IMPROVEMENTS IN SKATES
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn
Fields, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SKATES."-A communication from abroad by
James Albert Whelpley, of Dartmouth, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 18th October 1873.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SKATES," a communication to me
from abroad by James Albert Whelpley, of Dartmouth, Halifax, Nova
Scotia, to be as follows:-

page_text: First. The runner is made in such a manner as to admit of the heel
clamp, toe clamp, and heel dog for fastening the skate to the boot being
fastened to the runner directly, so that the sole plate and heel plate are
not subjected to any strain except the down pressure of the boot on
them.
Second. The toc clamp and heel dog are made to slide freely forward
and backward along the runner to adjust them to the size of the boot,
and they are secured wherever they are set by clamping nuts which
screw down upon the edge of the runner, and bind them fast by clamping
them between the said portions of the runner and hook-shaped projections:
whereon they are fitted.
Third. The heel clamp is pivoted to a portion of the runner which
projects upwards at the rear, so as to be thrown forward against the heel
of the boot by an eccentric lever arranged under the heel plate parallel
with it. This portion of the runner projecting above the plates may 1
itself be the fastening, if desired.
Fourth. The heel plate and sole plate are connected to the runner by
semicircular pieces attached to the lower side, which engage with
longitudinal notches in the standards whereon the plates rest when the
plates are sprung down at the middle and moved endwise, so as to a
securely hold the plates.
And, Fifth. The arranging the runner fastening devices and the sole
and heel plates so that the assembling and connecting of the said parts
together is effected without the use of screws, rivets, or other permanent
fastenings, and so that whilst the skate can readily be taken apart it is
as permanent and durable as other skates bolted and riveted and
otherwise permanently fastened together.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, hearing date the Eighteenth day of October, in the year.
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
37th year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special
license that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Henry Johnson,
my executors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Ohannel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SKATES," a communication to me from abroad by James Albert Whelpley,
of Dartmouth, Halifax, Nova Scotia, upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my hand and scal, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to
be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained:
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom- •
panying Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that-
is to say :-
The essential features of improvement in the improved skate are as ·
follows:
First. The runner is made in such a manner as to admit of the heel
clamp, toe clamp, and heel dog for fastening the skate to the boot being
fastened to the runner directly, so that the sole plate and heel plate are
not subjected to any strain except the down pressure of the boot on
them.
Second. The toe clamp and heel dog are made to slide freely forward
and backward along the runner to adjust them to the size of the boot,
and they are secured wherever they are set by clamping nuts which

page_text: them between the said portions of the runner and hook-shaped projections
whereon they are fitted.
Third. The heel clamp is pivotted to a portion of the runner which
projects upwards at the rear, so as to be thrown forward against the heel
of the boot by an eccentric lever arranged under the heel plate parallel
with it. This portion of the runner projecting above the plates may
itself be the fastening, if desired.
Fourth. The heel plate and sole plate are connected to the runner by
semicircular pieces attached to the lower side, which engage with
longitudinal notches in the standards whereon the plates rest when the
plates are sprung down at the middle, and moved endwise so as to
securely hold the plates.
And, Fifth. The arranging the runner fastening devices and the sole
and heel plates so that the assembling and connecting of the said parts
together is effected without the use of screws, rivets, or other permanent
fastenings, and so that whilst the skate can readily be taken apart it is
as permanent and durable as other skates bolted and rivetted and
otherwise permanently fastened together.
And in order that the 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 annexed Sheet of Drawings, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the
Figures.
Figure 1 represents a plan of the improved skato, and Figure 2, a side
elevation of the same.
A represents the runner formed with the standards B, C, D, and E
projecting upwards from its upper edge for the support of the solo
plate F, heel plato G, hecl clamp H, toc clamp I, and heel dog J. The
standards O and E are formed with long projections K parallel to the
upper edges of the runner A. On these projections K the toe clamp I
and heel dog J are respectively fitted by mortises, so as to slide freely
backwards and forwards, and they extend down below the mortises to
the upper edge of the runner A, where they are fitted with thumb
nuts L, by turning or screwing which hard down upon the said upper
edge they are cramped or fixed at any point on the projections K. The
latter are notched slightly at M, M, to receive the sole plate F and heel

page_text: plate G, which have corresponding notches for interlocking with the
notches M, M, when the said plates are connected with or sprung down
upon the runner A. Each of the plates F and G has a strong semi-
circular brace N attached to its under side, as shewn, and these braces.
engage with the standards B and D by entering the longitudinal.
notches O when the plates F and G are placed on sprung down and.
moved endwise. At the same time the notches M, M, of the plates F
and G and projections K lock together, as before mentioned. The
standards B and D also have projections P entering holes or sockets
formed completely through the plates F and G, to secure the latter
against lateral movement. It is preferred that the said projections P
should merely enter the holes or sockets in the plates instead of passing
completely through the same. In the case of the standard B this
projection P is also the pivot for the eccentric and lever Q, which is
formed with a slot and projecting tooth R, and is employed to fasten
the heel clamp ■ to and unfasten it from the boot placed on the skate:
The heel clamp H is pivoted on a stud S projecting from the heel
piece T formed by the runner A extending up behind the heel of the
boot, in order to allow the heel clamp H to be moved or swung
backwards and forwards, and so fasten and unfasten the skate. The
heel piece T may itself be the fastening if desired. The eccentric and
lever Q is secured by the catch V on the under side of the plate G, over
which the said lever springs.
The mode of securing the skate here described to the boot placed
thereon is as follows:-The toe clamp I and heel dog J being loose, or
free to slide backwards and forwards on the projections K, and the
eccentric and lever Q and the heel clamp H also loose, or in the position
shown by dotted lines in Figure 1, the boot is placed upon the sole and ⚫
heel plate F and G, and the toe clamp I and heel dog J are then
respectively adjusted on the projections K. to the toe and front portion
of the heel of the boot, and tightly cramped or fixed to the said pro-
jections K by turning the thumb nuts L, L, hard against the upper edge
of the runner A, as before mentioned. The eccentric and lever Q is
then moved round into the position shewn by full lines in Figure 1, and
the eccentric portion of the same acting against the lower part of the
heel clamp H forces the upper part of the latter hard against or into the
back part of the heel of the boot (or into the position shown by the full
lines in Figure 1), and the lever Q being sprung over or caught by
the catch V the boot is thereby securely fastened or held to the skate.

page_text: In unfastening the skate the eccentric and lever Q is sprung over the
catch V, and moved round into the position shewn by dotted lines in
Figure 1, which causes the projecting tooth R to bring back the lower
part of the heel clamp H, and throw out the upper part of the same
away from the boot (or into the position shewn by dotted lines), which
can then be removed from the skate.
It will be seen that all the several parts of the skate can be cut or
formed in the shape required by the dies, by which they are punched
out of the solid plate, and that the only fitting necessary besides
smoothing and polishing is a little bending of the clamps I and H and
the dog J, the fitting of the nuts L, L, and the fastening of the braces N
to the plates F and G.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
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 herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First. The projections K. formed on the runner A, substantially as and
for the purpose hercin-before described.
Second. A. portion of the runner A projecting above the heel plate G
or sole plate F, for fastening the skate to the boot or attaching a fastening
device, substantially as herein-before described.
.
Third. The toe clamp I and heel dog J, fitted directly and adjustable
on the runner A independently of the sole plate F and heel plate G, and
held in position on the said runner by the thumb nuts L, L, or their
equivalents, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Fourth. The semicircular braces N, secured to the under side of the
sole plate and heel plate G, and entering the longitudinal notches O
in the runner A, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before
described.
Fifth. Securing the sole plate F and heel plate G detachable to the
runner A by springing in combination with the notches M, M, braces
N, N, and projections P, P, substantially as herein-before described.
Sixth. The heel clamp H pivoted to the heel piece T, in combination.
with the eccentric and lever Q pivoted to the projection P, and springing :

page_text: over the catch V, and with a slot and projecting tooth R for fastening
and unfastening the skate from the boot, substantially as herein-before
described.
Seventh. The runner A, sole plato F, heel plate G, and clamping
devices, all constructed and detachably connected together and fastened
without screws, rivets, or bolts, substantially as and for the purposes
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this
my Specification set my hand and seal, the Fifteenth day of
April, One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four.