Improvements in Cork Extractors.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Feb., 1899-Accepted, 18th Mar., 1899
DI MULTICATION.
Improvements in Cork Extractors.
I, HARRY JUDSON WILLIAMS, a Citizen of the United States of America, and
residing at 95, Wilcox Avenue, Meriden, in the County of New Haven and State
of Connecticut, U.S.A., Gentleman, 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 relates to improvements in power cork extractors, or such as are
designed to be attached or clamped to a counter or table and operated by means
of a handle or lever, and the objects of the invention are to produce a simple and
powerful mechanism, which will with one reciprocation of the handle, force the
cork screw into the cork, extract the cork from the bottle and discharge the cork
from the screw, leaving the parts in position for the next succeeding operation.
Referring to the accompanying drawings:-
Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view partly in elevation showing the position
of the parts when the handle or lever has been moved forwardly and the cork
screw forced into a cork within the mouth of the bottle.
Figure 2 is a similar view showing the position of the parts when the cork has
been withdrawn from the mouth of the bottle and the handle or lever has moved
part way back to normal position.
Figure 3 is a similar view illustrating the position of the parts in their normal
position, or when the handle has been moved to a position to discharge the cork
and to leave the parts ready for a subsequent operation.
Like letters of reference in the several figures indicate the same parts.
The letter A indicates the frame or body of the instrument which is preferably
formed with a clamp for attachment to a counter or like support and which may
be varied indefinitely to suit the particular conditions under which the device
is used. The front portion of the frame or body A is made in the form of a
cylinder A, preferably somewhat inclined to the perpendicular for convenience
in presenting a bottle to the extracting mechanism. Immediately in rear of this
cylinder a chamber A2 is formed for the reception or accommodation of a worm
wheel C, mounted on a squared portion or shaft c forming a lateral projection of
a handle or lever C¹ by means of which the extracting mechanism is operated.
Working within the cylinder A is a screw threaded shank D, the threads of
which mesh with the worm wheel C, adapting the shank D to be both moved longi-
tudinally and rotated by the action of the worm wheel, the teeth on the shank D
serving both as a rack and as worm teeth in accomplishing these motions. The
lower end of the shank D terminates in or has attached to it in any suitable
manner a cork screw E, the spiral of which runs in an opposite direction from the
thread on the shank D, thus, if the threads on the shank D are left-handed
threads, the spiral of the cork screw is a right-handed spiral and vice versa. The
cork screw works through a nut F mounted in the lower end of the cylinder A¹
and held against rotation by a screw f working in a slot f¹ in the cylinder which
slot falso permits the said nut to move longitudinally in the cylinder a distance

page_text: corresponding to the necessary longitudinal movement of the cork screw in with-
drawing the cork from the bottle, and the action of this nut F when the shank
and cork screw are thrust down is to cause the said cork screw to rotate forwardly
and enter a cork if the same is presented in proper position.
The longitudinal movement of the shank and cork screw in an upward direction
is limited by a cap or plug G in the upper end of the cylinder, and in order to
eliminate friction in the rotation of the shank and cork screw when at the
upward extreme of its longitudinal movement, the end of the shank is preferably
reduced as at d and adapted to cooperate with a cone bearing in the under side
of the cap at g, Figure 2. If desired, however, a ball bearing of any well known
construction may be introduced in. the cap as indicated for instance at ¹ in
Figure 1, it being understood, however, that any well known form of bearing may
be substituted without departing from the invention in the slightest.
With a device constructed as thus described, when it is desired to extract a
cork, assuming that the parts are in the normal position indicated in Figure 3,
the bottle is presented to the lower end of the cylinder and the handle C¹ is
brought over to the front of the device or to the position indicated in Figure 1,
the action of the worm wheel C upon the shank 1) tending, first, to advance the
shank and cork screw through the nut F and by such movement the nut F will
cause the screw to rotate forwardly and penetrate the cork, and
secondly, by reason of the inclination of the teeth on the shank D,
the tendency of the said worm wheel C will be to cause the said
shank and "cork screw to rotate, thus there is imparted to the shank
and cork screw a tendency to rotate forwardly through two separate mechanisms,
that is to say, through the action of the worm wheel and the worm and through
the action of the nut F operating directly on the cork screw. The screw having
penetrated the cork to the position indicated in Figure 1, a reverse movement of
the handle will cause the worm wheel and threaded shank to operate as a rack
and pinion, withdrawing the cork from the mouth of the bottle and raising the
nut F to the upper limit of its movement, or until the upper end of the shank
strikes the bearing 7, when its further upward longitudinal movement will be
arrested, when the worm wheel and threaded shank will again operate to rotate
the said shank and cork screw in a reverse direction, such reverse rotation
causing the nut F to travel down the cork screw and drive the cork off from the
same, the parts then assuming, as the handle is drawn backwardly, the position
indicated in Figure 3, ready for a subsequent operation.
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 what
I claim is:-
-
1. In a cork extractor, the combination with a frame or housing, of a threaded
shank working in said frame or housing, a cork screw forming a prolongation of
said threaded shank, a longitudinally movable nut through which said cork screw
works, and a toothed wheel meshing directly with the threaded shank with a
handle or lever for reciprocating said wheel; substantially as described.
2. In a cork extractor, the combination with a frame or housing having a
cylinder therein, of a screw threaded shank working longitudinally in said cylin-
der, a cork screw spiral forming a prolongation of said screw threaded shank, a nut
working longitudinally in said cylinder and surrounding the cork screw spiral,
a bearing for limiting the upward movement of the shank and screw, a toothed
wheel journaled in the frame or housing and meshing directly with the threads
of the shank, and a handle or lever for oscillating said toothed wheel; substan-
tially as described.
3. In a cork extractor, the combination with a frame or housing having a
cylinder therein, and a cap or plug for closing the upper end of said cylinder,
screw threaded shank working longitudinally in said cylinder having
of a

page_text: a
reduced upper end for cooperating with said cap or plug to limit
the upward movement of the shank, a cork screw spiral forming a prolongation
of the lower end of the shank, a longitudinally movable nut through which said
cork screw spiral works, held against rotation with said spiral, a toothed wheel
journaled in the frame or housing and meshing directly with the threads of the
spiral shank, and a handle for oscillating said toothed wheel to move the shank
and cork screw spiral longitudinally and to impart thereto a rotation when the
longitudinal movement of the shank is resisted; substantially as described.
4. In a cork extractor, the combination with the frame or housing having a
cylinder formed therein and a worm wheel journaled in said frame or housing
with a handle for oscillating said worm wheel, of a screw threaded shank with
which said worm wheel meshes located in said cylinder and adapted to move longi-
tudinally and to rotate therein, a cork screw spiral forming a prolongation of the
said shank and arranged with its spiral at an opposite inclination to the teeth on
the shank and a nut working in the lower end of the cylinder and surrounding
said spiral with means for preventing the rotation of said nut; substantially as
described.
Dated this 14th day of Wahmia 1000