Improvements in Safety Barriers for Entrance Ways of Places of Public Resort.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Sept., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 4th Nov., 1892-Accepted, 21st Jan., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Safety Barriers for Entrance Ways of Places of
Public Resort.
I, JAMES LAWRENCE GRAYDON of the Middlesex Music Hall, Drury Lane
London in the County of Middlesex, Licensed, Victualler do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows :-
This invention relates to certain improvements in safety barriers for entrance
ways of places of public resort such as theatres, music halls, railway approaches,
race-course enclosures and such like, the object being to provide means which may
be promptly brought into requisition and use and be readily managable for the
exclusion or direction of a number of visitors or "a crowd." It is well known
that it is desirable and necessary to regulate and restrain an influx of visitors or
persons where payment has to be made at the doors or gates, or even when entrance
is by tickets (so as to enable a proper scrutiny to be made) but in the event of a
panic within a building, that is a sudden efflux of the visitors or "crowd," it is
imperative in order to ensure safety and speedy exit, that the barriers should be
capable of instant removal.
According to this invention I effect this, as will be seen from the following
description of one method of setting up one of these improved automatic barriers
according to this invention.
Two side rails are employed one on each side of a passage-way with uprights at
the ends (of about the height of ordinary gateways or turn stiles).
In these side rails are provided towards one end thereof slotted guides, runners
or iron or metal plates with longitudinal grooves or slot guides.
The barriers are made of doors, wickets or frames, hinged in the middle way
to each other so as to be capable of being placed in the position of two vees
thus ><
At one end of these vees there are hinged to the supports or hinge posts of the
side rails and at the other end there are provided studs bolts or runners, which are
to engage with and be free to ride in the grooves or side guides of the side rails.
These stud bolts or runners can be fixed at any point of the slides or guides so
as to more or less accentuate the vees to narrow or enlarge the entrance way.
however there be a sudden panic or efflux of the visitors or "crowd" the guide
ends of the wings of the vees will be instantly released and the full way of exit be
at once thrown open.
Dated Santamban0th 1905
If
COMPLETE SI BUIFICATION.
Improvements in Safety Barriers for Entrance Ways of Places of
Public Resort.
I JAMES LAWRENCE GRAYDON 167 Drury Lane W.C., Licensed Victualler,
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 :-
This invention relates to certain improvements in safety barriers for entrance-
ways of places of public resort such as theatres music-halls railway-stations race-

page_text: courses or enclosures and such like; the object being to provide means which may
be promptly brought into requisition and use and be readily managable for the
exclusion or direction of a number of visitors or a crowd.
It is well known that it is desirable and necessary to regulaté and restrain an
influx of visitors or persons where payment has to be made at the doors or gates
or even when entrance is by tickets so as to enable a proper scrutiny to be made,
but in the event of a panic within a building, that is a sudden efflux of the visitors
or crowd it is imperative in order to ensure safety that the barriers should be
capable of instant removal.
According to this invention I effect this as will be seen from the following
description of one method of setting up one of these improved automatic barriers
according to this invention that is to say:
Two side rails are employed one on each side of a passage way with uprights at
the ends (of about the height of ordinary gateways or turnstiles). In these side
rails are provided towards one end thereof slotted guides, runners or iron or metal
plates with longitudinal grooves or slot guides.
The barriers are made of doors, or wickets or frames hinged in the middleway
to each other so as to be capable of being placed in the position of two vees
thus ><.
At one end of these vees they are hinged to the supports or hingeposts of the
side rails and at the other end there are provided studs, bolts or runners which
are to engage with and be free to ride in the grooves or side guides of the side
rails.
These studs, bolts or runners can be fixed at any point of the slides or guides
so as to more or less accentuate the vees to narrow or enlarge the entranceway:
If however there be a sudden panic or efflux of the visitors or crowd the guide
ends of the wings of the vees will be instantly released and the full way of exit be
at once thrown open.
In the drawings annexed hereto :-
Fig. 1. represents in plan the barriers arranged in an entrance way for the
passing in of visitors showing the double vee like position of the hinged wings of
the barriers.
Fig. 2. is a like view with the barriers fully open for purpose of exit.
.
Fig. 3. is a face view of one of the barriers looking as from between the apeces
of the two vees Fig. 1.
Fig. 4. is a section on enlarged scale of the runner and guide for the movable
ends of the barriers.
Fig. 5. represents in plan a modification of arrangement of such barriers but
the action thereof is substantially similar to that of the arrangement before
referred to.
7
In the following more particular description of the drawings reference will be
made thereto by figures and letters like letters indicating similar parts in all the
figures.
a, are uprights serving as hingeposts for the barrier wings b. To the wing bis
hinged the second wing b¹. c, is the side rail runner which is free to slide longi-
tudinally in side guide rails d. e, are runners or small ground wheels mounted
upon the outer lower end of the barrier wing b to assist in supporting the weight
of the barrier and to facilitate its free action.
The modification shown in Fig. 5 may be useful in cases where there is or are
a side pay office or offices for superior seat or such like, or where there be
divergent passages after the barriers have been passed upon entrance.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
The automatic safety-barriers as herein specified having the fixed hinge-post a,

page_text: wing b, hinged to the second wing b¹, the free end of said wing b¹ carrying a stud
or runner c, engaging with a longitudinal slide such as d, the whole constructed
and operating as and for the purpose substantially as set forth.
Dated this Fourth day of November 1892.
J. L. GRAYDON.