Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Jan., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 10th Aug., 1896-Accepted, 19th Sept., 1896
I, HENRY HAVELOCK FARRELL, of 3, Cable Street, Liverpool, Commission Agent,
do bereby declare the nature of the said invention to be as follows:-
This invention although applicable to indoor seats such as theatre seats and the
like, relates more particularly to outdoor seats such as omnibus, tramcar, steamer or
garden seats exposed to the weather and has for one of its objects to render such
latter seats dry in wet weather.
According to this invention a seat bottom is pivotted in such a manner that when
the occupier rises the seat-bottom turns upon its pivots and preferably assumes an
inclined position, its underside being uppermost.
In constructing a seat according to my invention suitable for use on omnibuses
and tramcars, a loose seat-bottom is pivotted upon a bar disposed beneath the seat
and rather nearer to the front of the seat than to the rear. The tendency of the
seat therefore is to overbalance, the back of the seat sinking and the front rising.
As the axis of the seat is below and out of the plane of the seat-bottom, the seat-
bottom in its inverted position hangs upon its pivot in an inclined position, the front
of the seat preferably resting upon the seat-back. The seat-bottom may be plain, or
louvred so that rain-water will drain from it and leave the under surface of the
louvres dry. The seat-bottom when occupied may rest upon the ordinary bearers, or
the latter may be dispensed with and the seat-bottom arranged to abut against a
ledge at the rear of the seat. To assist the seat to overbalance, the front portion
may be louvred and the rear portion solid, or the rear portion may be weighted.
A convenient method of employing waterproof sheets or aprons in connection with
my improved seats may consist in mounting the aprons on spring actuated rollers
contained in cases disposed in front of the seats.
J. A. COUBROUGH
Registered Patent Agent 10 St George's Crescent, Liverpool
Agent for the Applicant

page_text: I, HENRY HAVELOCK FARRELL, of 3, Cable Street, Liverpool, Commission 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 although applicable to indoor seats such as theatre seats and the
like, relates more particularly to outdoor seats such as omnibus, tramcar, steamer or
garden seats exposed to the weather and has for one of its objects to render such
latter seats dry in wet weather.
According to this invention a seat-bottom is pivotted below and in sneh-n the
manner specified so that when the occupier rises the seat-bottom turns upon its
pivots and assumes by preference an inclined position, its underside being upper-
most.
In constructing a seat according to my invention a movable seat-bottom is pivotted
upon a bar or pins disposed beneath the seat and carried by the seat frame. Such
bar or pins are disposed centrally under the centre of gravity of the seat when in the
horizontal position. In order to dispose the pivot nearer to the front of the seat than to
the rear, so as to impart to the seat-bottom a tendency to overbalance when not in
use; I cause it to assume an incline whereby its centre of gravity is displaced to one
side of its axis, and I effect this by causing the seat-bottom when in use to abut
against a portion of the seat-frame, or oue of the bars of the seat-back. The tendency
of the seat-bottom therefore is to overbalance, the back of the seat-bottom sinking
and the front rising. As the axis of the seat is below the centre of gravity of the
seat-bottom, the latter in its inverted position hangs upon its axis and would hang in
a horizontal position if it were not for the before referred to bar in the seat-back,
against which the seat bottom abuts and consequently lies in an inclined position.
I will now proceed to more particularly describe the nature of this invention with
the aid of the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 illustrates the principle upon which a seat according to this invention is
constructed. at is the seat-bottom, resting on an axis b disposed centrally below the
seat-bottom's centre of gravity. If therefore the seat bottom is caused to assume
either of the inclined positions shewn in dotted lines, the tendency of it is to over-
balance and take the inverted position shewn in dotted lines.
Figure 2 is a side view and Figure 3 a front view of a seat constructed according
to this invention, provided with a reversible back, and suitable for omnibus, tramcar,
steamer, garden and other similar uses.. a a are the two seat-bottoms, pivotted upon
the bar b which is held in the sockets c of the standards d. e is the seat back, whose
side rods are swivelled to the standards d and travel between stops g attached to
the standards. is a bar connecting the two side rods f, whose function is to form
an abutment for the seat-bottoms when in use and also when reversed.
It will be seen that the seat bottoms ta are pivotted in the manner described with
reference to Figure 1. It will also be seen that the bar h holds the seat-bottom on
an incline when in use, so that the pivot becomes disposed nearer to the front of the
seat (which ever edge for the time being be the front) than the rear, and upon the user
vacating his seat the seat-bottom a will fall to the side to which it is inclined and
will assume the reversed position shewn in tull lines in Figure 2. The surface of the
seat is thus protected from rain and is at the same time kept free from dust and
debris.
ii are grooves in the seat-bottoms a a, into which the bottom of the bar h enters
when the seats are in use and so temporarily locks the seats with the back.

page_text: When the back e is reversed, the seat-bottoms
will turn with it, aud as the
axis of such seat-bottoms is central they will act in a precisely similar manner
whichever way the back is turned.
Figure 4 is a side view and Figure 5 a front view of a single chair with a fixed
back, constructed according to this invention. a is the seat bottom, pivotted upon
the bar b which is carried by the frame d. It will be seen that the seat-bottom a is
pivotted in the manner described with reference to Figure 1. and when in use is held
in an inclined position by the stops on the frane d. Upon the user of the seat
rising, the seat-bottom a will fall to the side to which it is inclined and will assume
the reversed position shewn in full lines in Figure 4, and its front edge will rest in a
rebated bar e in the back e, the function of said rebated bar being to prevent rain-
water from draining down the reversed upper surface of the seat bottom. The
surface of the seat is thus protected from rain, dust and debris.
k is a bandle by which the seat-bottom may be pulled over by the person who is
about to use it.
The seat-bottom may be barred or lathed as shewn in Figures 3 and 4, and the
under side covered by a plate 1, upon which advertisements or other announcements
may be set forth; or the under surface of the seat-bottom may be louvred as shewn
in Figure 6 (section) and Figure 7 (underside plan) and these louvres may be used
for the purpose of advertisement.
Where the seat-bottom is not barred or lathed, its edges may be "weathered" or
grooved after the manner of a window sill, in order to prevent water from draining
down its surface.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. The disposition of the axis of a pivotted seat-bottom centrally below the centre
of gravity of such seat-bottom, whereby when the latter is inclined it has its axis
nearer to the front of the seat (that is the vertical plane in which the front lies) than to
the rear (that is, the certical plane in which the rear lies), and its tendency
on said axis and hang in a horizontal and reversed position below said axis, substan-
tially as and for the purpose herein described with reference to Figure-t of the
drawings hereto annexed."
to rotate
2. The combination of a pivotted seat-bottom whose axis is disposed centrally
below its centre of gravity with a bar forming part of a reversible back on said seat
ard adapted to abut against and hold the said seat-botton in an inclined position
when in use that in both positions of the vertical back, the said seat bottom has its axis
nearer to the front of the seat (that is, the vertical plane in which the front lies) than to
the rear, (that is, the vertical plane in which the rear lies), and to-form-an-abutment
for-said--seat-bottom--when-in--its--reversed--position,--whereby such-seat-bottom
reverses itself when not in use and lays in an inclined and reversed position against
such bar, substantially as and for the purpose herein described with reference to
Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings hereto annexed.
3. A reversible seat in which a pivotted seat-bottom whose axis is disposed
centrally below its centre of gravity is held on an incline by the frame of the seat
and a rebated abutment bar on the back of said seat, whereby such seat-bottom has
its axis nearer to the front of the seat (that is, the vertical plane in which the front lies)
than to the rear, (that is the vertical plane in which the rear lies) and reverses itself
when not in use and lays in an inclined and reversed position against such bar, sub-
stantially as and for the purpose herein described with reference to Figures 4 and 5
of the drawings hereto annexed.
Dated this th
100
J. A. COLBROUGH
Registered Patent Agent (Qual by Exain.)
10 St George's Crescent, Liverpool Agent for the Applicant