IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WORKING THE ROLLERS OF BLINDS, SHUTTERS, AND MAPS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Tansley, of Bedford, in the County of
Bedford, Cabinet Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR WORKING THE ROLLERS OF BLINDS, SHUTTERS, AND
MAPS."
Sealed the 7th August 1868, and dated the 10th February 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Tansley at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
10th February 1868.
I, JAMES TANSLEY, of Bedford, in the County of Bedford, Cabinet
3 Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WORKING THE ROLLERS OF BLINDS, SHUTTERS,
AND MAPS," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to remove the need for cords and
springs in the raising and lowering of blinds and roller maps, and of
chains in the working of iron shutters, and to substitute therefor a
simple and economical arrangement of machinery which may be applied
to operate one blind or two or more simultaneously. To the axle of the
window blind or other roller I key a bevil pinion, which gears into a

page_text: bevil wheel carried by a vertical spindle mounted in bracket bearings
set near the side of the window to which the blind belongs. The two
lower brackets are cast with or form part of a vertical slotted plate
which is fixed within convenient reach of the hand, and between these
brackets the spindle is formed with a quick screw thread, like those of
hand drill spindles. A traversing nut is fitted to this screw, and to
prevent the nut turning in the fingers when moved up and down to give
rotary motion to the spindle it is fitted with a projection, which enters
the vertical slot of the bracket plate and slides in the slot as the nut
is traversed up or down on the screwed part of the spindle. By
means of the gearing the motion is multiplied to any required extent to
enable the nut by a comparatively short traverse to raise or lower
the blind to its full extent. If the axles of two or more rollers are
connected together their blinds may be simultaneously raised or
lowered.
When metal shutters and heavy shop blinds are required to be
operated the traversing nut may be made to carry a rack, into which a
pinion worked by a crank will gear, and other modifications may be
adopted to utilize the application of the screw spindle and traversing
nut.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Tansley in the Great Scal Patent Office
on the 10th August 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
TANSLEY, of Bedford, in the County of Bedford, Cabinet Maker, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said James Tansley, Her special
licence that I, the said James Tansley, my exccutors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said James Tansley,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-

page_text: after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR WORKING THE ROLLERS Or
BLINDS, SHUTTERS, AND MAPS," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said James Tansley, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
scals, 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 Scal Patent Office within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Tansley, 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, reference being had to the Drawing
hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thercon (that
is to say):
:-
The object of this Invention is to remove the need for cords and
springs in the raising and lowering of blinds and of roller maps, and
of chains in the working of coiling iron shutters, and to substitute
therefor a simple and economical arrangement of mechanism which
may be applied to operate the blind or shutter, or it may be two or
more simultaneously. To this end I employ for the purpose of trans-
mitting motion to the roller carrying the blind or coiling shutter a
screw spindle somewhat like those used for hand drills, which spindle
is provided with a traversing nut for giving it an axial motion that is
transmitted by gearing to the roller.
The manner of adapting this means of obtaining an intermittent axial
motion admits of variation to suit varying circumstances.
In the accompanying Drawings I have shewn three arrangements for
working blinds according to this Invention, but other illustrations might
readily be suggested.
Fig. 1 is a front elevation and Fig. 2 a side clevation of the simplest
form of the apparatus by which with the use of a comparatively short
screw spindle a blind of any desired length may be rolled up.
A is the roller of, say, an ordinary window blind, the axle of which is
mounted in suitable bracket bearings, one of which is shewn at B. To

page_text: the axle of this blind or map roller a bevil pinion C is keyed, and into
it gears a bevil wheel D carried by a vertical spindle, the upper end of
which is carried by the bracket bearing B, and the lower part by
bracket bearings set near the side of the window to which the blind
belongs. The two lower bearings are cast with or form part of a vertical
slotted plate E, which is fixed within convenient reach of the hand,
and between these bearings the spindle is formed with a quick screw
thread. Upon this part of the spindle a traversing nut F is fitted, and
to prevent the nut turning in the fingers when moved up and down to
give rotary motion to the spindle it is furnished with a projection or
finger, which enters the vertical slot of the bracket plate and slides in
the slot as the nut is traversed up or down on the screwed part of the
spindle. By means of the gearing it will be readily understood that
the motion may be multiplied to any required extent to enable the nut
by a comparatively short traverse to raise or lower the blind to its full
extent. If the axles of two or more rollers are connected together their
blinds may be simultaneously raised or lowered.
Figure 3 shews in front view and Fig. 4 in sectional plan a modi-
fication which will ensure the blind standing at any given position to
which it may be moved when the nut is released from the grip of the
fingers. In this example instead of slotting the plate E I cast it with
a rack of ratchet teeth, and the finger f of the nut will in this case act
as a catch, and entering the teeth will remove all tendency which the
blind may have to run down. I rely in this arrangement on the weight
of the blind for keeping the catch fin contact with the teeth, but a
slight axial movement given by the hand to the traversing nut F will
suffice to disengage the catch from the rack when a further traverse
motion is desired to be given to the nut.
When metal shutters and heavy shop blinds are required to be
operated the traversing nut may be raised and lowered by a pinion
(worked by a crank), which pinion gears into the teeth of a rack carried
by the nut.
I prefer, however, the arrangement shewn in front elevation and plan
view at Figures 5 and 6, which is adapted for operating blinds and
shutters of any length or weight. The traversing nut F is fitted with a
loose ring, by which I raise the nut on the screw spindle E. During
this ascent the nut will turn in the ring and without affecting the screw
spindle, but on laying hold of the nut and pressing it down it will

page_text: impart an axial motion to the spindle, thereby causing it to raise the
blind or shutter. To prevent the running down of the blind or shutter
by its strain upon the screwed spindle E a ratchet wheel G is fitted to
the lower end of the spindle, and into its teeth a spring catch H takes.
Whatever motion therefore is gained by the downward traverse of the
nut is retained by the spring catch, and repetitions of this short traverse
motion will serve to raise blinds of any length. The gearing which
transmits the axial motion of the spindle to the blind or shutter roller
may be so arranged as to gain power when heavy weights are required
to be lifted; the smaller bevil wheel being fitted to the spindle E,
and the larger wheel to the roller or the reverse of that shown at
Figures 1 and 2.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improvements
in Apparatus for Working the Rollers of Blinds, Shutters, and Maps," and
explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to bo
understood that under the above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,
adapting a screw spindle and traversing nut in the manner and for the
purpose above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Tansley, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Eighth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand cight hundred and sixty-eight.