IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR HOLDING AND DELIVERING TWINE OR CORD
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Jones, of Cwmcarn, in the County of
Monmouth, for the Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR HOLDING
AND DELIVERING TWINE OR CORD."
Sealed the 14th March 1871, and dated the 22nd September 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Jones at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd September 1870.
I, HENRY JONES, of Cwmcarn, in the Cunty of Monmouth, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
HOLDING AND DELIVERING TWINE OR CORD," to be as follows:-
My apparatus is chiefly designed for use in shops, warehouses, and
other places where it is necessary to have at hand a continuous supply
of string, twine, or cord, from which to obtain portions of any required
length, and the chief object of the said Invention is to afford the means
for delivering or dealing the string, twine, or cord without the numerous
inconveniences occasioned by leaving a portion of the twine or cord:

page_text: which has been unwound or drawn down hanging loosely upon the
counter, desk, on the floor, or in other positions, where it is likely to
become entangled, soiled, or otherwise injured, and where its presence
is a frequent source of annoyance, as is the case when an ordinary twine
reel, or other similar contrivance is used.
My improved apparatus is provided with a spool or reel of convenient
size, which is placed on a spindle fitted to turn freely in bearings attached
to a frame or board that is intended to be secured to the ceiling, the
side of the room, or in any other convenient position, either immediately
over the place where the twine or string is to be used, or at any desired
distance therefrom. The spool or reel is made with a square hole to fit
a square portion on the spindle, or other suitable means are provided
to prevent the turning of the reel independently of the spindle, but the
reel is made removable therefrom, so that when empty it can be readily
taken off and a full reel put in its place. The end of the twine or string
is conducted for delivery through a guide ring or eye attached to the
frame, and is thereby caused to hang at all times in one position. At
one end of the spindle which extends beyond the reel I form an
enlargement, whereon I place a contrivance which I call a brake. This
brake consists of two semi-circular pieces of cork or other suitable
material, which are so formed as to enclose the spindle without meeting
around it, so that pressure exerted upon the two parts of the brake will
cause them to bind the spindle between them. I prefer for this purpose
to use india-rubber rings, but metallic springs may also be used. To
this brake I attach a piece of string, cord, or small chain, which is so
arranged that it will be coiled upon the brake by uncoiling a portion of
string or twine from the reel. This cord or chain is passed through a
hole in a small stop pin or stud projecting from an adjustable piece
which is secured to the frame by screws or other means in such a
manner that the said stop may be raised or lowered as desired. The end
of the string below this stop is provided with a weight. When a portion
of string or twine is uncoiled from the reel the said weight is raised till it
comes in contact with the stop. The brake is thus held immovably, but
its pressure upon the spindle is not sufficient to prevent the turning of
the reel or spool, so that any desired quantity of twine may be drawn
therefrom. When however the end of the twine is released the weight
acting on the brake immediately turns the spindle, and with it, the reel,
in the opposite direction, and draws up the end of the twine or cord.

page_text: twine is allowed to hang.
Instead of a cord and weight I may have a spiral or other spring
arranged to act upon the brake in combination with a suitably arranged
ston for winding un the lance end of the twine
· Instead of a cord and weight I may have a spiral or other spring
arranged to act upon the brake in combination with a suitably arranged
stop for winding up the loose end of the
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Jones in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 22nd March 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
JONES, of Cwmcarn, in the County of Monmouth, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Henry Jones, Her special licence that
I, the said Henry Jones, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Henry Jones, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and
Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR HOLDING AND
DELIVERING TWINE OR CORD," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Henry Jones, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the
same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henry Jones, do hereby declare,
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawing, forming a part of this Specification:-
My apparatus is chiefly designed for use in shops, warehouses, and

page_text: other places where it is necessary to have at hand a continuous supply
of string, twine, or cord, from which to obtain portions of any required
length, and the chief object of the said Invention is to afford the means
for delivering or dealing the string, twine, or cord without the numerous
inconveniences occasioned by leaving a portion of the twine or cord
which has been unwound or drawn down hanging loosely upon the
counter, desk, on the floor, or in other positions where it is likely to
become entangled, soiled, or otherwise injured, or where its presence is a
frequent source of annoyance, as is the case where an ordinary twine
reel or other similar contrivance is used.
My improved apparatus is provided with a spool or reel of convenient
size which is placed on a spindle, or a spool or ball is enclosed in a
hollow reel or box fixed on the said spindle. The latter is fitted to turn
freely in a wire or other frame which is intended to be secured to the
ceiling, the side of the room, or in any other convenient position either
immediately over the place where the twine or string is to be used or
at any desired distance therefrom. The said spindle may be placed
either horizontally or vertically; when arranged horizontally I prefer to
place a spool or reel on the spindle, the spool or reel being made with
a square hole to fit a square portion on the spindle, or I adopt other
suitable means to prevent the turning of the reel independently of the
spindle; but the reel is made removable therefrom, so that when empty
it can be readily taken off and a full reel put in its place. The end of
the twine or string is conducted for delivery through a guide ring or
eye attached to the frame and is thereby caused to hang at all times
in one position. At one end of the spindle which extends beyond the
reel I sometimes form an enlargement whereon I place a contrivance
which I call a brake. This brake consists of two semicircular pieces of
cork or other suitable material which are so formed as to enclose the
shaft without meeting around it, so that pressure exerted upon the two
parts of the brake will cause them to bind the spindle between them.
I prefer for this purpose to use india-rubber rings, but metallic springs
may also be used. To this brake I attach a piece of strong cord or
small chain which is so arranged that it will be coiled upon the brake
by uncoiling a portion of string or twine from the reel. This cord or
chain is passed through a hole in a small stop pin or stud projecting
from an adjustable piece which is secured to the frame by screws or
other means in such a manner that the said stop may be raised or

page_text: lowered as desired.
The end of the string below this stop is provided
with a weight. When a portion of string or twine is uncoiled from the
reel the said weight is raised till it comes in contact with the stop.
The brake is thus held immovably, but its pressure upon the spindle is
not sufficient to prevent the turning of the reel or spool, so that any
desired quantity of twine may be drawn therefrom. When, however, the
end of the twine is released the weight acting on the brake immediately
turns the spindle and with it the reel in the opposite direction and draws
up the end of the twine or cord. The adjustment of the stop regulates
the height at which the end of the twine is allowed to hang.
I however find it more convenient for general use to construct my
apparatus with a vertical spindle and to fix thercon a box or case or
hollow reel wherein I place the ball of string. The end of the string is
drawn from this box through guides as above described and thereby
caused to hang in the required position. In this arrangement instead of
the brake, cord, and weight above described I use a spiral spring or wire
worm arranged to act in combination with a suitably arranged stop for
winding up the loose end of the twine or cord. And as a full description
of this form of my said apparatus will make it easy to understand the
various modifications which may be made therein, without departing
from the principle of my Invention I have illustrated the same in the
accompanying Drawing which I will now proceed to describe.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved apparatus showing the
twine box or reel in the position it assumes when the string is hanging
free; Figure 2 is a similar elevation showing the position of the twine
box or reel when the string is being drawn from the same; Figure 3 is a
central vertical section of the twine box; Figure 4 is a horizontal section
of the same on the line x, x, Figure 3 ; Figure 5 shows a modification
of a part of the said apparatus. Like letters indicate the same parts
throughout the Drawing.
The pendent frame or hanger a is preferably made of wire, but may
be formed of other suitabe material. The said frame has at its lower
end an eye a¹, which forms the bearing for the spindle of the twine box
or reel b: In the Drawing I have shown the said frame in the form of
a bow, but I may make it oval or circular, if desired, so as to completely
encircle the twine box. The form shown, however, is more simple and

page_text: means.
convenient than any other. At the upper part of the frame there is a
shoulder a², from which the straight portion as of the frame extends
upward to the hook a' or other contrivance for suspending the said
apparatus. Around the said shoulder and straight portion I coil the
upper end 6 of the spindle, and this coiled portion may act as a spring
and worm combined or simply as a worm, as herein-after described; c is
the ball of twine enclosed in the box or hollow reel b. The said box has
a door or lid d, whereby the balls or reels are introduced into the box,
the said door being secured by the elastic band e or by other convenient
The door d opens on hinges d¹ and its edge is provided with
an inwardly projecting flange f, which when the door is closed and
secured fits against a similar flange g on the shell of the box. These
two flanges form a means for giving the required tension to the string
as it is drawn from the box b. h and i are the guides through which
the string or twine is conducted downward, and whereby it is caused to
hang in the required position. The apparatus is suspended by the
hook from the ceiling or other convenient part of the room, shop, or
warehouse, and the desired height at which the end of the string is to
hang is first determined. The reel or box 6 is then by the action of the
worm raised to the position shown in Figure 2 by turning it on its axis,
and the end of the string is drawn through the guides; it is then allowed
to run down. As it runs down the worm causes it to rotate and wind the
cord or string around it, as shown in Figure 1, and if the end of the string
is found to hang at the proper height the apparatus is left hanging in this
position. When string is required the hanging end is pulled downward.
The reel or box 6 turns freely on its axis until the portion of string
coiled around it is uncoiled; it then remains stationary till the required
quantity of string is taken and the hanging end of the string is released;
the reel then again runs down and winds the string around it, bringing
the end again up to the required height. The shoulder a² and bearing a¹ 3
in the apparatus, shown in Figures 1 and 2, act as stops at the top and
bottom of the reel or box b, but in Figure 5 I have shown an adjustable
washer a* to act as a stop on the lower part of the spindle, the said
washer being moved up or down according as it is found necessary to
increase or diminish the revolutions of the reel in winding up the string. a
In the apparatus shown the said box and spindle run down by their own
gravity, but when a coiled or spiral spring is used in place of the worm,
and this spring is made fast at its upper end, the same effect will be
obtained from the elasticity of the said spring. When this spring is

page_text: used the apparatus may be arranged either vertically or horizontally, as
desired, and the said spring will in the latter case form an efficient
substitute for the brake herein-before described.
Having thus fully described my said Invention, I claim an apparatus
constructed substantially as herein set forth for holding string in such
a manner that when any required quantity of the same has been taken
from the part drawn from the reel or box of the said apparatus the
remainder of the string will be automatically wound up so that the free
end thereof will always hang in the required position.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Jones, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twentieth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.