AN IMPROVED MATTRESS APPLICABLE ALSO AS A LIFE SAVING APPARATUS to be as follows:
Year: 1884

page_text: I HARRY HERBERT WADDINGTON Manager for Mess Charles Macintosh & Co
India Rubber Manufacturers of Manchester in the County of Lancaster do hereby
declare the nature of my said invention for "AN IMPROVED MATTRESS APPLICABLE
ALSO AS A LIFE SAVING APPARATUS to be as follows:-
"
The object of this invention is to form or construct a strong ventilated air proof
mattress which can be used for ordinary sleeping purposes, and which when used
on board ship can be utilized as a raft or life saving apparatus in case of need.
Hitherto air mattresses have been much more costly than the ordinary ones
composed of straw or horse hair and have also been made of a material too slight
and weak to enable them to withstand ordinary wear and tear for more than a
limited period, and hence they have not been generally adopted.
The fabric of which the improved mattress is composed consists of two cloths
with a layer of water- and air-proof india rubber composition between them; the
inner cloth may be of a light texture, the outer fabric being a strong canvas or
other material suitable to give the required strength.
The joints at the edges are so made that the internal strain or pressure of the air
(when inflated) has no tendency to part the seams, having a gusset piece of air
proof cloth inserted all round the inside so as to extend about one inch from the
edge on both sides. The outer cloth overlaps the gusset and leaves a flat margin
or selvage of about one inch all round: Or the joint or seam may be made by
overlapping the edges without any gusset piece, or in any other suitable manner,
but the first described method is found most serviceable in practise.
The top and bottom plies are attached together at intervals by annular pieces or
washers of airproof material, and at each of the places where these washers are
introduced a hole is punched through both plies and the washer and a hollow rivet
or eyelet introduced firinly rivetting the whole together. These eyelets secure the
top and bottom plies together at intervals in the same manner as the stringing in
upholstery work, and are an important feature of the invention as they also form
openings and channels for ventilation, and when the mattress is used as a raft or
life saving apparatus they afford means for lacing the mattresses together and
also to lace or fasten thereon spars or oars across several mattresses, enabling

page_text: them to be rapidly formed into a buoyant raft, in which case, as each mattress
forms a separate air tight compartment the chance of accident is reduced to a
minimum.
Bands of webbing or other strong material are fixed across the mattress at
intervals, and D-shaped rings are attached thereto, through which cords may be
passed for various useful purposes, or eyelets may be formed along the margin
of the bed or mattress through which cords or ropes may be passed.
The ordinary air valves may be used to inflate the mattress, but I prefer to
employ a short piece of flexible tube so that the inflation may on emergency be
performed in the water without immersing the head.
The tube can be then tied or otherwise closed.
Instead of using the open eyelets for uniting the top and bottom plies at
intervals as above described I sometimes employ buttons and screwed washers
united by short chains but the eyelets are preferable because they afford means
for ventilation and for lacing as herein before described.
GEORGE DAVIES,
Agent for the Applicant,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester.

page_text: I HARRY HERBERT WADDINGTON Manager for Messrs Charles Macintosh & Co
India Rubber Manufacturers of Manchester in the County of Lancaster do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for AN IMPROVED MATTRESS APPLICABLE ALSO
AS A LIFE SAVING APPARATUS and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :—
The object of this invention is to form or construct a strong ventilated air proof
mattress which can be used for ordinary sleeping purposes, and which when used
on board ship can be utilized as a raft or life saving apparatus in case of need.
Hitherto air mattresses have been much more costly than the ordinary ones
composed of straw or horse hair and have also been made of a material too slight
and weak to enable them to withstand ordinary wear and tear for more than a
limited period, and hence they have not been genarally adopted.
My invention will be readily understood on reference to the annexed drawing
and the following explanation thereof.
Fig. 1. on the drawing is a perspective view and Fig. 2. a longitudinal section of
a life saving mattress constructed according to my invention.
The fabric a, a of which the improved mattress is composed consists of two cloths
with a layer of water-and-air-proof india rubber composition between them; the
inner cloth may be of a light texture, the outer fabric being a strong canvas or
other material suitable to give the required strength.
The joints at the edges are so made that the internal strain or pressure of the
air (when inflated) has no tendency to part the seains, having a gusset piece of air
proof cloth inserted all round the inside so as to extend about an inch from the
edge on both sides.
The outer cloth overlaps the gusset and leaves a flat margin or selvage b, b of
about one inch all round; or the joint or seam may be made by overlapping the
edges without any gusset piece, or in any other suitable manner but the first
described method is found most serviceable in practise.
The top and bottom plies are attached together at intervals by annular pieces or
washers of airproof material and at each of the places where these washers are
introduced, a hole is punched through both plies and the washer, and a hollow rivet
or eyelet c, c introduced (see enlarged view Fig. 3) firmly rivetting the whole
together.
These eylets c, c secure the top and bottom plies together at intervals in the
same manner as the stringing in upholstery work, and are an important feature of
the invention as they also form openings and channels for ventilation; and when
the mattress is used as a raft or life saving apparatus, they afford means for
lacing the mattresses together and also to lace or fasten thereon spars or oars across
several mattresses enabling them to be rapidly formed into a buoyant raft, in
which case as each mattress forms a separate air tight compartment the chance of
accident is reduced to a minimum.
The mattress may be made either with or without a pillow as may be preferred.

page_text: The pillow is formed either by making a separate nirtight compartment having
separate means of inflation or otherwise by simply leaving out one row of the
rivetted eyelets, which plan allows the intermediate space to rise under the
inflation to double the height of the other and so forms a pillow as shown.
Bands d, d of webbing or other strong material are fixed across the mattress at
intervals and D-shaped rings e, e are attached thereto through which cords may be
passed for various useful purposes, or eyelets may be formed along the margin of
the bed or mattress as shown at f,f through which cords or ropes may be passed.
The ordinary air valves may be used to inflate the mattress, but
employ a short piece of flexible tube so that the inflation may on emergency be
performed in the water without immersing the head.
prefer to
The tube can be then tied or otherwise closed. Instead of using the open eyclets
for uniting the top and bottom plies at intervals as above described I sometimes
employ buttons and screwed washers united by short chains but the eyelets are
preferable because they afford means for ventilation and for lacing as hereinbefore
described.
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
First. The improved air proof mattress applicable also as a life saving apparatus
and formed of a double air-proof fabric united at intervals by means of metal
eyelets for ventilation and drainage.
Secondly. The combination with such mattresses of D-shaped rings at the
margin (or of marginal eyelets) attached to transverse bands for the purpose of
lacing the same together, all substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
described and illustrated by the drawings annexed.
Dated this let dow of July 1885