Improvements in the Construction of Bones, Busks, Steels, Stiffeners, and the like for use in the Manufacture of Corsets, Corsages, Hats, Bonnets, and other Articles.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Nov., 1889-Accepted, 25th Jan., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Construction of Bones, Busks, Steels, Stiffeners,
and the like for use in the Manufacture of Corsets, Corsages,
Hats, Bonnets, and other Articles.
I, SAMUEL BEAUMONT of Roubaix in the Department du Nord, France, Manu-
facturer, 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:
6:
The strips of steel and other material which have replaced the strips of true whale-
bone formerly employed as busks" and "bones" in the manufacture of corsets and
have been generally substituted for the whalebone in many other applications, have
the disadvantage that they are flexible in one direction only; and are objectionable
because they give rise in wear to a considerable amount of inconvenience and frequent.
breakages in consequence of their rigidity in a lateral direction especially in the case
of corset busks.
The object of this Invention is to secure the avoidance of the disadvantages and
inconvenience hereinbefore referred to and for this purpose I construct the artificial
whalebones such as busks, bones, stiffeners and similar articles from a number of
parallel wires and preferably of tempered steel wires, connected together by suitable
ligatures bands clamps envelopes and similar devices as hereinafter more particularly
described. The number and dimensions of the wires employed must in each case be
determined by the character and dimensions of the article to be constructed therefrom
and will in each case be sufficiently obvious.
The accompanying drawings illustrate busks, bunes and stiffeners constructed
according to these Improvements and are hereinafter referred to.
Fig. 1 shews a pair of busks for corsets with their eyelets and studs; Fig. 2 shews
in plan and side view respectively a stay bone busk or stiffener without connecting
devices; Fig. 3 is a plan and side view of a busk bone or stiffener bent at the same
time to the form of the bust and sidewise, she wing how the article may be simul-
taneously bent in two directions; Fig. 4 shews a small bone or stiffener such as is
used for insertion in corsets and bodices and Fig. 5. represents a bone similar to that
illustrated by Fig. 4 but covered with linen or a similar fabric.
In each of the Figures the thick dark lines A represent the wires which are laid and
secured parallel with each other. These wires are preferably in one layer only but in
some exceptional cases two or even more layers may be employed.
As repre-
sented in the drawings the wires are held together at some portion or portions of
their length by metallic clamps or ligatures but they may be wholly or partially
enveloped in linen or other fabric alone or in combination with the metallic clamps or
ligatures.
In the case of busks for corsets the metallic clamps may conveniently have the studs
and eyelets B formed or secured thereon; these studs and eyelets corresponding in
construction and functions to the similar devices on busks of ordinary construction.
The busks, stiffeners and "bones" constructed according to these Improvements
are in all cases preferred to be terminated by metallic capules D which are com-
pressed upon the ends and these as well as the clamps and ligatures C which are
employed to prevent the separation of the wires and to keep them level, are con-
structed arranged and applied so as not to bind the wires too tightly but to permit
their "play" or independent relative motion when the article is bent in any direction,
and also to allow the wires to return freely to their first or normal position.
Busks, "bones" stiffeners and similar articles constructed as herein before described
are perfectly flexible in every direction and are much less liable to injury than those
of ordinary construction whilst they at the same time give equal support and are far
more comfortable in wear.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is-
(1) Artificial whalebones constructed of a number of metallic wires connected
together by means of suitable clamps or ligatures substantially as hereinbefore
described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
(2) Artificial whalebones constructed of a number of metallic wires connected
together by an envelope of linen or other fabric substantially as hereinbefore described
and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
(3) In artificial whalebones a series of parallel metallic wires arranged so as to
forin flat metallic elastic springs flexible in all directions; substantially as herein-
before described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 22nd day of November A.D. 1889
WILLIAM E. HEYS,
Agent for the Applicant.