IMPROVEMENTS IN DOOR KNOBS OR HANDLES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Heacock, of Drury Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Brass Finisher, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
DOOR KNOBS OR HANDLES."
Sealed the 22nd January 1869, and dated the 8th October 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Heacock at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 8th October 1868.
I, THOMAS HEACOCK, of Drury Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Brass Finisher, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN DOOR KNOBS OR HANDLES," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to improvements in door knobs or handles
whereby they may be more securely attached than heretofore, while
greater simplicity in the fitting of the parts is also obtained. The square
spindle on which the lock follower is mounted is screwed throughout its
length and has a knob fixed at one end. In order to attach the handles to
the door I first fix a circular collar over the lock aperture, thron
the square screwed spindle is then inserted and screw
a rose plate of a

page_text: more or less ornamental appearance (previously placed loosely on the
knob) so as to cover the collar, which is provided with a screw thread for
the purpose; I then screw on the other knob at the opposite end of the
spindle, first placing a rose plate loosely on said knob as before, until a
squared part formed thereon abuts against the surface of the door,
sufficient space being however left for the application of a back plate,
which is provided with a transverse slot (slightly wider at one end by
preference) made at one side, by means of which it may be readily slid
into position on the squared part of the knob. The back plate is to be
attached to the door by screws or otherwise, and has a screw thread on its
periphery for connecting a rose plate thereto as for the knob at the
opposite end of spindle. This back plate is further provided with a
concentric rim or flange forming a guide for a rotating central collar or
washer slotted to receive the squared part of the knob and turning
therewith. This rotating collar is formed preferably of discs stamped of
the form desired and rivetted together, the intermediate disc being of
lesser diameter so as to form a circular groove around its periphery to
receive the rim or flange of the back plate before mentioned. For
common kinds of door knobs, instead of making screw threads on the
front and back plates for attaching the rose plates as before described
they may be simply secured thereto by screws passing through both
said plates.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Heacock in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 15th February 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
HEACOCK, of Drury Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Brass Finisher,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of October, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Thomas Heacock, Her special licence
I, the said Thomas Heacock, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, v
h others as I, the said Thomas Heacock, my executors,

page_text: 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
DOOR KNOBS OR HANDLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Thomas Heacock, 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

page_text: Having explained the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to
describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents partly in elevation and partly in section a pair of
door knobs or handles made of china or other non-metallic material
attached to a door according to my Invention; Figure 2 represents the
same before the moveable knob or handle is fixed to the door; and
Figures 3, 4, and 5, are parts of the same as herein-after explained.
a is the fixed knob or handle, connected permanently to one end of
the screwed spindle b, on which spindle the lock follower (not repre-
sented) is mounted; c is the rose and rose plate of the said fixed knob
or handle. The knob a, spindle b, and rose care of the ordinary kind;
d is the moveable knob or handle, to be secured to the opposite end of
the spindle b, and adjusted thereon to the thickness of the door with
which the knobs a, d, are used. The moveable knob d is provided with
a metallic collar d², screwed internally to receive the screwed spindle b.
At the back of the said knob d are square or angular projecting parts or
pieces e, e, the shape of which is best seen in the back elevation of the
knob, Figure 3. The said parts e, e, form a continuation of the metallic
collar dof the knob d (see Figure 1); fis the rose of the said knob d,
and f² is the rose plate screwed internally as usual. Between the back
of the knob d and the door g a back plate h is placed, the said back
plate being fixed to the door by screws. This back plate is shown sepa-
rately in side elevation, front elevation, and section, in Figure 4. The
said back plate h consists of a circular disk, having a transverse slot h³
made in it at one side. The said back plate has also a screw thread h³ on
its periphery to receive the screwed rose plate f* as herein-after
explained. On the said plate h is a concentric rim or flange h, upon
which a rotating central collar i (shown separately in Figure 5) works.
The said rotating collar i is provided with a cross slot 2 at one side, with
which the square projecting parts e, e, of the knob d are made to engage.
The rotating collar i is made in two parts, connected together by screws
as represented. The manner in which the rotating collar i works upon
the flange or guide h' of the back plate h will be readily seen by an
examination of Figure 4.
In order to attach the knobs or handles a, d, to the door g and the
knob d to the spindle b, I proceed as follows:-I first fix the rose plate
of the fixed knob a over the look aperture, and pass the spindle 6 with

page_text: h
the knob a fixed on one end thereof through the rose plate and door g,
and then screw the rose c on its fixed rose plate. I next screw the
moveable knob d on the projecting end of the spindle until the parts e, e,
of the said knob d abut against the surface of the door g, as illustrated
in Figure 2. Before screwing the knob d on the spindle, the rose f
secured to its plate f is placed loosely on the neck of the said knob d,
in the manner represented in the said Figure 2. The slot h² of the back
plate h being made to coincide with the slot of the rotating collar i the
said back plate is placed by a sliding motion against the door g in the
position represented in Figure 1, the slot 3 of the plate passing over
the spindle 6 and projections e, e, until the said parts b, e, enter the
slot in the rotating collar i. The back plate is now fixed by screws
to the door g, and the said back plate is finally covered by screwing the
rosef by its plate fs upon the screwed part h³, as represented in Figure 1.
The two knobs a, d, are thus securely attached to the door g, and to
the spindle b, the rotation of the moveable knob d on its spindle being
prevented by the projecting parts e, e, engaging in the slot of the
rotating collar i; but the rotation of the two knobs a, d, with their
spindle 6 to operate the latch is permitted by the rotating collar i
working within the fixed back plate h, as will be understood by the
description herein-before given, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawing. In order to remove the knob d it is only necessary to unscrew
the rose from the back plate h, unscrew the said back plate from the
door, and slide it from off the spindle 6 and parts e, e, when the said
knob d can be turned on the spindle 6 and removed.
Figures 6 and 7 represent another arrangement of my Invention
applied to metallic knobs or handles; and Figures 8, 9, 10, and 11, are
parts of the same. In this arrangement I use only one projecting piece
on the moveable knob, and instead of securing the rotating collar
permanently to the back plate the said rotating collar is made loose and
works within the said back plate.
a
The parts in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, are marked with the same
letters of reference as corresponding parts in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
being the fixed knob; b, the screwed spindle; c, the rose of the fixed
knob; d, the moveable knob provided with a single projecting part e;
h, the back plate screwed to the door g; and i, the rotating collar placed
loosely in the fixed back plate h, and working between the flange h* of
the said back plate and the surface of the door g. When the knobs a, d,

page_text: have been placed in the positions represented in Figure 7, in the manner
described with reference to Figure 2, the back plate h with the loose
collar i within it is placed upon the spindle b and projecting part e of the
knob d, until the said spindle b and part e occupy the slot 2 of the loose
collar i, as seen in Figure 6. By then screwing the back plate h to the
door g and covering the said back plate by screwing on it the rose f,
the two knobs a, d, are securely fixed in their places. When the knob
a or d is turned, the collar i turns with it and the spindle b, but the
moveable knob d is prevented from being screwed off the said spindle b
by the engagement of its projection e with the slot in the said collar i,
as before explained.
My Invention may be modified in the manner represented in
Figures 12 and 13 of the Drawings, Figure 12 representing the moveable
knob in position to be fixed on the spindle, and Figure 13 the said knob
after it has been fixed on the spindle; Figures 14, 15, 16, and 17 are
parts of the same. In this modification I use a back plate k, having a
circular opening in it, through which the spindle 6 is passed, and also
having openings k² at opposite points in its screwed flange, as best seen
in the separate view, Figure 14. In the collar d³ of the moveable
knob da cross dovetail recess dª is made for the purpose of receiving a
dovetail plate i (Figure 17) with the slot , in which plate i the spindle b
of the knob d is to be engaged. This dovetail plate i which is engaged
and rotates with the knob d answers the same purpose as the rotating
collar i in the arrangements previously described, but in this latter
arrangement the knob d is engaged with the dovetail plate i by the
parts d' of the knob d, which fit outside of the dovetail plate, whereas
in the former arrangements the knob d is engaged to the rotating
collar i by the parts e of the knob which fit in the slot inside of the
said rotating collar i.
In securing the knobs a, d, to the door g and spindle 6 by this
arrangement, the spindle 6 of the fixed knob a is passed through the
door in the usual way, and the back plate k is then passed on to the
projecting end of the said spindle and screwed to the door, as seen in
Figure 12. The moveable knob d with its loose rose f is then screwed
on the spindle until the dovetail recess do in the said knob d is brought
opposite the opening in the flange of the fixed back plate k. By then
introducing the dovetail plate (Figure 17) through the opening k² in
the back plate into the recess d in the collar of the knob d, the slot or

page_text: opening in the said dovetail plate i is made to engage with the
spindle and prevent the rotation of the knob thereon. The back
plate k is covered by screwing the rose f upon the screwed flange of the
said back plate, as represented in Figure 13, when the fastening of the
knobs to the door and spindle is complete.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do
not limit myself to the precise details herein described and illustrated,
as the same may be varied without departing from the nature of my
Invention; but I claim as my Invention of improvements in door knobs
or handles,-
Firstly. The combination of the back plate and rotating collar { with
the projecting part or parts e, e, of the moveable knob or handle for the
purpose of fixing the said moveable knob or handle to the spindle, and
the fixed and moveable knobs or handles to the door, the said parts
h, i, and e, being constructed and used substantially as herein-before
described and illustrated in Figures 1 to 11, both inclusive, of the
accompanying Drawings.
Secondly. The arrangement or combination of parts herein-before
described and illustrated in Figures 12 to 17, both inclusive, of the
accompanying Drawings for effecting the same objects, that is to say,
the back plate k, dovetail plate i, and dovetail recess do, in the moveable
knob or handle, constructed and used substantially as described and
illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Heacock, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.