AN IMPROVED BATH, WHICH CAN ALSO BE USED AS A LIFE BOAT
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Barton, of Old Kent Road, in the
County of Surrey, Ironmonger, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED
BATH, WHICH CAN ALSO BE USED AS A LIFE BOAT."
Sealed the 16th April 1858, and dated the 21st February 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Barton at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 21st February 1853:
I, BENJAMIN BARTON, of Old Kent Road, in the County of Surrey,
Ironmonger, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"AN IMPROVED BATH, WHICH CAN ALSO BE USED AS A LIFE BOAT," to be as
follows:-
I construct a bath partly of metal and partly of vulcanized caout-
chouc, or other similar vulcanized waterproof fabric, and make all the
parts to fold within a case which forms the head of the bath. I con-
struct the bottom of plates of metal, hinged to each other and riveted
to the top and foot plates, which latter I also construct of sheet-metal.
The transverse ribs or stretchers are of iron or other metal, and extend
from one side, under the bottom of the bath, up to the other side..
Longitudinal stretchers extend on each side from the head to the foot

page_text: plates, and fit over or into the transverse frames. When required for
a bath only, I stretch over the frame so constructed a stout single
vulcanized caoutchouc cloth, when the bath will be complete and ready
for use, either with warm or cold water. If intended to be used on
board ship, or other use where it might be serviceable in the preser-
vation of life from shipwreck, I then make use of two thicknesses of
vulcanized india-rubber cloth, made air-tight, and provided with a tube
and mouth-piece, so that air may be introduced between them; and
thus a life boat, capable of holding two or three persons, will be formed.
When not required for use, the bath may be folded up, and secured
within the head-plate, which is provided with a cover, and is made
capable of holding all the parts.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Benjamin Barton, in the Great Seal Patent Office,
on the 20th August 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BEN-
JAMIN BARTON, of Old Kent Road, in the County of Surrey, Iron-
monger, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of February, in the s
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the
sixteenth year of Her reign, did for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Benjamin Barton, Her special licence,
that I, the said Benjamin Barton, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Benjamin Barton, 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 "AN IMPROVED
BATH, WHICH CAN ALSO BE USED AS A LIFE BOAT," upon the condition

page_text: (amongst others) that I, the said Benjamin Barton, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Benjamin Barton, 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 drawings an-
nexed, that is to say:
My Invention consists in constructing a bath, which can also be used
as a life boat, partly of metal and partly of vulcanized caoutchouc, or
other similar vulcanized waterproof fabric. I employ metal to con-
struct the framework of my improved bath, and the vulcanized water-
proof material (single or double, and when double capable of being
inflated with air,) to form the lining of the same, and I make all the
parts to fold within a case, forming the head of the bath, so that the
whole can be packed when folded in small compass.
Figure 1, of the drawings annexed is a side view, and Figure 2, a
plan of this bath in a complete state, and ready for use. A, A³, A¹, is
the head of the framing, which serves also to contain the bath when
folded, as shown in Fig. 3. B, B', is the cover to secure the parts
within the head; the part B, is hinged to the upper edge of the back-
plate A, of the head at a; and B', is hinged to B, at b. C, C, are
quadrants attached at each side of B, and working into guides c, c, in
the side pieces A', A', of the head, for the purpose of preventing the
part B, from being thrown back too far, and keeping it steady whilst
being raised. D, is the foot-plate, composed of sheet-metal, and con-
nected to the head-plate A, by the metal frames E, E, which are hinged
to each other, and to the bottom part of the head and foot plates A, and
D, at e, e. F, F, are transverse ribs or stretchers, extending upwards
from the bottom frames E, E, on each side, and attached to the
bottom frames. G, G, are longitudinal stretchers, extending. on
each side from the head to the foot plate, and fitting into clips g, g,

page_text: formed in the upper part of the transverse ribs, where they are held fast
by pins H, H, which pass through holes i, i, in the clips, and through
the metal of the stretchers G, G. These are composed of three or
more lengths hinged to each other at h, k, and to the head-plate A,
at 7, in order that they may be folded, so as to come within the casing
A, A', when the bath is packed away. I, I, are thumb-screws, by
which the ends of the longitudinal stretchers are secured to the bottom
plates, and by unscrewing which those ends are released when the bath
is to be folded. The lining of vulcanized india-rubber, or other suitable
waterproof material, is fixed inside the frame by rivets, screws, or other
fastenings, passing through the transverse ribs F, F. At the head it is
secured by a flat rib, which is screwed or riveted to the side pieces
A', A', so as to compress the edges of the lining tightly against these
parts, and at the foot by a similar rib or a plate which is riveted or
screwed to the edges of the foot-plate D. It is further strengthened
by being attached at its upper edges to a band or cord, by which the
transverse ribs on each side arc connected together. K, K, are plates
of metal hinged to each other, and to the lower part of the head-piece
A, at m, m, so as to be capable of being folded, and which, when
extended, are laid along the bottom of the bath, inside the lining, for
the purpose of protecting it when in use, and giving greater rigidity to
the apparatus. L, is an aperture in the foot-plate, which is provided
with a stopper or gap, for the escape of the used water. When the
apparatus is intended for a bath only, the lining may be of a single
thickness; but if intended to be used on board ship, or under other
circumstances where it might be serviceable in the preservation of life
from shipwreck, the lining should be composed, wholly or partially,
of two thicknesses of the waterproof fabric, made air-tight at the edges,
and provided with a tube and mouth-piece, so that air may be intro-
duced between them. Additional stretchers or ribs may also be em-
ployed in this case, to ensure greater strength in the framework. A
life boat would thus be formed, capable of holding two or three per-
When not required for use, the bath may be packed within the
casing A, A', by first raising the plates K, K, folding them together,
and turning them up against the head-plate A, then releasing the
sons.

page_text: longitudinal stretchers G, G, and similarly folding them into the head,
where they occupy a horizontal position just above the jointed parts of
the folded plates K, K, and then bringing the foot-plate D, and the
parts connected to it, also against the head-plate A, which is done by
folding each joint in the bottom frames successively, commencing from
the head of the bath. The cover B, B', is then brought down and
secured by a hasp, or other convenient fastening.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I do not
confine myself to the exact details of construction herein-before de-
scribed, although they are the best for the purpose with which I am at
present acquainted; but I claim the construction of a bath which can
also be used as a life boat, by combining a collapsible metallic framing
with a lining or covering of any suitable waterproof fabric fitted thereto,
so as to be capable of being folded into a small compass, the said lining
or covering being either single or double, and capable of being inflated,
as before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Barton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of August One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
D. DANION.
L.B.)