IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MECHANISM FOR RAISING, LOWERING, AND ARRESTING ROLLER BLINDS, AND IN BRACKETS OR SUPPORTS FOR SUCH BLINDS, THE SAID IMPROVEMENTS BEING APPLICABLE ALSO TO ANALOGOUS PURPOSES
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Johnson, of Wednesbury, in the County of Stafford,
Engineer, for the Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MECHANISM FOR
RAISING, LOWERING, AND ARRESTING ROLLER BLINDS, AND IN BRACKETS OR
SUPPORTS FOR SUCH BLINDS, THE SAID IMPROVEMENTS BEING APPLICABLE
ALSO TO ANALOGOUS PURPOSES."
Sealed the 23rd November 1877, and dated the 20th September 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Johnson at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th September 1877.
JAMES JOHNSON, of Wednesbury, in the County of Stafford, Engineer. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MECHANISM FOR RAISING, LOWERING, AND ARRESTING ROLLER
BLINDS, AND IN BRACKETS OR SUPPORTS FOR SUCH BLINDS, THE SAID IMPROVE-
MENTS BEING APPLICABLE ALSO TO ANALOGOUS PURPOSES."
The first part of my Invention refers to mechanism for actuating the blind. The
roller for the blind is carried in bearings in the usual manner; to one end of the
roller is fixed a pulley, around which is wound a single cord for actuating the roller.
The said pulley is fixed excentrically with the axis of the roller, and has a plate on
each side of it, forming sufficient flange to prevent the cord from readily slipping off
the pulley. One end of the cord is fastened to the pulley or to one of the flanges,
and after being passed round the pulley a sufficient number of times is threaded
through an eye fixed below and near the pulley, the said eye serving to guide the
cord, and to assist in preventing it slipping off the pulley. The cord hangs down
from thence, and is provided with a weight.
As the pulley is fixed excentrically with the roller the leverage of the weight
alters with the position of the pulley, and thus by a proper adjustment of the weight
and excentricity of the pulley the weight of the blind is balanced at a point in each
revolution of the roller, and the blind can therefore be retained in that position by
the weight. When the weight is raised the weight of the blind causes it to descend

page_text: and to wind up the cord. When the weight is pulled down the cord is unwound
from off the roller, and the blind wound up.
The cord may be adjusted so as to be all wound off the pulley when the blind is
at the maximum height required, and the weight or bead hereafter mentioned may
come against the eye before mentioned, or against an eye placed lower down, when
the blind is down as low as desired, a stop being thus formed to winding up and
lowering down.
The weight may be connected to a short cord, having a bead at its top end, the
said bead being passed through a loop at the end of the main cord, by which means
the weight may be readily connected with or disconnected from the main cord.
The above mechanism is applicable also to analogous purposes, as will be readily
understood.
The second part of my Invention refers to the brackets or supports for carrying
the journals of the roller in cases where the window casing is chamfered, or of other
inconvenient shape, to which to fasten the brackets or supports. Each bracket or
support is formed of two parts, one part having an eye with a screw thread there-
through, and a screwed shank, by which it is fixed into the woodwork, the other
part having a bearing formed at one end thereof, and having also a shank screwed
to fit into the screwed eye aforesaid. The former part may be screwed into the
woodwork at any angle, and the latter part may then be turned in any direction
required, and adjusted to any height to make the roller level.
These supports may be used in ordinary cases where it is desirable to have an
adjustment for levelling the roller.
The said brackets or supports are applicable also to analogous purposes, as will be
readily understood.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 18th March
1878.
JAMES JOHNSON, of Wednesbury, in the County of Stafford, Engineer. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MECHANISM FOR RAISING, LOWERING, AND ARRESTING ROLLER
BLINDS, AND IN BRACKETS OR SUPPORTS FOR SUCH BLINDS, THE SAID IMPROVE-
MENTS BEING APPLICABLE ALSO TO ANALOGOUS PURPOSES."
The first part of my Invention refers chiefly to mechanism for raising and lowering
an ordinary roller blind. The roller for the blind is carried in bearings in the usual
manner; to one end of the roller is fixed a pulley, around which is wound a single
cord for actuating the roller. The said pulley is fixed excentrically with the axis of
the roller (but so that the axis of the roller is within the periphery of the pulley),
and has a plate on each side of it forming sufficient flange to prevent the cord from
readily slipping off the pulley. One end of the cord is fastened to the pulley, or to
one of the flanges, and passes from thence through an eye fixed below and near to
the pulley, the said eye serving to guide the cord and to assist in preventing it from
slipping off the pulley. The cord hangs down from thence, and is provided with a
balance weight.
As the pulley is fixed excentrically with the roller the leverage of the balance
weight alters with the position of the pulley, and thus, by a proper adjustment of
the balance weight and excentricity of the pulley, the weight of the blind is balanced
at a point in each revolution of the roller, and the blind can therefore be retained in
that position by the balance weight. When the balance weight is lifted up the
weight of the blind causes it to unroll itself from off the roller, and at the same
time to wind the cord around the pulley. When the balance weight is pulled
down the cord is unwound from off the pulley, and the blind is wound up.
The cord may be adjusted so as to be all unwound from the pulley when the
blind is at the maximum height required, and the balance weight (or bead hereafter
mentioned) may come against the eye before mentioned, or against an eye placed
lower down, when the blind is down at its lowest desired position, a stop being thus
formed to winding up and lowering down the blind.
The weight may be connected to a short cord, having a bead at its top end, the
said bead being passed through a loop at the end of the main cord, by which
means the weight may be readily connected with and disconnected from the main
cord.
The above mechanism is applicable also to analogous purposes, as will be readily
understood, that is, for winding up an article analogous in construction to a roller
blind.
The second part of my Invention refers chiefly to the brackets or supports for
carrying the journals of the roller in cases where the window casing is chamfered,
or of other inconvenient shape to which to fasten the ordinary brackets or supports.
Each support is formed of two parts, one part having an eye with a screw thread
therethrough, and also a screwed shank, by which it is fixed into the casing;
the other part has a bearing formed at one end thereof, and also a shank screwed to
fit into the screwed eye aforesaid. The former part of the support is screwed into
the window casing at any horizontal angle (and even somewhat out of the horizontal),
and the latter part of the support may be turned in any direction required, and
adjusted vertically to make the roller level
These supports may be used in any case where it is desirable to have an adjust-
ment for levelling the roller, one of such supports being used for one end of the roller,
and an ordinary support for the other end, or one of such supports for each end of
the roller, as may be preferred.
These brackets or supports are applicable also to analogous purposes, as will be
readily understood, that is, for supporting the journals of other rollers used for
analogous articles to roller blinds.

page_text: Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention I will now proceed more
particularly to describe the manner of performing the same with reference to the
accompanying Drawings and to the letters of reference marked thereon.
The Drawings are shewn full size. The same letters of reference occurring upon
any of the views indicate corresponding parts.
The first part of my Invention is illustrated by Figures 1 and 2; Figure 1 is a
front elevation of a blind roller fitted with my improved mechanism; and Figure 2
is a side elevation of the same.
A is the roller, which may be round or of any suitable shape in section; the
roller is shewn broken in the middle, and may be of any convenient length. The
roller A is carried in the brackets B, B; C is the pulley, fixed excentrically at one
end of the roller; D, D, are discs or flanges to the pulley C; the pulley C may be
of wood or metal, and the flanges D, D, may be plates of galvanized iron or other
suitable metal or material, or the pulley and flanges may be cast in one piece in iron,
brass, or other metal, or may be made of any suitable material. When the flanges
D, D, are separate from the pulley (which is preferred for economy of construction)
they are driven tightly on to the spindle E, and the pulley clipped between them
by the pressure of the flanges against the pulley, or the pulley and flanges may be
otherwise fixed on the spindle E, which is then driven or screwed into the axis of
the roller A When the flanges are separate from the pulley a washer H is first
driven on to the spindle E as a base or collar against which to force the pulley and
flanges. In this case it is preferred, for convenience of manufacture, to place the
spindle E with its outer end inserted into a vertical hole of the diameter of the
spindle drilled into a metal block or die to the depth of the part of the spindle
outside the washer H. The washer H is then driven down on to the die by means
of a hollow tool which surrounds the spindle; the flanges are driven on in a similar
manner. When the flanges and pulley are formed in one piece the pulley may be
driven on to the spindle, or otherwise fixed thereon. A flange G is driven tightly
or otherwise fixed on to the back spindle F (the washer H¹ forming a base therefor
similarly as H does for the flanges D, D,), and the spindle F is then screwed or driven
into a bored hole in the axis of the roller.
K is
For large roller blinds I prefer to use a double thickness of washer for the base or
collar, against which to force the pulley and flanges D, D, as I find that thin washers
are less liable to split on being driven on to the spindle than are thick ones.
the cord, which is threaded through the pulley C in the position shewn, so that the
knot of the cord will be in the position where the flanges of the pulley are deepest,
and thus give most room for the cord to be wound in, and also so that when all the
cord is unwound from the pulley C the overhanging (or larger part) of the pulley
will be in the direction of the pull of the cord, and will consequently remain in that
position when the balance weight L is allowed to hang freely. The cord K passes
through an eye or guide M, which serves to assist in preventing the cord from slipping
over the flanges D, D. The blind is shewn by the broken line N (see Figure 2), and
its weight therefore acts opposed to the balance weight L.
It will now be seen that as the balance weight L is pulled downwards the cord K
(which has been previously wound on to the pulley C) unwinds from the pulley C,
causing the roller A to revolve and roll up the blind, and that as the weight L is
raised the weight of the blind (or of the blind stick if the blind is wholly wound
up) causes the roller to revolve in the opposite direction, the blind thus unrolling,
and the cord K being wound up. On account of the excentricity of the pulley C
the weight L acts upon the roller A with a varying leverage, and thus during a part
of the revolution of the roller the weight L and the blind N balance each other.
The cord K may be wound on to the pulley C so that the blind is raised to its
required maximum height when the cord is all unwound, and the cord may be of
such length as that the weight L shall come against the eye or guide M when the
blind is at its required lowest position. When it is undesirable that the weight L
shall rise so high as the eye M, another eye M' may be fixed lower down to act as
the stop to the upward notion of the weight L; the weight L may have a cord K¹

page_text: passing through it, and terminating above in a bead a, and below in a metal or
other ring b. The bead is then readily connected with and disconnected from the
cord K by being slipped through a loop in the end of the cord K.
The ring b may be used as a handle, or (when at a height from the ground to be
out of the reach of schoolboys and others) is useful to receive a hook or other
instrument, by which it may be pulled down.
The weight may, if desired, be concealed in a tube, the cord being moved by the
operator to actuate the blind."
The eye M may be riveted to the bracket, if desired, instead of forming a fixing
screw thereto, as shewn.
The second part of my Invention is illustrated by Figures 3, 4, and 5. Figure
is a side elevation of my improved bracket or support as used for the lifting-up end
of a blind roller; and Figure 4 is a plan of the same.
O is the part which is screwed into the window casing, and P is the part which
is screwed into the part O, and which carries the roller journal; the part O may be
screwed into the casing at any horizontal angle (and even somewhat out of the
horizontal if desired), and the part P may be screwed upwards or downwards for
adjusting the level of the roller, and may be turned to face in any required
direction.
Figure 5 illustrates the corresponding part to P, as used for the other end of the
roller; the part O is the same for either end of the roller.
These supports may be used where it is difficult to fix the ordinary brackets, or,
if desired, in place of ordinary brackets, as also for analogous purposes, as before
stated.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I declare that I do not limit myself to the exact configura-
tion as shewn, as such is not necessary to the utility of my Invention, but what I
claim as my Invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,―
1st. The application of an excentric pulley to the end of a blind roller, the said
pulley being connected to a cord or equivalent and weight, substantially as and for
the purpose described and shewn.
2nd. The complete arrangement taken as a whole, and illustrated by Figures 1
and 2 of the accompanying Drawings, substantially as and for the purpose described
and shewn.
3rd. The application of an excentric pulley to the end of a roller or axis used for
winding up an article analogous in construction to a roller blind, the said pulley
being connected to a cord or equivalent and weight, substantially as described, and
as shewn in its special application to a roller blind.
4th. The improved bracket or support, described as forming the second part of
my Invention, whether used for a roller blind or for an analogous purpose, substan-
tially as described and shewn.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Johnson, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Fifteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand
Witness,
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Assoc. Inst., C.E.,
Office for Patents,
Wolverhampton.
JAMES JOHNSON. (L.S.)