Improvements in and in the Construction or Manufacture of Cots and Bedsteads.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 19th July, 1899-Accepted, 30th Sept., 1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION,
Improvements in and in the Construction or Manufacture of Cots and
Bedsteads.
I, JOHN EBENEZER HOSKINS, Managing Director of Hoskins and Sewell
Limited, of Bordesley, in the City of Birmingham, Bedstead Manufacturers, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
An ordinary metallic cot and bedstead is provided with corner pillars and a
solid frame, but according to one form of the present invention, it is proposed
to make cots and bedsteads pillar-less and without a solid bedding-supporting
frame which is accomplished by making the said bottom frame to form a part
of, or integral with, the side and end rail portions of the structure.
In carrying out my invention in connection with a cot, I take head and foot
end rails, or framings each consisting of an assemblage of bar or rod members,
chilled or otherwise connected together by junction lugs, bosses or equivalents,
with the outer boundary member consisting of a single rod bent into the shape
of a crown and with the sides continued downward into long legs, braced by a
bow or semi-circular member the crown of which is chilled to a bottom frame
bar of the said end frame, and parts of the said bars being connected by bottom
corner chills to portions of the said boundary rod in a position corresponding to
the plane of the bottom of the cot, whilst the lower ends of the legs and the
ends of the bow shaped strut or brace may be chilled together to form the feet,
which be fitted with castors or the like.
Located within the space comprehended between the bottom bar and the
boundary bar of the end frame, which is wider at the top than the length of the
said bottom bar, is a filling-in framing of any desired pattern, but preferably
with an upright middle rod directed across it from the bottom frame rail or bar
to the middle of the curved boundary rail, with the members suitably chilled to
one another at their intersecting points. Further, top corner chills are employed
for tying the upper corners of the outer or boundary rail or bar to the contiguous
parts of the inner or filling-in frame.
The side rails of the cot may be of any design, but for the present purpose I
propose to make the same up with vertical and horizontal chilled-together rails,
with the former being curved to conform to the shape of the boundary parts of
the end rails coming between the top and bottom corner chills, whilst the ends
of the horizontal rails or bars of the said sides are wormed and take into gapped
pockets formed in the top and bottom corner chills or junction lugs, said pockets
preferably having their mouths presented to the inner side of the cot and raking
upwards to facilitate the dropping of the rails into position. The outer sides
of the said pockets are further formed with annular sinkings to take the corre-
ponding conoidal ends of coned nuts which are traversed upon the said screwed
nds of the rail for securely affixing the side rails to the end rails, whilst to
revent the nuts from backing off the ends of the rails are burred or rivetted
ver after the screwing home of the nuts.

page_text: Instead of retaining the detachable sides in position by nuts I may employ
cotters, keys or dovetail chills.
The bottom for supporting the bed may be a loose and portable one and have
hooked or equivalent parts adapted to engage and bear upon the bottom bar
members of either the end rails or the side rails, or both, which bars may, if
necessary, be slightly set inwards to form rests for the portable bottom, which
may have folding handles at the ends so that a nurse may bodily lift the bottom,
with the bedding and a child upon it, out of the cot without disturbing the
occupant. Further by having the open top of the cot expanded or of greater
width than the bottom, a child may be more easily lifted in or out than in a cot
with vertical sides.
I wish it to be understood-that I do not confine myself to any particular
pattern, design or arrangement of the component side and end rails of the
structure, and if necessary, the sides of the cot may be arranged to fold or turn
down by making the bottom pockets elongated and each with a gate or entrance at
the middle, whilst the upper pockets are also elongated but set obliquely and open
topped, so that when a side rail requires to be swung over, it is first lifted when
the lower journal ends are raised to the upper parts of its pockets and the upper
journal ends are cleared of the gaps in their particular pockets, and then the
rail is allowed to fall again, when its pivot ends come to the bottoms of its
pockets and it can be swung outwards and downwards.
The application of my invention to bedsteads differs in no essential respect
from its application to cots as herein described other than that the sides are only
made of such a height as to form the rests for the portable bottom.
Dated this 7th day of November 1898
JOHN EBENEZER HOSKINS.
By Henry Skerrett,
Agent for Applicant.
Improvements in and in the Construction or Manufacture of Cots and
Bedsteads.
I, JOIN EBENEZER HOSKINS, Managing Director of Hoskins and Sewell
Limited, of Bordesley, in the City of Birmingham, Bedstead Manufacturers, 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 follow-
ing statement:
-
An ordinary metallic cot and bedstead is provided with corner pillars and a
solid frame, but according to one form of the present invention it is proposed to
make cots and bedsteads pillar-less and without a solid bedding, supporting frame
which is accomplished by making the said bottom frame to form a part of, or
integral with, the side and end rails portions of the structure.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents a perspective view of a cot
_constructed and arranged to one form of my invention.
Figure 2 represents a cross section of the said cot, upon an enlarged scale.
Figure 3 is a view showing the sides of the cot in elevation, and its connections
with the ends in section.
Figure 4 represents an elevation of one of the said ends separately.
Figure 5 represents a plan, with a part in section, of the two sides, the two
ends and the bottom of the cot, disassembled or detached from one another.

page_text: Figure 6 represents a full-size view of one of the connections by which the
sides and ends are detachably connected together.
Figure 7 is a like view as Figure 6 but with the fastening nut removed.
Figure 8 shows the said connection in section upon the dotted line, Figure 6
whilst
Figure 9 represents like sectional views of the parts of the said connection
separated.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the said
Figures 1 to 9.
In carrying out this form of my invention in connection with a cot, I, take
head and foot end rails, or framings a, each consisting of an assemblage of bar
or rod members, chilled or otherwise connected together by junction lugs, bosses
or equivalents, with the outer boundary member a¹ consisting of a single rod
bent into the shape of a crown and with the sides a³, continued downward into
long legs a braced by a bow or semi-circular member b, the crown of which is
chilled at 6', to a bottom frame bar a' of the said end frame, and parts of the said
bar being connected by bottom corner chills as to portions of the said boundary
rod a in a position corresponding to the plane of the bottom c of the cot, whilst
the lower ends a of the legs a³ and the ends of the bow-shaped strut or brace by
are chilled together at 62 to form the feet, which may be fitted with castors d; or
the like.
Located within the space comprehended between the bottom bar and the
boundary bar of the end frame, which is wider at the top than the length of the
said bottom bar, is a filling-in framing a', of any desired pattern, but preferably
with an upright middle rod a8, directed across it from the bottom frame rail or
bar a, to the middle of the curved boundary rail a', with the members suitably
chilled to one another at their intersecting points. Further, top corner chills,
such as a³, are employed for tying the upper corners of the outer or boundary
rail or bar to the contiguous parts of the inner or filling-in frame.
The side rails e of the cot may be of any design, but for the present purpose
I propose to make the same up with vertical and horizontal chilled-together
rails e, e with the former being curved to conform to the shape of the boundary
parts of the end rails coming between the top and bottom corner chills, whilst
the ends of the horizontal rails or bars e2 of the said sides are wormed at eand
take into gapped pockets at formed in the top and bottom corner chills or
junction lugs a, a, said pockets preferably having their mouths a¹, presented
to the inner side of the cot and raking upwards to facilitate the dropping of
the rails into position. The outer sides of the said pockets are further formed
with annular sinkings or are coned at a¹³ to take the corresponding conoidal
end f, of coned nuts f which are traversed upon the said screwed ends of the
rods for securely affixing the side rails e of the cot to the end rails a whilst
to prevent the running nuts from backing right off their respective rods the
ends of the rails may be burred or rivetted over after the screwing home of the
nuts.
Instead of retaining the detachable sides in position by nuts, I may employ
cotters, keys, or dovetail chills.
The bottom c for supporting the bed may be a loose and portable one and have
hooked or equivalent parts adapted to engage and bear upon the bottom bar
members of either the end rails or the side rails, or both, which bars may, if
necessary, be slightly set inwards to form rests for the portable bottom, which
may have folding handles c' at the ends so that a nurse may bodily lift the bottom
with the bedding and a child upon it, out of the cot without disturbing the
occupant. Further by having the open top of the cot expanded or of greater
width than the bottom a child may be more easily lifted in or out than in a cot
with vertical sides.
Instead of forming open sided or gapped pockets in the chills of the end
rails with which the screw ended rods of the sides engage, I may make thorough-

page_text: fare holes for the said rods to pass through, in which case the lock nuts would
be removable, whilst, as a converse arrangement, I may form the pockets or holes
in the chills of the sides into which screwed ends of upper and lower rod
members of the end frames may take and be secured by nuts, cotters, pins.
I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself to any particular
pattern, design or arrangement of the component side and end rails of the struc
ture, and if necessary, the sides of the cot may be arranged to fold or turn down,
One method by which this may be effected is shown in Figure 10 and consists in
making the bottom pockets all elongated and each with a gate or entrance a12,
at the inner, side whilst the upper pockets a, are also elongated but set obliquely
and provided with open tops, so that when a side rail e requires to be swung
over, it is first lifted when the lower journal ends e³, with which it is provided,
are raised to the upper parts a¹³ of its pockets a¹¹, as shown in the figure, whilst
the upper journal ends e, are cleared of the gaps in their particular pockets all
and then the rail is allowed to fall again, when its pivot ends come to the bottoms
of its pockets and it can be swung outwards and downwards as represented in
the dotted lines.
Figure 11 is a view showing the application of my invention to a bedstead
having side rails of a different pattern or design. The application of my inven-
tion to other forms of bedsteads differs in no essential respect from its applica-
tion to cots as herein described other than that the sides are only made of such
a height as to form the rests for the portable bottom."
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 In cots and bedsteads, making up the framing from two sides and
two ends detachably secured together by the screw ends of rods of the one part
engaging with pockets or taking through holes in the other part and being there
made fast by means of nuts, substantially as described and set forth.
Secondly-In cots and bedsteads making up the framing from two sides and
two ends detachably secured together by the screwed ends of rods of the one
part engaging with side gapped pockets on the other part, which pockets have
coned seatings adapted to receive the like coned ends of running lock nuts work-
ing on the said screwed rod ends, substantially as and for the purpose described.
Dated this 18th day of July 1900.
JOHN EBENEZER HOSKINS,
By Henry Skerrett,
24, Temple Row, Birmingham, Agent for Applicants.