IMPROVEMENTS IN CAP OR STOPPER MOUNTS FOR DODONED AND LIQUID SMELLING BOTTLES.
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Johann Maximilian Plessner, of 11, Golden
Square, in the County of Middlesex, late Captain, Prussian Army,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN CAP OR STOPPER MOUNTS FOR
DODONED AND LIQUID SMELLING BOTTLES.
"
Sealed the 11th January 1876, and dated the 14th July 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Johann Maximilian
Plessner at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 14th July 1875.
I, JOHANN MAXIMILIAN PLESSNER, of 11, Golden Square, in the
County of Middlesex, late Captain, Prussian Army, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN CAP OR STOPPER
MOUNTS FOR PERFUME AND LIQUID SMELLING BOTTLES," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to dispense with ordinary stoppers
in perfume or liquid smelling bottles, and to obtain the liquid scent
without opening the bottle.

page_text: The Invention consists mainly in the employment of a small force
pump set in motion by a knob or by a turning of the cap, or a knob pro-
jecting from the cap or mount, the liquid being forced out of a nozzle
in a stream and not in the form of spray.
The apparatus which serves in lieu of a stopper can be screwed to
the neck of a bottle, which thereby will be hermetically closed,
having a cork ring interposed between both, and consists in a small
pump, the piston of which ejects by its down stroke a certain quantity
of liquid, whilst its upstroke, which is generally effected by the pressure
of a spring, sucks a new quantity of liquid into the cylinder of the
pump.
In some cases, especially for small pocket bottles, the piston can be
locked by giving it a turn which will prevent the pumping by acci-
dental pressure on the knob. This knob may either project through the
centre of the top or from one side of the head, in which case its hori-
zontal motion must be communicated to the vertical motion of the
piston by means of a bell-crank lever or otherwise. I employ a metal
head having at its lower end a screw to allow its being fastened to the
neck of a bottle. In the head is a cork ring pressed into the upper end
of the screw. A disc is fitted for separating the screw from the upper
part of the head, and has in its centre a small pump, the piston of which
has at its lower end a cavity and an admission valve. This cavity com-
municates with a slot cut into the piston, and having the same length
as the stroke. The slot is opposite a channel in the disc, into which
channel the outlet nozzle is fastened from outside the head, having a
fine opening through which the liquid is ejected each time the down
stroke of the piston takes place. Above the slot the piston is provided
with a shoulder, which by means of the spiral spring and the disc is
constantly pressed against a corresponding shoulder in the cylinder of
the pump. The disc presses against a short rod which partly projects
through the head, and serves as knob for pumping.
3
In order that the slot remain opposite the nozzle the disc is pre-
vented from turning by being guided by a pin which is fastened to
the disc..
In case the pistons should be locked the disc has two projections
90 degrees from each other. The segment can turn in a slot of the pin.
The piston can only move when it is so far turned to the left that the

page_text: projection touches the pin, in which case the notch allows the motion of
the disc along the pin. If turned to the right the segment will move
in the slot of the pin and thus prevent the moving of the piston by
accidental pressure on the knob.
The lower part of the pump is provided with a suction chamber and
a valve. A small pipe underneath this valve descends to the bottom of
the bottle, and may in order to fit various depths at its lower end have
another piece of tube slipping over or into it, adapting itself to the
depth of the bottle, and having a lateral opening allowing the entrance
of the liquid in case its lower opening should touch, and thereby be
closed by the bottom of the bottle.
In order to produce liquid to be ejected by each down stroke of the
piston the air contained in the suction tube and in the cavities must
first be replaced by liquid, for which purpose it suffices to depress the
knob quickly a few times. Once filled the liquid cannot sink back
into the bottle, owing to the interposition of the valves, and thus the
apparatus is always ready for working.
To prevent liquid entering the head above the partition disc by
forcing itself between the piston and cylinder wall the latter is at its
upper extremity provided with a circular groove which communicates
with a hole in the wall of the cylinder, allowing any liquid between
piston and cylinder to drop back into the bottle. The hole serves
besides the purpose of preventing a vacuum being produced in the bottle,
by allowing by each down stroke of the piston the air from within the
head to communicate through the groove with the air in the bottle.
It is evident that slight alterations would suffice to reverse the
working of the piston, i.c., to suck up liquid with the down stroke
and to eject it with the upstroke, or to make it double-acting, forcing
liquid out with both strokes. I prefer, however, the method described
above as the better and simpler, namely, to effect the ejection by the
depression of the knob and the sucking by the up stroke effected by the
power of a spring previously compressed by the down stroke.
To communicate with the interior of the head the latter is generally
composed of two parts which can be screwed together.
For pocket bottles I fit the piston to work from one side of the cap
or mount, the piston working in a casing in a liquid-tight manner,

page_text: Opposite to the piston I arrange a valve controlled in one direction by a
spring this valve protects the outlet nozzle when closed. The piston is
acted upon by a spring in a chamber leading to the tube, in which
chamber is a ball or other valve for closing the tube passage. Should
the bottle get turned bottom upwards the ball valve may shift from its
seat, the spring valve and the piston preventing escape of the liquid;
on the bottle being reversed again the ball falls on to its seat.
The cap or a knob projecting through it may be arranged to turn
the turning operation in one direction, causing the rod, and through it a
hollow piston, to ascend and eject the liquid from the chamber of the
hollow piston; the chamber being again filled on the reverse turn of the
cap. A chamber is also formed below the piston so that as the piston
ascends this chamber becomes filled by suction.
.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Johann Maximilian Plessner in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 14th January 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, Johann
MAXIMILIAN PLESSNER, of 11, Golden Square, in the County of Mid-
dlesex, late Captain, Prussian Army, send greeting.
C
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Johann Maximilian Plessner,
Her special licence that I, the said Johann Maximilian Plessner, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Johann Maximilian Plessner, my executors, administrators, and 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 King-
dom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man,
an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN CAP OR STOPPER MOUNTS FOR PERFUME
AND LIQUID SMELLING BOTTLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Johann Miximilian Plessner, my executors or administrators,

page_text: by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, 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 Johann Maximilian Plessner, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:
-g
The object of this Invention is to dispense with ordinary stoppers in
perfume or liquid smelling bottles, and to obtain the liquid scent
without opening the bottle.
The Invention consists mainly in the employment of a small force
pump set in motion by a knob, or by a turning of the cap, or a knob
projecting from the cap or mount, the liquid being forced out of the
nozzle in a stream and not in the form of spray.
The apparatus which serves in lieu of a stopper can be screwed to tho
neck of a bottle, which thereby will be hermetically closed, having a
cork ring interposed between both, and consists in a small pump, the
piston of which ejects by its down stroke a certain quantity of liquid,
whilst its up stroke which is generally effected by the pressure of a spring
sucks a new quantity of liquid into the cylinder of the pump.
In some cases especially for small pocket bottles the piston can be
locked by giving it a turn, which will prevent the pumping by
accidental pressure on the knob. This knob may either project through
the centre of the top or from one side of the head, in which case its
horizontal motion must be communicated to the vertical motion of the
piston by means of a bell-crank lever or otherwise.
Figures 1, 2, and 3, serve to illustrate the mechanical contrivance
by means of which the object of the Invention mentioned before may be
effected.
A, Figure 1, represents a metal head substituting the stopper, having
at its lower end a screw a to allow its being fastened to the neck of a
bottle; 6 is a cork ring pressed into the upper end of the screw a; c is a
disc separating the screw a from the upper part of the head A, and having

page_text: in its centre the small pump; d is the piston of this pump, having at its
lower end a cavity fand an admission valve g. This cavity f communi-
cates with a slot h cut in the piston d, and having the same length as
the stroke. The slot his opposite a channel i in the disc c, into which
channel the outlet nozzle k is fastened from outside the head A, this
having a fine opening through which the liquid is ejected cach time the
down stroke of the piston d takes place. Above the slot / the piston d
is provided with a shoulder, which by means of the spiral spring / and
the disc m is constantly pressed against a corresponding shoulder in the
cylinder of the pump. The disc m presses against a short rod n which
partly projects through the head A and serves as a knob for pumping.
In order that the slot h may remain opposite the nozzle k the disc m
is prevented from turning by being guided by a pin o, Figure 2, which
is fastened into the disc c.
In case the piston is required to be locked the disc m has two pro-
jections p and q, 90 degrees from each other, for the purpose. The
segment r, Figure 3, can turn in a slots of the pin o. The piston can
only move when it is so far turned to the left that the projection p
touches the pin o, in which case the notch u allows the motion of the
disc m along the pin o. If turned to the right the segment " will move
in the slot 8 of the pin o, and thus prevent the moving of the piston by
accidental pressure on the knob n.
The lower part of the pump is provided with a suction chamber v, and
a valve w. A small pipe x underneath this valve w descends to the
bottom of the bottle, and may, in order to fit various depths at its lower
end have another piece of tube slipping over or into it adapting itself
to the depth of the bottle, and having a lateral opening, allowing the
entrance of the liquid in case its lower opening should touch and
thereby be closed by the bottom of the bottle.
In order to produce liquid to be ejected by each down stroke of the
piston, the air contained in the suction tube x and in the cavities
vand f must first be replaced by liquid, for which purpose it suffices to
depress the knob n quickly a few times. Once filled the liquid cannot
sink back into the bottle owing to the interposition of the valves
g and w, and thus the apparatus is always ready for working.
To prevent liquid entering the head A above the partition disc c by
forcing itself between the piston and cylinder wall, the latter is at its

page_text: upper extremity provided with a circular groove y, Figure 1, which
communicates with a hole in the wall of the cylinder, allowing any
liquid between the piston and the cylinder to drop back into the bottle.
The hole serves, besides the purpose of preventing a vacuum being
produced in the bottle by allowing by each down stroke of the piston,
the air from within the head A to communicate through the groove y
with the air in the bottle.
It is evident that slight alterations would suffice to reverse the
working of the piston, i.e., to suck up liquid with the down stroke and to
eject it with the up stroke, or to make it double-acting, forcing liquid
out with both strokes. I prefer however the method described above as
the better and simpler, namely, to effect the ejection by the depression
of the knob, and the sucking by the up stroke effected by the power of a
spring previously compressed by the down stroke.
To communicate with the interior of the head A the latter is gencrally
composed of two parts which can be screwed together.
Figure 4 shows a pump fitted with a cork applicable for bottles of
every shape and size. A represents a perforated cork which can be
screwed on the lower part of the pump.
A toilet bottle pump with cone closing, represented in Figure 5, is
especially for square bottles where the nozzle has always to stand in the
middle of the prolongation of one of the flat bottle surfaces. It does
away with the cork washer, which being compressible does not after
filling bring the nozzle to the same place. The conical screw socket x
is soldered to a metal collar, and the latter cemented to the neck of
the bottle. In order to allow the top to be in one pieco the pressure plate
and knob are arranged as the Figure shows; the knob for allowing the
unscrewing of the top can be slipped over the entire internal mechanism
and the knob be screwed on after.
According to Figures 6 and 7 the cap or cover A serves to close the
fine opening forming the jet nozzle, and at the same time to prevent
accidental pumping when carrying the apparatus in the pocket.
The pump may be soft soldered on the flange B of a screw cap C, the
piston or plunger d of which is formed with an annular groove e around
its upper portion communicating with the jet nozzle k so that the piston
is free to turn without closing the aperturo to the nozzle, and also docs

page_text: away with a guide pin; or it may be screwed into a socket D, which
latter is cemented into the neck of the bottle, as in Figure 8. For
applying a cap with a joint, as in this Figure, either the usual shutting
bisle is provided or the nozzle itself, or a pin may serve for this purpose
by filing a groove into the inner rim of the cap at a point opposite the
nozzle or the pin when the pump is securely screwed in. This arrange-
ment prevents the closing of the cap before the pump is properly
fastened.
For caps with spring joints the spring may be placed in the joint liko
in spring watch covers.
The outside view of the pump complete is shown in Figure 9, while
Figure 10 shows a vertical section of the same, the socket D to receive the
pump being shown as an outside view in Figure 11, and in section in
Figure 12; in Figure 13 the pump is carried in a sockot cemented into
the neck of the bottle and protected by an ordinary screw cap, as
shown.
Figure 14 shows a fountain pump for producing instead of a single
jet a continuous one.
The piston is solid, forcing the liquid through a ball valve into an
air-tight receiver R wherein a jet pipe p is inserted.
For moving the piston a revolving crank C may be used, which may
be set in motion by clockwork, a small electro-magnetic, or other
machine. The liquid is guided back by a pipe q into the reservoir u,
and can thus be continuously ejected as long as the crank C revolves.
The pipe collects any liquid escaping along the piston.
A statue fountain is represented in Figure 15. Instead of ejecting
liquid directly from a nozzle of the pump it may be forced through the
screw body or cone; or the body of the cylinder itself is soldered into
the base and a pipe is screwed in in lieu of the nozzle to lead the liquid
through the hollow statue to the outlet . The socket of statue serves as a
receiver and can be filled by unscrewing the pump P or by a separate tap.
Figure 16 shows a gentleman's pocket perfume box inserted in and
soldered to an outer shell in order not to interfere with the two
springs.
For bottles with screw glass necks the screw socket has simply to be a
cemented into tho glass neck when the usual screw or hinged cap can

page_text: be applied for covering. The spiral spring may be placed around the
upper part of the piston outside the cylinder between the screw cap and
the knob. In case the whole mounting with pumps shall be unscrewed
the cap may be fixed by fine screws to the metal neck which allows the
top of the cap to be open. The piston rod can be provided with a
pressure plate flush with the top of the cap, and the nozzle may project
from the neck, protected, if possible, by a small screw cap hanging on
a chain Z.
I sometimes fit my pumps and scent bottles up in the form of fancy
articles; say, for instance, a pocket pistol, or in any other form that
fancy may dictate.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
Firstly. The combination of appliances forming a pump or liquid
ejector and its application to a bottle or other vessel, as described with
reference to Figure 1 of the annexed Drawings.
Secondly. The modified arrangements of appliances forming a pump
or liquid ejector, as described with reference to Figures 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and
10 of the accompanying Drawings.
Thirdly. The application of my improvements in cap and stopper
mounts to any article from which liquid is required to be ejected
intermittently or in continuous stream, as set forth, and substantially as
shown.
In witness whereof, I, the said Johann Maximilian Plessner, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of January,
One thousand night hundred and somente six