IM- PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CERTAIN DRAWING OR MATHE- MATICAL INSTRUMENTS; ALSO IN PACKING OR FITTING THE SAME IN THEIR CASES, WHICH SAID IMPROVEMENTS IN PACKING OR FITTING ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE PACKING OR FITTING OF OTHER ARTICLES
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Parkes, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, and Samuel Hickling Parkes, of Birmingham afore-.
said, Manufacturers and Copartners, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CERTAIN DRAWING OR MATHE-
MATICAL INSTRUMENTS; ALSO IN PACKING OR FITTING THE SAME IN
THEIR CASES, WHICH SAID IMPROVEMENTS IN PACKING OR FITTING
ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE PACKING OR FITTING OF OTHER ARTICLES."
Sealed the 30th November 1853, and dated the 9th July 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Parkes and
Samuel Hickling Parkes at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 9th July 1853.
We, JAMES PARKES, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
and SAMUEL HICKLING PARKES, of Birmingham aforesaid, Manufacturers
and Copartners, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CERTAIN DRAWING OR MATHE-
MATICAL INSTRUMENTS; ALSO IN PACKING OR FITTING THE SAME IN THEIR

page_text: CASES, WHICH SAID IMPROVEMENTS IN PACKING OR FITTING ARE ALSO APPLI-
CABLE TO THE PACKING OR FITTING OF OTHER ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
We use tubes rolled metal (cut into the required shape) and stamped
metal, to form the various parts of dividing compasses and other
mathematical or drawing instruments, in place of the cast metal work
usually employed. We make the joints of dividing compasses of three
or more picces of rolled metal cut of the form of Fig. 1; the stems of
these pieces are soldered or otherwise fastened together with a piece of
the shape of Fig. 2, between them; the said soldered stems are then
made of a cylindrical figure, so as to enter the tube forming the leg of
the compass, as shown in Fig. 3. Such a joint works well and is
economical in construction. The small joints sometimes made in the
legs of the compasses are made in a similar way, excepting that the
pieces have the shape of Fig. 4, (sco two of these joints in Fig. 5.)
Other joints of a commoner kind are made by fitting two or more
stamped pieces (nearly of the shape of Fig. 1,) together, and placing
a spring between them to secure the proper working of the joint. We
make the drawing pen of two pieces of thin rolled, steel, cut and
pressed into the required shape; these are fitted into a tube (see Figs. 6,
& 7). The blades of the pens are closed by a screw or otherwise, the
said blades being themselves so elastic as to render a spring unnecessary.
We make the dividing compass called a hair divider thus:-The ends
of the legs are formed of stamped or turned pegs a, Fig. 3, and 8, and
the points of sheet steel, of the form b, Figs. 8, and 8; or the said
points may be made of needles placed in a fine slit tube, as shown at c,
Fig. 5. One of the ends of the legs of the hair divider is attached to a
spring, Fig. 3, in the interior of the leg of the compass, and is acted
upon by a screw é, as is usual.
Our method of packing or fitting drawing instruments and other
articles consists in moulding in plaster of Paris, or stamping or
pressing in sheet metal, the blocks into which the articles are fitted,
and covering the said blocks with flock instead of velvet or other
fabric, the said flock being dusted thereon after the same has been
covered with glue or other adhesive matter. This method of pack-
ing is more efficient and more economical than the ordinary method,

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Parkes and Samuel Hickling Parkes in
the Great Seal Patent Office, on the 5th January 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we,
JAMES PARKES, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, and
SAMUEL FICKLING PARKES, of Birmingham aforesaid, Manufacturers
and copartners, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the seventeenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Fer heirs and successors, give and
grant unto us, the said James Parkes and Samuel Hickling Parkes, Her
special licence that we, the said James Parkes and Samuel Hickling
Parkes, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
we, the said James Parkes and Samuel Hickling Parkes, our 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 THE MANUFACTURE OF CERTAIN DRAWING OR MATHEMATICAL INSTRUMENTS;
ALSO IN PACKING OR FITTING THE SAME IN THEIR CASES, WHICH SAID IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PACKING OR FITTING ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE PACKING OR
FITTING OF OTHER ARTICLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
we, the said James Parkes and Samuel Hickling Parkes, by an instru-
ment in writing under our hands and seals, or under the hand and seal
of one of us, 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
Tottors Patent

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said James Parkes and Samuel
Hickling Parkes, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof,
reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say:
Our Invention consists, firstly, in using tubes (whether the same be
cylindrical or prismatic) rolled or sheet metal (cut into the required
shape), and stamped metal, to form the various parts of dividing or
drawing compasses and other mathematical or drawing instruments,
instead of making the parts of the said instruments of cast metal, as is
usually practised.
Secondly, in packing or fitting the same or other articles in their
cases by means of blocks made in the manner herein-after described.
Our method of making the joints of dividing compasses is illustrated
in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. The said joints are made of three or more
pieces of rolled metal, cut of the form of a, Figure 1, or of any other
suitable form; the stems of two of these pieces are soldered or other-
wise fastened together with a piece of the shape of b, Figure 1, between
them; the said soldered or fastened stems are then made of a cylindrical
figure by filing, turning, or otherwise, so that the said stem may enter
the tube forming one leg of the compass, as shown at c, Figure 3: that
part of the joint made in the manner last described is the part repre-
sented in edge view at d, d, Figure 6; the other part of the said joint,
that is to say, the part e, Figure 6, is made as follows:-We take one
piece of metal of the form a Figure 1, and place one of the pieces b,
on each side of the stem thereof, and solder or otherwise fasten the
three stems together and make them into a cylindrical figure, so that
they may enter the tube which constitutes a leg of the compass. The
two parts of the joint are held together by a screw f, Figure 5, or
otherwise. The small joints sometimes made in the legs of compasses
we construct in a manner similar to that last described, excepting that
tlic pieces of which the said small joints are made have the shapes (or
somewhat similar shapes) represented in Figure 2. A reference to the
picces in Figure 2, and the joints g, h, Figure 4, made from the said

page_text: pieces, will, together with the description herein-before given. with
reference to Figures 1, 3, 5, 6, render our method of constructing the
said small joints intelligible. We construct joints of a commoner kind
by connecting two or more stamped pieces nearly of the shape of a,
Figure 1, and placing a spring between them to secure the proper
working of the joint. We make drawing pens of two pieces of thin
rolled steel or other hard metal, cut and pressed into the required
shape. These are fitted into a tube, see Figures 7, and 8; the blades
of the pen are closed by a screw or otherwise, the said blades being
themselves 'so elastic as to render a spring unnecessary. Or we construct
drawing pens in the manner illustrated in Figure 9; that is to say, we
attach two pressed blades i, %, to a central block or support 7, by rivetting
or otherwise, and insert the upper part of the said support 1, into a tube
on'the handle m. We wish it to be understood, that we are aware
that pressed blades have or may have been previously used in the con-
struction of drawing pens, but that the said blades differed from ours in
being inclastic and requiring the use of a spring holder, whereas the
blades of drawing pens constructed according to our invention are so
clastic as not to require the use of a spring. We make the dividing
compass called a hair divider in the manner illustrated in Figure 3.
One of the logs n, is attached to a spring o, in the interior of the leg of
the compass, and is acted upon by the screw p, as in the ordinary hair
divider. Our method of constructing spring bow, dividers is illustrated
in Figures 10, and 12. Two pieces of sheet steel of the form or nearly
of the form of 7, Figure 12, are rivetted or otherwise fastened to the
central piece r, Figure 10, by which the compass is held, the part q', of
the piece 9, being previously rolled up into a cylindrical form, as shown
at s, Figures 10, and 12. Needle points t, t, Figure 10, are inserted
in the cylinders s, s. If the said compass is to be used for dividing
only, a pen u, Figure 11, (when the said spring compass is to be
used as a bow pen compass,) or a black lead pencil, when the said
compass is to be used as a bow pencil compass, may be inserted in one
of the said tubes s, instead of the needle point. The tubing of which
we form the legs of compasses we prefer to make of a cylindrical figure
internally, as a
shown in section, Figure 18; but its external figure may
2:

page_text: either be cylindrical, or ornamented, or prismatic, as shewn at Figure 14.
Tubing has been previously used for telescope or clongating compasses,
but our Invention consists in applying tubing to the fixed or non-clon-
gating limbs of dividing compasses, for which, by the use of our
improved joint, it is well adapted.
The second part of our Invention, that is to say, our method of
packing or fitting drawing instruments and other articles in their
cases or receptacles, consists in making the blocks into which the
said articles are fitted by casting the said blocks of the proper
figure of plaster of Paris, or other composition, metal, or alloy.
Instead of covering the blocks into which drawing instruments and
other articles are fitted with velvet or other fabric, as is usually done,
we cover the said blocks with flock, or with any other ornamental
substance which can be applied in powder, the said flock or other
substance being dusted on the said blocks after the same have been
covered with glue or other adhesive matter. This method of packing
or fitting is more efficient and economical than the ordinary method,
and is applicable to the packing or fitting of jewellery, cutlery, surgical
instruments, fire-arms, and other articles, in their cases or receptacles.
Having now described the nature of our said Invention and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be under-
stood that we do not limit ourselves to the precise methods of carrying
the same inio effect herein described, as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of our said Invention; but we claim
as our Invention,―
Firstly, constructing the legs of ordinary dividing compasses of tubing,
whether the said tubing be cylindrical, or prismatic, or conical.
Secondly, constructing the joints (both the larger and smaller) of
dividing compasses and other drawing instruments by means of plates
cut or stamped out of sheet metal, and rivetted or otherwise joined
together and completed in the manner herein described with reference
to Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
Thirdly, constructing hair dividers in the manner herein described
with reference to Figure 3.
Fourthly, constructing drawing pens of blades cut and pressed out of

page_text: sheet metal, the said blades either being inserted in a tube or rivettel
or fastened to a central block or support, the said blades being so clastic
as not to require the use of a spring for their opening, as herein
described with reference to Figures 7, 8, and 9.
Fifthly, constructing spring bow dividers, and spring bow pen
compasses, and spring bow pencil compasses, by rivetting or fastening
two pieces of sheet steel to a central block or support, and attaching
needles points, pen, and pencil thereto, in the manner herein-described
with reference to Figures 10, 11, and 19.
Lastly, packing or fitting drawing instruments or other articles in
their cases or receptacles, by casting of any suitable material the blocks
or trays on or in which the said articles are fitted, instead of forming
the said blocks or trays by carving the same in wood, as is now
commonly practised, and covering the said blocks or trays with flock or
other ornamental substance capable of being applied in the form of
powder to an adhesive surface, as herein described.
In witness whereof, we, the said James Parkes and Samuel
Hickling Parkes, have hereunto set our hands and scals, this
Thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
JAMES PARKES.
(L.S.)
SAMUEL HICKLING PARKES. (L.S.)
Witness, GEORGE SHAW.