IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER-CLOSETS, PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES." PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT .to William Dawes, of Kingston Grove, Leeds, Engineer, and
William Henry Thompson, of Queen's Square, Leeds, Plumber, both in the
County of York, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATER-CLOSETS,
PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Dawes and William
Henry Thompson at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 21st
July 1879.
"
WILLIAM DAWES, of Kingston Grove, Leeds, Engineer, and WILLIAM HENRY
THOMPSON, of Queen's Square, Leeds, Plumber, both in the County of York.
"IM-
PROVEMENTS IN WATER-CLOSETS, PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLI-
CABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES."
The first part of this Invention consists in an improved arrangement and con-
struction of the mechanical parts of the valve connections of water closets,
wherein and whereby simplicity and certainty of action are obtained, and at the
same time the twofold feature of supplying a definite and exact quantity of water
to the pan or other seat arrangement each time the handle is lifted, whatever the
height, extent, or time of lifting it may be; and also of being unable to give more
than the proper quantity or to continue running when or however long the handle
may be held up.
"
In carrying this part of our Invention into effect we employ in the lower part
of the small or inside cistern or " boot a float or "buoy" of any suitable material,
and so constructed that its buoyancy upwards in the water, or when submerged,
shall be about equal to its weight downwards out of the water, or when not sub-
merged, through the small cistern or "boot" being empty; and we prefer generally to
attach this buoy to the free horizontal end of a right angled or L lever, which is
pivotted to work freely near the bottom of the said "boot"; the upright arm or
limb" of this L lever is constructed as a catch or tooth to "take" into a number
of sloping teeth upon or in connection with the stem or rod of the valve which
supplies the fall pipe and pan, and in such a manner that when the water is in this
cistern or "boot" the buoyancy of the said float shall act as the spring to cause the
upright arm of the L lever to catch in the teeth or rack and hold up or open the

page_text: "
or
said valve when it is lifted by the handle and the overhead lever; but on the
said "boot" or cistern being emptied through the above movement the weight of
the float_through_the_absence of the water shall then be sufficient to release the
tooth or teeth of the upright arm or limb of the lever from those of the valve stem
_or_ratchet, and thus close the valve to allow of the refilling of the "boot'
_cistern. The connection between the top lever-and the lifting stem or rod of the
-valve-we-construct also as a catch, and so connect this with the before-named L
lever that should the handle and lever be held up too long the weight of the float
will, when the "boot"-is-empty,-release-this-catch-also-and-close-the-valve,-and-
thus neither less nor more than the pre-determined, definite, and exact quantity of
water can be supplied each time the handle is lifted.
The admission of the water into the said "boot" from the main cistern may be
by means of a small hole or perforation as heretofore, and thus the foregoing advan-
tages are obtained by the use of one valve only, and without either complicated or
costly details or those requiring too much delicacy of construction or adjustment.
In some cases we dispense with the before-described lever and ratchet and cause
the float to support the valve direct when once the latter is lifted from its "seat,"
and the weight of the water upon the top of the valve is neutralized by the action
or presence of the water on the bevelled edges of and underneath the valve, so
that, the releasing catch for preventing over-supply by continuous running being
similar to the before-described arrangement, the same benefits or results are obtained.
The second part of this Invention consists in the employment of glass as a sub-
stitute for copper or other metal for the buoys of automatic or self-acting supply
valves or cocks for the cisterns of water closets or other reservoirs where the
buoyancy of a hollow floating body or vessel, as a buoy, is required.
"
The third part of this Invention consists in a simple means of preventing the
"bursting or fracturing of the cisterns when constructed of cast iron, burnt clay,
or other brittle or non ductile material, through the formation and expansion of
ice upon the surface of the water they contain. For this purpose we construct the
sides or vertical surfaces of the cisterns, whatever may be their sectional figure in
plan, with the upper portion or margin, say from about an inch below the average
water line to the top, as a sloping surface outwards at about forty degrees from the
perpendicular, and thus, in the case of a thick surface or layer of ice forming upon
the water the sloping surface of what may be considered to be the "abutments,"
against which the ice on expansion must press, will have the effect of causing the
ice either to slide up these sloping surfaces or to spring it (the ice) into a segmental
convex surface upwards, and thus rob it of the power to "burst" the cistern, as it
otherwise, that is, as a straight or level surface confined between perpendicular sides
or faces, would do.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Dawes and William Henry Thompson in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 21st January 1880.
"
WILLIAM DAWES, of Kingston Grove, Leeds, Engineer, and WILLIAM HENRY
THOMPSON, of Queen's Square, Leeds, Plumber, both in the County of York. IM-
PROVEMENTS IN WATER CLOSETS, PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLI-
CABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES."
The first part of this Invention consists in an improved arrangement and con-
struction of the mechanical parts of the valve connections of water closets, wherein
and whereby simplicity and certainty of action are obtained, and at the same time
the two-fold feature of supplying a definite and exact quantity of water to the pan
or other seat arrangement each time the handle is lifted, whatever the height,
extent, or time of lifting it may be, and also of being unable to give more than the
proper quantity or to continue running when or however long the handle may be
held up. In carrying this part of our Invention into effect we employ in the lower
part of the small or inside cistern or "boot" a float or buoy of any suitable
material, and so constructed and employed that its buoyancy upwards in the water
or when submerged shall be about equal to its weight downwards out of the water
or when not submerged through the small cistern or "boot" being empty; and we
prefer generally to attach this buoy or float to the free horizontal end of a right-
angled or lever, which is pivotted to work freely near the bottom of the said
boot; the upright arm or limb of this L lever is constructed as a catch or ratchet
to take" into a number of sloping teeth upon or in connection with the stem
or rod of the valve which supplies the flush-pipe and pan, and in such a manner
that when the water is in this cistern or "boot" the buoyancy of the said float
shall act as spring to cause the upright arm of the L lever to catch in the teeth
or rack of the valve rod or stem and hold up or open the said valve when it is
lifted by the handle and the over-head lever; but on the said "boot" or cistern
being emptied through the above movement the weight of the float through the
absence of the water shall then be sufficient to release the tooth or teeth of the
upright arm or limb of the L lever from those of the valve stem or ratchet, and
thus drop and close the valve to allow of the refilling of the small cistern or
"boot."
The connection between the top lever and the lifting stem or rod of the valve
we construct also as a catch or ratchet, and so connect this with the before
described lever that, should the handle and top lever be held up too long, the
weight of the float will when the boot is empty release this catch also and close
the valve, and thus neither less nor more than the predetermined, definite, and
exact quantity of water can be supplied each time the handle of the closet is lifted.
The admission of the water into the said boot from the main cistern may be by
means of a small hole or perforation, or any convenient method, as heretofore, and
thus the foregoing advantages are obtained by the use of one valve only, and
without either complicated or costly details, or those requiring too much delicacy
of construction or adjustment. In some cases we dispense with the before-
described lever and ratchet, and cause the float to support the valve direct when
once the latter is lifted from its seat, and the weight of water upon the valve is
neutralized by the action or pressure of the water underneath the valve; and the
arrangements for preventing over supply being similar to those herein-before
described the same benefits or results are obtained.
The second part of this Invention consists in the employment of glass as a
substitute for copper or other metal for the buoys of automatic or self acting supply
valves or cooks, for the cisterns of water closets or other reservoirs, where the
buoyancy of a hollow floating body or vessel as a buoy is required.
The third part of this Invention consists in a simple means of preventing the

page_text: bursting or fracturing of cisterns when constructed of cast iron, burnt clay, or other
brittle or non-ductile material, through the formation and expansion of ice upon
the surface of the water they contain. For this purpose we construct the sides or
vertical-surfaces-of-the-cisterns-or-other_vessels, whatever may be their sectional
figure in plan, with the upper portion or margin from a little below the average
water line to the top-as a sloping surface outwards at an angle of about forty
-degrees from the perpendicular faces, and thus in the case of a thick surface of ice
forming upon the water the sloping surface of what may be considered to be the
abutments against which the ice on expansion must press will have the effect of
causing the ice either to slide up these sloping surfaces or to spring-it-(the-ice)-into-
a segmental convex surface upwards, and thus rob it of the power to burst the
cistern or vessel, as it otherwise, that is, as a straight or level surface confined
between perpendicular sides or faces, would do.
In the accompanying illustrations Figure 1 shows the valve closed, the boot
full, and the float pressing upwards in readiness to support the valve by means of
the lever ratchet when it is lifted; Figure 2 shows the lifting catches or ratchet
ready for lifting the valve; Figure 3 shows the valve lifted (open) and sustained
by the lever, ratchet, and float; Figure 4 shows the boot empty, the valve closed,
and both ratchets held out of gear or action by the weight of the float; Figure 5
shows a section of one of the glass buoys or floats; and Figure 6 shows a section
of a cistern with the herein-before described sloping surfaces.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into effect,
we wish it to be understood that we do not confine or restrict ourselves to the precise
details or arrangements which we have described or referred to, as many modifi-
cations and variations may be made therefrom without deviating from the principles
or main features of the said Invention; but what we consider to be novel and
original and therefore claim as the Invention secured to us by the hereinbefore
in part recited Letters Patent is,-First. The arrangement and construction of the
valve mechanism and connections of water closets, in combination with floats or
buoys, in such a mauner that the action or effect of the latter shall by their
buoyancy cause the former to lift the valve when required to give the supply for
flushing, and by their weight shall close it and stop the supply after a definite or
requisite quantity has passed through, irrespective of the height or distance the
handle may be lifted and the time allowed for flushing by the user. Second. The
application and use of glass in lieu of copper or other metals for the floats or buoys
of "ball cocks" or valves; and third, the improved sectional construction or
formation of cisterns or other vessels, wherein and whereby through an increased
angle or slope given to the sides or vertical faces at or near the average water line
the power of ice upon the same is prevented from bursting the cistern, virtually as
or after the manner of the foregoing description.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Dawes and William Henry Thompson,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twentieth day of January,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty
WILLIAM DAWES.
(L.S.)
Witness,
ROBERT THOMPSON,
1, Grosvenor Crescent,
Leeds.
WILLIAM HENRY THOMPSON. (LS.)