IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO THE MANUFACTURE OF PARQUET FLOORS OR MATERIALS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES
Year: 1884

page_text: I FRANCIS FAULKNER BROWN, of Chester, in the County of Chester, Cabinet
Maker, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN OR RELATING TO THE MANUFACTURE OF PARQUET FLOORS OR MATERIALS
THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES' to be as follows:-
"
In the manufacture of parquet floors as ordinarily constructed, the wood is
placed with the grain parallel to the surface of the floor. Now have found that
if it be placed perpendicular to the floor it wears better and has a better effect
generally. The difficulty however in this plan is that the wood expands unequally
and is therefore apt to buckle and the wood sawn in this way causes a large
amount of loss in squaring. Now I get over this difficulty by forming the wood
The
into tesserae and making these tesserae into tiles as hereafter set forth.
tesserae can be made in either of two ways. The timber can be cut transversly
into rounds or steaks from a half to one and a half inches in thickness and split by
hydraulic or other pressure into sharp blades, or preferably it can be cut into long
angular bars of required cross section, and theso bars sawn transversely in lengths
to form tesserae of the required height of square or other suitable shape or shapes,
and placing these tesserae with their grain (as shown by the concentric rings in the
various tessere) pointing in different directions, so that they shall each have a
tendency to connect the other. These tesserae are formed into square or other
shaped tiles by being grouped into a pattern, well smeared with glue or other
suitable cement and pressed together till the cement has hardened. The surface
If several kinds of wood be
can then be planed or dressed in a machine if desired.
These tiles are made all of one
arranged in a pattern the result is very handsome.
thickness and glued in place.
The glue with which they are formed or laid can be made insoluble if desired by
chromates or bichromates.
Dated this eighth day of January 1884.

page_text: IN
I FRANCIS FAULKNER BROWN of Chester, in the County of Chester, Cabinet
Maker do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for IMPROVEMENTS
OR RELATING TO THE MANUFACTURE OF PARQUET FLOORS OR MATERIALS
THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES" and in what manner the same is to
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:—
In the manufacture of parquet floors as ordinarily constructed, the wood is
placed with the grain parallel to the surface of the floor. Now I have found that
if it be placed perpendicular to the floor it wears better and has a better effect
generally. The difficulty however in this plan is that the wood expands unequally,
and is therefore apt to buckle, and the wood sawn in this way causes a large
amount of loss in squaring. Now I get over this difficulty by forming the wood into
tesserae and making these tesserae into tiles as hereafter set forth. The tesserae
can be made in either of two ways. The timber can be cut transversely into
rounds or steaks from a half to one and a half inches in thickness, and split by
hydraulic or other pressure with sharp blades, or preferably it can be cut into long
angular bars of required cross section, and these bars sawn transversely in lengths
to form tesserae of the required height of square, or other suitable shape or shapes.
These tesserae are then arranged with. their medullary rays or concentric rays
shewn in the end grain pointing in different directions, so that they shall each
have a tendency to connect the other. These tesserae are formed into square or
other shaped tiles by being grouped into a pattern well smeared with glue or other
suitable cement, and pressed together till the cement has hardened. The surface
can then be planed or dressed in a machine if desired.
With some woods I prefer to saw and plane, or saw only, the various timbers
into long lengths and glue these lengths together under pressure and when fully
set saw the long composite beam into separate tiles. In the different cases the
particular plan must be adopted best suited to the plan of the operator or the
material to be operated on. In experimenting upon my Invention on a small scale
I have two forms of frames for holding and tightening up the individual tiles and
these are set forth in Figs. 1 and 2 and in 3 and 4 respectively. In Fig. 1 is
shewn a tile with two different woods arranged in pattern, and the grain set at
different angles so as to counterbalance the distorting effect of unequal expansion
and contraction. The glue with which they are formed or laid can be made
insoluble if desired by chromates or bichromates.
I do not of course bind myself to these small hand frames, for I am well aware
that on a large scale it will be preferable to use hydraulic or other mechanism. In
these however A is the tile formed of tesserae, B frame, C packing pieces,
D tightening screws, E Fa pair of quoins (as used by printers to tighten their
type in a chase) actuated by the handle G.
Having now described my Invention and the methods I have hitherto found
most advantageous for carrying it into effect, I wish it to be understood that I am
well aware that blocks of wood placed with the grain vertically have been used
before now for paving purposes, and also that smaller pieces have been set singly
in metal frames for this purpose, and I make no claim for such arrangements, but
that what I believe to be new and desire to claim under the Letters Patent is :-
1 The manufacture of flooring, walling, or other tiles or blocks formed of
tesserae or smaller pieces of wood arranged with the run of the grain perpendicular

page_text: to the wearing surface, glued or otherwise cemented together so as to form tiles,
substantially as described.
.
2nd The herein described ornamental tiles formed of tesserae of wood of different
kinds grouped in patterns and glued or held firmly together with the grain
perpendicular to the wearing surface.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents for the Applicants.