or projection b.
Inside the top of the capsule e and if desired secured thereto I place one or more
flat discs g of cork rubber or other suitable material or a disc of wood porcelain
or other hard substance backed or not as required with india rubber to afford
yielding pressure and covered with cork veneer in those cases where the contact
of the rubber with the contents of the bottle would be objectionable. When the
capsule is made of rigid metal or other rigid material its top is made convex on

page_text: the underside (see figure 1) so as to bear more effectually upon the disc or discs g
when the capsule is screwed tightly down over the before mentioned divided
collar or ring.
By using a disc of cork or a cork covered disc of any other material pressed upon
the lip of the bottle in the manner above described in lieu of the usual cork
inserted into the neck I am enabled to close effectually and with considerable
economy of cork the mouths of any ordinary bottles formed with the usual
external flange on the neck.
"
Figure 5 is a half elevation and vertical section and figure 6 a plan of a slightly
modified arrangement as applied to the securing of an ordinary cork or stopper in
its place without wiring which modification is more particularly applicable to
ordinary wine and beer bottles. In this arrangement the top of the capsule e
which may be composed of sheet metal may be made flat and left more or less
open and a separate disc h of comparatively rigid material made either flat or
slightly dished so as to be convex on its underside is placed upon the top of the
ordinary cork g' (or in some cases upon the thin flat disc or discs of cork g herein-
before described and shown at figure 1) so as to be pressed down thereon by the
inner projecting rim of the open top of the capsule which overlaps the edges of
the rigid disc h when the capsule è is screwed home over the split or divided
ring c arranged as before described. When adapting this capsule to champagne
corks the upper part may be so shaped by dies or otherwise as to take the
configuration of the protruding part of the cork.
C
Should it be found desirable in order to hold more firmly the screwed part of
the metal capsule e against the divided ring c I may in some cases apply an outer
ring of wire or (which I prefer) an extra ring or band e¹ screwed over the lower
screwed part of the capsule e as shown in figure 5.
In order to ensure the destruction of the capsule if required when opening the
bottle the holding strips or projections fattached to or forming part of the split or
divided ring or collar c can be broken or torn off after the capsule e has been
screwed home leaving the split or divided ring c free to turn round the enlargement
on the neck of the bottle or other receptacle along with the capsule in which case
the opening of the bottle could only be effected by first destroying the capsule for
which purpose I prefer to make slits or openings round the upper part of the
capsule as shown at i (figures 1 and 4) thereby enabling the top of the capsule to
be readily cut or twisted off.
According to another arrangement shown at figures 7 and 8 I dispense with the
capsule e and employ a short metal tube or collar c split or divided longitudinally
as hereinbefore described the exterior surface of which has a screw thread formed
thereon whilst at the upper end of such tube or collar an internal shoulder or
flange c is provided the tube being readily fitted onto the shoulder or enlarge-
ment 6 of the bottle neck from the sides thereof as herein before described.
Before applying this form of split or divided tube or collar c I place over the
outer end of the cork g¹ (or over the fat cork disc or discs g before referred to as
the case. may be) a flat (or by preference inwardly bombed) disc h of tin plate or
other rigid material which is held down by the overlapping inner edge of the
upper internal flange in the before mentioned split or divided tube or collar c the
lower flange engaging under the enlargement on the bottle neck as before. The
whole of the parts are held together by an outer band e¹ with internal thread
screwed down onto the outside of the cut or divided and externally threaded tube
or collar c. The advantage of screwing on this band is that it is thereby prevented
from falling off or being accidentally knocked off as heretofore which rendered all
previous arrangements of this kind worthless.
Figures 9 and 10 represent a still more simplified arrangement applicable to the
securing (without wiring) of the corks of bottles containing soda water or other
like aerated liquids facility being afforded for effectually securing the cork before
the usual plunger which forces it into the bottle neck is removed therefrom thereby
avoiding all risk of the cork being forced outwards by the internal pressure before

page_text: it is properly secured. In this method of securing the cork the metal or other
rigid disc h may be dispensed with and the upper internal flange of the segmentally
divided tube or collar c (which should be of sufficiently rigid or stout material to
withstand the pressure) is caused to project far enough inwards to overlap more or
less the end of the cork itself the segments of the tube or collar c being applied
from the sides of the bottle neck whilst the plunger is still holding down the cork
and the whole firmly secured by screwing on the outer ring e¹.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
invention and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original
and therefore claim as the invention secured to me by the hereinbefore in part
recited Letters Patent is :-
First. The application and use of an externally screwed split or divided ring or
collar or segments of the same fitting loosely round the sides and underneath the
lower edge of the ordinary flange or enlargement on the neck of a bottle or other
like receptacle and maintained in position by a capsule or an outer ring or band
screwed thereon or by an outer lapping of wire or string in combination with a
disc of cork or other suitable material pressed upon the mouth of the receptacle or
with an ordinary or other cork or stopper inserted inside the neck thereof
substantially as and for the purpose herein before described and illustrated by my
drawings.
Second. Forming the before mentioned externally screwed split or divided collar
or segments of the same with one or more rigid or elastic extended parts off for
facilitating the holding of the same whilst screwing on the capsule e or the outer
ring or band e¹ substantially as herein before described and illustrated by my
drawings.
Third. The combination of the externally screwed split or divided ring or collar
or segments thereof c, the capsule e made either with a flat or an inwardly bombed
top and the disc of cork or other suitable material g substantially as and for the
purpose herein before described and illustrated by figures 1 to 4 of my drawings.
Fourth. The combination of the externally screwed split or divided ring or
collar c and capsule e, having an inner projecting rim or flange at the top over-
lapping the edges of a rigid disc h placed over the stopper with or without the
outer screwed ring or band e¹ substantially as herein before described and illustrated
by figures 5 and 6 of my drawings.
Fifth. The combination of the externally screwed split or divided ring or collar
or segments thereof c having an inner projecting flange at the top overlapping the
edges of a rigid disc h placed over the stopper with the outer screwed ring or
band e substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated
by figure 7 of my drawings.
Sixth. The combination of the externally screwed split or divided ring or collar
or segments thereof c having an inner projecting rim or flange at the top over-
lapping the end of an ordinary cork or stopper with the outer screwed ring or
band e substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated
by figure 8 of my drawings.
In Witness whereof I the said Charles Edward Henry Cheswright have
hereunto set my hand and seal this ninteenth day of January in the
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty three
CHARLES EDWARD HENRY CHESWRIGHT (L.S.)