IMPROVEMENTS IN LAVATORY BASINS AND APPLIANCES CONNECTED THEREWITH
Year: 1885

page_text: "
I PHILIP WINN of Granville Street Birmingham in the County of Warwick
Manager of Works do hereby declare the nature of the said invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN LAVATORY BASINS AND APPLIANCES CONNECTED THEREWITH
to be as follows:-
$
"
My Invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described in lavatory
basins and appliances connected therewith, whereby the said basins are rendered
more convenient in use and more efficient in action than lavatory basins of the
ordinary construction.
My improvements have reference in part to such lavatory basins as are fixed and
in part to those which are turned up for the purpose of emptying them.
According to my invention I give the basin in plan the general figure of an
ellipse but I make one of the longer sides of the basin flatter or of longer radius
than the opposite side, the said flatter side of the basin being turned towards the
user. By this construction the user of the basin has more room at the sides under
his elbows than in basins of the ordinary kind and the area of the basin is not
increased.
I also construct the part of the basin immediately under the nozzles of the
cocks with recesses for the reception of the said nozzles so that they may not
inconveniently project into the basin.
In basins which turn up to discharge their contents, I fix at opposite points and
preferably in the line of the longer diameter of the basin pivots having coned
terminations. The said pivots engage in correspondingly shaped bearings, attached
to the basin. These bearings are capable by a screwing action of being adjusted
with great nicety so as to permit the utmost freedom of motion in the basin
combined with great steadiness.
The supply cocks or valves for my improved basins whether turn up or fixed are
furnished with nozzles so arranged as to spray or flush the water over the interior

page_text: of the basins for the purpose of cleaning them. I also provide these basins with
self closing taps having a second cylinder or chamber in which a piston works.
This piston is attached to the closing piece of the valve and by its action retards
the closing of the said valve and thereby prevents concussion.
When my improved lavatory basins are made of earthenware I form in one piece
therewith a brush rack or holder which is situated either on the slab or the
skirting of the basin and drained into the outlet or overflow of the basin. When
the basins are made of marble or slate the brush rack or holder is made separately
and affixed to the basin.

page_text: Improvements in Lavatory Basins and Appliances Connected-
therewith.
I, PHILIP WINN, of Granville Street, Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Manager of Works, 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 lavatory basins and to appliances connected therewith,
and is designed to improve the construction and increase the efficiency of such
basins and appliances as compared with those heretofore constructed.
My said invention relates, partly to such lavatory basins as are designed to be
fixed in place and are provided with plugs or valves for emptying them. It also
partly relates to "lift-up" basins, that is to say, basins which are capable of being
turned upon pivots for the purpose of emptying the same. It also relates to an
improved cock or tap which is very advantageous for use in connection with
lavatory basins.
In the accompanying drawing
Figure 1 is a plan of a "fixed" lavatory basin made in accordance with my
invention.
Figure 2 is a section on the line x, x, Figure 1."
Figure 3 is a transverse section of part of a pivotted basin and its support, with
ny improvements applied thereto.
Figure 4 is a vertical central section of my improved cock.or tap.
a is the basin proper. is the slab which surrounds the same, and which, in
the case of a fixed basin, is formed integrally therewith and provided with a
skirting b¹
The basin a, Figures 1 and 2, is made of peculiar shape, that is to say, it has,
in plan or horizontal section, substantially the form of an ellipse, but to provide
ample space for the arms and elbows of a person using the same, I flatten the outer
side of the basin or make it of longer radius than the other side thereof, as shown
at a. Ithus ensure increased comfort in the use of the basin, as compared with
those of the ordinary shape.
In some instances, I make the basin with grooves or channels a², into which fit
the nozzles of the cocks or taps for the supply of water to the basin, and down
which the water will flow from the said taps into the basin. I thus obviate the
inconvenience of having the said nozzles projecting into the basin.
its
Pivotted basins have heretofore been provided with pivots consisting of pins or
studs fitting into suitable bearings, but incapable of adjustment to compensate for
wear, A basin provided with pivots of this kind is liable, after being in use for a
short period of time, to becoine loose in its bearings, so that, when turned upon it
pivots, it will strike the surrounding slab and thus cause injury thereto or to the
basin itself. The said pivots have, in some instauces, been,secured to the basin by
Deans of screws passing through "slots in the said pivots, but, in such cases, it is
necessary to detach the basin from its supports in order to adjust the said pivots.

page_text: To obviate these defects or inconveniences, I provide such basins with adjustable
pivots so constructed and arranged that they can be readily adjusted, and easy
access to the said pivots for the purpose of adjusting them can be obtained by
simply inverting the basin, without detaching it from its supports. Moreover, by
my improvements, I provide for enabling the basin to be kept in a central position
relatively to the surrounding slab and in proper working order, and for readily
removing and replacing the said basin when necessary.
In carrying this part of my invention into practice, I prefer to proceed as follows,
that is to say:-I make the basin a (Figure 3) with recesses or cavities a³ in
opposite sides thereof and preferably in line with the major axis of the ellipse,
when the basin is of elliptical shape. In each of these recesses or cavities, I secure
a socket c provided with an internal screw-thread, and in this socket I fit a screw-
threaded pivot d having a conical end d¹. I provide conical bearings e, which are
secured to the support f for the basin, and into which fit the conical ends d¹ of the
pivots d, as shown. By turning these screw-threaded pivots in one or the other
direction, they can be'very readily adjusted to ensure their fitting properly into
the bearings e. Or they may be wholly withdrawn from the said conical bearings,
when it is desired to remove the basin from its supports. To facilitate the adjust-
ment of the pivots, I form therein holes d³, into which a rod or bar or other
suitable device can be inserted (when the basin has been inverted) to serve as a
lever or purchase in adjusting the said pivots. I also provide a set-screw g which
is screwed into the socket c and bears against the pivot d. By means of this
screw, the said pivot can be firmly secured in any position to which it may be
adjusted.
My improved cock or tap is self-closing and is so constructed that the closing
thereof will be retarded, thus preventing or avoiding concussion, even when the
cock or tap is subjected to a considerable pressure or head of water. For this
purpose I connect the valve with a piston fitted in a cylinder, one end of which
is closed, and I arrange the water-inlet between the said valve and piston so that
the pressure will act upon the said piston and upon the back of the valve to close
the same.
Moreover, I provide a small aperture or passage through which water
may flow from one side to the other of the said piston, so that, when the valve is
closed, the said piston will be in. equilibrium; but the closing of the valve cannot
take place until the space between the piston and the closed end of the cylinder
has become filled with water, therefore the closing of the valve will be more or
less retarded according to the sectional area of the said aperture or passage.
In Figure 4 of the drawing, I have shown how my improved cock may be
advantageously constructed. h is a cylinder or chamber, which forms part of the
body or shell of the cock or tap and is provided with a valve-seat . i is the
valve, which is connected, by means of a spindle i¹, with a piston k provided with
a cup-leather k¹. I is the water-inlot, which is connected with the cylinder or
chamber between the valve i and piston k. m is the outlet which is connected
with the cylinder or chamber h above the valve-seat h¹. The bottom of the
cylinder h is tightly closed by a screw-cap n. The upper end thereof is closed by
a screw-cap o and a diaphragm o¹ of india-rubber or similar material.
A push-
knob P is passed through the said cap and diaphragm, and bears upon the valve i,
so that, by pressing down the said push-knob, the valve can be opened. A hole k*
is formed in the piston k to permit the flow of water from one side to the other
side thereof. Moreover, the cup-leather k¹ is so placed that it will yield to the
pressure of the liquid beneath the piston, when the valve is opened, but will be
pressed against the cylinder while the valve is closing.
On releasing the push-knob p, the closing of the valve takes place automatically
by the pressure of the water upon the back of the said valve, but it is obvious that
the closing of the valve will take place slowly, because the water has to flow
through the hole k² in order to prevent the formation of a vacuum beneath-the-
piston, and permit the closing of the valve.

page_text: When the valve is closed, the piston is in equilibrium, therefore considerable
pressure will be exerted upon the valve to keep the same closed.
I sometimes make the nozzles of my improved cocks or taps in such a manner
that they will spread the water or discharge the same in a spray over the interior
surface of the basin and thus effectually cleanse the same.
My invention further comprises the combination, with a lavatory basin, when
formed of earthenware or similar material, of holders or receptacles for tooth-
brushes, nail-brushes or the like, which holders or receptacles are formed integrally
with the basin, slab and skirting, above the surface of the said slab. I prefer to
provide these holders or receptacles with means for draining the same either over
the edge of the basin or through the substance thereof into the said basin or into
the outlet or overflow pipe thereof.
In Figures 1 and 2, q, q indicate two of these holders or receptacles, which are
drained by means of holes q' into the depressions or cavities r for soap or the like,
these cavities being drained by means of pipes or passages r¹ into the basin a.
When the basin is made of marble or slate, I make the brush-holder or receptacle
separately therefrom and secure it thereto in any convenient manner.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I wish it understood
that I claim :-
First. The peculiar formation of lavatory basin whereby I provide ample space
for the arms of a person using the same, substantially as, and for the purpose, set
forth.
Second. A lavatory basin formed with grooves or channels for the nozzles of
the cocks or taps, substantially as, and for the purpose, set forth.
Third. The combination, with a "lift-up" lavatory basin and a support therefor,
of pivots which are capable of adjustment for the purposes specified without the
removal or detachment of any part of the apparatus.
Fourth. The combination, with the basin a, of the socket c, the adjustable
pivot d and the bearing e, substantially as described with reference to Figure 3 of
the drawing for the purpose specified.
Fifth. A self-closing cock or tap wherein the water-inlet is between the valve
and a piston connected therewith, and wherein the said piston is so arranged in a
cylinder that it will be in equilibrium when the valve is closed but will retard the
closing of the said valve, for the purpose above specified.
Sixth. The improved cock or tap constructed substantially as described with
reference to Figure 4 of the accompanying drawing.
Seventh. The combination, with a lavatory basin, of one or more holders or
receptacles formed integrally therewith above the surface of the slab, substantially
as, and for the purpose, set forth.
T3
11
1
1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.