IMPROVEMENT IN CAMERA STANDS
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Jan., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 6th July, 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 10th Aug., 1888
We, FREDERICK BARR, of 28 Clarendon Road, Walthamstow in the county of
Essex, an Electrician's Assistant, and THOMAS PARSONS WATSON of 313 High Holborn
London Optician do hereby declare 'the nature of said invention for IMPROVEMENT
IN CAMERA STANDS, to be as follows:-
The stand consists of three legs, clamped together at the top to a triangular piece
of wood by screws or other suitable arrangements.
Each leg is made as follows:-
Two or more, but preferably three, portions sliding telescopically into one another.
The upper and outer portion "A" consists of two narrow pieces of wood of any
desired length, kept in their respective positions by the clamping arrangement at the
top, and at the bottom by two flat pieces of metal B & B¹, one on each side.
'
The piece B' on the side not shown in the drawing is slightly raised so as to allow
H&L to slide under.
At the bottom of A and under B, a spring lever arrangement is let flush into the
wood, & is made as follows:-
A flat piece of metal (a) with a slot cut in it, works on a screw let into the slot,
which allows it to move either backwards or forwards. Another piece of metal (b)
working freely on a screw as a pivot is placed at right angles to (a) with the upper
end touching it, and the lower end fitting into the teeth of the ratchet "D" and is
kept in its place by a strong steel spiral or other kind of spring (c). By pressing (a)
it forces the lower end of (b) on to the spring (c) which compresses & allows the
portion "E" to close.
The ratchet "D" consist of a thin strip of metal with teeth cut in it at regular
intervals, and which passess from end to end, (or otherwise if desired) of "E."
The portion "E" consists of two narrow pieces of wood, which are kept pressed
against "A" by a flat piece of metal (d) uniting them together, and which also serves
to stop "E" from being drawn entirely out, by coming in contact with "B."
نيم

page_text: At the bottom, on the side where the spring lever "F" is let flush into the wood,
a narrow piece of metal "G" is fixed, and on the opposite side another flat piece of
metal "H" is fixed, which both clamps the two pieces "E" together, and keeps them
far enough apart to allow "K" to slide up and down.
The spring lever "F" is made as follows:-
A flat piece of metal (e) working on a screw as a pivot, and the lower end is pressed
into the ratchet "J" by a strong steel spring (f) The outside end of (e) is rounded
off so that when "E" is closed into. "A," it compresses the spring (f) and allows
"K" to close. The third portion "K" consists of one solid piece of wood which
slides into "E."
On the upper end of "K" is fixed a flat piece of metal "L", which prevents "K"
from being drawn entirely out by coming in contact with "H."
اور
In the above apparatus, we claim as novel, are the use of a ratchet for extending
the stand to any desired height.
The use of the spring lever working into the ratchet substantially as described.
The combination of the ratchet and lever substantially as described.
Dated this 20th day of January 1888

page_text: We FREDERICK BARR, of 28 Clarendon Road, Walthamstow and THOMAS PARSONS
WATSON, of 313 High Holborn, London Optician 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 tripod stands of that class in which the legs are constructed
each of two or more sections sliding telescopically within one another; and the
invention has for its object to provide the legs with means (in lieu of the clamping
screws ordinarily employed) whereby they will be automatically retained at any length
to which they may be drawn out, and particularly whereby, in the case of a leg
composed of three or more such telescopically sliding sections, the release of the
connection between two such sections causes the automatic release of the other sections
of the same leg, so that it may be contracted for transport, by a single motion, as
hereafter described.
The Invention consists in the combination with the sections of the legs, of pawl and
rack gear, substantially as hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying
drawings forming part of this specification, wherein figure 1 represents a face view of
a leg of three sections partly drawn out and partly broken away. Figure 2 is a
similar view of as much of the leg as is necessary to shew the relative position of the
parts when contracted. The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in both .
the figures.
.
It will be understood that all three legs of the tripod are similarly constructed,
and that the upper section of each leg is pivoted to the tripod head, in the usual
manner.
In the example shewn, the leg is composed of three sections A, B, C, fitted to slide
telescopically within one another with groove and feather connections, in the usual
manner, the upper and intermediate sections being for this purpose, respectively
composed of two members a a and b b braced together by cross plates a¹ at front and
back of the lower end of the upper section and by similar front and back plates b¹ 61
at the top and bottom ends of the intermediate section or sections, the lowermost
section being composed of a single member. Along one edge of the intermediate
section B, alongside the tongue thereof, is fixed a rack D, and upon the opposite edge
of the section C, next below, is fixed a similar rack D. In the lower end of the
upper section A, is mounted a pawl E in position to engage with rack D, and in the
lower end of section B is mounted a pawl E' adapted to engage with rack D'. The
pawl E is pivoted at e, and is forced by a spiral, or other, spring e' into engagement
with the rack D, the pawl and spring being fitted to work in a recess beneath the
covering plate a' which is partly broken away to shew the pawl. The end e² of
the pawl projects from the side of the section A, to enable the pawl to be disengaged
from the rack when it is desired to contract the leg. The pawl E' is similarly fitted
in the lower end of the intermediate section B, the tail end of the pawl projecting

page_text: alongside the tongue in position to strike against, and be acted on by, the lower end
of the upper section A when, by the release of the pawl, the section B is slid into the
section A, as shewn in figure 2. The tail end of the pawl and the corner a³ of
the section A (which has a piece of metal let into it at this point to take the wear)
are bevelled or rounded so that on the tail end of the pawl E¹ meeting the corner a³
the pawl will be held disengaged from the rack D', thus permitting the section C to be
slid inwards.
The operation is as follows:-Supposing the leg to be entirely contracted, the lower
section is drawn out until its stop plate c¹ meets one of the lower bracing plates b
of the intermediate section which then commences to be drawn out until the leg is
extended to the required length. Immediately the pawl E' has passed beyond the
end of the middle section B, it engages with the rack D₁ and prevents the return of
the section whilst the pawl E engages with the rack D and prevents the return of
the section B, the log being thus held extended to any length to which it may be
drawn out.
It is collapsed in a single motion, by operating on only one of the pawls by hand,
in the following manner --The pawl E is disengaged, and the sections A and C are
pressed towards one another, either by hand or by resting the point of section C on
the ground whereupon section B first slides into section A and upon pawl E¹ meeting
the latter it disengaged from rack D' and the section C then slides into section B
until the sections B and C are entirely contracted within the length of section A.
If it is required to extend the leg a distance less than the length of two entire
sections, this may be done by first drawing section B out sufficiently to disengage the
pawl E, and then drawing out section C the required distance.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1st. In a tripod stand, the combination with two adjacent sliding sections, of the
leg of a rack mounted on the one section and a spring pawl on the other section
adapted to engage with each other, as and for the purpose specified, the pawl being
provided with a projecting tail end or other means whereby it may be disengaged from
the rack.
:
2nd. In a tripod stand, the combination with the three or more sliding sections of
which each leg is constructed of racks and spring pawls adapted to engage, as
described the pawl or pawls on all the sections, but one, being so situated, with respect
to one of the adjacent sections, as to be automatically actuated thereby in the manner
described, for the purpose of enabling the leg to be contracted by a single continuously
sliding motion of the parts, as specified.
Dated this 6th day of July 1888.