IMPROVEMENTS IN VENETIAN AND OTHER BLINDS
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Hance Hammilton Mc Neight, of the City
of Dublin, Ireland, Cabinet Maker and Window Blind Manufac-
turer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN VENETIAN AND OTHER
BLINDS."
Sealed the 12th April 1870, and dated the 16th October 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Hance Ham-
milton Mc Neight at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with his Petition, on the 16th October 1869.
I, WILLIAM HANCE HAMMILTON MC NEIGHT, of the City of Dublin,
Ireland, Cabinet Maker and Window Blind Manufacturer, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN VENETIAN
AND OTHER BLINDS," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists in raising and lowering Venetian blinds in the
following manner :-
According to one arrangement I fit to the under side of the rail
known as the pulley rail three or more brackets according to the width

page_text: of the blind to be raised or lowered; each bracket supports a pulley, and
over which a cord passes extending from the bottom lath, where it is
secured. For each pulley and bracket there are separate cords, and theso
being carried over the pulleys meet at one side of the blind and hang
thereby thus by pulling the cords the laths may be gathered, and by
releasing them they descend. By this arrangement I am able to do away
with all mortising, and to reduce the substance of the pulley rail, and
consequently to fit up Venetian blinds at a very material reduction in
the cost thereof.
According to another arrangement I support a roller at each end in
bearings above the blind, one end being provided with a ratchet wheel,
into the teeth of which a weighted lever or paul takes. There is a
groove outside the ratchet on the roller, round which a cord is wound,
so that by pulling the cord a rotary motion is communicated to the
roller. The laths composing the blind are united by tapes secured to
the laths in the ordinary way, but at top they pass round the roller.
Tapes or cords are passed through apertures formed in cach lath, and
which are united to the bottom lath and to the roller; thus by com-
municating motion to the roller by pulling the outside cord the roller
while revolving causes the tapes or cords to become wound thereon and
at the same time the laths are raised. On ceasing to pull the cord the
laths remain suspended at any desired position or height. To lower
the blind the paul is raised from the ratchet by a cord and the blind
descends by its own weight to its utmost extent, or to any other desired
position that may be required, its descent being arrested by allowing the
paul to fall into the teeth of the ratchet.
When the Invention is applied to linen or other blinds the arrange-
ment is similar, but the lath at the bottom or lower part of the blind
must be slightly weighted.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Hance Hammilton Mc Neight in the Great
Scal Patent Office on the 16th April 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HANCE HAMMILTON MC NEIGHT, of the City of Dublin, Ireland, Cabinet
Maker and Window Blind Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Hance Hammilton Mc Neight, Her
special licence that I, the said William Hance Hammilton Mc Neight, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Hance Hammilton Mc Neight, my executors, 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, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN VENETIAN AND OTHER BLINDS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Hance Ilammilton
Mc Neight, 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 William Hance Hammilton
Mc Neight, 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 accompanying Drawings, and to the letters of reference marked
thereon, that is to say:-
My Invention consists in raising and lowering Venetian blinds in the
following manner :-
According to one arrangement I fit to the under side of the rail
known as the pulley rail three or more brackets according to the width

page_text: of the blind to be raised or lowered; each bracket supports a pulley, and
over which a cord passes extending from the bottom lath, where it is
secured. For each pulley and bracket there are separate cords, and these
being carried over the pulleys meet at one side of the blind and hang
thereby; thus by pulling the cords the lathes may be gathered, and by
releasing them they descend. By this arrangement I am able to do
away with all mortising, and to reduce the substance of the pulley rail,
and consequently to fit up Venetian blinds at a very material reduction
in the cost thereof.
According to another arrangement I support a roller at each end in
bearings above the blind, one end being provided with a ratohot wheel,
into the teeth of which a weighted lever or pawl takes. There is a
groove outside the ratchet on the roller, round which a cord is wound,
so that by pulling the cord a rotary motion is communicated to the
roller. The laths composing the blind are united by tapes secured to
the laths in the ordinary way, but at top they pass round the roller.
Tapes or cords are passed through aporturos formed in each lath, and
which are united to the bottom lath and to the roller; thus by com.
municating motion to the roller by pulling the outside cord the roller
while revolving causes the tapes or cords to become wound thereon, and
at the same time the laths are raised. On ocasing to pull the cord the
laths remain suspended at any desired position or hoight. To lowor
the blind the pawl is raised from the ratchet by a cord and the blind
descends by its own weight to its utmost extent, or to any other desired
position that may be required, its descent being arrested by allowing tho
pawl to fall into the teeth of the ratchet,
When the Invention is applied to linen or other blinds the arrange-
ment is similar, but the lath at the bottom or lower part of the blind
must be slightly weighted.
In the case of shutters the laths are by preference caused to revolve
round the roller, but they may be gathered up as for blinds if preferred.
In some cases the shutters are made in two or more parts.
The accompanying Drawings show the manner in which my Invention
may be carried into effect.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a Venetian blind made according to
the first arrangement described. a is the pulley rail; b, b, b, are the

page_text: brackets fitted thereto and carrying pulleys c, c', c"; d, d', are cords,
one only of which is wholly seen in the Drawings; the cord d passes
over the pulley c and extends downwards through holes in the laths
between the tapes to the lower lath e; the other cord and which I
call d' passes over the pulley e', and also extends down to the lowest
lath e; by drawing the cords d, d', the laths are gathered up, and by
releasing them the laths are lowered; f is a cord secured to the top
lath for turning the laths composing the blind to any required angle as
may be desired.
Figure 2 is a front, and Figure 3 is an end view of another arrange-
ment for drawing up and lowering Venetian blinds made in the manner
before described and according to my Invention; Figure 4 is a view of
a blind with this arrangement applied thereto, but drawn on a smaller
scale and showing the blind complete; Figuro 5 is a view of a bracket
in which one end of the roller rests; and Figure 6 is a view showing
one of the small rollers over which the tapes pass. is the roller
mounted on a spindle and free to rotate in the brackets h, h; i is a
ratchet on the end of the roller g, into which a pawl k takes; this pawl
is weighted by being in connection with a lever 1, to which a cord is
attached; m is a cord or rope attached to the groove in the roller g, and
round which it is wound; cords or tapes are secured to the roller g and
to the lowest lath, shown in the Drawing in dotted lines, and are situate
behind the tapes ", which at top pass through or over small rollers o.
The cord may be guided and be prevented from getting entangled in
the parts of the blind by being passed through an eye p secured to a
bracket or to the window frame, as found most convenient.
The action is as follows:-The blind is raised or the laths are collected
together by communicating motion to the roller g by pulling the outside
cord, and so winding the cords shewn in dotted lines behind the tapes
thercon, and according to the height to which it is desired to raise the
blind; the weighted pawl taking into the teeth of the ratchet retains it
in position. To lower the blind the pawl must be raised out of the
ratchet by the cord m, and it descends by its own weight.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
First. The construction and arrangement of Venetian blinds in manner

page_text: and for the purpose described with reference to Figure 1 of the accom-
panying Drawings.
Second. The construction, arrangement, and method of action of
Venetian and other blinds, substantially in manner and for the purpose
described and illustrated in Figures 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the accompanying i
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Hance Hamilton Mc Neight,
have hereunto set my hand and scal, this Eleventh day of April,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.