Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 29th Aug., 1899 -Accepted, 30th Nov., 1899
I, ARTHUR CLEMENS DEDO SEIFERT, of Chemnitz, Germany, Manufacturer, dc
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The present invention relates to a movable caster for furniture, which serves
to impart great stability to furniture in spite of unevenness of floors, and to
enable the article of furniture (which is being moved) to be very readily fixed
in the place it is intended to occupy, and also to allow of easily shifting articles
of furniture which have to be frequently moved from one spot to another.
The mounting of this caster is effected in two fundamental ways, each of
which comprises modifications which will be set forth in succession
present description.
in the
In the first of these arrangements, the pivot fixed to the stirrup-piece which
carries the caster bowl or roller, is fixed at the upper end of the device, and
it revolves in a socket fitted in the foot of the article of furniture to be sup-
ported. This socket has a stud which fits in the wood of the article in order
to avoid the displacement of the said socket. In addition, the socket is formed
at its lower part with a shoulder against which rests the wood of the article.
The roller is surrounded by a rubber ring or tyre in order to avoid damaging
the carpets over which the article is to be rolled; this tyre may also serve as
an insulating device for sound in pianos.
The shoulder of the socket may be formed so as to present a lower surface
at an inclination to its axis, and the pivot may also be formed in such a manner
as to have a shoulder also with an inclination; these two surfaces being applied
against each other and being roughened or fluted. This arrangement allows of
raising or lowering the article of furniture at will, by simply turning the roller
through a certain angle in order to make up for the inequalities in the level
of the flooring, and thus preventing any possible unsteadiness of the said
article of furniture.
A modification of this arrangement consists in substituting for the shoulder
of the pivot, a roller turning on a small journal fixed to the pivot, and on which
rests the inclined shoulder of the socket. The roughness given to the surfaces
of contact has for object to maintain them in the position which has been given
to them, and which cannot be altered without a certain exertion of strength.
Or the aforesaid roller, or two similar and opposite rollers, may be arranged
on the socket itself, said rollers being adapted to roll on the shoulder of the
pivot, and said shoulder being inclined relatively to the vertical axis of the
said pivot.
In the second fundamental arrangement of the new caster, the pivot has its
point of support and its footstep in the solid portion of the roller-carrier.
This pivot is provided at its upper part with a circular shoulder extended
towards the top by means of an annular portion terminating in a sharp ridge
or edge and entering the foot of the article of furniture, whilst a central sharp

page_text: part formed with roughened surfaces, enters also the said foot of the article
and ensures a firm hold of the pivot in that foot.
In order to prevent the roller-carrier from falling off from the foot of the
article when the latter is being lifted, the pivot turns in a spring ring fitted
in the hole of the pivot and which produces sufficient friction to prevent the
roller-carrier from falling off.
In order to maintain the roller in a direction corresponding to the ordinary
position of the article of furniture, whilst allowing it to change the said direc-
tion when required, the base of the revolving pivot is formed with one or more
flutings engaging in one or more grooves formed in a steel step arranged in
the bottom of the hole of the pivot, and which can only be disengaged by the
exertion of a certain amount of strength.
For the purpose of producing a lowering or a raising of the foot of the article
of furniture in order to make up for certain unevenness in the level of the floor,
the base of the pivot may be made inclined to its axis, the aforesaid steel step
being likewise made with an inclined upper surface.
A combination of the two fundamental arrangements consists in fixing the
pivot to the roller-carrier, said pivot being provided at its upper part with
disc which is fitted in the circular piece that carries the roughened pointed
portion and the annular extension formed with a sharp ridge or edge entering
the foot of the article, whilst a lower plate placed under the said disc and
fastened by nails that pass through the circular portion on the foot of the
article, prevents the roller-carrier from falling off.
!
The upper surface of the rotary disc may be roughened in order to firmly
fix the pivot in a desired position, and it may also be made inclined to the axis
of the pivot, with the object of allowing of making up for unevenness of level
of the floor, in the manner above described.
The pivot entering the foot, may have a truncated conical form, and turn
in a truncated conical socket, whilst it does not extend to the bottom of the
hole therein, in such a manner as to allow (according to the conical surface
which is given to the pivot) of regulating the amount of friction and conse-
quently the amount of resistance to rotation.
This cone-arrangement may be applied to the pivot which revolves in the
roller-carrier and which is fixed to the foot of the article of furniture. An
annular groove cut along a right section of the cone, receives the end of a
screw which prevents the roller-carrier from falling off.
Dated this 30th dor of Van
1900
Improvements in and relating to Furniture Casters.
I, ARTHUR CLEMENS DEDO SEIFERT, of Chemnitz, Germany, Manufacturer, 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:
The furniture caster of which several forms of construction are shown in
the accompanying drawings, possesses in addition to a great stability, three
properties whereby it differs essentially from the caster heretofore employed
attached to articles of furniture.
First, an article of furniture fitted with my casters can be prevented from

page_text: rocking or tilting; second, an article of furniture, for example an armchair
fitted with easy turning casters, can be made so as not to roll any further at
every slight movement of the person seated therein, as it can be locked fast.
Finally the new caster is especially applicable to such articles of furniture
as have to be frequently moved to and fro, that is to say, moved from one place
to another.
The roller (Figure 1) is covered with a tyre g of rubber felt, or the like,
which is especially intended to avoid damaging the carpet over which the article
of furniture is moved or turned, and also to prevent the sound of a piano fitted
with these casters from being conducted by the flooring to adjacent rooms.
The object of the oblique cut of the pivot end in Figures 3, 4 and 8 is to
obtain a higher or a lower position of the foot of the piece of furniture by
turning the rollers about the pivot d. If the piece of furniture so fitted is
placed on a floor which is not quite level, then the foot which does not bear
on the floor can be made to bear upon the latter by turning the caster.
object of grooving or roughening the pivot end in Figures 2, 3, 5, 7, 8 and 10
is to prevent the casters from moving back automatically out of the position
into which they have been set. This is one mode of action.
The
The bearings for the pivot d are located at such low point that recesses or
cavities bored in the wooden foot of the piece of furniture are utilized for
receiving fastening means such as the pointed part or spike k and the annular
heading or their equivalents only (see Figures 1, 6 and 12). The rotary pivot
proper d extends downwardly and it has its guidance and its support in the
solid part m of the caster-holder. In order to prevent the caster-holder m
together with its caster g, from falling out of the foot of the piece of furniture
when the piece of furniture is lifted, the rotary pivot d is surrounded with
a spring ring n (Figure 1) that produces a slight friction in the interior of the
hole of the pivot; this friction is just sufficient to prevent the said falling of
the caster from out of the foot of the piece of furniture.
For some kinds of furniture it is desirable to determine the direction in
which they are pushed and moved back again. For such furniture it is neces-
sary that the caster shall be brought into a certain position in which it remains
normally.
An arrangement of the kind shown in Figure 2, will be sufficient for this
purpose.
This arrangement differs from Figure 1 chiefly by being provided with a
grooving or fluting at the base of the rotary pivot d, and also at the base of
the hole of the pivot situated in the caster-holder m. By this means, the effect
will be that when the caster is already in a certain position, it will be incapable
of being moved and turned into a different position except by means of a
certain amount of force. It is advisable to provide the said grooving, not
directly in the base of the hole of the pivot, but rather in the surface of a
plate of hard steel fixed in the hole of the pivot. In order, in this class of
casters, to attain the advantages of the higher or lower positions, the arrange-
ment shown in Figure 2 may be modified by making the lower end of the
rotary pivot d and the surface of the bottom plate O, both oblique, as shown
in Figure 3.
!
In addition to the modifications described above many other modifications
may be made according to desire and to requirements, for instance as shown
in Figure 6. The caster-holder m is provided with a pivot d arranged or directed
upwardly, and which is however made quite short, and terminates at its upper
part in a round flat disc p. A larger disc 7 of thick sheet metal serves to
close in the device, and it surrounds the rotary pivot below the said disc P and
in this way, prevents the casters from dropping out of the feet of the piece of
furniture. The securing of the main body part under the wooden foot of the
furniture will be similar to that which is shown in Figure 1, that is to say,
this is effected by means of a central pivot and a sharpened ring 7.

page_text: I
...The aforesaid, disc qof malleable iron will be fixed by placing it in the
cavity exactly. flush with the main body and fastening it by means of several
nails. It is convenient.to. join the disc q-in-two halves, as indicated -in-the
small.sketch at. the side of Figure 6. If the disc is not divided into two parts
it will be too inconvenient to pass the pivot through it. Figure 7 shows-gener-
ally the same arrangement as Figure 6 but it differs therefrom by having a
grooving in the. end surface of the rotary pivot so as to enable it to-be locked
ast. Also, it is provided with an inserted. piece of hard steel, also-grooved
as already described with. reference to Figure -2.
J
"
Lai
Figure 8 corresponds to Figure in the same manner as Figure 3-has been
described with reference to Figure. 2... Figure 9 shows a further modification;
which actually has the same construction as Figure 6. The sole difference
between this caster and that one..consists in the conical shape t of the rotary
pivot bearing, in a cavity, also..conical, in the main body thereby enabling a
revolution to be made almost without any friction because the two- conical
surfaces are in contact with each other only at the end. If it is not desired
to have this capability of movement, the conical surfaces may also be provided
with groovings as shown in Figure 10.
..
The arrangement, may be modified by providing (in Figure 11) a conical
pivot, without a point, and by preventing the end of the pivot from reaching.
the base of the hole for the pivot so as to cause a hollow space u to be formed:
Although the conical surfaces which are in contact with each other are-quite
smooth, we have, by means of this construction, found a means of enabling
the degree of the friction to be determined as desired by increasing or
diminishing the conical form of the pivot v.
In Figure 12, the arrangement of Figure 11, is reversed, the conical pivot v
is shown as being movable in the caster-holder m, whilst it is immovable in
the base plate fixed to the foot of the piece of furniture. The screw pin w
which is screwed in from the side prevents the furniture caster from dropping
out.
Figure 4 shows another combination. The two pianes in contact c and h
which are cut obliquely may be grooved or they may remain smooth.
Figure 5 shows an arrangement which is similar to that of Figure 4, with
the sole difference that the oblique form of the superposed surfaces c and h
"does not exist," although this arrangement serves only to lock the caster and
it fulfils a purpose similar to that of Figures 2 and 7.
Similarly it is possible to make numerous other combinations.
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) Furniture caster, provided on its periphery with a tyre g of rubber, felt
or the like, and in which the bearings for the pivot d are located at such low
point that the recesses made in the wooden foot of the piece of furniture aré
utilised for receiving fastening means or 1 or equivalents only, substantially
as and for the purpose set forth.
(2) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the end
face of the rotary pivot d, which face is toothed and arranged to bear upon
a similarly serrated or grooved base 0.
:
(3) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the end
face of the rotary pivot d, which face is cut obliquely and toothed and arranged
to bear upon a similar cut and toothed base 0.
(4) Caster for furniture as specified in' Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot d surrounded by plane surfaces c and h cut obliquely, one of which c is
fixed to the foot of the piece of furniture, whilst the other one h is fixed to
the caster-holder e.
:
(5) Caster for furniture, as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary

page_text: pivot d, surrounded by toothed plane surfaces c and one of which c is fixed
to the foot of the piece of furniture, whilst the other one his fixed to the
caster-holder m.
(6) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot which ends in a flat round disc p and is held by a closing-in disc q which
surrounds the neck or narrowest part d of the pivot.
(7) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot (in accordance with Claim 6) which comprises a grooved end face and
is arranged to bear upon a base O that is also grooved.
(S) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot formed in accordance with Claim 6 and which comprises an end face p
cut obliquely and grooved and arranged to bear upon a base O which is also
cut obliquely and grooved.
(9) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot which ends in a conical point and is held by a locking disc q sur-
rounding the neck or narrowest part d of the pivot.
(10) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1. characterised by the rotary
pivot formed in accordance with Claim 9, and which is toothed on its conical
end face and is adapted to bear in a conical cavity that is also toothed.
(11) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot d formed in accordance with Claim 9, and which ends in a truncated
cone and bears in a conical cavity which fits exactly thereto.
(12) Caster for furniture as specified in Claim 1, characterised by the rotary
pivot formed in accordance with Claim 11 as follows:-The pivot v connected
firmly to the foot of the piece of furniture, is inserted in the caster-holder m.
but can be turned therein, and is kept from falling out by means of a small
screw the point of which engages in a groove in the periphery of the pivot.
this oth may of August 1899.
ROBERT E. PHILLIPS, Assoc. M.Inst.C.E., M.I.Mech.E..
Chartered Patent Agent, 70, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Associate Agent.