CERTAIN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER CLOSETS
Year: 1840

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME GREETING,
I,.JOHN WORDSWORTH ROBSON, of No. 30, Wellclose Square, in the County
of Middlesex, Artist, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Gracious Majesty Queen Victoria the First, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Second day of November, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and forty, and in the fourth year of Her said Majesty's reign,
did give and grant unto me, the said John Wordsworth Robson, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that I, the said John Wordsworth Robson, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, and such others as I, the said John Wordsworth
Robson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times hereafter, during the term
of years therein mentioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within that part of Great Britain called England, Wales, and the Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also in all' Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plan-
tations abroad, my Invention of ""CERTAIN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS
IN WATER CLOSETS;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso
that I, the said John Wordsworth Robson, shall cause a particular description
of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be

page_text: performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to be
enrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next immediately after the date of the said in part recited
Letters Patent, reference being thereto had, may more fully and at large
appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Wordsworth Robson, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention
and improvements, and the manner in which the same are to be performed,
are particularly described and ascertained in and by the following description
thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the
figures and letters marked thereon; that is to say :--
My said Invention and improvements in water closets consist in a bed
block A, sixteen inches long, eleven inches wide, and three inches thick,
having two mortices cut in the top of it, each three and a quarter inches
wide, and two and three quarters inches in depth, and from ten to twelve
inches in length. B is a bed plate of iron or brass one quarter of an inch
thick, having two tubes or pipes cast with and upon the under side thereof,
which rest in the mortices in the bed block, as indicated by the dotted
lines a and b in the Drawing. This plate is let into the bed block level with its
surface and firmly bolted thereto. In this plate are four holes numbered 1, 2, 3,
and 4. No. 1 is a circular hole two inches and an half or more in diameter,
through which the soil and water pass from the basin into the tube a leading
to the cylinder C. This cylinder, which is a plain one, may be made of cast
iron, brass, or copper, three inches and one quarter in height, with a bore six
inches and one quarter in diameter, and a flange or rim an inch wide at top
and bottom. It is fastened to the bed block by bolts c passing through tho
lower rim of the cylinder, the bed plate, and bed block, by which it is held
firm in its position. D is an ordinary hopper basin fastened to the bed block,
over the hole No. 1, by four screw bolts d. The soil and water are drawn from
the basin to the cylinder by vacuum produced by raising the inverted conical-
shaped leather E, which forms the cover of the cylinder. This conical-shaped
leathern top is two and an half inches in depth, and four inches in diameter
at the bottom or smaller end, and of the same dimensions and shape as the
. upper flange of the cylinder at the top. This leather, when moulded of the
form shewn in the Drawing E, and placed within the cylinder, the smaller
end downward, performs the office of a piston. F is a metal rim, the same
size and thickness as the upper flange of the cylinder, which is placed upon
the top of the leather, and firmly bolted to the upper flauge of the cylinder
by six screw bolts. G, G, are two small metal plates three sixteenths of an

page_text: inch in thickness, and four inches in diameter, having a square hole in the
centre through which the bottom of the piston rod passes. These metal plates
are of the same size as the smaller end of the leathern cylinder top, one of
which is placed within the bottom of the leather, and the other upon the
under side thereof. H is the piston rod four inches, long, having a square
shoulder at the bottom which passes through the square hole in one of the
metal plates G, through the centre of the small end of the leathern top and
the square hole in the plate G beneath it, with a screw and nut at the end to
hold it firmly in its place. When vacuum is to be produced in the cylinder
the piston rod is raised, and the small end of the leathern top is drawn out
of the cylinder the same height above it as in the reverse or downward stroke
it occupies within it, the two plates G, G, at the bottom of the piston rod, and
the metal rim F upon the top of the cylinder, effectually preventing any escape
of air from within the cylinder at the top thereof. The hole numbered 2 in tho
bed plate is within the cylinder, two and an half inches or more in diameter,
and covered with a strong leathern valve I, having a rim of the same. width
and diameter as the lower rim of the cylinder, which is placed under the
lower rim of the cylinder, and prevents the escape of air or water between the
cylinder and bed plate; to which it is firmly bolted. This valve is mounted
with metal to assist in closing it after having been opened by vacuum in the
cylinder. When the soil and water in the basin have been drawn into the
cylinder by raising the piston rod and withdrawing the leathern cono from
within the cylinder, the stroke is reversed, the valve is closed, and the soil and
water in the cylinder are driven through the hole No. 3 into the tube b, leading
to hole No. 4, as seen by dotted lines in the Drawing. The hole No. 4 is of
the same size as those numbered 1 and 2, and covered with a strong leathern
valve exactly similar to that over holo No. 2. This valve is within the soil
pipe head K, which supplies the place of a valve box of sufficient dimensions to
permit the free working of the said valve within it. It is opened by depressing
the piston rod within the cylinder, and forcing the soil and water therein into
the soil pipe head, and through the soil pipe e into the water or other recep-
tacle. It is closed by atmospheric pressure from without the soil pipe, or by
raising the piston rod and leathern cone within the cylinder. The soil box
or soil pipe head is fastened to the bed plate and bed lock by four screw
bolts f, as shown in the Drawing. When the closet is placed below
the level of the water on board a ship, a hanging valve may be placed at the
end of the soil pipe, so as to prevent the ingress of water upon the valve in
the soil pipe head if thought advisable, but this is by no means essential to
the safe and efficient working of the valve within the soil pipe head over the

page_text: hole No. 4. L is a strong triangular-shaped brass or iron upright standing
upon the top of the cylinder, and fastened to it by a long half-inch bolt g;
passing through the said upright, both rims of the cylinder, and the bed block,
with a screw and nut at the bottom. To the elbow or outer part of this
upright his attached one end of the lever i, by which all the machinery is
worked. The top of this upright is supported by a wrought-iron or brass
stay k, bolted upon each side, at the bottom, to the upper rim or flange of the
cylinder, and at the top by a bolt passing through the side of the valve tap,
upright, and stay, with a screw and nut at the end. M is the valve: tap
standing upon the top of and firmly bolted to the upright, 'and is the medium
through which the water passes from the cistern or other reservoir to the
basin. In the centre and lower part of this valve tap there is a small stuffing
box, the bottom of which is formed by the flat surface of the top of the
upright upon which it stands. Through the centre of this stuffing box there
rises a small tube, half an inch in diameter, through which passes the tap
rod N. The object of this stuffing box and tube is to prevent any leakage
when the valve of the tap is raised to admit water into the basin. Around
this tube and over the stuffing box there is an area or chamber m in the tap,
covered by a strong leathern valve n, which valve being opened by raising the
tap rod N, admits the water into the said arca, from whence it is conveyed to
the basin by a small leaden pipe O. In the upper part of this valve tap O
there is a recess of sufficient dimensions to permit the valve to work freely
within it, from whence proceeds a small pipe p to the cistern or reservoir
which supplies the tap with water. The valve is raised by the tap rod which
passes through the lever, the upright, and the stuffing box and tube, in the
lower part of the tap, directly under the centre of the valve n. In the middle
of the tap rod are two projections or shoulders 2, which rest upon the opening
in the lever through which the tap rod passes, and by which the tap rod is
raised. The bottom of the tap rod has two arms or branches r, which work
up and down in holes made in the upper flange of the cylinder. The tȧp rod
and piston rod are both raised and depressed by the same lever, one end of
which is bolted to the elbow of the upright, the other end having an ordinary
lift piece s coming through the top of the seat above the closet, with which
the lever and the entire machinery are worked; P represents a ship's
closet complete in all its parts, formed from the various sectional parts repre-
sented in the annexed Drawings, and which fully explain its construction
and use.
Having fully described the several parts of my said Invention and improve-
ments which relate to water closets for ships where the same are placed below the

page_text: level of the water, I now proceed to describe those portions of my said Invention
and improvements which are applicable to portable water closets, referring to
the annexed Drawings, with the figures and letters marked thereon, for an
explanation thereof.
.
R represents the cistern, valve, tap, basin, and case or receiver of such
portable closet. a is a leaden or zinc cistern, which may be constructed of
any convenient size, and placed above the level of the closet, in the back part
of a chair, or in any other suitable frame. 6 is the hole in the top of the
cistern, through which it is filled with water. c is the valve tap already: fully
described in specifying the valve tap of the ship's water closet above. d is a
small leaden pipe through which the water enters the basin from the cistern.
e is the tap rod, the top of which passes through the tap in the manner already.
fully described above, by which the valve of the tap is raised, and water is
admitted into the tap, and from thence to the basin, the bottom part of the
tap rod being attached to the lever of the cistern, as shewn in the Drawing:
fis the lever by which the tap rod is worked, one end of which is attached to
the framework of the cistern, and the other end to the lift piece, with which it
is raised or depressed at pleasure. 9 is a lift piece, by which the lever tap rod
and valve tap are worked. To the bottom of this lift piece there is a detached
counterbalance weight, which rests against the end of the lever of the basin, and
keeps the valve of the basin closed; when the lift piece is raised the valve of
the basin opens, and the soil and water therein pass into the case or receiver.
h is the hole in the basin into which the pipe enters, conveying the water froin
the valve tap to the basin. i is an ordinary zinc or earthen basin, at the
bottom of which there is a strong leathern valve k, set in a metallic case and
forming an air trap attached to the end of the lever of the basin. is a
counterbalance lever, supported at its centre. by an arm or fulcrum projecting
from the side of the case of the basin. Upon one end of this lever is the valvo
of the basin k, while the other end is kept down by the pressure of the weight
of the lift piece g against it. This lift piece works the lever of the cistern,
the tap rod and valve tap, the lever of the basin and the valve attached thereto,
m is an ordinary zinc case or receiver, which may be made of any form or
size, and adapted to the bottom of a chair or other suitable frame.
..
Having fully described all my said Invention and improvements which are
applicable to portable closets, I now proceed to describe the residuary portions
of my said Invention and improvements, and the manner in which they are.
used in the construction of house closets. S represents a side view of an
house closet complete in all its parts. a is a bed block and frame, two feet
long and one foot wide by three inches thick, upon which all the other parts

page_text: of the closet rest. b is a bed plate, with tubes cast upon the under side
thereof, and let into the bed block in the same manner as the bed plate and
tubes of the ship's closet already herein-above fully described. c is a plain
cast-iron or brass cylinder, two inches and an half or more in height, and
exactly half the diameter of the cylinder used in manufacturing ships' water
closets; having an inverted conical-shaped leathern top, metallic plates and
piston rod, made and worked in the manner already described in those
used for ships' closets. Within the cylinder are two holes in the bed plate, half
the size but of the same form as those within the cylinder of the ship's closet,
numbered 2 and 3. The water is drawn into the cylinder through the pipe d
by raising the piston rod and leather cone within the cylinder. Over the
hole 2, at which the water enters the cylinder, there is a strong leathern valve
which opens when the piston rod is raised, and when the stroke is reversed it
closes, and the water is forced out of the half circular hole No. 3, through the
tube under the bed plate into the valve box e, and through the water pipe f
into the basin g. Over the hole No. 4, in the bed plate within the valve box e,
there is a strong leathern valve, exactly similar to that within the soil pipe head
in the ship's closet. The use to which the cylinder of the house closet is applied
is simply to supply the basin with water, while in the ship's closet the same
cylinder is used to expel the soil and water from the basin. h is a valve
plate covered with a strong leathern valve rivetted upon suitable bearings and
working upon an ordinary axis. This valve, by the downward stroke of the
lever, closes the bottom of the valve plate, and effectually prevents the escape
of water from the basin. i is a small tumbler, connecting the lever with the
bearing of the valve within the soil box k, by means of which the said valve is
opened and closed. is an ordinary closet lever, one end of which is bolted
to an upright m, the other being connected with the lift piece n, with which
the lever, piston rod, and leather cone within the cylinder, and valve within
the soil box, are severally worked. o is the soil pipe through which the
soil and water in the basin ass from thence into the soil box or other
receptacle.
Having fully explained the several Drawings hereunto annexed, and
described the nature of my said Invention and improvements in water closets,
and the manner in which they are severally used and applied without any
concealment, and as I verily believe in full and strict compliance with the
requisition in Her said Majesty's Letters Patent aforesaid contained, and in
conformity to the Statute in that case made and provided, I proceed to state
those parts of my said Invention and improvements in water closets of which
I claim to be the Inventor, and which I believe are new, and have not been

page_text: beretofore known or practised by any other person or persons whomsoever,
within that part of Great Britain called England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, or within any of Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plan-
tations abroad, to my knowledge or belief, that is to say :-
First, I claim in the ship's water closet the bed plate and tubes
attached thereto, through which the soil and water pass from the basin.
into the cylinder, and from the cylinder into the soil pipe, as described
aljove.
Second, I claim the leathern valves by which vacuum is produced' within
the cylinder and in the valve box or soil pipe head and the valve box in
which the valve is contained.
Third, I claim the inverted conical-shaped cylinder top, with the metal
plates upon the top and bottom thereof, and the method of working the
same (so as to obviate the necessity of a solid piston cylinder top and stuffing
box), by creating vacuum in the cylinder without friction, and by the applica-
tion of less power than has ever before been used.
Fourth, I claim the valve tap in all its parts by which water is admitted
into the basin with the tap rod, and the method in which the same are
worked.
Fifth, I claim in the portable closet the valve tap by which water is admitted
into the basin, the leathern valve at the bottom of the basin, and the method
of working the said valve by a detached counter-balance weight attached to
the bottom of the lift piece.
Sixth, I claim in the house closet the bed plate and tubes attached thereto,
through which the water passes from the cistern or reservoir into the basin,
and the leathern valves within the cylinder and valve box, and the leathern
valve at the bottom of the valve plate, which works within the soil box, also
the inverted conical-shaped leather cylinder top and metallic plates attached to
the bottom thereof, and the method of working the same, as herein above
fully described.
To all other portions of machinery not embraced in the above claims, used
in the manufacture of my said improvements in water closets, I lay no claim
as being the Inventor.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Wordsworth Robson, have here-
unto set my hand and scal, this Second day of April, One thousand
eight hundred and forty-one.
JOHN WORDSWORTH (L.s.) ROBSON.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Second day of April, in the
fourth year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, the said John
Wordsworth Robson came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery,
and acknowledged the Instrument aforesaid, and all and every thing therein
contained and specified, in form above written. And also the Instrument
aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made in the fifty-
fifth year of the reign of His late Majesty King George the Third.