Improvements in or relating to Travelling Trunks and Boxes.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Apr., 1855
Complete Specification Left, 24th Jan, 1896-Accepted, 29th Feb., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Travelling Trunks and Boxes.
We, THOMAS WILKES and WILLIAM CHATHAM, trading together as Chatham
and Wilkes, of Drayton Works, Graiseby Row, Wolverhampton in the County of
Stafford, Japanners and Tin and Ironplate Workers, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
Travelling trunks and boxes, when made of sheet metal, are very liable to be
injured in travelling owing to the shocks to which they are exposed by being
dropped heavily on to railway platforms, trolleys, and the like and by having
other articles dropped or dragged upon them and generally by the rough treatment
to which they are exposed.
Now, the object of this invention, is to protect travelling trunks and boxes, when
made of sheet metal, against much of the injury to which they would otherwise.be
exposed in travelling.
The above object is accomplished, according to this invention, by the use of
blocks or pads of indiarubber fixed to the outside of the trunks and boxes in
positions which will insure, or make it extremely probable, that if any box or trunk
to which they are applied is dropped, or has any corresponding article dropped or
rested or dragged upon it, the force of the impact or the weight will be received
direct by one or more of the rubber blocks or pads instead of as is usual by the
ordinary japanned surface of the trunk or box; whereby such surface is protected
(or largely so) from indentation or abrasion and the general structure of the trunk
or box is protected (or largely so) from being forced out of shape.
The indiarubber blocks or pads may be made in the shape of corner-pieces to fit
over the corners of the top and bottom of a trunk or box, or as studs to project from
flat or curved surfaces thereof; and such blocks or pads may be fixed by means of
bolts or rivets of which the heads are preferably sunk below the outer surfaces of
the indiarubber so as not to come in contact with any part against which the outer
surfaces of the blocks or pads press or which presses thereagainst; or the india-
rubber may be fixed in any convenient manner.
The term indiarubber in this Specification includes also other elastic materials
into the composition of which indiarubber enters.
Dated this 23rd day of April 1805
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton, Agent for the Applicants.
COMPLETE
SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Travelling Trunks and Boxes.
We, THOMAS WILKES and WILLIAM CHATHAM, trading together as Chatham
and Wilkes, of Drayton Works, Graiseby Row, Wolverhampton in the County of
Stafford, Japanners and Tin and Ironplate Workers, 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:-
Sheet metal travelling trunks and boxes are very 'liable to be injured in travelling
[PQ77

page_text: owing to the shocks to which they are exposed by being dropped heavily on to
railway platforms, trolleys, and the like, and by having other articles dropped or
dragged upon them, and generally by the rough treatment to which they are
exposed.
Now, the object of this invention, is to protect such travelling trunks and boxes
against much of the injury to which they would otherwise be exposed in
travelling.
The above object is accomplished, according to this invention, by the use of
blocks or pads of a soft and preferably elastic character such as of indiarubber, or
of leather or leather padded inside with flocks or analogous material, or of felt,
which are fixed to the outside of the trunks and boxes in positions which will
ensure, or make it extremely probable, that if any trunk or box to which they are
applied is dropped, or has any corresponding article dropped or rested or dragged
upon it, the force of the impact or the weight will be received direct by one or
more of the blocks or pads instead of as is usual by the ordinary japanned surface
of the trunk or box; whereby such surface is protected (or largely so) from
indentation or abrasion, and the general structure of the trunk or box is protected
(or largely so) from being forced out of shape.
The blocks or pads may be made as corner pieces which fit over the corners of
the top and bottom of a trunk or box, or as studs to project from flat or curved
surfaces thereof; and such blocks or pads may be fixed by means of bolts or rivets
of which the heads are preferably below or inwards of the portions of greatest
projection of the surfaces of the blocks or pads so as not to come in contact with
any part against which the portions of greatest projection of the blocks or pads
press or which presses thereagainst; or the blocks or pads may be fixed in any
convenient manner.
In order that the invention may be clearly understood, we have illustrated a
practical application of the same in the case of an ordinary sheet metal travelling
trunk.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of the trunk, having blocks or pads of the character
above described applied thereto. Figure 2 is a plan of such trunk. Figure 3 is
an end view thereof.
Figure 4 is a section, drawn to an enlarged size, taken on linea a of Figure 3,
through one of the bottom corners of the trunk and through the pad, hereinafter
described, fixed thereto.
Figure 5 is a section, drawn to an enlarged size, taken on line yy of Figure 3,
through one of the top corners of the trunk and through the pad, hereinafter
described, fixed thereto; and
Figure 6 is a section, to an enlarged size, through one of the studs, hereinafter
described, fixed upon the top of the trunk, and shews the portion of the top of the
trunk to which it is fixed.
Four corner pads A are shewn fixed to the bottom corners of the trunk B, and
are of a shape such as they may conveniently be when made of vulcanized india-
rubber,
It will be seen that each pad is made to a shape which enables it to completely
envelop the corner. These pads are conveniently fixed to the trunk by means of
countersunk-headed bolts a the heads b of which are drawn up into corresponding
openings in the outer face of the rubber, and when the bolts are tightened up these
heads are well back from the portions of the rubber which project furthest from the
surface of the trunk. The heads b of the bolts are shewn as embedded within
bosses formed with the pads. The top corners of the lid of the trunk are
similarly enclosed each by means of a pad C, which consists of leather padded
inside with flocks c or other suitable material of an analogous kind to give
considerable substance of a yielding character along the angle of the corner and for
some distance on each side thereof, as clearly shewn by Figure 5. The leather
may be fixed to the metal of the trunk by rivets d, the padding causing portions of
the leather to project further from the trunk than the heads of the rivets. Rubber

page_text: blocks or pads may be used for the top corners of the trunk as well as the bottom,
if preferred; or leather, padded, may be used in lieu of the rubber for the bottom
corners, if desired; or pads of other soft and preferably elastic material, such for
instance as leather only, or felt, may be used for the corners either at top or
bottom or at both top and bottom. The top of the trunk is shewn as protected
between its ends by a number of studs D each formed of vulcanized indiarubber
and each held, as clearly shewn by Figure 6, by means of a cup-beaded bolt e of
which the cup head is drawn down into the rubber so that the top of the head
stands down somewhat below the top of the stud. The cup head may be formed
hollow for the portion thereof which projects around the shank of the bolt, as
shewn, in which case the bottom edge rendily presses into the rubber and embeds
itself therein. Studs such as D may be used, also, for protecting other plain and
also curved surfaces of sheet metal trunks and boxes. The studs D may, of course,
be made of analogous material to indiarubber, such as leather or felt.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. Sheet metal travelling trunks and boxes protected by means of blocks or pads
of a soft and preferably elastic character, such as of indiarubber, or leather, or
leather padded inside with flocks, or felt, or analogous material, substantially as
described.
2. Sheet metal travelling trunks and boxes having the top and bottom corners
protected by means of blocks or pads of a soft and preferably elastic character,
such as of indiarubber, or leather, or leather padded inside with flocks, or felt, or
analogous material, substantially as described and shewn by the drawings
herewith.
3. The use of studs, such as D Figure 6, of indiarubber or like material, for
protecting flat or curved surfaces of sheet metal travelling trunks or boxes,
substantially as described.
Dated this 23rd day of January 1900
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton, Agent for the Applicants.