Improved Means for Securing Milk Cans to House Doors to Prevent them being Tampered with.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Nov., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 21st Mar., 1894-Accepted, 16th June, 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION..
Improved Means for Securing Milk Cans to House Doors to Prevent
them being Tampered with.
ISAAC SHOOB of 102 Wardour Street Soho London Watchmaker and Jeweller
and ROBERT MARTIN of 83 Albert Street Regent's Park N.W. do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
It is customary for purveyors of milk to hang the cans on the bellpull. The
contents are often purloined. Our invention is to prevent the can being opened,
but by the customer. The improved can is semicircular (but present oval cans
can be fitted)-the flat side being placed against the door. Two eyes are fixed
over the hinge, and rising above the lid in front. The can is placed against the
door over a very small hole, a bolt is put through the front and back eyes,
through the hole in door, and held fast by a pivotted detent in line with the
bolt which falls on insertion and prevents outside removal. The housekeeper
puts the detent in line with the bolt and withdraws same from door and opens
the can by withdrawing bolt, which is secured to can by a small chain.
29th November 1893.
SAMUEL HOLMES,
Agent for Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means for Securing Milk Cans to House Doors to Prevent
them being Tampered with.
We, ISAAC SHOOB of 102 Wardour Street, Soho, London, Watchmaker and
Jeweller, and ROBERT MARTIN, of 83 Albert Street, Regent's Park, London N.W.
Agent, 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 improvements in connection with milk cans used for
delivery to houses where the occupants are not required, or able to at once receive
the can from the purveyor, but are compelled to allow the can and its contents to
remain outside their doors in an unprotected manner. The object of our invention
being to construct our milk cans and the fittings for use upon the same in such a
manner as will obviate the tampering and interference with the contents of the can,
which is at present commonly practised by evil disposed persons.
In carrying our invention into effect we apply our improvements to any ordinary
type or form of can at present employed, or we construct new cans of an improved
shape having our attachments and fittings provided upon them for preventing
the abstraction of the milk, or the removal of the can from outside the house.
door.
In the accompanying sheet of explanatory drawings,
Figure 1 is a front elevation of an ordinary form of milk can having our improved
staples or loops B B' provided upon it, the loop B' being attached to the hinge or
upon the lid or cover C, while the corresponding loop B is placed upon the front of
the can.
Figure 2 is a side elevation showing our can placed in position and fastened to an
ordinary dwelling house door D, the attachment being effected by means of our
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page_text: locking pin or wire C, which we pass through the two loops B, B' and then
through the door D. This locking pin we make with its outer end scarfed or
reduced in form to permit of a like reduced wire or bar E', being pivoted to
it upon the pivot e, as shown in Figures 2 and 3. When the wire or locking
pin is placed through the loops or eyes B B¹ upon the can and through the door
hole d; the freely pivoted end E' falls out of position and stands at right-
angles to the fixed position of the locking pin C; this alteration of position
prevents the withdrawal of the wire from outside, and enables the householder to
alone remove the can from the door by placing the pivoted end E' again upon its
half covered carrying wire, and then pushing it through the door from the inside
of the dwelling.
Sometimes we lock the pin to the door by means of a catch or spring controlled
latch shown in detail in Figure 4 which is an end elevation, and in sectional side
elevation in Figure 5. In this alternative manner we pass our pin or locking
wire C¹ through the door D₁ and we form a shouldered or undercut ring C³, near
the inner or locking end of the wire in order that a catch or latch F having
a corresponding groove f, may engage with the recess and thus secure the pin
to the door. We provide a spring such as G, with or without a thrust lever
such as H to keep the catch F in position, and we mount the whole locking
members conveniently upon a plate J for attachment in a convenient manner to any
door D¹.
We prefer when constructing new cans to make them with their backs flat, and
rounded or curved in the front, the flat backs being more convenient for placing
against the doors.
We do not limit the application of our invention to any particular form or shape
of can, or to any form of loop or staple B, B', and we vary the shape and length of
the locking pins to suit any particular door or to meet any other requirement.
Similarly we apply our locking or securing pins or wires to walls, through which
a hole may have been made instead of attaching them to the doors direct. We
modify the springs and catches also for engaging with our recessed pin when so
desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. The construction of fastenings and securing devices for use upon, and for
attachment to milk cans, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
described.
2. In milk cans, the use of loops or plates for permitting a fastening wire or pin
to pass through for securing the can to the door or the like, substantially as
herein before described, and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
3. The combination of a wire or fastening pin or rod, with a pair of loops or eyes
fixed upon or attached to a milk can and its cover, for securing the can to a door or
the like, substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated in the accom-
panying drawings.
4. The construction of a fastening pin for securing milk cans to dwelling houses
and the like, having a pivoted or free end piece, which alters its position, and
thus prevents the withdrawal of the pin from the outside of the dwelling,
substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Dated this 20th day of March 1901
MARKS & CLERK,
18, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., and
13, Temple Street, Birmingham, Agents for the Applicants.