Improvements in Means for Stoppering Bottles and the like.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Feb., 1896-Accepted, 18th Apr.. 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Stoppering Bottles and the like.
I, JAMES YATE JOHNSON, of 47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of London,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (which has been
communicated to me from abroad by Clifton Hadley Davis, of Chicago Illinois,
United States of America, Engineer) 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 that class of stoppers which are employed for scaling
bottles or the like (I will refer to them as bottles) containing liquids which exert a
considerable pressure, tending to force the stopper out, such as bottled beer and
other beverages charged with carbonic acid gas.
It is the purpose of this invention to provide a bottle stopper which shall not
require any wire, cap or clamp for holding it, and which shall, by reason of its form
and of the materials of which it is composed, afford a tight joint, or seal, under all
circumstances.
One object of this invention is to provide a stopper which will fit any ordinary
beer or like bottle and which does not require any modification or special provision
in the construction of the bottle itself.
A feature of this invention consists in the peculiar construction of the lifting pin
and its manner of application to the rubber body.
According to the common practice of bottling beer, and particularly beer which
is intended for export, the bottles are filled with the liquid highly charged with
carbonic acid gas. The stoppers are then applied and after the sealing is effected,
the bottles are placed in a rat and subjected to a liquid and steam bath, the
temperature of the bottles and the contained liquid being raised, usually to 148°
or over. This increase of temperature generates a considerable additional pressure
within the bottle so that a stopper which is effective to withstand the pressure due
to the carbonic acid gas is entirely insufficient to withstand the added pressure
produced by this process.
Heretofore it has been commom to apply wires, clamps or other means for
confining the stoppers previous to subjecting them to this heating operation.
With the improved stopper according to this invention nothing of the kind is
required and the bottles and their contents can be heated without the employment
of any such extraneous securing means.
The said improved bottle-stopper is composed of a soft rubber body of slightly
conical form and having a central vertical opening through which a lifting pin is
inserted from the bottom upwards, the said pin having a shank and head extending
above the top of the body and furnishing means whereby the stopper may be
extreated by the employment of a suitable implement. The body of the stopper
is moistened before being inserted, and this moistening may be effected by
simply dipping the stopper in water when it may be readily driven into the bottle
neck.
The material employed in making the stopper is what is known commercially as
"pure soft rubber." Such rubber is not, of course, really pure, nor need it be
80, for the purposes of this invention. The term is used to designate rubber which
has a high degree of compressibility, and which is practically homogeneous, in
contradistinction to a body composed of rubber and textile fabric in layers.

page_text: The bottle necks have an interior enlargement below the mouth of the opening,
and which is called the "choke."
The stopper is driven down in application until its lower end passes to and
preferably beyond this enlargement or choke. When in position the top of the
stopper is considerably below the mouth of the bottle neck and the upper end
of the lifting pin projects to the plane or slightly above the plane of the opening.
When the bottles are placed in the liquid bath with the stoppers inserted therein
in the moist condition, the heat of the bath will rapidly raise the temperature of
the bottle neck, and this will operate to completely dry the surface of the stopper
in contact with the neck of the bottle. When the stopper is thus dried its
frictional power is very greatly increased so that it is adequate to sustain the
additional pressure generated within the bottle by the raising of the temperature
of the liquid contents. The stopper under all circumstances and even when
moistened to facilitate its insertion in the bottle neck offers sufficient frictional
resistance to withstand the ordinary pressure of the liquid contents, but when it is
thoroughly dried by the treatment in the bath, its holding power is very greatly
increased so that it is adequate to withstand the additional pressure.
The moistening of a stopper of the specified material and form, before insertion
in the neck of the bottle, produces an action or effect which is believed to be wholly
new, and which for the purposes of this invention, is of great importance. The
stopper, as already stated, is made of pure, or substantially pure rubber; that is to
say of a highly elastic material. When inserted into the neck of the bottle with
its surfaces dry, it is found that it cannot be driven, with the maximum permissible
force, far enough into the bottle neck to hold its place against the internal
pressure.
The reason for this is that the dry surface of the stopper clings tightly to
the neck of the bottle, while the elasticity of the rubber permits it to yield to the
force of the blow applied to drive it in, the only effect of increasing the force of the
blow being to stretch the rubber still further. Moisture, however, acts as a lubricant,
so that with very slight force the stopper can be driven in until its top is considerably
below the.mouth of the bottle. When moistened the described stopper can, with
moderate pressure, be inserted into the neck of the bottle more than a quarter of
an inch further than is possible, with maximum force, when the stopper and bottle
neck are dry. When so applied, no internal pressure which the bottle itself can
stand will expel the stopper.
It will be observed that, to produce this result, the stopper should be of pure
homogeneous rubber, since rubber compounds, made of waste and impure rubber,
both lack the necessary elasticity and also usually have incorporated in them fibrous
material which absorbs and retains moisture. Furthermore, the stopper should
have a considerable area of contact with the bottle neck, being in the form of a plug
rather thau of a disc, as now commonly used with bottles baving a special lodginent
or groove in the neck. The height or length of axis of the body or plug should
not, however be greater, and preferably is slightly less, than its shortest diameter,
since any increase of height beyond this diameter renders the removal of the stopper
more difficult, the motion in removal being practically one of rotation, or in the arc
of a circle.
In the accompanying drawings:-
Figure 1, is an elevation, partly in vertical section, showing the stopper applied
to a bottle and the uncorking implement in position.
and
Figure 2, is a partial plan view of the same.
Figure 3, is a side elevation of the stopper.
Figure 4, is a side elevation of the body of the stopper with the pin removed;
Figure 5 shews the pin.
In the drawings, 6 represents an ordinary beer bottle, the neck of which is shewn
in section in Figure 1, the said neck having what is technically called a "choke,"
that is, an enlargement or swell 7 in the inner surface below the mouth of the

page_text: opening, and the bore of the neck being inclined each way from the said choke..
The neck, therefore, presents in cross-section two cone frustrums with their smaller
ends joined.
The stopper has its body portion composed of soft rubber, and is marked 8. In
form it is slightly conical and its height is slightly less than its shortest diameter..
It is provided with a central opening, shown at 9, (Figure 4) and through this
central opening a lifting pin (shewn in Figure 5) is thrust. The said lifting pin
being preferably made from a steel wire or rod of uniform diameter, one end of the
rod being upset, as at 10, to provide a retaining disc or head to prevent the
withdrawal of the pin through the opening in the body 8 in the act of withdrawing
the stopper. The pin 11 is greater in length than the rubber body 8 and in its
upper end a peripheral groove 12 is turned to provide a shoulder 13 and head 14.
The circumference of this shoulder is the same as the body 11, and therefore
the pin may be inserted upwardly through the aperture in the rubber body. The
said head furnishes means whereby the stopper can be withdrawn by the
application of an implement, such as is shewn in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings,.
the said implement having a suitable handle, as at 15, and a shank 16 terminating
in claws 17 with an aperture between the claws adapted to embrace the reduced
portion or neck beneath the shoulder 13. The heel of the claw is somewhat
thickened and is of such shape as to engage the upper edge of the bottle neck,.
which is slightly rounded, as shown at 18, and furnishes a rolling fulcrum over-
which the leverage is exerted to remove the stopper.
By reference to Figure 1, it will be seen that the body of the stopper is forced
down until its lower end. passes the enlargement or choke 7, and it is shown as
expanded outwardly thus pressing against the inclined surfaces of the bottle neck
below the choke. For ordinary use and except when it is designed to withstand
very great pressure, it will not be necessary to force the stopper below the choke
or narrowest portion of the bottle neck. By making the body slightly tapering or
inclined, its sides adhere closely and tightly to the similarly shaped surfaces
the bottle neck; therefore furnishing an extended bearing surface and being
much inore efficient than a stopper having a cylindrical body. In fact, it
has been demonstrated by experiment that if the stopper shewn be applied
in an inverted position and the large end be forced past the choke, it will
not hold so effectively as when applied in the proper position as indicated in the-
drawings. The resistance of the internal pressure, tending to dislodge the stopper-
is due of course to the friction of the sides of the stopper of the soft rubber body
upon the interior surfaces of the neck, and as friction is in proportion to the area
of the surfaces in contact rather than in proportion to the expansive force or
elasticity of the material, the shape of the stopper becomes highly important, and
a stopper of the form shewn in the drawings has the necessary frictional surface to
withstand the expelling pressure of the confined liquid.
It will be observed that when the stopper is in position, the withdrawing stem is
protected by the bottle neck and projects so slightly that it does not render the
bottles inconvenient to pack or handle, nor sufficiently to make the stopper liable
to be accidentally withdrawn.
It will be understood that the body 18 of the stopper being composed of pure
soft rubber is very highly elastic, but its elastic qualities are not at all impaired.
by the passage of the lifting pin through the aperture in its centre. As the said
pin is simply forced into position and the rubber body is simply seated upon it,
but is not affixed thereto in any manner, nor is the rubber body confined, or
compressed, between any rigid discs, or metal substances, nor is any non-elastic or
less elastic materials incorporated therewith as in the bottle stoppers now in
common use.
While pure rubber is an expensive material compared with cork, or with a.
compound stopper having a fabric incorporated therewith, still pure rubber is
practically indestructable for this use, and as the stopper requires no extraneous.
fastening devices and is adapted to all ordiuary bottles and adequate to maintain.

page_text: a perfect seal under all circumstances the said improved stopper is more economical
in use than any other with which I am acquainted.
While it is preferred to construct the improved stopper in the forms shewn and
described, slight variations may it will be evident be made therefrom without
departing from the invention claimed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A stopper for bottles and the like the said stopper having a body composed
of substantially pure, soft, or compressible rubber of slightly conical form tapering
downwardly and with a central aperture, and a lifting pin passing through such
aperture and having a disc or enlargement on its lower end to prevent its
separation upwardly and having its extremity projected above the upper surface
of the stopper and provided with a head whereby the stopper can be withdrawn,
substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. A stopper for bottles and the like the said stopper having a body portion
composed of substantially pure homogenous soft rubber of tapering form, its height
being slightly less than its shortest diameter, combined with a lifting pin passing
through a central aperture in the said stopper and provided with an enlargement
at its lower end and with a head at its upper end, substantially as hereinbefore
described.
3. The combination with a bottle or the like having in its neck a contracted
portion or choke, of a stopper therefor, the said stopper comprising a substantially
pure soft rubber body having a central opening and a lifting pin passing through
the said opening and having a disc to prevent its withdrawal therefrom and a head
to facilitate the removal of the stopper the body of the stopper being less in height
than the distance from the mouth of the bottle neck to the contracted portion whereby
the stopper can be inserted so that its lower end shall pass below the said contracted
portion or choke while the pin projects into the plane of the mouth of the bottle or
the like in a position convenient for withdrawal, substantially as herein before
described.
4. A stopper for bottles or the like the said stopper comprising a soft rubber
body and having a central vertical aperture, and a lifting pin of greater length
than the said aperture and adapted to be inserted therethrough from the bottom
upwardly, the said pin having a disc or enlargement upon its lower end and a
groove in its extended portion constituting a head having a peripheral bearing
flange or shoulder of a diameter not exceeding that of the body of the pin,
substantially as herein before described.
Dated this 11th day of February 1896.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.