Improvements in Seal Fastenings.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 29th July, 1897-Accepted, 18th Sept., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Seal Fastenings.
I, ROBERT AUGUSTUS MILLS, Printer, of Orlando, in the County of Orange,
State of Florida, one of the United States of America, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to a seal lock for securing the mouth end of mail or other
bags or sacks containing valuables or money, the object being to prevent tamper-
ing with the bags in storage or during transportation without liability of instant
detection.
It consists in a novel construction of bag holder case or box and of a seal.lock
for securing the mouth of the bag in said holder. It will be understood from the
following description and claims, reference being had to the accompanying
drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the holder case, showing the folded end or
mouth of the bag secured therein.
Figure 2 represents a transverse section through the holder and the sealing
device.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the holder box or case and of the lid or cover
thereof slightly removed to show the casing pins for engaging said lid, and
Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the flanged rim and the punch for
applying the lead seals.
1 indicates a shallow box or case made preferably of metal and open upon one
side or in front for the insertion or passage through said front of the folded ends
of the bag to be secured in said case, said bag being indicated at 2. 3 indicates
the lid or cover of the box made flat or without flanges, as described, to adapt, it
to fit upon said box or case. It is provided near its corners with a series of per-
forations adapting it to engage pins 4 projecting from the side and end flanges of
the box or case, as shown, or these pins may be formed upon the lid and adapted
to engage perforations in the box flanges. The bottom of the box or case is per-
forated to receive a sleeve or cylinder 5 internally screw-threaded to adapt it to
receive a flat headed screw 6 of sufficient length to engage the entire length of the
said sleeve, with its point flush with the lower end of said sleeve. This sleeve is
preferably permanently secured in the lower wall of the box or case, and said
lower face of the box is counter sunk around the end of the sleeve for a purpose
which will appear. The lid is provided with a central perforation adapting it
to engage the upper end of the sleeve or cylinder 5 engaging said lid, and the
upper face of the lid surrounding the said sleeve is counter-sunk for adapting it
to receive a washer 7 interposed between the head of the screw 6 and the upper
end of the sleeve 5. Said washer is beveled on its lower face to adapt it to receive
the cone-shaped inner face of the screw head for engaging the washer firmly with
the end of the sleeve.
The end of the bag or sack, after being properly secured or closed, is folded
into plaits conforming to the width of the box or case, with the end resting against
the back wall thereof, and is provided with a series of perforations having eyelets
secured in them adapted to engage the sleeve 5, after which the lid 3 is placed in

page_text: position over said folds and engages the upper end of the sleeve 5, compressing the
folds of the mouth of the bag or sack firmly within the case. The washer is then
placed upon the end of the sleeve 5, and the screw 6 screwed to place therein with
its point end about flush with the sleeve 5 as explained, thereby closing said end.
The lead seal or disk 9 is now placed over the end of the sleeve and of the screw
therein, and is forced into place by means of the annularly flanged die 10, shown
in Figure 4. The edges of the said lead seal or disk are forced into engagement
with the beveled edges of the washer, and by means of the crowding action of the
annular flange of the die, are, as it were, caused to be riveted around said washer
so that it can only be removed by means of the punch cutting away the portion
immediately over the headed screw, the head of which is provided with a nick 11,
adapting it when a portion of the lead covering it has been removed, to be with-
drawn by means of a screw driver, for releasing the lid and permitting the removal
of the bag. The punch or die for securing the lead seal in place, may contain the
name of the post office, bank, or other firm or corporation bagging the valuables
for shipment, and being in the form of a die, in the action of clinching the seal
to the washer or head of the sleeve, will stamp the said name upon the seal.
The holder constructed as described, may be applied with slight changes in its
form, to many uses, and may be made of any convenient size for the use for which
it is designed, and forms a simple and durable seal which cannot be readily
tampered with without liability of instant detection.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
consider novel and desire to claim is :-
1. In a seal lock for bags, the holder case or box open at one side and provided
with a removable lid or cover, in combination with an internally screw threaded
sleeve, and a headed screw engaging said sleeve, substantially as described.
2. In a seal lock for bags, the holder box or case for the mouth of the bag, an
internally screw threaded sleeve or cylinder in said case for engaging the bag,
a headed screw engaging said cylinder, and a lead seal applied to cover the headed
end of said screw, substantially as described.
3. The combination in a sead lock, of the holder box or case, the internally
screw threaded cylinder therein for engaging eyelets in the open end of the bag,
a headed screw for engaging said sleeve provided with a beveled and counter-
sunk washer, and a lead seal applied to said screw head and washer, substantially
as described.
Dated this 28th day of Tu1.. 100%