IMPROVEMENTS IN STOPPERS AND LIDS OR COVERS FOR JARS, BOTTLES, AND OTHER VESSELS, ALSO IN CLOSING AND FASTENING OTHER ARTICLES." PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Josiah George Jennings, of Palace Road, Lambeth,
in the County of Surrey, Sanitary Engineer and Manuel Leopold Jonas
Lavater, of Bath Street, Newgate Street, in the City of London,
India-rubber Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STOPPERS AND LIDS OR COVERS FOR JARS, BOTTLES, AND OTHER VESSELS,
ALSO IN CLOSING AND FASTENING OTHER ARTICLES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Josiah George Jennings.
and Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater at the Office of the Commissioners..
of Patents, with their Petition, on the 30th June 1863.
We, JOSIAH GEORGE JENNINGS, of Palace Road, Lambeth, in the County
of Surrey, Sanitary Engineer, and MANUEL LEOPOLD JONAS LAVATER, of Bath
Street, Newgate Street, in the City of London, India-rubber Manufacturer,
do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STOPPERS
AND LIDS OR COVERS FOR JARS, BOTTLES, AND OTHER VESSELS, ALSO IN CLOSING
AND FASTENING OTHER ARTICLES," to be as follows:-.
In constructing-stoppers for bottles according to this Invention we form
them in such manner that after the stopper has been introduced into the
[Price 8d.1

page_text: mouth of a bottle the stopper may, by air or other fluid being forced into
it, be expanded and caused to fit accurately within the mouth of the bottle.
This we by preference do in the following manner:-The portion of the
stopper that enters the mouth of the bottle is of vulcanized india-rubber, and
is formed hollow and closed at the bottom; the upper portion of the tube that
does not enter into the bottle is enlarged so as to form a head to the stopper;
passing across this enlarged head is a disc of metal, so that the hollow space
within the tube is completely enclosed; through the disc a hole, by preference
a conical one, is formed, in which a valve fits, and is capable of opening
inwards; the valve is of vulcanized india-rubber, and is kept in its place
within the hole by its being carried by a thin strip or disc, also of vulcanized
india-rubber. Above the disc is a hollow ball, and through the top of this ball
a small hole is formed. When the stopper has been introduced into the
mouth of a bottle, air is forced into its interior by placing a finger over the
hole in the ball and pressing it down; this compresses the air in the ball and
so forces back the valve, and allows the air to pass through small slits formed
in the disc that carries the valve into the tubular portion of the stopper, and
thus expand it; the finger is then removed from the hole in the ball, and the
same operation is repeated, if necessary, the valve in the disc always prevent-
ing any air that has once entered into the tubular portion of the stopper from
escaping out of it.
Covers for jars and other vessels we also form in such manner that the
joint between the cover and the jar or vessel may be rendered tight by
expanding in a similar manner the circumference of the cover after it has been
placed on the jar or vessel. The cover for a jar or other vessel is by preference
made of the same material as the jar or vessel, and around its circumference
a groove, by preference a dovetail one, is formed, in which a tube of vulcanized
india-rubber moulded to the form of the groove is inserted, the tube being
made to lie entirely within the groove. At one point of the inner circum-
ference of this tube a small hole is formed, and from this hole a small passage
formed in the material of the lid passes to a hollow chamber formed in the
centre of the lid; this chamber is closed at the bottom, and above the point
where the small passage opens into the chamber a disc is placed across the
chamber, so as to close it air-tight; in the disc is a small hole, fitted with a
valve opening inwards; above the disc and at the upper part of the chamber
is a half sphere or ball of vulcanized india-rubber, the edges of which are
connected air-tight to the sides of the hollow chamber; the mouth of the jar
is by preference formed with an internal ledge, on to which the lid is dropped.
The vulcanized india-rubber tube which is around the circumference of the

page_text: lid is then expanded by air being forced into it by the hollow ball being
pressed on, and as the tube is expanded it enters and fills a groove
formed all round the interior (or it might be the exterior) of the mouth
of the jar, thus forming an air-tight joint, or instead of the hollow ring
being placed around the outer circumference of the cover, it may be placed
on the under side the cover near to its outer circumference; if the cover be
then held down on to the jar or vessel by any suitable means, the joint
between them may be made air-tight by expanding the tube. 'The edge of
the half sphere or ball of vulcanized india-rubber we by preference connect
to the sides of the hollow chamber by forming all round the edge of the
half ball a dovetailed projection, which enters a dovetail recess formed around
the inner side of the hollow chamber, the edge of the ball will thus be
securely held.
Other articles besides jars may be closed or fastened in the manner above
described, such, for example, as windows drawers, and doors, the expanding
tube being made to go either partly or entirely round the door, drawer, or
window. In place of the joint between the lid or cover and the jar or vessel
being made air-tight by expanding a tubular ring placed around its circum-
ference, the lid may be provided with a washer on its under side near its
outer circumference, and the joint be made air-tight by the lid being drawn
down on to the jar by air being drawn from the interior by a similar arrange-
ment to that described for forcing air into the tubular ring; the valve is.
however, made to open ontwards in place of inwards, and the hole from the
hollow chamber to open directly into the interior of the jar or vessel. By
this arrangement if the flexible ball be first compressed, and a finger then
placed over the hole in the ball and the ball allowed to regain its original
shape, air will be drawn from the interior of the jar, and a partial vacuum
thus formed within it, the lid will thus be held firmly down. The washer on
the under side of the lid or cover we prefer to form of a ring of vulcanized
india-rubber, and to connect it to the lid by forming all round it a dovetail or
similar projection, which enters a dovetail or other undercut recess in the lid,
or the washer may in a similar manner be connected to the jar.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Josiah George Jennings and Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater
in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th December 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOSIAH
GEORGE JENNINGS, of Palace Road, Lambeth, in the County of Surrey.
Sanitary Engineer, and MANUEL LEOPOLD JONAS LAVATER, of Bath Street.
Newgate Street, in the City of London, India-rubber Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Josiah George Jennings and Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater, Her
special license that we, the said Josiah George Jennings and Manuel Leopold
Jonas Lavater, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said Josiah George Jennings and Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater,
our 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STOPPERS AND LIDS OR COVERS FOR JARS, BOTTLES, AND OTHER VESSELS, ALSO IN
CLOSING AND FASTENING OTHER ARTICLES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that we.
the said Josiah George Jennings and Manuel Leopold Jonas
Lavater, our executors, or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us or them,
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, said Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater, on
behalf of myself and the said Josiah George Jennings, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:
In constructing stoppers for bottles according to this Invention we form
them in such manner that after the stopper has been introduced into the mouth
of a bottle the stopper may, by air or other fluid being forced into it, be expanded

page_text: and caused to fit accurately within the mouth of the bottle.
This we by
preference do in the following manner:-The portion of the stopper that enters
the mouth of the bottle is of vulcanized india-rubber, and is formed hollow
and closed at the bottom, the upper portion of the tube that does not enter
into the bottle is enlarged so as to form a head to the stopper; passing across
this enlarged head is a disc of metal, so that the hollow space within the tube
is completely enclosed; through the disc a hole, by preference a conical one,
is formed, in which a valve fits and is capable of opening inwards; the valve
is of vulcanized india-rubber, and is kept in its place within the hole by its
being carried by a thin strip or disc, also of vulcanized india-rubber: above
the disc is a hollow ball, and through the top of this ball a small hole is
formed.
Figure of the Drawings hereunto annexed shews a section of a stopper
for a bottle constructed in the manner we prefer for carrying out. this portion
of our Invention. a is the hollow cylindrical portion of the stopper that
is to enter the mouth of the bottle, this piece is of vulcanized india-rubber,
and is closed at the bottom; the upper portion of the tube is connected to
the bottom of a metal tube b that forms the head of the stopper, the bottom
of the metal tube being turned over and caused to nip the top of the vulcanized
|india-rubber tube, as is shewn; across the lower portion of this tube is a
metal disc c, the disc being by preference attached to the tube by solder,
but other means may be employed; through the centre of the disc is a
conical hole, into this hole is received a conical valve d, of vulcanized india-
rubber, the vulcanized india-rubber cone is carried on the upper surface of a
vulcanized india-rubber disc, the disc and cone being formed together in one
piece. Below the disc of vulcanized india-rubber is a disc of metal e, from which
a thin stem e' rises up through the vulcanized india-rubber disc and cone at
its upper end; the stem has an enlargement upon it, which rests upon the top
of a spring, moulded or otherwise formed of vulcanized india-rubber, and by
this spring the valve is drawn up into its seat; the spring is composed of a
convex piece of vulcanized india-rubber secured at its outer edge to a metal
ring, the ring rests on the upper surface of the disc c; the convex piece has
holes formed through it to allow air to pass. The upper portion of the tube b
is closed by a portion of a sphere of vulcanized india-rubber g, the edge of the
portion of the sphere being connected to the tube by the upper portion of the
tube being turned over as is shewn, so as to nip the edge of the portion of
the sphere. Through the upper part of the sphere is a small. hole g', as is
shewn. When the stopper has been introduced into the mouth of a bottle air
is forced into its interior by placing a finger over the hole in the ball and

page_text: pressing it down; this compresses the air in the ball and so forces back the
valve and allows the air to pass through small slits formed in the disc that
carries the valve into the tubular portion of the stopper and thus expand it:
the finger is then removed from the hole in the ball, and the same operation
is repeated if necessary, the valve in the disc always preventing any air that
has once entered into the tubular portion of the stopper from escaping out of
it. When it is desired to take the stopper out of a bottle a small wire is
passed through the hole in the sphere, and the valve is thereby pressed
downwards, and the compressed air allowed to escape from the interior of the
stopper.
Covers for jars and other vessels we also form in such manner that the
joint between the cover and the jar or vessel may be rendered tight by
expanding in a similar manner the circumference of the cover after it has
been placed on the jar or vessel. The cover for a jar or other vessel is by
preference made of the same material as the jar or vessel, and around its
circumference a groove, by preference a dovetailed one, is formed, in which a
tube of vulcanized india-rubber moulded to the form of the groove is inserted,
the tube being made to lie entirely within the groove. At one point of the
inner circumference of this tube a small hole is formed, and from this hole a
small passage formed in the material of the lid passes to a hollow chamber
formed in the centre of the lid; this chamber is closed at the bottom, and
above the point where the small passage opens into the chamber, a disc is
placed across the chamber so as to close it air-tight; in the disc is a small
hole fitted with a valve opening inwards above the disc, and at the upper part
of the chamber is a half sphere or ball of vulcanized india-rubber, the edges
of which are connected air-tight to the sides of the hollow chamber; the
mouth of the jar is by preference formed with an internal ledge, on to which
the lid is dropped, the vulcanized india-rubber tube which is around the
circumference of the lid is then expanded by air being forced into it by the
hollow ball being pressed on, and as the tube is expanded it enters and fills
a groove. formed all round the interior (or it might be the exterior) of the
mouth of the jar, thus forming an air-tight joint, or instead of the hollow ring
being placed around the outer circumference of the cover, it may be placed on
the under side of the cover near to its outer circumference; if the cover be
then held down on to the jar or vessel by any suitable means, the joint
between them may be made air-tight by expanding the tube. The edge of
the half sphere or ball of vulcanized india-rubber we by preference connect
to the sides of the hollow chamber by forming all round the edge of the half
ball a dovetailed projection, which enters a dovetail recess formed around the

page_text: inner side of the hollow chamber, the edge of the ball will thus be securely
held.
Figure 2 shows a vertical section of the upper part of an earthenware jar,
and also an earthenware lid provided, as above described, with a tube of vul-
canized india-rubber around its circumference that can be expanded by air or
other fluid being forced into it. a is a ledge forured around the top of the jar,
on which ledge the outer circumference of the lid rests. b is the tube of vul-
canized india-rubber, which may be moulded within the groove formed around
the circumference of the lid, or it may be moulded in a suitable mould, and
then applied to the groove in the lid. This tube, when unexpanded, lies
entirely within the groove. c is a chamber formed in the centre of the lid.
This chamber is closed at the bottom, and from the lower part of the chamber
a small passage el passes to the groove around the circumference. The vul-
canized india-rubber tube that lies in the groove is formed with a small tube
bprojecting from it, that is received in the outer end of the passage c'. The
passage c¹ thus communicates with the interior of the tube of vulcanized india-
rubber. d is a disc across the chamber c. This disc is carried by a small
tube d, that is fixed by cement to the interior of the chamber c. In the
centre of the disc d is a small hole, that is closed by a valve composed of a
disc e of vulcanized india-rubber, that is kept up against the under side of the
hole by a convex spring of vulcanized india-rubber. This spring rests on the
bottom of the chamber c. The disce is kept in its place by a projection on the
under side of the disc entering a hole in the top of the convex spring. g is a
portion of a sphere of vulcanized india-rubber that closes air-tight the top of
the chamber c. This sphere has a small hole g' formed in it. When this
hole is closed by a finger being placed upon it, and the sphere is pressed on,
air will be forced past the valve e, and the tube d thereby expanded and
caused to fit within the groove h, formed around the interior of the jar, or the
groove might be dispensed with. The lid may be withdrawn from the vessel
by depressing the valve e by a wire, and so allowing the compressed air in the
tube to escape.
Other articles besides jars may be closed or fastened in the manner above
described, such, for example, as windows, drawers, and doors, the expanding
tube being made to go either partly or entirely round the door, drawer, or
window.
Figure 3 shews a section of a portion of the. sash of a window provided with
a tube of vulcanized india-rubber in this manner. a is the tube; this tube
passes entirely around the frame, and lies within a groove formed to receive it.
The tube has at any convenient point a short tabe a' projecting from it, that.

page_text: is connected with a tube as shown, which may have inflating apparatus
applied. This is constructed in a similar manner to that shown at Figure 2;
but in place of air being forced in by pressing on a portion of a sphere, as in
that arrangement, a mouth-piece c is provided, so that air inay be blown
directly into the tube. The valve that prevents air escaping from the tube
is also in this case provided with a small stem d, by pressing on which the
valve can be opened, and the compressed air allowed to escape from the tube.
e is a spring, by which the valve has a constant. tendency to return to its seat,
when not forced from it by air passing in through the mouth-piece c.
In place of the joint between the lid or cover and the jar or vessel being made
air-tight, by expanding a tubular ring placed around its circumference, the lid
may be provided with a washer on its under side near its outer circumference,
and the joint be made air-tight by the lid being drawn down on to the jar by
air being drawn from the interior, by a similar arrangement to that described
for forcing air into the tubular ring. The valve is, however, made to open out-
wards in place of inwards, and the hole from the hollow chamber to open
directly into the interior of the jar or vessel. By this arrangement, if the
flexible ball be first compressed, and a finger then placed over the hole in the
ball, and the ball allowed to regain the original shape, air will be drawn from
the interior of the jar, and a partial, vacuum thus formed within it; the lid will
thus be held firmly down. The washer on the under side of the lid or cover
we prefer to form of a ring of vulcanized india-rubber, and to connect it to the
lid by forming all round it a dovetail or similar projection, which enters a dove-
tail or undercut recess in the lid, or the washer may in a similar manner be
connected to the jar.
Figure 4 shows a section of the upper portion of a jar, and also a lid pro-
vided as above described with apparatus for withdrawing air from the interior
of the jar. a is the washer around the under side of the lid, to which it is con-
nected by passing into a dovetail recess formed therein as shown. b is a metal
tube that is cemented into a recess formed to receive it in the lid; it has a
screw thread b' formed within it, into which the metal chamber b is screwed.
c is a passage opening out of the bottom of the chamber into the interior of the
jar; this passage is provided with a valve .d of vulcanized india-rubber,
opening inwards into the chamber, as is shown. The top of the chamber is
closed in by a portion of a sphere e of vulcanized india-rubber, having a hole f
therein. By compressing this portion of a sphere, air is driven out of the
chamber through the hole f; a finger is then placed over the hole, and when
the portion of the sphere is allowed to regain its original position air is drawn
from the interior of the jar into the chamber through the valve d; this

page_text: operation is repeated until a suflicient vacuum is formed in the jar. A valve
opening outwards may, however, be employed to close the hole j, by which
means a vacuum would be formed with increased facility. When it is required
to remove the lid, the chamber is turned partly round, by which means air
will be admitted by the screw, and the vacuum destroyed; the lid may then
be readily removed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Manuel Leopold Jonas Lavater, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Thintieth day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
M.L. J. LAVATER. (L.S.)