IMPROVEMENTS IN AIR TIGHT RECEPTACLES FOR CONTAINING AND PRESERVING BUTTER AND OTHER PERISHABLE PROVISIONS
Year: 1884

page_text: I GEORGE PARTRIDGE of 88 Bishopsgate Street Without in the City of
London Provision Merchant do hereby declare the nature of said invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN AIR TIGHT RECEPTACLES FOR CONTAINING AND PRESERVING
BUTTER AND OTHER PERISHABLE PROVISIONS" to be as follows:-
This invention consists of an improved air tight receptacle which may be made
of metal (enamelled or not inside) earthenware or other suitable material and of
any convenient shape (by preference of circular contour) and has reference chiefly
to the means for rendering and maintaining the same air tight when packed whilst
affording a ready means of opening and re-closing the same as required.
Round the upper part of the receptacle I form by moulding, casting, soldering
brazing or otherwise two or more concentric annular rims forming annular grooves
or recesses between them. A corresponding number of concentric annular rims
and grooves or recesses are also formed round the under surface of a loose lid or
cover which is made to fit into the mouth of the receptacle. The outer annular
groove or recess in the receptacle is packed at the bottom with a ring of india
rubber or like material either solid or hollow whilst the inner annular groove or
recess is packed at the bottom with a ring of felt or other like material soaked in
any suitable fatty matter or in wax, stearine, paraffin or the like or mixtures
thereof and a packing of felt which need not be soaked is inserted into the outer
annular groove of the loose lid or cover or into both the outer and inner grooves
thereof. A deep inner projecting annular rim is formed on or secured to the under-
side of the lid which rim enters the receptacle a sufficient distance to form an
hydraulic seal by dipping into brine or other liquid on the top of the butter or
other provisions packed in the receptacle. The annular rims or partitions forming
the annular grooves or recesses in the receptacle and lid respectively are so
disposed that the projecting rims of the one shall enter the grooves or recesses of
the other and by being tightened up or pressed together as hereinafter described
will form an effectual air tight closure by their forcible contact with the aforesaid
rubber and felt packing or packings contained in the grooves or recesses.
Whilst the rubber packing ensures a tight joint the inner ring of felt soaked in
fatty or waxy matter will effectually protect the contents of the receptacle from
being in any way tainted from the odour of the rubber.

page_text: The lid or cover is formed with a fixed central screwed pin on its upper surface
onto which pin is screwed one or more cross arms projecting slightly beyond the
edge of the lid and of such a length as to enter freely inside the extreme outer rim
of the receptacle. On the upper edge of this outer rim an internal annular flange
or lip is formed provided with notches at suitable intervals to admit of the
entrance of the ends of the cross arm or arms underneath the flange when adjusting
the lid or cover. In order to tighten the said lid down on its packings the cross
arm or arms is or are rotated more or less on the screw and on being turned round
in contact with the underside of the internal flange will cause the lid to be pressed
down. To prevent the rotating arms from being forced back through the entrance
notches as they pass them in their revolution, the said notches are provided with a
tongue piece extending from one side thereof and to a short distance under the
flange on the opposite side of the notch. The edges of the two revolving cross
arms at or near their opposite ends are inclined in opposite directions to enable
them to enter readily over the tongue piece and underneath the flange when being
passed through the notches and of closing the tongues against the flange and
thereby preventing the escape of the arms when passing the notches during their
revolution in the act of tightening down the lid. An annular projection may also
be formed round the inside face of the outer rim to afford a bearing or firm support
to the arms and enable them to resist any external pressure.
The revolving arms may be made to engage under an external in lieu of an
internal flange their ends being suitably turned or bent over for that purpose the
same arrangement of notches and tongues being used as described with reference to
the internal flange and for the same object.
EDWIN P. ALEXANDER,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: I GEORGE PARTRIDGE of 88 Bishopsgate Street Without in the City of London
Provision Merchant do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN AIR TIGHT RECEPTACLES FOR CONTAINING AND PRESERVING BUTTER
AND OTHER PERISHABLE PROVISIONS," and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention consists in the combination with a receptacle composed of metal
(by preference enamelled inside) earthenware or other suitable cleanly material
specially adapted for containing and preserving butter or other perishable pro-
visions, and of any convenient shape but by preference slightly tapering towards
the bottom, of certain peculiar arrangements for maintaining such a receptacle
perfectly air tight whilst avoiding all risk of tainting the butter or other contents
by the packing employed and also affording a more convenient and effectual means
for tightening down the lid or cover and opening and reclosing the same as
required.
Figure 1 of my drawings is a vertical section of my improved air tight receptacle
complete constructed according to my present invention and represented as closed.
Figure 2 is a corresponding plan of the same one half of the lid or cover being
removed. Figures 3 and 4 are details respectively of a portion of the lid and of
the receptacle itself detached or separated from each other. Figures 5 and 6 are
details of a portion of the arrangement for securing or fastening the lid, and
Figure 7 shows a convenient mode of combining and holding together two of my
said improved air tight receptacles for convenience of stowing or transport.
a is the body of the receptacle, b the air tight fitting lid or cover and co revolving
cross arms for fixing and tightening the same hereinafter more fully referred to.
Round the upper part or mouth of the receptacle a I form an externally projecting
flange d having on its upper surface two or more deep concentric annular grooves
or recesses e 1 (see figure 4). Two similar inverted deep annular grooves or
recesses ff are also formed on the underside of the loose lid or cover b near the
outer edge thereof (see figure 3) which lid or cover is made to enter, easily into the
top of the outer rim of the receptacle when being closed (see figure 1). The outer
one e of the two annular grooves or recesses round the mouth of the receptacle is
packed at the bottom with a ring g (Figure 4) of india rubber or like air tight
material either solid or hollow, whilst the inner annular groove or recess e¹ is packed
with a ring of felt or other suitable material h coated or saturated with any suitable
fatty or waxy matter or compound or a simple bedding of fatty or waxy matter or
compound may be used alone without the felt. A similar packing ring of felt i
(which may or may not be saturated in fatty or waxy matter) is inserted into the
inner annular groove fl of the loose lid or cover or into both the inner and outer
grooves thereof as shown. An inner concentric downward projecting annular rim k
is formed on or secured to the underside of the lid which rim is made deeper than
the two outer ones so as to enter the mouth of the receptacle to a sufficient

page_text: distance to form an hydraulic seal by dipping into brine or other liquid on the top
of the butter or other provisions packed therein. k¹ is vent hole closed by a
screwed plug to allow the air to escape when placing on the lid. The vertical
annular rims or partitions 1, 1, and forming the walls or sides of the two
annular grooves or recesses round the mouth of the receptacle, and round the
underside of the lid respectively, are so disposed that the projecting rims on
the lid thall enter between the rims round the mouth of the receptacle and vice
versa when the lid or cover is closed down as shown clearly in figure 1 so as to
form an effectual air tight closure by their forcible contact with the aforesaid
packings of rubber felt or fatty matter contained in the said grooves or recesses.
The rubber packing ring g in the outer groove e round the receptacle forms an air
tight junction with the lid whilst the ring of felt h in the inner groove e¹ in con-
junction with the deep inner rim of the lid and the felt packing rings i in
the grooves of the said lid effectually isolates the contents of the receptacle from
the said rubber packing and prevents it from being tainted by the odour of the
rubber. The lid or cover is provided with a fixed central screwed pin m on its
upper surface onto which pin are screwed the rotating cross arm or arms cc which
project slightly beyond the edge of the lid and are of such a length as to enter
freely an inner circumferential groove n formed inside the extreme outer rim on
the projecting fange d which surrounds the mouth of the receptacle. This groove
is provided on its upper side with notches oo at suitable intervals (see figure 2) to
admit of the entrance and exit of the cross arms when adjusting and removing the
lid or cover. In order to tighten the edges of the concentric upright annular rims
or partitions and against the before mentioned india rubber and felt packing
rings the cross arms are rotated in such a direction on the central fixed screw m as
will cause the lid to be forced downwards the arms taking their bearing against
the upper side of the circumferential groove n. To prevent the arms whilst being
rotated for this purpose from being forced back through the entrance notches o the
said notches are each provided with a hinged or a flexible tongue piece p-(see
details figures 5 and 6) extending from one side thereof to a short distance under
the edge of the opposite side of each notch, the edges of the rotating cross arms at
or near their opposite extremities being inclined or bevelled on both sides as shown
to enable them to pass out freely over the tongue pieces p when being released (as
shown in figure 5) and of closing the tongues when being rotated in the opposite
direction (see figure 6) so as to prevent the escape of the arms when passing the
notches during their revolution in tightening down the lid. The lower side of the
circumferential groove n affords a bearing or firm support to the arms enabling
them to resist any external downward pressure on the lid or cover.
The rotating arms mounted on the fixed central screw may obviously be made to
engage under an external lip or flange in lieu of in an internal circumferential
groove their ends being in that case suitably bent down and turned inwards under
the flange, a similar arrangement of notches and tongues being also used in con-
nection with the flange for the same object as that already described. To facilitate
stowage and transport two of the aforesaid receptacles may be placed one on the
top of the other and held together at their larger ends so as to virtually form one
package by metal clamps q q fitted over the two contiguous flanges round the
mouths of the receptacles as shown in figure 7 or by any other convenient
fastening.
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 I do not
claim any of the parts separately but what I claim is
1. The combination in an air tight receptacle for containing and preserving
butter and other perishable provisions of two or more concentric annular grooves or
recesses formed round the mouth of the receptacle-a loose lid or cover provided
on the underside and near the edge thereof with two or more concentric annular
grooves or recesses and having an inner concentric annular rim formed thereon of
sufficient depth to dip into liquid contained in the said vessel so as to form an

page_text: hydraulic seal-a packing ring of india rubber or other suitable material contained
in the outer groove or recess of the receptacle two or more packing rings of felt
or other suitable material previously saturated in a fatty or waxy matter or
compound or packings of fatty or waxy matter or compounds alone contained
respectively in the inner groove or recess of the receptacle and in either or both
the grooves or recesses in the lid or cover substantially as and for the purpose
herein before described and illustrated by my drawings.
2. The combination with the herein before described lid or cover of the said
receptacle of cross arms revolving on a central fixed screw such arms projecting
beyond the circumference of the lid and engaging in a circumferential groove inside
the outer rim of the receptacle or under an external flange formed thereon
provided with notches at intervals for the entrance and withdrawal of the said
arms.
3. The combination with the said notches of binged or flexible tongue pieces for
closing the same and preventing the escape of the arms during their revolutions on
the fixed central screw when tightening down the lid as specified.