IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR LOCKING AND PREVENTING THE RATTLING OF WINDOW SASHES
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Matthew Andrew, of Victoria, Australia, now of 8, South-
ampton Buildings, -London, for the Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
LOCKING AND PREVENTING THE RATTLING OF WINDOW SASHES."
Sealed the 18th November 1879, and dated the 2nd September, 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Matthew Andrew at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd September 1879.
16
MATTHEW ANDREW, of Victoria, Australia, now of 8, Southampton Buildings,
London. IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR LOCKING AND PREVENTING THE RATTLING
OF WINDOW SASHES."
My Invention relates to improved automatic apparatus to be employed in connec-
tion with window sashes to securely fasten and retain the same when closed, and
which is so arranged that the said sashes may also be firmly locked in such a position
as to leave a space between the same and the sash frame for ventillating or other
purposes when desired.
In carrying the said Invention into practice I secure to the sash frame at about
the centre of the height of the same, a metal plate, within which I arrange two bolts.
to be pressed forwards towards the sashes by means of flat or other suitable springs.
The said bolts are arranged to engage with a series of notches formed in two metal
plates or pieces. These notched plates or pieces are secured in grooves or rebates
formed in the sash frames, one of the said plates being secured in the said groove at
the upper end of the inner sash, and the other at the lower end of the groove in the
outer sash. The surfaces of the said plate or piece between the notches are inclined,
and are so formed that when the sash is closed quickly the aforesaid spring bolts
will ride over such inclined surfaces, and will not engage with the notches so as to
lock the said sash in an open position, but will hold and lock the said sash in its
closed position. When, however, it is desired to lock and retain either of the sashes
in an open position, that is to say, at a distance of two or three inches from the sash
frame, for the purpose of ventilation or otherwise, this may readily be effected by
closing the sash gently, when one of the aforesaid spring bolts will enter one of the
notches in the plate or piece, and will retain and lock the sash in such position.
In connection with the aforesaid spring bolts I arrange a shaft which is supported
in the aforesaid metal plate attached to the sash frame, and the said shaft is provided
with two arms or projections which engage with projections on the aforesaid bolts,
Drice Q1

page_text: and which, when the said shaft is turned by means of a key or handle on the inside
of the room, will withdraw the said bolts against the tension of the flat springs out
of the notches of the metal plates or pieces attached to the sashes. By this means
the said sashes are readily unlocked, and they may then be open or closed as
desired.
In order to prevent the said bolts being drawn back too far I arrange a pin or rod
in the metal plate attached to the sash frame against which the aforesaid spring
bolts abut when the knob or key in connection with the shaft is turned. The
shanks of the spring bolts are reduced in width and height, and are supported in a
plate projecting outward from the plate attached to the sash frame and between the
weights ordinarily employed to facilitate the opening and closing of the sashes, and
the said plate is preferably provided with flanges or ribs at its outer extremity in
order to give increased strength and take up any vertical strain on the bolts when
an attempt is made to move the sashes when locked.
In some cases, instead of using sliding spring bolts as above described, I may
employ levers or bars which are attached to springs rivetted to the plate attached
the sash frame, the said levers or bars being provided at their lower extremities
with lugs or projections which are constantly forced into engagement with the
notches in the pieces attached to the sashes by the tension of the said springs, the
said projections being withdrawn when desired by means of a shaft provided with
arms as above described.
In order to prevent shaking and rattling of the windows when closed I form
grooves on the outer surface of the upper sash and the inner surface of the lower
sash, and at the lower end of the groove in the upper sash and the top of the groove
in the lower sash I arrange a pin or stud, which when the said-sash is closed comes
in contact with a flat spring attached to the outer projecting guide for the upper
Bush and to the bead on the inside of the sash frame. The said springs when in
contact with the pins or studs in the grooves prevent any shaking or rattling, but
do not retard the free movement of the sashes when it is desired to adjust the
same, as the said spring then leaves the pins or studs and works freely in the afore-
said grooves in the sashes. In some cases may arrange the spring upon the sash
itself instead of upon the guide or bead, and arrange the pin or stud upon such guide
or bead.

page_text: The surface of the said plates or pieces f between the notches f¹ is inclined as shewn
at f2, and is so formed that when either of the sashes is closed quickly the spring
bolt in connection with the said sash will ride over the said inclined surfaces ƒ³, and
will not while moving engage with or enter a notch f¹ to lock the said sash in an
open position, but will enter the end notch in the plate, and thereby hold and lock
the said sash in its closed position. When however it is desired to lock and retain
either of the sashes in an open position, that is to say, at a distance of two or three
inches or more from the cross bar of the sash frame a for the purpose of ventilation
or otherwise, the sash must be moved gently; then as the notched plate fattached
to the said sash moves across the end of the spring bolt, the latter will enter the first
notch in the said plate that comes opposite the bolt and will lock and retain the
same in the desired position.
In connection with the aforesaid spring bolts e, e¹, I arrange a shaft or spindle g
which is supported in the metal plate d attached to the sash frame a; the said shaft
extends through the sash frame in the inside of the room, and is provided with a
suitable handle or knob g* or a key to manipulate the same. The said shaft is
provided with two arms which engage with the shoulders or projections e² on
the aforesaid bolts e, e¹, and which, when the said shaft is turned by means of the
said key or handle inside the room, will withdraw the bolts e, el, against the tension
or pressure of the springs e* from the notches f¹ of the metal plates or pieces f. By
this contrivance the said sashes are readily unlocked or released, and they may then
be opened or closed as desired in the usual manner. The shauks e of the spring
bolts are reduced in width and depth, and are supported in a plate d¹ projecting
outward from the plate d attached to the sash frame and between the weights
ordinarily employed to facilitate the opening and closing of the sashes; the said.
plate is preferably provided with flanges or ribs d² at its outer extremity in order
to give increased strength and take up any vertical strain on the bolts when an
attempt is made to move the sashes when locked.
In order to prevent the drawing back of the bolts e, e¹, too far I arrange a pin
or stop in the metal plate d', and the spring bolts are provided with shoulders
e which abut against the said stop when the knob or key in connection with the
shaft I and its arms are turned, as shewn in dotted lines in Figure 6; or I may
arrange a stop in any other convenient position.
In Figures 7, 8, and 9 I have shewn a modified form of my improved locking
devices, in which, instead of using sliding spring bolts as above described, I employ
two levers or bars i which are attached to springs j rivetted or otherwise attached
to the plate & fixed to the sash-frame; the said levers or bars are provided at their
lower extremities with teeth or projections i, 2, which are constantly acted upon
by tlie said springs to force them into engagement with the notches in the aforesaid
plates or pieces fattached to the sashes, the said teeth being withdrawn, as shewn
in dotted lines, Figure 9, when desired by means of the shaft g provided with the
arm hand with a knob or key, as in the apparatus herein before described.
In Figures 10, 11, 12, and 13 I have shewn a slightly modified arrangement of
the apparatus illustrated in Figures 7 and 8. In this arrangement the levers or
bars i instead of being arranged side by side or parallel to each other extend in
opposite directions, that is to say, one upward and one downward from the springs
whereby they are attached to the plate d, but their teeth or projections 1, 2,
occupy the same relative positions as in the other arrangements above described,
and are adapted to engage with the plates f provided with ratchet teeth, as shewn,
and the teeth i, i, are withdrawn to unlock and release the sashes by means
of the shaft g and arm has hereinbefore described. It will be seen that in this
arrangement the form of the teeth or notches in the plates f is different from that of
the said notches in the other arrangements of my Invention, and I curve or bevel
the extremity or nose of the teeth i, 2, to allow them to ride freely over the said
notches in closing the sashes, but they will not allow the sashes to open without
drawing back the said teeth from the notches in the plates f. The dotted lines,
Figure 13, shew the bar i disengaged from the plate f.

page_text: I will now proceed to describe my, improvements for.preventing the shaking or
rattling of the sashes of a window illustrated in Figure 2. For this purpose I
form a groove b? in the outer surface of the upper sash bat each side of the window,
and a groove c in the inner surface of the lower sash c at each side of the window;
at the lower end of each groove in the upper sash I arrange a spring b³ which,
when the said sash is closed, comes in [contact with a pin or stud b* fixed in the
sash frame, and in the top of each groove in the lower sash
arrange a pin or stud
c which, when the said sash is closed, comes in contact with the flat spring c
attached to the bead on the inside of the sash frame at each side. The said
springs when in contact with the pins or studs in the grooves prevent any shaking
or rattling, but do not prevent or obstruct the free movement of the sashes when it
is desired to adjust them, as the grooves 3 in the upper sash permit the same to
be lowered without any friction upon the pin 64, and the springs c¹ work freely in
the aforesaid grooves c³ in the lower sash when the same is raised. In some cases
instead of arranging the springs upon the upper sash, as above described, the pins
or studs may be attached to the same, and the springs to the sash frame, but I
prefer the arrangement shewn, as the springs when placed upon the sash are not
liable to become clogged by splinters or chips and so rendered inoperative. I may
also in some cases place the springs upon both the upper and lower sashes, and the
buttons or studs upon the sash frame if desired.
Having thus fully described my said Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, I wish it understood that I do not limit myself to the precise details of
the form or construction of the parts shewn in the accompanying Drawings, nor
to any particular dimensions of the bolts or of the notched plates or pieces, or the
number of notches in the same, and that I do not claim any sash locking or retaining
apparatus or nechanism which does not comprise or possess as its essential features
a spring-actuated bolt, bar, or tooth to be attached to the sash frame, in combination
with notches or teeth in the sashes, in such a manner that the said, sashes will be
locked by the automatic engagement of the said bolts, bars, or teeth with the
notches, and provided inside the room or apartment with means for releasing the
said sashes; but I claim,-
1
First. The improved apparatus for locking window sashes and retaining the same
in any desired position, constructed and operating as described with reference to
Figures 1 to 6, or according to the modifications shewn in Figures 7 to 9, or in
Figures 10 to 13 of the Drawings, which apparatus when applied to a window is
enclosed and concealed within the sashes and frame thereof in such a manner as
not to interfere with the action of the sash weights, and is or may be operated or
adjusted by a handle or key on a shaft or spindle projecting from the inner side of
the window, all substantially as above set forth.
Second. The improved devices for preventing the shaking and rattling of window
sashes, substantially as above set forth and as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the
Drawings.
Third. In combination with the sashes and frame of a window, the improved
apparatus for locking the said sashes, and the devices for preventing the rattling
of the same, substantially as set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Matthew Andrew, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Second day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand
MATT. ANDREW. (L.S.)