IMPROVEMENTS IN THE APPLICATION OF IRON TO BUILDING PURPOSES
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
COWPER, of 20, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-sixth day of
August, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, in the Sixteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Charles Cowper, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, Her especial
licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Charles
Cowper, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
Cowper, my exors, adiñors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in the Islands of
Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her said Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
APPLICATION OF IRON TO BUILDING PURPOSES," communicated to me by a
Foreigner residing abroad; in which said Letters Patent is contained a
proviso that I, the said Charles Cowper, should cause a particular <lescription
of the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to bo
performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled
in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in

page_text: appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Charles Cowper, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to
the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon,
that is to say:-
The Invention consists in the manufacture of rolled bars of wrought iron of
certain sectional forms herein-after described, and the combination of such
bars in the manners herein-after described for the construction of floors and
roofs, and other building purposes.
Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the Drawings hereunto annexed, represent sections
of wrought-iron bars adapted for the beams and joists of floors in lieu of the
wooden beams and joists ordinarily used. The bars may be rolled of the
dimensions shewn in the Figures, or may be made larger or smaller according
to their length and the weights which they have to support. The lower flange
of cach bar is made larger than the upper flange, and it is formed with a
step or double bearing surface, which serves to receive and support the ends
of the cross beams or joists which are cut to fit the beam. In this way the
beams may be united with their bottom flanges in the same plane, and
the cross beams have a good bearing upon the main beams. In some cases
wrought-iron bars, of the sectional form in Figure 3, are employed as herein-
after described in reference to Figure 13. Figures 4 and 5 represent sections
of wrought-iron bars adapted for joists of floors and rafters of roofs, and
similar purposes. The vertical web of these bars is made thicker at the
upper and lower parts than in the centre, and the bottom flange is made flat
and on its upper surface, and curved below, as shewn in the Drawing. Figures
6 and 7. represent sections of similar bars of smaller dimensions adapted for
the smaller rafters of roofs, and the frames of skylights and windows. These
forms of bars are well adapted for receiving and supporting sheets of glass on
the flat surfaces of their bottom flanges, which at the same time possess great
strength without offering much obstruction to the light which passes through
the glass. The different parts of the framing of a floor or roof constructed
with these bars may be all included within the depth of the main beam, so
that a strong foor may thus be constructed in a small depth. Figure 8 is a
section of a wrought-iron bar adapted for placing upon the joists to preserve
them at the proper distance apart, as shewn in Figure 20. The lower part of
the bar is cut away or notched, so that it may rest upon and confine the joists.

page_text: Figures 9 and 10 are sections of bars of different sizes, adapted for tho
construction of large beams or breast summers, door jambs or columns.
Figure 11 is a side view, and Figure 12 is a plan, of one end of a double
breast summer; and Figure 13 is a section, and Figure 14 a plan, of the
central portion of the same. Each breast summer consists of two wrought-
iron bars, of the section shewn in Figure 9, and two plain flat wrought-iron
bars a,, united by bands or hoops of wrought iron y, surrounding them at
intervals, as shewn in the Figures. The two breast summers so made are;
united by other bands or hoops z, which embrace the whole. These bands or
hoops may be made in two or more parts fixed to the bars of the breast
summer, or half lapped upon one another and secured by screws with counter-
sunk heads. In Figure 13, a beam of the form shewn in Figure 3, is.
attached to or placed by the side of the breast summer for the purpose of.
receiving and supporting the ends of the joists, one of which is shewn at c
in the Figure.
Figure 15 is a general plan of the framing of a floor constructed of bars of
the sections shewn in Figures 2, 5 and 8. Figure 16 is a longitudinal section
of the same on the line 1, 2, in Figure 15, and Figure 17 is a transverse section
on the line 3, 4, in Figure 15. Figure 18 shows the section of the iron bars
, employed for the main beams a, a, a, and also for the cross beams b, b, one of
which is shewn attached to the main beam a, in Figure 18, and another is.
shewn ready to be fixed; the ends of the beams 6 are sheared or otherwise cut,
or shaped to the form of the side of the main beam, so that they may fit it.
and rest upon both the bearing surfaces s, t of the bottom flange. To prevent.
5them from being accidentally separated a pin or rivet u is inserted in a hole
punched or drilled in the upper part of one flange and the lower part of the
other flange. The parts are thus connected with great facility; they may also
be fixed by a pin passed through a hole in the top flange of the main beam,
and entering the web of the cross beam at v. These pins may be merely
o dropped into their places as they may be rivetted to either of the beams which
may be angled into its place; or the upper part of the web v of the beam & may
be removed, as shewn by the dotted line, and then the beam can be.
raised sufficiently to allow the pin u to enter the hole in the bottom flange of
the beam a. The beams a and b are thus united with their top and bottom,
5 flanges flush with one another. Figure 19 represents a section of the beam b,
with two of the joists marked c, in Figure 15; one of these joists is repre-
sented as fixed in its place, and the other is ready to be fixed; the sectional
form of those joists is similar to those shewn in Figures 4, 5, and 6, and is
also shewn in Figure 20. The ends of the joists c, c, are sheared or shaped
O to fit the side of the beam b, and they are fixed by means of a pin or rivet u,
b

page_text: in the manner already described. As the joists c are of less depth than the
beam b, the space above them is filled up with the boards or battens w, w.
Figure 20 shews a section of one of the joists c, with one of the cross pieces
or bearers marked d, in Figure 15, the section of which is similar to that
shewn in Figure 8. The lower part of the piece d is notched to receive the
top of the joist c. The upper part of the piece d is level with the top of the
upper flanges of the beams a and b, so that the whole of the upper surface of the
framing is in the same plane and ready to receive the covering of boards or of
flagstones, slate, or other suitable material. e, e, are wrought-iron bars, crooked
at the ends, and resting upon the flat surface of the bottom flange of the
joist c, and secured by pins or rivets, in the manner already mentioned. These
bars e serve as ceiling joists. By employing wrought-iron bars of proportionate
strength, a floor of this sort may be employed as a bridge. The application of
these bars to the construction of a roof will be readily understood if it be
supposed that the floor shewn in Figure 15 were to be divided along the
centre, and the two parts raised up in the centre, so as to slope down on each
side towards the walls of the building. The two parts being then united in
the centre, and furnished with tie rods, to connect the lower ends of the beams'
or one wall with those on the other, would form the framework of a roof, which
might then be covered with boarding, and sheet lead or copper, or with flag--
stones, slates, sheet iron, glass, or other suitable material. In applying glass
on a roof constructed with these bars, it may be placed on the bottom flanges:
of the joists or rafters c, c, which may then rest on the wall, without the inter-
vention of the beams b, b. Various other arrangements of roofs may be
constructed with rolled wrought-iron bars of the sections herein-before
described. Figure 21 is a front view of a window with a wrought-iron frame."
Figure 22 is a vertical section of the same on the line 5, 6, in Figure 21, and
Figure 23 is a horizontal section of the same on the line 7, 8, in Figure 21.
Figure 24 is a horizontal section on a larger scale of the central bars 9, h, one
of which h is made to enter within the other, yet leaving sufficient space for the
reception of a bolt or bolts for securing the window at the top or at the bottom,
or at both places. Figure 25 is a section of the frame or case i, and the bar
k, at the top of the window. Figure 26 is a section of one of the sides of the
case 1, and the side bar m, which is furnished with a projection, which enters
a groove in the case 7, for the purpose of preventing the passage of wind or
rain when the window is closed. Figure 27 is a section of the bottom of
the case or still n, and the bottom bar o, together with an additional pipe pi
for throwing off the rain which runs down the face of the glass, which is
fixed by means of putty, or otherwise, against the flat side of the projecting
part of the bars: g, h, k, m, o; q, q, in Figures 21, 22, and 23, are cross bars,

page_text: with projections on both sides for receiving and supporting the panes of
glass.
Having now described the nature of the Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not
claim generally the application of rolled bars or beams of wrought iron to the
construction of buildings; but what I claim is,-
Firstly, the manufacture of rolled wrought-iron beams for building purposes,
with two or more bearing surfaces in their bottom flanges, and the application
of such beams to the construction of floors, roofs, bridges, and similar structures,
as herein-before described in reference to Figures 1, 2, 3, 15, 16, 17, 18, and
19, also, the mode or modes herein-before described of fitting and uniting such
beams to each other.
Secondly, the manufacture of rolled wrought-iron joists, of the sectional
forms shewn in Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7, and the application of such joists to
building purposes, as herein-before described in reference to Figures 15, 16,
17, 19, and 20.
Thirdly, the mode or modes herein-before described in reference to Figures
9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 of constructing hollow wrought-iron beams or breast
summers and door posts and columns.
Fourthly, the manufacture of rolled wrought-iron bars, of the sectional forms
shewn at g in Figure 24, and at land m in Figure 26, and the application of
the same in combination with other bars to the construction of window frames
and cases, in manner herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Cowper, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of January, One thousand
eight hundred and fifty-three.