IMPROVEMENTS IN IRON SHUTTERS.”
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Royall Minns, of Stapleton Road, in the
City and County of Bristol, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN IRON SHUTTERS.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Royall Minns
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 8th June 1871.
I, HENRY ROYALL MINNS, of Stapleton Road, in the City and County
of Bristol, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN IRON SHUTTERS," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to iron shutters in which the shutters are made
of a series of strips or laths of metal connected together.
Now the improvement which constitutes this Invention as regards
these kind of shutters consists in so constructing them that the strips or
laths of metal of which they are composed instead of being connected

page_text: or hinged together by their edges, as above described, are so connected
together as that the lower edge of each strip or lath shall catch hold of
the upper edge of the next and adjoining lath, or vice versa, so that
when the shutter is not in use the aforesaid strips or laths shall lie side
by side in a box formed either at the top or bottom of the frame that
carries the shutter. I also propose to make the aforesaid strips or laths
very much wider or deeper than heretofore, so that in some cases two or
more sheets of metal only would form a shutter, especially shutters for
private houses, after the manner of the old fashioned box shutters. I
propose to connect the top edge of the uppermost strip or lath or section
of the shutter by its ends to cords or chains passing over rollers or
pulleys, or other suitable contrivance for raising and lowering the
shutter. I also form a flange at the bottom edge of the lowermost strip.
or section, through which thumbscrews may be passed for scouring the
shutter when in use to the window to which it is applied; or I employ
any other suitable arrangement for that purpose.
Another feature of novelty and improvement in iron shutters consists
in connecting the aforesaid strips or laths of metal together in the
following manner, that is to say, instead of connecting the strips of
metal together at their edges, as heretofore commonly practised, I
propose to turn or bend over each longitudinal edge of each strip in
a circular form, one edge being turned over or bent in an opposite
direction to the other edge, so that each strip or lath of the series of
strips shall hook on to the next and adjoining strip, so as to form a kind
of joint or hinge to enable the shutter to be coiled or wound upon a
roller, at the same time strengthening the shutter and presenting an
elegant appearance.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Royall Minns in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 8th December 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
ROYALL MINNS, of Stapleton Road, in the City and County of Bristol;
send greeting.
Toollent Maiesty Queen Victoria by Hor

page_text: Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-fourth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Henry Royall Minns, Her special licence that
I, the said Henry Royall Minns, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Henry Royall Minns, my exe-
cutors, 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, oxercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN IRON SHUTTERS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Henry Royall Minns, my executors or administrators, 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 performed, 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 Henry Royall Minns, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, 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 iron shutters in which the shutters are
made of a series of strips or laths of metal connected together.
Now the improvement which constitutes this Invention, as regards
theso kind of shutters, consists in so constructing them that the strips
or laths of metal of which they are composed instead of being connected
or hinged together by their edges, as above described, are so connected
together as that the lower edge of each strip or lath shall catch hold
of the upper edge of the next and adjoining lath, or vicê versû, so that
when the shutter is not in use the aforesaid strips or laths shall lie side
by side in a box formed either at the top or bottom of the frame that
carries the shutter. I also propose to make the aforesaid strips or laths
very much wider or deeper than heretofore, so that in some cases two
or more sheets of metal only would form a shutter, especially shutters
for private houses, after the manner of the old fashioned box shutters.
I propose to connect the top edge of the uppermost strip or lath or
section of the shutter by its ends to cords or chains passing over rollers
or pulleys or other suitable contrivance for raising and lowering the

page_text: shutter. I also form a flange at the bottom edge of the lowermost strip
or section, through which thumbscrews may be passed for securing the
shutter when in use to the window to which it is applied, or I employ
any other suitable arrangement for that purpose.
Another feature of novelty and improvement in iron shutters consists
in connecting the aforesaid strips or laths of metal together in the
following manner, that is to say, instead of connecting the strips of
metal together at their edges, as heretofore commonly practised, I pro-
pose to turn or bend over each longitudinal edge of each strip in a
circular form, one edge being turned over or bent in an opposite
direction to the other edge, so that each strip or lath of the series of
strips shall hook on to the next and adjoining strip so as to form
a kind of joint or hinge to enable the shutter to be coiled or wound
upon a roller, at the same time strengthening the shutter and presenting
an elegant appearance.
And in order to explain more clearly this Invention reference must
be had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings illustrative of the
manner of constructing shutters on the above plans, and to the numeral
figures and letters of reference marked thereon respectively, as

page_text: the plates D, the other end of the chain E being fixed to a roller G,
the ends whereof should revolve in brackets or bearing pieces suitably
placed, and the raising and lowering of the shutter may be effected by
a winch handle in the manner commonly practised with iron roller
5 shutters.
I now proceed to describe the construction of the shutter represented
at Figures 4, 5, 5*, 6, 7, 8, as follows:-H marks plates of metal
bent along their top and bottom edges as at b, in such a manner
as that when two or more plates so formed are connected together
they can only be detached from each other by sliding them out endwise;
the bent parts 6 also serve as a hinge for the plates to turn on as
they are coiled on the roller I at Figure 5. I would here remark
that as the roller I for this kind of shutter would require to be rather
large, and when the laths of the shutter were coiled around the said
5 roller it would occupy much space at the top of a window, I prefer to
place the roller I at the bottom of the window, as at Figure 5*,
which case it would be necessary to employ weights to balance the
weight of the shutter to facilitate the raising thereof.
in
I now proceed to describe the shutter represented at Figure 9 as
O follows: In this case the shutter is made in two parts or pieces of
sheet metal, A. and B, fitted together as described with reference to
Figures 1, 2, 3, the said panels being struck up by hydraulic pressure.
The parts A and B may be connected together by turning over the
lower edge of A and the top edge of B, so that when A is lifted it
5 will hook into B and lift that part also. The two parts of this
shutter may pass either through a slit below the level of the floor, or
above the top of the door if convenient.
my
Having now fully described and set forth the nature and object of
said Invention for "Improvements in Iron Shutters," together with
O the mcans by which it may be effected, I hereby declare my said
Invention to consist in and I claim constructing metal shutters in two
different ways,—
First. Making the laths or pieces which form the shutter to slide
against each other and lie side by side in a box placed either at the
5 top or bottom of a window, door, or other opening, instead of hinging
the said laths together and coiling or winding them on to a roller, as now
practised with iron shutters of the ordinary kind.

page_text: Secondly. Connecting together the laths of rolling metal shutters by
bending or turning over in a circular form the top and bottom edges of
cach lath or strip of metal, one edge being bent or turned in one
direction and the other edge in an opposite direction, so that the bent
edge of one lath shall fit into the bent edge of another lath, and thus
form a hinge to enable the shutter when thus formed to be coiled
or wound on a roller as above described with reference to the accom-
panying Drawing.
Secondly. Connecting together the laths of rolling metal shutters by
bending or turning over in a circular form the top and bottom edges of
cach lath or strip of metal, one edge being bent or turned in one
direction and the other edge in an opposite direction, so that the bent
edge of one lath shall fit into the bent edge of another lath, and thus {
form a hinge to enable the shutter when thus formed to be coiled
or wound on a roller as above described with reference to the accom-
panying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Royall Minns, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Fifth day of December, in the 1
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.