Improvements in Window-frames and Sashes.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Dec., 1895-Accepted, 11th Jan., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Window-frames and Sashes.
I JOHN WILLIAM MCDOUGALL of Napier in the Provincial District of Hawke's
Bay in the Colony of New Zealand Journalist 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 :-
My invention relates to that class of windows having sliding sashes in which the
sashes are so arranged relatively to the window-frames as to be capable of more or
less easy removal therefrom for facilitating the cleaning of both sides of the
window-panes or the painting or repairing of the said sashes.
In some of the arrangements heretofore devised for this purpose the sash-cords
are attached to the upper parts of the sashes or to their centres so that on the
removal of the whole or part of the beads or stops the sashes may be drawn inwards
and more or less completely reversed for cleaning or other purposes. In these
arrangements special fittings are required for attachment to either the sashes or
the frames and on reversing the sashes the weighted cords either pull against the
reversal or fail to assist it.
Now my invention has for its objects to obviate these drawbacks and facilitate
the reversal of the sashes.
For these purposes I construct and arrange the frames and sashes as follows:
Instead of cutting in the sashes the ordinary grooves for the reception of the
sash-cords which grooves run partly down the sashes I rebate each of the outer
edges of the sashes from the top to the bottom.thereof or nearly so the rebates thus
formed being of sufficient depth to admit the said cords which I attach to the said
sashes at the bottom thereof by means of screws or otherwise. I rebate the
pulley-stiles at that part in which the lower sash slides to such a depth as to allow
the upper and outer sash when pulled inwards for reversal to clear the pulleys and
cords appertaining to the lower and inner sash which I make of corresponding
width. In order to allow of the withdrawal of the said outer and upper sash I cut
the parting-beads flush with the top of the lower sash or at other suitable parts.
The lower parts of the said beads are fixed but the upper parts (ie. the parts above
the cuts when the beads are cut flush with the top of the lower sash) I make
removable at will and fix them in their places by means of bolts hinges or other
suitable fastenings. I cut the inside beads a few inches below the top of the lower
sash. The lower portions of these beads are fixed but the upper parts I make
removable at will preferably by hinging them to the pulley-stiles and I fix them
also in position by means of bolts or other suitable fastenings. In like manner if
necessary I hinge the upper horizontal bead.
My invention may be modified as follows: Instead of rebating the sashes as
aforesaid to make room for the cords I make grooves in the pulley-stiles for the
cords to run in. In this case the peripheries of the pulleys are flush with the faces
of the stiles and I construct pulleys for this adaptation with the face-plates thereof
grooved or rebated for the passage of the cords."
My invention may be easily and cheaply adapted or applied to ordinary
window-frames for sliding-sashes whether they be fixed in buildings or not. In
this case instead of rebating the stiles as described I affix to those parts of the stiles
in which the outer sash runs a filling-strip of wood or other suitable material of
sufficient thickness so that when the upper sash is correspondingly reduced in width

page_text: it will on removal clear the pulleys and cords in those parts of the stiles in which
the lower sash slides. The rebating of the sashes the hanging of them at the
bottom and the cutting and fixing of the beads and stops are performed as
herein-before described.
Although I prefer so to arrange the sashes and so to cut the parting-beads and
inner beads as to allow of the removal of the said sashes at the upper part of the
said frames the said sashes may where preferred be so arranged relatively to the
said frame and beads as to be capable of removal from the said frame at the lower
part thereof.
In this case the upper parts of the said beads are fixed and the
lower parts are made movable so as to afford clearance at the lower part of the
frame for the removal of the sashes therefrom and it is preferable to rebate those
parts of the pulley-stiles in which the inner and lower sash slides but it is not
necessary to do so. In this modification instead of cutting the aforesaid beads
and making some parts fixed and some movable the whole of the vertical beads
may be made movable.
My invention consists further in so arranging the pockets for the sash weights
as to provide a simple means of giving access thereto when required. In ordinary
arrangements for effecting this it is necessary to remove some or all of the
beads from the sash-frame and to remove a portion of the pulley-stiles. In doing
this work the said beads and stiles are frequently damaged and it has to be done
by a skilled artisan.
By this part of my invention I obviate these defects and I so construct the sash
frame that the weights and cords can be easily got at by an ordinary person.
According to this part of my invention 1 proceed as follows: At a suitable
height from the bottom of the sash-frame I cut off a piece of the lower part of
each of the inner architraves. At the back of each of these pieces I work a
rebate of suitable depth and width. I then fix fillets of the same dimensions as
these rebates to the sash-frames or to the wall-lining as may be most suitable so
that when the aforesaid cut-off pieces are replaced in position the fillets exactly
6ll the said rebates. I then hinge or otherwise affix the said pieces to the inner
beads so that the said pieces form "pocket-doors" opening outwards towards the
interior of the room and when closed they shut in the "pockets" or casings of the
frame in which the cords and weights run up and down. To keep these doors in
position when closed I use bolts or other suitable fastenings. By means of the
rebates and fillets arranged as described I leave a solid finish against which wall-
paper plaster or any other material used in the decoration of the room may butt
without risk of such material being damaged by the opening or closing of the
aforesaid doors.
This part of my invention may be applied to existing sash-frames whether they
be fixed in a building or not and this so cheaply that the cost of such application
will be almost nominal.
When this arrangement is applied to window-frames which are fixed in walls of
such thickness as to leave a space or "reveal" between the inner face of the wall
and the inner architrave of the sash-frame which space has to be covered by a
finishing-border I cut a portion of the said border adjacent to the doors of each
of the "pockets" aforesaid and hinge that portion to the inner architrave which
forms the finish to the window-opening so.that that portion of the said border may
be turned out of the way to give access to the said doors.
Having thus described the nature of my invention I will proceed to describe the
manner in which the same is to be performed reference being had to the accom-
panying drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a window frame and its sashes constructed and
arranged according to my invention.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of one side of the said frame.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of one side of the said frame with the sashes mounted
therein.

page_text: verse section or one side of the said frame, and Figure 5 is a
side elevation of a portion thereof.
Figure 6 is a transverse section of one side of the said frame constructed
according to one of the modifications herein-before described.
Figure 7 is a transverse section of one of the stiles of the said frame with the
pulleys mounted therein, according to another of the modifications herein-before
described. The said stile is represented separately in transverse section in
Figure 8.
Figures 9 10 11 13 14 and 15 are details herein-after described.
Figure 12 represents in horizontal section the "pocket-door" herein before
described as applied to a window-frame let into a "reveal."
The same letters and figures of reference indicate the same parts in all the
figures.
a¹ a² are the outer and inner architraves. 6¹¹are the pulley-stiles. c¹² respec-
tively are the upper and lower sashes. d' d' d2 d2 are the parting-beads. The
parts are fixed in the grooves 62 62 but the parts d² d² are fitted into the said
grooves so as to be capable of removal therefrom to allow of the removal of the
sash being fixed in position by bolts d³ d³ (see Figures 13 14 and 15) d' is the outer
stop. ele e e e are the inner beads. The parts e¹ e¹ are fixed but the parts e² e² e³
are hinged at 4 e so as to admit of their being turned out of the way for the
removal of the sashes. ese are the bolts by which the said beads are fixed in
position. are rebates which afford space for the cords g g which are attached
to screws ce. The pulley-stiles 61 61 may either be rebated at 63 as shown in
Figures 4 and 5 to afford clearance for the sash c¹ or where my invention is applied
to existing window-frames the same object may be attained by nailing filling-
strips (see Figure 6) on to those parts of the stiles between which the sash cl
slides the said sash in either arrangement being correspondingly reduced in width.
hh are the sash-pulleys.
It will be obvious that the whole of the parting-beads and inner beads may be
made movable but I prefer to make only those parts movable which have to
be taken out or turned back to afford clearance for the sashes whether the latter be
removed from the upper or the lower part of the frame.
Figure 7 represents the modification herein before described in which instead of
the sashes being rebated as represented in Figures 45 and 6 the said sashes are
left unrebated, and the pulleys are sunk in apertures 64 64 (see Figure 8) with their
peripheries flush with the stiles. In this case the face-plates of the pulleys are
grooved at h¹ has represented in side elevation (partly in section) in Figure 9 in
front elevation in Figure 10 and in transverse section in Figure 11 to afford space
for the sash-cords and longitudinal grooves 67 (see Figure 8) are cut in the stiles
for the said cords to run in. ii are the "pocket-doors" which are hinged at ¹¹
to the beads e¹ e¹ and are fixed in position by bolts 2 2 3is the rebate
in the door (shown open in Figure 1) and a³ is the fillet upon which the said
rebate fits.
"
When the "pocket-doors" are applied to window-frames fixed in a "reveal as
illustrated in Figure 12 part of the finishing-border is hinged as represented at j
to the inner architrave k so as to be capable of being turned out of the way to
allow of the opening of the "pocket-door" i as indicated by the dotted lines.
Instead of binging the said "pocket-doors
,, to the inner bead as herein before
described the said doors may be hinged to the fillets aforesaid. Or the said doors
may be fitted to the architraves so as to be capable of being entirely removed
therefrom in which case a countersink corresponding in shape with that of the foot
of the door is made in the nosing upon which the architraves rest and the said
foot is stepped into the said countersink the upper part of the door being fixed in
position by a bolt or other suitable fastening.
Figure 13 is a transverse section taken on the line X Figure 14 of that part of
one side of the window-frame, to which the part d' of the parting-bead. is bolted.

page_text: Figure 14 is a vertical section of part of the stile b¹ the said section being taken
on the line Y Figure 13 and the adjacent parts being represented in elevation
and Figure 15 is an elevation taken at a right angle to Figure 14. These figures
are drawn full size. The bolt d³ (which is an ordinary cabinet bolt) is let into a
rebate 6 in the stile . d d is an angle-piece or hasp the part d' of which is let
in flush with the side of the bead d. "The part d enters the rebate 66 so as to be
held by the bolt d³ when it is pushed down.
Any other suitable means of fixing the bead 2 in position may be used but I
prefer that represented.
The action of my improved window-frames and sashes is as follows: In order
to remove the sashes for cleaning or for any other purpose the beads e²e² and e
are removed or turned back the said sash c² is raised till its lower part is clear of
the tops of the beads e e¹ and the upper part of the said sash is pulled inwards
when it reverses freely turning upon the screws e as indicated in dotted lines in
Figure 3. To remove the sash c' the parting-beads d² d² are removed and the said
sash is pulled inwards when it reverses as above described with respect to the
sash c².
From this description it will be seen that all cutting of the outer beads or stops
is rendered unnecessary and that therefore there is no risk of the weather
penetrating through the said stops. Also that by hanging the sashes at the bottom
instead of at the top or middle in reversing the said sashes the pull of the cords
has not to be overcome but is on the contrary utilised in the reversal of the said
sashes. Further no special fittings whatever are required in window-frames and
sashes constructed according to my invention.
I wish it to be understood that I make no claim to movable beads per se and
that I do not limit myself to the precise details herein before described as they may
be varied without departing from the nature of my invention.
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 :
Firstly. Constructing combining and arranging the several parts of window
frames aud sashes as herein-before described with reference to Figures 1, 2, 3, 4
and 5 of the accompanying drawings that is to say rebating window-sashes and
hanging them from the bottom making the upper parts of the parting and inner
beads of the window-frames movable rebating the parts of the pulley-stiles in which
the lower sash slides and making the said sash of corresponding width so as to fill
up the extra width thus provided in that part of the window frame so that on
drawing the upper sash inwards it shall clear the pulleys and cords appertaining to
the lower sash essentially as herein-before described and illustrated in the aforesaid
figures.
Secondly. The modification herein-before described and illustrated in Figure 6
of the accompanying drawings that is to say nailing filling-strips upon those parts
of the stiles between which the upper sash slides and correspondingly reducing the
said sash in width essentially as and for the purpose described.
Thirdly. Rebating window sashes or the pulley-stiles of window-frames and
hanging the said sashes at or near the bottom thereof essentially as and for the
purpose herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Fourthly. The modification by which sashes rebated and hung from the bottom
as herein-before described can be removed from the lower part of the window-
frame that is to say making the lower parts of the parting beads and of the inner
beads or the whole of the said beads movable so as to afford clearance at the
lower part of the frame for the removal of the said sashes essentially as herein-
before described.
Fifthly. Applying hinged or removable "pocket-doors" to the frames or inner
architraves of windows in order to afford ready access to the weights and cords

page_text: essentially as herein-before described and illustrated in Figure 1 of the accompanying
drawings.
Sixthly. The modification providing for the application of the said "pocket-
doors "
to such window frames as are fixed in "reveals" essentially as herein-before
described and illustrated in Figure 12 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this Sixth day of December 1895.
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.