An Improved Board for the Playing of Chess, Draughts, Halma and other similar Games.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Sept.,
1897
Complete Specification Left, 2nd June, 1898-Accepted, 30th July, 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Board for the Playing of Chess, Draughts, Halma and
other similar Games.
I, GEORGE FRANCIS
CULPIN, of 57, Lattimore Road, St. Albans,
Herts, Civil Servant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
-
Lengths of tape or other suitable material are stretched across a piece of card-
board or other firm substance to which the ends of the tape are secured. Other
lengths of tape or other suitable material of the same width as before, but of a
different color, are then passed alternately under and over the lengths of tape or
other substance before mentioned (and the ends secured to the cardboard or other
firm substance) in such a manner that the board will present the appearance of
squares of equal size, and alternately from the right to the left, and the top to
the bottom of the board, of the different colors employed. If desirable the card-
board or other firm substance employed can be cut into two or more portions and
the tapes sewn along the line of such cut or cuts to a suitable backing attached
to the cardboard or other firm substance, and forming one or more hinges by
which the board can be folded into a smaller compass.
The pieces or men for this board to consist of flat pieces of cardboard, bone,
metal, vulcanite or other suitable substance having printed or marked at one end
thereof, one of the usual devices used in books for denoting the designation of
the piece. In playing, the end of the piece opposite to the end marked with the
device will be inserted under one or other of the squares adjacent to the square to
which it is desired to move it.
Squares not required for the game are utilized for the captured or spare men
or pieces. These squares are separated from the others by a border of a different
color to that of the squares necessary for the game.
Datad this 2nd dor of Santember 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Board for the Playing of Chess, Draughts, Halma and
other similar Games.
I,
GEORGE FRANCIS CULPIN, of 57, Lattimore Road, St. Albans,
Civil Servant, 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:-

page_text: Lengths of tape or any other suitable material, of the same width that it is
desired to make the squares of the board, are stretched across a block which may
be made of wood cardboard or any other firm substance; to this block the ends
of the tapes are temporarily secured. Other lengths of tape or other suitable
material of the same width as before, but of a different color, are then placed
alternately under and over these (and are similarly temporarily secured) in such
a manner that the block will present the appearance of squares of equal size, but,
alternately, of different colors as in an ordinary chess board.
A piece of cardboard, millboard or other stiff material, of the same size as the
block, is now glued or pasted on to the face of the tape; the temporary fastenings
of the tapes to the block are then removed & the cardboard & plaited tapes are
released therefrom and cut to the proper sizes containing the requisite number of
squares. The backs of the boards are covered with cloth, leather, or some other
suitable material a portion of which is turned over to cover the edges of the board.
When it is required to make the board of a size more convenient for pocket use,
the cardboard or millboard, before being glued or pasted to the tapes on the
block, is divided into two or more parts, so that, when released from the block, the
board can be closed up into a smaller compass.
i
The cardboard or millboard to which the tapes are fastened is cut sufficiently
large to contain one or more rows of squares over and above those required for
actually playing the game. These additional rows are divided from the others
by a printed line and are intended for pieces not actually in play.
The pieces or men to be used for this board, are flat pieces of cardboard, xylonite
or other similar material, having printed at one end thereof a device to shew the
designation of the piece. In playing, the plain end of the piece is inserted under
the top thickness of one of the plaited tape squares (the lower thickness or, as it
appears on the block, the face of the tape being glued or pasted to the backing as
heretofore stated) adjacent to the square it is desired to move the piece on to.
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:
1 A board, for the playing of chess, draughts, halma & other similar games,
composed of a solid backing to which is attached a series of equal sized squares
formed by the plaiting of tape or other suitable material, of two different colors,
substantially as heretofore shewn.
2 The combined use of the pieces herein described with the board as set forth.
Dated this 1st day of June Eighteen hundred and ninety-eight
GEORGE FRANCIS CULPIN.